Chapter 126:Face-to-Face (1)

The New Year’s party ended quickly.

Aside from Baron Bjor, who was involved in capturing, selling, and illegally trading magical beasts, numerous nobles were immediately imprisoned, and their fates would be determined as the investigation progressed.

…Their only remaining question was whether only their own necks would be on the line for treason, or if their entire families would be executed.

And even though nobles from all over the empire had gathered at the imperial palace with great effort, no one wanted to dance to a jazz waltz after witnessing those about to be purged being dragged away right before their eyes. Thus, the other nobles also quickly left the ballroom.

However, the Evergarden family remained in the imperial palace.

Mentioning the name of a magical beast in front of the Emperor was a measure to capture numerous traitors, but because this was such a critical matter, a thorough investigation was necessary. They would stay in the imperial palace for the time being to see if there were any discrepancies with the imperial investigators’ findings, and to determine if they had also been betrayed by someone they worked with. There were still many aspects to investigate.

Nevertheless, the Evergarden family was different from criminals like Bjor, so they remained as a sort of guest of the imperial family.

“If you need anything, please feel free to ask.”

“Ah, yes…”

“Then, I’ll take my leave.”

And as the time grew late,

“Wow, seriously.”

Rosaria entered the guest room assigned to her and looked around.

As it was a place where the empire’s most noble individuals stayed, even the sleeping quarters were incredibly dignified.

There was a fluffy rug on the floor and extravagant decorations on the walls.

“Wow…! Is this gold? Did they inlay gold?”

Even the blanket had dragon patterns embroidered with gold and silver threads, stitch by stitch, making it hard to tell if this was accommodation or an art museum.

Flump-

“Oof, the cushioning. Oof… wow…”

Flump-flump—

“Woah?! Wow! Wow, this is amazing! Wow!”

Bounce-bounce-

The most amazing thing of all was the incredible cushioning of the bed.

Just sitting on it gently enveloped her buttocks, and if she applied strong impact, it would rebound, lifting her into the air with its excellent resilience.

The sensation unconsciously made Rosaria jump on the bed, reminiscent of playing on a trampoline as a child.

“Wow…! The imperial palace is truly an amazing place, isn’t it? But it’s my room, so who would see this?”

It was very undignified for a count’s daughter to act this way, but she was in a private room and no one was watching, so she felt very comfortable— “I’ve been watching you for a while now.”

“You’re quite the innoce person, aren’t you?”

“Huh?! Ugh?! Uh? Uh? Wh-who? How? Huh?”

Rosaria, who thought so, was startled by the gaze of the man looking at her from the front.

“Wait, you’re that…!”

“Hello. We meet again.”

“Jin Barley Tea!”

“……”

“Ah, no? Jin… Jin Bless? Jin Bliss?”

“Boreas.”

“Ah-ha.”

His identity was none other than Jin Boreas, whom she had encountered at the ball.

“First, shall we sit down?”

“Uh, yes… well… no! Before that! How did you get in here?”

Jin Boreas, who had been leaning against the wall, came forward and approached her. Rosaria, who was about to be swept away by his confident and brazen attitude, shouted urgently.

“I’m also treated as a kind of guest, and I was wandering around when I heard a familiar sound from outside the door.”

“That doesn’t quite explain why you suddenly came here. And why have you been speaking informally since earlier?”

“Become the head of the Frontier Count family. Then it’s okay.”

“Annoying. Ah! More importantly, you! You too!”

“That’s right. I’m also a transmigrator.”

“Heo…”

Thus, she met the eighth transmigrator.

“Was transmigration such an easy thing to do?”

“More than you think. There are more transmigrators in this empire.”

“So, why did you come?”

“Just to say hello to a fellow transmigrator, and it’s good to become acquainted, right?”

“…..”

‘Is it true…? His actions are so unreserved that it seems surprisingly convincing…’

‘But, more than that… even though I was careless, he hid his presence and entered the room so skillfully that I couldn’t sense him. What does this mean?’

Meeting a fellow transmigrator was one thing.

However, Jin Boreas was within Rosaria’s perception range, who had quite sensitive senses, yet he skillfully concealed his presence.

That alone meant that Jin Boreas was a considerable expert.

“We’ll be running into each other often from now on. ‘That side’ is too conspicuous.”

“What does that mean?”

“…You don’t need to know right now. You’ll already be meeting them ‘around now’ anyway.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“Anyway, see you later.”

“Huh? Hey! Wait!”

Bang-

“….What kind of jerk is that?”

Before they could even have a proper conversation, Jin Boreas, who had been muttering incomprehensible words, ended up saying only what he wanted and leaving.

