The Villain's Sickly Wife Dislikes Being Overprotected - Chapter 3.4

“Why did you choose someone with so little experience?”

Kyron cut him off, sounding displeased.

The hotel owner stammered in confusion at his sharpness.

“W-well, none of the other villagers have much experience with nobles either, and this child knows the village well and has a bright personality…”

“It’s fine with me. Being cheerful is good!”

Much better than my gloomy husband.

Allis, who had become slightly dejected because of Kyron, brightened up again at my words.

“It’s not like I’m particularly strict about etiquette anyway.”

I smiled gently at Allis.

I actually preferred being treated more casually. And if she had a bright personality, even better.

However… the next day, I came to regret this mindset a little.

***

On the day we arrived, we spent time at the hotel to recover from the journey. The real start of the trip was from the next day.

Kyron said he had some business to attend to somewhere in the village.

“Have a good time.”

“Yes, see you later.”

“If you feel unwell at all, come back immediately.”

“I know that well.”

I left the hotel. Allis was by my side.

Although she was clearly walking with me, her steps were so light it was as if she was skipping along.

“We’ll go to the hot springs first!”

The main purpose of this trip was the hot springs.

“Pierce’s hot springs have been famous since ancient times. In the past, there was a temple in Pierce, and divine power was thickly spread throughout the village. To explain it in a way you can understand, it was like a fog, you could say? So everyone believed that sacred energy flowed from the hot springs here, and they enjoyed bathing in them.”

I understood why Kyron had business here. It must be related to the temple.

“The Pierce hot springs could make even those suffering from skin diseases have perfectly clear skin in just three days. Even people without skin problems would get glossy, radiant skin just by soaking in the water here, so many people come for beauty purposes too. Oh, and the story of a person who was cured of an eye disease is also famous! That person…”

Allis’s stories seemed to have no end. She chattered the entire way to the hot springs, without a single gap.

I thought her talking would finally end when we reached the hot springs, but it was a vain hope.

There was a brief respite while changing clothes, but as soon as I soaked in the hot spring water, Allis’s storytelling resumed.

She chattered away while carefully pouring hot spring water over me.

At this rate, I felt like I was going to hear the stories of everyone who had ever passed through these hot springs.

I understood her pride in the village and the hot springs, but her enthusiasm was excessive.

When there was finally a short gap between stories, I managed to interject.

“Allis, aren’t you tired from talking so much? Even if you don’t think so, your throat might need a rest right now. My ears might start bleeding. Why don’t we try resting quietly for a while?”

I spoke in the most gentle voice I could muster and gave the kindest smile I could manage.

“Oh, I’m sorry if I’ve been disturbing your relaxation!”

At least Allis was quick to understand. That was fortunate.

I nodded benevolently.

“Let’s quietly feel this noble and miraculous hot spring water until we leave.”

“Yes!”

Peace finally arrived.

I was able to enjoy the quiet hot springs for the remaining time.

But that didn’t last long either.

After the hot springs, it was time to look around the village a bit. Of course, I didn’t want to overdo it, so the schedule was kept relaxed.

“The next place we’ll visit is the cave where divine power first flowed in the empire before the old temple was built. It’s much weaker now, but it’s still flowing a little.”

Along with her guidance, her one-sided chatter resumed.

“Long ago, when the first divine power explosion occurred, the villagers…”

I now just wanted to cover my ears. Since I couldn’t actually do that, I instead let her words go in one ear and out the other.

The place Allis guided me to seemed to be quite famous, as there were quite a few tourists.

There was an entrance that looked like a cave at the foot of the mountain, with visitors constantly coming and going.

From what I could see, the inside seemed to be dark like a cave.

A dark place, huh.

I smiled slyly.

This was a perfect opportunity to shake off Allis by pretending to lose each other.

“Although the divine power has decreased a lot, people still come here to make wishes. There’s no guarantee they’ll come true, though.”

“Then let’s go inside and make wishes too!”

“Oh, I’m so glad you want to make a wish!” Allis seemed delighted by my words. I could feel her desire to let me experience and learn about every aspect of this village.

“This way! Since you’re a noble, Duchess, you don’t need to wait in line!”

Allis shouted enthusiastically, seemingly excited that I had volunteered to make a wish first.

I followed her as she led the way, gesturing for me to come along.

“This is Duchess Dermond. She’s here to look around as part of her visit to Pierce. It’s alright for her to enter right away, isn’t it?”

Allis confirmed our entry with a man standing at the cave entrance.

When the man nodded, Allis excitedly gestured to me.

“There are prime spots for making wishes! We need to hurry and claim one!”

Weren’t you the one who just said ‘There’s no guarantee wishes will come true’?

It was both cute and amusing to see her ready to claim the best spot faster than anyone else.

“Why don’t you go ahead and secure a good spot for us? I’d like to walk a bit slowly.”

“Oh, is that alright?”

She seemed worried about going ahead and leaving me behind. Since when did she care so much about etiquette? I nodded with a smile.

“It’s fine. I’d be grateful if you could secure a spot for us first.”

“Ah, okay! Then I’ll go ahead and get the best spot for us!”

She flashed a bright smile and ran ahead.

She’s so enthusiastic, as always.

At last, I was alone. True peace had finally arrived. It felt like my ears could finally rest.

I planned to leisurely explore the cave.

While there were many visitors inside the cave to make wishes, it wasn’t crowded. I walked slowly, my pace reminiscent of a leisurely stroll.

The interior was lit with occasional candles, enough to see ahead. The ground wasn’t particularly slippery or rough, so it was fairly easy to walk.

Since I planned to pretend I had lost Allis, I deliberately walked even more slowly to increase the distance between us.

I felt a bit sorry for her, but it’s hard to just keep listening all the time.