Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 74

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Diana’s mimicry of twinkling stars with her fingers was utterly adorable, yet the Duchess Elrad could not bring herself to smile freely.
If a small child had taken an immediate liking to him, then surely Lia would also come to favor Askart for the kindness and gentleness he possessed.
“What are you saying? If it were Ascart, perhaps, but Lia… what could she possibly—”
Allen, who had been about to bluntly refute Diana’s words, faltered.
“Well… when she smiles, it does seem a bit like that.”
The Duchess Elrad, startled by his remark, asked.
“Allen, does Lia seem to sparkle when she smiles?”
“Hmm, not often, but sometimes? And when I can’t see her, I find myself wondering where she is and looking for her.”
The moment Allen finished speaking, Taize, who had been standing guard beside him, cast a glance at Jack, who had recently become his son.
Jack appeared to be trying to conceal his reaction, yet the subtle tremor in his pupils and the rigid set of his jaw betrayed his bewilderment quite plainly.
Then Allen added something more.
“It’s probably because Diana treasures her maidservant so much! Right?”
“…”
“…”
Unlike Allen’s confident tone, as if certain of his answer, the atmosphere around them grew awkward and heavy.
It was then that Allen tilted his head in confusion.
“That’s right.”
At his brother’s affirmation—the one he always considered the cleverest person in the world—Allen broke into a radiant smile.
As Allen’s laughter deepened, bewilderment flickered across the Duchess Elrad’s gaze toward Lucio.
“Sister!”
Diana cried out.
Everyone turned their heads to see Askart and Lia approaching, their hands clasped together tenderly.
“Sister, I missed you so much!”
“Miss, I missed you too!”
As Lia immediately released Askart’s hand and rushed forward, the Duchess Elrad exhaled a sigh of relief, though a corner of her heart continued to whisper with unease.
“Good day, Duchess Elrad. It has been quite some time since we last met.”
Meanwhile, Askart offered his greetings with impeccable courtesy, shining brilliantly as though a halo itself were radiating from behind him.
The Duchess Elrad had remained in her territory all this while, so this was the first time she had seen Askart since he was very young.
It was while she was warmly returning his greeting and inquiring after the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess that—
“You, why have you gained so much? What is all this?”
Allen asked Lia bluntly, as she spun about with Diana in a joyful reunion after only a few hours apart.
Indeed, since entering the Academy mere hours before, Lia had been carrying a pouch brimming with accessories swept up from the market stalls, yet she clutched an even more precious treasure to her chest—a thin envelope of pale beige paper.
Watching Lia, who only smiled bashfully when asked what it was, Allen pouted his lips and asked with barely concealed curiosity.
“Be honest with me. You regretted going to the library, didn’t you? It really wasn’t fun at all, was it?”
“No, I really, truly enjoyed it!”
Lia answered at once, her eyes sparkling as she gazed up at Askart.
“I thought countless times that coming to the Academy today was the right choice. It was truly the best!”
In that instant, Lucio’s expression twisted grotesquely.
* * *
A few hours earlier.
“Your Highness, could you please help me solve this problem!”
At my words, which came as if I’d been waiting for this moment, Askart’s expression shifted to one of surprise.
But it was only fleeting—he smiled with ease and said, “I’ll help with anything I can.”
After listening to my explanation for quite some time, Askart spoke.
“So what you’re saying is… you need to infuse mana into only a specific object?”
“Yes! And the surrounding area must not be affected at all.”
The reason I sought Askart’s assistance was none other than the Splesia cultivation research that Duke Elrad’s Physicians and Mages were currently staking their efforts on.
In fact, when I met with Baron Bardo and Tellin, the chief mage, not long ago and learned of the research’s progress on Splesia, I was greatly taken aback.
Since I had spoken with Baron Bardo beforehand, I had anticipated that cultivation wasn’t proceeding properly, let alone research into Splesia’s efficacy—but I never expected the progress to be this stalled.
Splesia remained in the Mana Greenhouse exactly as it had looked when I first discovered it—like a common weed.
It seemed they couldn’t even attempt other research until they properly cultivated it first.
When fully grown, Splesia blooms with pale pink flowers, and all of it—flowers, leaves, stems, and roots—can be dried and used as medicinal material.
Yet it was strange that I, who had spent my days at the Orphanage, knew such detailed information.
After deliberating, I lightly hinted to Baron Bardo that the leaves and roots had been effective when I chewed them raw.
In the end, though reluctant, the Baron took a few leaves away for research.
