ITDHC 06

Chapter 6

“Kyah!”

The centipede turned its gaze toward the owner of the voice.

Should I use this chance to get out of here? Or is it better to keep hiding?

After hesitating for a moment, Elissa stepped onto a cushion and peered out through the carriage window to see what was happening outside.

Richard…!

Just as she had expected, Richard was standing face-to-face with the giant centipede.

The centipede attacked Richard with one of its countless legs.

But Richard swiftly dodged, and the monster immediately followed up by striking down at him with its mouth, venom dripping from its jaws.

The centipede’s mouth slammed into the frozen ground.

Richard easily avoided the attack, stepped on the back of the centipede’s head, and leaped over it, landing lightly behind the monster.

Only then did the centipede pull its mouth free from the ground.

It looked around, unable to find Richard.

“Over here.”

By then, Richard had gathered moisture-laden wind and formed a thunderstorm as large as the centipede itself.

A moment later, the thunderstorm swallowed the monster whole.

“Kyaaaah!”

Inside the violently swirling storm, the centipede was repeatedly struck by lightning.

When the thunderstorm finally disappeared, only the monster’s blackened corpse remained.

Richard confirmed that the centipede was no longer moving and turned around.

The servants who had been accompanying Elissa had been thrown from the carriage and were unconscious, while the knights were fighting the smaller monsters that had appeared alongside the giant centipede.

Richard’s eyes met Elissa’s as she cautiously peeked through the carriage window.

He immediately approached her.

Then he flew up to the carriage window and held out his hand to rescue her.

But Elissa pushed the terrified, crying Anne forward first.

“Get this girl out first.”

After pulling Anne out, Richard lifted Elissa into his arms.

He looked quietly at Elissa, who had wrapped her arms around his neck.

Her small body was still trembling.

Even though she herself was frightened and confused, she had given up her chance to be rescued first so that an even smaller child could be saved.

Should I call her stupid, or kind…?

Richard set Elissa down and checked her condition.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine.”

Just then, three men approached Richard.

“Are you perhaps the Young Duke of Rubellin?”

They were the people who had been fighting the monsters earlier.

Only someone who possessed the power of Rubellin could freely control wind and lightning, and Richard was currently the only member of the Rubellin bloodline capable of using that power.

So it was only natural that they recognized Richard after seeing his abilities.

Richard eyed the imperial emblem embroidered on the man’s uniform suspiciously before answering.

“So?”

“Indeed, you are! We were actually on our way to Rubellin Castle when we happened upon this. What a coincidence… Thank you so much for saving us.”

“You appear to be an imperial knight. What brings you here?”

“Ah, well…”

The man reached inside his coat and pulled something out.

He handed it to Richard.

“His Majesty the Emperor sent this invitation to the Young Duke.”

It was an invitation bearing the imperial seal.

“So… he wants to meet the woman who will eventually become the duchess…”

At dinner that evening, Albert quickly skimmed through the Emperor’s invitation before handing it back to the butler beside him.

Elissa stared intently at the ornate letter in the butler’s hand.

The Emperor’s reason for sending the invitation was obvious.

He wants to see whether the cheeky little girl who stole the position that should have belonged to his daughter actually exists, or whether the duke simply made me up to avoid Richard’s marriage to the princess.

And he probably wanted to determine how easily he could get rid of her as well.

Of course, Albert would never allow Elissa to be eliminated by the Emperor.

Not because Elissa was precious to him, but because doing so would wound Rubellin’s pride.

Besides, in the original story, Elissa survives safely and gives birth to Hanes.

Elissa quietly waited for Albert to make his decision.

Albert picked up his soup spoon and spoke.

“The aristocratic council in the capital is being held around that time anyway. There’s no harm in leaving a few days early.”

The Emperor might not be able to retaliate simply because they refused his invitation, but avoiding an imperial invitation was something Rubellin’s pride would never allow.

“The puddles should have dried up in three days.”

Albert listened to the sound of rain outside as he ate his soup before giving Richard and Elissa an order.

“We will leave for the capital in three days. Prepare yourselves.”

The journey from Rubellin Castle in the north to the capital was a long one, taking more than fifteen days by carriage.

All the servants traveling with them suffered through the long journey, but one person in particular was having an especially hard time.

“Ugh!”

For example, someone who suffered from motion sickness.

The moment the carriage stopped, Anne jumped out and ran into the nearby grass, where she vomited.

Because the entire group had to stop on the roadside for one young maid, everyone turned their annoyed gazes toward Anne.

Albert also looked displeased that their schedule had been delayed.

“What a useless girl… We cannot be held up on the road because of her. If she makes us stop the carriage one more time, we will leave her behind.”

They had brought motion-sickness medicine before departing, but they had just run out after using the last of it.

The medicine was quite expensive and could not easily be found in the small villages they passed along the way.

