Imagine calling me a fucking ninja. Now that was just bullshit. Such travesty, such an insult. I never expected that. But, I understand that people would be under the impression that we were somewhat the same — but not exactly! Ultimately, I let it go and just disregarded it. Being mad at the ignorant would be the height of arrogance!

Besides, they seemed to be good people. They took Nira's revelation quite well. I had to reveal it, it would be pretty annoying to lie or explain later on. And that also gives out trust. It's like showing a bit of your belly. So I was being kind and honest to them. They weren't troublesome people, so it was completely fine. Aside from the limited food and water part, well, that could be easily managed. I hoped so. Well, there were plenty of monsters around to eat. As for water… Hm.

Ah fuck, I'm going native.

Nuh-uh, I ain't ever gonna get used to monster flesh!

Anyway, why was I going out of my way to be kind to these two women? There were a couple of benefits. First, them being part of the group. Having a team especially in this place was essential. Remember how a struggle it was when it was just me and Nira? Having them gives us more options when facing monsters. They could fight for me, be the vanguard. Or you know, my meatshields in whatever way. In short, it was more for my protection.

Additionally, this Miyako over here was an extremely important figure‌ on their island. And our ultimate destination was her very own island. Imagine the favors I might get after helping her out. Hehe. Being friends with those in power would make things way smoother. I wouldn't want to get in trouble again upon reaching a new island. I wouldn't want to get stalked by a fucking ninja again. How annoying.

In other words, them becoming my friends would be beneficial to me! Of course the one that mattered the most was them being present during dangers so I could be safer, hehe.

And now, we were moving out towards the road. Considering that everyone else was not all too familiar with where we were, without having a map and all, I was the one pointing the way. That's right, I'm a smart girl, am I?

Nira was the one to carry my bag, of course, as always. Which, upon seeing that, seemed to make Miyako and Satomi feel a bit concerned. Well, it was weird to see a kid carrying some somewhat heavy bag you know, and here I was carrying nothing. But no, no child slavery here. Estelia's not a child slaver…

Did they forget the part where she was basically not entirely human? True, the bag looked kinda big on the little girl, but still…

Satomi slowly approached Nira.

"Nira," she said. "I can take the bag if you want. Let me carry it."

Nira looked up at her and blinked her eyes. "Um, no need."

"Really? Is that not heavy for you?"

The little girl shook her head. "Not really a problem."

The bag didn't have much heavy things anyway, so Nira was completely fine. Although she would need to let it go when fighting. Besides, we shouldn't really give our things to anyone else. I wouldn't want to get separated from a group again and get left with no equipment and rations. Best to just let Nira carry our things. At least she wouldn't die and would always stick close to me. And I trusted her the most here.

"... If you say so."

Miyako then glanced at me, as if indirectly saying to convince Nira.

"Nira is fine. She is naturally stronger than an average human. And she is even more resilient. There is nothing to worry about."

"Is that so?" Miyako looked at Nira. "It's still strange to me that there's something not human yet that looks completely human."

"... You'll be surprised how many inhuman beings out there look like humans." Of course I was referring to the beastmen, and let's include the elves in the equation. And imps…

Miyako faintly nodded. "I suppose with how big the world is, there are a lot of strange things."

Personally, I don't want to face something too strange.

Sometimes they just spell trouble.

"With how important you are, I guess they don't usually let you out?"

Miyako shook her head. "Not really. They let me out. Sometimes I hunt monsters to keep myself sharp. I've been to plenty of places on our island, but not so far from my home though."

What the hell? Why are every princess type I meet always fighters?! And quite extroverted.

Heh, it would seem I was really a unique princess. And that makes me very special. Is this cope? Not at all!

"Ah, I see." That was all I could say.

Stolen story; please report.

"You must travel a lot, Estelia. You sounded certain."

"... No, I don't really travel. It's just things I have to undesirably encounter. I was just mostly home."

"... Really? You don't go out?"

"I was at home basically my entire life."

Her eyes widened in astonishment. "That doesn't sound right… You never go out to train?"

"... Only recently. But before that, I was just at home."

She lowered her head, her brow knitting, as if trying to comprehend it. "... Then what do you do at home?"

"Nothing. Just read books, ask the maid for food, stare out the window."

It must have sounded very strange to her. For someone like me to be like that. "You must be joking, Estelia." She awkwardly chuckled. "There's no way you barely go out with your skills."

"It's true. But I did train magic with my servants…"

"I was not referring to magic… No, wait, servants, maid? Are you also someone of higher status?"

A formed a small, humble smile. "Oh, I forgot to mention. I am a princess of a kingdom."

Miyako and Satomi stopped in their tracks upon hearing that, shocked at that revelation. Okay, I was resisting the urge to grin proudly, but I had to be humble. Humble. Humble.

"W-What?" I acted all clueless.

"N-Nothing, it's just… You didn't mention that important part."

"Ah, it just didn't come up. Besides, it's not a big deal." I continued walking.

