*
Chapter 36: Elsie (3)
It felt strangely chilly in the night air.
Moreover, even a city as big as Basilium seemed to get dreary and ominous at night.
After wandering around the city for a while, I finally stopped.
“Is this enough?”
I turned around.
I had just gone around this city a few times, and aside from that, I hadn’t done anything else.
Yet, there were quite a few people gathered behind me.
“Was there this many?”
I estimated the number of people I could see.
“About eight, it seems.”
If I counted those who were still hiding, there would be even more.
All of them were hired by the kingdom to track down Princess Ershiarah.
I couldn’t help but wonder how they had chased me all the way to this place.
But why were they chasing me, you ask?
Well…
“They don’t even know what the princess looks like.”
Ever since I arrived in this town, I had felt curious eyes on me.
At first, I didn’t realize the identity of those gazes, but once I learned that Elsie was here, it clicked.
“They think I might be the princess.”
If there’s any eyewitness information from Saint City Hailen, they would know the princess had been cross-dressing.
And at just the right time, here I was with blond hair that looked somewhat similar.
Though it had a slightly muted tint.
“But they weren’t sure about it.”
So they couldn’t act against me during the day when there were witnesses or while I was with Elsie.
They were just observing until they had confirmation that I was the princess.
But now, things were different. I was alone, and they had no reason to hesitate.
In that case, I had only one thing to do.
Convince them.
I opened my mouth.
“What are you hesitating for?”
An ominous pressure spread through my voice.
*
In the shadowy night street, a few men moved stealthily.
“Is that really the princess?”
“What have you heard? They said the princess cross-dresses. Plus, that guy’s blond hair is not something you see around here.”
They were following a blond boy.
“But isn’t that blond a little muted?”
“Maybe he dyed it.”
“He’s also bigger than I thought he’d be?”
“Kids grow up fast, you know. The guys from the kingdom probably remember how the old princess looked.”
“So…”
The man being questioned couldn’t hold back and spoke urgently.
“Enough. There’s probably no one watching. Let’s just grab him and threaten him.”
Of course, he didn’t feel completely at ease either.
The boy was just wandering around the town doing nothing.
“It seems like he’s trying to shake us off, but that won’t work.”
As the boy continued walking, more pursuers were joining them.
Among them was a man claiming to be a hero candidate.
But the growing number of pursuers made him increasingly anxious. That would mean they’d have to share whatever reward amongst more people.
Just as he was feeling impatient…
The boy finally stopped.
And turned around.
“What now?”
He instinctively hid, but for some reason, it felt like he made eye contact with the boy.
The boy stood there quietly for a moment before speaking.
“What are you hesitating for?”
His voice echoed through the air.
It was a pretty standard taunt, but there was something different about that voice.
Pressure, charisma, and a noble dignity that exceeded that.
The man was convinced.
“That guy is the princess!”
*
“They’re buying it.”
The hesitant pursuers’ eyes lit up with excitement as they moved in.
Inheritance 1: [Rose Emblem (Minor)]
Inheritance 2: [Royal Emblem (Minor)]
Inheritance 3: (Inactive)
The second inherited stigma was the Royal Emblem.
It was inherited from Ershiarah, whom I trained alongside.
And now, that inherited trait was shining through.
[Authority of the Leim Royal Family (Minor)]
Gains a certain dignity and charisma befitting the bloodline of the Leim royal family. However, activation of the relic [Royal Sword] is not possible.
In a way, it’s a completely useless trait when it comes to battles. If it were the original [Authority of the Leim Royal Family (Major)], it might be able to activate the royal sword, but that’s also out of the question.
It only showed that Ershiarah had immense growth potential, but the trait itself was pretty worthless. Plus, skills like [Court Etiquette] that she had were just dead-weight skills.
Therefore, the Royal Emblem had once been one of the stigmas that were avoided.
Until I found another way to use [Authority of the Leim Royal Family (Minor)].
Some insane incarnation device located in Sakh.
Originally, that device could only be used by Princess Ershiarah, but if I could inherit just this trait, any character could use it.
There were various conditions like “Must not be a hero,” but apart from that…
I planned to apply this trait to protect Elsie.
From this moment on…
“I will become the third princess of the Leim Kingdom.”
<The trait [Absolute Obedience] is manifesting.>
The pursuers charging at me.
They were underestimating me, thinking I was unarmed.
“Just a bit more…”
I had to wait until as many of them as possible were within reach.
Calmly waiting, I pulled out the Relic Gravitas Replicant from my inventory.
The weight of the sword was as light as possible.
And I infused the lightened sword with Wind’s Power.
It had become a natural motion through repetitive practice.
“Now’s my chance!”
I slashed at the surprised enemies with incredible speed, appearing suddenly from nowhere.
They probably didn’t even see it.
But there was already blood spraying from the path the sword had taken.
“Ugh!”
“Run… run away!”
Some quick-witted ones started to flee immediately.
But most chose to watch cautiously instead of running.
