Ch.4242. It Seems Like It’ll Be Fun, At Least?

“Princess Sairine, do you really need to see me nearly die to feel satisfied?”

At Oliver the butler’s choked voice, Sairine smiled broadly.

“Try to understand, I brought a treasure for you in return.”

“Is some treasure important right now? If you had been just a little later, I might have lost my head.”

“Sorry, but I still came earlier than the deadline in the letter.”

“Do you know how many times Princess Etherian has been looking for you?”

“Oh? My sister was looking for me?”

“Yes, if you had been discovered, the imperial family would have been in an uproar.”

“Phew!! Good thing I wasn’t caught. Right?”

Oliver the butler, who had turned sixty this year, let out a deep sigh as he looked at the immature Sairine.

The first princess, Etherian Silonia, was desperately searching for Sairine’s weaknesses to drive her out of the imperial family, yet instead of strengthening her position, Sairine was causing trouble almost every day. It was exasperating.

The succession battle in the imperial family was on a completely different level from that of the nobility.

Those who lost in the hierarchy fight would be eliminated, along with all the butlers and servants who had served them.

When the current emperor took the throne, a bloodbath had swept through the imperial palace, so everyone who served Sairine lived in constant fear.

The first princess, Etherian Silonia.

From a young age, she had displayed a brilliant mind and cold rationality, just like her father, Emperor Malius Silonia.

It was hard to believe she was born from the same womb as the scatterbrained Sairine.

Moreover.

Rumors abounded that many had fled the imperial palace or become spies out of fear for their lives should Etherian take the throne. So when Sairine left only a brief letter before going out and returning, Oliver’s concerns were immeasurable.

“Princess, do you really have multiple lives to spare?”

“Come on, you think my sister would kill me if she became queen? No way. She’s always so nice to me.”

“Both Emperor Malius and his predecessor King Curios went through the same procedure.”

“My sister will end such a wicked tradition.”

“Haaa…”

Though she laughed casually, Sairine’s heart was burning black with worry.

From the beginning, she couldn’t even start competing for succession because her sister Etherian had already secured her position.

The age difference wasn’t even that significant.

It was just that while Etherian smiled sweetly to Sairine’s face to make her let her guard down, she secretly built up her power behind the scenes. Before Sairine knew it, the gap had widened.

By the time Sairine realized it, it was already too late.

That’s why.

She pretended to have no interest in succession.

She thought it was the only way to save her life from her sister.

Sairine stared at Oliver as he sighed.

“I met someone similar to you this time, Oliver.”

“Similar to me?”

“More precisely, like a younger version of Butler Oliver?”

“I don’t understand what you mean.”

“Just someone who grumbles on the outside but seems warm-hearted inside.”

“…Pardon?”

“Oliver, you’ve always nagged me since I was little, but you’ve always taken care of me behind the scenes.”

Oliver cleared his throat in embarrassment.

“Ahem! Knowing that, you still left the house without saying a word to me?”

“Sorry, I just wanted to go outside the imperial palace by myself for once.”

“By the way, what kind of person did you meet?”

“I approached him first, asking him to help me find a treasure.”

“What?! You fearlessly approached a man first?!”

Ignoring Oliver’s astonishment, Sairine propped her chin on her palms and raised the corners of her mouth.

“He was a decent person. He seemed stronger than anyone, yet had no greed, and like you, he grumbled but genuinely seemed to care about me.”

“…If you speak of him that way, he must have been a truly good person. You did hide your identity, right?”

“Of course.”

“That’s a relief. Unnecessary rumors could lead to awkward situations.”

Sairine, who had been smiling happily, suddenly turned her head sharply toward Oliver as if remembering something.

“By the way, Oliver! Am I ugly?”

“What are you saying?! As someone who serves the princess, you may not believe me, but in terms of appearance alone, you are the most beautiful in the continent.”

“In terms of appearance alone?”

“Ahem! You know I can’t lie, don’t you?”

“Tsk, at times like this, you should say nice things even if they’re not true.”

Oliver tilted his head at Sairine’s complaint.

“Why did you ask if you were ugly?”

“Well, when I offered to buy him a meal, he refused at first. I barely convinced him to eat with me.”

