In This Life I Will Be The Lord Novel - Side Story, Chapter 47

Clunk!
The carriage shook violently, as if it had run over a stone in the road.
“Whoa!”
“Kya!”
The interior of the passenger carriage, packed tightly with four people and luggage, erupted in a momentary commotion.
“Ah, hey! Drive the carriage more gently!”
A man, who had just been about to drink water and ended up soaking the front of his clothes, loudly protested to the coachman.
Abane Rophili, who had been dozing, leaning against the carriage wall, and was woken by the jolt, adjusted her glasses and asked the person opposite her,
“Shan, are you okay?”
“…Yes?”
Shan, who had been staring blankly out the window, responded a beat late to the call.
Then she carefully examined the potted plant she held precious in her arms, nodded, and replied,
“Oh, I’m fine. The leaves aren’t damaged.”
I asked about Shan’s condition, not the plant’s.
Abane thought about asking again but then shook her head.
From leaving the Chara tribe’s village until finally reaching Lombardi,
During their journey together, the two had become very close and learned a lot about each other.
But Shan still had aspects that made Abane tilt her head in wonder.
Like how she seemed to know so many things, as if she had lived outside the forest for years, even though this was clearly her first time, or how she never let go of the potted plant she brought from the village, no matter what.
‘Is it because of her ability?’
For an ordinary person who couldn’t see the future, Shan was simply fascinating.
Abane gently tapped Shan’s knee, which was close enough to touch with a slight movement, and said,
“That potted plant, you said it was Bomnia, right? It must be heavy, I’ll hold it for you. Get some rest, even for a moment, Shan.”
The passenger carriage, shared with people going to the same destination, was narrow and crowded.
Traveling for days while holding a cherished plant in such conditions was very stressful and arduous.
“Hmm.”
Shan hesitated for a moment at Abane’s offer but then shook her head.
“No. We’re almost at Lombardi. I can endure it. Thank you for asking, Teacher Abane.”
Shan, who answered with a smile, adjusted the potted plant in her arms once more and then turned her gaze back out the window.
‘What is she looking at so intently?’
Although it was broad daylight, the carriage was traveling across a field with nothing but farmland around.
But Shan’s eyes moved busily, as if looking at something on that field.
Abane, unable to contain her curiosity like a scholar, tapped Shan’s knee again and asked in a very low voice,
“What are you looking at so intently, Shan?”
“Hmm. I don’t really know either.”
Shan replied with an embarrassed smile.
“I just see a huge building over there. A building with a lot of people.”
However, where Shan pointed, there was only a vast wheat field.
“It was the same when we passed Chesayu last time.”
Chesayu was just a small city passed when moving from the south to the central region.
There wasn’t much to see nearby besides a large river, so even when everyone else in the carriage was snoring, Shan couldn’t take her eyes off the scenery outside the window.
“Ah, well…”
Just as Shan was about to say something with a shy smile.
“Whoa, whoa—.”
The coachman’s voice calming the horses was heard from outside, and the carriage slowly came to a stop.
“Why is the carriage… stopping, Teacher Abane?”
It was supposed to take a little longer to reach Lombardi.
“It’s probably because of the people lining up to get in. It’ll probably be around sunset before we can enter.”
“T-that long?”
“It’s the most prosperous city in the Empire. If you’re curious, get off for a moment and take a look, Shan.”
Abane added, ‘Anyway, it won’t move for a while.’
“Then… I’ll just go take a quick look.”
Shan carefully opened the carriage door and stepped out.
It was the first time she had set foot on the ground in several hours, but she had no time to mind that.
“Wow.”
The sight of countless carriages and people lined up in a long queue was spectacular.
And at the end of it was an enormous city.
Hidden by high, sturdy city walls, she couldn’t see everything at a glance, but that alone was enough.
The city exuded an overwhelming presence just by being there.
“That’s Lombardi.”
Shan unconsciously almost took a step back and murmured.
The most prosperous city in the Empire.
Just then, a light breeze blew from Lombardi, causing the Bomnia leaves to rustle and goosebumps to rise on Shan’s arms.
Suddenly, she missed her hometown village unbearably.
She wanted to turn back and return to that familiar place.
But Shan clenched her fists tightly and repeated the name that gave her courage.
“…Gallahan.”
He was inside that massive city.
Shan tightly hugged the Bomnia potted plant, which had just begun to bear seeds.
“Don’t be scared, Shan.”
Chiding herself, she looked at Lombardi a little longer, then quietly got back into the carriage.

‘Blue Wave,’ a restaurant and inn located in Lombardi City, was known among the nearby residents as a decent eatery.
Its signature dish was none other than ‘Homemade Breakfast,’ and the busiest hours were from early dawn until lunchtime.
“Shan! Can you take this bread to that table over there?”
When Mazie, the owner of the restaurant, called out, extending a basket of bread, Shan, whose red hair was tied back tightly, quickly took it and replied,
“Yes, ma’am!”
‘Blue Wave’ was the first lodging Shan stayed at after arriving in Lombardi a month ago.
After Abane, who had spent about a week with her, left Lombardi, Shan was left alone and sought a place to stay and a job.
And Mazie, hearing her story, readily offered her a job that included room and board.
Although the inn work was hectic from dawn until afternoon, Shan was very satisfied.
Waking up at dawn was a habit cultivated in the village, and she enjoyed working at ‘Blue Wave’ where she could meet many people.
And most importantly, she learned a lot by moving among the crowds.
