Runaway Princess

After a brief moment of astonishment, the two beauties quickly regained their composure.

The blonde girl lifted her chin. "Hmph, Northwest Bay it is, then. As long as they can't find us."

That expression, that tone—how should he put it? Paul suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity. After racking his brains for a while, he suddenly understood. Tsundere. Wasn't this exactly what a tsundere was? Before transmigrating, he had thought they only existed in anime and manga. He never expected to encounter one in real life after transmigrating. For some reason, he felt a little excited.

"Where are the two of you from?"

He probed again, his tone exceedingly polite. The decorations on the clothing beneath the blonde girl's cloak were clearly not something ordinary people could wear at a glance—not even ordinary nobles. This was not something money alone could buy.

At least, in Paul's memories, he had never seen nobles in the Northwest wearing anything like it. But it wasn't as if he had no impression of the style at all. Oh, right! He had seen similar decorations in one of Old Greiman's paintings when he was a child.

He vaguely remembered that it was a portrait depicting some important figure from a certain country. This little girl's identity was far from simple.

It would be better to treat these two... politely.

"We come from the Gabella Empire. My name is Betty Diaz, and I'm a wandering scholar. This is my guard, Mary."

A scholar? Another scholar? Paul complained inwardly. Are there scholars who dress like this? It's far too suspicious. Someone dressed like Miss Laddie is what a normal scholar should look like.

However, he had no intention of meddling. Whether they were noble ladies who had run away from home or royal descendants exiled from a foreign country, coming and going was their freedom. If family members or enemies came looking for them, they could deal with it themselves.

As long as they didn't break the law, he wouldn't interfere. But if vicious crimes such as kidnapping or murder occurred in his territory, he would certainly step in—provided the other party's fists weren't bigger than his.

Speaking of which, shouldn't he establish a Department of Public Safety to manage public order within the territory?

"Who are these people?" the blonde girl asked just as Paul was thinking about this and that.

"Oh, sorry. The ones on horseback are my subordinates. The others are members of the Lichman Adventurer Group from the south. Oh, right—the green-haired Miss Laddie was the one who shot that Black-Spotted Tiger to death. Come to think of it, she's a scholar too, just like you."

Paul felt a pang of embarrassment. He had forgotten to introduce the person who had contributed the most.

The two beauties bowed to the scholar in thanks. Their flawless manners and bearing further convinced Paul that they came from noble families.

The scholar returned the gesture, her gaze lingering briefly on the blonde girl who claimed to be a scholar.

The taller beauty asked, "I wonder if there's anywhere nearby where we can stay?"

Paul raised his riding crop and pointed toward Lakeheart Town. "Travel east for half a day, and you'll reach Lakeheart Town. It's also where my manor is located. If you don't mind, you can travel there with us."

"Then we'll trouble you, Earl."

When everyone returned to the resting place, Queller, who had been waiting there, nearly bulged his eyes out. That kid went out once and brought back two beauties. Could it be that he just experienced some cliché hero-saves-beauty scene?

Paul had the two beauties sit in the carriage with the members of the Lichman Adventurer Group. Then he ordered the entire army to assemble and continue toward Lakeheart Town. No one spoke along the way.

Near dusk, the group arrived at Lakeheart Town. The soldiers were dismissed and given two hours of free time before returning to the barracks to rest. Paul arranged for Quiller Foster and the adventurer group to rest in the lord's castle, while the two girls who had joined them halfway asked him where the inns were. After bidding him farewell, they went to an inn on their own.

"Honestly, wouldn't it have been better to stay in my castle? It would have been much safer." Paul shook his head and thought with a trace of regret.

He entered the gates of the lord's manor. Philip, the castle steward, and Ford, the Seal-Holding Chief Steward, were already standing there to welcome him.

Paul greeted them cheerfully. "Ah, you two. I've missed you a little during this time. We won a great victory!"

The two hurriedly offered their flattery. "Congratulations, Earl." "Earl, your military strategy is truly divine."

"Has everything in Lakeheart Town been normal while I was away?"

