《The Strange but Effective Villainess Life》 CH 1 Prologue Academy of the Principality of Liloney , attached to the western end of the empire. Men in military uniforms of the Tales Empire arrived there, known as the so-called ¡°Take her who has the surname of Prelai!¡± In an instant, they stormed into my lab at the top of the academy. The sign on the door fell terribly and rolled on the floor. My laboratory, which was filled with various experimental instruments, quickly became a mess. I was in the middle of solving a formula, and I was caught without knowing why. It was really embarrassing. I immediately protested. ¡°What is it, you bastards! Do you have two lives? Why don¡¯t you let me go right away before I hit you in the head one by one with all kinds of magic tools What the hell is this all about?¡± The Imperial Army, who had been tying my wrists, spoke bluntly. ¡°Seukali Prelai plotted against the empire.¡± ¡­Uh? I was taken aback by those words and froze on the spot. Grandfather¡¯s name came out casually from the lips of the imperial army. My grandfather, Duke Seukali Prelai, was a man of great power. Although his father went missing a few months ago, his two older brothers were excelling in their respective fields. Even my cousin, Melissa Prelai, who grew up with us, recently appeared in the newspaper for her extraordinary powers. I was the only person in the family who had problems, so I was already far away. But the Prelai family is treacherous? ¡°Return the sinner to the Empire! Hurry up, we can¡¯t be late for the hanging date!¡± ¡°han- han- han- han- hanging?¡± I opened my eyes wide in surprise. ¡°That- that, let¡¯s say that my grandfather plotted against the empire because he is senile.¡± And the words poured out. ¡°But I haven¡¯t been to the Empire for seven years! Stuck in this rural corner, doing nothing but magical engineering research!¡± It was really unfair. When I was 16 years old, I came to the Lilowney Principality Academy. And from then until now, I hadn¡¯t even stopped by the duke¡¯s residence. The Imperial Army¡¯s answer to my logical refutation was simple. ¡°But anyway, you¡¯re also a Prelai.¡± He pointed to a sign that read [Professor of Magical Engineering ¨C Kiana Eli Prelai]. ¡°¡­¡± In the end, I was helplessly dragged out by the imperial army. * * * The dean was standing in the hallway. I looked at him as if I had met my savior. My contributions to the academy so far have been enormous. So I wondered if he would somehow save me. ¡°Principal ! I .¡± ¡°Kuhm.¡± The dean coughed and blocked me. And without even looking at me, he politely asked the imperial soldiers. ¡°I will check one more time. If Professor Kiana Prelai dies, according to the laws of the Principality of Lilowney, all patents in her name will belong to the Academy, right?¡± For a moment, the world seemed to stop. The dean who always cherished me as a paper printing machine¡­¡­ What are you talking about? The dean laughed servilely and demanded an answer from the imperial army again. ¡°For patents, you must follow the laws of the Principality of Liloney, not the laws of the Empire. Because we cooperated on that condition.¡± It was like getting hit in the head. If it was the treachery of the Duke of Prelai, it was a big enough event to shake the entire continent. But I didn¡¯t know that fact until the imperial army was right in front of me. Come to think of it, the newspapers were not delivered these days because the roads were a mess, but it seemed that the dean had taken care of all of this. I was a genius magic engineer. Magic engineering was a study that implemented magic tools based on mathematics and physics. Of course, there are a lot of patents in my name. The dean coveted it and decided to hand me over to the imperial army. In an instant, tears welled up. As I said with my own mouth, I jumped out of the great Prelai duchy on my feet and spent 7 years at the academy. It¡¯s been a long time since I thought of the dean as a real family member. Because he praised me, saying that I was an unprecedented genius, and letted me skip grades over and over again, even making me a professor. I expressed my sincerity with a feeling of vomiting blood. ¡°You beggar, you used me to your heart¡¯s content and sold me for money, right? Even if I go to hell, I¡¯ll jump out somehow and make your dreams a mess for the rest of your life! Even if I make a contract with any vicious devil, I will ruin you and your descendants forever!¡± One day at the age of twenty-three, when she was working as a professor at an academy in a small principality in the corner of the continent. She was suddenly sentenced to death by hanging and sent back to the Empire. * * * As soon as I returned to the empire, I was imprisoned like a beggar in the dungeon of the imperial palace. It was then. ¡°Kiana!¡± A woman who looked worse than me grabbed my hand from inside the prison. ¡°After all, you¡¯ve been caught too!¡± It was Melissa Prelai, my cousin of the same age whom I hadn¡¯t seen in 7 years. ¡°Nice to meet you! I really waited!¡± Are you saying that now as a welcome greeting? Sounds like you were cursing me¡­ I didn¡¯t like Melissa, so I immediately withdrew my hand and asked. ¡°How did this happen? Is our grandfather a traitor?¡± Melissa answered with a whimper. ¡°You know Grandpa isn¡¯t like that¡­.We were unfairly punished.¡± Then, with tears dripping down his face, he murmured. ¡°I¡­ I know the truth only I know huh¡­¡± Up close, even during this time, Melissa was still pretty. Her blonde hair sparkled even when dirty, and her red eyes were clear as rubies. I sighed and calmed him down. ¡°Melissa, don¡¯t babble and mumble and be a bit logical.¡± ¡°You¡­ you still haven¡¯t changed your creepy talk, seems like that it has been really consistently growing.¡± Melissa wept at my request. ¡°Prince Heaton came to visit me yesterday and told me. In fact, he said he was the one who accused the Prelai duchy of treason.¡± ¡°What? Why would that son of a bitch tell you that in the midst of all this?¡± Melissa answered with a sniff of her nose. ¡°Pyeol said it was because I dumped Prince Heaton in the past. He¡¯s so bitter that he wants to at least achieve his revenge¡± Pyeol was Melissa¡¯s yellow lark pet. She layed at Melissa¡¯s feet, now unconscious because of the her restraints. Well, since childhood, Melissa has been popular with all kinds of men. Perhaps Heaton was one of them. Although she wasn¡¯t really interested in the situation she was in now. I sighed and touched my forehead. ¡°Grandfather is very old too¡­to fall for this ¡­ But anyway, why did Prince Heaton accuse Prelai of treason?¡± The grandfather I knew was a very capable man. But how could he be so helpless? Melissa answered in gibberish. ¡°Grandfather has been very sick lately. Anyway, I think it¡¯s because Prince Heaton has been in a rush these days¡­ It seemed that he thought that we would stand on the side of the crown prince.¡± What is it, why is the prince suddenly here? I couldn¡¯t know the exact situation because I was away from the empire, but in the end, it seemed that I was caught up in a fight for the throne. I flopped down. It was really very unfortunate. To think that the man didn¡¯t know anything about it in a foreign country was suddenly dragged in to die in vain. For a while, only Melissa¡¯s whimpers echoed in the prison. And after a while, a loud shout was heard outside. ¡°It¡¯s hangman time! Bring out the sinners!¡± For a moment, fear flashed in Melissa¡¯s eyes. It was the same for me too. Because no one can be calm in the face of death. There was a heavy sound of footsteps trying to take us outside. ¡°Kiana, am I really going to die?¡± For a moment, Melissa muttered. ¡°I¡­I don¡¯t want to die.¡± What do you mean by, that¡¯s so obvious.¡­. It was when I looked at Melissa with dumbfounded eyes. ¡®what? she.. What¡¯s wrong with your eyes?¡¯ It was an insane looking face. Until now, I was just sad, but the thought of dying made me panic. ¡°I-I will bounce.¡± ¡°What? what kind of nonsense is that? Where do you want to bounce? way to the gallows?¡± It was when I was frightened because I wondered if he was really crazy. ¡°I have divine powers.¡± Melissa muttered in a fit of madness. ¡°I should have entered a monastery sooner. If I threw away the Prelai surname, I would have been able to survive on my own even in this situation.¡± Those with divine powers were given the right to enter monasteries and become priestesses. When they became a priestess due to her religious beliefs, they gave up her last name, they could not get married, and had to serve while wandering in remote mountainous areas for the rest of their lives. To be honest, it was a hell of a struggle. So there were few who became priestesses Usually, even when she manifested her divine powers, she just lived her own life. However, if you drop your last name, you will no longer be ¡®Prelai¡¯, so you will not be dragged in for treason. I grabbed her by the shoulder and shook her. ¡°Hey, hold on. Unless you go back to the past, how do you suddenly get into a monastery?¡± ¡°Yes! right! That¡¯s right! past!¡± Melissa rolled her eyes and nodded her head. ¡°I have a lot of divine power. I¡¯ll have to try. Don¡¯t you think so?¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± With a sudden sense of discomfort, I stared at Melissa. She is kind and pretty, like the sunshine, the girl everyone loved¡­ She was now putting on an expression that made her look worse than anyone else. ¡°I¡¯ll go back in time. With all these memories, I¡¯m going back to a year ago. So I¡¯m going to go straight to the monastery and live a life that has nothing to do with the Prelai duchy. I will never die in vain like this!¡± At that moment, the inside of the prison was bathed in bright light. CH 2 1. The Villainess Returns ¡°Senior? Senior!¡± Someone shook me up. I jumped up. And looked around. A simple, beggarly student laboratory, and cheap laboratory equipment.. ¡®What? I was in prison just a moment ago.¡¯ ¡°You can¡¯t sleep here. I know you are crazy about your degree, but please keep the student lab hours.¡± Suddenly, I heard the blunt voice of a junior who woke me up. ¡®Wait a second, this junior¡­ ¡¯ He doesn¡¯t have any skills, but he¡¯s a relative of the dean, so he¡¯s a kid who kept getting listed as a co-author with me on research projects. I was confused about the current situation, so I responded timidly, reflexively. ¡°Dr. Nabrang, what are you doing ? Get out of here, or I¡¯ll beat your epithelial cells with a pendulum exercise!¡± ¡° What do you mean I¡¯m a doctor?¡­ You still aren¡¯t awake from your dream?¡± The junior clicked his tongue and left the lab. ¡®What? What really happened?¡¯ I first checked the lab coat I was wearing. ¡®Wait, this¡­ The one I wore when I was in my PhD?¡¯ I just said ¡®Doctor Nabrang¡¯ for nothing¡­ I blinked, and inadvertently saw the headline of a newspaper thrown in front of the lab door, startled and ran. Melissa Prelai returns the surname of Prelai and applies as a priestess to Erloa Monastery. ¡°Hey, what the hell is this?¡± Declared that she would dedicate his life to service. The date on the paper was surprisingly a year before her last memory. ¡°I¡¯ll go back in time. With all these memories, I¡¯m going back to a year ago. So I¡¯m going to go straight to the monastery and live a life that has nothing to do with the Prelai duchy. I will never die in vain like this!¡± ¡®What, did the real Melissa turn back her time with her divine powers?¡¯ I was dumbfounded. At any rate, I was amazed by all of this, so I immediately sent a letter to the monastery where Melissa was. Since it was a story related to treason, I kept my words as low as possible, fearing that the pod would be caught later. ¡®Since I used the word ¡®after¡¯, you¡¯ll notice that I¡¯ve returned with my memories, too, right?¡¯ It¡¯s because I thought it was enough to communicate anyway. ¡®First of all, the fact that I sent her a letter is surprising. Of course you¡¯ll understand.¡¯ After sending the letter to the monastery, I locked myself in the dormitory. Because I had to make some plans for what to do next. ¡®¡­ Anyway, is this all because of Prince Heaton?¡¯ Once I got Melissa¡¯s reply, I decided to move on. Thinking of as many different numbers as possible. But after a few days. It was when I was confined to my room like a dead person and was making my 184th plan. With a ¡®tock-tock¡¯ sound, something bright yellow knocked on the window. ¡°Well?¡± In a room covered with memo papers with the numbers of all kinds of cases written down, I looked at the window with wide eyes over my glasses. ¡°What are you¡­ ¡± I mumbled blankly after discovering the main character of the sound ¡®tock tock¡¯. ¡°¡­ Could it be Pyeol?¡± Melissa¡¯s pet, a yellow lark, Pyeol came to me with an envelope in her mouth. As soon as I received the letter, Pyeol started flapping his fluffy wings and chattering. And I greeted Pyeol and said kindly. ¡°It¡¯s chaotic, so you should close you beak first, Try chirping when I am done reading.¡± I closed Pyeol¡¯s mouth like that and opened the letter. Kiana, long time no see. You always grumbled at me, but in fact you were worried about me a lot. What did you say? I frowned for a moment. ¡®Isn¡¯t the content a bit strange? What are you talking about after a long time and what are you worried about¡­¡¯ Everyone else saw you and called you a spoiled aristocrat mad with jealousy. But I¡¯ve always believed that there is a tiny bit of goodness in you. Even if your last words were a threat, ¡®You, next time we meet, I will make you remove the seeds from the strawberries I will eat¡¯. I quickly skimmed through the following. I woke up one morning, and suddenly I had the idea that I should become a priestess and enter a monastery. Isn¡¯t this a revelation from God? Well? Didn¡¯t she say with her own mouth, ¡®I don¡¯t want to die, so I¡¯m going to go to the monastery by myself!¡¯? Now I¡¯m leaving for volunteer work with the other priestesses, so I won¡¯t be able to contact you for a while. So goodbye. The content was finished as it was, with only one postscript attached. p.s. Finally, I will enclose a meaningful gift for you while deeply appreciating your insignificant kindness that only I have noticed. In an instant, my eyes widened. ¡®A meaningful gift?¡¯ Could it be that [I pass all my property to my damn human cousin, Kiana]? It was time for me to turn the envelope over. At my command from the side, Pyeol, who had been silent, appeared with two short wings and intervened. Before I knew it, even the messy ribbon that had been rolling around on my desk was hanging around my neck. ¡°What?¡± I almost dropped the letter I was holding in surprise. Anyone from the Prelai duchy could handle summoned beasts. Usually, around the age of eight, each summoned their own summons. Each of the summoned beasts had various abilities that were helpful to their masters. ¡®Except me¡­¡¯ But even when I got older, I couldn¡¯t summon a summoned beast. There was a reason why I left the duke¡¯s residence and came to the academy in this village. But now it¡¯s not that important¡­ ¡®No, isn¡¯t it too much to throw away the summoned beast while abandoning Prelai¡¯s surname?¡¯ While I was dumbfounded, Pyeol lay quietly on my bed and said, ¡°Oh my gosh¡± I blankly recalled the situation at that time. Pyeol was slumped at Melissa¡¯s feet, and I was shaking Melissa¡¯s shoulder, telling her to come to her senses. Yes¡­ contact is contact¡­ t/n: the reason why she came back with memories was due to her being in contact with melissa while she was using her powers. ¡°So what about Melissa?¡± Pyeol flapped her wings and explained. If so, I could understand the contents of the letter as if she was somewhere in a flower garden. He had no memory of anything before her return. And she just thought that she had suddenly attained enlightenment while living, so she became a priestess. Perhaps we regressed at the same time, but I was asleep at the time, so it seemed that Melissa¡¯s movements were quicker. ¡°So Pyeol, didn¡¯t you tell Melissa about her return?¡± Pyeol confidently nodded her head. To be recognized as Prelai by Melissa¡¯s pet and not by anyone else. The feeling was really strange. However, the ¡®act of summoning¡¯ was important. So, even if Pyeol was given over by Melissa, that didn¡¯t mean I summoned the beast as a true Prelai. As I sighed, Pyeol pounded the bed with his little wings and grumbled. He¡¯s already beating people with words. First of all, I kindly gave advice on the attitude of life as owner. ¡°Pyeol, you can¡¯t lie down in front of the master already. Get up right now .¡± However, Pyeol was also not normal. That lark with only a mouth¡­ It was a truly equal and cheerful atmosphere that did not really say a word to each other. Anyway, thanks to Pyeol, I finally figured out the situation. The only ones who knew the future were me and Pyeol. Hmm, then¡­ While I was lost in my thoughts, Pyeol looked at the notes on the wall and said a word. I looked at Pyeol and answered. ¡°These are just, um, traces of thinking about what to do next.¡± ¡°If it continues at this rate, I think the Prelai duke family will be helplessly defeated by Prince Heaton again. Then I am helplessly hanged.¡± ¡°In the end, I have no choice but to save the ducal family in danger somehow.¡± Pyeol looked around and gave an expression of embarrassment for some reason. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m a bit of a hard worker.¡± ¡°Right. As you cheekily pointed out, I don¡¯t know anything right now.¡± I readily agreed. ¡°So I was really stumped, but now I have a pretty good solution.¡± I smiled as I looked at Pyeol, who tilted his head. ¡°Don¡¯t you know about the future events of the empire? You must have been in the Empire the whole time because you were next to Melissa.¡± <¡­Yeah? Wait a minute, then the solution is¡­ > ¡°Lets go.¡± I said, taking out a new notepad and pen. ¡°Tell me everything you know. Anything, even the smallest thing. I¡¯ll have to re-analyze the situation by adding each one to the memo. Can you give me two weeks?¡± With a far-off face, Pyeol opened his beak. <2 weeks? Kiana, how can you be so full of venom? Just like a person made up of tenacity¡­> ¡°Beep.¡± I cut off Pyeol¡¯s words with a straight face. My major was magic engineering based on mathematics and science, and I couldn¡¯t stand it. My major was magic engineering based on math and science, and I couldn¡¯t stand such words. ¡°I¡¯m made up of neurons¡± <¡­¡­.> CH 3 Pyeol couldn¡¯t forget the shocking sight for a very long time. Kiana, who was sitting in the middle of the memo pads on the wall with her glasses on, with a worried expression. ¡­ Honestly, that sounds like madness, not hard work. ¡°Lets go.¡± While her lovely pink hair was scattered, her light green eyes were sparkling, which made it all the more bizarre. The checkered pattern that was plastered from her hair tie to her slippers looked rather creepy. ¡°Let¡¯s squeeze every single brain cell together. Do your best.¡± ¡°Try it. If you try, you can remember everything.¡± I knew Kiana was kind of weird, but she was even the weirdest person trying¡­ Pyeol began flapping her wings desperately. * * * As a result, Pyeol didn¡¯t have to suffer from me for days. Pyeoly shook her head and murmured. Pyeol jumped on top of my head and closed my eyes. At the same time, stories from after I left for the academy flooded in. ¡°Hey.¡± I said low. ¡°You said you would pass on what you saw, why text format? It¡¯s like¡­¡± I added dissatisfiedly, capturing the text floating around in my head. ¡°It looks like I am reading a book where Melissa is the main character¡± I felt like I was going crazy because Melissa was the main character, a third-person observer point of view. She replied with a startled Pyeol. ¡°Hmm.¡± I sighed deeply and rolled my eyes. ¡®This is the only way¡­¡¯ It was like reading a novel. It¡¯s also a love story¡­ ¡°I knew Melissa was popular with the guys, but she was amazing, really ¡­.