episode_0030

As we entered the city of Paris, we took over the escort of the Flandre princess from the paladins sent by Angju 13.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Yes.”

I nodded in response to the paladin’s salute.

‘Ah… Should I go for a drink or just go straight home and sleep?’

“Roang Yeong-ae.”

Just as I was about to turn back and decide to go to sleep, the Flandre princess opened the window and called me with a tense expression.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

I approached the carriage in response.

“Um… Well…”

She hesitated, avoiding my gaze.

“I’m listening.”

“No, I’ll send a letter through Roang Chugik later.”

Thud!

After finishing her words, she immediately closed the carriage window firmly.

“…Understood.”

I bowed my head in response and turned back towards my friends.

“Well, now that work is done, how about a drink?”

“Now that the Flandre ambassador is here, the tavern must be open.”

“Who said anything about going to the tavern?”

“…?”

Arames chuckled at Lotos’s words.

“Are you coming to my house?”

“I’ll just wait until the tavern opens.”

“No, you’ll end up drinking all the cooking wine.”

“I’m too tired, I need to go to sleep.”

I yawned, covering my mouth.

“Alright, then Mari, you go ahead.”

I nodded in agreement with Arames and headed towards the inn.

As soon as I arrived at the inn, I stabled my horse and went inside.

Some people looked at me, but I ignored them and went into my room.

Click!

I locked the door to avoid any disturbances to my sleep.

“Ugh…”

I stretched and took off my coat and pants.

I threw my clothes and belongings haphazardly and collapsed onto the bed.

As I lay down on the bed, my eyelids started to droop.

After a short nap, I woke up and realized that it was already evening.

I changed into a dress, strapped a sword to my waist, and headed out of the room.

I felt like taking a walk outside.

When I went downstairs, people were gathered around for dinner.

“Oh, when did you arrive, miss?”

Mina came running to me.

“Oh, Mina.”

“A guest has been looking for you for hours, but the door was locked and there was no answer, so they just left.”

“Really? Where did they say they came from?”

“They were eating diligently over there.”

Mina pointed to a man in a corner of the dining room, enjoying his stew.

“Alright, I see.”

I patted Mina’s head and walked over to him.

“I heard you were looking for me.”

“Uh…?! Uh uh!!”

He was startled when I sat down in front of him and quickly swallowed his stew, choking on a piece.

“Water.”

I handed him a cup of water, and he drank it hastily.

“Phew… Thank you.”

He bowed his head in gratitude.

“So, what’s the matter?”

“Count Raju and the Viscount are looking for you, Miss Roang.”

He handed me a letter from his pocket.

I took the letter and glanced at him.

His hurried expression from before disappeared, replaced by a serious one.

I checked the letter for any signs of tampering.

The red seal with Count Raju’s emblem was neatly intact without any signs of being opened.

“Understood.”

After receiving the letter from Count Raju, I stood up.

“Well, I’ve completed my mission, so…”

He bowed to me and greeted me before immediately digging into the stew.

“Enjoy your meal.”

I was about to leave, but receiving a letter from Rajurang Viscount made me reconsider and go back into the room. Feeling tired, I leaned back on the chair, placed my gun on the floor, and tore open the envelope.

“To Lady Marie de Roanne,

Regarding the previous incident involving the Orange Sapphire.

I hope we can meet soon to discuss this matter.

P.S. And when you come, I will also inform you about the disposal of Andre.

Rajurang Viscount.”

It was a straightforward letter, devoid of any elaborate phrases. I brought the letter close to the candle flame, watching it turn into black ashes as it burned.

#

A few days later, myself and three friends visited Rajurang Viscount’s mansion.

“Welcome, please come in.”

Rajurang Viscount personally greeted us at the entrance of the mansion.

“So, is there another incident related to the Orange Sapphire?”

“Let’s discuss inside.”

We followed Rajurang Viscount into the study. Once we were all seated on the sofas, Rajurang Viscount began to speak.

“Let’s start with the incident related to the Orange Sapphire.”

We all nodded in unison at Rajurang Viscount’s words.

“Recently… we received news that the nobles, led by Duke Orléans, are distributing the Orange Sapphire.”

Clang!

His words made me grit my teeth.

“So… Duke Orléans is the one behind the distribution of the Orange Sapphire that led me to this state…?”

“Hmm… It seems you have a lot of grievances towards the Orange Sapphire.”

Seeing my reaction, Rajurang Viscount let out a sigh.

“Do you know why they are distributing the Orange Sapphire?”

“The reason… whether it is to gather funds or to use the drug to addict people and hold them hostage…”

Rajurang Viscount sighed deeply.

“The purpose is not clear, but the scale is so large that it raises suspicion.”

“What is the scale of this operation?”

“Not only Elance, but also Britom, Westerburg, Chardénya, Turkey, Scandinavia to the north, and the Ruthenian Empire to the east.”

“They have spread it across the entire continent.”

“If they had concentrated the powerful Orange Sapphire in just one country, it would be understandable. But distributing it on such a massive scale raises questions about their intentions.”

“In that case, we could kidnap one of Duke Orléans’ subordinates and interrogate them until we get the information we need.”

As I thought about this plan, my mouth began to water. Rajurang Viscount nodded at my suggestion.

