The Unwanted Princess Becomes Loved in the Werewolf Kingdom and Becomes Queen!

Chapter 70: Nostalgic Homeland 2

For Ernesta, the days spent with her family afterwards were pure happiness. After all, their daily routine had returned to how it was before Isolte fell ill.

However, there were times when she would suddenly remember Shenka and her anxiety would grow about what had happened in the war. She couldn’t sleep well at night, pondering various thoughts.

Even so, Ernesta only prayed and tried to keep up a smiling facade, so as not to worry everyone.

In no time at all, several days had passed and Ernesta had seemingly returned to her usual self on the surface.

As usual, she got up early and put on her familiar blouse and skirt, with an apron on top. With her hair in pigtails, she felt like she could fit into her past life.

The whole family had breakfast together. She didn’t have much of an appetite, but she forced herself to eat so as not to worry anyone.

Working helped to distract her, so she was grateful for the time spent doing housework with Isolte before heading out to pick herbs. First, Ernesta headed to Bruno’s workshop adjacent to the store.

“Dad.”

“Oh, Ellie. What’s up?”

Bruno walked towards her with a smile while wiping his soot-covered face. The workshop was bustling with a few disciples and the heat of the flames, and the familiar smell of melting iron filled the air.

“I’m going to pick some herbs. Are there any medicines missing?”

“I see. Thank you. Wait a moment.”

Bruno disappeared into the back break room to check the medicine inventory, then quickly returned.

“We’re running out of anti-inflammatory. We have a lot of burns here.”

“I understand. I’ll also pick some nuts, so look forward to it.”

“Don’t push yourself too hard. Don’t be late.”

Although he had a smile on his face, Bruno seemed slightly concerned. Come to think of it, she recalled when she treated Ivan in his wolf form, and how she had been scolded for being too late.

She tried to erase the image of the golden color floating in her mind before it was too late.

“Well then, I’m off.”

“Yeah, be careful.”

Ernesta, who left the workshop with a smile, didn’t notice that Bruno had been watching his daughter’s back with concern.

Today’s mountain hike was planned to be with her best friend and neighbor Zahra. Under a clear blue sky, she appeared with her beloved dog Hans and greeted Ernesta with a hearty laugh, as always.

“Long time no see, Ellie! Look, Hans wants to say hello too!”

“Hello Zahra, Hans. Nice to see you.”

Ernesta stroked the lively, burnt-brown hunting dog without hesitation. She had spent so much time to make Hans become attached to her.

While walking, the two young ladies engaged in lively conversation. Zahra had decided to marry in the past three months, and the topic dominated their discussion.

“I knew it, but I’m still anxious about marrying someone I don’t even know well.

“Yeah, I know what you mean. We don’t even know what kind of person he is.”

In Bral, it was common for someone other than the person themselves to choose their fiancé. Reasons varied from houses being in the same business or from neighborhood agreements, but in most cases, parents arranged the marriage.

“But Ellie might be able to do it. Being with someone you love.”

“Eh…”

Her heart made a loud noise at Zahra’s unexpected words. Why would Zahra say something like that? It was as if she had seen through her feelings.

“Well, Ellie has always been cute, but she’s even more polished since coming back. Sexy, I’d say? She’s being pursued by a lot of men, so she should just choose one and fall in love.”

Ernesta let out a quiet sigh.

Oh, that’s what this is about. If she’s more polished, it’s probably due to the care and prepared oils provided by Dasha and the others. According to gossip Zahra, she has been getting a lot of attention.

“I… can’t imagine that right now.”

“What? Why not? That’s a shame.”

“I enjoy working like this. I think I’ll get married eventually, but if it’s someone my Dad and Mom find, I won’t complain.”

Zahra tilted her head in disappointment, but Ernesta remained firm.

Despite Isolte telling her to rely on those around her, she couldn’t confess her true feelings here. If she uttered lines like “I can’t love because there’s someone I can’t forget,” everything would spill out.