“Did you hear? Mark’s daughter, Helen, became a Lombardi scholarship student.”
“Is that true? The one where smart kids without money get sent to the academy to study?”
Thanks to this, Shan, an outsider who had only arrived in Lombardi a month ago, learned a lot about the city and the Lombardi family.
Just then, a table with two young women, who seemed to be friends, suddenly became noisy.
“Eat quickly, quickly!”
“Stop rushing me! I’ll bite my tongue if I eat any faster!”
“I saw that man by the river earlier! We have to go see him before he leaves!”
“Alright, alright! Ugh, let’s go, let’s go!”
In the end, the woman, unable to resist her friend’s urging, left half her food and got up from her seat.
Shan sighed softly as she collected the money and dishes left on the table.
It was because of a new fact she had recently learned.
“What’s beautiful in my eyes will be beautiful in others’ eyes too.”
It was that Gallahan was quite a celebrity among the young women of Lombardi City.
Of course, people didn’t know that he was a Lombardi scion.
It seemed that the fact that ‘a very, incredibly handsome man occasionally appears in the city and paints’ had touched the hearts of many women.
“It makes sense.”
Shan recalled Gallahan’s appearance in her memory and sighed once more.
Gallahan was handsome, and also pretty.
His white skin seemed to sparkle, and his eyes, with downturned corners, were very gentle.
Most of all, Gallahan was small and cute.
The man she saw in her dream was as cute as a fluffy puppy or a squirrel washing its face.
“Everyone has good taste.”
Shan muttered, pouting her lips.
That man is mine.
Just then.
Mazie, the inn owner, patted Shan’s shoulder and said,
“Shan, the busy work is over, so go and rest.”
“Is it that time already? Then I’ll be out, ma’am!”
“Okay, don’t fall!”
Shan carefully placed her apron aside and walked slowly, enjoying the cool spring breeze.
As she felt the full arrival of spring on her skin, her heart began to pound.
“I’ll be able to meet him soon, won’t I?”
Shan walked towards the plaza every day during her break.
To check if the flowers on the flower tree were in full bloom, just as she had seen in her dream.
She had subtly asked Mazie a few days ago, and she said that tree bloomed a little later than others.
So she would have to wait a few more days.
But.
“Oh…?”
Shan, who had arrived at the tree located at the entrance to the plaza, blinked widely.
“The flowers… bloomed?”
She was sure only flower buds had appeared yesterday.
Saaah—.
When the wind blew, petals fell like rain.
Lost in the breathtaking scenery that had unfolded overnight, only for a moment.
Shan slowly lowered her head and looked straight ahead.
Her gaze was directed towards the fountain in the center of the plaza.
“He’s… there!”
Though far away, the person sitting by the fountain, drawing something, was clearly Gallahan.
“Today… is the day.”
The day she had seen countless times in her dreams was today.
Thump, thump.
Her heart began to pound uncontrollably.
“Phew.”
Shan took a deep breath.
“Don’t tremble ungracefully. I need to make a good first impression, so stay calm…”
Shan suddenly pressed her lips together.
It was because, as if sensing her gaze, Gallahan had suddenly looked up and their eyes met.
Thump, thump, thump.
Amidst the sound of her pounding heart echoing in her ears, the wind blew once more.
Even amidst the swirling petals, Shan did not move her gaze from Gallahan.
And it was the same for Gallahan.
He stopped drawing and quietly stared at Shan.
It was a moment as if only the two of them existed among the many people gathered in the plaza.
Shan, holding a mixture of wanting to run away and wanting to rush forward, approached him one step at a time.
And finally, she stood before him.
“Hello?”
Fortunately, her voice didn’t tremble.
“…”
But Gallahan didn’t answer.
He just stared up at Shan, who had approached him.
Then Shan became anxious.
Was he displeased because she spoke to him too suddenly?
Fear suddenly gripped her.
But she gathered her courage once more and asked,
“What’s your name?”
“…Gallahan.”
Startle.
Shan’s shoulder flinched slightly at his voice, which was lower than she expected.
“It’s Gallahan.”
“Ah… I, I’m Shan.”
“…Shan.”
Gallahan murmured her name.
Thump, thump, thump.
Now Shan’s heart was pounding so hard it hurt.
At the same time, she felt impatient.
She had to say something more.
Shan hastily threw out a question that came to mind.
“Hmm. Do you like drawing?”
“…Yes. Though I’m not… very good at it.”
Gallahan replied, stroking the corner of the paper with his finger.
“You seem good at it. If it’s okay, could you show me… Whoa!”
She tried to move closer to see the drawing.
But she stumbled, tripping over her own feet due to excessive nervousness.
In that brief moment, all sorts of thoughts raced through her mind.
What about a good impression?
I’m going to end up as a clumsy woman who trips over her own feet.
Shan squeezed her eyes shut.
She thought all that was left was the pain of hitting her knees on the stone pavement and embarrassment.
Thud!
She felt something firm wrap around her waist, and when she suddenly opened her eyes, she saw Gallahan’s chest.
“Are you okay?”
Startled, she looked up at where the voice came from.
But her gaze kept going up further than expected.
Her neck was bent far back.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Shan’s heart gave a big lurch.
With his gentle eyes and fair, pale skin, he was indeed Gallahan.
He was indeed ‘my Gallahan’ whom she wanted to hug and coddle, and sit on her lap and bounce.
Gulp.
Shan unconsciously swallowed hard.
Coddling this tall man, who was easily supporting her with one arm… seemed impossible.