Chapter 84…
Rilkia couldn’t bear to look Ellie in the eyes and squeezed her eyes shut.
“It—it could be dangerous!”
“Why? Rilkia unni is here, and there are lots of other guards too.”
Ellie wasn’t wrong.
Not just this inn, but the entire distance between this one and the others was locked down under a flawless security perimeter.
Unless Ellie tried to escape on purpose, no one would dare touch even a single strand of her hair.
Still, it was better to reduce even the slightest possibility of danger…
“Is it dangerous even when you’re with me, Rilkia unni?”
“…Let us go.”
Danger? She’d just block it.
Our Majesty wants to go—
who could dare stop her?
Her role wasn’t to be a fence that trapped the queen. It was to be the shield that ensured her freedom remained safe.
Rilkia straightened her posture, reminded herself of her duty, and bravely stepped forward to lead Ellie.
* *
“What on earth is going on?”
The sudden appearance of His Majesty the King threw the people into confusion—but a delighted one.
“I brought this! To share with everyone!”
There was no reason not to welcome her.
Their Majesty wasn’t the type to show up just to act self-important or lecture anyone. Sometimes she even brought late-night snacks like this.
Ahh, cute!
And on top of that, she was adorable.
Wrapped tightly in Rilkia’s cloak so she wouldn’t get rained on, the moment people saw the king, their hearts burst like they’d been struck by lightning.
And not only that. She struggled and groaned trying to open a popcorn sack as big as her own body.
“It’s open! Here! Everyone come and grab some!”
As Ellie scooped popcorn into people’s hands with her small hands—determined to divide things fairly—they felt a refreshing delight burst in their mouths, as if the popcorn exploded even before eating it.
“Here you go! Enjoy!”
Ellie handed out the popcorn to each person with affection and care.
Her hands got dusty, sweaty, and messy from scooping it out herself—but still, it was the most delicious popcorn in the world.
An unending honor from their sovereign.
“It tastes even better because Her Majesty gave it out personally!”
The people devoured the popcorn like beggars who hadn’t eaten for three days.
Pleased by their reactions, Ellie giggled and moved on to the next inn.
After finishing her tour around all the inns, Ellie held the nearly empty popcorn sack close to her chest and returned to the inn where she was staying.
“There’s a little left now!”
“Yes, I suppose with this much, I can join you and have some as well.”
“Mm! …But, um, is it okay not to save any for the people who are sleeping?”
Most of the guests in the other inns had been awake.
But the one Ellie stayed in was quiet—likely because many children lodged there.
“Popcorn tastes best when eaten during the rain. If too much time passes, I don’t think there’s any meaning in saving it.”
Rilkia gave in to greed.
She apparently no longer remembered how she had insisted she wouldn’t eat any.
“Hmm, is that so… okay!”
Ellie obediently accepted Rilkia’s logic.
The two shared the last of the popcorn peacefully.
“Time to sleep now.”
“Yep! …After brushing my teeth.”
Ellie considered dental care just as important as Rilkia’s muscle training.
Teeth were part of the body too. Rilkia felt proud of her queen, who knew how to take good care of herself.
“Yes, let’s go together.”
This inn had shared bathrooms on each floor.
There were no private bathrooms attached to the rooms.
Rilkia escorted Ellie to the bathroom and brought her back once she finished brushing her teeth.
“Then, sleep well.”
“Yeah! Rilkia unni, when do you sleep?”
“I’ll switch shifts much later.”
“Much later…”
“I’ll be guarding the door, so rest easy.”
“O-okay…”
Ellie waved through the closing door, smiling.
Rilkia kindly waved back and closed it.
Thump.
The door shut quietly.
“…….”
But Ellie didn’t return to bed.
“Mmm… munyamnyam…”
Someone—either Juruna or Bavian—mumbled in their sleep.
Ellie peeked at the sleeping children, then turned to the door again.
Rilkia unni was beyond that door.
But…!
CRACK!
Thunder roared violently.
It quieted for a few moments now and then, but never truly stopped.
Since Ellie had entered the room, it had been popping relentlessly—like popcorn bursting, like beans roasting.
Maybe…!
Ellie took a deep breath and gathered her resolve.
The next thunderclap struck, and Ellie made her decision.
No matter how sharp Rilkia’s senses were, she was still human.
In the instant lightning flashed and thunder exploded, she failed to notice other things.
So Ellie used the flash to slip out of the room—and used the boom to slip into the room next door without being detected.
“Haa… haa…!”
Ellie leaned against the door, breathing hard.
I tricked Rilkia unni! Aaahhh!
This was as bad as tax evasion.
Seriously, truly—something she should never do, absolutely not, under any circumstances!
Sneaking away from her guard to go somewhere in secret was definitely something she must not do… but… but still! She really wanted to.
She wanted to eat popcorn together with Clearus.
She felt bad eating it all by herself, and it bothered her that Clearus had ended up with a separate room.
It couldn’t be helped, but Clearus’s sulky expression still lingered in her mind.
But she couldn’t eat popcorn alone with Clearus either.
A single man and a single woman—both young nobles—must not be alone together in the same room.
But having Rilkia unni watching is even worse!
So Ellie boldly escaped her room and infiltrated Clearus’s.
She hadn’t expected it to work but…
…it actually worked?
It did.
The success amazed her—and made her feel a little smug.
Maybe I’m actually pretty good at this sneaking-around stuff?
If Rilkia heard that, she would’ve ordered Ellie to run ten laps around the training ground.
Anyway, now that she had succeeded, it was time to call Clearus.
“Uh…?”
Clearus seemed to be asleep.
The blanket was bulging.
He must have pulled it over his head because not even a hair was visible.
“Clearus, are you… asleep?”
Ellie crept closer and whispered.
But there was no reply.
Hey…
She had conducted such an incredible mission to get here, but Clearus was fast asleep.
What the heck…
She pouted. He was sleeping soundly while she was struggling like this.
But if she had seen how he struggled to fall asleep alone, she might’ve felt even worse.
Good night, Clearus.
Ellie whispered and carefully took out a handful of popcorn she’d secretly hidden in her pocket, placing it on the bedside table.
Once wasn’t enough—her hand went in and out again, and again.
She even shook out the crumbs at the bottom of the pocket.
Done with her offering, Ellie turned to say a final goodbye—and froze.
“…Huh?”
Now that she looked properly, the shape of the blanket was strange.
It was higher than it should’ve been.
Like someone curled up in a ball.
Does Clearus sleep like a snail?
Ellie tilted her head.
Do people even sleep like that?
She never had, so she didn’t know.
But the height of the blanket definitely looked like someone curled up snail-like.
Isn’t that uncomfortable?
Curious—and wanting just to see Clearus’s sleeping face—Ellie took a cautious step closer.
“Clearuuus…”
Still no reply.
Ellie grew bolder.
She took another step and gently grabbed the edge of the blanket.
Just a peek. Just a tiny peek.
Her heart thumped as fast as when she had escaped her room.
“…….”
CRRRRAAACK.
The heavens shouted, “YOU LITTLE—!”
But Ellie’s desire was stronger.
Ignoring the scolding of the skies, she quietly lifted the blanket.
And the moment she saw what was underneath—
Ellie froze, pale as lightning.
“Uh… Clear…us?”
“…….”
She couldn’t move.
Not even a twitch.
What should she do?
What was she supposed to do?!
They say people freeze when faced with something they absolutely cannot handle.
Like a deer meeting a leopard at midnight—Ellie froze just the same.
W-w-w-what—!
Why was Clearus…
crying?
And with a face completely drained of color?
