kscans

Chapter 44 - A New Pilgrimage and the Little One

"Wahah, you were quick!"

The journey there took a little over ten days, but the return trip took only three. The power of honeybee flight was formidable.

Leading the knights who were galloping behind her, the Little One descended from the sky into the royal palace. In the castle town, people were dumbfounded by the flying carriage. The royal palace was in a state of utter chaos. The royal palace knights, who had hurriedly armed themselves and rushed out, let out sighs of relief with a collective, "Ah," upon seeing that the object was a carriage and, moreover, that it was being controlled by honeybees. A man with bright red hair pushed his way through the knights who had visibly relaxed.

"My Lady!"

In a rather stern tone, Harold stood before the Little One like a guardian king. Her large green eyes blinked in a kyon of surprise.

"What is the meaning of entering the royal palace without going through the gatekeeper! If you were alone, you would have His Majesty the King’s permission, but to cross the castle walls without authorization in a vehicle is absolutely outrageous. You would have no grounds for complaint even if you were shot at with arrows or magic!"

At Harold’s piercing reprimand, the Little One recoiled with a pyatto, and for once, wore a solemn expression, her eyebrows drooping.

"I’m sorry."

The little girl hung her head dejectedly.

Chihiro, who had been scolded a lot recently, was quick to feel down about her own shortcomings. Zack picked up the Little One and glared at Harold with a sharp, challenging gaze.

"The lady is tired. I’ll leave the rest of the lecture to this guy."

With that, Zack pushed Dorfen forward.

"Eh? Huh?"

Dorfen, still slightly intoxicated from the lingering effects of flight sickness, was met with Harold’s cold stare, who gritted his back teeth.

"You too! Why didn’t you stop her?!"

Unaware that he had even entered the royal palace from the sky, Dorfen simply shrugged his shoulders at the roaring thunder.

Leaving the two of them and the onlookers behind, Zack carried the Little One and headed for the count’s residence. From the distant count’s house, two familiar figures were running towards them. They must have seen the Little One’s carriage from afar as well.

"Chihiro-sama, what shall we do with these children?"

Hyrulia, who had been following behind Zack, pointed to the oni. The oni had also been silently following the Little One, who was being held by Zack.

"For now, let’s get them changed at home. In these clothes, they’re likely to be met with suspicion for a different reason."

Naked save for a loincloth. On Earth, this would be a matter for the police.

"My Lady!"

Sasha, who had rushed over, hugged Chihiro, Zack and all. Naya also took Chihiro’s hand with a beaming smile.

"We offer our heartfelt thanks to the gods for your safe return."

"Are you alright? You haven’t been injured, have you? Did you eat properly?"

At Sasha’s question, her crimson eyes welling with tears, the Little One felt a sting in the back of her own eyes.

"I messed up a lot. I realized I’m still just a kid, nyo."

"My, of course you are! My Lady, even including your past, it’s only been about ten years since you were born here, you know? You’re a child who doesn’t know her right from her left!"

At Sasha’s words, the eyes of the people around them widened in realization. Dorfen, who had just received a scolding from Harold, had also rushed over and his ears caught Sasha’s words.

"No matter how clever My Lady may be, there is no way you can do things you do not know or have not been taught. You simply need to grow up slowly from now on, you see?"

Sasha cupped the Little One’s face in both hands and, while wincing with a pained expression, managed a smile.

That's right, the little girl is a child.

Everyone around them realized this for the first time, feeling as if a rock had been dropped on their heads. She knows everything. She can do anything. In fact, she often acts in ways that defy our expectations. That had become the default, creating an illusion for those around her. Hearing that she was a young woman on Earth had only further fueled that illusion.

They had forgotten that the little girl here was exactly the age she appeared to be. Just as her knowledge from that world was unknown here, there were surely many things about this world that the little girl did not know. They had heard that the other world was a peaceful place with no monsters or magic. That there were no social classes, and she was an ordinary commoner. Looking at the Little One, it was hard to think of her as a commoner, and they had forgotten, but the very definition of common sense must be different between that world and this one. To blame her for her shortcomings was, implicitly, like blaming themselves for their own. After all, they had not provided her with the necessary knowledge. This expedition, with Prince Marcello accompanying them, became a journey that clearly highlighted those ambiguous areas.

A massive boomerang struck each of their hearts.

The Little One’s lips were turned down in a pout, her large eyes wavering.

"My Lady, you are fine just as you are. You just need to grow up slowly. Now, let’s wash away the dirt and fatigue from your journey."

Taking Chihiro from Zack, Sasha gently patted the small back.

"You must be tired."

"Yeah."

Watching the little girl cling to Sasha, the surroundings were filled with an indescribable awkwardness.

They had been relying too much on the Little One. Although she was a child greedy for knowledge and praised by a host of teachers, she was still a ten-year-old child inside. No matter how much academic ability or knowledge she had, she was far too lacking in experience. In this world, Chihiro was a child, just as she appeared. She would grow by making mistakes. Just as everyone here had. But they had only condemned those mistakes, what had they themselves done?

They had just watched the dejected little girl’s back.

The only one who took action was Zack. He shielded the Little One from Harold’s scolding and pushed forward Dorfen, who was the one who should have been scolded.

That's right. I was the one who should have been scolded for the incident in Bastok too.

Dorfen gritted his back teeth with regret.

The Little One acts as she pleases. As someone who knows that well, what am I doing if I don't stand at the forefront? Instead of just blindly affirming my master, if I feel something is wrong, I must speak up. If I scrutinize even the smallest details, I might find discrepancies that are not apparent at first glance.

It had happened before.

Dorfen pictured the little girl from ten years ago in his mind.

She had displayed manners and conduct that would put an adult to shame, but at a banquet in the royal palace, she had responded to someone of low status. A lower-ranking noble, not yet knowing she was a princess, had spoken to the Little One who was with Dorfen. In that case, the correct response was to ignore them. However, the little girl, not knowing this, had smiled brightly and given her name. Dorfen, who knew her to be friendly and unpretentious, had not reprimanded her and was later given a very unpleasant look by Prince Romel who came to pick her up.

Thinking back on it now, that too was my failure.

As Dorfen gnashed his teeth with self-reproach, the Little One appeared in his mind again.

‘Regret is pointless, nyo. There’s no such thing as an irreversible mistake. If you have time for that, get to work!’

The Little One who had shouted even at the gods like that.

A chuckle escaped Dorfen’s lips. He glanced at the others who were staring at him suspiciously, then lifted his head with a refreshed expression.

"If we know our shortcomings, we have only to strive to improve. We must compensate for what Chihiro-sama lacks."

His eyes were bright and cheerful, a complete change from just a moment ago.

At this, a challenging smile appeared on Zack's and Adonis’s faces as well.

"She’s not one to be easily handled, after all."

"Doesn’t matter. You guys just need to be the breakwater. Don't cause the lady any trouble."

Zack's sharp retort. It was the truth.

A gust of wind swept past the wryly smiling Adonis and Dorfen.

"Chii-Hiirooo!!"

Drago, who had apparently received the news, ran at full speed, still in his chef’s coat. The Bear in the Kitchen charged forward, dodododotto. Watching his back, Adonis lightly scratched his head.

"Chii-Hiiro will be fine if we leave her to the head chef."

Looking on fondly at the count's residence, the three of them laughed, their shoulders shaking silently.

And so a new pilgrimage began, and Chihiro would come to attend the academy. The Little One, currently wilted and dejected, would surely recover soon. There was no way a girl who was a bundle of curiosity would stay down for long.

The spring is beautiful. Sometimes she gets down, but today, the Little One is full of energy.♪