The Girl Wants to Be Murdered

TL/Editor: Butter Cat

Status: 4/week mon-thurs

Illustrations: none

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〈 Chapter 32 〉 Chapter 32. Relocation.

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**

Clip-clop, clip-clop.

It was out of the blue for the animals peacefully napping nearby.

They quickly sprang to their feet and fled in the opposite direction.

"—Giddy-up!"

Leading the group was a young girl, her sleek hair flowing in the wind as she urged her horse forward.

Behind her, a fragile-looking woman with blue hair followed, wearing a pained expression.

Riding a horse consumed a considerable amount of stamina, and it seemed to be quite a burden for the woman who didn't have a single muscle on her body.

But her perseverance, her desperate attempts to keep up, showed how much effort she was putting in.

"Huu… huu… huu…"

…It looked quite overwhelming for her.

"Uwaaaaaah—!! Princess Remi! Can we rest a little!? Please!?"

"......Haa, Tessa."

"Uaaaaaaaah!!!"

Princess Remi's heart softened at the wailing of the royal librarian, Tessa, and she gradually slowed her horse to a stop.

The people who had fallen behind, busy searching the surroundings, arrived one after another, and everyone began busying themselves, preparing for a night's stay in the forest as the sun began to set.

They built a fire, set up makeshift shelters to sleep in, and prepared for dinner.

A cheerful, commotion.

Soon, a steaming dinner was ready.

Of course, the quality of the food was a far cry from the meals they had at the royal palace, but no one complained.

Clatter.

Tessa and Remi sat facing each other at a small table, their meals laid out before them.

It was Remi who broke the silence.

"I'm sorry, Tessa. For dragging you into this."

"...Don't mention it, Princess. I should be the one apologizing. If only I had been a little faster…"

"—I've always said it's not your fault, Tessa. It's my fault for not noticing Aris struggling like that."

Tessa, the royal librarian, had decided to accompany Princess Remi on her final journey.

The second princess, Remi Akaia, was leaving for the Akard Empire to study abroad.

She would be away from her homeland for several months, perhaps even years, and so, Remi decided to personally lead one last search for her missing younger sister.

Everyone shook their heads, calling it a pointless endeavor with no chance of success, but Tessa was the only one who agreed to accompany Remi.

It was her own way of atoning, believing that if only she had discovered the notes in the book sooner, if only she had noticed Princess Aris's unusual behavior earlier, that tragic incident could have been prevented.

Or perhaps, it was her way of letting go of the lingering hope and attachment she felt for the youngest princess, whom she had cherished.

Even though she lacked physical strength and wasn't skilled at anything that required physical exertion, her knowledge from books proved to be a great help on their journey.

Things like identifying edible plants, reading maps, understanding the terrain, and so on.

Well, she was a klutz in everything else, and her body was screaming in protest.

No matter how smart you are, there are times when your body suffers.

"....."

"....."

As they began to eat, an awkward silence settled between them.

Unable to bear the atmosphere, Tessa, who felt that she had become quite close to the princess, initiated a conversation.

"You're... going to enter the academy next year, right?"

"Well... yes."

The topic of conversation shifted to the Museion, the Akard Empire's academic research school, commonly known as the academy, where Princess Remi was going to enroll.

Tessa was actually quite interested in the academy, and she wanted to hear about it.

Tessa looked at Princess Remi, her eyes filled with cheerful anticipation.

And that anticipation was, unfortunately, betrayed.

"Well, they call it an academy, but it's actually more like a place of exile."

".....Pardon?"

"A matchmaking ground... A graveyard... Well, it has many nicknames, but I personally like that word. Exile. It has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

The academy.

It was one way the Akard Empire maintained loyalty and exerted influence over neighboring kingdoms.

Send a crucial person, someone valuable enough to be a 'hostage', to our academy.

It was a form of blackmail disguised as goodwill.

The nobles had no choice but to send their children, albeit reluctantly. Who would want to send their child to a school in a foreign land, far away from their home country?

Moreover, the academy subtly instilled pro-imperial ideologies and theories, and taught a slightly revised version of history that leaned in their favor.

"Aris, Aris, I begged them on my knees, asking them to find my little sister, but all I got was cold treatment, not even a proper search. Ha—!"

".......P-Princess…?"

Furthermore, those who were set to inherit the throne or titles like Duke (DUX) never went to the academy. (TL Note: Dux meaning the top of their social class, something like that)

Why would they go to such a place when the best teachers were readily available in their own countries?

They had already formed their own networks from a young age, holding tea parties and balls, steadily building connections and friendships.

There was no need to go out and build connections themselves, people will somehow crawl to them on their own.

That's why, to appease the empire and maintain appearances, those who had been passed over for the throne and nobles who would inherit titles lower than Count were sent to the academy.

And it was also filled with capable but naive commoners who paid to enter, hoping to form connections with those nobles, thinking that even a fallen noble was still a noble.

That was what the academy was.

Rumble, crash.

The sound of her illusions crumbling, one after another.

Tessa was completely overwhelmed.

Her hands trembled, and the food she had scooped onto her spoon clattered back onto her plate.

The thick stew she had put in her mouth was sweet and flavorful, but right now, Tessa couldn't tell whether the food she was eating was going into her mouth, nose, or ears.

She thought.

Ah, this is a trap.

It was the second time in her life that she wished she could turn back time.

The first time had been the day Princess Aris disappeared.

And the second time was now.

"Since 'that person' is going to inherit the throne, I had no choice but to get sent far away. 'Go be a hostage,' they said, 'Haha! Go to school, build some connections, maybe find a husband and get married,' or something like that."