“Just hearing about it, that’s quite unusual. A man who refuses a meal offer after seeing the princess’s face.”

“Ugh, I wanted to run away and live with that man!!”

Though she said it jokingly, Oliver’s eyes were filled with sadness.

He knew better than anyone that half of what Sairine had just said was sincere.

“Princess, if you ever want to run away, then run. Don’t worry about me.”

“…Weren’t you just scolding me for leaving without saying anything?”

“That was because I was worried about you returning to the imperial palace.”

“So you’re saying it’s okay for me to leave the imperial palace if I don’t plan to return?”

“Yes, I will always respect your decisions, Princess.”

Sairine shook her head with a pouty expression.

“That’s no fun. No wonder I’m not popular with men when I can only talk to people who can’t even joke around.”

“Seeing you think about that man again, you must have really liked him?”

“Well, I just keep thinking about him.”

“Or perhaps you felt special treatment because you concealed your identity.”

“That makes sense. Here, everyone except my family and Oliver treats me the same way.”

Oliver, who had been looking at her with pitiful eyes, adjusted his posture.

“If you went to Evis territory, that man must have been a monster hunter.”

“I thought so too, but he was a knight.”

“A knight?”

“Yes, he said he was visiting Evis during his vacation to gain knowledge about monsters.”

“That’s a rare kind of knight these days. Most family knights nowadays only care about getting paid well…”

Sairine clapped her hands and raised her voice.

“He could use magic too! He said he only knew low-level magic, but fire burst from his palm!”

“Hmm, a knight who uses magic… Which family’s knight was he?”

“Looking at the emblem on his scabbard, he was a knight of the Alphonse family!”

“Ah, the Alphonse family would be where Baron Byron is the head.”

“Yes, he said he serves the youngest son there.”

Oliver searched his memory at Sairine’s words.

Then he flinched and let out a sigh.

“If it’s the youngest son, that would be Selden Alphonse, rumored to be a good-for-nothing. What an unlucky knight.”

“Actually, I was so curious that I asked him about that too! But he said rumors tend to be exaggerated.”

“Haha! That was the most diplomatic answer he could give as a knight. Selden Alphonse is indeed a good-for-nothing. He’s currently exiled to Lake territory.”

“I know that from what you’ve told me.”

Oliver, who had been observing Sairine carefully, gave a gentle smile.

“Then how about inviting the knight you met to the imperial event?”

Sairine, who had been looking out the window, turned to Oliver with sparkling eyes.

“Can I really do that?”

“Yes, if you’re fine with your identity as a princess being revealed, I’ll arrange it right away.”

Sairine narrowed her brows, filled her cheeks with air, and pondered.

After a moment, the corners of her mouth slowly turned upward.

“Well, it does sound fun, doesn’t it?”

*

“Young master, how could you suddenly push me out of the room? Please open the door.”

Click!

As soon as I checked the message on the system window, I hurriedly pushed Luna out of the room and locked the door.

As a result, she’s been trying to open the door from outside for ten minutes.

Grabbing my hair with my fingers, I raised my voice.

“Luna, my head suddenly hurts so much. I need to rest a bit.”

“I have something to talk to you about. Just open the door for a moment.”

“We can talk tomorrow when I wake up. It’s late, you should go to bed early too.”

“Haaa… just open it.”

Click! Click! Click! Click click!! Click!

The old inn room’s doorknob might break if turned too forcefully.

My heart was pounding like it might burst.

What if I get raped like this?

That’s really not my thing…

All sorts of thoughts filled my head.

“…”

Click! Click! Click! Click!

When I remained silent, the sound of the doorknob turning became more intense.

Then.

Crack! Thud!

With the sound of the doorknob breaking, the door opened, and Luna appeared.

“Young master… huh, huff… I’m feeling a bit strange right now…?”

“…You’re always strange.”

Bang!

Luna closed the door that couldn’t be locked due to the broken handle and gave a seductive smile.

Her rapid breathing was enough to take my breath away too.

“Young master…”

Pop! Pop pop!

Luna approached me, unbuttoning her white shirt from the top one by one.

Her cleavage gradually revealed itself.

Then, with a suggestive smile, she continued.

“…It’s finally time for us to become one.”