The Unlucky Villainess Small Fief

Chapter 25

"How are you feeling?" Rudevich asked when he went inside her room. The food was not touched, only the glass was empty and the plate of soup.

"...getting by. More importantly, how is the kingdom?" Ortezca asked as she flips the page of the book.

"...we are slowly recuperating."

"That is good."

"I hope that is the same with you."

"....no matter what you and the servants do, there is no use. Just please return me to the village by the cliff."

"....could you at least tell me...what your sickness is? Maybe i could help." Rudevich asked. It may sound so stupid, but he is willing to be stupid if it means in saving her.

".....promise me once i tell you, you will return me tomorrow in the village?" Ortezca asked him, while looking at him in the eye. Rudevich saw it- him- who had been in the battlefield, who had seen countless of dead comrades but never experienced getting almost killed and beg for your life. 

He nodded.

Ortezca told rudevich everything- from the day she was betrothed, the days when the baron's daughter started to hook up with her fiancee, how she tried to claim him back, how she was expelled in the school, in the kingdom, how her death was planned, how she survived. Hearing all of this made rudevich almost gagged and good thing he held it in.

"....i just...want peace... I...never done wrong. I just want to be a good daughter...A good fiancee...someone who had contributed to the kingdom....why....why must i face all of these..? Is it because i am not good?......hahaa.....hahahaha....i see.....i am really a good for nothing daughter." Ortezca smiled bitterly to herself. She sighed.

"....now you know everything. Please..return me."

"...i haven't cured you yet. I made a promise to everyone in the village."

"...it doesn't matter. I will just tell them that nothing worked out."

"....what about us...?"ortezca blinked a fe times at his question.

".....haha....hahahahah.....HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAH!" Ortezca laughed. Rudevich went wide eye upon her sudden burst of laughter.

"Ahhh, my stomach hurts...please stop saying things which are bull shit."

"Bull shit..?" Rudevich was confused. It was the first time that he heard such word.

"Ah, forgive me, it was a slip of the tongue. I am tired today, please leave me be." Ortezca said and faced the other side of the bed. Rudevich remained at her side, gazing at her back, before going out of the room.

'...lonely back..huh........' rudevich thought. 

He was busy reading reports made by the people regarding about the disease and it looked like the medicine that ortezca made was proven effective. The only problem was about the food production but according in the papers that ortezca had written, a plan to make good produce was proposed. It seemed as if she was the goddess that saved the kingdom.

He smiled at the small encircled notes on the agricultural section of the papers that she had written. It was so fully detailed that it looked so otherworldly. His smile faltered upon remembering their conversation earlier.

'There has to be a way. I promised them..that i will cure her... now that i had known the truth, maybe..maybe this is my chance to redeem myself...?' Rudevich thought and fell asleep thinking.

It was another busy day for the kingdom to recuperate. 30% of the population had recovered from the disease. Many dead bodies were also burned to prevent the spreading of the disease. Rats and other rodents were annihilated too. Rudevich sighed at the sight- health and hygienic issues might had been resolved, but the poverty is still there. He cant fully execute what was written in ortezca's papers since it was still winter in the kingdom. Even though there were vegetables which could be planted during winter, he could not procure the seeds the kingdom is in total lockdown from all possible threats. Ortezca's plan is remarkably effective.

He was enjoying a lemon tea, which was a recipe according from ortezca's papers when suddenly the duke of holminne house came in.

"...good day, duke." Rudevich said.

"...let me get this straight. She is here.. isn't she?" Jeremy asked him. Rudevich placed his cup down and looked at him.

"...what if she is?" Rudevich slowly prodded jeremy to see his reaction. Nothing came. Jeremy just huffed.

"...i always thought that she was just an average person but who knew that this solution of her was effective that we managed to secure the well being of the kingdom in just a few weeks. Good thing that the winter is almost over."

"....yes. She is a very smart lady."

"....you do not have to speak of high regards about her. She is nothing but a lowly commoner woman now. I also heard that you plan to make her your wife? I suggest that you better stop it. You as this country's future king does not need to be wed off to a commoner."

"...why do you hate your daughter..so much?"

"....she is eccentric and a bit weird, unlike his brothers, that is all." Jeremy stated.

"...that is all? You find her weird? How so???"

"She had experimented on quite a large number of animals when she was a child. She even experimented on a snake. She even took one of her brother's pet to study it."

"....but still...that doesn't mean—-" rudevich tried to reason out but a messenger came in.

"..pardon the intrusion. Your excellency... his highness prince, and his father has come back."