“But… what does ‘meeting them around now’ mean?”

“Then… let’s take a short break.”

“Yes, that sounds good.”

The imperial palace interrogation room.

Currently, Freya was being interrogated as a key witness in this case.

The interrogators were meticulously examining the specific circumstances of the case, the testimonies of those involved, and whether there were any inconsistencies with the prepared documents. As a result, she was unable to sleep and continued to be interrogated even as the day turned into the next.

‘I wonder if the children and my husband are doing well?’

Freya, who had been taking a break from the continuous interrogation, stretched lightly in the interrogation room where she was left alone, loosening her stiff body.

‘We’ve overcome the biggest peak… but now the remaining peaks are the problem.’

With this incident, she had finally managed to prevent the Evergarden family’s destruction ending from the original story.

But now the real problem begins.

Because she had completely diverted from the original Evergarden’s path, it would be difficult to rely on the original story, except for the major events that would occur in the future.

In addition, the Evergarden Count family had essentially declared their support for the Fifth Imperial Princess in front of all the nobles and royals, so they would also have to be mindful of the other nobles’ checks.

Freya, who was planning for the future while loosening her stiff shoulders,

At that moment.

Clang-

“…Is the break already over?”

Not long after she had left to take a break, the door to the interrogation room opened again.

However.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Countess Evergarden.”

“…I am honored to meet the sun of the empire.”

The one who opened the door was not an interrogator.

It was the Third Imperial Prince, Ganix Obina.

“I wanted to have a word with Countess Evergarden, so I borrowed some time… I hope you don’t mind.”

“I am greatly honored, Your Highness.”

“Good. Let’s sit down first.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

‘Ganix Obina…’

Despite the sudden appearance of the Third Imperial Prince, Freya greeted him perfectly and sat back down as he said, facing him.

Ganix Obina was a key figure for Freya.

According to Rachel, Ganix Obina was a transmigrator.

A sudden change in personality that did not exist in the original story, and the main suspect in the murder of the Ninth Imperial Prince.

Since such a person had suddenly come to see her, even Freya couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

“…There’s no need to beat around the bush, right? I’m also a transmigrator.”

“…Heo.”

However, Freya couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh, not expecting him to come straight to the point like this.

“Haa… being a prince is good, but it’s so frustrating….. Even if I have power, if I do whatever I want, they’ll say something again. How great would it have been if the original owner of this body had lived as a bit of a delinquent?”

The kindness and polite speech that Ganix Obina had shown until just now, and that was known to the world, had vanished without a trace. He had transformed into someone who looked like a street thug, acting cocky.

Freya was more surprised by his ability to skillfully put on and take off his mask than by his sudden change in personality.

“So, what do you want to say?”

“Wow… you’ve got quite the temper, haven’t you, Auntie? Your face completely changed, didn’t it?”

“Auntie…!? Ah…! Haa…?”

‘Auntie… that’s right, I’m an auntie… oh my god. Not even mister, but auntie…’

Then, Freya flinched slightly, seemingly greatly shocked by Ganix’s casual remark.

Originally, his age was in his forties.

He was already well past the age of hearing the word “oppa,” and was getting used to being called “mister.”

Then, even after becoming Freya Evergarden, she had been called by titles such as “Madam,” “Mother,” or “Wife,” but she had never heard the word “auntie.”

‘There was a time when I wondered why women were so sensitive to being called “auntie.” But hearing it myself feels like being hit with something heavy. It’s….. not very pleasant. Well… it’s true that I’m an auntie. It’s more shocking than being called “mister”… um…’

‘No, the age of having children is earlier in this world, so isn’t my current body age in my early to mid-30s? If so, then I’m not an auntie yet, am I? No… why am I so hung up on the word “auntie” in the first place? My husband doesn’t seem to care at all?’

‘Wait, thinking about being called “auntie” by my husband is terrifying, isn’t it? Wait… no? Come on, get a grip. Even though I’m a woman now, I love him, but it’s not like I wanted to become a woman, right? But why am I so hung up on such a useless word…’

‘But, I’m a woman now, aren’t I? If possible, wouldn’t it be natural for me as a woman to want to look young to my husband? If you think about it that way, it makes sense that I would feel bad about that word. It, it’s hot at night too… no, that’s not what’s important right now…’

“Auntie? What’s wrong?”

“…No, it’s nothing. So, what did you want to talk about?”

Freya, who had regained her senses at Ganix’s words, put on a smile again and looked at him.

However, her fist, which was hidden under the table and clenched tightly, was strangely trembling.