Chapter 9

5. The Princess Is Studying

Given the circumstances, I told the Hero that I would probably have to visit a branch of the Adventurer’s Guild soon.

For some reason, however, the Hero’s expression didn’t look very pleased.

“Princess, I am a high-ranking noble, you know.”

“Yes. I know. You’re the Grand Duke, after all.”

“Then why go through the trouble of registering with the guild? You have me.”

“Because it’s the fastest way. Registering with the guild takes five minutes. But you said that even processing the paperwork for noble patronage takes more than a month, even if the sponsoring family is only a baronial house. And the other methods have plenty of hurdles to overcome as well.”

Besides, the patronage system was completely different from what I remembered from my time.

Five hundred years ago, patronage was simply a form of assistance.

Noble families would provide scholarships to students in their territories or send toys to orphanages. There was no particular legal obligation involved, and patrons could end the relationship whenever they wanted.

But patronage in the Groxdel Empire was an extremely strict contract, and both the sponsoring family and the person receiving the patronage had numerous obligations they had to fulfill.

“Sage Giorgio said that legally, getting a divorce or disowning an adopted child is much easier than terminating a patronage contract.”

“But registering with the Adventurer’s Guild isn’t without its disadvantages either. Even if you’re only an F-rank, you have to accept at least three quests every month.”

“I’ll just choose easy ones. Besides, I’ll get paid for completing quests, so there isn’t really a downside for me.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to simply apply for citizenship in the Empire? If His Majesty handles it through his authority, it shouldn’t take long.”

That option wouldn’t work.

If I became a citizen of the Groxdel Empire now, when the Sacred Sword was gone and the Four Great Temples had been destroyed, it could cause problems later.

There was nothing I could do about the Hero being an imperial royal.

He had been reincarnated as the child of the Grand Duke and his wife.

But I, the Princess of Total Victory, was currently unaffiliated, which meant I could freely choose where I wanted to go.

“If I obtain citizenship of the Empire, there’s a high chance that other countries will become annoyingly difficult to deal with when matters concerning the Sacred Sword and the Four Great Temples arise.”

“In other words, you’re concerned that it could cause political and diplomatic friction.”

“Yes. Fortunately, Her Holiness Chelestia is from the Kingdom of Odilan, so this way, things are more or less balanced.”

The Hero didn’t seem particularly happy about the fact that I would have to complete quests every month.

But the kinds of quests available to an F-rank adventurer were all easy anyway.

“I’ll just choose things like gathering medicinal herbs, doing simple cleaning, or helping out at a shop. Of course, I’ll disguise myself.”

“Those kinds of quests shouldn’t be dangerous. Very well.”

Phew.

At last, the Hero had agreed.

We decided to visit the Adventurer’s Guild after I moved to the Grand Ducal residence.

Of course, I absolutely wasn’t allowed to go alone. The condition was that the Hero had to accompany me.

Apparently, going outside by myself would be too difficult until the subordinate contract was terminated.

Meanwhile, while I was attending my lessons, we received a message from the temple.

The earliest they could perform the termination ritual was three weeks from now.

“There’s nothing we can do about it. Many priests have been mobilized to treat the wounded members of the Demon King Subjugation Army. They must be incredibly busy. By the way, Princess, what are all those books?”

“The Sage recommended that I read them.”

Fortunately for me, even though five hundred years had passed, the written characters and numbers used throughout the continent had remained the same.

However, the spelling conventions and grammar had changed, and an enormous number of new words had been created.

To describe my current situation, I could read the sentences, but I had difficulty fully understanding what they meant.

It was so frustrating that I was investing a considerable amount of time in building up my knowledge.

“Ignorance isn’t a sin, but I need to learn the common knowledge of this era before I go crazy from frustration.”

“Did you enjoy studying from a young age, Princess?”

“Of course not. Whether I was receiving my princess’s education or attending school, I was always waiting for recess.”

Playing was more fun.

But I had been born as a candidate to become a princess in an era when children couldn’t freely enjoy themselves.

And then I saw a young Hero being thrown onto the battlefield without ever having had the opportunity to properly learn anything.

That’s when I realized it.

The time and environment needed to study aren’t something everyone is always given.

“If I want to live comfortably for the rest of my life, all of this is necessary. And, well… honestly, seeing all these books piled up makes me feel like I’ve become rich. It puts me in a good mood.”

“Ah, so it’s similar to looking at jewelry or a pouch full of gold coins.”

“Yes! Exactly. Books were valuable possessions and a form of wealth in the era I lived in. I also feel bad making the maids go back and forth between the library and my room every time.”

Even so, I was putting the books I’d finished reading into a separate basket and returning them immediately.

As it happened, the only books I could read at my current level were in the Crown Prince’s palace library.

I needed to return them quickly so that their owner wouldn’t have trouble studying.

For reference, the generous Crown Prince had not only given me permission to borrow all the books for as long as I wanted, but had even given me a beautifully bound children’s storybook as a gift.

“I think His Highness Wailen is going to be incredibly popular when he grows up.”

