Home/The Prince died, so we're starting over!/ch20

Episode 20

To make matters worse, a small light began to glimmer in the distance. It seemed to be the exit.

"Well, there's the exit."

"How is this possible? We've already crossed that entire vast court?"

"This passage must be enchanted."

Magic, magic, that blasted magic!

At this rate, I felt I'd get sick just hearing the word "magic."

But the Third Prince, oblivious to my feelings, made his way toward the exit with an excited face.

You little... be grateful you were born as the sub-male lead.

If you'd been born as the female lead, you'd have been cursed at for being a nuisance and would've lived a long, sickly life...

I followed the Third Prince through the exit with the bitter resignation of one eating mustard with tears.

As the Third Prince had said, outside the exit was a mountain.

A very small cave, hidden by a large boulder halfway up the mountain, was the passage's outlet.

Those who didn't know of the secret passage's existence would probably never even notice there was a cave here. The exit was that well concealed.

"There's probably also a spell that only allows people who've passed through the secret passage to enter the cave."

"I see..."

The Third Prince added an explanation I hadn't asked for.

"Well then, shall we go down to the village?"

Despite being a first-timer, the Third Prince began striding down the mountain without hesitation.

I hurried my steps to follow him.

Along the way, I spotted two dirty sets of clothing lying scattered on the mountain path.

I picked them up and handed one to the Third Prince.

"Here, take this."

"...What is it?"

"It's a robe... I think? It's a bit dirty, but it's better than nothing. Our current appearance is far too conspicuous."

"Ah, come to think of it, His Majesty the Emperor also wears commoner's clothes whenever he goes on an incognito visit."

Fortunately, the Third Prince put on the robe I gave him without complaint.

I could safely say this was the best thing he'd done all day.

The robe smelled musty. It was only natural, given it had been discarded.

'Why would clothes be left in a place like this?'

I should have given that question more serious thought.

We arrived at the village at the foot of the mountain around the time the sun began to redden.

"We're late..."

Normally, it would have been well past lunchtime.

By now, Anna was surely waiting for me with bated breath.

"We must hurry and finish our business."

The Third Prince answered and quickened his pace even more.

We asked the villagers for directions and eventually reached the shop of a merchant who was said to be a former miner.

The journey here had been anything but smooth.

The people on the streets eyed us with suspicious looks.

Two children wandering through a village without any adults—it was only natural to seem strange.

The village atmosphere was unsettled, and I kept getting a bad feeling.

I even found myself praying—something I never normally did.

'Oh, great god of this world—whatever your name—Goguryeon, Baekjeon, or Shinra... Please watch over us. Please let us return to the court without any trouble.'

Perhaps because I'd been vague with the name?

The god did not answer.

"Excuse me. Is the shopkeeper in?"

The Third Prince opened the shop door and called out.

According to the village children, the shopkeeper had lost a leg in a mining accident and had trouble getting around.

"Who's there?"

A man leaning on a crutch slowly emerged from inside.

"Huh? Kids? We've got nothing for you to play with here. Get lost!"

The man didn't seem to like children. A sense of failure began to creep in.

"I've come looking for something."

"Ha! You? Do you even have money?"

"Not money, but I can give you this instead."

The Third Prince pulled something from his pocket and handed it to the man.

A red gemstone.

"Where did a kid like you get a gemstone this big? You didn't steal it, did you?"

The man, being a former miner, seemed to recognize the gem's value at a glance.

He snatched it up and eyed us warily.

"If you give me what I'm looking for, I can give you something even better."

"W-what is it you're looking for?"

"Think carefully. Among the things you have, what could be worth as much as this?"

The man's eyes grew sharper by the moment.

No matter how I looked at it, this wasn't the way.

There wasn't a single knight guarding us.

To the man, we were nothing but frail children.

We shouldn't have shown that we were wealthy.

That was practically inviting danger.