¡± After I left, Melissa was loved and obsessed with by many men. ¡®I thought she would get engaged to Rodrigo right away after I left, but she dragged on and put all the arrogant men into her fishery?¡¯ I muttered with a tired face. ¡°Is she only interested in love? Why is it all like this? Isn¡¯t this a complete reverse harem romance novel?¡± The story is a romance novel, but it was also just a feast at the fishing grounds. Of course, if this was a novel, it was a novel with an overly novel and unique ending. One of the fish that was forcibly released from the fishery destroys the family, killing them all¡­ And not because of love, but just for political reasons¡­ ¡®But Melissa really will live this life in the opposite way.¡¯ A priestess can¡¯t even marry, let alone fall in love. Anyway, I wasn¡¯t interested in Melissa¡¯s love story or anything, so I kind of passed that part off with a blurry eye. Of course, there were scenes where I was mentioned at the academy from time to time. My name was always mentioned in the lines that all the men comforted by saying, ¡°Poor Melissa.¡± The villain who haunted Melissa throughout her childhood and her mean cousin driven mad by her jealousy. ¡°I¡¯m so glad Princess Kiana left. If the villainess had stayed in the Empire, it would have been even more difficult for Melissa¡­¡± ¡°Princess Melissa, the wound she received from Princess Kiana in her childhood and her pain¡­ I will heal them all.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t the villainess torment Princess Melissa very much? It is a pity that she is far away and I cannot challenge her to a duel.¡± Well, I was in a bad mood, but that wasn¡¯t the point right now. I read through the occasional, bold incidents that occurred in the imperial capital. In particular, attention was paid to the moments when the Prelai duchy was accused of treason and engulfed in tragedy at the last minute. ¡®These are things that will happen in the future, so the future¡­ No, since these events actually happened, should we put them in the past? What should I call it?¡¯ After thinking about it for a while, I decided to call the information Pyeol gave me the ¡®original work¡¯. Being able to chew over and over again in the form of sentences was like reading a book. I feel a bit bad that the main character is Melissa, but anyway, I¡¯ve been digging out information from the ¡®original¡¯ that might be helpful to me for a while. ¡°Hmm.¡± I was immersed in my thoughts for a long time, and only woke up when the sunset was setting. ¡°Now that it has come to this, out of 184 plans¡­¡± I said resolutely, tearing off some sticky notes from the wall. ¡°I will go with a plan that combines the 57th and 122nd, the 111th and 121st, and the 181st and 182nd.¡± <¡­ yes?> ¡°Anyway, I am the only one who knows the future. Shouldn¡¯t I make the move myself?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going back to the duke¡¯s mansion right now.¡± It was then. Someone knocked in my dorm room and shouted loudly. ¡°Kiana, the admissions information session is starting soon! The dean asks you to come quickly! You must go and speak!¡± The admissions briefing session was an event that the dean ambitiously prepared by gathering students and parents who were worried about entering the academy. It was because the tuition of the student was money. And I would always give a brief lecture on the basics of magical engineering to the students at the entrance briefing. It was because it was perfect to present him as a high-ranking aristocrat of the empire and a young genius making great achievements at the academy. ¡°Yes, I¡¯ll go right now!¡± I smiled and got up from my seat. ¡°Uh. I¡¯m going back, but I¡¯m going to pay the dean one thing back.¡± Pyeol murmured. * * * The main auditorium of the academy was full of people for the first time in a long time. It wasn¡¯t common in a closed academy where outsiders were not allowed in. The event was in full swing, and upon seeing me enter, the dean, who was standing at the podium, introduced me with a smile. ¡°Now then, let¡¯s take a moment to listen to Princess Kiana Prelai¡¯s brief lecture for our prospective freshmen.¡± I proudly walked to the podium, stood next to the dean, and greeted him politely. ¡°Hello, this is Kiana Prelai. I am currently pursuing my PhD.¡± I gave a simple lecture like this every year at the admissions briefing. And my lectures were so good that many students used to apply and go. ¡°Witchcraft is based on math and science, so let¡¯s start with a few quick lectures on science.¡± It was the same beginning every year. The dean smiled benevolently and patted my shoulder. ¡°Dr. Kiana, the pride of our academy and a disciple who is more important than my children, is very good at lecturing. You can look forward to it.¡± I expected it, but the shoulder touched by the dean¡¯s hand gave me goosebumps. They handed me over to the imperial army, well, that can happen. Because the power of the empire is strong. But at least you shouldn¡¯t have laughed at the ¡®patent¡¯ in front of me being dragged away and making me live like slave a in the academy, saying thati am are more precious than your own children. The dean was a very bad guy who touched my weakest spot and used love and attention as a bait for me. ¡°Yes. You can look forward to my lecture.¡± I grinned and shook the dean¡¯s hand off my shoulder and began the lecture resoundingly. ¡°Science is very close to our daily life. for example¡­¡± During the lecture, I picked up a water bottle prepared to drink if I was thirsty. ¡°This is gravity.¡± Then, he picked up the water bottle and poured it over the dean¡¯s head. ¡°Oh, oops! Fufufufu! Oh no, Kia¡­.¡± ¡°You are in the middle of a lecture, dean. Please cooperate. So, look at everything. I will also show you the next one.¡± I slapped the distraught dean on the cheek. The crowd opened their mouths with a groan. The dean squinted his eyes and shouted. ¡°What is this! It hurts!¡± ¡°Very good explanation, Dean. My hand hurts too. Now, this is the law of action and reaction.¡± The audience all looked at us with faces asking, ¡®Is this a lecture prepared?¡¯. The academy officials also said, ¡°This year, this is the kind of lecture. Interesting.¡¯ He nodded his head admiringly. ¡°Well, objects do motion as they move.¡± With a grin, I picked up the dean¡¯s wig and threw it through the window. ¡°This is parabolic motion.¡± Everyone who didn¡¯t know about the wig¡¯s existence opened their mouths. In the meantime, the students sitting in the front gave the evaluation as if they were satisfied. ¡°Wow, this class is really fun!¡± ¡°The composition of the lecture is interesting¡±. The dean, unable to do this or that, wiped the water running down his face with a bewildered expression. ¡°In this way, science is hidden in all phenomena, and at the academy, we study this law and process magic to create magic tools that are useful in real life. This is a strong adhesive that was patented not too long ago.¡± I stuck a piece of paper with ¡°garbage¡± written on it to the dean¡¯s forehead. ¡°What, what, what, this!¡± The dean screamed in disbelief. ¡°It¡¯s so strong that it doesn¡¯t come off easily without a special cleaner. You can make items that are not that great, but that have a small effect.¡± I smiled and threw the magic tool on the floor and said to the crowd. ¡°But even if it was impressive, don¡¯t come. I¡¯m having a hard time. Then thank you for listening to my lecture so far.¡± Then, I left the auditorium and boarded a carriage to the Empire. Just revised chapter 1 and corrected some unimportant minor stuff, if you see any mistakes or anything please dm anha#2282 on discord for it CH 4 It took quite a long time to reach the Empire. I attached as many accelerating magic tools as possible to the wagon, but the Principality of Liloney and the Empire were far away. In the meantime, Pyeol lay down on my lap and asked. ¡°What are you talking about? I don¡¯t have any economic ideas, so I can¡¯t do that. I know how to spend money, but I don¡¯t know how to earn it.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I don¡¯t have any connections in the empire, so I can¡¯t do that. I know how to swear at politicians, but I don¡¯t know how to do politics.¡± My self-understanding was perfect. At that wise and humble answer, Pyeol showed an expression of disbelief. Pyeoly asked very anxiously. <¡­¡­ You- you¡¯re not thinking about being honest with your family, are you?> ¡°Why not?¡± Pyeolyak opened his mouth wide when I blinked and said. He looked as if he had heard the worst answer. Pyeol said seriously. ¡°Kiana appeared at the duke¡¯s office after six years and said, ¡®In fact, I returned, and Prince Heaton said he was going to ruin Frelai, with no reason ¡® will there be a family member who will believe her?> ¡°Of course not. Who believes me, who was mean and always closed the door and went in?¡± I answered calmly. ¡°So I should go back and try.¡± Pyeoly shrugged his shoulders as if he had no confidence. Well, throughout my childhood at the Duke of Prelai, I was a nuisance to my family. Because until I was sixteen, I was growing up into a gloomy villainess who served as an example for others. Everyone had said that in the Prelai duchy there was an angelic Melissa and a demonic Kiana. But nonetheless, working with my family was my plan A. So, my destination was the duke¡¯s residence. I tilted my head as if I was worried about Pyeol and said it again. ¡°Actually, I like that too. So I also have a plan B.¡± I looked out the window with my chin hanging. ¡°To help avenge Heaton¡¯s biggest enemy, ¡®that man,¡¯ we need to take his hand to hasten Haeton¡¯s downfall in a year time before he accuses us of treason¡± ¡°Anyway, I think it¡¯s because Prince Heaton has been in a rush these days¡­ It seemed that he thought that we would stand on the side of the crown prince.¡± When Melissa said that in prison, I had no idea what the hell was going on. However, thanks to the ¡®original story¡¯, I was finally able to understand the situation in which Prince Heaton was cornered. ¡°Yes.¡± My voice lowered as I thought about the future. ¡°It means that I will get along well with my family and actively help ¡®that man¡¯ as well.¡± * * * The capital of the empire, Rapahan. ¡°Ah¡­¡± The black-haired young man received a report from the office and tilted his head slightly. ¡°Princess Kiana is returning to the Empire? suddenly?¡± ¡°She even applied for cancellation of all patents registered under the academy¡¯s name by participating in joint research. That¡¯s why the academy is in a big mess right now¡­.¡± The man who looked at Kiana¡¯s name on the report narrowed her eyes. He was a young man with a solid body, tall stature, and elongated yet decadent eyes. The impression that he seemed to be somewhat familiar made the viewer feel an instinctive sense of intimidation. His neat attire was impeccably clean, and even the pen in his office was undisturbed. ¡°Did something happen at the academy?¡± A big foreign subordinate immediately answered the man¡¯s dubious question. The stern-looking subordinate¡¯s expression was serious, he was not used to the imperial language, so the pronunciation is somewhat broken. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know the details because it¡¯s such a closed place, but at least it seems like the academy wasn¡¯t expecting it at all.¡± ¡°Seeing that the route is towards the capital, I wonder if it is coming to the Duke Prelai¡¯s residence. Maybe it¡¯s because she was really fed up with doing research stuck in that corner of the country?¡± So, the report of the subordinate was over. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but¡­¡± After a moment of silence, the well-forged man stood up slowly. Contrary to his languid gestures, his eyes were sharp, like a beast accustomed to dominion. ¡°Anyway, we can finally meet.¡± An obvious anticipation flickered across his face as he grinned and muttered. ¡°After a very long time.¡± * * * We ran nonstop for days and days. It was midnight when they arrived at Rapahan, the capital of the Tailies Empire. I grabbed Pyeol, who was looking out the window with his soft hips twitching. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± I took out a small note from my pocket and put it in Pyeol¡¯s beak. ¡°I have something else to do for you. I have somewhere to pass this on.¡± At my words, Pyeol flapped his little wings and immediately rebelled. ¡°Beep.¡± I pressed Pyeol¡¯s chubby cheeks and kindly informed him of the reality. ¡°If i tell you to go, Shouldn¡¯t you go? I¡¯m your master now, not Melissa.¡± And once again kindly gave advice on life as the owner. ¡°You can¡¯t try to suck honey under me like this.¡± t/n : It¡¯s korean slang when you describe a situation where you do nothing but only take an advantage of it., so she is basically telling Pyeol to dont expect of taking advantage because she won¡¯t let him. As soon as Pyeol saw my eyes, he was taken aback and then cried and protested. ¡°I know. Anyway, send this secretly to P.O. Box 1135.¡± ¡°I know that too.¡± The summons each have their own abilities. And Pyeol¡¯s ability was ¡®secret delivery¡¯. He was able to carry small items wherever he wanted without being noticed by anyone, but great distances were not possible and it took some time. According to Melissa¡¯s recollection, it took about a week. Pyeol had a dissatisfied expression on their face. ¡°Beep.¡± I said with a straight face. ¡°The soul has no capillaries, so it cannot be bruised.¡± <¡­ > Pyeol murmured as it flew helplessly out of the window. It was a really cheeky self-talk, but it was okay. It was because even if Pyeol cursed for a hundred days, magic engineering will not be ruined. After the beeping was gone, I, who was left alone in the carriage, took a deep breath. ¡®Empire¡­Capital Rapahan¡­ Duke Prelai¡¯ It was the first I returned home after leaving on my own at sixteen. My heart was pounding. I don¡¯t have any good memories here. No, to be precise, I didn¡¯t remember being proud. Especially when I recalled the splendid and antique duke¡¯s residence, I felt like I was already breaking out in a cold sweat. ¡®It¡¯s fine¡­ you are okay. You just have to try, you are okay. let¡¯s try, I can try.¡¯ As I tried to calm my upset stomach, a carriage arrived at the gate of the duke¡¯s residence. It was the middle of the night, but the duke was very busy. This was because tonight, the grandfather¡¯s maid attempted to assassinate him with a poisoned dagger. Of course, the Duke of Prelai was no easy place, so the assassination attempt was failed. Anyway, the important thing is that when I arrived, the duchy was in a state of panic. When I appeared in the garden, the servants of the duke¡¯s residence were horrified. ¡°Hey, princess? You are Princess Kiana, right?¡± ¡°No, princess¡­ Suddenly without contact¡­ !¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, princess! Now, of course, an assassination attempt has taken place and the duke¡¯s mansion is in a mess. If you wait a moment, the Duke¡­¡± Well, since it suddenly appeared after six years, it was only natural. ¡°Everyone looks busy, but don¡¯t make a fuss about it. Anyway, I¡¯m tired from traveling, so I¡¯ll go in right away and sleep. I will say hello to my grandfather tomorrow, to let him know.¡± I walked past them with a sly expression. It was even fortunate that the duke¡¯s house was cluttered and i had to delay saying goodbye to my grandfather. However, the meeting with my grandfather could not be postponed forever. ¡®I can¡¯t just avoid my grandfather just because he¡¯s awkward and uncomfortable like before.¡¯ I took a deep breath once again. ¡®Because Grandpa is the only trustworthy head of Prelai¡­ We have to get even a little closer and somehow warn of the crisis and prepare together.¡¯ I walked slowly and entered the huge mansion of the Duke of Prelai. To my uncomfortable home, a place I never thought I would ever get back on my feet. CH 5 ¡°Kiana came? now?¡± Seukali Prelai, head of the Duke Prelai family, looked shocked at the butler¡¯s report. ¡°Yes, she said that she was tired and that she should go to sleep, and that she would greet you tomorrow.¡± At the butler¡¯s continued report, Seukali let out a sigh. Seukali Prelai, was the duke of Prelai, a very handsome old man of great stature and sharp chiseled features. As one of the few sword masters in the empire, his solid body exuded a sense of intimidation. With a taciturn personality and always boasting a presence like a mountain, he frowned and muttered. ¡°Suddenly without any notice that you are coming? what the hell is going on¡­¡± Concern crossed Scaree¡¯s icy face. The 16-year-old Kiana was vivid in his memory. She was the little girl who stayed up in her room all day and bullied Melissa to death. Even though she tried to warmly approach him, he was rather awkward and avoided his granddaughter. In fact, Kiana, who only strayed from Seukali, was too difficult. So even when Kiana ledt for htacademy and she never returns the whole time, she¡¯s pretty embarrassed. In fact, Kiana who was always off the rails, was very difficult for Seukali. So it was pretty embarrassing even when Kiana left for the academy and never came back ¡°Kiana¡­ will stay here? She¡¯ve never been to the duke¡¯s mansion? Did the scolding at the end hurt your heart that much?¡± To that, Joshua, her second grandson, grumbled in reply. ¡°Well, I had to admit that it was something she would get scolded for.¡± ¡°Anyway, how many years has she been in that corner? Bring her here¡­ ¡± ¡°Oh, leave it alone. If you forcefully drag it, she will backfire like me, she must hate this place too, and i hate it to, she must have things things to do there.¡± ¡°No, what do you hate about this place? uh?¡± ¡°A mother who abandoned her child and cheated on his husband, a father who left his child and left home, a grandfather who found it difficult to comfort his adolescent grandchildren because of the generation gap, and¡­ ¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± ¡°Eldest brother Alex, who is always running around with a knife, handsome and with a good fashion sense but rebellious second brother, Joshua, and cousin Melissa, who scratches her insides with a kind face*, maybe it¡¯s that?¡± tln: good face but bad attitude At that, Seukali had no choice but to keep his silence. Because, after hearing it, it was obviously not a place somebody wanted to come back Well, the environment was too bad to hope that the children would grow up well. In fact, all he had was money, power, honor, and status. ¡®But anyway, the sudden return¡­ Haven¡¯t you had a change of heart after puberty? Have you grown up?¡¯ Kiana and Seukali didn¡¯t have a close relationship. But that wasn¡¯t anything special. Because no one in House Prelai was close to each other. But anyway, Kiana was like Seukali¡¯s sore finger among them¡­ ¡®This time, I¡¯ll have to talk more honestly, adult to adult.¡¯¡¯ Anyway, Kiana¡¯s sudden return was the most surprising thing that had happened to him in a while. In fact, even more so than the previous assassination attempt. ¡°First of all, Alex left immediately to track down Helen¡¯s relatives as ordered. I sent a letter to Julius, I think I should have witten ¡®insight¡¯ in the letter¡­.¡± So despite the butler¡¯s continued report, Seukali just nodded his head indifferently. Then he gave a low command. ¡°Please assign a smart maid to Kiana first. A person who can report quickly if Kiana acts strangely. In particular, assign her a strong child so that she doesn¡¯t cling too much to Prince Rodrigo.¡± ¡°Yes, I understand. It¡¯s already late at night, should I tell her to get ready for bed?¡± ¡°No.¡± Seukali shook her head. ¡°I¡¯ll stop by the greenhouse for a while.¡± The butler bowed deeply as a sign of understanding and left. Left alone, the old patriarch slowly got up with a tired face and disappeared into the greenhouse atthe corner of the garden. * * * Maybe it¡¯s been a long time since I came home, but my dream was very fierce. It was a dream that I often had when I was at the duke¡¯s house. ¡°Pyeol is Kiana ¡®s pet! Pyeol was stolen by Melissa!