kscans

Chapter 37 - A New Pilgrimage and the Little One, Part Three

"This is quite..."

Invited into the carriage, Prince Marcello’s eyes widened at the spacious interior. It featured simple furnishings and a table set for sitting directly on the floor. He heard it was a magic tool that expanded the space, and though he was curious about how it worked, there were more important things to discuss.

Accepting the invitation, the crown prince sat down with a cushion at his back and listened to the Little One’s detailed explanation. She omitted the parts about the gods, but explained that her soul had been lodging in Fatima’s body. For certain reasons, Fatima had been in a state of sleep, so she had been acting as a substitute. When Fatima awoke, she had taken her leave of that body. Since she had been the Golden King, Fatima had lost her power after she left. The Little One skillfully crafted a narrative around the inconsistencies, breaking it down into an easy-to-understand explanation for him.

Sipping the tea Hyrulia served, Prince Marcello let out a deep sigh.

"So you obtained a new body and are now working as the Golden King again. A new pilgrimage. I’m surprised that you have memories of your past life, and that this past life is a person I know. But that is the domain of the gods, so there is no point in dwelling on it."

As expected of the man who became crown prince over his elder brother. He was a man of extremely flexible thinking and broad-mindedness. He handled even this outlandish story properly and showed understanding. Still, he accepted it a little too readily. The Little One stared intently at Prince Marcello and voiced the question that had occurred to her. In response, he explained with a look of utter disgust, as if he had bitten into a bitter bug.

"It’s your fault."

"Excuse me?"

My fault? Wait a minute, I don’t remember doing anything.

"I will not forget how you thoroughly bested me that day. I was still a child back then, but you defeated me with knowledge and eloquence that surpassed my own at the time. I used that as a springboard to become who I am today... I am a little grateful."

From the prince's opening remark that had made his knights explode, to his knowledge of Flowers' unfamiliar history. The child who knew all this and smiled gracefully in admonishment. A little girl, barely three years old, had completely defeated the prince. He had been dumbfounded at the time, but as days passed, a fierce sense of shame and regret assaulted him.

What had I done? I angered the knights with my discourteous attitude, tried to push things forward for my own convenience, and when I learned it was impossible, I forced my disappointment onto a little girl.

The prince would never forget the pity-filled eyes of the Frontier knights and the Little One as they saw off the Flowers knights and himself. And then he realized. Only the little girl’s gaze held no pity, but a sharp glint as the corners of her mouth lifted. He could never forget that challengingly sparkling gaze, and it continued to trouble him.

A few days into his worries, he visited a lake near the royal castle and, while gazing at the forest there, had a realization. At that time, he had wanted to obtain the Lord’s forest so badly that he could see nothing else. He had despaired when he heard it was impossible. But hadn’t she said something else?

He couldn't see the forest for the trees. That was the prince back then.

The prince, who had casually cleared his mind while looking at the lake near the royal castle, recalled the words the little girl had spoken.

‘Is there a forest in the royal capital?’

There was one, yes. A forest about the size of a small village’s. Or was it a grove?

The Lord’s forest at the border was larger than the castle town. This one was less than a tenth of that size. Compared to that, what the castle folk called a forest was surely a grove.

‘The larger a Lord’s forest is, the wider its effective range. A small forest is meaningless.’

Then what if he expanded this grove? Perhaps he could plant trees, increase its size, and expand it little by little.

Thinking that far, the prince hung his head limply and shook it.

A Lord’s forest was said to bring blessings to an area the same size as the forest itself. At the size of this grove, it could only cover the royal castle grounds. In that case, it was more beneficial for Flowers to have the blessings bestowed upon the entire border region. For a country chronically suffering from food shortages, the influence of a Lord’s forest that supported agriculture was immense. It was a treasure that could not be replaced by anything.

It was more prudent to have the Lord stay there than to move them here.

With this conviction, Prince Marcello decided to cherish the border forest. It was then that he heard of the friction between Frontier and Castrato. Reports from his spies informed him that war with that country was imminent, and the prince used his authority as crown prince to mobilize the army. Even without magic, they had technology. They had developed many weapons in secret, from cannons and grenades that used gunpowder, to crossbows improved from bows. Leading soldiers armed with these, the prince headed for the border wilderness. He set up camp in a farming village near the Lord’s forest to grasp the situation, and it was there that he received a message from the village.

The Lord was calling.

Prince Marcello rushed over in a panic, and what he saw were many bees and frogs. He knew they were intelligent monsters connected to the Lord, but the Lord here was supposed to be a large frog.

Then what about those bees?

What about that bee, so much larger and more beautiful than the child-sized bees flying around?

Prince Marcello knew of that monster from his studies, but this was the first time he had seen one.

"A Queen?"

The Lord of the Forest that had long protected Frontier.

