Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 82

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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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To be honest, I didn’t understand it either.
Even the numerous servants employed at House Elrad had their designated off-hours and days of rest.
But neither held much meaning for me.
Diana simply refused to be separated from me.
Of course, since I had little work to do, I harbored no great complaints—but this time, I had no choice.
‘I need to sell my magic stones!’
I couldn’t venture out with Diana, and my young age made late outings difficult, so I was troubled until I learned that the entire Duke’s household had been invited to an Imperial Palace banquet on this very holiday.
Since the Emperor himself would be attending, servants couldn’t be brought along, meaning I would be left alone at the mansion—perfect for slipping out.
‘And while it would normally be proper to report my departure to the Head Maidservant….’
Feeling somewhat awkward about that, I went directly to the Duchess instead.
〈Hmm, going out? I think you should ask the Duke about that.〉
I’d honestly expected immediate approval, so I was caught off guard by the Duchess’s response.
But unable to contradict her, I waited for an opportunity to speak with the Duke, and at last that moment had arrived.
Yet the Duke still regarded me with an expression of bewilderment.
I had already resolved that if permission wasn’t granted this time, I would simply leave early on a day when Diana had classes all day and slip out without warning.
“Your free time on holidays is yours to use as you wish, so if you want to go out, you should. But that day…. While the Capital City’s security is good, you’re still far too young. Perhaps next time would be better….”
“Ah! Please don’t worry about that.”
Seeing the Duke’s reluctant expression, I cried out urgently.
* * *
“So… you’re saying you’ll go out alone with that boy Jack?”
At Lia’s following words, the Duke asked in bewilderment.
Lia nodded and offered this explanation:
The coming holiday happened to be a day off for Jack as well—her former Orphanage companion and apprentice knight—so they had decided to go out together.
In truth, looking at the other servants, permission for outings was merely a matter of managing who entered and left the mansion, not truly a question of granting or denying it.
‘Since Lia is still so young, I was trying to use safety as an excuse.’
“…With that boy alone, you say.”
The boy Jack, who had recently become Taize’s adopted son, was someone the Duke knew quite well.
Though the same age as Allen, he was mature and composed, and despite starting swordplay late, his skills far exceeded those of an apprentice knight—a boy with great potential to become a core force of the Lexion Knights.
Honestly, if Lia insisted on going out, I had intended to assign her a guard, but with Jack accompanying her, I could only nod in agreement.
Of course, Lia had already anticipated that I wouldn’t let her go alone, which was why she’d suggested going out with Jack.
With no other option left, the Duke finally realized that his wife had left him with a difficult decision, and he swallowed hard.
Not only was it Lia’s outing in question, but her companion as well, so it was natural he felt reluctant to grant permission easily.
But lacking grounds to refuse, the Duke slowly opened his mouth.
“Very well. But you must be careful and return before it grows too late.”
“Yes!”
At the answer she desired, Lia’s expression brightened instantly.
“However.”
The Duke called out to stop Lia, who was about to bow and leave.
“I believe I told you before not to call me ‘Master.'”
“Yes?”
“I told you to call me Duke, not Master. Why do you keep insisting on Master?”
At the Duke’s words, Lia laughed awkwardly.
All the other servants at the Duke’s Mansion called him Master and the Duchess by Madam, so she couldn’t fathom why he alone wished to be addressed differently.
The Duke understood Lia’s confusion well enough, but he found it frustrating that he couldn’t openly say, “You are different from the other servants.”
He couldn’t treat a child he’d once considered adopting as merely a servant, and since she herself showed no desire for his patronage, he found himself uncertain about Lia’s future at the Estate.
He was actively searching for a new adoptive family for her, but somehow no suitable option presented itself, and time simply slipped away.
Naturally, he continued to keep Lia as a maidservant, though it seemed he would need to make a decision soon.
“Very well. You may go.”
When the Duke gestured for the bewildered child to leave, Lia bowed once more before departing the Study with light, bouncing steps.
Watching her go, the Duke’s heart grew heavier, and he released a weary sigh.
“Come to think of it, it was Lia who recommended that boy to the Knight Order.”
He’d heard the lad possessed exceptional swordsmanship talent, but he’d thought little of it at the time.
Today, however, the Duke found his mind churning with unexpected thoughts.
“Could the two of them share something… special?”
They’d relied on each other in that wretched Orphanage before coming to the Duke’s Estate together, so perhaps they harbored deeper feelings for one another…
“Ridiculous! They’re still just children. What am I even thinking?”
The Duke, who had been sitting alone in serious contemplation, clicked his tongue and shook his head vigorously.
Yet even after that hollow laugh, the disquiet in his chest refused to fade.
It felt as though he’d just heard his daughter was going on her first date.
‘I thought I wouldn’t feel this way for at least another ten years.’
Moreover, it wasn’t simply a father’s affection for his daughter—his head throbbed with confusion.
Strangely, his eldest son at the Academy came to mind.
* * *
“Miss, I’ll be going now…”
“Sniff… Sister…”
Jack watched as Diana, despite having come to see him off, wore a tearful expression and sniffled miserably, while Lia fidgeted nervously beside her, and he released a quiet sigh.
They weren’t even being separated for days—merely less than a full day—yet the two of them clung to each other like lovers facing the most tragic of farewells.
Allen’s sullen reaction, insisting that Jack had deliberately chosen a day when he and Diana were visiting the Imperial Palace for his outing, was comparatively more reasonable.
Allen, who had recently trembled and gnashed his teeth over having to call each other “dear” and “darling” because of Lia, was properly offended and hadn’t even come to see them off.
Of course, Lia herself seemed entirely unconcerned, questioning why a young master would bother seeing off a maidservant.
“Lia, we need to leave now.”
A servant happened to be heading to the Capital Square on business, so they’d arranged to ride in the cargo wagon.
Seeing the driver signal from a distance, Jack spoke, and Lia pressed a kiss to Diana’s cheek with a reluctant expression.
“Miss, I’m really going now. Please have a good visit to the Imperial Palace.”
“Yes. Sister, travel safely…”
Lia gazed at Diana with eyes brimming with lingering attachment until the last moment, then turned and came to stand beside Jack.
“Let’s go.”
“…Yes.”
It was he who had been urging her to leave all this while, yet the moment Lia approached, Jack’s body went rigid.
In truth, though he maintained a composed facade, he was quite nervous himself.
It all began a few days ago when Lia suddenly appeared at the Training Grounds and asked me to go out with her.
Moreover, Taize’s words as my adoptive father had set my heart fluttering inexplicably.
“Isn’t this your chance, Jack! Since Lia asked you out first, you’d better do well.”
“A, a date…? No, it’s not like that!”
I was only just beginning to dimly recognize my own feelings, yet I hadn’t expected Taize standing beside me to have already noticed. Jack felt a sharp pang of embarrassment.
Though I waved my hand in denial, flustered, Taize only laughed louder and handed me the allowance he’d neglected to give me before.
“…Thank you. I’ll use it well.”
After a moment’s hesitation, I accepted the allowance.
I was somewhat bothered that Taize had been sulking about receiving allowance from the Duke, but I recalled how I’d only eaten at Lia’s expense during our last outing.
If I simply gave her the allowance as-is, it was clear she wouldn’t accept it again, so this time I resolved firmly that I would be the one to pay first.
But the moment I sat down beside her in the rattling carriage, the reality of going out alone together suddenly struck me, and my palms began to sweat.
‘It’s just a simple outing…’
In truth, it was rare for Lia to go out, but I had left the Duke’s Mansion several times besides the Academy Festival—observing apprentice knight training and security duties.
Even during the adoption procedures, Taize had shown me around the Capital City and taken me to various restaurants, so there was nothing particularly unusual about going out with just Lia.
Taize’s voice echoing in my mind—”Do well on your date!”—continued to linger, but I deliberately ignored it and turned my attention to Lia.
Then something suddenly caught my eye.
“What are you carrying…?”
Perhaps due to my nervousness, I’d been watching Lia for some time, yet only now did I notice the large bundle she held.
Lia, who seemed to be letting it pass quietly, answered awkwardly.
“This? I brought various things just in case—an umbrella, an outer coat, things like that.”
“You’re not a peddler…”
A slight gasp escaped her. Lia, whose heart had been swelling with thoughts of selling mana stones, marveled anew at Jack’s perceptiveness and apologized.
“Sorry. If you’re embarrassed to be seen with me…”
“N, no, that’s not it!”
Realizing I’d unintentionally made a cutting remark, I blamed my own tone and hastily changed the subject.
“You’ve never seen the Capital City before, right?”
“Huh? Well… I suppose not?”
“I came out last time. I know the Capital Square and several decent restaurants. Oh, and that dessert café famous for the chocolate you like…”
“…”

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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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