Succession Round 1, Behind the Scenes with Ransel. (4)

7.

Come to think of it, Lancel Dante didn’t seem to have great expectations or worries about the regressor Marigold.

Watching her live a leisurely life at Baron Ibil Shen’s mansion made it difficult to harbor such feelings.

He didn’t really think much of Marigold’s alias, Lemon Verbena, which was obviously without any real substance.

‘Originally, when you first regress, you tend to do strange things like that.’

Lancel simply thought so every time he received a letter delivered by a crow.

Like the gaze of an old regressor looking at a newbie regressor… well, wouldn’t it be just about that?

A life with no particular danger, but no opportunities either.

It seemed like the regressor Marigold’s current life would be settled somewhere around there. Probably, if he didn’t intervene, there was a high probability that it would.

…Or so he thought until yesterday.

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—Fame Event Completed! 50 gold coins have been donated to the Imperial Martyrdom Church in the name of ‘Marigold’!

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“…Am I still half asleep?”

Lancel doubted his eyes.

’50 gold coins? Not even silver coins. 50 in gold?’

The notification that Marigold had donated a large sum of 50 gold coins lingered on his retina for a long time, like an illusion.

He wasn’t mistaken.

It was 50 gold coins.

It was exactly one week since the letter, which he had sent without even a sliver of expectation that it would grant the maid ‘Marigold’ the status of a vice-baroness, had arrived to ‘Lemon Verbena’. One week. Just one week.

For reference, during that period, Marigold faithfully spent her days lazing around as a freeloading maid, as usual.

But in what time?

Just what trick did she use?

‘What the hell are you doing, Marigold!’

It was around this time that strange phenomena began to be witnessed around Lancel.

8.

“Take a look at this, Sir Lancel. Don’t you feel anything special?”

“……?”

Lancel stared at Baron Ibil Shen, who suddenly appeared before him with an arrogant face, with a deeply furrowed brow.

He hadn’t expected a pot-bellied nouveau riche to suddenly ask him to evaluate his attire, so his displeasure was inadvertently revealed on his face.

“Why is this person reacting like this? How embarrassing.”

“…What do you want to hear?”

“Ah, take a look at this. This.”

A necklace was visible in the direction he pointed. Something familiar to Lancel was hanging from it.

“Coral?”

“As expected, you know it well! Why did you pretend not to know when you knew! It’s coral. Coral that came all the way from that distant sea.”

It was a necklace strung with colorful corals.

Because it emitted a cool fragrance when dried well and kept in a pocket, it served as a kind of air freshener for the islanders. Lancel, during his seafood travelogue days, also wore something similar.

‘How did this get all the way here?’

Lancel looked at the necklace with a mixture of delight and bewilderment at the fact that it had made its way to the Imperial Capital.

“Tell me if you need one too. These days, if you don’t have this among the Imperial Capital nobles, you’re treated as a very outdated person.”

“Yes… but how did such a remote local product become popular?”

“It hasn’t been long. When only one or two nobles were carrying it around, I thought it was some strange thing. But wouldn’t you know it, Your Highness the Third Prince also wears this around? After that, it spread quickly.”

The Third Prince? Wearing something like that? Lancel wondered if such peculiar phenomena were being witnessed because he had regressed so many times.

‘Trends are so fascinating.’

…That thought changed shortly after.

It changed when he saw Baron Ibil Shen, who had hurriedly returned to the mansion.

“Damn it, I should have bought it in advance! If I had known this would happen, I would have hoarded it!”

“Why are you running around kicking up dust like that?”

“It’s about the coral, the coral!”

Baron Ibil Shen threw back an answer even amidst the chaos, as if he was immediately preparing to go somewhere else.

“All the coral coming to the Imperial Capital has been robbed by thieves! There won’t be any supply for several months. The price has already jumped tenfold! Is this even possible!”

“…What was the original price?”

“Until recently, it was twenty silver coins per pouch.”

Twenty silver coins per pouch, if it went up tenfold, that would be two gold coins. It was definitely expensive.

“It’ll go up several times more in the future. I have to buy it right away, I can’t help it. I’ll end up just watching others make money! I can’t stand that!”

Baron Ibil Shen huffed and puffed as he left with a pile of money.

It seemed that the merchants who had stockpiled goods in advance were making gold out of thin air, which was quite infuriating.

‘Wait a minute.’

Lancel felt something strange at that moment. He glanced at the mansion hallway. He saw Marigold hiding in the corner, stopping her cleaning.

“Lulu. Lululu.”

The sight of the girl wiggling her toes and humming an unidentified song.

‘Could it be.’

No way.

Just look at that state.

‘……’

But why?

Suspicion arose in one corner of his mind.

‘My thoughts might be excessive.’

“…That’s what happened.”

“Yes, Sir Lancel.”

The next day, Lancel immediately called a man to the mansion. A man who was more knowledgeable about the news of the Imperial Capital than anyone else, the master of the Thieves’ Guild.

“I was curious as to why such a thing suddenly became popular and how the price skyrocketed, so I called you. Do you have any information?”

“That’s because of the nobles’ greed and faith, Sir Lancel.”

“Greed and faith?”

“Yes.”

Greed aside, faith?

As Lancel tilted his head, the master of the Thieves’ Guild continued.