They descended the mountain shortly before the sun set, with a large haul of herbs in their basket, making their steps light.

“We caught a lot! We even found some wild berries and edible vines. Lucky us!”

“That’s great. Now we won’t have to worry for a while.”

Even in this town, where summer was still hanging on, there was a pleasant breeze blowing at night. As they strolled happily on the outskirts of the town, Ernesta spontaneously stopped in her tracks.

As always, the area around the familiar large tree was littered with debris. She couldn’t help but reflect on her encounter there and felt regret.

Why do I keep remembering it like this? It’s been almost a month since she left the royal castle, but there’s still no sign of her suffering easing up.

“What’s wrong, Ellie?”

Zahra looked at her curiously, but suddenly clapped her hands and smiled brightly.

“Oh, I have an idea! Want to play with Hans? Let’s throw a ball or something. I’ll go get it.”

Even her thoughtful words brought back memories of playing with the silver wolf, and Ernesta had to try hard not to distort her face.

“No, Zahra, sorry. I have to stop by somewhere, so you go ahead.”

“Okay, I see. I don’t really understand what’s going on, but cheer up. I’ll bring you something sweet next time.”

Receiving such heartfelt kindness, Ernesta couldn’t help but smile wryly. She was truly blessed with the people around her.

Watching her friend and her dog leave, she stepped into the vacant lot. It looked almost the same as in her memory, with only the large trees growing taller.

Ernesta gently touched the trunk of a tree. The rough bark held a pleasant warmth from the setting sun, and the cicadas’ cries filling the empty lot contained a sense of loneliness.

Although she felt scared to come here, now that she’s actually here, only happy memories surface, causing her vision to blur.

Let’s pray here. That’s what Ernesta decided, as she put down her basket of herbs and sat down.

Her hands clasped in front of her chest, she lowered her face and closed her eyes. She chased away all distracting thoughts from her head and earnestly prayed. Time became ambiguous as she prayed.

When she opened her eyes again, the sun that had been shining through the gaps in the mountains had disappeared, and the sky showed a vague twilight.

She had to go back soon, or her family would worry. Even considering this, Ernesta couldn’t move, and buried her face in her knees, curling up.

——What an idiot. Even though I knew I could never meet Ivan again.

It was foolish to wish to see Ivan, even if it was just once. She wasn’t even allowed to think about such things.

What have I done? What do those kind people think of me, for what I’ve done?

If they knew the truth, they’d surely hate me. Maybe even hate humanity altogether.

Ernesta gritted her teeth in her closed-off field of vision. She knew from experience since childhood that she had to endure until the waves of emotions subsided.

She couldn’t even go home with such a terribly sullen face. She had to wait until the stars came out, take a little look at the sky, and that was it.

It was then that footsteps of someone far away could be heard.

It seemed that someone was running down the street at full speed. As she thought that the sound of their shoes hitting the ground with tremendous speed resonated, it abruptly stopped around the vacant lot.

With her face down, Ernesta convinced herself that this had nothing to do with her at this point. However, the owner of the footsteps now walked slowly into the vacant lot.

Could someone have come to look for her? But, they were taking quite some time to say somethi——.

“Ernesta.”

It was a voice that had been yearning.

Her heart pulsated so hard it felt like it was about to burst. No, he wasn’t here, and he shouldn’t even know her name.

She needed to stop hearing such hallucinations. She had to quickly confirm their true identity and realize her own foolishness.

Ernesta slowly lifted her face. The cool breeze brushed against her cheeks and made her two braids sway. Someone with brown hair passed through her field of vision, but she could still recognize who spoke to her.

At that moment, it felt like all sound had been muted from the world.

The sound of cicadas signaling the end of summer, the rustling of leaves, even her own heartbeat, all seemed to be hiding in silence.

Ivan stood there with his golden hair swaying in the night breeze. His usual chokha looked worn out, and his silhouette illuminated by the moonlight looked thinner, but the sparkle in his blue eyes showed no difference.