Next came the mages’ turn.
The greatest obstacle currently blocking the cultivation research was the inability to solve the problem of infusing “warm energy” into the frozen ground.
The mages initially thought it simple and placed artifacts that regulated temperature, but if they made the frozen ground warm, it would no longer be frozen ground—so the fundamental requirement was already disqualified.
Eventually, they realized that infusing warm mana was the solution, but that turned out to be the beginning of their real difficulties.
The mana needed to be infused into the roots, not the ground, and designing magic circles and artifacts capable of such precise adjustments proved challenging.
I tentatively suggested whether it would be possible for me to directly infuse mana into the ground as I had done in the past, but every mage shook their head, saying it was impossible to handle one’s mana so freely without a calculated magic circle.
‘So I even considered stepping in myself…’
But if I did that, my abilities would be exposed, and I might end up confined to the greenhouse indefinitely.
In the end, the conclusion was that developing magic circles and artifacts was the right approach for long-term cultivation.
However, I only knew how to handle mana directly—I was practically a novice in the fields of magic circles and artifacts.
I had started studying in the library belatedly, but I only felt the growing gap between what I originally knew and what I was learning, and I was beginning to recognize the limits of self-study.
Then, when Askart from Bellus Duchy, who was skilled in magic, offered to help, my eyes lit up.
“It’s a bit tricky, but it’s not impossible.”
At that moment, Askart explained in a matter-of-fact tone.
Simple artifacts are designed by engraving circles containing basic magical formulas and infusing mana stones or mana into them, but higher-dimensional artifacts are made while considering such intricate conditions as well.
It was truly an explanation befitting the Grand Duke of Bellus Duchy, where artifacts had been commercialized even for ordinary citizens.
“Um, so if I wanted to create an artifact with this magic circle based on my description, how would I go about it?”
“Ah, so you want to maintain the surrounding temperature while infusing only warm mana.”
When I showed him the magic circle I had drawn over the past few days while studying books, Askart grasped the core of the problem at a glance.
With his already dazzling appearance, it seemed as though a halo shone behind him in that moment.
* * *
Askart Bellus—this man was truly a genius.
I kept stealing glances at him as I left the library.
Askart had said he would take us to see the fireworks that were about to begin.
Though I hadn’t gotten to see the library at all while working on the magic circle for Splesia’s artifact, I felt no regret whatsoever.
‘How much would this be worth if converted to currency?’
I shook my head, contemplating the magic circle that Ascart had completed and now cradled in my arms.
Currency? The value of this transcended mere monetary calculation.
At first, I’d thought he was being unnecessarily boastful, but the more I considered it, the more Ascart’s words rang true—Bellus Duchy’s magical prowess was simply incomparable to the Empire’s.
‘Perhaps even the mysteries surrounding the magic I’ve learned and Master himself could be unraveled in Bellus Duchy…’
“Be honest with me. You regretted going to the library, didn’t you? It really wasn’t fun at all?”
Allen, whom I’d reunited with moments ago, posed the question to me.
“No, I genuinely enjoyed it! I thought several times today that coming to the Academy was the right decision.”
I’d secured capital for my business venture with ease, and even the problem that had weighed on me was resolved like this.
It was undoubtedly the finest day imaginable.
Yet the moment my answer concluded, both Allen and even the Duchess Elrad regarded me with expressions of displeasure.
“Madam, I shall take my leave now.”
It was then that Ascart spoke to the Duchess Elrad.
Ascart exchanged warm glances with Allen and Diana before turning his gaze to me one final time.
“Lia, it was truly wonderful meeting you today. Let’s see each other again next time. Don’t forget what I said.”
I nodded quickly, and he offered a gentle smile before turning to leave.
Perhaps because his sudden departure caught me off guard, I felt an unexpected pang of regret.
“Lia, what did you do in the library that was so entertaining?”
Jack approached my side and asked in a hushed voice.
“The Grand Duke taught me various things related to magic.”
I answered matter-of-factly.
“And he wants to invite me to Bellus Duchy.”
“What?!”
“Ah, you startled me!”
I flinched at the loud outburst, touching my ear reflexively.
I was genuinely shocked that it was Jack, of all people, who suddenly bellowed like that.
Jack himself seemed startled by his own outburst, his expression bewildered.
That was when it happened.
“Y-you, you, you’re g-going to Bellus Duchy?”
“Pardon?”
Though I was the one who should have been shocked, Allen cried out in a tone brimming with astonishment.
“Are you going to Bellus Duchy?!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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