episode_0092

Silence falls upon the banquet hall once again.

A similar situation to when the First Prince spoke to me.

However, it was a silence different from that time. If interest and curiosity had been the main emotions then, now it was a completely different emotion.

Just astonishment.

As I pour the wine, the onlookers around me stare with their mouths agape.

Everyone was looking at me like I was crazy. That included Camilla and Adele, as well as our party members. Even Yulyss looked surprised.

“What the heck are you doing!”

Greggne, drenched in wine, looked at me and shouted.

No matter how much he was a noble who valued face and speaking indirectly, it seemed like when something like this happened, such things didn’t matter at all. Or maybe he was just too angry to care about such things.

The boy’s face was as red as wine. Regardless, I continued talking.

“Didn’t I tell you earlier? I mistook it for a wine glass.”

“What? You’re confusing a person with a wine glass? Is that even possible?!”

“Haha! Sorry, I have a bad habit of not being able to tell the difference when I drink.”

As I said that, I took another sip of wine. The guy who saw that snorted as if he was furious.

But that didn’t last long, as the guy glared at me and muttered quietly.

“···Even the most courageous of warriors have a line they must keep. How long do you think you can continue to be so reckless?”

“Ha.”

When I heard that, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Who drew that line in the first place? Who is saying it is presumptuous now?

I found it truly astonishing that he had been flirting with the Third Princess until just now and then saying such things to her.

That’s why I couldn’t help but say this with a slightly serious expression.

“Didn’t you keep saying sorry? Who told you to look like a wine glass to confuse people?”

This is why people need to exercise. If you don’t exercise, your body will become like a wine glass.

“What? This, this···!”

The guy’s face turned even redder, as if he was quite offended by my words. I thought he might explode if I left him alone for a little longer.

The guy was about to say one more thing there, but the other nobles were quick to jump in before he could.

“Enough, Count Gregg.”

“It’s no use getting angry, right? Just think of it as stepping in shit.”

“Come here quickly. My servant has prepared a wet towel and a change of clothes.”

In this way, Gregg was forced to leave, almost dragged away by the nearby nobles.

So what was left was me and the third princess, Deila, standing there with a bewildered expression. I thought about it for a moment here.

‘What should I do···.’

The nobles’ eyes have not yet left this situation.

And if you look at the cause and effect, it looks like I helped Deila when she was being bullied.

That’s true, but it would be a problem if other people judged it that way.

First of all, the contract with Deila was a secret that only we knew. When we met externally, we were like complete strangers.

So if someone looks at us and assumes we have some kind of relationship, it can be quite annoying.

So how should we deal with this situation?

Fortunately, I had a solution in mind.

“Ahem, by the way, are you the princess? Right?”

He clears his throat and speaks to Deila. As if he is meeting her for the first time. And as if he is interested for no reason. He looks Deila up and down with his eyes as if he is evaluating her.

“It suits my taste···and your body is nice too. What do you think? Would you like to spend some time with me?”

Such blatant and one-dimensional flirting.

But that’s why it was so perfect for conveying my intentions.

Today’s concept is a bastard, so fortunately, she noticed me.

“Huh, it’s as low-class as the rumors say. I’ll decline.”

With her plain refusal, the nobles who had been looking at her meaningfully turn their heads and say, “Then that’s right…”

I breathed a sigh of relief inside.

This should help to alleviate some of your doubts.

With that I left her, and soon the banquet came to an end.

*

“···Thank you for what happened earlier.”

Although she had said she would not meet him, Deila ended up meeting the warrior after the banquet.

Because Luke came to her while she was walking down the street at night.

The rough and tumble appearance from before had disappeared without a trace. His face, which had been red from being drunk, had returned to its usual color as if nothing had happened.

He says with a smirk,

“Don’t mention it.”

“Still, it was dangerous. You were so aggressive. What were you going to do if other people noticed?”

“Then, if I leave it like that, it seems like it’ll cry. Should I just leave it like that?”

“Ugh, that······.”

Deila was speechless. Because it was true.

At that time, I was so angry and so sad about my situation. If I had continued to be provoked, it wouldn’t have been strange for me to shed tears.