".....Princess Remi..."

"Ah— I'm sorry, Tessa. Kuku."

Remi muttered an apology, saying she didn't mean to make her uncomfortable, and took a large bite out of the hard rye bread.

Crack, the bread snapped loudly.

Seeing that, Tessa clutched her pounding heart and desperately tried to finish her meal.

Vowing never to bring up the topic of the academy again.

And vowing to burn all the romance novels set in the academy once she returned to the library.

The meal ended, leaving the two with their moods spoiled.

Caw, caw.

Along with the cawing of a crow, echoing from high above, the sun completely disappeared beyond the horizon.

Except for a few who were on watch, everyone drifted off to a deep sleep, exhausted from the day's journey.

And so, another day passed.

Caw, caw.

Caw.

Under the soft moonlight.

No one knew that a small gem was attached to the crow's leg.

Everyone, fell asleep.

**

An urgent report from the crow.

—People from the Tesillia Kingdom, are coming down the river.

Of course, this wasn't the first time people had searched this area.

But most of them were only equipped for searching, and they were only equipped with basic anti-shamanistic tools, so deceiving them was easy.

The slightly altered natural environment surrounding my house was a shamanistic tool in itself, and people simply passed by, unaware of the subtle inconsistencies.

However, the situation was different now.

"..Caw... Caw..."

"—Thank you for your hard work. Rest well."

Crunch, crunch, she looked at the small orb, crackling with small electrical sparks.

Only static and a distorted image could be seen from the orb.

It was unusable now.

The shamanistic tool was disrupted.

At least high-level, perhaps even higher, anti-shamanistic equipment.

It must be because of the anti-shamanistic equipment given to the princesses to prevent a repeat of the previous incident.

And, —the princess wearing it is approaching.

She's close to the house where Alice and I are living.

"....I can't let them meet. Never."

The decision was made.

No.

Absolutely not.

My distrust of the Akaia royal family, hadn't disappeared.

Moreover, I had heard that the first princess, who had committed that atrocious act, had become the official heir to the throne.

There was no telling what that woman would do if she found out that her sister was alive.

For Alice's safety, I had to avoid contact with them as much as possible.

"......"

I looked back.

I saw the small cabin, where we had been living for a long time.

You could even call it, my home. To say it wasn't precious to me would be a lie.

But—

"—It's time to move."

There was no hesitation.

The decision had already been made from the beginning.

Alice's safety, that was all that mattered to me.

I quickly searched for a suitable place for Alice and me to live.

Even if I had to bring in precious treasures, even if I had to bring in anyone, my memories, my past, anything—nothing was more important to me than this one child.

I could sacrifice a hundred houses like this.

A place near a village where I could easily purchase necessities for Alice, who was entering her growth spurt, to ensure her peaceful life.

But a place with too few people would be very exclusive towards outsiders.

And a place with too many people would spread rumors quickly.

It also had to be a place far enough from the Tesillia Kingdom, where their influence couldn't easily reach.

The candidates quickly narrowed down. And among them, considering Alice's fatigue, I chose the closest location.

Tap, a pebble at my feet rolled away.

It was time.

"—Shall we try, the empire?"

It was time to move.

**

Akard Empire, Syria Village.

A shabby-looking girl was staggering along, clutching a bundle of cloth.

Or rather, it was me.

Huh, why am I crying…?

"Ugh... The Middle Ages… What is this… I want to use my phone… I want to watch YouTube… I want to listen to the latest pop songs, not hymns… I want to eat macarons…"

"—Hey, Han! What are you mumbling about again!! Go do the laundry! Don't you want to eat today!?"

"Uwaaaaah—!! Uncle Hust, I'm coming!!"

Every day it's laundry, sewing, my fingers were rough and covered in cuts from eczema and needle pricks.

Cooking, exercise, hunting, anything, all I could do were these menial tasks, as I only had a superficial understanding of everything.

Talking about how the earth is round, how all matter is made of atoms, repeating things I had learned from someone without even understanding the principles, wouldn't get me anywhere.

All that mattered to them was knowing how to identify edible herbs and when to sow seeds.

It was a harsh reality for me — Han Sia, an ordinary high school student, who had spent her days going to school, attending cram schools, and enjoying her free time.

Yes.

It was too, too harsh.

"Seriously — I definitely died, so why was I reborn in a place like this?"

They say that everything in the world has a meaning.

Does my rebirth have a meaning too?

In this harsh daily life.

I couldn't shake off that doubt.

And that doubt, remained unanswered even after more than ten years had passed.

Unfortunately.

***

The End.

Let's begin.

*** (TL Note: Author’s Afterword)

The final heroine, appears.

By the way, the protagonist of this story is, only Aris(Alice).

I hate stories with two protagonists. Don’t worry. She’s just a cameo.

The reason I added a reincarnator (2nd life newbie)?

Modern people are, quite sensitive to ethical and moral sense.

A girl who relies on a woman who bit off her arm, whose real sister tried to stab her to death with a sword, a young girl covered in scars and missing a limb.

I wonder how modern people would react to that.

The four-way battle, begins.

It seems everyone will gather in Chapter 4.

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TL NOTE:

Hello Butter cat the TL here, I will be unavailable for like two weeks or so because of vacations reasons. Don’t worry I have translation stocked up so for this week it’s just regular release schedule but after this week? Fingers crossed. I’ll try to see if it’s possible for me to translate at vacation, but probably won’t be possible. I’m really sorry! I’ll notify when I get back in the discord server!