Chapter 54

Where Water Flows II (6)

Translated by WookEdited by Wook

It was dinner time, but there was not a single sound of tableware hitting each other.

It was because everyone was distracted by something else.

It was expected that the shortest place in terms of the time it would take to complete the work on this trip to the West would be the barony, but the reality was not so easy.

Adam, the commander of the Baron’s family knights, informed that there was a report of sudden monsters appearing near the area where it was originally planned to search for water veins.

The Baron’s mansion, where Elisha and her party were currently staying, was located in the center of the long and narrow barony.

In order to provide appropriate support to the barony, it was necessary to find the water veins by balancing the left and right sides of the territory.

This means that once they find a water vein by moving to one place, whether it is to the left or the right of where they are, they have to bear the trouble of returning and moving in the opposite direction through the center again.

Since that was the case, Elisha wondered if it would have been better to hold the destination biased to one side from the beginning and just proceed horizontally. In the end, there was almost no difference in the total distance traveled or the time required to finish the work with Eyim County.

The Marquis, who said that it is polite to meet the owner first when going to someone else’s estate, naturally chose the central route unless there was a special reason.

Because if Elisha started doing her work without greeting the baron first, it would be considered demeaning. In any case…

“I-If Your Highness moves from the Polek area to another place, resentment will erupt from the nobles in the vicinity.”

“Why would they make a fuss when we’re looking for water veins in the barony?”

“Y-You see… It’s been a while since any of us got any help… So, if some water veins are found, isn’t it only good for us? Especially because our land is a land that looks very good to share with other estates. Hahaha!”

Everyone was wondering if the Baron was joking, but seeing that he really was being so self-righteous, it seemed that he really thought it was the truth.

He truly believed that others could not easily take out what’s in his pocket.

Elisha couldn’t quite understand, while Marquis Rwanda looked astonished in a different sense.

“So you’re saying that we have to look out for them too?”

“L-Lord Marquis, how could it be possible? I was just… Well, the decision is yours anyway, so I was just…”

“You were just trying to tell us the truth without missing a single thing, weren’t you, Baron?”

When the knight commander Adam stepped forward to fix it, the Baron nodded his head broadly.

“Y-Yes. That is right!”

“Enough. Those of you who have been arguing over such useless things, bring me a map. Either we find a new suitable area, or monsters…”

The discussion got long.

The food laid out on the big long table got cold.

As the 3rd Prince, Leon struggled to straighten his posture while listening to the discussion so as not to be found faulty. He tried his best to listen, his appearance was both proud and pitiful.

“Keep talking. Since it’s going to take a while, we’ll go in first and wait.”

As Elisha put down her fork and knife and spoke, the Marquis frowned. But he just nodded without much opposition.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

When Elisha got up with Leon, Rohan also put down his glass after taking a sip.

When Elisha disappeared with the group, the Marquis wagged his tongue more blatantly, and the Baron only paid attention.

“I’ll go out too!”

Tricia didn’t listen to her father’s answer and left the dining room behind while clutching the hem of her skirt.

“Excuse me…!”

Elisha and her party, who were ahead of Tricia, stopped walking.

Tricia bowed her head and clasped her fingers and spoke.

“Since you are going to wait anyway, how about going out for a while? It’s not as flashy as the capital city, but there are quite a few strange things from the desert, so it’s worth seeing.”

“…”

“I want to see you too. I used to visit often, but lately, the knights of the family have been busy dealing with monsters, so it was difficult to ask for them. But my father would be worried if I tried to go alone, so he never gave me permission.”

“…”

“Then guide us. Can you?”

Tricia, who slowly raised her head, saw a completely different person before her, not the one she had in mind the whole time.

“Hmm. I’ve been looking forward to it.”

“Yes?”

Tricia thought she was calling Rohan, who had been behind before. However, when the party heard Tricia’s call, the position changed and Rohan’s position was occupied by Elisha, who was now before Tricia.

Rohan was escorting Elisha, therefore, he had taken a step back.

“Since you want to be the guide, then do so.”

When Elisha spoke, Tricia frowned, but did not dare undo what she had said.