¡± I woke up early in the morning because I kept having nightmares. ¡®Since I graduated from the academy, there¡¯s no paper pressure, so I wanted to sleep in.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s unfortunate I¡¯m really, really unfortunate¡­¡± Not to mention the young mother, who looks just like me, lying on the ground and crying¡­ ¡°Marquis Cesare Levine has donated a huge research fund this time. I picked Professor Kiana Prely. Your place is the Academy. The academy can¡¯t be without a princess, ha ha.¡± It was a nightmare that had even been upgraded, with the dean¡¯s face appearing at the end. Anyway, when I woke up, I was already assigned a dedicated maid. She was a tall, well-muscled maid for her size. I glanced at her hard forearms and asked softly. ¡°Is Grandpa awake?¡± ¡°The Duke fell asleep at dawn. Won¡¯t you be up in the afternoon?¡± ¡°Really? I see. I¡¯ll say hello in the afternoon.¡± ¡°Yes, I understand. Ah, the Great prince, the Little prince, and Princess Melissa¡­ No, the priestess isn¡¯t there either.¡± ¡°I know.¡± My first brother, Alex, must have left for the province yesterday at the order of my grandfather, and my second brother, Joshua, had moved aways long time ago. Melissa had also gone to the monastery the other day, so it was only my grandfather and me at home. ¡°And I got a bunch of letters from the academy last night.¡± ¡°Oh yeah? Just throw it all away.¡± It was obvious what the academy would send. They must be talking about what to do with the ongoing research. It was to the point where there was almost no research going on at the academy without me. Since I¡¯m so smart and hard-working, I¡¯ve been flooded with research assignments since I was a doctoral student. It was to the point where, when requesting a research from outside, there were cases where they put my name in the request. ¡®I was a co-researcher on all kinds of projects, so without me, the academy would be in complete emergency.¡¯ And by now, it will be a fuss to know that I have applied for cancellation of all the patents I had agreed to before the academy. ¡®The dean hates being pushed for money the most, so he must be in great pain right now. I¡¯ll make them suffer as much as I want, and then I¡¯ll torment them at a higher level later.¡¯ I did not forget the grudge I had against the dean, what I did last time was only a short-term resentment, now I was going to do long-term bullying. As I was grinding my teeth, the maid asked politely. ¡°Then can I prepare breakfast for you now, princess?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not very good in the morning. Just a cup of coffee, please. And I¡¯m going out, so get ready.¡± At my words, the maid looked very shocked. And she asked cautiously. ¡°Huh, princess? You¡¯re not feeling well.. Coffee?¡± My status before returning was a professor. Therefore, I was genuinely surprised and praised the novelty. ¡°Are you talking back to me just now? This is a situation you¡¯ve never even imagined?¡± The maid immediately shut her mouth. I added nonchalantly. ¡°I know it¡¯s from grandfather, but you¡¯ll still have to listen to my orders.¡± ¡°¡­ What?¡± ¡°No? You¡¯re the spy my grandfather put on me to watch.¡± To my words, the maid did not respond. However, she had a look of embarrassment with a face as if she had been caught and folded her waist down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. You didn¡¯t want to do it, you were told to do that, I know from my graduate school days. I don¡¯t need a sincere apology. Can you go and get me coffee?¡± ¡°A-aren¡¯t you changing maids?¡± ¡°What are you doing? Then she¡¯ll have another spy, but you¡¯d better keep doing what you¡¯re doing. It¡¯s not going to be a career for you either.¡± ¡°For what? Then another spy will come, so it¡¯s better if the one who was doing it continues, that¡¯s your job¡± It was an era of unemployment. I spoke attentively and kindly, caring about her maid¡¯s career as I had treated my students when I was a professor. ¡°It takes at least a month before you can proudly say, ¡®I have a history of spying on an ignorant, naive princess who obeyed the highest authority in the family.¡¯¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Thank you for your consideration. So hurry up and get some coffee, spy. And I warn you, if the phrase ¡®bring me coffee¡¯ comes out of my mouth again¡­.¡± And I was an advisor with a balanced perspective that also showed the coldness of reality. ¡°I know how to fire dishonorably and making you say ¡®I know how to do a real spy job, but I am a fool who can not bring a cup of coffee in my job.¡¯ ¡± ¡°I-I¡¯ll be back right away!¡± CH 6 After that, I started preparing to go out while drinking coffee prepared by the spy maid. My room wasn¡¯t much different from six years ago. My body shape hasn¡¯t changed much from when I was 16, so the clothes in my closet all fit. All the clothes were from 6 years ago, but it didn¡¯t matter because I had my own fashion philosophy from the beginning. ¡°Uh¡­Princess, should I choose a hair ornament from these?¡± ¡°Yes, do it with this.¡± The spy maid wore a checkered ribbon in my hair and gave me a look of disbelief. I looked at myself in the mirror and thought. My goal today was to create a new relationship with my grandfather after seeing him for the first time in a while, a proud relationship where you can have a conversation with each other without being awkward. ¡®In order to do that, I need to do something commendable that can offset my hard work.¡¯ There was a plan I came up with to do that. My grandfather was also a Prelai, so of course he had a summoned beast. It was a black hawk who had the same size as me, and its name was ¡®Hou¡¯. Analyzing the original, I found a rather strange point. Of course, the summoning beast and the summoning subject are almost always attached, because Hou has not appeared in the original work since I left for the academy. Whenever the grandfather appeared in the original work, the grandfather was always alone. Hou suddenly appears only when grandfather is taken away for treason. Hou staggered out of the greenhouse on the garden side and shouted. Although he was unable to control himself, he was overcome with a desire to follow his master who was being dragged away. The narrative was not detailed. It was because at that time, Melissa was also taken away, so she was not paying attention to Hou. Hou came from the greenhouse on the garden side. It was definitely a corner that even the people in the mansion did not go to. Hou¡¯s ability was none other than ¡®purification¡¯. He could absorb any poison himself and purify it. It¡¯s just that Hou is stronger against poison than humans, but that doesn¡¯t mean he can completely detoxify it immediately. He would usually go through a period of recovery on his own after absorbing the poison. ¡®Even when I left for the academy, Houwas fine. It¡¯s like he has never been seen.¡¯ I pondered, thinking of the great black hawk. ¡®Then, wouldn¡¯t it be that he absorbed a deadly poison that he couldn¡¯t detoxify alone for 7 years?¡¯ It could have been another chronic disease, but that was the most likely. Assuming that I meets my grandfather this afternoon, the remaining time is about six hours. It was enough, but it was not a leisurely time. I poured the rest of the coffee into my stomach and stood up. There was a place I had to go to to find a man who would help me impress my grandfather and whom I should help. ¡°Princess, where should I take you?¡± Her spy maid asked cautiously. I answered lightly as I climbed into the carriage. ¡°Lauditan 12th Street.¡± ¡°Yes? there¡­.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I kindly pecked the spy maid¡¯s ear and said, ¡°I¡¯m going to go to Joshua¡¯s house, the second scumbag brother , the eternal adolescent kid.¡± * * * Lauditan Street was packed with luxurious mansions. Among them, the owner of the most expensive and largest mansion was Joshua Prelai. The fence of Joshua¡¯s house is quite low, so you can see Joshua sitting leisurely in the luxurious garden drinking her tea. So many people came and went and looked around. Time flies just by looking at Joshua¡¯s angelic face, but the clothes he wears are also of the highest quality, so it was fun to watch. ¡°Look at that. What a luxury from his head to toe. The logo embedded is also very large.¡± ¡°If you add all the things he iswearing, you can buy a normal house.¡± It was almost certain that each and every one of his outfits would be featured in the capital¡¯s best gossip, . Other than that, there was something that caught people¡¯s attention. ¡°That¡­That summont?¡± ¡°Everyone in House Prelai has it¡­¡± A green snake was wrapped around one of Joshua¡¯s arms. It was Joshua¡¯s summons. There were even ornaments lined with jewels along the body of the snake. It was truly a display of great wealth. ¡°Isn¡¯t that summoner¡¯s ability to smell money? Otherwise, there¡¯s no way that he could have amassed such ridiculous wealth at such a young age.¡± The people who came to see Joshua¡¯s extravagant appearance admired it, but whispered among themselves. ¡°So what, if you had a lot of money? Does anyone know where the money came from? It must be dirty money. So, isn¡¯t he from the Prelai duchy?¡± ¡°Yes, If you look closely, all clothes are from luxury brands with big logos. Isn¡¯t it closer to a cer message rather than a preference. Is it the inferiority complex that makes him want to be recognized even if its for money?¡± tl/n: meaning that he has a lot of money, because he was to be recognized It was then. ¡°Uh, what about that?¡± Even Joshua, who was enjoying the gaze of onlookers as well as passers-by, widened his eyes. A carriage bearing the pattern of the Duke of Prelai had arrived. The Serpent Summoner whispered in surprise. Joshua frowned and replied. ¡°It¡¯s fine. First of all, it¡¯s not Alex who came to cut my throat, so there¡¯s nothing to be afraid of. Alex doesn¡¯t ride a carriage.¡± Then he tilted his head and murmured. ¡°¡­But who is it?¡± Soon after, the door of the wagon opened, and an unexpected person got out. Joshua¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®Kiana?¡¯ She was his sister whom I hadn¡¯t seen in 6 years, but he recognized her right away. His brows furrowed as he scanned her fashion, which was covered in checkered patterns from head to toe, with her eyes. ¡®Why aren¡¯t you this tall? She¡¯s so skinny, why is her skin so pale?¡¯ Conversely, the appearance has not changed much from six years ago. As she approached Joshua, who was putting on his bewildered face, she said calmly. ¡°Brother, it¡¯s late, but congratulations on the self-made man who managed to make it by scraping in money like a mistress.¡± He was impressed with the cute doll-like appearance, the nonchalant expression and the outspoken way of speaking. ¡°The way you act makes you look like an attention seeker , but I¡¯m not surprised because I always thought that my brother will grow up like this since he was young.¡± After she finished speaking, Kiana grabbed one of her shopping bags and hugged Joshua. ¡°Anyway, this is a gift. It¡¯s not polite to come to a housewarming party empty-handed.¡± Anyway, Kiana was well versed in noble etiquette. Joshua timidly accepted her shopping bag. Inside was a checkered vase. ¡°¡­ It sucks?¡± Though Joshua¡¯s thoughts were not expressed, the murmur of her snake summoner was heard by Kiana. Kiana looked at the snake summoner with an indifferent expression and said. ¡°You are a summoned beast who does not know the beauty of right angles. It¡¯s as pretty as a coordinate plane, but¡­ Being ignorant is not a sin.¡± And she raised her chin proudly and turned around behind her. Her gaze turned to the onlookers who were snooping around Joshua¡¯s wall. Then she rolled up the magazine Lorelai she was holding and threw it on the forehead of the onlooker who had been saying, ¡®Joshua has an inferiority complex.¡¯ ¡°Argh!¡± Kiana spoke sonorously as the onlooker grabbed her forehead and staggered away. ¡°Hey, I¡¯ll just say one thing.¡± Suddenly, onlookers flinched at her Kiana face. ¡°It¡¯s not because of a an inferiority complex that my brother plasters himself with only luxury items with logos on them.¡± In a tone that was really unfair, she continued with an incredible expression. ¡°What is the message, it¡¯s just his taste. It¡¯s because of his superficial personality that he wants to show everyone how he spends his money. Don¡¯t you know that he purposely lowered the wall?¡± And she finished with a confident expression. ¡°So, if you come to see Joshua show off his money, shut your mouth and quietly watch him and go away. Don¡¯t unnecessarilymake up other people¡¯s circumstances and undermine them out of jealousy.¡± Instantly creating an eerie atmosphere, Kiana turned her head to face Joshua with her haughty expression. And she said arrogantly. ¡°My heart is shaking because I¡¯m nervous talking softly in front of others after a long time.¡± Softly¡­ ? At that moment, everyone showed the same expression, ¡®That princess doesn¡¯t know the meaning of softly¡¯. ¡°Anyway, I get so annoyed when you talk about it without even knowing anything. I am the type who seeks the truth.¡± Kiana added nervously. ¡°I¡¯m very close with the editor-in-chief of , only those who have nothing to hold back can swear at Joshua. If you don¡¯t want your private parts to be exposed in .¡± People flinched and covered their face. This is because is a gossip magazine that randomly exposes other people¡¯s private affairs. ¡°¡­ Let¡¯s just shut up and go in, my naughty little sister whom we I after six years.¡± Then Joshua sighed and dragged Kiana inside his mansion. ¡°Because if I keep listening to you, I feel like my ears will go deaf.¡± Kiana couldn¡¯t stand it and replied. ¡°It¡¯s not because of my words, it¡¯s because of the pressure difference.¡± Joshua glanced at her Kiana and muttered. ¡°¡­ If only magic engineering was ruined.¡± CH 7 As befits a mansion where money was evident at a glance, the drawing room was also very luxurious. Even one cushion had a large logo of the capital¡¯s most famous designer, my taste was once a pine tree. ¡°This cushion is very nice. Do you think it¡¯s expensive? Wow, this designer also makes cushions.¡± I knocked on the cushion and said Joshua curtly. ¡°It¡¯s a limited edition that kids like you who don¡¯t have a fashion sense don¡¯t even know its value. What are you doing, not leaning back quickly and comfortably?¡± Joshua, whom I hadn¡¯t seen in years, was really the same. Since ancient times, fine words have never come out of that man¡¯s mouth. In fact, he was the grandson who was much more of a nuisance to his grandfather than I was. So it was best to ignore Joshua¡¯s comments. In addition, the amount of soybean products falling nearby was considerable, so you had to eat them quickly. tl/n: another way to phrase it ¡°In addition in this neighborhood the chances of getting unexpected profit was considerable, so you had to receive it quickly .¡± the receive is money related such as wealth, salary I was leaning back very comfortably on the cushion when Joshua looked at me and said sullenly. ¡°When did you come to the capital? without a single call.¡± Wow, he was a snarky child like his summon.. I laughed and crossed my legs. ¡°If you already knew everything, why are you like this, editor-in-chief?¡± Joshua¡¯s relaxed expression immediately hardened. I pointed at his pet, the green snake, and shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Even though I couldn¡¯t summon a pet, I grew up with my brother In Prelai, right?¡± At those words, Joshua raised his eyebrows and was silent for a moment. In the capital, a dirty gossip magazine called was gaining popularity. It was a vulgar, third-rate newsletter that exposed other people¡¯s shame and private secrets, but that¡¯s why it sold enormously. And that was published by Joshua. However, there was a separate external editor-in-chief, so no one could have predicted that Joshua was behind them. The editor-in-chief¡¯s substitute was his summon. The ability of Joshua¡¯s summoned green snake, Leah, was humanization. For a certain amount of time, she could transform into a green-haired, green-eyed woman. The abilities of the summons were unknown to anyone other than the Prelai family. It was to be kept secret in case of an unexpected situation. So I was able to fool others. It was for this reason that people did not know where Joshua¡¯s wealth came from. His grandfather and Alex found out and pressured Joshua to close Lorelai immediately. Of course, Joshua did not succumb to the pressure and ran away from home proudly, eating well and living well. ¡°I heard that the editor-in-chief of is a beauty with green eyes and green hair, I barely noticed.¡± Actually, it was the information in the original work. Leah held her head upright and complimented her. She was satisfied that she was recognized by the summon. So I also nodded my head and acknowledged the summoned beast. ¡°Yes, I am very clever. You are a stupid snake who doesn¡¯t know the beauty of right angles, but you have quite a few eyes to understand human intelligence.¡± <¡­ > After making friends with Leah, I looked at Joshua and said, ¡°Anyway, you probably have all the informants in the capital. Did you know that I arrived last night?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes,I knew you had arrived.¡± In order to collect all kinds of gossip in , Joshua had a lot of informants. ¡®In other words, Joshua is a raccoon with the cover of a luxury addict who controls information and public opinion.. .¡¯ Although the scope is limited to the capital, it meant that if you have any information you want, you could come to Joshua. ¡°Then I¡¯ll just tell you my business and get out of here. I came to ask you two questions.¡± At my words, Joshua sneered and crossed his arms. ¡°Have you entrusted anything to me? Why are you proud?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯ll be of help to you someday?¡± We¡¯re not strangers, we¡¯re a family that needs to help each other.¡± Joshua was about to drink tea, but he choked. Then he said with disbelief in his eyes. ¡°Not anyone else, but Kiana, you suddenly come to visit me after six years and make family-friendly remarks? Are you really Kiana?¡± His red eyes suddenly became terrifying. ¡°It¡¯s not like there¡¯s another soul possessing Kiana¡¯s body right now.¡± Joshua¡¯s face went cold as ice in an instant. He spoke in a low voice until he was in pain. ¡°The secret that only the two of us know in this world¡­ Tell me about it.¡± It¡¯s really varied. From an early age, Joshua was not only interested in all sorts of gossip, but also read a ton of romance novels. I remembered that among the novels he read, there were quite a few contents written by souls from other dimensions. Also, I think he is writing a novel in his head. I sighed once and answered slowly. ¡°There are no secrets that my brother and I share. We¡¯ve never been close since we were born, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the real Kiana, but¡­ ¡± The horror instantly disappeared from Joshua¡¯s face. He even tucked his long blonde hair in a drizzle behind his ears. I slowly opened my mouth looking at the angel-like figure. ¡°The first question is¡­ ¡± I asked, conscious of Leah. ¡°If the summon gets sick¡­. What will you do ¡± ¡°What if Leah gets sick?¡± Joshua frowned and looked at his green snake pet. Then he answered right away. ¡°I¡¯d rather to be sick myself, She is the one who trusted me and came to this world.¡± Leah giggled and nodded her head in satisfaction. ¡°Then, if someone heals that sick pet.¡± I asked quietly. ¡°Will I ever want to do that person¡¯s request?¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Joshua answered seriously. ¡°If it were me, even if that person was Alex, I would be able to wrap him in luxury from head to toe.¡± ¡°Well, I don¡¯t think Alex will like it very much¡­ Anyway, I understand that extreme opinion.