The Childhood Friend of the Villainess in a Romance Fantasy

Translator: Elisia

Editor/Proofreader: TempWane

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Just as there is etiquette that nobles must show the king, there is also etiquette that the king must show to nobles.

In that regard, it could be considered disrespectful for a prince, who is merely the king’s son and not the king himself, to pass through the Grand Duchy without meeting the Grand Duke in person.

The Kingdom of Alwen is not a perfectly centralized monarchy. Rather, it resembled a typical medieval feudal kingdom.

Nominally, all land in the kingdom belongs to the king, who ‘grants’ it to lords to rule. However, the reality is different.

Some families have histories even older than the royal family, and some have lived on their lands since before the kingdom was established. In this kingdom, those titled as ‘dukes’ are usually such families.

The Grand Duke, who inherited royal blood, did enjoy a slightly more relaxed relationship with the royal family compared to other dukes. Nevertheless, for the prince to avoid meeting his distant relative and elder, the Grand Duke, was a problem in many respects. Furthermore, although Baron Delkis held the title of baron, he was effectively subordinate to the Grand Duke.

Though unwritten, it was customary for someone in the prince’s position to first meet the Grand Duke and receive permission before visiting one of his vassals. Failing to observe this was either a sign of poor education or outright negligence.

That was why the Grand Duke’s household has sent someone to Delkis after learning of the prince’s visit—to communicate the Grand Duke’s displeasure without him personally appearing..

A subtle form of protest was made by sending a representative of lower standing than the Grand Duke himself to meet the prince.

“Are you saying you’ll go, even knowing all this?”

I understood why my father, the Grand Duke of Grattanmount, would ask me such a question. Sending the Grand Duke’s eldest daughter, someone of royal blood, would dilute the intended meaning of assigning a person of lower rank than the Grand Duke to meet the prince.

“I don’t believe it will cause any significant issues.”

But right now, I was in a situation where I couldn’t afford to delay. Because of Elsie, an unpredictable presence, I needed to stay close by for at least a few days to observe the situation.

In fact, I had already prepared peppers to give to Elsie. Not just peppers, but ground pepper powder, which could be used immediately as a spice. Although powder is not ideal for sea transport, once it reached land, it was easier to carry in dried and ground form, which was why the merchant had brought it here in that state.

The cost? Higher than sugar, almost rivaling pepper in value. But I had prepared it in advance to win Elsie’s favor.

I just didn’t expect to have to use it this quickly.

“Though I may be the eldest, it’s my younger brother who will inherit the family.”

I had a younger brother who was two years younger than me. And unlike me, who had retained memories from a previous life, he was just a regular five-year-old child.

And one day, he would grow up to be one of the many male leads.

“Still, your presence is significant to our family”

“And yet, the prince doesn’t know that. Besides, I also have my own plans for going.”

“Plans?”

My father looked at me expectantly, as if inviting me to explain.

“I intend to meet with Baron Delkis first, then visit the lady of the house. My pretense for going there is to visit my friend, Lady of Delkis.”

“Hmm.”

Of course, this was just an excuse. I was truly going there to see Elsie.

I had to prevent any mishaps between the prince and Elsie.

Not that I was confident it wasn’t already too late. Judging by the time it took for messengers to travel from the edges of the territory to our castle—and the prince’s apparent decision to head straight to Delkis—they would likely arrive before I did.

All I could do was hope Elsie hadn’t already cause any trouble before I arrived.

…Even though I had only met her once, I couldn’t shake this feeling of intense anxiety.

“I see. You’re prioritizing meeting your friend over the prince, essentially mirroring his own breach of courtesy toward us.”

After some contemplation, the Grand Duke of Grattanmount finally smiled.

It wasn’t the warm smile a father would give to his cherished daughter, but rather a somewhat calculated grin.

“But the prince might be displeased with you for that.”

“If His Highness behaves rudely towards someone his own age, it would only mean he lacks gentlemanly qualities.”

“Well said.”

My father nodded approvingly.

“Then I’ll allow it.”

Yes!

I clenched my fist in silent triumph at his words.

*

Thanks to Snow, I had at least something to occupy my time.

With only large creatures around here, the presence of a puppy was so delightful that I could forget the passing of time just by watching it.

Snow’s puppies, though already the size of medium-sized dogs, were still trembling bundles of fluff.

When I had nothing else to do in the territory after guiding the prince, I went to go to where Snow was, just as I always did when I needed to pass the time.

I would squat down beside the furry pups and watch them wriggle around.

The mouths of the pups, whose teeth hadn’t fully grown yet, reminded me of the Korean consonant ‘ㅅ’. As time passed, they opened their once-shut eyes wide, now making an “ㅇㅅㅇ” expression. Their eyes seemed larger than normal since their faces hadn’t grown to the size of adult wolves yet.

Usually, I would pick one up and play with it, but now all the pups were nursing from Snow. Knowing that eating well at a young age was crucial, I decided not to interrupt their meal.

Snow gazed at me quietly with her red eyes.

She didn’t seem particularly wary. The size difference between us was too vast for her to fear a small human child. It would seem almost comical for a wolf to be afraid of a child.

Although she looked fierce, her behavior was no different from that of a dog. I hadn’t raised a dog myself, but I remembered seeing videos about them on TV and the internet.

Maybe wolves are just like dogs if you treat them that way?

As I mused to myself, the door behind me opened.

“Gasp!”

A sharp intake of breath reached my ears.

I turned to see Prince Evan standing there his face a mix of confusion and disbelief.

“Your Highness.”

I rose quickly and faced him. At least this time, I wasn’t wearing leather clothes like earlier. Though I found them more comfortable, it seemed inappropriate for a baron’s daughter to wear them inside the castle.

“L-Lady of Delkis.”

The prince stammered for a moment, probably surprised to see wolves in the castle.

Did he come here to find me?

It’s possible he’d just wandered here by accident, but judging by his demeanor, I doubted that was the case.

He looked like the type who hated things not going precisely his way.

Facial expressions may not be scientific, but they often reveal a person’s character.

“Do you keep wolves even inside the castle?”

I tilted my head at the incredulous question from the prince.

“Is it unusual to see animals kept indoors? Horses are often kept within castle walls”

“Well, that’s true…”

Still, horses probably weren’t kept in the exact center of a castle. It would be a bit disconcerting. To bring a horse or a moose here, you’d have to pass through the entire castle.

People were rather startled when I brought Snow here.

Understanding his reaction, I replied.

“The wolves I raise don’t bite people.”

“Is that so?”

Of course, or I wouldn’t have brought them here. No matter how tolerant my father was, he wouldn’t allow wolves that might harm people into the castle.

Our family believed in Druid powers. Although it seemed odd that they believed in this simply because of records of Druid blood in the distant past, I benefited from it, so I said nothing.

“What brings you here?”

“Oh? Right.”

Only after I asked did the prince respond.

“When I inquired about a sparring partner, they suggested I come here—”

Before he could finish, Snow suddenly whimpered.

“Huh? Snow, what’s wrong?”

It hadn’t been long since Snow gave birth. Though some time had passed, she was still recovering. After all, she had birthed several pups, which took a toll.

I squatted beside Snow to check on her, and the prince, realizing the situation, fell silent.

Then, locking eyes with me, Snow calmly reached over—

—and bit my head.

“Aaaaah!”

A beat later, that scream echoed.

Ah, this feels strangely familiar.