The Duke's Daughter Goes Her Own Way
[Until You Call Me 'Friend'... (7)]
Translated by: ME
Author's Note:
God, it's been ages!
Sorry for the incredibly long wait!
***
As expected, it seems Miss Ashley had heard from my parents, grew worried about me, and came here. She said my mother told her when I first started feeling unwell, and my father told her when I left for my convalescence.
She also said that was when they told her what would happen if I didn't return to the royal capital by the end of the year, and she became terribly concerned.
...It took a full thirty minutes just to get this much out of her.
In that time, we finished our meal, and I had two refills of the tea served after dinner. Faralda, for her part, was happily stuffing her cheeks with pancakes piled high with cream all by herself. And she had already finished.
Miss Ashley kept stumbling over her words, stammering, and each time she would look down and search for the next thing to say with an "Umm...".
Really, was the 'Ashley Orchard, Daughter of the Marquis' I had seen until now an illusion or something?
Wouldn't it be more accurate to say there are fewer points of overlap between her and the girl right in front of me?
Or is the her in front of me now the illusion?
「Miss Ashley」
At my call, Miss Ashley, who had been looking down, raised her face.
Her expression was somewhat timid, still vastly different from the 'Miss Ashley Orchard' I knew.
「I'm sorry for causing you unnecessary worry. And thank you.」
She wasn't the type to have desired the position of Crown Princess herself. It's unlikely she was worried about me being cast aside and herself losing the position.
In other words, she was genuinely concerned about my physical and mental well-being.
The value and warmth of others' kindness is another thing I've come to deeply understand since coming here.
When I thanked her, Miss Ashley, for some reason, turned bright red and looked down again.
「N-no, well, it's not... you don't need to thank me...」
Her voice grew smaller and smaller, and she eventually fell silent without finishing.
If this is her 'true self', then just how much strain has she been under all this time?
Somehow, the fact that I failed to notice makes me feel apologetic.
And I realized—I know almost nothing about her, don't I?
Nine years is by no means a short period of time.
Yet, the interactions we've had in those years can hardly be called 'personal'.
Chatting in open areas of the castle, across a tea table, exchanging harmless pleasantries...
That feels less like 'moderate socializing' and more like 'fulfilling an assigned duty'.
Even with nine years, I know a startlingly small amount about the girl in front of me.
...What have I been doing all this time?
As I was thinking this, Elrod, who had finished his coffee, spoke as he placed his cup back on the saucer.
「Right then! Well, we've finished eating, so let's go for a walk to settle our stomachs!」
At his words, Faralda said something like, "Oh, lovely~" and promptly stood up.
As for Miss Ashley, she was watching the two of them with a somewhat bewildered expression.
「Hey, get a move on.」
At Elrod's voice—he had already started walking—I offered my hand to Miss Ashley, who was still seated.
「Shall we go? Before Elrod gets angry.」
Though, Elrod probably wouldn't get angry that easily.
At my slightly joking tone, Miss Ashley lowered her eyes slightly and gave a small, stifled laugh.
「...Yes, Lord Carl.」
I carefully took the slender hand she gently placed in my offered one, handling it with the utmost care.
I've had many opportunities to escort her before. At official parties and such, she was always by my side.
But.
Holding hands like this... might be a first.
As I led her by her slender, soft hand, that thought crossed my mind.
And, for some reason, the smile she showed just a moment ago seemed incredibly cute, and for the first time, I became conscious of her as "a girl".
Though if you asked me what I thought she was before, I'd have no answer.
...But, 'holding hands' is kind of embarrassing, isn't it? It doesn't feel much different from escorting, so what is the difference?
For some reason, I felt awkward about looking at Miss Ashley's face right beside me.
Would it be okay to let go...? No, Miss Ashley is holding my hand quite firmly. If I shook her off now, I'd probably look like a real jerk...
Thinking such things, I chased after Elrod and Faralda, who were walking ahead.
It wasn't clear where they were heading, but they seemed to have a destination in mind. With purposeful strides and a fairly quick pace, they briskly walked on ahead.
It's fine for me, but isn't it too fast for Miss Ashley...? I hope she can keep up.
Thinking that, I glanced back at Miss Ashley, whose hand I still held.