“I still need to do better.”
At this rate, they would keep chasing me.
A few might be fine, but there were still too many.
“What now?”
Just as I lifted my sword toward a man lying on the ground…
“You’ve got quite the skill, princess.”
Someone watching stepped forward.
He was holding a hefty-looking sword in one hand.
“Can he even wield that?”
Moreover, a faint light was flowing from the sword.
That must be a relic.
“Should I avoid this?”
No, actually, this was a great opportunity.
Seeing that the surrounding members parted for him, it was clear he was recognized among the pursuer group.
Nothing could be more certain than defeating someone like that.
“Moreover, an unknown relic…”
The chances of it being a 1-star relic were high.
In that case, I wouldn’t have to think too much about variables.
1-star relics usually only complemented their appearance and didn’t have any actual effects.
But just then, an irritating remark caught my ear.
“How about I play with you, big brother?”
My arm prickled.
But there was no time to think.
The man immediately swung his sword.
“This guy must die.”
I resolved to go all out.
I twisted my sword to deflect the man’s attack.
It was a heavy attack, matching the weight of his sword.
But it didn’t matter as long as I didn’t take it head-on.
After deflecting the attack, I immediately lunged for a counterstrike.
But the man swiftly leaned back to evade my strike.
Even with Wind’s Power added, he probably expected it.
He had plenty of experience in hand-to-hand combat.
“Haha, pretty fast!”
As he complimented me, the man lifted his knee.
His knee struck hard against my solar plexus.
“Ugh…”
My vision blurred for a moment.
“Just breathe!”
<The trait [Absolute Obedience] is manifesting.>
It felt like my chest was tearing apart.
But somehow, I was able to regain my breath forcefully.
I used my sword to block the man’s next attack.
Watching me, he said with a grin,
“Act like a princess. I don’t want to cause you too much damage.”
He didn’t seem to think he would lose at all.
With ease, he swung his sword again.
‘Well then.’
But I didn’t think I would lose either.
His sword clashed against my Relic Gravitas Replicant.
The man was forced back. I had released the weight of the sword just before impact.
He let out a surprised sound.
“Huh?”
His wrist throbbed.
But I didn’t hesitate to move on to my next action.
Releasing my grip on the sword, I drew Night’s Shadow from the air.
And I plunged it into the man’s neck.
The sensation of breaking bone as it went deep inside.
He was definitely dead.
Deciding so, I pulled Night’s Shadow back out.
The man, who had just faced death, wore a look of disbelief.
The others watching were in the same state.
That’s enough.
“Now they won’t chase me carelessly.”
Wiping the blood off Night’s Shadow and the Relic, I put them back into my inventory.
The street was once again engulfed in silence.
The pursuers had vanished, watching me with caution.
“Guess it’s time to set off.”
Probably a few would keep following me.
In that case, they would report back accordingly.
The princess headed towards Sakh.
*
“Yawn…”
A cozy bed.
The warm sunlight coming through the window.
It was too difficult to awaken in such an environment.
But she had to get up.
“Today is the day Allen leaves.”
Rising from bed, she pulled out the hand mirror she bought yesterday.
The reflection staring back at her was a mess.
Eyes sticky with sleep, hair tousled.
“I can’t see Allen looking like this.”
She couldn’t even recall what she looked like the first time she met Allen.
She went to look for the basket she had set aside for washing her face.
In the meantime, she realized something had been left by her pillow that she hadn’t seen last night.
“What is this?”
It was a letter.
A sudden sense of foreboding washed over her.
“No!”
She dashed out of the room immediately.
Making her way to the inn staff.
“Excuse me, do you know when the blond man I was rooming with checked out?”
“Oh, you mean the gentleman? He hasn’t checked out yet.”
“Really? Do you know what room he’s in?”
If he hadn’t checked out yet, there was a chance he was still here.
While that hope excited her, the innkeeper’s next words let her down.
“Huh? That would be Room 201.”
The innkeeper replied with a tone that suggested the question was strange.
Room 201 was the very room she just left.
In the first place, Allen had not booked a separate room.
“Then…”
After thanking the innkeeper, she returned to her room.
Now all that was left was a single letter.
With trembling hands, she carefully unrolled the letter.
~
To Elsie
An urgent matter has come up, so I had to leave Basilium a day earlier than planned.
You probably won’t see me tomorrow morning. Instead, I’ll leave you this letter.
There’s just one thing I want to tell you.
If you work hard under Miss Gwen, I promise we’ll meet again soon.
That much, I can guarantee. I will work hard to make it happen too.
And I’ve left some coins under the bed, so you can use them where you need.
Allen
~
He was a liar until the end.
But she couldn’t blame him for that.
He had never tried to deceive her with bad intentions, as far as she knew.
“Allen…”
She had given him nothing in return.
Yet Allen had pulled her out of a deep pit.
So she made a promise.
On the day she meets Allen again.
She would definitely repay him.
She would cultivate the strength needed to do so.
*
