CH 445

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Tour Guide Mia

“Hnnngh…”

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Mia’s unhappy mumbling could be heard in her carriage. The difficult part of the Chronicles kept coming back to her thoughts, and it was making her feel bad.

“Oh, Mia-sama, what’s wrong?”

She looked up and saw Esmeralda looking worried. Behind her stood Tiona, Citrina, and Bel, who all had the same worried look on their faces.

“Oh, don’t mind me. I just…didn’t sleep much last night, so I’m a little tired.”

Mia stretched. It really was a yawn. Last night really had been one with no sleep. After joining two of Greenmoon’s luxury coaches to make one big room, all the girls—Mia, Esmeralda, Tiona, Bel, Citrina, and even the servants Anne, Liora, and Nina—got together for the mother of all girl talks, an all-night, no-holds-barred chat fest supreme. The night was filled with giggles and gasps as the talk moved from Liora’s scary forest stories to Tiona’s stories about ghost towns, and then to Citrina’s story that took the cake.

Mia didn’t know what was said because her mind wouldn’t let her remember things that were so scary. Mia was really scared, unlike Bel, who munched on snacks while listening with great interest. Usually, she would cling to Anne for support, but Nina had taken away her maid, and the two were chatting away. Mia was left alone because no one was ready to help her. Alone with her fears, she was kept awake.

In fact, she did feel sleepy. The lie was because of how dour she was.

The book says that the fight with the bandits who stole from caravans happened just a little north of here, and that’s where he died.

She was sad because of what happened to Sion. So far, their trip had gone pretty well, but…

This broken carriage wasn’t part of the plan. Even if we leave right away, we probably won’t get there in time if we keep going in the same course. Ugh, I guess I won’t be able to go to the nearby town to buy tasty gifts…

She thought like a seasoned tour guide as she worked quickly to keep as much of the plan as possible while making up for the delay. She was sad to decide that she didn’t have time to stop and shop. Just as she was about to give up hope and accept this terrible news, someone knocked on the door of her carriage.

“Excuse me, Princess Mia. Could I talk to you for a minute?”

The captain of Sunkland’s guard came in at her bidding. Count Lampron sent him and his group here as Esmeralda’s escorts.

Most of Sunkland’s standing troops could be put into two groups. One was the army of the king, which made up half of its total size. The private troops of local nobles made up the other half of the army. The group that was sent to watch over Esmeralda was made up of people from Count Lampron’s secret army.

Mia smiled at the man who was bowing.

“Thank you, Captain, for your hard work. We are very grateful for the safety you and your men give us.”

The captain gave her a startled look when she thanked him instead of being angry.

“Well? Go ahead,” she said, tilting her head in surprise at his surprise. “I think you wanted to talk about something with me?”

Mia had totally forgotten how she had ended up in Esmeralda’s group of followers. She used the “selfish princess” card and showed up without warning, saying, “I, Mia Luna Tearmoon, will be Esmeralda’s friend, and that’s that!” The captain’s face at the time said, “This is the worst day of my life.” It was a sight she wouldn’t soon forget. She thought that, at least. She forgot it pretty quickly, it turned out. Mia is good at having a flexible mind, among other things.

“Uh, I’d like to tell you that a caravan of merchants just went by not far from here.”

“Huh. A group of merchants, you say?”

“Yes. They look like they are going to the capital. I know you were planning to go shopping. If you’d like, I can ask them to wait, and you might want to take a look at what they’re selling. We won’t be able to leave again for a while.”

“I see. Not a bad idea at all. Even so, I was getting bored here.”

Mia didn’t care where she got local favorites from Sunkland, as long as she got them. If the company was good enough, that would be fine. Sunkland was also known for its silverwork, so the other girls who were also sitting in their cars with nothing to do might find it fun to look at the goods for sale.

Of course, they could be thieves pretending to be merchants…

She was aware of the chance, but she wasn’t worried because she had Dion Alaia with her. A man who could easily break metal in half stood just a foot away from her. She would wish anyone who tried to swing a sword around him good luck. They would need it, but it wouldn’t be enough. Since the Sunkland captain was the one who told her about the traders, it seems likely that Dion was keeping an eye on them himself.

I’ll also be bringing Ludwig… This is the safest thing that can happen.

“What do you think, Esmeralda?” she asked, making sure to ask the most important person at the party.

“I really like the idea! Let’s go and see what it has for sale!” Esmeralda was all for the plan.

“Good. This couldn’t come at a better time. Then, let’s go take a look.”

Mia did forget the part of the chapter about Sion’s death that said what the bandits who killed him were attacking in the first place…