¡± Since I couldn¡¯t summon a pet, I didn¡¯t know the exact value of what I was trying to do for my grandfather. So, not sure, I came to ask Joshua. But judging from Joshua¡¯s reaction, it must have been a great deal. ¡®It might end easily.¡¯ I eagerly turned the hope circuit. ¡®If we just heal Hou and let Grandpa know that Heaton is targeting us, it might turn out surprisingly well¡­ because my grandfather is a talented person.¡¯ Someone could have asked Grandpa why he was so nervous and hesitant to just say a word. But for me, it was really something that made me so nervous and hesitant. ¡°But, Kiana, if your summon is sick. But how do you heal it?¡± Joshua asked, tilting his head. ¡°There is no doctor or veterinarian who can fix a summoned pet, you know.¡± I replied with a nod of my head at that reasonable point. ¡°Never mind. It has nothing to do with my brother.¡± And he spoke. ¡°And the second question¡­ Is there any information about the crown prince? Anything is fine.¡± ¡°What?¡± Joshua¡¯s brow furrowed in an instant. ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince?¡± ¡°Uh.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Joshua lowered his eyes disapprovingly. It was a completely different face from when I asked him the first question earlier. After a moment of silence, Joshua answered bluntly. ¡°¡­ I don¡¯t know why You are suddenly interested in that, but I don¡¯t have any secret information other than what we all know.¡± I looked at Joshua¡¯s face quietly. Joshua continued with a hard face. ¡°Six years ago, his Highness the Crown Prince went on a hunting and picnic to the Edpa Mountains with his closest entourage. And he fell off a cliff and went missing. I know only that much.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡­ .¡± ¡°No matter how much you were stuck in the Principality of Liloney, you wouldn¡¯t know that much either.¡± ¡°After that?¡± ¡°What after that?¡± Joshua grumbled. ¡°After His Highness the Crown Prince went missing, Prince Heaton seized the real power, and became the number one successor in name and reality. Your Majesty the Emperor is also very ill¡­¡± It was a familiar story, but I listened patiently. Joshua¡¯s insincere words continued. ¡°However, His Majesty the Emperor said that he would never give the position of crown prince to Prince Heaton until he saw the body of the crown prince himself. That¡¯s why the position of crown prince remains vacant.¡± ¡°Is that really all?¡± ¡°Uh, Seriously, I bet Leah that I don¡¯t know anything beyond that.¡± Hmm¡­ ¡­I really don¡¯t know. Is there anything I can do about it at this point? I nodded lightly and said. ¡°Then promise me. If you know any information related to the crown prince, youwill definitely tell you. Do some research on the connection between Prince Heaton, our family, and His Highness the Crown Prince.¡± Joshua looked at me with complicated eyes. At first glance, he was disappointed, but now he couldn¡¯t play the role of an older brother who was worried about his younger sister, so he didn¡¯t know what to do. After biting his lips for a while, he finally said a word. ¡°Hey, if you get caught up in the emperor family¡¯s affairs, you¡¯ll be in big trouble.¡± Oh, you¡¯re worried about me¡­ I replied with a moved face. ¡°Never mind.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± CH 8 Joshua sighed in great embarrassment. ¡°Hey.¡± And he said as if he was dumbfounded. ¡°You¡¯d better tell me to stop doing this shit, like Grandpa and Alex the bastard. That would be better.¡± There was an awkward atmosphere for a moment. What¡­It was true that grandfather and Alex had a terrible dislike for Joshua¡¯s Lorelai. But that wasn¡¯t simply because of the prestige of the duchy. I looked down at the teacup without saying anything. Duke of Prelai. A great aristocratic family that has a high reputation in the empire that swore firm loyalty to the imperial family,and has a strong influence on everything by knowing how to manage summons. My grandfather, SeukaliPrelai, head of the Duke of Prelai, had two sons. Among them, the eldest son was my father, and the second son, my uncle, ran away from home long ago because he met eyes with a commoner. And since I was very young, the atmosphere at the Duke of Prelai¡¯s house was very bleak. Because when I was five years old, my mother made a late night getaway with the coachman, leaving only a note behind. Then, while being chased by the knights, she and her coachman fell off a cliff and died. Since then, my father, who has become a ruined man, has been unable to return after going on an unreasonable campaign to subdue monsters in the northern dukedom. The problem is¡­ ¡®Even when I¡¯m still, I feel like an outsider.¡¯ My image was reflected in the tea water in the teacup. Pink hair, and green eyes. I had a lovely appearance that resembled my mother¡¯s, but I really hated my appearance from a young age. Because everyone who owned theo Prelai surname had blonde hair and red eyes. Grandfather, father, older brothers, even Melissa, However, the appearance was different, and since I was the only one ho had no summon, I had no choice but to feel tremendous psychological pressure. But now that I think about it, I wasn¡¯t the only one who was hurting in that unstable family environment. I¡¯m not the only one abandoned by my parents. So, Alex, Joshua, and I, all three brothers and sisters must have grown up equally messy. ¡°Brother.¡± After a long silence, I slowly spoke first. ¡°I meant it when I said congratulations on your independence earlier.¡± ¡°¡­ Uh?¡± ¡°Hey. Before I went to the academy, there was a magic tool that I secretly researched while reading magic engineering books at the Duke¡¯s Mansion.¡± For the first time in a while, Joshua¡¯s eyes widened. Well, it was a secret from my family that I had studied magical engineering since I was a child. ¡°What I mean, it was to change the color of the eyes.¡± ¡°What are you¡­¡± As soon as he heard my words, Joshua laughed like he was full of energy. ¡°Did you spend all your childhood studying stuff like that, shutting yourself in your room without seeing anyone?¡± Silence ensued again. Even if we didn¡¯t say it openly, we thought the same anyway. I live ignoring it, but I can never forget my mother¡¯s infidelity. Because of that, I hated being alone and different from my family. The fact that I couldn¡¯t summon a summoned beast alone was too already painful. I had to constantly doubt if I was really a Prelai There was a method of paternity test, maybe I might have felt comfortable if I had been openly kicked out of the writer Prelai. However, at thatrate, I would live in an ambiguous position for the rest of my life, not knowing whether or not I am really my father¡¯s daughter. I left the empire because I didn¡¯t like it. Joshua, who was silent for a moment, barely spoke. ¡°What kind of useless thing¡­¡± Even so, he couldn¡¯t speak any more. ¡°Right. It was useless.¡± I looked at him quietly and said calmly. ¡°But regardless of whether people behind me say that I am a disgrace to Prelai, anyway, it¡¯s true that I have a talent for magical engineering, so I even got hired as a professor right before your eyes, wans I?¡± Joshua looked at me suspiciously. It was as if he wanted to say something like, ¡°What is the academy professor in that small country like?¡±, but held it in. ¡°So I don¡¯t think it¡¯s meaningless that my brother came all the way here.¡± At my words, Joshua¡¯s eyelashes trembled slightly. In fact, there was a reason why grandfather and Alex were at odds with Joshua. Joshua couldn¡¯t accept her mother¡¯s infidelity. As for how serious it was, he hated affairs so much that he couldn¡¯t stand them. I don¡¯t remember very well, but originally, but my father and mother had always been very fond of each other,. To the extent that even after seeing the dead bodies of the mother and the coachman, father could not accept the reality. Joshua also knew how close his parents were, so se was shocked and said that he was very distressed. The nanny who couldn¡¯t see it said, ¡®It¡¯s not that special. It¡¯s surprisingly common.¡¯ And Joshua¡¯s background investigation into social circles with a mindset of ¡®Is this really all like that?¡¯ unexpectedly suited him very well¡­ In the end, , which started with the mindset of ¡®let¡¯s expose all those adulterous trash¡¯, did too well. I was able to know Joshua¡¯s heart in detail, which I did not even pay attention to in the original work. ¡°I hate my father too. Of course, I know he suffered a lot mentally because of his mother¡¯s infidelity, I know!¡± This is because Joshua was so drunk that he messed up a sentence in front of grandfather. ¡°However, when you went to a dangerous area from which you could not come back against people¡¯s disapproval, you didn¡¯t think about your children at all.¡± His grandfather said nothing. It is because he is very reticent, and it was also grandfather who suggested to his father to subdue the monsters in the north, saying, ¡°Change your mood.¡± Of course, I didn¡¯t expect to go that far into the danger zone, but¡­ ¡°No, how can parents, after having three children, be so irresponsible?¡± Anyway, grandfather and Alex didn¡¯t approve of Joshua¡¯s work. Others thought it was just because they couldn¡¯t keep the dignity of the aristocratic family, but the reality was more complicated. Both of them judged that Joshua was doing this because he couldn¡¯t get over his old wounds. Grandfather and Alex¡¯s opinion was, ¡°Please get out of here and live your life.¡± This is because they thought that my father who could not ¡°get out of here and live his life¡± until the end was enough. t/n: didnt know how to exactly phrase it but it means that one person who couldnt move on was more than enough ¡°The beginning may have been futile. But brother also came this far because he has aptitude and ability, right? My thoughts are different from grandfather and Alex.¡± I shrugged. ¡°Even if I started from a meaningless past, if I keep going, that is my path.¡± Joshua became slightly solemn. Seeing his face made me feel strangely sad, so I began to warmly comfort Joshua from the bottom of my heart. ¡°In that sense, I will continue to support the prosperity of that trashy gossip magazine.¡± ¡°¡­.¡± ¡°Even if you live like an adolescent child for the rest of you life and put a spike in grandfather¡¯s heart, your income will still be overflowing anyway.¡± I didn¡¯t forget to add compliments and blessings to boost his self-esteem. ¡°Then it¡¯s also worth celebrating that gained a crazy taste for big luxury items with the logo. All self-understanding is good, right?¡± Um, did I say too much nonsense? But it was just¡­ After going back to before I died, I felt like I had a disease that made me want to say everything I wanted to say. ¡°Then, i¡¯ll leave.¡± Something was awkward, so I stood up right away, but suddenly Joshua grabbed me. ¡°Kiana!¡± And he gave me the cushion that I said earlier, ¡®This is very comfortable¡¯. ¡°They say riding a carriage is hard.¡± ¡°¡­ Uh?¡± ¡°Put this on and go. Then it will be better.¡± I didn¡¯t say anything and blinked with an absurd face while hugging the cushion, and Joshua said abruptly. ¡°You gave me a vase too. That¡¯s just the payback! Give and Take!¡± I let out a sigh at Joshua¡¯s reply. And as if I knew Joshua¡¯s heart, I smiled shyly and tried to communicate. ¡°My brother lives a very tiring life. If you want to give, you can just say you want to give, right? Apparently, he was moved by the fact that his mean little sister, whom he hadn¡¯t seen in a long time, said a warm word to him, so he must be kind to her.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± ¡°Anyway, then I¡¯ll really go.¡± ¡°¡­ Yeah, get out.¡± Joshua put the teacup down and stood up. I tilted my head and asked. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to drop me off?¡± ¡°Why do I have to? I¡¯m going to exercise.¡± I replied mockingly. ¡°What is exercise? walking exercise? breathing exercises? I¡¯ll really leave¡­ ¡± It was when I tried to have real communication with Joshua once again. Joshua cut me off quickly. ¡°And get it right. The shame of Prelai is me, not youokay?¡± ¡°¡­ Uh?¡± ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s not determined by the color of your eyes, but by your stupidity. Of course you¡¯re screwed too, but you¡¯re less than me.¡± What. ¡°But regardless of whether people behind me say that I am a disgrace to Prelai, anyway, it¡¯s true that I have a talent for magical engineering, so I even got hired as a professor right before your eyes, wasn¡¯t I?¡± Are you doing this now because I called myself ¡®the disgrace of Prelai¡¯ earlier? I stood there for a moment, staring blankly at Joshua. ¡°Why can¡¯t you say anything?¡± And it would have been perfect if he had stopped there and went out cool, but Joshua added one more word, drunked with his cool self. ¡°Does your heart react first because you are moved? Are you falling down and not being able to speak properly?¡± What do you mean with that? That was a statement I really couldn¡¯t stand. I looked at Joshua, sighed once, and replied. ¡°You have to react with your brain first so your heart sinks.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± ¡°The brain comes first.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± Perhaps speechless, Joshua turned around and murmured. ¡°If only magic engineering was ruined.¡± Because when I was five years old, my mother made a late night getaway with the coachman, leaving only a note behind. CH 9 Joshua watched Kiana as she slowly climbed into the wagon. ¡°Goodbye then, don¡¯t forget what I asked for earlier.¡± Kiana opened the carriage window, and he spoke one last time. ¡°Kyana, it¡¯s been six years, six years.¡± I still wanted him to investigate the crown prince and Heaton. Joshua sighed and shook his head. ¡°Nothing happened, nothing will happen. Huang¡¯s work¡­ Leave such dangerous and complex tasks to grandfather.¡± And whispered with a low voice. ¡°The Emperor will pass away soon, and Prince Heaton will ascend the throne. The position of the missing prince has no meaning. Only His Majesty the Emperor has vain hopes.¡± Kiana shrugged her shoulders as if she couldn¡¯t hear. Seeing that, Joshua suddenly thought that her face was too pale. At first, she thought it was because she had a lot of motion sickness, but as time passed, her complexion did not improve. ¡°Kiana, but¡­ .¡± Looking closely, her arms protruding from her checked dress were too thin. ¡°Did you have a good time at the academy? Why are you so skinny, why are you so pale? Besides, it¡¯s hard to ride a carriage like this, what the hell is wrong with your physical condition?¡± ¡°I have been doing good, and my complexion is always bad.¡± As if Kiana didn¡¯t care, she replied nonchalantly. ¡°Why are you worried again? But only verse 1.¡± * tl/n: in think he is referring to the first thing he said after she came to him. Then he added with a smile. ¡°We haven¡¯t had any proper contact for six years, so what¡­¡± The window closed quickly. And the carriage started right away. The wagon carrying Kiana went smoothly down the hill and soon disappeared. Joshua¡¯s fine brow furrowed slightly as he stared at the dust created by the wheels without entering his mansion right away. Leah asked, tilting her head. ¡°No, it looks too skinny¡­ You¡¯ve lost a bit of weight than when I first saw you, and aren¡¯t you too small?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± At that, Joshua brushed her hair and straightened up. ¡°What did you say. She used to send me well-being letters once a month.¡± ¡°We ask her to come to the Duke¡¯s residence every anniversary, and we also ask if we can go to the academy once¡­ Is it weird that she is the who is bothered ?¡± ¡°Yes, she replied only once in 20 times, Even worse, the professors said, ¡®Don¡¯t provoke Kiana, she hate seeing her family so much.¡¯ I was about to send a letter directly to her.¡± ¡°Because the academy is such a closed place, I couldn¡¯t go there randomly. But if you¡¯re invited, you should be able to go. Later, when I heard that family would be able to attend the first thesis presentation, I felt a bit betrayed. Is it really necessary to live like a stranger? Well, of course I live like a stranger.¡± In the end, what Seukali was able to do was to get Kiana¡¯s updates from the professor at the academy. Kiana is doing very well and she skips class after class, she said. She also heard that she was pouring out quality papers once a month. Of course, he didn¡¯t bother telling Melissa all this. Melissa was the victim anyway, so he didn¡¯t feel the need to talk about Kiana. I¡¯ve never had a deep conversation with Melissa on other topics. Leah nodded easily and yawned However, Joshua bit her lip once, and he looked at the road where the wagon had disappeared with a strange feeling of awkwardness. And he exclaimed that his intuition, which had been dealing with information for so long, shouted that this awkwardness should not be buried. ¡°¡­I guess I¡¯ll have to go after it.¡± < Huh? where?> ¡°To Kiana.¡± Joshua muttered lowly. ¡°I¡¯ll go and ask again properly. What the hell made her feel so interested?¡± * * * ¡°Princess, shall we go home now? have lunch¡­ ¡± ¡°Let¡¯s buy a cup of coffee and go to the general store. I need to buy something before I go home.¡± After telling her destination to my spy maid, I thought about it again in the carriage. Joshua¡¯s overly sensitive reaction to her request for the crown prince bothered her. ¡®Aren¡¯t you worried a little too much than you thought? Didnt i tell telling me that it¡¯s dangerous?¡¯ Of course, it was a dangerous topic. But even so, I thought Joshua wouldn¡¯t mind. Of course, we hadn¡¯t seen each other even once while I was at the academy. No one in my family ever told me to come to the duke¡¯s residence, nor did they come to my graduation ceremony. tl/n: nooo, misunderstandings againn And during that time, I had sent no more than ten letters. I even sent a letter to my family to come to my first thesis presentation, but it was ignored¡­ ¡®But why are you pretending to be so worried? Not helpful.¡¯ I had no insight of what Joshua was thinking. ¡°The Imperial family¡­ leave such dangerous and complex tasks to grandfather.¡± As Joshua said, he entrusted everything to his old and sick grandfather, so his entire family ended up hanging. ¡°The Emperor will pass away soon, and Prince Heaton will ascend the throne. The position of the missing prince has no meaning. Only His Majesty the Emperor has vain hopes.¡± Vain hope¡­ That¡¯s wrong too. I slowly began to recall the past. * * * The first time I saw Melissa at the age of thirteen is still vivid in my memory. ¡°This is Melissa, who will be living with us from today. She is the same age as Kiana. Get along like her real sisters.¡± She said she was the daughter of my uncle, who left home a while ago saying he would marry. And when her uncle and wife, who had been hiding among the commoners, died, she was left to grandfather. Melissa, dressed in her shabby clothes, greeted her shyly, and her nanny happily took her hand. ¡°Welcome, Miss Melissa. She will be a proud Prelai from now on, even as a young lady. She looks very much like the Little Master.¡± Here, the ¡®Little Master¡¯ was Loki, her father¡¯s brother and Melissa¡¯s father. ¡°A direct descendant of Prelai can command summoned beasts. But sometimes her relatives can also summodn a beast. So now you need to know the concept of summons¡­¡± Then Melissa said in a puzzled way. ¡°Actually, I¡­ I already have a summons. Pyeol, do you want to come out?¡± Then a yellow lark flew over from her tree and landed gently on her shoulder. The Prelai duchy designated only one heir, and recognized only the children of it heir as direct line. Her father had already been designated as heir. Melissa, therefore, belonged to collateral It wasn¡¯t a surprise since sometimes there were people summoning summons from the collateral. Even so, the collateral that could command summons was recognized as a direct descendant within the Prelai family. Melissa, who had been petting Pyeol, looked at us with a wide smile. ¡°I want to see the number of other people¡¯s summons. Especially Kiana, we¡¯re the same age. What is your summon?