“You all will take care of this for me.”

“Understood.”

At Rajurang Viscount’s request, we all nodded in agreement.

“Now, let’s talk about Andre.”

He stood up and took out a document from the desk drawer, handing it to me.

“This is his fortune obtained through the punishment of Andre.”

“30,000,000 F.”

I widened my eyes at the amount written on the paper.

How many zeros were there? The overwhelming sum made my head spin, being someone who had been struggling with poverty.

“But why are you giving this to me?”

I asked as I extended the document with all the zeros written on it.

“That and his mansion are still intact.”

This time, Rajurang Viscount handed me the document of Andre’s mansion. Looking at it made my head spin again.

Whether it was overwhelming happiness or dizziness from not being able to handle it…

But I straightened my mind. If I couldn’t handle this overwhelming happiness, who knows what might happen.

“Don’t criminals who commit crimes against nobles have all their assets confiscated by the country?”

I calmly recited the principles and asked Rajurang and the Marquis.

“Well, that’s usually how it goes. But Roang and I put in some effort. As a result, His Majesty the King ordered his wealth and house to be divided among you.”

“Oh…”

Lotus exclaimed at Rajurang’s words.

Indeed… it seemed to taste like patriotism.

“How did the nobles react?”

“They all looked like they were chewing on shit, but they still cut their tails.”

Imagining the nobles sitting on their seats with faces like they were chewing on shit, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Haha! That must have been worth seeing.”

“It was a spectacle.”

Rajurang nodded at my words.

“You three can divide this 30 million francs among yourselves, and the mansion of Andre is to be given to you, Mari.”

“To me… a house?”

Me… a house…? After running away from home and living without a house on the battlefield, I finally have a house…?

But I haven’t done much to deserve something so big.

“No, selling that mansion at auction and turning it into money is… difficult to manage… and I can’t guarantee how long I’ll stay there. Just having money is…”

“Then, do you think it’s reasonable for a noblewoman of your caliber to live alone in an inn?”

“Well… even if I live in an inn, I can handle most things if someone tries to steal or kill me…”

“Don’t ruin your dignity by living there for no reason.”

“Understood…”

I bowed my head at Rajurang’s rebuke and accepted the house document he handed me.

“Oh, and all the servants of that mansion have been expelled to Eld Elangs (the suburbs), so don’t worry about retaliation from Andre’s subordinates.”

“Thank you…”

“And one more thing, this is a gift from me, as I have brought new servants to that mansion, just pack your things and go to the mansion.”

“No… why are you going to such lengths?”

Is it really okay to accept all this?

Compared to what I’ve done, it’s too much. Could this be a scheme by Rajurang to use me as a slave?

“It’s an investment… let’s say.”

“What?”

“I have two sons.”

No way…

“So, I think of it as expressing gratitude while giving a little bribe.”

At Rajurang’s bombshell declaration, our eyes quickly darted around.

“Mari, are you really planning to marry Rajurang’s son?”

Lotus sent me a meaningful glance with wide eyes.

“Are you crazy? Why would I marry them?”

I shook my head slightly, denying his words.

“Do you think I’ll just accept that and be done with it?”

Aramis glanced at Rajurang and then back at me.

“Do you really think I want that right now? I feel so burdened I could die.”

I stared at Aramis and shook my head.

Meanwhile, Laurent was staring blankly into space.

“Well, don’t take it too seriously, it’s just idle talk.”

“Phew…”

Although Rajurang the Marquis said this with a smile, it felt like my insides were burning black.

To be talking about marriage here… how did such a person become an important figure in the royal faction?

“I’ll… think about it.”

My response seemed to make Rajurang’s face light up like a flower.

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

“Yes.”

At Rajurang’s dismissal, we all left the study.

“Lotus, help me pack at the inn.”

“Alright.”

“Should I… go too?”

Laurent raised his hand and asked.

“Um… sure.”

I nodded to Laurent.

Well… there were many unpleasant things, but the more hands, the easier the work.

“Um… there!”

While walking down the hallway, Lady Raja and Countess Youngae called out to us.

With her silver hair fluttering, she approached us.

“Are you the ones who saved me?”

“Yes…?”

She tightly held Laurent’s hands.

“I saw you in the underground prison that day… When I woke up, your face was the first thing I saw.”

“Uh… um… well…”

Laurent couldn’t focus on Raja’s actions of holding his hands tightly and pulling him towards her chest.

“It wasn’t me who saved you, it was Miss Mari, I just helped on the side.”

She glared at Laurent in response to his words.

What did I do wrong…

I didn’t do anything wrong, why is she glaring at me?

“Still, you were the one I saw back then.”

“Laurent, come back after resolving things together.”

I waved goodbye to Laurent and left.

“Um… Miss?”

“Take care.”

“We’ll have a good relationship.”

Rotose and Aramis patted Laurent’s shoulder, then followed me out of the mansion.

“Don’t leave me here alone…!”

We ignored Laurent’s desperate cry and quickly left.

“Hehe, I have a house now. Let’s go.”

“Yeah, Mari, let’s go quickly! There must be alcohol there, right? Let’s go and drink it all!”

“Well, Rotose won’t be coming to my house now.”

The three of us headed to the inn with cheerful expressions to pack our things.