Miyako followed close to me. "That is a big deal. I mean, a princess? From another land? Now it's more of a wonder how someone as important as you ended up here."

"Personal reasons."

"And so you say." She sighed. "It's just a shock. From what I heard, people from other continents would rather avoid our lands."

I would have done the same, really.

"... But a genuine princess, huh?" Miyako murmured. "That sort of explains some."

"Explains what?"

"If I may be direct, you look out of place."

"... Not the first I heard." Someone basically said the same thing back home. No matter where I go, I just look out of place. I stand out so much. But understandable.

"You must be loved."

I glanced at her. "What makes you say that?"

"Even though we just met, I know you're a good and gentle person."

See guys? I'm not evil at all!

"... I see." I lightly scratched my cheek, smiling embarrassingly.

"Does your place have a lot of trees? Grasses? They're supposed to be green, right?"

That was a surprising question. Green? Of course they're green. But then again, there was not much green to see in this place, anyway.

"Yes, my homeland has thick forests stretching miles. Seas of green grasses wave as the wind passes by." Thinking about that, it made me miss home. "My home was bountiful."

She solemnly smiled. "I cannot even imagine…" She looked around. "The islands have always been like this. I could only hear how true nature looks from stories or some ancient records. No one even has an idea how it all happened, what caused this to our lands."

I slightly looked away. I should not mention I knew how it all happened. And I might have an indirect connection to it all. I already had a lot on my plate because of my goddess heritage.

"So Shinoroa was never like this?"

"It's been like this for millennia. I guess we might as well say it has always been like this. But, yes, there are old records that say it had green trees and such."

"I see. But at least the people are still able to live. Quite fascinating you achieved that."

Miyako smiled. "I guess we were forced to adjust."

"And that is an amazing thing. For humans to survive in this environment, it is amazing."

"I suppose."

Eventually, we arrived at a road. Upon seeing that, I was so relieved. I let out a long sigh. A road, finally a road. A proper path to take. This was way better than going through rough terrains, so annoying to the legs.

"Which direction should we go? There, right?" Satomi pointed.

I nodded my head. "Yes."

"Alright, then let's go onward."

I held out my hand. "Wait." I took a deep, tired breath. "I need to rest." I was already getting tired. See? This was why I hated rough terrains. So much strain on the body than on roads. I approached and sat down on a wide rock.

"Tired already?" Satomi asked, looking a bit caught off guard.

"I need it. I don't have a very good constitution."

"Hm? What do you mean?" Satomi crouched down. Damn, I envy her physical youth. Even though I was way younger than her.

"My body can't do activities for long periods of time. To put it simply, I am not well."

"Is that why you immediately rested last night? I did notice you seemed fatigued," Miyako said.

"Yes. So can we rest for the moment?"

"Of course, I don't mind." Miyako sat down on the nearby rock.

"I have to say, this is a common occurrence. I will slow you down. If you want to leave us, you can go ahead." Of course I was just being dramatic. I knew they would never do such a thing.

"I would never. Especially now knowing your health," Miyako quickly said with a concerned expression. "I could never bring myself to leave you."

"You have important matters to do in the capital, right? Won't you be late?" I said with a soft and regretful expression.

"It's not like our assembly is happening tomorrow or anything."

"... Is that so?"

"Yes, so don't worry about that."

"T-Thank you."

Satomi directed me with a curious gaze that seemed to pierce through me. "I'm surprised you are able to kill those people with your current health. You must have one hell of an endurance."

"..." I didn't know how to answer that.

"Did you really never have a hard training?"

"... My family does not even want me to learn to fight."

Miyako leaned forward with an intrigued face. "Really?! How is that possible?!"

"Milady, please calm down."

"Uh, sorry." She slowly backed away with a small blush. "It's just, my parents are so adamant about training me to fight."

So it must be weird as fuck to meet a princess whose family didn't want her to learn to fight. Which was true, my family never wished for me to learn to fight. There was no need to. Until I managed to convince them.

"Your land must be incredibly peaceful, Estelia," Miyako added.

"Mostly, but not exactly… There are bad elements, too. It's just, it's not required for a princess to fight. It's for my brothers, the princes of the kingdom."

"You have brothers? Wow, that's sweet. I also have a brother, but he's still little."

Miyako was sharing things without inquiry. It would seem she was starting to like me. Which was good. Although her guard, Satomi, was still a bit skeptical about me. But that was to be expected when it came to actual warriors. Miyako was just so friendly.

"That's nice."

"While we rest, can you tell me more about your homeland? If that's alright."

"... I guess. What do you want to know?"

"... Um…" She placed a hand under her chin. "Oh! How about you tell us about your warriors? I'm sure Satomi will be quite interested too, right Satomi?"

Satomi faintly nodded. "It will be interesting indeed."

"... Warriors, huh? Sure. I've spent plenty of time with my knights."

"Oh, knights. That's what you call them, of course. I heard once that other places call their warriors that."

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.