...Only about a minute or two had passed since we started walking, but Miss Ashley, who should have been right beside me, was now a step or so behind. I found myself thinking it was a good thing we were holding hands.
「Miss Ashley, are you alright? Should I tell Elrod and the others to slow down a bit...?」
I turned, called out, and inadvertently swallowed my words halfway
Because the girl walking behind me had her gaze lowered to our joined hands, a slight blush on her cheeks, and was smiling.
Noticing my gaze, Miss Ashley quickly looked up and offered an awkward smile.
「N-no! I'm fine! Um, I might... fall behind a little, but...」
Rather than 'might', she was already tending to fall behind a bit. But she probably never walks this fast normally, 'as a lady'. That's only natural.
「Then...」
When I returned my gaze forward, Elrod and Faralda showed no sign of concern for us and were quickly marching further ahead.
「Shall we hurry a little? ...If it's not unpleasant for you, would it be alright if I lead you like this?」
That way, it seemed less likely she'd be left behind alone. More efficient.
It was a statement born from such a plain, unemotional reason.
But at my words, I felt Miss Ashley put a little more strength into her grip on my hand.
「...It isn't unpleasant in the least. ...Please... do...」
「Then, let's go.」
「Yes. Lord Carl.」
Wondering at the slight hint of delight in her voice, I set off after the two ahead.
The two, cheerfully walking ahead, showed no sign of slowing their pace.
I had the notion that nobles were supposed to be unhurried, so I was surprised by how fast the pair ahead were walking.
And I was also surprised by Miss Ashley, walking half a step behind me.
Although she didn't try to walk beside me, she followed us without a single word of complaint and without seeming to struggle.
...But, now that I think of it.
She has been enduring the presumably grueling 'Queen Consort Education' without a peep of protest and without cutting corners. If she has that kind of fortitude, then walking at a brisk pace should be nothing.
We walked, seemingly cutting straight through the center of the capital city. Just where did they plan to go?
As we walked, Miss Ashley was greeted by an unexpectedly large number of townspeople. Some even called her just "Ashley" without any honorific, and I was surprised by how familiar they seemed.
「Do you... come here often...?」
The people in this city are particularly friendly by nature, but even so, their manner towards her didn't seem like they'd just met yesterday or today.
When I asked, Miss Ashley gave a small laugh.
「Yes. ...Though, that was when I was a child.」
Glancing back, I saw Miss Ashley smiling as she looked around at her surroundings.
She had a very affectionate look in her eyes, and I could see that this place, the 'Macnagan Duchy', was also special to her.
「My family's Orchard Marquisate territory is next to the Macnagan Duchy, is it not?」
「That's right.」
The territory of the Orchard Marquisate, Miss Ashley's family home, is adjacent to the royal capital. The Orchard Marquisate is located near the northeast of the royal capital, and the Macnagan Duchy stretches out, almost swallowing the eastern side of the Orchard Marquisate.
Until a few decades ago, there were several small territories between the Orchard Marquisate and the Macnagan Duchy. But the lords of those territories themselves desired to be incorporated into the Macnagan Duchy, the Ducal house agreed, and that's how it is today.
The former lordly families of those small territories now stand as 'Administrators' over their lands. However, they returned their noble ranks long ago, so now they are just commoners. ...It's a truly strange land, when you think about it.
Due to that history, the Orchard Marquisate and the Macnagan Duchy are now neighbors.
「My Orchard Marquisate's main industries are iron production and arms manufacturing, so it's a somewhat rough-and-tumble place.」
「Ah... yes.」
The Orchard Marquisate possesses extremely rich iron ore deposits. The mined ore is smelted and primarily processed into weapons and armor.
The Orchard Marquisate is famous for its high-quality arms.
But indeed, the mine workers, the smelter workers, and the blacksmiths are unlikely to be 'refined' people.
「We keep a watchful eye to ensure we don't sell arms to unsavory types, but there's no end to those who try to slip through the net.」
That makes sense.
It's not just the righteous who desire high-quality weapons. In fact, there are probably more who want to use them for nefarious purposes.
「We have organized a private knight order and self-defense groups, but even so, it's hard to call the territory safe.」
「I think the Orchard Marquisate handles it well.」
「...Thank you for your kind words.」
No, I truly mean it.