But this eight-year-old, who had only ever dealt with nobles his whole life, seemed completely unaware of that fact.

Nobles, always so polished on the surface, were all frogs in a well when you looked closer.

Since the Third Prince was so clueless, I had to be the one to keep my wits about me.

I secretly watched the man's movements.

He hid the gem in a box, then reached his hand behind his back, as if grabbing something.

I likewise subtly picked up a wooden plank that was lying nearby.

"...It seems you come from a noble house. Forgive my rudeness."

Suddenly, the man's tone became polite.

The Third Prince's face brightened immediately.

It seemed he thought the man had recognized their status and become respectful.

Even a clever child, it seemed, couldn't shed that noble-supremacist mindset.

Of course, having grown up in an era of equality, I didn't entertain such hopeful delusions.

We were just children—what good was status?

The man's right hand was still hidden behind his back.

I was certain he was testing us.

"I have no intention of punishing you, so don't worry. If I can get what I'm looking for, I'll leave at once."

But the Third Prince seemed to have a flower garden for a brain, matching his pretty face.

Whether innocent or foolish, he readily admitted to being a noble.

"I'll give you what you want. However..."

"However?"

"...How do you plan to get back? Forgive my impertinence, but you don't appear to have brought any knights. As you know, this item must not fall into the wrong hands."

"I have my ways. More importantly, how much of it do you have?"

It was over.

When the man said they didn't seem to have brought any knights, the Third Prince didn't deny it.

Not denying a statement that should have been denied was as good as confirming it.

Oh, you... Lately you've been acting so clever, why are you like this today...

The Third Prince had always been an unpredictable child, but today he was even more so.

He was acting rashly, like someone being chased by something.

Why on earth is he like this?

At any rate, the Third Prince was useless. I could only rely on myself.

I gripped the wooden plank more firmly.

"Well then, let me have a look..."

The man trailed off and glanced behind him.

It seemed time was running out.

I grabbed the Third Prince's hand like snatching it away.

And at the same time, I hurled the wooden plank I was holding at the man.

The plank flew in an arc and struck the man's leg squarely.

"Aagh!"

The man screamed and crumpled forward.

Fortunately, things were going according to plan.

I had never intended to win through strength.

Frankly, an eight-year-old girl swinging a wooden plank couldn't hurt that much.

Our best option was to escape while the man was down.

"L-Lady Lulupel! What on earth are you doing!"

The Third Prince, like a naive child, looked at me with wide, bewildered eyes.

If I'd had the time, I'd have given him a good smack on the head.

But there was no time to waste on such nonsense.

"Run! Hurry! Can't you see that man has an axe?"

"What? An axe? Why would he have an axe..."

"Are you asking because you don't know? He's trying to kill us and take the gem! That's why you shouldn't have shown that we have no knights!"

Only belatedly noticing the axe in the man's hand, the Third Prince started running in a panic.

We turned and fled as fast as our legs could carry us.

We headed toward the mountain, but we didn't know the way properly.

All mountain paths looked the same.

"You little rats! Stop right there!"

The man chased after us with frightening speed.

I turned my head to see how close he was.

He was about a few dozen paces behind us.

Though he was a grown man, his injured leg slowed him down. It didn't seem likely he'd catch us easily.

Letting out a sigh of relief, I turned my head back.

Just then, a strong mountain wind blew.

The wind knocked the hood of my robe clean off my head.

"H-Hariella!"

Huh?

For some reason, the man seemed to recognize who I was.

How does that man know my name?

'Could Hariella be famous even among commoners?'

This wasn't really the time for such thoughts, but my mind was brimming with random questions.

Perhaps because the man's pace was so slow, the sense of danger felt muted.

'Do all territory residents know what their lord's daughter looks like?'

I racked my brain, trying to recall my previous lives.

But I couldn't find a clear answer.

Of course, it wasn't as if I'd never met the commoners of the territory in my previous lives.

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