¡± At that innocent question, I turned around and ran straight into the room. Every day since that day, I started dreaming of Pyeoly shouting, ¡®I belong to Kiana!¡¯ And just looking at Melissa, she was overcome by her strange urges, so she teased her persistently, saying, ¡®Pyeol was originally mine, but you took it away, right?¡¯ When I turned 16, so six years ago. I ended up attacking Melissa in the middle of the night with a knife and was caught by her servants. Everyone thought it was a crime that went too far. Because I¡¯ve always gone too far. But at that time, I actually had a purpose that no one knew. ¡°What is this¡­ did it work, right?¡± Since Melissa came to the duchy when she was 13, I had secretly taught myself magic engineering and made my own magic tools. The magic tool that I had been developing desperately for several years was to change her eye color. I didn¡¯t want to make my eyes red. I wasn¡¯t stupid enough to suddenly change the color of my eyes one day and make people laugh. The person I had targeted from the start was none other than Melissa. The purpose was to change the color of Melissa¡¯s eyes so that anyone could not say, ¡°Melissa fits the princess of The Prelai.¡± Everyone may think it¡¯s strange to see Melissa, whose eye color suddenly changed one day, but it wasn¡¯t my situation. It¡¯s because other people won¡¯t even think they can change the color of their eyes anyway. The user¡¯s blood was needed to activate the horse tool. So that night I rushed to stab Melissa with a knife and was caught by the servants. And my grandfather scolded me for the first time then. CH 10 ¡°You crossed the line this time, Kiana. you are no longer a child, you have to know what is right and what is wrong.¡± In fact, it was just discipline. It would have been more neglectful to pretend not to know that. And then I had a sudden realization. That I¡¯m broken. If I continue to suffer due to the things I don¡¯t have while living in the Duke Prelai¡¯s mansion, I¡¯ll just continue to be unhappy. Even doing such a gross and useless thing. Changing the color of Melissa¡¯s eyes doesn¡¯t change anything¡­ ¡°Be self-conscious and reflect on yourself.¡± ¡°Grandpa, then¡­ ¡± My grandfather told me to ¡®¡±be self-conscious ¡°, so I answered calmly. ¡°While reflecting on it, please send me to the academy of the Principality of Liloni. I want to go away and self-reflect.¡± I mentioned the academy of the Principality of Lilonibecause I had heard that it was famous for magical engineering. At first, I started to study magic engineering on my own to annoy Melissa, but it was fun to study. It seemed like it would be nice to go far away. So I decided not to use that magic tool on Melissa and to bury it forever. And leaving the empire, I putted the magic tool in my pocket and played with it all the way to the academy. It seems useless now, but it was a waste to dispose of it immediately. After all, it was a successful work that I clung to throughout my childhood. When I continued heading west toward the Principality of Liloni. I was running through a fairly secluded forest, due to it being a shortcut. ¡°Stop for a moment.¡± With a calm face, I suddenly ordered the coachman. It made me want to go to the bathroom. Of course, there was no toilet in the deep forest. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± And everyone reacted casually. This was a normal routine during the trip. ¡°Don¡¯t go too far, and shout if anything happens.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± Leaving the escorts behind, I walked into the bush. They told me not to go far, but I was still shy, so I took one step further. I wasn¡¯t a great person that anyone would deliberately target, and this forest itself was not a place that anyone would be. So it was when I went quite far alone with a loose feeling. Suddenly, a low voice was heard from nearby bushes. ¡°Do not come.¡± I struggled to swallow my screams and took a step back. tl/n: why do i feel like that this is the crown prince.. I was so surprised, I held onto the hem of the skirt embroidered with a checkered pattern of gold thread, I caught my breath, and barely asked. ¡°What, what is it?¡± A boy about my age was crouched, gasping in pain. With the hood pulled over, not a single strand of his hair was visible. I was startled as if I was about to pass out. However, I soon regained my composure, swallowed a dry spit, and asked calmly. ¡°Don¡¯t come? Is that what you just said?¡± Even in the midst of that, I kept all culture and courtesy. Judging by the hood he wore, it was quite of high quality, so he used a respectful tone. Anyway, at my question, the boy took a deep breath and he spoke lowly. ¡°¡­ Yes, you better not get entangled with me.¡± The boy¡¯s voice was even hoarse. He added again in a cracked voice. ¡°Just go pass me, hurry you didn¡¯t see anything, okay?¡± Hmm. Seeing him for the first time makes me feel too comfortable. Then I had to show the same level of intimacy. ¡°No, why do you care about my situation?¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± The boy seemed to be taken aback for a moment, but immediately continued. ¡°Listen to me.¡± It was a very firm tone. ¡°I will get better over time, and you may regret it greatly after snooping around due to vain sympathy.¡± The boy even desperately covered his face. ¡°Yes.¡± Whatever it was, I just readily agreed. To be honest, I couldn¡¯t help but feel very uncomfortable with my soft and kind heart, but I had to respect him for being like that. ¡°Goodbye then.¡± Without hesitation, I turned around and strode away. The boy seemed to mutter, ¡®¡­¡­that was too fast,¡¯ but it just went in one ear and left in the other. That was when it went quite far. I suddenly remembered something, so I turned around and went to the boy¡¯s side. The boy sensed my presence and reacted sharply. ¡°Why did you come.¡± There was a hint of delight in his high-pitched voice. ¡°I told you not to get entangled and go, so why the hell¡­¡± ¡°Even if you don¡¯t say anything, I¡¯ll just leave on my own.¡± I cut him off right away. ¡°By the way.¡± And quietly asked. ¡°There is one thing I was about to throw away, should I give it to you?¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a very rare magic tool.¡± There was a magic tool in my pocket that I had been playing with all along. It was difficult to deal with anyway. ¡°It can change the color of my eyes, but I have no use for it. If you need money, go somewhere and secretly sell it. Because there is only one in this world.¡± After I finished speaking, I rolled the magic tool back to the boy. ¡°¡­ What? Really?¡± The boy¡¯s breathing became slightly rougher, and he suddenly asked in a serious voice. ¡°Where did you get this?¡± ¡°Someone I know made it, that person is no longer in the world.¡± It wasn¡¯t entirely wrong. After feeling despondent once, I¡¯m definitely different from before. I won¡¯t be obsessed with what I see anymore, I¡¯m just going to live freely doing what I want to do in a new place. I spoke calmly. ¡°Only you and I know that such a thing exists. So, you can use it when you go somewhere to cheat.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± ¡°You can activate it by feeding it with the user¡¯s blood, and then apply it to your eyes for about an hour while thinking about the color you want. It¡¯s disposable, so you can¡¯t use it twice. But it will hurt a lot. Maybe it¡¯s enough to burn your eyes? Still, you have to persevere.¡± To be honest, the way to use it was so painful that it seemed difficult to commercialize it. The boy hesitated at my words and asked. ¡°Why are you doing me this favor?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it, of course, to put my mind at ease.¡± I answered right away. ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be nice to leave you here alone. But I don¡¯t have the personality to force you to go anywhere.¡± ¡°Well¡­ ¡± ¡°So I¡¯m trying to relieve the burden on my heart by giving you something I have, which is very valuable but unnecessary.¡± ¡°¡­ You are honest.¡± ¡°It is reasonable.¡± He smiled, even though he seemed to be in a lot of pain. And it didn¡¯t seem like he was really hurt enough to die if he packed the magic tools and put it in his pocket right away. ¡°Surprisingly¡­ It¡¯s a magic tool that¡¯s like a miracle to me, thanks.¡± ¡°I hope you can sell it to a back alley where the purchase record is not tracked. Getting overworked is a no-no.¡± ¡°You will never be overworked, I promise.¡± The boy spoke slowly and hoarsely. I quietly looked at the back of the boy surrounded by the hood. It was a strange thing. There was no part of the body that could be seen properly, but the boy¡¯s classy accent and clear pronunciation were strangely trustworthy. ¡°¡­ How did this happen?¡± ¡°I was betrayed. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Oh my god¡­ ¡± ¡°Since I survived, I can take revenge. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± I was so moved by the thoughtful response that I poured out my honest heart. ¡°Yes, actually, I wasn¡¯t too worried about anything since the beginning.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± I shrugged once and slowly turned around. And the boy behind me asked again. ¡°Don¡¯t say you met me anywhere. It¡¯s for you.¡± In fact, there was no one to speak to. Maybe for my sake, he didn¡¯t even look at my face and didn¡¯t even ask about my identity. He seemed to be controlling himself. ¡°That is your case. If you have a favor, never die.¡± I said bluntly. ¡°If you die, how embarrassed I will be for turning around so immediately.¡± And now, as I was really about to go, the boy whispered. ¡°Imperial capital PO Box 1135.¡± ¡°¡­ Uh?¡± ¡°After a great deal of time has passed, secretly write down a letter there. It¡¯s dangerous, so you¡¯d better make a secret mailbox. When I can completely hide myself, I¡¯ll tell you if I¡¯m alive or dead. Wouldn¡¯t that make you uncomfortable?¡± ¡°Well. In fact, I didn¡¯t even do that much¡­ It¡¯s kind of annoying to create a secret mailbox to find out about your life and death, but I¡¯ll think about it anyway.¡± ¡°Do whatever you feel comfortable with. Just don¡¯t tell anyone about today. Even to those closest to you.¡± The boy warned in a firm voice. ¡°I am really speaking for you. You can¡¯t get caught.¡± ¡°You already told me.¡± To be honest, I had no room to worry because I had no one close to me. The boy asked urgently. ¡°P.O. Box number¡­can¡¯t you at least memorize it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an easy number to memorize, so it¡¯s okay.¡± ¡°Is 1135 easy to memorize?¡± ¡°uh. It¡¯s 1+1+3=5.¡± ¡°¡­ ¡± And at the end of that conversation, I really turned around and disappeared to the other way. To be honest, it was because I was in too much of a hurry. CH 11 ©¤?? Who was the boy I met then? That boy said that I shouldn¡¯t get entangled with him, and he desperately refused to even face me¡­ After a while, I heard the news that the crown prince of the empire went hunting with close acquaintances, fell off a cliff and went missing. Coincidentally, the place where the accident happened overlapped with my route to the Principality of Liloney. ¡®Could it be that he was the crown prince?¡¯ Surprisingly, despite being a ducal princess, I didn¡¯t know much about the crown prince. In my childhood, neither of us siblings attended social events because of our mother¡¯s issues. Even my grandfather, who had a strong personality, did not dare to take us to public places. Since the age of 13, I have spent most of my time locked in my room to study magical engineering. He might have made a greeting at an event attended by all nobles, but I couldn¡¯t remember anything in particular. Perhaps he has shiny silver hair and blue eyes, the symbol of the imperial family? The prince, who was kind to everyone, often talked to me as well. ¡°Ah, Princess Kiana! Nice to meet you. But where are you going?¡± ¡°Greetings, Your Highness. I¡¯m not feeling well, so I¡¯m going back to the ducal residence.¡± ¡°Just looking at you, you look weak¡­ Earlier, you were too picky with your meal, but you can¡¯t do that when you¡¯re growing. Would you like to eat a meat pie with me?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s all right.¡± The whole conversation was like this, and I left quickly without even making eye contact. Oh, and he was quite chubby. He was chubby to the point he might roll, but the most impressive thing was that he said he would soon become a sword master. ¡°Ah, Princess Kiana? Would you like to try this? These are ginger cookies from the Solar Kingdom, and they are very flavorful.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s enough.¡± The blue eyes that were buried in the fat cheeks shone with good intentions. He was a boy who was always smiling with a face as plump as a baby bear. Wait a minute, let¡¯s be a little more precise. Among all the baby bears, he seemed like a rather generous baby bear. ¡®And¡­ He was like a person who lived in a different world.¡¯ I instinctively hated people who were warm and bright like the sun. It must be because I was gloomy and dark. And since Melissa was just such a person, I was even more reluctant. However, the boy I saw at a glance had exactly that kind of personality. How many people must have been around since he was the only descendant of the imperial family and was facing the youngest sword master in the empire. He seemed busy just surrounded by people who loved him and having fun with them. ¡°Princess, it¡¯s been a while. Do you like soda water? I got it as a gift, but it tastes so good, I brought it because I wanted to eat it with everyone.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s all right.¡± Because of my attitude, people even evaluated me as ¡®arrogant¡¯ or ¡®rude¡¯. But back then, I had something like an obsession: I didn¡¯t want to draw people¡¯s attention. Because my appearance, which didn¡¯t look like a Prelai at all, would remind everyone of my mother. Even so, I was a little bit envious of the chubby boy who was always surrounded by people. His world seemed so warm, pure and solid. ¡°Prin-Princess? This is really delicious¡­¡± ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince! Come this way! Here, Lady Niat really wants to say hello to Your Highness the Crown Prince!¡± ¡°Your Highness! Here, Count Vias wants to talk about swords with you!¡± There were too many people looking for the crown prince, and he would be called somewhere again at the same time as I was away. ¡°Your Highness the Crown Prince really looks like the incarnation of the first Emperor Tales! Such fine silver hair and vivid blue eyes!¡± ¡°If you lose a little bit of baby fat, I think you¡¯ll look just like His Majesty the Emperor. Doesn¡¯t everyone think so?¡± Many people admired the crown prince, calling him a ¡®true Tales¡¯. It was because he was born with all the symbols of the imperial family. The emperor loved him very much and openly favored him, as he was both his blood and a stable direct descendant. I always turned around, and tried not to look at him. But deep down I knew. That I was very envious of the confidence and recognition of that lineage. ¡®So I didn¡¯t pay any attention to him. I can¡¯t get close to him.¡¯ Anyway, it was possible the boy was the injured prince and we didn¡¯t recognize each other. ¡®Just by the silhouette¡­ I think it was a bit chubby.¡¯ He was just at the age when he was about to go through puberty, so his voice was also changing. However, there were many things that could not be explained. ¡®If that¡¯s the case, wouldn¡¯t he want me to take him to the palace right away and give a big reward?¡¯ Why did he hide himself so desperately? ¡®There¡¯s something behind the scenes that I don¡¯t know about¡­ Or maybe the boy isn¡¯t the crown prince.¡¯ If he wasn¡¯t the crown prince, he would most likely have been a member of a criminal organization. Considering he said things like betrayal and revenge at that age. And how I shouldn¡¯t get entangled with him. ¡®Prince or criminal¡­ It¡¯s too extreme. Anyway, both of them would talk informally.¡¯ After that, after arriving at the academy, I secretly purchased two mailboxes from someone at the academy, just in case. ¡°Buy me two. I¡¯ll choose the one with the prettier number.¡± At that time, the person who ran my errands looked at me with a face that said, ¡®I¡¯m doing all sorts of things¡¯. And I bought 1597 and 3125. ¡°I¡¯ll make 1597 mine. I like it because it¡¯s prime (a number that has only ¡®1¡¯ and itself as divisors). I¡¯ll have to cancel 3125, which doesn¡¯t have much features later.¡± 3125, of course, was not canceled. It was fortunate that the person who ran the errands was not knowledgeable about numbers. 3125 was a pretty number because it was 5 to the 5th power. Then, time passed, and I didn¡¯t really feel the need to keep in touch. It was because I thought about what was important to me, and it was not a prince or a criminal. I had intended to spend the rest of my life at the academy of the Principality of Liloney without going back to the empire if nothing happened. So, in my life before regressing, I hadn¡¯t contacted the mailbox the boy had told me about. But after the regression, things were different. I didn¡¯t know it because I was only in Liloney, but in the ¡®original¡¯, surprisingly, the crown prince¡¯s strange revenge was starting. The crown prince did not reveal himself and brutally dealt with the picnic participants one by one as if to show off. ¡°Since I survived, I can take revenge.¡± I didn¡¯t know why he didn¡¯t show up, but for now, it was just the right move. And my guess was that Heaton, feeling threatened, took care of Prelai. The Duchy of Prelai was the right-hand of the imperial family, and it had been so from generation to generation, so they would be on the side of the crown prince more reliably than anyone else. Anyway, if the boy I ran into was the crown prince, I had to somehow speed up the revenge play that had just begun in the original work. The current Heaton had complete control of the imperial family because he was the first in line for succession to the throne. However, it was over when the crown prince returned. ¡®And if I make Prince Heaton powerless, Prelai won¡¯t perish because of fake treachery.¡¯ So, as soon as I arrived in the capital, I ordered Peep¡ª Secretly leave a letter in mailbox 1135. Are you alive? Contact me at 3125. ¡®Peep said it would take a week, so I guess I¡¯ll have to wait for her to come.¡¯ I hadn¡¯t told anyone yet that Peep became mine. The fact that Melissa handed over Peep to me made me guilty for some reason. I had insisted that Peep was originally mine, saying that I dreamt of it every day since I was little. Rather, that¡¯s why I acted more bluntly towards Peep. Because when I saw Peep come to me, I felt as if I had fulfilled my immature childhood greed. The reason why Peep was sent as soon as we arrived in the capital was, of course, to deliver the letter, but half of it was to buy time. No matter how much I was, it was a bit much to show up with Peep in front of others. ¡®Because I openly insisted that it was mine, and it really became mine¡­¡¯ Honestly, It was sure everyone would think I had finally robbed Peep from Melissa. ¡®When Peep comes back¡­¡¯ Still, I must tell my family. What would everyone¡¯s reaction be? While I was lost in my thoughts, the carriage stopped. It arrived at the general store. ©¤?? Cesare Levin, a dark-haired young man, leisurely began to prepare for an outing. But, unlike usual, he seemed a little nervous. The subordinates had to watch helplessly as their normally fussy and sensitive master chose clothes for a very long time. ¡°Marquis, you always emphasized that the relationship between you and the princess was ¡®a simple relationship where we can only use each other¡¯. But, to choose your clothes to this extent¡­?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Cesare slowly raised the corner of his mouth. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that my natural charm will lose and I¡¯ll hear something like, ¡®Well, goodbye,¡¯ before I could say anything properly.¡± At those words, Ragnac, the closest among his subordinates, tilted his head and asked. ¡°Ah¡­ ¡®Well, goodbye¡¯¡­ the same thing that¡¯s said to an unlikeable man?¡± Ragnac was from a nomadic tribe in the western desert region, and so his pronunciation was slightly off. And since he didn¡¯t have much experience in social life, he didn¡¯t notice much about human affairs. But he was more loyal than anyone else, and he was also a capable confidant. ¡°It¡¯s usually like that.¡± So Cesare gave a kind answer in his own way when Ragnac asked about the ¡®general situation¡¯. ¡°I asked someone before, and they usually said it meant ¡®get lost.¡¯¡± ¡°I see. I didn¡¯t know. But if you are worried about your attractiveness to the opposite sex, how on earth should other men live?¡± At those words, Cesare looked at the mirror involuntarily. A statue-like face was reflected. He already knew from experience that it was an appearance that many people would like. However, he did his best to decorate in his own way, so it looked better today. ¡°Then let¡¯s go.¡± Cesare, who finished his preparations to go out by putting on his gloves, smiled widely. Ame: crown prince, marquis, criminal¡­ are they all one and the same? fufufu CH 12 ©¤?? At the general store, I picked out things without hesitation. The maid looked confused as she took the stomach medicine and candy I handed over. ¡°Princess, what the hell is all this¡­¡± ¡°Pay for it now. I¡¯ve been at Joshua¡¯s house longer than I thought, so I¡¯m running out of time.¡± The sun had already risen to the middle of the sky, almost time for my grandfather to wake up. The reunion with my grandfather was strangely nerve-wracking, perhaps because of the guilt of running away from home after an accident. But if I fix Hou, my grandfather would look at me a little differently. More than anything, I felt like I would be a little more confident whenever I said something to my grandfather. In my mind, my grandfather and older brothers were a bit different. First of all, there was a belief that since my brothers and I had the same mother, we must have a similar mix of blood. So there was no embarrassment when facing them. But my grandfather was a little different. No matter how well my grandfather treated me, throughout my childhood I thought, ¡®Maybe I¡¯m not his granddaughter¡­¡¯ and kept my distance, secretly sniffing when no one knew. And I wasn¡¯t a child anymore. So, I was able to make a new resolution. ¡®Even if I¡¯m not really blood related to my grandfather and even if he thinks so, I just need to be recognized for my usefulness in other ways.¡¯ In the past, I was just awkward with my grandfather. It was because I thought that only by summoning a beast could I proudly stand in front of him as a granddaughter. But now I was a worn-out adult who had already risen to the rank of professor. ¡®It¡¯s enough to just show my usefulness. Even if I¡¯m not a summoner, I¡¯m good for now!¡¯ It was one good that the academy had done. Even if there wasn¡¯t a drop of blood involved, everyone believed in me when I achieved this or that. Since I was 16, most of my human relationships have been at the academy. So the experience at that time still had a lot of influence on my values. The less confident I was in my lineage, the more I wanted to show my grandfather my usefulness. It was when I was about to leave the general store with everything I needed to buy. The door opened with the sound of a bell. My eyes, which normally did not wander toward the surroundings, suddenly moved unlike usual. So, it was almost a reflective gaze. A young man with dark hair and golden eyes had just entered the general store. ¡°¡­Huh?¡± I was a little bewildered. ¡®I¡¯m sure there wasn¡¯t a person like that in the capital six years ago.¡¯ I thought that I would not be easily bewitched by one¡¯s appearance because of my two older brothers who had handsome shells and were in good shape. However, as if mocking that thought, my eyes followed the man¡¯s movements. ¡®The shape of his straight legs is pretty, his broad back looks solid, and the high nose and sharp jawline that holds the center of his face firmly are just perfect.¡¯ But actually, the invisible things were the most beautiful. He was a natural-born cutie. ¡®How can the dressing be so perfect, how can every movement of the body be so classy and neat¡­¡¯ Without even realizing it, I had been staring at him blankly for a while. ¡®Hm¡­ The more I look at him, the more I don¡¯t think he is that handsome? Looking at it, it¡¯s kinda normal.¡¯ It was then. With another ring of the bell, a squid came into the store. And the squid spoke to me. (TL/N: ¡®squid¡¯ is a slang for ¡®ugly guy¡¯) ¡°Here you are, Kiana.¡± Oh my goodness. ¡°Certainly, I thought you¡¯d come to Duke Purves¡¯ residence first. I¡¯m a bit disappointed.¡± ¡®It¡¯s really amazing, can a squid talk?¡¯ ¡®¡­It¡¯s not.¡¯ When I swiftly returned to my senses, I realized that the squid was someone very familiar to me. It was Rodrigo Purves, whom I chased so hard as a child. Rodrigo, with light brown hair and deep red eyes, was quite tall, but having just looked at a very handsome man for a long time made him look relatively ugly. When I didn¡¯t answer, he called my name carefully. ¡°Kiana?¡± At that moment, all the customers in the general store turned to us. ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± I rubbed my eyes once and politely apologized. ¡°My reaction was a bit slow as my eyes had to adjust to normalcy. Think of it like dark adaptation.¡± ¡°¡­Yes?¡± Oh God, he didn¡¯t know dark adaptation. Well, it was a scientific term that the general public might not know. I kindly began to explain. ¡°If you are in a bright place and suddenly go to a dark place, you cannot see well for a while. Like that.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Judging from his speechless expression, he didn¡¯t seem to understand. I tried to explain the scientific principles of light adaptation and dark adaptation, but gave up and just said the conclusion. ¡°It just means that I¡¯m late at responding because you don¡¯t look good.¡± At those words, the people who had been whispering behind us softly giggled and quickly disappeared. There weren¡¯t many people in the capital who could easily laugh at the second son of the Duchy of Purves. Just like that, about a third of the customers in the general store disappeared. Rodrigo looked at me silently and smiled. ¡°It seems that you are very disappointed with me, Kiana. The wedding talk with Melissa, is that why you don¡¯t even greet me properly?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°But you have to understand. You said you like me, when you suddenly left for the academy one day. The wedding talk with Melissa¡­ I did it out of anger, not with sincerity.¡± Slowly, Rodrigo took a step nearer to me and continued. ¡°Of course, you¡­ You must have gone to the academy in a fit of rage to get my attention. So we both acted out. Will that end the past calculations?¡± Honestly, it was all nonsense from start to finish. Still, thinking of the past, I listened meticulously. The extent to which I listened was enough to seriously analyze the bullshit and ask further questions. ¡°Calculation? Do you know how to calculate transcendental functions?¡± ¡°Yes¡­ what? What function?¡± ¡°You¡¯re obviously not good at it. It seems that there is too much difference in skill to calculate together. Aren¡¯t you at the level where you gave up on math when someone ripped up the calendar?¡± ¡°Who do you think I am!¡± Rodrigo got angry. I asked, tilting my head. ¡°Then was it when the question of Mary and Charles running in different directions came up?¡± ¡°It was fine until then!¡± ¡°Then¡­ when someone kept mixing salt water?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°To say you gave up at that time is beyond my expectations. Anyway, you have the courage to talk about calculations in front of a magic engineering major.¡± I added with a light sigh. ¡°Whatever¡­¡± Then, holding the hem of my dress, I gave a proper greeting. Even if I didn¡¯t want to look good, there was such a thing as noble etiquette, and I was a polite person. Besides, wasn¡¯t he my first love? It was a little late, but I pretended to have met him again in a nice and friendly manner. ¡°If you want to say hello, I will do it right now. How have you been? I thought you would be a good chef by now.¡± ¡°¡­A chef?¡± ¡°Since you were very young, you¡¯ve been diligently trying to measure between me and Melissa.¡± Once again, with a stifled laugh, about a third of the original store patrons suddenly disappeared. ¡°Kiana, what is that¡­¡± ¡°Well, I understand. It¡¯s also commendable that you did the groundwork saying that you would marry the lady of the Duchy of Prelai, in order not to be pushed back by your older brother.¡± ¡®Kiana, who is a direct descendant but unable to command summons, and Melissa, who is not a direct descendant but is able to command summons¡­¡¯ Apparently, he didn¡¯t know which one to choose, so he thought hard about it. I thought of our old friendship and gave him sincere advice. ¡°But Rodrigo, in situations like that, you usually have to pick just one. Okay?¡± There was no reason to criticize as I no longer have any interest in him. And, befitting a former professor, I did not forget to give constructive advice for the future. ¡°Of course, now it would be better to develop masculine charm first before choosing anyone.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°Melissa bounced off to the monastery ahead of the engagement. Doesn¡¯t that mean she would rather serve the poor all over the world than serve you?¡± Once again, there was a suppressed chuckle, and almost all the other customers hurriedly disappeared. I still had something to say, so I was about to continue, but someone quickly appeared in front of me. ¡°Princess, my apologies!¡± It was the general store owner. ¡°Please¡­ Please go out and have a private conversation¡­ There¡¯s a lot of disruption to business¡­¡± ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± I blinked and said, ¡°When Prince Rodrigo was talking to me earlier, you laughed and said there¡¯s a good show, so I thought you liked that we¡¯re conversing here.¡± Apparently, the owner of the general store was very happy when the customers who were about to leave earlier stayed to watch and whisper. He even helped out by saying, ¡®Isn¡¯t this interesting?¡¯ among people. Anyway, if he told me to leave, I should leave. Because I was a good person who respects other people¡¯s opinions. ¡°Kiana!¡± But my wrist was caught. And just like that, my body was staggering. Ame: Kiana almost became a simp LOL As for Dr. Kiana, she is threatening my non-existent braincells >_> Thankfully, my math is better than Sir Squid~ CH 13 ¡°¡­How come nothing has changed from the old days when it was like a dog training class.¡± With a grim smile, Rodrigo turned me around. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because you¡¯re back after a long time, you don¡¯t seem to know your situation.¡± Then he smirked and whispered. ¡°Do you think you can escape me? Even then, it would be of no use.¡± A subtle madness had seeped into Rodrigo¡¯s dark red eyes. Originally, I liked those red eyes. I thought that if I married this man, I might give birth to a red-eyed child. That¡¯s how much my obsession with the color of my eyes was at that time. Since anyone could dye their hair or wear a wig. ¡°I am the first man you insisted on marrying, Kiana. Six years ago, you were at a loss when I smiled at you.¡± Rodrigo said confidently. Hmm. The man I once clung to suddenly felt so comfortable with me and brought up the past. So, I decided to answer comfortably and honestly as well. ¡°What nonsense. According to my nanny, the first man I ever wanted to marry was Alex. Was it when I was four years old? It¡¯s proof that my eyes for men are always messed up.¡± And I wisely considered the position of the other party. ¡°Anyway, seeing as you chased after me like a lost dog pretending it was a coincidence, I guess I¡¯m still coveted since I¡¯m a Princess of Prelai? Well, it¡¯s possible. Still, how about wiping the sweat from the soles of your feet before making a move? I can see through it too clearly.¡± I pointed to my face and continued vaguely. ¡°Even if I have a bad reputation, don¡¯t you think I can get married with this much? I¡¯m still smart, kind, pretty, and lovable?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± For a moment, Rodrigo looked puzzled, but he couldn¡¯t deny what I said. He just said something entirely off point. ¡°You have no choice. Even in the Prelai Duchy, if I said I¡¯ll take the troublesome villainess away, they¡¯d say I¡¯m doing a good deed.¡± It was an engagement that was unilaterally broken while exchanging marriage talks with Melissa. In any case, it was a loss for Rodrigo. Naturally, from the position of the Duchy of Purves, he could hold the Duchy of Prelai accountable. Although it would appear a little strange, if Purves insisted it be maintained anyway because it was a marriage between families, Prelai would have nothing to say. Since there was still a princess who could marry him instead of Melissa. So I shrugged my shoulders and pointed out the reality. ¡°What are you talking about? All I have to do now is become the youngest princess in the family, loved by my grandfather and obsessed over by my brothers?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way something like that would ever happen, and even if it really did happen¡­¡± Rodrigo smiled and took a step closer. ¡°¡­Maybe it¡¯ll be of no use? So don¡¯t lose your energy for nothing, Princess.¡± Okay. There was no need to relax with these pointless arguments. The moment when I was about to pour the stomach medicine the spy maid was holding over his head¡­ ¡°Well.¡± The man standing behind us put down one of the magic tools he was looking at with a thud and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think Princess Prelai said anything particularly wrong.¡± It was a languid, low voice. Even so, the pronunciation was accurate, and it stuck to my ears. It came from the only customer who hadn¡¯t left yet, the handsome dark-haired man. ¡®Wow¡­ Your voice is really nice¡­¡¯ However, the tone was a little strange. Very naturally, he spoke like he was above someone. ¡°Isn¡¯t that why you couldn¡¯t even answer properly?¡± Even the gesture of putting down an object was overflowing with grace, so Rodrigo and I couldn¡¯t help but flinch. Not many people could speak this way to the second son of the ducal family of Purves. Even the angle of the button fastened at his neck was sharp like a knife. On closer examination, I saw that his dressing was impeccable. There was not a single wrinkle. ¡®What, why are you so handsome?¡¯ No matter how noble he was, his appearance couldn¡¯t be that perfect. There was no disturbance in his standing posture. It seemed that just being in front of him made Rodrigo¡¯s body stiffened by itself. ¡°In my personal opinion¡­¡± His speech was slow and relaxed, but the pressure it carried was enormous. He slowly moved towards Rodrigo and I. ¡°The man looks more like a villain.¡± And while Rodrigo was so overwhelmed by the momentary pressure that he could not say anything, I easily removed his hand from my wrist. There was not a single useless movement in that little action. ¡°And, Princess Prelai.¡± The man turned his head and stared at me. The rare golden eyes were far off. Just by being face to face, there was the distant feeling that did not seem like a human being¡¯s. Perhaps because of this pressure, even Rodrigo was instinctively unable to do anything. He asked politely, in a well-mannered yet firm tone. ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for you. Could you please give me a minute?¡± It was a face that made me really want to give anything away. But the only thing I couldn¡¯t give away was time. Because there was something I had to do before I met my grandfather. Time was delayed further because I met Rodrigo unexpectedly. So I answered right away. ¡°No. Well, goodbye.¡± Then, without looking back, I took the spy maid and hurriedly got into the carriage. ©¤?? Cesare staggered out of the general store. ¡°So this is what the Marquis was worried about¡­ I guess I still lack a lot of insight.¡± Ragnac consoled Cesare, who seemed somewhat shocked. ¡°It¡¯s okay, Marquis. You always emphasized your relationship with the princess as ¡®a simple relationship where we can only use each other¡¯.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°Even if you¡¯re not the princess¡¯ style to the point that she absolutely doesn¡¯t want to give you even a moment¡¯s time, there¡¯s no need to be offended.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°Perhaps she thought of the Marquis as just a man who plays around. Maybe that¡¯s why she didn¡¯t feel an attraction, so she cut it off right away?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°If you had just said, ¡®Let¡¯s make a clean deal,¡¯ even if she thought that the Marquis was not good as a man, she would give you time. It¡¯s so obvious.¡± Cesare glared at his closest, innocent subordinate. ¡°Of course, I learned not too long ago that ¡®well, goodbye¡¯ means ¡®get lost¡¯.¡± ¡°Stop it, Ragnac.¡± ¡°But still¡­¡± ¡°Stop it.¡± ¡°Okay¡­¡± Without knowing why, Ragnac kept his mouth shut. ©¤?? After buying more coffee, I immediately returned to the ducal residence. I didn¡¯t have much time. ¡°Take that and follow me, Spy.¡± After returning to my room and changing into simple clothes, I had the spy maid carry my items. And I headed straight for the greenhouse. Inside the bag were all the magic items I brought from the academy, as well as candy, stomach medicines, and coffee. I also packed a lot of parchment scrolls and fine quills. I had to move quickly as my grandfather would most likely wake up soon and call for me. ¡°Princess.¡± The spy maid who was following me hesitated, then said, ¡°Lunch is¡­ I¡¯m sorry, but you didn¡¯t even have a proper breakfast.¡± ¡°I did eat lunch.¡± ¡°Yes? When?¡± ¡°A little while ago, Joshua gave me cookies in the drawing room.¡± The spy maid asked, her eyes wide. ¡°Yes? Is that a meal?¡± ¡°That¡¯s about it.¡± With that, I calmly continued walking. ¡°Ugh, this damn place¡­ Why is it so big?¡± I was out of breath when I reached the greenhouse. The ducal residence was really huge¡­ But I couldn¡¯t ride a carriage around the house. ¡°Spy, are you really strong?¡± Perhaps because she was muscular, the spy maid didn¡¯t look tired at all despite carrying a lot of things. Rather¡­ She was looking at me with pity. ¡°I apologize, but¡­ It appears that the Princess¡¯s physical strength is below average.¡± ¡°Wow, look at you, you say you¡¯re sorry but still say everything you want to say. You¡¯re a strong-willed spy.¡± ¡°¡­Thank you.¡± ¡°If you bring me coffee quickly, you will grow into a highly paid spy.¡± After praising the spy maid, I slammed open the door of the greenhouse. The greenhouse might be as big as the mansion. ¡°Princess, why are you here¡­ Actually, I think you¡¯ll need the duke¡¯s permission to go inside.¡± The spy maid spoke cautiously. Oh¡­ Since I had been away from the ducal residence for a long time, of course I should respect the opinion of the maid who had been here for a long time¡­ However, accurate confirmation was essential, much more than respect. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Is such a procedure really necessary?¡± ¡°¡­Um, but¡­ Inside¡­ ¡­ Actually, it¡¯s an area most haven¡¯t been to for a long time¡­¡± ¡°You mean there is no procedure to begin with? It¡¯s a little embarrassing that a spy saying this to the princess, hmm?¡± The spy maid noticeably flinched and shrugged. Since I was very generous, I kindly gave her advice on efficient work. ¡°Spy, it¡¯s good to have a backbone, but I hope you don¡¯t stop me from now on. I don¡¯t listen to others anyway. Do refer to this in the future.¡± After giving sincere advice, I unhesitatingly went into the innermost part of the greenhouse. And there, as expected¡­ <¡­Who are you? > In a nest the size of a house, a large black hawk, was lying down. It was Grandpa¡¯s summoned beast, Hou. Ame: Cesare be giving Isidore (reference: isn¡¯t being a wicked woman much better?) energy in the ¡®well, goodbye¡¯ scene with his subordinate ahahahaha (©¤??©¤) CH 14 The black hawk spoke bluntly without even opening his eyes. I seemed to be treated like a maid who had accidentally stepped in. I silently watched Hou. I was a little sad that he couldn¡¯t move, unable to even flap his wings. In my memory, this black hawk was a wonderful beast with flashing yellow eyes, flying brilliantly over the Duchy of Prelai. Around the age of six, I desperately wished, ¡®I want to meet a bird summon like that too.¡¯ I really felt that way back then. ¡®Is that why my so-called summon is also a bird?¡¯ However, that great pet was drooping, without the strength to even lift his eyelids. My heart ached just watching that scene, so I couldn¡¯t even guess what my grandfather must be feeling. First, I introduced myself in a friendly manner. ¡°Where are you arrogantly ordering the youngest princess of Prelai to get out of?¡± And I confidently rolled up my sleeves, declaring, ¡°I will fix you. Please cooperate a little.¡± There was no hope in Hou¡¯s plaintive voice. ¡°I am not a doctor?¡± Hou didn¡¯t even answer and kept his mouth shut and his eyes closed. What an annoying face. With a flick of my hand, the spy maid quickly began unpacking. I took a cup of coffee and sat down. ¡°Spy.¡± Looking into the eyes of the spy maid, I said. ¡°Two hours from now.¡± The spy maid was restless from the moment she entered the greenhouse. Still, she did not disobey my order. She stared at my serious eyes and swallowed dry saliva. I firmly commanded. ¡°No one is allowed into the greenhouse for two hours. I need to concentrate.¡± Then, with my glasses on, I unfolded the parchment. ©¤?? In Seukali¡¯s office at the Prelai¡¯s residence. ¡°So¡­ She left in the morning?¡± Seukali woke up a long time ago. He had heard about Kiana¡¯s whereabouts, along with the bad news that the maid who had attempted the assassination the day before committed suicide during interrogation. The spy maid attached to Kiana hadn¡¯t come by, so it was likely she was still by her side. The head maid reported in person, but of course, all she could convey was the fragmentary information that Kiana went out in the morning. Actually, Seukali thought that Kiana would come looking for him right away. But she had left early in the morning and hadn¡¯t returned. ¡°Is Duke Prelai¡¯s residence such an uncomfortable place?¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°Kiana and Melissa and Joshua¡­ Everyone is so anxious to get out.¡± Seukali touched his forehead lightly as if he was troubled. The head maid sighed, sadness tinting her face. Even after Kiana left for the academy, the duchy wasn¡¯t very peaceful. It was because there was Joshua, who was more troublesome. ¡°Unless my head is broken somewhere, I will never step foot in this confined house again.¡± It was to the point that no one at the ducal residence could catch and stop the committed steps he had taken to finally move away from home. The figure wearing a jacket with the logo of a famous designer was still vivid in Seukali¡¯s mind. He never looked back¡­ The butler almost murmured, ¡®If this Julius dies, will you come to the funeral¡­¡¯ Seukali thought it would be difficult to look at Joshua¡¯s face for the time being. He squeezed his tired eyes and murmured painfully. ¡°Only those who have raised wayward adolescents can understand me.¡± The head maid bowed deeply and blinked a few times before cautiously replying. ¡°Hmm¡­ I¡¯ve been through the adolescence of my children, so I know roughly¡­¡± Seukali looked at the head maid, his expression indicating for her to say it. The head maid calmly followed with, ¡°I don¡¯t think a heart that isn¡¯t expressed can be conveyed. Even if you think, ¡®This is enough, you know everything¡¯, in the end, not knowing everything is human.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s a bit embarrassing, why don¡¯t the duke say clearly how much you care for the princess?¡± At the head maid¡¯s heartfelt words, Seukali slowly stroked his chin with a thoughtful face. ¡°¡­Is it.¡± ¡®Well, I¡¯ve heard a lot that I¡¯m overly reticent.¡¯ ¡®Is that why my feelings aren¡¯t conveyed well?¡¯ Come to think of it, he only wanted his grandsons and granddaughters to change, but he never seemed to think he had to change. In that sense, the head maid¡¯s advice was quite to Seukali¡¯s liking. ¡°Okay. I think¡­ I must change.¡± The head maid responded carefully, perhaps she wanted to comfort Seukali. ¡°Princess Kiana abruptly returned one day. Even Prince Joshua might come suddenly like a lie after a long time has passed.¡± It was then. The butler entered with a frantic knock. ¡°Duke!¡± And urgently reported. ¡°Prince Joshua just came to the residence!¡± For a moment there was silence in the office. Even the jaw of the head maid, who had just said, ¡®Prince Joshua might return someday too¡¯, dropped wide open. Only after a while did Seukali react. He snorted, then muttered as if it was absurd. ¡°I guess my second grandson¡¯s head broke a lot sooner than I thought?¡± Seukali, who kept his composure as usual, suddenly recalled the head maid¡¯s advice. Of expressing how much he thought of his family. ¡®Express, express¡­¡¯ With a hardened face, Seukali nodded. ¡°¡­It¡¯s good. I should practice with Joshua beforehand.¡± ©¤?? Joshua was sitting in Seukali¡¯s office with the most awkward face. ¡°What is going on?¡± Staring at Joshua, Seukali asked sarcastically. ¡°You didn¡¯t leave quietly like Kiana, but ran off while showing off, so why did you crawl back in?¡± ¡°That¡­¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t go away to study like Kiana, you bought a mansion under my nose and pretty much advertised it all over the capital, saying, ¡®I¡¯m of the Prelai family.¡¯¡± ¡°Um, that¡­¡± ¡°I tried to be nice to you until the end. It¡¯s still the same today. I¡¯ve left your room in this mansion as it is, and the budget has always been allocated!¡± ¡°¡­Ha, Grandpa?¡± ¡°You¡¯re a very messed up grandson who always thought only of what his parents had done for him and didn¡¯t care for this old man! I¡¯m fair even to such a child!¡± Joshua blinked, terribly puzzled. ¡°Grandpa, why are you suddenly saying so much¡­ There¡¯s also civility which you have never shown before¡­¡± ¡°What civility, it¡¯s an expression of the heart!¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Joshua sighed and said, ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s about Kiana, she¡¯s a bit strange.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± Seukali replied bluntly. ¡°If it feels normal in your eyes, that is more of a problem.¡± ¡°First of all, it¡¯s not normal. But still¡­¡± Joshua stated with a straight face. ¡°She is just too skinny. Any designer would freak out.¡± At that, Seukali immediately nodded. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Her complexion is too pale. It doesn¡¯t look healthy at all.¡± The two remained silent as they discussed Kiana¡¯s condition. After a while, Seukali asked sullenly. ¡°But is that really what you came for? Since when did you worry about her¡­¡± ¡°Grandpa was rejected by Kiana, right? Why are you picking a fight with me?¡± It was then. The butler rushed into the office after suddenly receiving a report. ¡°Duke!¡± Huffing and puffing, he looked at Joshua and murmured in surprise. ¡°Oh my God, Prince Joshua¡­ Is your head okay? Are you seriously hurt?¡± ¡°¡­Why don¡¯t you talk about what you¡¯re here for.¡± ¡°Right! That, that!¡± With worry evident on his face, the butler exclaimed. ¡°Princess Kiana has entered the greenhouse! We figured it out too late, so it¡¯s already been quite a while!¡± ¡°The greenhouse? No, why is she there¡­!¡± Panic flashed across Seukali¡¯s face, which was as heavy as a huge mountain. He lost his composure and shouted. ¡°What about the maid attached to her!¡± ¡°She made no report, maybe they¡¯re in cahoots!¡± Joshua stared at his grandfather in bewilderment. ¡®If Grandpa is this worked up, I don¡¯t know why, but it isn¡¯t normal.¡¯ ¡®Is there any hidden treasure in the greenhouse?¡¯ But for him to lose his composure and panic like that¡­ Joshua knew instinctively that he had to stick around. ¡°E-Even now the door is locked¡­ He¡¯s said to be in a very dire condition!¡± At the words of the butler, Seukali jumped up. In the greenhouse, there was his pet, Hou, whose condition was getting worse day by day. He couldn¡¯t figure out why Kiana went to the greenhouse and locked the door. So she couldn¡¯t help but be momentarily taken aback. ¡®Hou!¡¯ Hou was in a state of considerable weakness after absorbing the terrible poison six years ago. Even so, he said that it was his master¡¯s order, and he did not resent him in the slightest. To begin with, they had a special bond, but since six years ago, Hou had become an even bigger presence to Seukali. ¡°Grandpa! Calm down for a moment!¡± ¡°Can you keep your cool even if it¡¯s your pet?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Joshua¡¯s reply was immediate. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you this because it¡¯s not my business, but I would have already run. Well, I¡¯m actually kind of surprised that you can afford to stay here and look at me.¡± At Joshua¡¯s words, Seukali got up from his seat and ran towards the greenhouse. He trusted that Kiana wouldn¡¯t do anything, but he couldn¡¯t stay still. Joshua immediately followed. CH 15 When they arrived at the greenhouse, the maid attached to Kiana was politely blocking the door. ¡°Sorry.¡± The maid lowered her head and firmly said. ¡°The princess told me to not let anyone into the greenhouse for two hours.¡± ¡°Get out of the way.¡± The way Seukali spoke was terrifying. His eyes were full of anger. Still, in his own way, it was a pretty kind order. ¡°Sorry.¡± But the maid didn¡¯t get out of the way. ¡°I have already been criticized a lot today, like for being slow with coffee runs. If I can¡¯t carry out this order, I might really be fired.¡± ¡°Have you forgotten your position and who you should listen to?¡± Seukali, who rarely lost his composure, shouted. ¡°No, you should have taken care of it before this happened!¡± ¡°She was so determined that I couldn¡¯t even bear to touch her. And¡­¡± Trembling, the maid bowed her head. ¡°According to the princess, I have to endure for a month to be able to use my experience as a spy somewhere.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°She has already noticed that Your Grace ordered me to keep an eye on her.¡± At that, Joshua, who had followed Seukali, hurriedly asked. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t fit? You said you were caught.¡± ¡°Yes, yes. But every time she says it, I feel like I¡¯m being beaten.¡± The maid replied sullenly, thinking of Kiana, who had begun to add ¡®Spy¡¯ to her words whenever she spoke to her. Joshua muttered as he stroked his chin. ¡°As expected¡­ I mean, she hasn¡¯t changed at all.¡± At Joshua¡¯s words, the maid hesitated a little, but then courageously expressed her convictions. ¡°But she didn¡¯t make me feel too bad about it. No, rather¡­ Well, as strange as it may sound¡­¡± ¡°Keep talking.¡± ¡°It was cool, but also a bit refreshing. It¡¯s obviously criticism, but again, it¡¯s not wrong, I look back on it¡­ Even so, I felt like I was receiving very minimal, occasional consideration.¡± Joshua nodded slowly at the maid¡¯s expression. ¡°That¡¯s right. I felt that way too¡­ I was accused of being addicted to luxury goods in front of others, but during which, I also felt as much kindness as a chick¡¯s tears.¡± ¡°What accusation? It¡¯s a fact that you are addicted to luxury goods.¡± Seukali responded with firmness. Then, the maid spoke cautiously. ¡°Yes¡­ Well, anyway, Duke, nothing was untrue, so it wasn¡¯t unfair.¡± Straight away, the maid bowed even deeper. ¡°D, Duke¡­¡± She was such a sharp-eyed and quick-witted maid that the head maid personally chose her as Kiana¡¯s watchdog. So, with her animal-like senses, she had already decided what to do now. Although trembling at Seukali¡¯s anger, she did not run away. ¡°From what I¡¯ve seen from the side, the princess isn¡¯t one to bluff. So¡­¡± Mustering up all her courage, she barely insisted. ¡°I think now is the time for you to trust the princess.¡± ¡°¡­What?¡± ¡°She will not do anything that will harm Hou. Apparently, the princess said she would heal him herself.¡± ¡°What, a kid who is neither a doctor nor a vet¡­!¡± Joshua intervened in Seukali¡¯s wrath. ¡°Anyway, neither a doctor nor a veterinarian can fix a summon, Grandpa.¡± While Seukali was speechless, the maid continued her words, bending her back even more. ¡°The princess took care of the preparations without hesitation. She seemed sure. Besides¡­ She¡¯s a genius at the academy, she probably knows a lot of things we don¡¯t know. How about you trust her for now?¡± A moment of silence passed. Seukali stood still for a while, as if he had froze. ¡°¡­Now that I think about it¡­¡± He murmured as if he had realized something very new. ¡°¡­I¡¯ve never trusted Kiana.¡± And beside him, Joshua shrugged his shoulders. ¡°That¡¯s nothing new, Grandpa. Grandpa cared for us, but he never trusted anyone. It¡¯s not just Kiana. You also only use Alex to settle some things.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because all of you are one and the same even though you¡¯re so big! What would have happened if I had entrusted this family to you guys?¡± (TL/N: in short, they¡¯re all immature even though they¡¯ve grown up.) ¡°Then it would have already been irreversibly ruined.¡± ¡°So it seems that I, despite being old and sick, will die of overwork! To pass on a whole family to you guys! Do you know this great love?¡± ¡°No, those condescending¡­ Grandpa, why do you keep saying things that you haven¡¯t said in your whole life¡­¡± ¡°This is very good! I¡¯m expressing my heart, but why is my heart feeling relieved?¡± The face of the head maid who had been hurriedly chasing after the two men contorted with guilt. ¡®He looks so relieved¡­ I can¡¯t tell him directly now that he isn¡¯t supposed to declare it like that!¡¯ Seeing that the blunt charisma unique to Seukali was breaking, the head maid was frustrated inside. It was then. The three heard a distinct sharp sound from inside the greenhouse. It was the sound of flapping wings. Kiana¡¯s voice leaked out, very faintly. ¡°Don¡¯t get excited! There¡¯s still more to do! The toxin is still in the body! Don¡¯t act like you¡¯re all right!¡± Seukali couldn¡¯t stand it any longer. The maid couldn¡¯t stop him either. The door burst opened, and Seukali, Joshua, and other servants, including the maid attached to Kiana, ran into the greenhouse. And at the sight of the deepest part of the greenhouse, in front of Hou¡¯s nest¡­ Seukali was stunned for a moment. Hou, who had been mostly lethargic with his eyes closed, was flapping his wings slowly in the air. ¡°You¡¯ve already been living. Well, just warm up a bit until the calculation is over.¡± And beside the nest, Kiana was frantically scribbling equations on the parchment on the floor. It was quite an impressive sight, Hou taking flight. ¡°¡­Kiana?¡± A few cups of coffee, candies, and empty pill bottles were scattered all over the place. And in the middle was Kiana in her glasses, her head buried in a mountain of parchment. Each sheet of parchment was filled with formulas that seemed difficult even at a glance. There were also a few strangely shaped magic items rolling around. Instantly, both Seukali and Joshua understood the meaning of the words, ¡®I couldn¡¯t bear to touch¡¯, which the maid said earlier. ¡°Ah.¡± Joshua muttered lowly. ¡°If it¡¯s cool to be absorbed in something, is it like that for me, who is publishing article¡­¡± The person who answered that was his pet, the green snake. Joshua slowly bent down and picked up one of the empty pill bottles that were rolling around. It was stomach medicine. He was about to say something, but Kiana snapped. ¡°Hold it.¡± She muttered irritably, not even raising her head from the parchment. ¡°Don¡¯t interrupt. I¡¯m concentrating right now.¡± And Hou supported Kiana. Seukali hardened as it was. Because it had been too long since he had heard Hou¡¯s lively voice. The great bird even had a thrilled expression on his face. Seukali was silent, so Joshua couldn¡¯t say anything either. The two men, who were growled at when they simple stared, remained quiet. The glasses-wearing flicked her quill non-stop until she occasionally said ¡®I need a candy¡­¡¯ and reached out for one. Before long, candy wrappers were piled up next to her. It¡¯s a little¡­ She seemed a little crazy. The maid discreetly went out and brought portable chairs. For a while, Joshua and Seukali had to remain silent and still in the chair. Ame: Gramps being honest with his feelings but it came off as condescending¡­ pfft¡­ CH 16 ©¤?? ¡°Oh, it¡¯s the spy.¡± After everything was over, I sucked the juice the spy maid had brought me with a straw and said, ¡°You will be fired soon. You can¡¯t even keep up with the ¡®two-hour of no interruption¡¯ request?¡± The spy maid answered with her head bowed. ¡°But I blocked it as much as I could, Princess.¡± Well, in the first place, there was no maid who could stop the duke and ducal prince. It was normal. ¡°Instead, I dragged it out for about 10 minutes. ¡®Now is the time to trust the Princess¡¯, I insisted that.¡± I was so impressed with her spy maid¡¯s efforts, immediately recognizing the 10 minutes¡¯ worth. ¡°Oh, did you? Since when is 10 minutes a long enough time to show off like that? Do you know that today, it took you more than 10 minutes every time I asked for coffee? Hmm?¡± ¡°I even attached my personal opinion that I think you can fix Sir Hou.¡± With a face of doubt, I stared at the spy maid. When a gurgling sound was made by the straw as I had finished the juice, the spy maid quickly refilled the glass and continued her words. ¡°It would only be unjust to keep it to myself, so I did some promotion, Princess.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s a good attitude.¡± Anyway, I accepted the spy maid¡¯s promotion and decided not to cut her off right away. It was not easy to find such a strong person. Hou, who had now regained his energy, said while flapping his wings. Hou even went round and round as if he was in a good mood. Oh my god. After absorbing all the poison and whining, he was only thinking of helping my grandfather again. I had accepted the fact I couldn¡¯t summon a pet, but I still envied the pet¡¯s boundless affection for its owner. So, I kindly¡ªand a little worriedly¡ªpointed out the current situation. ¡°The poison isn¡¯t entirely gone, don¡¯t fool around.¡± Hou laughed loudly and patted my shoulder with his wings. I almost fell over because of how strong it was. ¡°Kiana.¡± Only then did my grandfather, who had been sitting motionlessly in a simple chair, carefully open his mouth, muttering, ¡°What the hell is this¡­ how¡­¡± He was the grandfather I hadn¡¯t seen in a really long time. Grandpa, the one I spoke to the least¡­ No, thinking about it now, I wasn¡¯t sure, but anyway, he was basically a kind person. He never discriminated against me for not being able to summon a magic beast. However, because of the possibility that I might not be his granddaughter, I always felt small in front of him. And after being scolded for the Melissa incident, it was even more embarrassing to face him. I thought it was natural even if I didn¡¯t hear from my grandfather at the academy. I didn¡¯t even resent it. Since I was most likely not his granddaughter. So I was very proud to be conversing with him now. Even if I wasn¡¯t his biological granddaughter, I seemed to have achieved enough to be confident in front of my grandfather. I answered as I sipped the juice. ¡°It¡¯s not medicine, it¡¯s science and magic.