Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favorite

“I will go up to the capital next week.”

Amid the silence, the duke calmly declared.

Duke Elad was the Minister of Military Affairs and at the same time had a great influence on central politics. So he usually stayed in the capital and came down to the territory like this every few months, so his return was expected.

However, at the words that followed, everyone had a bewildered look on their faces.

“Before that, I will gather all the vassals and their families and hold a light banquet.”

It was an embarrassing decision for the elders, who knew better than anyone how much the Duke hated noise.

However, they soon realized that their master, the Duke of Elad, had made the proposal in consideration of the elders and vassals who would be shaken by this incident.

The meeting of the elders broke up in excitement.

***

“Although it’s a shame that Allen isn’t here, why don’t we all go for a walk together after a long time?”

The Duke, who had finally disposed of Count Valerie and had some free time, said during lunch.

Naturally, the Duchess nodded happily, and I, who was waiting on Diana, accidentally joined the family on their walk.

“Wow, it looks like spring is finally coming.”

As we walked in, a lush green field caught our eyes. The ground that had been soaking up my mana was now covered in a bright green color, exuding the vitality of life.

The Duchess, who was admiring the view, glanced at me.

‘You came here on purpose, didn’t you?’

Looking at her eyes, I sensed that she wanted to create pleasant memories for me so that my memories of the incident with Viscount Valerie wouldn’t leave me with wounds or pain.

Although I had felt it every moment while staying at the duke’s residence, the duchess was truly a warm-hearted person.

‘She’s the kind of person who makes your heart feel secure and cozy just by her presence, like sunshine.’

I ended up falling for her, helplessly, just as I had told Diana.

‘This is really dangerous.’

I didn’t want to be tied to anyone anymore.

It was when I imagined my foolish self repeating my life before regression and bowed my head in despair.

“Oh? Look at this!”

“What is it, Lia?”

“Madam! This is a herb!”

At first, I was uncertain because I had only seen the small sprouts last time, but now that I see the slightly larger leaves, I’m sure.

“It looks like a weed, but it’s a herb with actual detoxification effects!”

“Huh?”

The Duchess tilted her head in confusion.

Excitedly pointing to the herb, I quickly explained.

“When I was in the orphanage, we often plucked plants like this from the nearby forest to eat when we were hungry. Through trial and error, I learned which ones made us sick and which ones didn’t. I remember this one making us feel better when we were sick!”

I have a good eye for things like this, so the children often asked me about it.

But it wasn’t until I entered the Terran Empire that I learned of the true value of this herb.

While working as a guild officer and doctor, Ted Ingham found that this herb, called “Spleesia,” was a rare detoxifying herb that only grew with warmth in the cold lands of the Empire.

I remember it was difficult not only to discover but also to grow, requiring delicate mana control.

‘Come to think of it, I need to learn more about mana and magic.’

I stiffened as I recalled my recent visit to the mage tower, where Telin, the chief mage of the Duchy, had raised more than a few questions in my mind.

As far as I know, the only person called the Archmage in this continent was the ruler of the Belus Kingdom, Belus the Duke.

‘Then who is this master who can perform magic freely without a magic circle or a spell, and even teach me… unless Telin was lying?’

If Telin wasn’t lying, then I, too, would be a genius who appears only once in a thousand years, but no matter how much I thought about it, it was a strange story that made my hair stand on end.

After that, my head was filled with doubts.

Looking back, I realized that even though I knew my master for 8 years, I didn’t even know his real name.

My world consisted of the orphanage, begging on the streets, and Terransium, where all the world’s information was gathered. I always thought that I knew everything there was to know about the world because of Terransium.

“Maybe it’s just my imagination.”

Anyway, I wanted to ask Telin more about my master’s teaching methods, but I was afraid I might say the wrong thing and get into trouble. I couldn’t reveal my abilities without understanding the situation.

It would be nice to be able to read books about magic, but Diana didn’t have an excuse to go to the library yet, as she was still too young.

“I’ll have to talk to Viscount Bardo. He’s usually absorbed in herbal medicine, so it might help him with the research he does.”

At that moment, the voice of the Duke, who was walking slowly holding Diana’s hand, could be heard.

Viscount Bardo was the personal physician of the Duke of Elad.

Surprised by my unexpected words, the Duke’s wife, who had been giving me a suspicious look, patted my head and spoke.

“That’s right. Maybe it’s a really valuable herb. To discover something like this, our Lia is truly lucky.”

“Lia is lucky?”

