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Chapter 28
Once Nelloa decided, the fall of the Meriden Kingdom was only a matter of time.
Unlike during the Tilan incident, the entire Meriden palace burned down, so they couldn’t find the princess’s body. Still, Nelloa had achieved her goal.
Sure enough, some time later, Nelloa received a letter from Anna Beldenburra, the regent of the Ilpain Empire. It said that Blodden, who had won a great victory against the beasts at the Northern Gate, would soon return.
Blodden was 18 years old, and Nelloa was 21. Since Nelloa was the only princess close to Blodden’s age, the regent had been keeping her in mind as a candidate for empress.
“Good thing I eliminated the competition early,” Nelloa thought as she read the letter.
Now all that remained was to make Blodden fall in love with her—naturally.
“I don’t want to be an empress who only works,” she added.
After sending a positive reply to Anna, Nelloa went straight to the imperial palace.
However, Blodden had not returned yet. Instead, his subordinate Raven was also absent.
From this, the nobles predicted that the emperor would return only after eliminating any newly formed derivative gates. Since the regency had two more years to go, it was the perfect time for Nelloa to act.
Thinking it over, Nelloa realized the nobles weren’t wrong. Using secret letters and spies, she spread “gate seeds” throughout the empire and kept records of their locations. When derivative gates appeared, Blodden would destroy them himself or send someone to do it.
In other words, the place where derivative gates disappeared would be where the emperor was.
“Good. Tomorrow, we go to Snoril,” she decided, excited for a natural encounter with Blodden.
Even though she had never seen him in person, she could recognize him, even if he was in disguise. His eyes were a captivating red.
Nelloa knew everything about the kidnapping incident, including who was behind it, since it was detailed in the original story. She planned to use that knowledge to gain Blodden’s favor.
“If I help him, he’ll like me, right?”
The rain had started heavily the night before and was still falling past morning. Nelloa realized she needed to prepare rainwater containers.
“How many did I set up last time?” she thought, recalling the buckets used for clam digging and pots.
As she looked up at the ceiling, she noticed something strange.
“That’s odd,” she muttered.
Baron asked, “What’s odd?”
“Last time it rained, water leaked. But today, not a single drop.”
Baron looked at the ceiling and nodded.
“Maybe it fixed itself?”
“That doesn’t make sense.” Nelloa replied, and Baron chuckled.
“A few weeks ago, there was an earthquake. Maybe the cracks shifted back into place then?”
“…Hmm?” Nelloa considered his explanation plausible. The earthquake had been weak but noticeable, enough to worry people experiencing it for the first time.
After the initial alarm, life returned to normal.
“Thinking about you disappearing that day… really,” Baron said awkwardly.
“Don’t worry. If another earthquake or even a tsunami happens, it’s better to know where to escape. This area rarely has quakes, but it’s good to be prepared.”
Nelloa gave Baron a mini earthquake safety lesson.
“Oh, so that’s how you avoid danger,” Baron said, listening carefully. His reaction made Nelloa excited, and she went on to cover safety and first aid.
“Wait, I’m curious,” Baron said. “If breathing and heart stop, you’re dead. But CPR can save someone? Even if you’re not a doctor? Anyone can learn it?”
“Yes. Sometimes it works.”
“How do you do it? Can you show me?”
“Of course. Lie down.”
Baron lay flat immediately. Nelloa explained the golden time for resuscitation, then demonstrated CPR: thirty chest compressions, followed by two rescue breaths, repeated.
After finishing thirty compressions, she prepared to show him the rescue breaths. Then she noticed something strange: Baron’s eyes were shaking and he was sweating.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m fine. Keep going,” he said.
But she saw that his face was red and his heart beating wildly.
“Baron! Breathe! Are you okay?” she panicked.
Finally, Baron gasped and sat up.
“I’m fine. I don’t know why I wasn’t breathing,” he said.
A brief silence followed.
‘Does Baron have heart problems?’ she wondered. She thought he was healthy, a future knight commander. Maybe he had hidden his weakness, or maybe growing up had strengthened him. Either way, her actions had likely changed the story.
She looked outside. The rain was letting up. It was time to sell the clams and shells collected over the past two days.
“Might as well take him to the hospital too, just to check his health,” she decided. Today’s earnings would cover Baron’s checkup.
“Baron, the rain’s over. Let’s sell the clams,” she said.
Baron reluctantly got up. Maybe he really wanted to learn CPR; she’d teach him properly later.
Baron gathered all the clams and shells, lifting the tanks filled with seawater.
“Open the door,” he said.
“Again? Carrying all at once?”
“This isn’t heavy for me,” he replied, stepping out to the beach to pour the water.
“Wow, Baron, you’re really strong,” she said, impressed as always.
“Now, let’s rinse them,” he said. They washed the shells and refilled the tanks with fresh seawater. Some sand remained, but it was fine.
“Thanks for your help,” Nelloa said.
“No problem. But we need a bigger tank; two aren’t enough anymore,” Baron said.
She nodded. They needed a circulation system using bamboo pipes to reduce his effort.
As they walked toward Ben’s market stall, Nelloa noticed the canopy but couldn’t see Ben. A few people were murmuring near the unattended stall, and a wooden box used as a chair had toppled.