Her goal was only asking Rohan, so she had to confirm that he was going to accompany Elisha out of courtesy.

However, Tricia had expected that Elisha would say no because how could a woman who enjoyed seeing only the splendor of the capital be interested in the trivialities of such a barren land.

Actually, Tricia herself hated the hot sun, the unpleasant smell mixed with the common people, and the noisy street rather than liking it.

“Yes… ”

But Tricia decided to accept it for once.

Having succeeded in making time to be with Rohan, thinking that there will be next time somehow.

The atmosphere outside was good.

The procession was long, but the group’s steps felt light because they were moving with a simple group of people.

Although it was a short distance, it was also enjoyable to see Leon bursting in admiration for the exotic scenery influenced by the desert while riding a horse-drawn carriage.

Knowing her child was grieving over the separation with his beloved brother Benjamin, Elisha hoped this brief outing could soothe the child’s mood.

In that respect, this frivolous woman of the barony, did something surprisingly useful.

Apparently, Elisha seemed to have a little bit of mercy, just like how some of the rumors described her.

They finally got off the carriage for a full-fledged tour.

The street wide enough for two carriages to run side by side was quiet, but the shops lined up on the left and right of the road were filled with people, so it didn’t look flat.

The atmosphere was perfect for sight-seeing.

In recent years, the logistics flow has improved due to confusion or aid from various incidents, this quietness should have seemed strange indeed.

But Elisha did not view the pretense as disturbing.

She only wondered if Tricia had made preparation for the outing beforehand.

And whether that was true, she kept showing objects and foods that outsiders might be interested in.

As Leon’s eyes widened, the fountain of mercy in Elisha’s heart also deepened.

That’s why.

Every time they went to a store, Elisha bought a bunch of stuff, making the steps of the knights who accompanied her heavy.

But she didn’t expect it would turn like this.

All of a sudden, a carriage came from the opposite side.

“Ah!”

Tricia suddenly groaned as if she had injured her foot before she stumbled.

She reached out to Rohan, who was the nearest person around her.

No, it would be more accurate to say that she tried to throw her own body towards him.

Unfortunately, Rohan’s senses were not focused on that side.

Kukkung! Kukkung!

It wasn’t a dangerously fast speed, but the body bounced off the floor and made some noise.

And then again. Dukyung!

This time, the sound was exceptionally loud.

The body of the carriage leaned heavily to the side.

“Huh?”

As everyone continued to watch, the atmosphere that had loosened up became tight once more.

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Elisha threw herself into Leon, who was walking in the lead without paying attention to his surroundings with a lot of toys in his arms, and hugged him.

And the carriage only stopped only after crossing the street and reaching the entrance of the store on the other side.

The coachman skillfully stabilized the body of the carriage. Was this a common occurrence here?

The tilted balance was corrected, and the lifted carriage wheel hit the dirt floor.

Thud!

It was as if nothing had happened before.

Elisha’s fingertips trembled. While she was confirming Leon’s safety, a shadow covered her head.

Elisha spoke without checking who it was.

“I almost broke it.”

“Were you startled?”

“Leon is fine.”

In response, Elisha found the rest of the party.

She found Tricia leaning on Perry in an oblique position across the street, vaguely supported as she almost fell to the ground.

If it wasn’t for the mercy Elisha had filled beforehand, she would have corrected Tricia’s antic right away without promising later.

“Mother, it is said that there are deserts in the Empire land near the border with the Miyon Desert. That’s why they sell a lot of desert goods!”

Even if everyone was dressed in plain clothes, it would not be easy to deal with the current situation just because they were with Tricia…

When Leon, as cute as a doll, stared at anyone with twinkling eyes or wiggled his fingers, most people would be anxious to lower their defense and do anything he wanted right away.

This was also what happened to the owner of one of the shops they stopped by earlier, even though the owner was already busy trying to please Tricia.

Elisha couldn’t refuse.

“Then, let’s go and see.”

Elisha took Leon’s hand and walked.

Elisha looked at those who were about to follow from the other side and shook her head lightly.

