Section Three: The Capital City’s Princess
Chapter Fifty-five: Audience with the Princess
“Karen, thank you for coming all the way to the capital city of the Ehlertt Earldom.”
“It was a request, after all.”
Karen responded to Julius with a stiff smile.
She had now arrived at the capital city of the Ehlertt Earldom.
The Ehlertt’s territory lay to the northeast of the royal capital, surrounded by mountains and forests. Although the territory they possessed was vast, not all of it was affected by the dungeons, so the areas where people could live were limited. Still, Karen had heard rumors that it was one of the largest territories in the country.
After a five-day journey, she arrived in Ehlertt’s territory, where the wind was already cold, signaling the approach of winter. The distant mountains were turning white with snow, and the trees in the forest were displaying autumn colors.
The city was beautiful, though obviously not as bustling as the royal capital. Still, the public order seemed good, and Karen gazed at the calm townscape from inside the carriage.
At first, she had felt relieved to receive a request. She had expected that once she reached E-rank, requests would pour in, but that hadn’t been the case. Even though the rumors about her being a fraudster should have died down after the recovery celebration, she still wasn’t getting any Bloodline Blessing-related requests.
Sara had explained the reason to her. Apparently, everyone was watching to see if Sieg could survive the winter.
She was grateful to be able to stay by Sieg’s side this winter, and more than anything, she was glad to have a job.
However, after hearing the full details of the request from the Ehlertt family to "stay in the territory’s capital for one winter," Karen’s spirits plummeted.
“Her Highness Waltride is a generous and kind person. Karen, there’s no need to be so tense.”
“…Yes.”
Of course, Karen was nervous, but that wasn’t the only reason her face was stiff.
Princess Waltride.
The First Princess of the Kingdom of Earthfill, born of legitimate bloodline between His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen—and the person said to be the leading candidate to be Julius’s true lover, amidst the many whispers of his romances. She was said to be a beautiful princess with blonde hair and green eyes, identical to her mother the Queen who was renowned for her beauty. Karen remembered seeing a portrait of the princess from her childhood that was sold in town.
She remembered the young girl in the painting as an exquisitely delicate beauty.
“I’ve heard she’s a very beautiful person.”
“The essence of her beauty lies in her inner self. She is noble and proud, yet without any trace of arrogance, intelligent and kind-hearted.”
“Is that so…”
“Due to certain circumstances, she’s staying in our family’s territory. While her life isn’t in danger, she suffers from an affliction related to her Bloodline’s Blessing. I’ve been wanting to have you examine her, Karen.”
Every time Julius spoke, he either praised or expressed concern for Princess Waltride.
“Until now, Her Highness Waltride had insisted that an alchemist was unnecessary since her condition wasn’t life-threatening. But she has personally expressed a desire to meet you, Karen—something quite unusual for her. If possible, I’d like you to use this opportunity to find a way to help her. As for the nature of her Bloodline’s Blessing, I hesitate to say more—see for yourself.”
“Ah, yes.”
Karen responded halfheartedly while looking down at her own attire.
Since she had been invited to Ehlertt’s territory, all of Karen’s necessities had been provided by the Ehlertt family. The dress Karen was currently wearing was one of them. It was a dress in a calm, deep green color that had been prepared because her usual clothes wouldn’t be appropriate to meet the princess. It was a dress meant for merchants who frequented noble houses, and several other dresses had been gifted to her to wear as everyday clothes. When she first saw the closet of gifted dresses, she was bewildered by how luxurious they were for everyday wear, but now she was anxious about how shabby this beautiful dress with silver thread flower embroidery would look in front of the princess.
It was only natural that she would look inferior, yet the reason she felt this way was obvious—Julius. Even though she wasn’t in a position to be jealous, it seemed that Karen was jealous of the princess. Recognizing how presumptuous she was being, Karen’s gaze became distant.
“Master Julius, could you hit me on the head once to psych me up? Like, you know, to wake me up?”
“I could never raise a hand against a woman. Are you perhaps sleepy? Are you tired from the long journey?”
