The Munchkin Princess Wants to Run Away - Chapter 28

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

“Your Grace does seem rather taken with the Duchess! Hehehehe!”
It was already the fourth day he’d spent at the Marquis’s residence. He’d arranged his schedule generously, having left the Capital for the Territory after so long away.
Could it be that the Duke had developed feelings for the Princess?
Hearing the Marquis’s pleased laughter beside him, Marcel’s own thoughts wavered.
“Surely not. He’s simply being courteous.”
Marcel objected to the Marquis’s suggestion with a dismissive tone.
“Tsk, tsk. If you keep chasing after the Duke like this, you’ll end up an old bachelor. Best you marry soon yourself.”
“Why are you suddenly being so cruel to me?!”
Marcel was too occupied with work to find time for marriage, but as he too had a house to continue, he shot the Marquis an indignant look.
“What are you glaring at? You can’t even tell courtesy from affection.”
Having thoroughly teased Marcel, the Marquis hurried off to send letters to the other lords of the Duke’s Territory.
“Haven’t you been outside rather long?”
Ivanna glanced sidelong at Cedric, who walked beside her.
“This is fine. My body recovered ages ago, so you needn’t stay here on my account—you can return inside and attend to your duties.”
After the landslide, she’d been startled, but it was true that her body suffered no ill effects.
The frame and constitution of Royal Blood was clearly far too resilient. Mountains and soil held no terrors for her anymore.
His claim to have prepared thoroughly proved true. After waking in the Marquis’s residence, she’d found Sola and Anthony—neither of them injured.
From what they told her, there were only a few people with bruises or minor cuts.
‘That doesn’t make it right, though.’
Since waking in the Marquis’s residence, Ivanna found his excessive concern for her health oppressive.
No matter how many times she insisted she was well, he’d decide to observe her a few more days just in case—and here they were, days later.
One day, unable to bear it anymore, she’d asked why. His answer: the Contract obligated him to ensure her safety.
He’d also apologized for not informing her of the true situation.
A man who seemed to have learned apologies only from etiquette books nonetheless owned his mistakes without hesitation and apologized sincerely.
‘No! He’s already gone and done it—what am I supposed to do about it?!’
No matter how thoroughly he’d prepared, she couldn’t accept that he’d told neither her, Sola, nor Anthony a word of the plan.
Yet after apologizing like that, he kept hovering nearby, making it difficult to push him away outright.
And so the real problem had arisen elsewhere.
‘Like this, I’ll never have a moment alone with Sola.’
“This is a small Territory, so I reviewed all the documents on the first day of our arrival. Truthfully, there’s little for me to do.”
“Shouldn’t you attend to the Duke’s household documents as well?”
Documents arrived daily from the Duke’s residence! Ivanna waited for his response with desperate hope.
“The administrators, upon hearing of the landslide, have agreed to send only urgent matters. My father thought it best that I rest for a few days and has taken to handling documents in my stead.”
At his calm explanation, Ivanna’s jaw fell open.
She too had documents from Sola to review. How was she supposed to examine them while he was always at her side?
“You won’t be conducting an inspection of the Marquis Territory?”
She ventured the suggestion, hoping to use a territorial inspection as an excuse to separate him from herself, and Cedric took on a contemplative expression.
“There’s been sufficient rain, so it should be fine.”
“I… see.”
An inspection of the Marquis Territory wouldn’t work. Elisa would handle any truly urgent matters. Ivanna reluctantly conceded defeat.
Some frustrations simply cannot be overcome by force of will.
“Would you perhaps like to conduct a territorial inspection?”
Seeing the Princess’s lips firmly pressed together, Cedric asked.
Over the past few days, he’d noticed that whenever the Princess was deeply considering something, she’d press her lips slightly.
“I can do that?”
“I see no objection to us going together.”
Having been confined to the narrow confines of the Marquis’s residence, Ivanna welcomed his suggestion with unconcealed delight.
There’d been almost no conversation during their walks anyway, so even if they went on an inspection, there would be no need for talk.
“I’ll make preparations for our departure tomorrow.”
At the prospect of him staying more than a day in the Marquis Territory, Ivanna drew in a deep, involuntary breath.
“Are you feeling confined?”