To reach a larger village where they could buy more, they would have to make a detour of at least half a day.

Even if someone rode ahead on horseback to get it quickly, the carriage would still have to stop, and the sun would set during that time.

Then they would have no choice but to camp on the road, something everyone wanted to avoid.

Albert was not generous enough to endure all that inconvenience for the sake of one maid.

But it’s not like the child wants to get motion sick!

Elissa was unhappy with the way Albert was treating Anne.

Anne was only ten years old, after all, so her symptoms were worse than those of the adults.

“Anne, are you all right?”

Elissa checked Anne’s pale face as she climbed back into the carriage, tears still welling in her eyes.

“I’m sorry…”

Anne sobbed as she curled up on the floor of the carriage.

Normally, maids were allowed to ride in the same carriage as their masters, but they could not sit in the same seats.

The hard carriage floor was their place.

If she stays like that, her motion sickness will only get worse…

Worriedly watching Anne, Elissa reached out and took hold of her arm.

“Anne, sit here.”

Elissa pointed to the seat right beside her.

Anne flinched and shook her head.

“N-No, I can’t.”

“It’s fine. Come up.”

“But…”

Anne hesitated.

If anyone saw her doing this, she would be severely scolded.

But Elissa drew the curtains over both carriage windows and urged her on.

“Come on.”

Anne cautiously began to sit down, then glanced at Richard, who was sitting across from Elissa.

Richard had been awake just moments ago, but he had his eyes closed now, as though he had fallen asleep.

Anne finally gave in and sat beside Elissa.

But that was not enough for Elissa.

After briefly checking Richard’s reaction, she moved all the way over to the seat beside him and handed Anne a cushion.

“Lie down and get some sleep. You’ll feel better once you fall asleep.”

“I-I can’t…”

Before Anne could say anything more, Elissa placed her index finger against her lips and pointed meaningfully toward Richard beside her.

Anne looked at Elissa with an almost tearful expression.

But when she saw Elissa silently urging her on, she reluctantly lay down across the seat.

Only then did Elissa smile in satisfaction.

The young madam really is like an angel.

Anne was certain of it.

Of all the people she had met since she was born, Elissa was the most beautiful.

Probably even among all the people she would meet for the rest of her life.

Anne gazed at Elissa for a while before slowly falling asleep.

The quiet carriage soon filled with her steady breathing.

Elissa watched Anne sleeping peacefully and spoke in a low voice.

“Thanks for turning a blind eye.”

At those words, Richard, who had been keeping his eyes closed, slowly opened them.

“…Your meddling is wider than the Enril Sea.”

The Enril Sea was the enormous ocean between the Western Continent and the Eastern Continent.

By now, Elissa was used to Richard’s way of speaking, so she grinned and retorted.

“You’re no different for turning a blind eye too.”

“……”

“We’re accomplices, aren’t we?”

Rather than answer Elissa, Richard picked up the book beside him and began reading.

After some time had passed, Richard reached out to turn the next page.

Then a light weight gently pressed against his shoulder.

It was Elissa’s head.

She had fallen asleep without him noticing.

Her soft blonde hair tickled the side of Richard’s neck.

He did not particularly dislike the sensation.

Richard remained frozen for a moment.

Then, once again, he quietly closed his eyes and let it pass.

The members of the Rubellin ducal family arrived in the capital a little over fifteen days later.

There were many mansions in the capital where nobles stayed while traveling there from their main estates, but the Rubellin ducal residence was the largest and most splendid of them all, befitting the family’s reputation.

However, exhausted from the journey of more than fifteen days, Elissa fell asleep as soon as she arrived without even having a chance to look around the residence.

The next day, a designer arrived with a large collection of finished dresses made according to the measurements of Elissa’s body that had been taken and sent ahead of time.

As a result, Elissa spent the entire day holding a fashion show without even having time to recover from the journey.

And finally, the day of their visit to the Imperial Palace arrived.

The designer and maids who had come to the residence in advance began dressing Elissa as soon as she finished breakfast.

“Oh my, how beautiful you look!”

After spending several hours dressing her, the designer looked extremely pleased with the result of her hard work.

“You look just like a princess’s doll.”

“Lord Richard will fall head over heels when he sees you.”

Even the usually quiet maids chimed in with their own comments.

Wow…

Normally, Elissa would have simply brushed off such compliments.

But today, even she could not take her eyes off her reflection in the mirror.

The girl in the mirror was wearing a soft, light-pink dress that fluttered like flower petals.

Her silky blonde hair was braided to one side, and she wore a feathered hat over it, giving her the unmistakable look of someone dressed for a spring outing.

Her small, pale face, large light-green eyes, and cherry-red lips had not changed, but somehow she looked completely different from usual.

Just as she finished getting ready, the door opened, and someone entered.