The Unlucky Villainess Small Fief

Chapter 27

Ortezca was walking around the town square when a little boy bumped on her. Both of them fell down. She was about to ask the boy if he was alright when shouts coming from afar were heard.

"You thief! You stole my product!" A vendor shouted. Ortezca shielded the boy behind her.

"I shall pay for it, good sir. Whatever this child had stolen, i shall pay for it!" Ortezca said.

"Huh?? Who are you missy? Dont try to be a hero here- unless you are one of them?"

"No! She isnt!" The boy shouted. " shut up!" The man yelled and was about to hit the boy when ortezca intervened and got slapped instead. Her hood fell off and her face was shown to everyone. 

"Hey...isnt that—"

"Lady ortezca?"

"How can she be here? Isnt she already banished???"

"Wait- why is she here?? Does she plan to ruin the prince???"

"Maybe this disease is brought by her too...tsk, this what happens when a banished fallen noble like her comes back in our kingdom"

Ortezca was getting a bad feeling about the whole situation. She backs away immediately.

"Ehhh??! Let us get rid of her then!" People start throwing stones at her. She shielded the poor boy from the stones and some hit her in the face and head. She ran away with the boy in the deep alley of the town.

"Huff, huff!" Both  panted. 'Did we lost them...?' Ortezca thought when the boy tugged the hem of her dress.

"...is it true, that you are the harbinger of misfortune?"

"...no...it is not..."

"Then....why is my mom not getting better? She had been sick lately because of this disease...and we are very poor...the medicine does not reach the poor people....." the boy said. Ortezca bit her lip. 

"....hey....i will help you. Let us first meet his excellency, ok?" Ortezca smiled, hoping that it would help cease the worry of the little boy. The boy did not smile however. She then remembered the sandwich and gave it to the boy. The sadly accepted the food.

Both returned to the restaurant that the duke was in only to find it empty. Ortezca continued to walk around and saw rudevich by a stall, talking to the vendor that she and the little boy had problems with earlier.

"...i told you my lord, she is a thief! That banished woman returned in this kingdom as a thief!"

"....i will make sure to reprimand her. Could you at least tell me where she had gone off?"

Before the vendor could reply, ortezca showed up. She was still wearing her hood, so not all people recognized her, unlike earlier. The duke noticed her and excused himself from the vendor. He then rushed towards her by the lamp post.

"Where have you been?? I have been looking everywhere for you!" Duke suvvell said in annoyance. Ortezca bowed apologetically. "Your excellency. Please grant this lowlife commoner a request..." ortezca said- and presented rudevich the little boy she was with the entire time.

"Please, let him accompany you in the slums to cure everyone else!" Ortezca said. Rudevich stared at the two of them then sighed.

"Fine. First, tell me young boy, what is your name?"

"Fritz." The boy said. Rudevich took a closer look at him- thin, malnourished, small for his age, filthy, and a few wounds here and there. He then glanced at ortezca, calculating her expression before going back to the kid.

"....show me where you live."

The two were guided by fritz to the slum and there rudevich saw how poor the place was. He talked with the elder of the place and the talk went smoothly, as ortezca spent her time with the children.

The two went back in the mansion by carriage. Ortezca removed her cape once she was inside the mansion and some maids gasped at her appearance-her face had bruises, her arms were too, wounds here and there and a bump forming on her forehead and a small cut which had dried off.

"What happened to you??" Rudevich was also shocked upon seeing her.

"It is nothing. I shall take a bath now. Please excuse me." Ortezca said and went back to her room.

Ortezca sat on the bed once the bath was done. She was wiping her hair with towel when she flinched. It seemed that there was a bump too at the back of her head.

'These will take a few days to heal...for now...let me get ice-' ortezca thought but realized that making ice is not yet applicable in this kingdom and one has to wait for winter. Too bad its spring now.

".....i will just sleep it off then." Ortezca mumbled and went off to sleep.

A minor headache made her wake up the following morning. She slowly rubbed her eyes in a sluggish way before getting off from the bed. She fixed herself before going out off the room. She went towards the dining room and sat on one of the chairs in a daze. She doesn't know which hurts more: the bumps in her head or the headache. She was somehow in a trance before she was brought back to the present by Rudevich calling her name.

"...are you ok? If you are still tired.. please rest in your room. I will ask one of the maids to bring you food there."

"....thank you but...i cant possibly intrude." Ortezca smiled wryly, still looking down on her untouched food. She feels as if her head is about to split from the ache.

"....? Are you sure you're alright?" Rudevich eyed her when an attendant came in.

"My lord, the king requests your presence in the castle."