There weren’t many knights who accompanied her in the first place, and some of them were already sent to their carriage to leave the luggage, and the rest had loads of things in their hands.

But at the moment, she couldn’t deal with Tricia directly, so she needed someone to look after her.

The knights, who hesitated even at Elisha’s instructions, turned around only after Rohan gave a signal that it was okay to follow her arrangement.

“N-No!”

Elisha could hear Tricia’s shouting for some reason when she had already walked farther away.

The atmosphere here was quite different because it was off the main road.

Narrow alleys stretched out in the direction she was going, and in between, there were no proper shops, but there were stalls selling items randomly on the dirt floor.

Leon’s steps were brisk as if he had seen a treasure chest.

Elisha let his hand go so the child could run around freely, and watched from behind.

“Waa!”

Leon, walking around excitedly, bumped into a child his age who was crouching in front of one of the stalls.

As the child turned over, Leon hit the child’s buttocks.

The toy Leon was holding fell to the floor.

A child in shabby clothes looked at the toy with his eyes wide open.

Leon felt the child’s gaze, and held out one of his toys.

“I’m sorry. I’ll give this to you as an apology.”

At Leon’s words, the child swallowed with his dry throat and looked back.

When a man from a distance approached them wondering what was going on, the child involuntarily curled up his half-stretched hand and clenched it, then struck Leon’s hand with his fist.

Takk!

With a fairly loud noise, the toy in Leon’s hand was thrown away.

Leon’s hand turned red.

“Whatever! Do you think I’m a beggar?!”

The child jumped up and she turned around and ran to the man.

“Dad!”

The man looked down at the child and glanced at Leon.

Even though it was his first time seeing Leon, and even though Leon was dressed plainly, Leon had an unusual aura, so this situation was somehow unsettling.

After the man spoke to the child, the child burst into tears.

“I hate you, Dad! I did it because I thought you would be upset!”

When the child burst out like that, the man sighed and glanced at Elisha, who was behind Leon.

When the man bowed his head slightly towards Elisha, Elisha frowned as she turned her head to he side.

Her contorted gaze met Rohan who was at the side.

Since when has he been looking at her like that?

“I won’t kill them.”

As Elisha spoke strongly, a faint smile crept into Rohan’s reddish brown eyes.

“Is that so?”

“So don’t keep looking at me like that!”

“I just can’t believe it. Even if it was just a child, the prince almost got hurt. No matter what punishment you give, it won’t be excessive.”

At Rohan’s words, Elisha whispered in a low voice.

“Like hell I would.”

“Yes? What did you say?”

“Nothing. Keep talking, Sir Rohan.”

Even though he was puzzled by her pretending tone, Rohan replied.

“But when it comes to faults, my fault for not properly escorting is the biggest. I was just trying to tell you that if you’re going to punish anyone, you have to start with me.”

Look, here it comes.

Even though there wasn’t any malicious intent, it didn’t mean that Rohan himself was silently stepping down just because Elisha’s permission came first.

“Yes, yes. Let’s settle at that.”

Elisha nodded bitterly.

She wondered if it felt like a certain indulgence that they were completely distracted from the main topic because they were talking to each other?

The man quickly put his hand on the child’s back and pushed it.

As the child continued to cry, the man who had walked a little further squatted in front of the child.

The child snorted in dislike, but eventually sat down on his father’s shoulder.

The man got up with the child on his back, and the child clasped the man’s head with his arms and rubbed his face.

One could even hear laughter.

Leon couldn’t take his eyes off them.

Leon took turns looking at the two and the toy the boy had dropped.

For some reason, Leon’s disappointed eyes drooped.

Translator’s Note:

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“I-If Your Highness moves from the Polek area to another place, resentment will erupt from the nobles in the vicinity.”

In this case, I assume this Polek area is a part of the Baron’s fief, and that the “nobles in the vicinity” are other nobles of the Western region that are not getting help from Elisha. A reminder that Elisha’s tour only has 3 places in agenda; Rwanda Marchy, Eyim County, and Syuphl Barony, as these places have the worst condition.