“No, I’m neither sleepy nor tired…”
Julius responded seriously to Karen’s absurd request. A wave of guilt made Karen want to hide her face. However, she couldn’t do it since Sara had nicely applied makeup for her.
“…If there’s anything I can do, I would like to do my utmost for Her Highness Waltride.”
That was the most sincerity that Karen, filled with worldly desires, could show.
Julius’s cheeks relaxed as if relieved.
“Thank you, Karen. I would appreciate that. The Ehlertt family owes a great debt to her.”
The Ehlertt family does?
Isn’t it because of the personal relationship between Julius and the princess? A torrent of questions that Karen shouldn’t ask flooded her mind, and if she let her guard down, they would slip out of her mouth. Just as Karen firmly closed her mouth again, Julius stopped walking.
A room in the Ehlertt family’s villa. Two knights standing in front of huge double doors nodded to Julius and Karen, then opened the doors.
Karen checked the angle of the brooch on her chest. An iron brooch engraved with the Uroboros mark, the emblem of the Alchemists’ Guild. This indicated that Karen was an E-rank alchemist.
Remembering that she was here as an alchemist, Karen calmed her heart. The next rank was D-rank. To advance to D-rank, she needed to accumulate delivery achievements and also obtain a letter of recommendation from a client for promotion. It was said that such letters weren’t given lightly, as the recommender could be held liable based on the alchemist’s reputation.
The shortest path was delivering to the Royal Knights for five years, while the longest was supplying the Adventurers’ Guild for about ten years. But to deliver to the Knights, one needed credibility, and not everyone was allowed to deliver to them.
“Your Highness Waltride, Alchemist Karen has arrived.”
“Enter.”
A charming voice like the tinkling of bells. Karen followed Julius with a face that had abandoned all hope.
Julius had proposed to Karen. But it was all for the sake of his family. It was because he somehow believed that Karen might become an S-rank alchemist. She might now witness the fact that he didn’t have feelings for her.
With that suspicion nearly solidified in her mind, Karen stepped into the room.
She passed through the antechamber, walked across the living room, and was led into the bedroom.
Karen smiled wryly, thinking that Julius must be in the kind of relationship where he’s invited into the princess’s bedchamber.
The bed, which seemed as large as two king-sized beds placed side by side, had thick curtains hanging down. It seemed that being a princess meant having an equally grand bed.
From behind those heavy curtains came an unusually loud creak from the bed.
“Open the curtains.”
The maids smoothly raised the curtains.
Karen and Julius bowed their heads.
“Raise your faces.”
Karen lifted her face and widened her eyes.
“Julius, it’s been a while. Word of your achievements has reached even me. You’ve worked well for the people. Sieg’s recovery is also a joyous occasion. You are a warrior who protects the nation, and I commend the realization of your wish.”
“I am deeply honored by your kind words. This is Alchemist Karen, a benefactor to our family, Your Highness Waltride.”
“Alchemist Karen, I’m glad you accepted my invitation.”
“I am honored by your invitation.”
Karen bowed respectfully, her lowered face betraying her confusion.
On the bed was an enormously fat woman.
A dress is meant to be tailored to fit the body, yet hers was stretched to its limits, on the verge of bursting.
Even after raising her head again, the elegant princess she had envisioned was nowhere to be found.
Aside from her size, she appeared to be in good health. In fact, she seemed lively enough that it was hard to tell what could possibly be wrong with her.
“I have a request for you, Karen, the alchemist who saved the Ehlertt family’s heir, so I had you come from the royal capital.”
As she spoke, Waltride’s double chin quivered, not at all matching the image of Julius’s lover that Karen had imagined.
As a princess, she must be able to live in luxury. Perhaps she was simply enjoying a life of indulgence, eating and resting as she pleased.
When Karen realized she had been reincarnated as a commoner, she had thought it would have been better to be born a noble, but after meeting the members of the Ehlertt family, she changed her mind, thinking that nobles seemed to have their own difficulties, so being a commoner was fine.
But perhaps the royal family was closer to Karen’s imagined view of nobility. Karen, in an extremely disrespectful manner, secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Fat burning potions? Diets? Wonder what she'll try...
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