Chief Steward Ford replied, "Everything is normal, my lord. It's just that the Royal Commissioner who left some time ago has returned."

"The Royal Commissioner?" Paul froze for a moment, then realized who he meant. "Oh! You mean Baron Hansel Abbott. I thought the baron had been frightened back to the Royal Capital by the pirates, hahaha! What has he come back for?"

"Baron Abbott was originally stationed here as the Royal Family's representative. However, this time he seems to have returned to discuss something important with you."

Paul twisted his mouth. "Just remembering how he acted last time makes me angry. Forget it. This lord is magnanimous enough not to hold a grudge against a petty man. I'll meet with him tomorrow."

Chief Steward Ford reported on a series of matters, including the sales of New Type Paper and the expansion of the papermaking workshop. The situation was highly encouraging. If it could sell so well even in the backward Northwest Region, it would have no trouble at all being shipped to the prosperous regions.

Afterward, the three of them discussed matters concerning Franklin Harbor, including the Public Trial, establishing a navy, building oceangoing ships, opening trade, and other issues. They also mentioned rescuing Quiller, the son of Marquis Foster of the Horn Bay Alliance, from the pirates.

The steward's eyes lit up when he heard this. He strongly recommended that the earl build a good relationship with Young Master Foster. As long as they could establish ties with the Foster Family, Alarda Territory would be able to sell its goods in the commercially advanced south.

"Then Young Master Foster should join us for dinner tonight. Chief Steward Ford, you'll stay as well and keep him company. We can strengthen the friendship between our two families."

The earl made his decision.

In a superior guest room at the only inn in Lakeheart Town, the two beauties rescued by Laddie were staying there.

"Princess, shall we set off east tomorrow?"

"Why don't we stay here for a while first? What do you think, Lia?"

That was right. These two were the second princess of the Auldo Kingdom, Irene, and her female guard, Lia, who had secretly fled the Royal Capital.

After Princess Irene learned that her father intended to marry her off to Duke Viblun of the Eastern Territory, she had gone all out and run away from home with her personal female guard.

The two had originally planned to take a detour through the Northeast Region and seek refuge with her mother's family in the Gabella Empire. However, they seemed to lack any talent for navigation. After walking for a while, they had somehow ended up in Northwest Bay.

Fortunately, before running away from home, the princess had brought all her private funds and jewelry with her. The two had not lacked food or clothing along the way. Moreover, their obviously noble attire and Lia's swordsmanship had deterred many people with ill intentions.

Even so, for the princess, who had grown up deep within the palace surrounded by fine clothes and rich food, this journey of more than half a month had already pushed her patience to its limit.

That morning, they had suspected that someone was following them and galloped into the forest. When they dismounted to rest, they had unfortunately encountered a Black-Spotted Tiger. Their mounts had fled in fright, leaving the two of them facing the fierce beast. Fortunately, Paul's group had happened to pass by and rescued them.

Although growing up in the palace had allowed the little princess to maintain a minimum of composure on the surface, her long-exhausted heart was finally on the verge of collapse.

The encounter with the tiger had left her with considerable psychological trauma. If no one had rescued them, she and Lia would probably have become food in the beast's belly.

If they continued onward, no one knew how many dangers they would encounter along the way. But the little princess absolutely refused to return to the Royal Capital and submit to her father's arrangements.

"Let's stay in Lakeheart Town for now. The lord here doesn't seem like a bad person, and the place is remote with poor communications. As long as we hide ourselves well, it should be quite difficult for the people from the Royal Capital to find us here."

Lia thought for a while before nodding in agreement. "Then let's do that, Princess. Since that's the case, staying at an inn isn't a long-term solution, and we'd have too much contact with travelers. Tomorrow, I'll look around town and see if I can buy a house for us to stay in."

"Yes! Sorry for the trouble, Lia."

In fact, the little princess had another reason for deciding to remain in Lakeheart Town for the time being: with their sense of direction, if they continued onward, it would probably take them until the Year of the Monkey to reach the Gabella Empire...