While unsavory characters may come seeking quality arms, they don't make their base in the Orchard Marquisate.
Why? Because the Orchard Marquisate shows no mercy to such outlaws.
If a traveler buys a single sword for self-defense, no one bats an eye. But for clearly suspiciously large orders, they rigorously investigate the buyer's identity and purpose.
Large orders from other noble families are strictly reported to the kingdom, including the date, quantity, and the status of the purchaser.
Thanks to this, despite dealing in weapons—tools for taking lives—the Orchard Marquisate has no bad rumors whatsoever.
「While public safety isn't the worst... compared to the Macnagan Duchy, I'm forced to say it's 'bad'.」
「Well, that's... yeah.」
Compared to here, even the royal capital falls into the 'bad public safety' category.
The royal capital has the castle and all the nation's major institutions lined up. To guard them, many knights of the Royal Knight Order are stationed there. Even so, compared to the Macnagan Duchy, the current situation can only be described as having 'bad public safety'.
Really, ever since coming here, the list of 'things I must do when I return' just keeps growing.
「Actually, when I was little, my brother was nearly kidnapped once...」
「What!?」
The Marquis's son!? I've never heard of such a thing!?
「...It wasn't made public, as it wouldn't look good. Fortunately, it was only an attempt...」
I see. That makes sense.
「But after an incident like that happens, my parents naturally grew somewhat anxious about public safety and such...」
「I can imagine.」
Having your child nearly snatched away would be nothing but terrifying for any parent. Noble or commoner.
「Yes. So, Father suggested that until public order within the territory was restored, it would be better for my brother and I to leave the territory. We could have stayed at the residence in the royal capital, I suppose, but he said if we were going anyway, he wanted us to spend our time in a place rich with nature, interacting with people...」
I can understand that wish.
The royal capital is highly developed, so it's hard to call 'rich with nature', and it's probably difficult to go out casually there.
「Father requested it of the Macnagan Duke, and we borrowed a house here in the capital city. The three of us—mother, my brother, and I—lived there for about two years.」
「I see...」
It's true, this place has excellent public safety and plenty of nature.
The connections between people are close, so even if 'a child is out alone', someone is always looking out for them.
That's probably partly due to local customs, not something easily replicated elsewhere. 'Worrying about someone else's child' is an act outside one's own immediate interests. Doing that routinely, as a matter of 'course', isn't something you can force on people by demanding it.
「The Macnagan Duke sent El to us... to be our playmate. So for my brother and I, El is like a childhood friend.」
「...I didn't know that.」
I didn't know Miss Ashley had ties to this place, let alone that she was childhood friends with Elrod...
「...There was never a particular opportunity to mention it, so it's only natural Lord Carl wouldn't know.」
Natural... is it?
Even after being engaged for nine years? ...Do I really know nothing about this woman named 'Ashley Orchard'?
「...Miss Ashley.」
When I called her, Miss Ashley replied, "Yes?" With a slight tilt of her head and a somewhat puzzled expression.
It was a mannerism and expression I'd never seen before.
「If it's alright with you, I'd be happy if from now on we could talk like this, without pretense or formality... What do you think?」
As I braced myself slightly for her answer, Miss Ashley gave a soft, gentle smile.
「If that is Lord Carl's wish, I would be delighted.」
When I thanked her for that, she laughed and said, 「You're most welcome」
***
Author's note:
Since it's dragging on, I've decided to post it as soon as it's ready.
Also, an announcement: the release date for 'The Duke's Daughter Goes Her Own Way... Haphazardly' has been set.
It's scheduled for April 12th.
Pre-orders haven't started yet, but once they do, I'm thinking of posting detailed information in an activity report.
Well, I do tweet about various things on Twitter. If you're interested, please take a look.
So, with all that, I'd be happy if you could bear with Carl-kun's rambling a little longer.
I'm thinking I'd like to finish this before the book comes out! ...Just thinking, though.
And as usual, I await your error reports.
Do your best, wild proofreaders. I will merely use them to fix the errors with a single click. Muhahahaha...
Well then, let's meet again when the next part is done.
Thank you for reading. If you want to help my hobby please download and install LDP9 with my link down below. Just Click the small yellow LDPlayer Banner.
OR
Subscribe to my YouTube Channel
-Horizontal.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment