The Munchkin Princess Wants to Run Away - Chapter 20

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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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“At least we’re out of that barracks.”
Ivanna smiled with relief, sipping warm tea as she spoke.
The Duke’s House party had come to a halt, fortunately just after arriving at the Count’s Castle, which was sizable enough. A road for carriages ran back toward the Duchy.
She’d expected no delays to their schedule unless there was another landslide like before, but she hadn’t known about the wide, deep river that cut across the exit from the County.
The river level had risen dangerously close to the bridge itself, or so they said. They were stranded again until the rain let up.
‘I wish we’d arrive at the Duchy soon.’
After distributing meals to the village residents, something had shifted in him—another change of heart, for reasons she couldn’t fathom.
Ever since that day, Cedric had reverted to his old demeanor.
Had the gift of food displeased him? Then he shouldn’t have permitted it in the first place.
Ivanna pouted as she surveyed the neatly arranged bedroom.
He certainly knew how to hold a grudge.
She revised her assessment of Cedric: he was cold and unfeeling, capable of apology, yes, but a man with a long memory for resentment.
Still, at least the bed here was spacious. No matter how far she stretched her arms, she wouldn’t reach him this time.
The bedroom the Count had provided was large and comfortable. It seemed he’d deliberately built the Annex Building for the Duke’s use. Though it stood distant from the Count’s own quarters, it overlooked the garden directly.
Had it not been for the drought, the garden would have been ablaze with beautiful flowers. Now it lay desolate.
The soft patter of rain and the grey sky weighed on her spirits.
She hoped they would return to the Capital safely, without incident.
Rain had begun falling over the Duchy now, which meant other regions would soon follow.
Once the drought vanished entirely, her fear of exposure would disappear as well.
To slip away from people’s notice.
That was all she’d wanted. So why did her heart feel so strange?
Ivanna surveyed the solitary bedroom. Since their arrival at the Count’s Castle, Cedric had come in late at night and left early in the morning.
His words had been right after all.
Not to show more interest than necessary.
That was the reason he’d stated so bluntly the day they signed the contract.
Ivanna pinched the bridge of her nose once, then gathered her outer coat.
It seemed better to take a walk through the Annex Building than to sit here alone, wallowing in melancholy.
“Are you going out?”
“No. I’ll just walk the corridor a little. You stay here.”
Since they’d emptied the Annex Building entirely for their use, she wouldn’t encounter anyone.
After telling Anthony and Ethan she’d return shortly, Ivanna began walking slowly down the hallway.
As she descended the stairs, she heard servants conversing below.
“Is it true the rain is a blessing because of Her Highness?”
She froze.
“They say the sky itself sent this gift for the Duke who took in an abandoned princess.”
“That’s ridiculous. Unless the princess is hiding Divine Power.”
Ivanna ducked behind a pillar to avoid the servants, who were dusting the window frames while they gossiped.
“I heard rumors that the princess, who never received Divine Power, prayed to the gods with tears, and that’s why the rain came.”
A servant glanced around before lowering her voice.
“If the princess had Divine Power, she wouldn’t stay quiet. They say she’s vain and loves luxury.”
“But didn’t she seem a bit plain for someone like that?”
The servants, ignorant of the truth, spread the rumors circulating throughout the Duchy.
“She must be pretending now.”
“Right? I mean, if she received Divine Power, she’d be recognized as Imperial Clan again. I’d reveal it immediately.”
They laughed softly at the thought of filling an entire room with dresses.
“She probably isn’t hiding it. But don’t you think it’s strange? Rain falling while she patrols the territory with the Duke himself?”
A maid carefully knocked dust from the window frame, gazing at the rain she hadn’t seen in so long.
“It’s just a coincidence.”
“I suppose. But I do hope the rain keeps up and falls again tomorrow.”
Ivanna pressed her hand to her mouth to stifle her quickened breathing.
‘There are people who think I have Divine Power?’
Simply because rain had fallen on the day the Imperial Clan visited, they were speculating that she might have received Divine Power.
“If Her Highness does have Divine Power, she’s become the Duke’s wife now. Wouldn’t she use it for House Reynolds instead of the Imperial Palace?”
“Wouldn’t she? The princess was the only member of the Imperial Clan who never received Divine Power, and no one in the Imperial Clan has regained it since.”