“Are you talking about this?”

He rummaged through his pouch and took out a coral pouch.

“It’s just a luxury item now, but when it was first known, it was called a sacred object that defeated demons. Even though it looks like this.”

“A sacred object? Coral?”

Lancel narrowed his brow.

“Wasn’t it just a fragrant item?”

“That’s actually true. But according to the nobles, when they threw this at a demon, it fell apart in one hit. It’s just a rumor, though.”

“…How did such a superstition spread?”

“I don’t know. There are so many nobles who insist that they saw it with their own eyes, so what can we do? Everyone just thinks that’s how it is.”

The master of the Thieves’ Guild opened his mouth, pouring the coral from the pouch onto his palm.

“They say that when they sprinkled this on a living corpse, it collapsed and turned to dust. Believe it or not, after that, it became known as a sacred object that defeated demons.”

A living corpse.

‘Black Magic.’

Lancel felt as if his soul was leaving him from the shock that struck his mind.

It was a story that Baron Ibil Shen hadn’t heard. He was a man who would never believe in superstitions unless he saw it with his own eyes.

But Lancel knew.

That there was a Black Magic user who had recently earned a suspiciously large amount of money. A Black Magic user who had accumulated such immense wealth that he could casually donate 50 gold coins to the Martyrdom Church.

‘Marigold, this is your doing.’

Spreading superstitions using Black Magic, and even making money using it.

“And not long after, a trading company that supplied this coral to the Imperial Capital in large quantities was established…”

The master of the Thieves’ Guild opened his mouth again.

“They gave some of the company’s shares to some high-ranking people for free, and that’s when it started to become incredibly popular.”

“That’s… the head of the trading company knows well that sharing profits with the nobles is more profitable.”

“That’s right.”

“So that’s why you said greed and faith?”

“Yes, you’re quick to understand.”

“Don’t flatter me.”

“Ah, yes.”

Lancel suddenly became curious.

“What kind of place is that trading company?”

“That’s…”

The master of the Thieves’ Guild scratched his head.

“No one knows that.”

.

.

.

“Benefactor.”

A subtle voice.

Marigold’s two eyes shone in the darkness.

-Sir Lancel.

It wasn’t just one. Suddenly, numerous Marigolds revealed their forms around Lancel. They all started to cling to him at once.

-Master.

-Saint.

-Young Master Lancel.

It’s heavy.

Numerous Marigold’s arms wrapped around his body like snakes. For some reason, he couldn’t move an inch.

-Ehehe, come here!

Lancel, who had been writhing for a long time in the face of the onslaught of Marigolds coming from all directions, suddenly opened his eyes.

“……”

It was right after that that he found himself lying on the sofa. He must have fallen asleep while taking a short break.

“Was it a dream.”

Whether it was a nightmare or something.

His throat felt like it was burning.

As Lancel reached for a water bottle nearby, he suddenly.

“Hmm.”

Noticed Marigold’s presence, who was stuck to his side. She was lying next to him in her maid uniform, drooling as she slept.

Could it be.

Is this the cause of the nightmare?

“Hey.”

She doesn’t react even when he pinches her cheek.

A maid clinging to a noble.

Lancel flicked her forehead with his finger.

Thwack-!

“Heegik!”

After that, Marigold was assigned to clean the beehives for a month.

It was Lancel’s order.

10.

—This is Darkhood.

That dawn, Lancel quickly snatched the letter that had flown in from the crow and read it.

—As you said, a person named Mary has joined our secret organization as an executive. As Sir Lancel Dante recommended, she seemed to be excellent in many ways.

‘Self-praise, huh.’

—I heard that she is receiving beehive cleaning as punishment for a slight mistake, but I think it would be nice if you could generously forgive her since she is a good person.

‘……?’

—As I have confirmed myself, she says that she is also reflecting a lot. She is so heartbroken that she has been refusing walks and snacks for two days. I would be very grateful if the generous Lancel could turn a blind eye once.

How pathetic, Marigold.

This shamelessness of appealing for leniency by relying on the disguised identity of Lemon Verbena.

Lancel curled up one corner of his mouth and muttered, ‘Will it work?’

The fact that the price for making him have a nightmare ended with just one month of beehive cleaning was already a big favor.

—P.S.: Our first meeting is scheduled to take place in a week. If you are interested, please be sure to visit. Please approach us in disguise so that your identity is not exposed.

—From Lemon Verbena of Darkhood.

“Meeting?”

Without hesitation, he immediately picked up a quill. Because he wanted to know what kind of place Marigold’s secret organization was.

As soon as he expressed his intention to participate, a reply with the meeting place and date was returned to him.

—Location: Baron Ibil Shen’s mansion.

—Time: Midnight a week later.

“It’s here.”

Surely she didn’t choose here because she was too lazy to go far? He couldn’t help but have a reasonable suspicion. The time was also when Marigold, who often changed her schedule from day to night, would be idling around and active.

‘……How on earth did a girl like this get that much money……’

In any case, a week passed in an instant.

When the date of the meeting approached.

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—Encounter Event Occurred! Met ‘Third Prince Yuri Langris Phrygia’.

—Encounter Event Occurred! Met ‘Second Prince Arwen Louis Phrygia’.

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Lancel met two Princes there.