Chapter 440

Maybe... Probably...

Since we chose to go to Sunkland, Her Highness hasn’t been like herself.

Ludwig frowned as he looked into a room in the Tearmoon Empire’s Grand Library where Mia was sitting and muttering to herself.

It must be like I thought. This trip has a lot more to it than meets the eye. And this is a very important thing.

When she told him she was going to Sunkland for the first time, he thought of two possible reasons.

The first was, of course, making political friends by talking to people to set the stage for future projects. The Kingdom of Sunkland was stronger and bigger than Tearmoon. If Mia wanted to become empress, she needed more than just Sion’s help.

The second was Esmeralda’s marriage proposal. She was one of Mia’s best friends, and she was an Etoiline. Mia had good ties with the other scions of the Four Houses as well, but the young lady of Greenmoon was the only one she could really trust. Esmeralda would always be a very important asset as long as the backing of the Four Dukes was needed to keep control of the central nobility.

Now, someone or a group of someones were trying to get her out of Tearmoon.

There are things going on that make it clear a force opposes Her Highness becoming an empress... This must be a way for them to try to hurt her faction.

That much was both clear and easy for him to understand. He also knew that Mia’s trip to Sunkland was a way to fight back. It would make the opposition in her own country think twice before making any more plans, and it would also let her look into their ties in Sunkland. It was also a way to show support for Esmeralda. The problem was that...

She is going to bring Dion. That is something to think about.

He agreed that it was important to have some strength for safety, but he thought the Princess Guard should have been enough. Why bring Dion Alaia, who was a one-man army? Why was an overwhelming presence needed?

“The only thing that makes sense is that whatever is in the shadows warrants enough for him to be there. If that’s the case, I should also get ready,” he thought to himself as he walked over to Mia.

“Your Highness...”

“Oh, Ludwig. Are you here to find out something?”

Mia cocked her head in surprise at the comment, then went back to reading the book she was holding. It talked about the specialties of each part of Sunkland and the most famous dishes in each town. There was nothing in it that seemed like it would be amazing to Ludwig.

But on the other hand, I am doing something worth praising, so I will happily accept the praise.

She was right, too! In fact, Mia had been thinking and thinking about really important things! After a lot of thought, she chose not to tell Sunkland that she would be traveling with Esmeralda. She was just going to show up with her entourage. The goal of this secret was to get rid of as many unknowns as possible. As a longtime reader of books about the future, Mia knew that the future was surprisingly fragile and could be changed in ways she couldn’t predict. In her case, this meant that the exact details of Sion’s death, such as where and when, were very likely to change.

For example, if I told him I was going as a student, he might feel like he had to let me in. Meet me at the border, if you want. That might keep him from getting into trouble, but it might not. I have no way of knowing how he will treat me, so he could still die the same way.

Also, his trip to the border could put him in danger in ways he doesn’t know about yet. If he did this, he might be able to avoid an easy fight with bandits, but a complicated plot to kill him could very well follow him everywhere he went.

That would only make things harder. I’d rather things go the way they are written about in the book.

So, she had been racking her brains for the past few days, trying to think of a way to put herself into the story so that she would be with Sion on the day he will be killed, without changing any of the other facts too much. Even though putting Dion next to Sion was more important, because he was Sion’s defender, the difference could be overlooked.

And I need to take a detour somewhere to do that. So where?!

That question gave her the most trouble. Esmeralda had planned a route that would not take them through the place where Sion was killed. Fate didn’t want to make things that easy for her, it seems.

The detour should take me to places with lots of good food and unusual mushrooms. If I can also pick some veggies and look for mushrooms, that would be great.

Even though some of the things she thought about were questionable, the choice was still hard. It was important to choose a departure that made sense for her to ask for; otherwise, it would be unnatural. People would have a lot of questions if you asked to stay for a few days in the middle of nowhere. Even worse, Esmeralda might get bored, and an Esmeralda who was bored was a dangerous Esmeralda.

What are some famous Sunkland dishes? Well, well... I see. They have good water fish. So I can add this town on a river to the list. Then...

She did all of that so she could save Sion without acting weird. She didn’t plan her route so carefully because she secretly wanted to turn the trip into a sightseeing and food-eating vacation through Sunkland. She must have been thinking about very serious and important things...

“Oh, these dried mushrooms are something Sunkland is known for? I wonder where I can buy some.”

Probably...