“He already receives countless confessions from young ladies whenever he attends tea parties.”

“Hahaha! Really?”

“Yes. He is handsome and has been strictly educated, so his manners are excellent as well. He acts spoiled around me, but at official events, he behaves exactly as a Crown Prince should.”

“If my uncle were a Hero who defeated the Demon King, I’d probably want to act spoiled around him too.”

All his close relatives had died, leaving him with only one uncle.

And that uncle was a handsome, well-built man with gorgeous blond hair and jewel-like blue eyes.

As the Hero, his swordsmanship had reached the pinnacle of human ability, and he was brilliant enough to lead the Demon King Subjugation Army to victory against the Demon King.

And to top it all off, he had rescued me, the Princess of Total Victory, from the Demon King’s castle and brought me back alive.

Honestly, he was the embodiment of every little boy’s dream.

He really was impressive.

“Richt will definitely become the protagonist of legends someday. Artists might even use him as a source of inspiration.”

Hearing me say that, the Hero looked a little troubled.

“We’re already receiving requests from artists in every field—paintings, sculptures, operas, and plays—asking for permission to create works based on the successful Demon King subjugation.”

Oh.

So it was already happening.

But even if he was the Hero, were artists really allowed to freely use a member of the imperial family as the subject of their works?

“According to my retainers, half-crazed artists are bombarding us with letters…”

So they’d lost their minds and were going on a rampage.

I understood that artists had an enormous desire to create.

But if they were imprisoned for committing lèse-majesté, they wouldn’t be able to paint, sculpt, or write anything.

I sincerely hoped they would put reason before emotion when making important decisions.

Although it seemed they were already a little late for that.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess of Total Victory. I am Jiana Groxdel, Empress of the Empire.”

“I heard your morning sickness was quite severe. How are you feeling now?”

“I can eat fruit now, at least, so I’m doing much better.”

Tomorrow was the day I would move from the Imperial Palace to the Grand Ducal residence.

Empress Jiana, who had been suffering from severe morning sickness, had recovered enough to invite me to the Empress’s Palace.

Before her marriage, she had been an archaeologist and had desperately wanted to meet me.

However, her condition had become so bad that she could barely leave the palace, so the Crown Prince had apparently advised her against going out.

“Ah, honestly. I had a mountain of questions I wanted to ask the Princess of Total Victory! I wasted so much precious time lying in bed because of my second child.”

“If you send me a letter later, I’ll write down everything I know.”

“I’d love to do that, but if I monopolized you all to myself, my professors and fellow students from my school days would protest terribly. You are living history, after all. I’m simply envious of Dr. Riepart.”

Empress Jiana carefully asked if I had considered staying in the Imperial Palace a little longer.

I understood how she felt, but I refused.

Keeping the subordinate contract a secret from the maids was already difficult enough.

These days, after the maids went home at night, Richt would come to my room and sleep with me before sneaking out again at dawn.

We had been repeating this for several days now.

Perhaps because we had so little time to sleep peacefully, the quality of both our sleep had deteriorated so badly that I felt like I was going to die from exhaustion.

Richt, as a Hero, had an abundance of stamina and was managing somehow.

But I had only recently returned from the dead and was still recovering.

At this rate, I could barely see straight!

I needed to move to the Grand Ducal residence if only to secure a humane eight hours of sleep a day.

“I’m surviving on black tea and coffee so I don’t look too sleepy. The maids think I’m staying up late reading at night.”

That’s why whenever I asked for coffee or tea, the number of times they nagged me increased.

Yesterday, they even gave me terrifying looks and insisted that I take a nap.

I ended up sleeping for about thirty minutes.

“I heard that only a very small number of the Grand Duke’s closest confidants know about the subordinate contract.”

“I only found out on the night I married His Majesty.”

“I discussed it with the Hero, and we’ve decided not to have any live-in attendants in the annex where I’ll be staying. It should be easier to keep the secret that way.”

“Are you planning to cook and clean for yourself as well? The Grand Duke’s butler will have a fit.”

He had already nearly had a fit.

In fact, after Richt conveyed my wishes to him, the old butler unleashed a furious roar of protest.

He was so vehemently opposed to the idea that we had to compromise.

“I’ll have someone come at designated times, quickly take care of the cleaning and other chores, and then leave! I’ll take care of everything else myself as best I can.”

“That sounds like a reasonable solution.”

Empress Jiana was an archaeologist, so she could interpret ancient languages and had even studied the Sacred Sword during her school days.

She knew a great deal about me, the Princess of Total Victory.

And because she came from a viscount’s family on her maternal side—which had a relatively low rank for an empress—she was incredibly easy to talk to.

“I also had a difficult time adjusting to the Imperial Palace during the early days of my marriage.”

“So it wasn’t just me.”

“His Majesty and the Grand Duke, who were born into the imperial family, probably won’t understand. That’s why I can also understand why the annex would be more comfortable for you, Princess.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

We chatted quietly over lemon tea prepared to suit a pregnant woman’s tastes.

And we continued talking until the sun set outside the window.