“Ah. I apologize. Though it’s unfair to the Marquis, the residence is simply rather cramped, and I find myself feeling restless.”
At Ivanna’s uncomfortable smile, Cedric nodded in understanding.
“I truly have recovered. Please don’t delay your schedule on my account.”
In truth, it was Ivanna who wished to return to the Capital as soon as possible. Her body itched to visit the Merchant Guild.
Even if she couldn’t go in person, she wanted to see the documents.
Her frame, having tasted a freedom different from the Imperial Court, now protested vociferously against its confinement.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. So if it suits you, let’s complete an inspection today and move on to another Territory tomorrow.”
After a moment’s thought, he nodded. Everything else could be handled this evening.
“Very well.”
At last, I could leave!
“I could walk all afternoon.”
She’d only walked around the garden for a quarter hour, yet in the Capital, Ivanna was the sort who thought nothing of wandering for three hours straight.
Suppressing the cry of joy that nearly escaped her, Ivanna answered with practiced grace.
* * *
“It really is a small town.”
“The territory’s population doesn’t even reach two hundred.”
As Ivanna surveyed the village, Cedric’s brow furrowed. Something was wrong.
An unpleasant smell had been drifting from somewhere since they arrived.
“Marcel.”
“Yes. Find the source of that odor.”
At the gravity in his command, Ivanna’s face hardened too. There was something wrong with the water.
The smell Cedric caught was the unmistakable stench of stagnant water.
Ivanna had encountered it often enough in the Slum District of the Capital.
“Perhaps we should move elsewhere.”
As befitted a small territory, there wasn’t much to see. The Marquis stood behind them, his face a study in helplessness.
“The smell is getting worse.”
“After the drought, I took extra care with sanitation to prevent plague, but I don’t understand what’s happened….”
When Ivanna could bear it no longer and covered her nose, the Marquis trailed off.
“Your Grace. There’s a problem with the Water Purification Device.”
Marcel returned, having toured the village with the knights.
“Shall we return to the estate?”
“No. I want to see the situation myself.”
For once, Cedric was offering her a choice.
Ivanna, catching the unspoken reluctance in his expression—torn between bringing her along and sending her ahead alone—answered swiftly.
“Let’s go.”
Cedric had not forgotten the Princess’s words about her boredom.
If this wasn’t serious, it might prove an interesting diversion for her.
“Oh dear….”
The closer they drew to the Water Storage Device that collected rainwater, the fouler the stench became.
Ivanna wrinkled her nose at the sight of dark algae blooming on the surface and decomposing debris.
“Why wasn’t this reported when it happened?!”
The Marquis, stunned by what he saw, rounded on his subordinates.
“We only discovered it this morning, Your Grace. We attempted repairs, but the situation has only worsened.”
The Marquis’s mage bowed to Cedric and explained the situation.
“The Water Purification Device the Marquis owns is old and has failed. We’ve attempted repairs repeatedly, but it’s now beyond use.”
At the mage’s words, Cedric stroked his chin. There was no immediate way to purchase a new device.
“It would be faster to inscribe an entirely new magic circle.”
Cedric, who had already built a reservoir in a village they’d visited before, offered a simple solution.
The mages who had come with him were all high-ranking practitioners.
“The Water Purification Device was functioning perfectly. It couldn’t simply break on its own. Someone must have tampered with it.”
The Marquis, flustered, insisted that such a device couldn’t fail easily.
“Drinking water is no trivial matter. Don’t worry—I’ll help with the purification device.”
Inscribing a magic circle was expensive work. Ivanna understood why the Marquis’s face was so troubled.
‘Could the Merchant Guild sell their Water Purification Device?’
She recalled the device her guild had developed.
Of course, it had been crude at first—she’d hidden her power deliberately.
But after Elisa joined, they’d steadily improved the device until it became quite serviceable.
There was no need to inscribe complex Water Purification Magic Circles across the entire land.
By inscribing a simpler Circulation Magic Circle and placing the device atop it, they could produce cleaner water than any other purification device.
“Would you be interested in trying a simpler method, if one exists?”
In the previous village, they couldn’t even approach the reservoir, so there’d been no opportunity to suggest anything. But this time was different.
Seizing the chance, Ivanna’s eyes gleamed as she turned to Cedric.

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