But my pride wouldn’t allow me to admit it, so I shouted instead.

“I wouldn’t have cried even if you weren’t there?!”

“Ah, yes, yes, let’s say that’s true.”

Of course, Luke let it go in one ear and out the other.

Looking at that sight, Deila felt a strange sense of irritation and interest.

He was truly a strange man. He acted like such a brat when there were a lot of people around, but when we were alone, he acted so neatly.

But there is also a bit of a playful side to it.

Honestly, I still don’t know what his intentions are. I still feel the same fear when I see him.

But the human side of him that is occasionally seen at least makes it interesting.

As he thought about that, Luke opened his mouth.

“By the way, where did that escort knight who always follows you around go?”

“Oh, you mean Riley? He’s probably sparring hard with Belita right now. He’s been doing that all the time lately.”

“Are the kids growing well?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. They eat so well these days… Growing kids are different.”

The children Luke had left in his care were growing up diligently. There were many children who were more talented than he had thought, so they learned quickly.

Especially Belita. Perhaps because of her powers, she was already able to easily deal with several knights.

Thanks to that, only Rayleigh, who was training, felt like he was going to die. It seems like he also feels a bit inferior to the fact that he lost to someone younger than him.

Anyway, something like that happened. After that, the warrior and Deila continued to talk about light everyday things.

She was still uncomfortable with Luke, but at least she had grown accustomed to this level of conversation.

In the meantime, he asked.

“By the way··· What are you going to do now?”

It was a rather meaningful question.

“What do you mean?”

“Didn’t the First Prince stand on the podium at the banquet today? It seems like the succession to the throne is approaching, but the Third Princess doesn’t seem to be prepared at all.”

“That’s···.”

Deila’s face darkened for a moment as Luke poked her sore spot.

It was as he said. It had been almost a year since they had signed a contract, but she had made little progress in the meantime.

The only thing she gained was the children Luke gave her… Other than that, she is currently lacking in money, power, and connections.

Of course, she also tried. She tried to contact the nobles who maintained neutrality, and even started her own business. But each time, she failed due to the interference of the First Prince’s faction.

It seems like there is no answer to this situation. But still.

“··· There is a way.”

There was a solution.

1 The prince had a lot of things, but he was also a person with many weaknesses.

Deila had nothing, but she had a lot to gain.

If you can attack the things under the surface well, even her current state could be defeated.

“You just have to dig up Sister Ayla’s death.”

And the thing she was going to attack was the death of the first princess, Ayla.

The person he respected the most and the most likely candidate to be the next emperor.

And the person who became famous 10 years ago due to an unfortunate accident.

The accident was suicide.

That her beloved older sister had taken her own life.

People thought of Ayla’s death as nothing more than a sad accident.

It is said that she committed suicide because she could not withstand the pressure of being the next emperor.

Of course, there were quite a few who suspected that the 1st Prince, who was their rival, was the culprit, but there was no evidence to prove it. Also, not many people had the courage to voice such suspicions.

Anyway, for that reason, the 1st Prince was cleared of suspicion, and Ayla’s cause of death was concluded as suicide.

But the person who loved her sister more than anyone else, Deila, knew the truth.

“Sister would never commit suicide. She was definitely killed by someone. If we could find evidence of that, it would cause great harm to Ian Uncle.”

“But what about the evidence? Even when he died, they would have investigated it thoroughly, right? And the emperor himself would have stepped in. But if there is no evidence, isn’t it already too late?”

Luke asked back.

Actually, this was something that also appeared in the game.

I wonder if I, who am serious about this game, have never done the 3rd Princess quest. Every time, the death of the 1st Princess Ayla was a common topic.

However, it was also a quest that could not be properly cleared due to lack of evidence.

In fact, Dayla was one of the characters with a high mortality rate, just like the other members of the warrior party.

“There may be no evidence. But there are witnesses.”

Then Deila’s mouth opened again.

“You just need to meet your second brother, the only person who witnessed that day.”

This person is now incarcerated due to mental illness.

Second Prince Aiden.

“If only that were possible··· Even Ian Brother could be dealt a huge blow!”

It was the moment when Luke was given a new quest.