When Diana looked at her with a puzzled expression, the Duke replied with an indifferent face.

“It means a valuable person who brings luck or happiness.”

“Lia is pretty and kind, so she’s undoubtedly a valuable person.”

Upon hearing the words of the Duke’s wife, Diana raised her hand and spoke.

“That’s right! Siste is lucky charm! Lucky charm princess!”

Diana ran towards me and hugged me around my waist, and I awkwardly hugged her back.

My ears were burning with embarrassment, and I couldn’t help but feel a sense of trust even though it was just a child’s words, and I felt burdened by the Duke’s words that she would show me to the doctor without any doubt.

Suddenly, a few days ago, something came to mind.

〈 I confirmed that Taze told you about Diana’s escort, but what about the Perion Mines?〉

〈 Uh, that… I happened to hear about it. I used to go to the military camp to see Jack.〉

After my answer, the Duke looked at me for a moment and then nodded his head and told me to leave.

I was worried that I might be suspected by the Duke since I had uncovered the wrongdoing of the director, but he didn’t ask me any further questions then or now.

It was a relief but also a bit unsettling.

“Oh, by the way, I’m going out to the castle this afternoon to have my dress fitted for the party,” the Duchess said, clapping her hands.

The Duke narrowed his eyes and asked, “Why don’t you call it the castle?”

“Because it’s frustrating for the children to only be in the castle. That’s why our little princess persuaded my brother to take her out to see the festival and ended up in trouble,” said the Duchess with a cheerful response, but the Duke’s face became even more serious.

Duke Ellard was uncomfortable with us going outside the castle.

“Why are we even having a party in the first place? You’re the one who wanted it, so we’re preparing for it, but…”

“Now that we’re going up to the capital, we’ll have fewer encounters with the vessels in the territory, so we should open it.”

“Right, right. That’s true. Going up to the capital is also necessary. But why do we have to go up? It’s just going to be tiring.”

I was listening to their conversation quietly and was surprised.

“I knew that we were going to have a gathering of guests at the palace soon, but going up to the capital city”

“Allen is already ten years old. And Diana, although still young, should start adapting to life in the capital. In fact, there are only two noble families in the empire with the title of Duke, and it’s strange that our children only stay in the territory without getting involved in social circles.”

The Duchess tried hard to persuade the Duke.

“I also want to see our eldest son, who is living alone in the capital.”

“Lucio? Why is he alone? He should be doing well at the academy dormitory. 

The Duchess, who still had a rough tone, asked Diana.

“Diana, do you also want to see your older brother?”

“Yes! I want to see him! siste?”

“…. What?!”

I suddenly became aware of the trip to the capital, and my mind was all over the place, so I was taken aback by Diana’s sudden question, and my breath caught in my throat.

“Lia, is this your first time in the capital? It’s a huge place with lots of people.”

As I watched the Duchess explain with a bright face, saying that I would probably be surprised, I forced a smile at the corner of my mouth.

But it felt like I was sinking inside.

The capital.

If I go there…

‘The Duchess is going to die.’

***

After finishing the meal and returning, I got lost in my thoughts as I prepared to go out. I knew that the Duke’s wife had died when Diana was young, but I didn’t know the exact timing.

‘If only I had known more about the Elad Ducal Family, I could have predicted this.’

Frustrated, I went over the information I knew. The Elad Duke’s wife stayed in the territory after her marriage, raised her children, and then moved to the capital, but she died less than a year later. The exact cause was never revealed, but I heard that she was bedridden, so I thought the Duchess had always been a fragile person.

When I first met Diana at the Duke’s Castle, I was surprised to see how healthy she looked.

“Perhaps it was because of stress.”

Although the Duke of Ellard was too afraid to openly admit it, many people speculated that her signs were due to stress.

It was a natural inference, given that she had always been talkative since the time of her marriage, and considering her situation of living only in the territory.

Furthermore, even I thought that going to the capital would be a daunting and burdensome task for the Duchess.

The Duchess was the one who, like the Duke, had overcome intense opposition from the nobles when he inherited his title from his father and got married.

The reason was simple. Her status was that of a fallen noble, close to the commoners.

The opposition was so strong that even loyal vassals to the Duke expressed dissatisfaction that the Duchess had not married someone from a prominent family, despite being closer to a commoner.

‘Even though she’s closer to commoners, she’s still a legitimate noble. If she were really a commoner, everything would have been turned upside down.’

I shook my head in disbelief.

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Translator Note:

This chapter was translated by Bree.

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