He found her honestly beautiful. Her glossy carapace, her smooth fur. Above all, the Lords possessed an intellectual atmosphere. A calm, warm, and unique presence. Compared to them, he felt that we humans were the more barbaric and foolish creatures. In reality, that was probably true.

But why was a Queen here?

With a vague question in mind, the prince heard the story from Moruto and promised to send reinforcements. He decided it would be faster to have the monsters accompany them and cut through the wilderness rather than going through Frontier.

《We are not familiar with the land. We ask that you lead the way.》

Staring at the Queen-like bee writing on the ground with its claw, Prince Marcello swallowed hard and took a chance to ask.

"Why are you, the Queen, going?"

Moruto wouldn't leave the forest. So why?

The giant bee, who had looked momentarily vacant at the prince’s serious expression, then slowly smiled and ran its claw across the ground.

《I am not the Queen. I am her daughter, who is scheduled to succeed her.》

The prince could not believe the words he saw.

"The Queen’s... daughter?"

The giant bee nodded with a smile. It should have had an expressionless, iron mask of a face, yet for some reason, he could tell it was smiling. The next Queen. That meant the Lords could multiply. He didn’t understand the logic, but it was certain that there were two giant bees who were Lords.

This is... what a stroke of luck. Could I somehow invite one to the forest in the royal capital?

The prince felt he heard the trumpets of angels at this sudden good fortune, but the next moment, he collapsed to the ground, his face pale.

He couldn’t possibly invite a Lord to that paltry forest.

He glanced sideways at the border forest and narrowed his eyes at its magnificent nature. What a splendid forest it was. Rich with water, the deep new green bubbled and billowed in the wind. Green as far as the eye could see. This was a forest worthy of a Lord.

The small grove left in the corner of the royal castle was not even worth mentioning.

Prince Marcello clenched his fist with determination.

I will turn that grove into a forest. Fortunately, there is a rich lake fed by a spring. I will use that as a water source, create tributaries, and create a forest through afforestation.

And when a lush forest is complete... will a Lord accept my invitation?

The prince entertained a grand dream in his heart, but that dream would be cruelly shattered later.

He learned that a Lord moving meant the death of a forest, and the only condition under which they could move was if the Golden Ring was complete. Moruto, who explained this, felt a pang of sympathy at the prince's crestfallen figure. The area of the Golden Ring extended from the border forest to the entirety of Frontier. The capital of Flowers was not included within it. Furthermore, he received a report of the Little One’s reversion to infancy, and at the fact that the Golden King herself was lost, the prince’s dream was shattered into a million pieces and blown away by the merciless winds of time.

Remembering the events of ten years ago, a faint pang of pain crossed Prince Marcello’s face. Days of wandering, not knowing what to do. Still unable to give up, he continued planting trees, relying on the knowledge the Little One was said to have left behind. Ten years of silently expanding the forest. As a result, a forest that rivaled the one at the border now spread behind the Flowers royal castle. If only he could invite a Lord here... He would smile a self-deprecating smile every day at the vast forest that filled his vision when he opened a window.

But then, a glimmer of hope.

The Golden King had returned.

It was worth it to have created the forest without giving up.

According to her, she planned to create a ring even larger than before, one that would encompass the entire inland region. If his forest was within that ring, it should be possible for a Lord to move.

The Little One felt an indescribable chill run down her spine at the sight of Prince Marcello’s eyes, which glittered with longing.

And then, in the same farming village as before, the little girl squealed with delight at the same carbonara she had eaten before. This time, it came with black pepper from the start.

"Carbonara! It’s so delicious, isn’t it?"

"Ah, you were the one who gave it that name. It’s a famous dish in my country now. It’s a delicious pasta, isn’t it?"

The villagers listened intently to the snippets of their casual conversation.

Carbonara.

At the word, pronounced with a different intonation from their own, the people’s eyes softened. The adults who remembered that time, and the children who did not, all understood that this group was the real Little One squad.

Her appearance may have changed, but her essence remained the same. Moreover, being close to Yamen, this village naturally received an influx of Kilfan culture, and many rumors along with it.

Knowing that it was all true, the faces of the people couldn’t help but relax into smiles.

Welcome back, Little One.

No one said it until the party from Frontier and Flowers had departed, but the villagers who had watched them until they were out of sight erupted into a frenzy of joy once they were gone.

"It’s really the Little One! The rumors were true!"

"Thank goodness... This is a blessing."

"The land will be healthy again. Not that we don’t have a good harvest now."

"But will she be okay? Going all the way to the frontier as a child."

"The knights are with her. She’ll be fine. Let’s pray for her safety."

Saying so, the villagers knelt on the ground and prayed fervently to the heavens. The sun, as if receiving their prayers and understanding, shone brightly, unnoticed by them.

God is watching everything.

The Little One, beloved by the gods. With the prayers of many people added to her, her journey was smooth sailing.

Bursting with nostalgia, the Little One is full of energy today♪