A fellow servant chided the dreamy maid, cutting her off.
“Still, though. Maybe the gods, pitying Her Highness, gave her Divine Power as a gift.”
Even as Ivanna thought the assumption absurd, she bit her lip hard.
It was true that she had received Divine Power again from the gods.
Ivanna turned away.
It wasn’t as if she had summoned the rain.
She’d acted out of compassion for the innocent suffering, never imagining it would spiral into such unfounded gossip.
And now—accused of wielding Divine Power based on mere speculation. What would she do if the Imperial Palace summoned her back?
Ivanna entered her bedchamber breathing hard.
“It’s fine. It’s fine. It’s all just conjecture on their part.”
Leaning against the door, she tried to steady herself.
At least no other member of the Imperial Clan had failed to receive Divine Power—she alone bore that distinction.
She kept her Divine Power hidden precisely because revealing it would invite a deluge of cursed expectations.
If the Imperial Palace learned they sought her because of that power, she might surrender her heart to them despite knowing better.
She hadn’t the strength to endure the wretchedness of false love.
Suddenly the urge to flee swept over her.
Ivanna’s eyes darkened as she watched the rain fall steadily outside.
Could she wash away with the rainwater and disappear?
Familiar anger and bitterness rose within her, swallowed down. The chill of the empty room seemed to seep into her very bones.
She needed warmth. She needed laughter.
But she couldn’t burden Sola and Anthony with her childish tears anymore.
Slip.
Ivanna’s body crumpled to the floor.
Not a single soul she could cry out to without reservation.
A hollow laugh escaped her as she sat on the cold floor for what felt like an eternity, watching the relentless rain beyond the window.
* * *
“It’s almost as if you brought the rain with you, Duke.”
“Merely good fortune.”
Cedric shook his head at Count Labern’s remark. The rain that had begun in a small village fell without pause, as if making up for all the days it had withheld.
The downpour that had stopped briefly this morning had resumed its steady patter.
“How is the Countess faring?”
“There has been little improvement.”
Cedric let out a soft sigh at the Count’s bitter expression.
“Still, she is grateful that you’ve found time to visit the County.”
“I’ll make a point to see her during my stay.”
“Your visit alone will lift her spirits considerably.”
The Countess Labern suffered from Mana Erosion Disease. The sudden onset had left no time for prevention, and she was sustained only by palliative care.
“I’ll continue searching for better medicinal remedies.”
“You’ve already done more than enough. And now you’ve even brought us this rain.”
“I had nothing to do with it.”
Cedric spoke firmly, watching the Count smile as he gazed at the rain.
“People are saying the rain proves Heaven hasn’t abandoned the Imperial Clan.”
“Unfounded rumors have spread here as well, I see.”
Idle gossips who loved fabricating and spreading tales were everywhere.
Yet it was suspicious that the Princess was mentioned in connection with the rain falling in the Southern Region.
Had someone orchestrated this?
Cedric found the movement linking the rain and the Princess deeply troubling.
It seemed designed to suggest the Princess had received Divine Power related to rain.
“The Princess did not receive Divine Power. The Imperial Palace and the Sacred Artifact Administrator confirmed as much.”
“True. But hasn’t the Princess been abandoned by the Imperial Palace and the Empire because of that? The common folk had begun to believe Heaven itself had forsaken the Imperial Clan.”
So the rain falling on the Southern Region after such a long drought was nothing short of divine blessing.
Those who had wondered why Heaven would send rain specifically to the Southern Region finally turned their thoughts to the Princess.
Since the Day of Divine Power, she had never appeared in public, citing poor health as her excuse.
Though suspected of being illegitimate for failing to receive Divine Power, a Bloodline Examination had confirmed her as the Emperor’s true daughter.
Even after her marriage to the Duke of House Reynolds, the Princess had remained in seclusion under the guise of frail health.
“Rain began falling the moment the Princess visited her territories. How can people not believe Heaven is blessing the Southern Region?”
Cedric shook his head at the Count’s wry smile.
“Even so, it’s excessive speculation. If it’s baseless, we must consider what troubles may follow.”
He could not accept such rumors at face value. The Imperial Clan was more tenacious and calculating than people realized.

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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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