¡± I held up a magic tool. ¡°I developed a target osmotic pressure magic tool a few days ago. Commercialization has not been successful because the calculation is difficult¡­ Anyway, I used this.¡± ¡°¡­Osmotic pressure?¡± ¡°Yes. It uses the difference in concentration, but the related formula is P=CRT¡­¡± Joshua quickly interjected as I began to rummage through the pile of parchment. ¡°No. No need for further explanation.¡± That was disappointing. But at the same time, it was a familiar situation. Because people hate hearing the explanation of magic engineering. At a time like this, if I just said what I wanted to say for a long time, even my achievements would be buried. ¡®That¡¯s something only a professor can do, but now I¡¯m not a professor.¡¯ So, with a little disappointment, I explained briefly. ¡°Anyway, the concentration of the poison in the body was so high that Hou couldn¡¯t purify himself¡­ I used a magic tool to reduce the concentration of the poison.¡± Even from the beginning, magic tools made with magic engineering usually did not have great functions. Usually, there were limits to utilization or it was very complicated to deal with. So, there was no magic tool commercialized enough to drastically change civilization. This magic tool also had a limitation in that every complicated value had to be manually entered. So it was difficult for normal people to use. ¡®But I developed it myself. Of course I can do the calculations.¡¯ Long story short, I was able to get the poison absorbed by Hou out of his body with the osmotic pressure magic tool I made. Although it was very difficult to calculate the concentration that changed every now and then. I had to be extremely focused because I was afraid that if I made even the slightest mistake, Hou would get hurt. ¡®If I get it wrong, try again. If it doesn¡¯t work, try again.¡¯ ¡®If I get stuck in the middle, stop and think, and if I still can¡¯t see the answer, pick up the quill again.¡¯ But anyway, it was worth the effort. That puts my mind at ease. ¡­Whereas changing the appearance or summoning a magical beast was not something that could be done with effort. ¡°Thank you¡­¡± Grandpa muttered blankly. ¡°I¡­ I haven¡¯t done anything for you.¡± ¡°No, you did a lot.¡± In response to my grandfather¡¯s words, I said with a determined expression. ¡°Thank you for allocating a budget to me each month. It was so nice to have money that I could get by just breathing simply because I had the name ¡®Prelai¡¯.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± I couldn¡¯t describe how truly grateful I was to the fact that he always allocated a generous budget to me, who wasn¡¯t particularly friendly and always had accidents. When the academy ran out of budget, I used that money to buy expensive research items. Come to think of it, the academy¡¯s budget seemed to be insufficient most of the time¡­ I felt a bit bad when I thought that the equipment I had invested so much money in was still in the academy. My grandfather cleared his throat a few times and answered me a little late. ¡°Hmm, I see. It was allocated sufficiently to the extent that it did not violate equity. I hope you don¡¯t forget that fact.¡± Uh¡­ It was almost the first time my grandfather spoke at such length. While I was blinking with bewilderment, the face of the head maid behind my grandfather turned white. ¡°No, I did not ask you to be condescending¡­ I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± She kept muttering such things to herself, even letting out a deep sigh. I think the head maid gave some useless advice for our relationship. ¡°Oh, um, welcome back. If you had contacted me, I would have gone out to meet you.¡± My grandfather rolled his eyes and spoke awkwardly. First of all, he seemed to think that since this was the first time we had met in years, he should start by asking how I was doing. The order of the reunion had already been messed up, but the words that needed to be exchanged had to be exchanged anyway. ¡°Why did you suddenly return to the ducal residence¡­¡± My grandfather tried to ask a low-key question, then shook his head to himself and reversed it. ¡°No, no. Naturally, this is your home, so you can come anytime. It¡¯s strange that I¡¯m asking why.¡± ¡°Yes. Although I got scolded six years ago for bearing a knife, I still haven¡¯t been kicked out.¡± At my words, my grandfather smiled and said admirably. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you still challenging yourself to become a professor at the academy? How great is that¡­¡± ¡°Grandpa, I don¡¯t want to be a professor.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a good choice. Who would recognize a rural academy¡¯s professor? Even if it¡¯s as a hobby, a PhD is of great value¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m also going to quit the PhD program.¡± ¡°Good job. What are you doing that useless thing? All of that is nonsense.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Like that, unintentionally, my grandfather delivered a blow to my life before regressing. I couldn¡¯t say anything because I sustained tremendous internal injuries, and there was silence for a while. In the end, we awkwardly looked around the devastated greenhouse. The poison was so strong that all nearby plants withered away. ¡°No, how did Hou purify such an enormous amount of poison?¡± Joshua broke the silence, belatedly startled. ¡°It must be difficult to obtain this level of poison¡­ It¡¯s like because it¡¯s Hou, if a person were to eat it, wouldn¡¯t he or she disappear without a form at all? Is this really an unheard-of poison?¡± Grandpa said nothing. Hou also remained silent, looking away. Without answering Joshua, Hou flew into my grandfather¡¯s arms. Since it was discharged using osmotic pressure, it was not possible to 100% completely discharge it. This was because the concentration difference decreased as the emission increased. However, as Hou said, he would be able to purify the remaining poison on his own. With an overwhelmed face, my grandfather looked at the energetic flight of Hou. Well, just two hours ago, he couldn¡¯t even open his eyes properly. Quietly stroking Hou¡¯s wings, my father turned his gaze back to me. ¡°Thank you, Kiana.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± I nodded happily. Ame: Gramps and Hou definitely know that Prelai is targeted, why else will there be such a strong poison? Kiana, share what you know with them! Let¡¯s just get rid of Prince Heaton early and live a happy life! CH 17 Grandpa looked at me and asked. ¡°¡­How did you think of saving Hou? How did you know he is here?¡± ¡°Yesterday, I came to the ducal residence after a long time, and saw him by chance while passing by the garden.¡± I answered truthfully, grabbing the last remaining candy. ¡°Actually, Hou and I have nothing to do with each other. We¡¯re not close at all.¡± Hou interjected sullenly, jutting out his beak. I ignored Hou¡¯s words and confidently met Grandpa¡¯s gaze. ¡°But he is precious to my grandfather. So I thought of saving him.¡± Grandpa¡¯s pupils shook at my words. Certainly, it seemed saving his summoned beast had a tremendous effect. There was an awkward atmosphere for a while. And as if he couldn¡¯t stand it, Joshua intervened. ¡°But what¡¯s all this?¡± He kicked the empty bottles and candy wrappers I had earlier while calculating. ¡°Why do you drink so much coffee?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a habit.¡± I yawned carelessly and stretched. ¡°I need a little caffeine and sugar when I use my brain¡­ What¡¯s wrong with this much?¡± At that moment. Joshua and Grandpa exchanged glances. Huh? What¡¯s wrong? ¡°Kiana.¡± Grandpa spoke in a solemn voice. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about something else for a while.¡± ¡°Yes? How long are you going to express your gratitude? If it goes beyond 30 minutes, I think it will be difficult no matter how sincere you are¡­¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s another matter.¡± Where did the moved expression from earlier go? Grandpa¡¯s face hardened again. Grandpa nodded at the spy maid, who now openly brought one of her reports to him. Glancing at the report, Grandpa frowned deeply. ¡°Look at it with your own eyes.¡± What. What did I do wrong? No matter how I thought about it, I hadn¡¯t done anything seriously wrong. When I received the report, Joshua stuck out his neck and read it together. What Grandpa handed me was my lifestyle today, as observed by the spy maid. It¡¯s not long, so I read it quickly. Joshua and I reacted simultaneously. ¡°Why is this¡­?¡± ¡°Are you crazy¡­?¡± Silence flowed again in the conflicting responses. No, but I really couldn¡¯t figure out why this was such a problem. As I blinked in confusion, the spy maid lowered her head and whispered quickly. ¡°Until now, the Princess hasn¡¯t taken a proper meal. By the way, the amount of coffee is a little¡­¡± ¡°What about it?¡± ¡°The amount of coffee and candy you consumed while healing Hou earlier is truly staggering¡­¡± ¡°But if I get heartburn, I can take stomach medicine, right?¡± When I replied casually, Joshua asked in a frightened voice. ¡°Did you live like this at the academy?¡± ¡°Ugh, what are you talking about? If I live like this, I will be in big trouble.¡± I waved my hand and continued indifferently. ¡°If I just sleep and walk around like today, when will I write my thesis? Do you think papers come out in an instant?¡± It was a very normal answer, but for a moment, surprise passed over the faces of Grandpa, Joshua, and the spy maid. Joshua exclaimed with his eyes wide. ¡°Hey! Then, you¡­ How did you live at the academy?¡± Since he asked, I answered. ¡°Um, did you see my hurried calculation next to Hou earlier?¡± I explained in a light tone. ¡°I think I spent about 16 hours a day like that in the lab. If I¡¯m too full, I¡¯ll become sleepy, so I eat as little as possible.¡± Suddenly, a snap was heard. Grandpa staggered with a face of disbelief, leaning against Hou¡¯s body. ¡°Gee, now¡­ what¡­¡± Well, if they didn¡¯t understand, I should explain again. ¡°Publishing a thesis is much more difficult than this, so I just stayed in the lab without sleep or food.¡± What¡¯s the big deal about that? I explained in detail. ¡°While pouring candy, coffee, and stomach medicine like this all day long.¡± With a loud thump, Grandpa sank to his knees. ©¤?? The ducal mansion was almost turned upside down. No one could have imagined that Kiana, who had been sent to the academy six years ago, did not eat or sleep and lived as a thesis writing machine. However, Kiana was calm. ¡°That¡¯s the way it Is. I did it because I like it? I like magic engineering. And the people at the academy really like it when I do research like this.¡± ¡°That!¡± Seukali shouted in a voice that seemed to vomit blood. ¡°It means they don¡¯t care about you!¡± Joshua also shouted like he was dumbfounded. ¡°You lived like that for six years? You aren¡¯t tall because you didn¡¯t sleep at night! You¡¯re skinny because you didn¡¯t eat properly! You¡¯re so pale because you haven¡¯t seen the sunlight!¡± Kiana calmly replied to the agitated Joshua and Seukali. ¡°I told you. I didn¡¯t have time. The academy performance announcement is once every half year, so time is tight to meet the target amount.¡± ¡°Can you fulfill that target by yourself?¡± ¡°Mhm.¡± Kiana answered confidently. ¡°No one has as many ideas and implements them as well as I do. And again, I did it because I liked it.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°Because I did that, the dean and professors were all desperate for me, they say ¡®Please stay, this is where you should be¡¯.¡± A feeling of emptiness flashed in Kiana¡¯s relaxed eyes. ¡°If I want to belong properly, I have to qualify first. It was unavoidable.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°And I had to finish my thesis quickly to become a professor.¡± Joshua was very upset, while Kiana was very unconcerned. She was strangely using the past tense, but no one noticed. ¡°That way I could be an actual member of the academy¡­ After all, being a student means being a vagabond.¡± Seukali was staring blankly at Joshua and Kiana, as if he was dreaming. And she muttered blankly. ¡°Did I¡­ What did I miss, Kiana?¡± He knew that Kiana would distance herself from the family at some point. The young Kiana, who was busy hiding in her own room whenever he took a step closer, was vivid in his memory. ¡°Until you become like that¡­ I must have missed something¡­¡± But was it to the extent that she had to stay at the academy and receive such treatment? Obviously, no one at the ducal residence would have treated Kiana carelessly. ¡®What should I have done¡­ How¡­?¡¯ In fact, holding on to the title at this age was too much for Seukali. His eldest son, who was the heir, hadn¡¯t shown his face for a long time. His grandchildren became less trustworthy as they grew up. Alex was strong, but he was a nutcase and couldn¡¯t be the family head. Joshua was too fond of money and gossip even for a member of the nobility. Kiana had been gloomy since childhood, her interpersonal relationships were poor and had confined herself to her room most of the time. Melissa was weak and behaved ambiguously, causing controversy among the young lords. Seukali had to work harder to make sure that even if any of those messed up grandchildren inherited the family, they could survive for at least two generations. ¡®I should have paid more attention in the meantime¡­ I wasn¡¯t good enough.¡¯ It was then. ¡°Wait a minute, Kiana.¡± Joshua hesitated, then narrowed his eyes as if he had found something to say again. Now, he remembered his original reason for coming to the ducal residence. ¡°What the hell is that professor position for you, that you abandoned your family and ruined yourself?¡± He brushed his hair in a slightly exaggerated manner as if to express it was unfair. ¡°Since you went to the academy, you haven¡¯t been back here for six years, and we weren¡¯t even able to attend your graduation.¡± At those words, the face of Kiana, which had only been unconcerned, changed. ¡°What? That¡¯s¡­ What are you talking about?¡± Joshua sighed and continued. ¡°Then one day, you suddenly appeared in the empire, and although we just said we¡¯re happy with that¡­ Did you stop your family from visiting the academy just to be treated like that?¡± With a stunned face, Kiana¡¯s mouth dropped open. Joshua must have thought it was time, so he fired away. ¡°Ignoring all the letters. Even when I sent 10 letters in a month, you replied roughly and insincerely once every three months, didn¡¯t you? We were so worried that we even asked the professors!¡± Kiana frowned. Then she replied in a somewhat shocked voice. ¡°¡­I replied to every letter I received from the ducal residence. It seems to come once every three months. What do you mean¡­ 10 a month?¡± The regretful eyes of Seukali, which appeared to be retracing his life, flashed. Kiana gasped for breath, then she added hastily. ¡°And, the graduation ceremony? Didn¡¯t everyone just ignore my letter of invitation to my first thesis presentation after the graduation ceremony?¡± A moment of silence passed. Eventually, Hou muttered lowly. It was a neat arrangement. Ame: Little old me thinks Kiana should go back to the academy and clean them out of equipment CH 18 ©¤?? Grandpa brought a large box from his office and showed it to me. It was the first time I had ever seen Grandpa¡¯s hands tremble. Inside, were piled up letters from the academy. The princess is doing very well. Within two months she skipped to the intermediate class, and she was involved in three joint studies. The princess has moved to the advanced class. The advisor suggested sending the duke a letter, but he refused. She is currently involved in five joint studies and is doing very well. The more I read, the more I laughed. It will be better if the contents of the letter are a little simpler. Last time, Princess Kiana said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to reply because it¡¯s too complicated.¡± If you want to get a reply, please keep it as brief as possible. You¡¯d better not come to the graduation ceremony. Princess Kiana is going to receive a certificate of commendation, but she says she won¡¯t attend the graduation ceremony if her family comes. ¡°Haha¡­ haha.¡± The shock was great. I didn¡¯t even know that the professors were sending letters like this to the ducal residence. Additionally, the part about how they told me to send a letter¡­ It was clearly a blatant lie. Rather, my professors were always busy comforting me on special days like birthdays and New Year¡¯s Day. ¡°Princess Kiana, it¡¯s been a long time since you¡¯ve cut ties with your family. You can marry academics here. You can always be with us. At least, this is a place where you are treated according to the number of papers.¡± ¡°At times like this, if you¡¯re sad, you¡¯ll just lose energy. Princess, why don¡¯t we just research as usual? We will all celebrate your birthday together.¡± All these were lies that should be known immediately. But it was something we didn¡¯t put together. Very sneakily, short and simple letters from my grandfather or older brothers reached me. That¡¯s why we thought we were indifferently contacting each other. ¡°Wow, those nasty things.¡± Joshua muttered as he shook his head. ¡°They totally ruined a family.¡± Hou solemnly declared. Anyway, Hou was right. Even if we contacted each other infrequently and sparingly, we were able to say, ¡®Ah, it¡¯s like that because our relationship isn¡¯t good.¡¯ That in itself was a testament to the current state of our family. ¡°Those crazy things¡­¡± I read the letters my professors sent to my family over and over again. It felt like something inside me was quietly collapsing. Even though I already had been betrayed once because of what happened before the regression. If my trust in the people of the academy was like before, the psychological shock would have been enormous. ¡®I was desperate to get a sense of belonging. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t have a place to belong to again if I don¡¯t do well.¡¯ So I whipped myself even more. Of course, magic engineering was fun and research was my hobby, but I thought I had to give satisfactory results at the academy every time. So, I stayed up in the lab without sleep, and I lived a life where I got accustomed to eating a little because I couldn¡¯t digest well if I ate more. And the reason why the academy had to hold me this far was obvious. ¡°I will check one more time. If Professor Kiana Prelai dies, according to the laws of the Principality of Liloney, all patents in her name will belong to the Academy, right?¡± Anyway, all of my achievements were related to the academy. I noticed before regressing that they weren¡¯t sincere, but I didn¡¯t know that I was psychologically further away from my family because of them. They were afraid I would go back to the Duchy of Prelai¡­ The hard lumps in my heart were big and I felt stuffy inside. Of course, I was going to get revenge on the academy. But I was so angry that it was regrettable that I had delayed it even a little bit. ¡°Grandpa!¡± Joshua was outraged. ¡°Are you going to leave that damn academy alone?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe I left it¡­¡± Then, with a cold expression, Grandpa said, ¡°¡­I have to send Alex.¡± Oh my god. Sending that mad dog? At those words, I murmured involuntarily. ¡°Oh, I feel sorry for the damn academy¡­¡± Then I immediately came to my senses. Wait a minute, the opponent was the academy. I reacted too reflexively to the name ¡®Alex¡¯. Immediately, I shook my head and corrected my words. ¡°No, no. Cancel the pity. It¡¯s very appropriate.¡± Just imagining Alex standing in front of the academy made me feel like all the stuff that was clogged up in the heart was resolved in an instant. Joshua also nodded with a satisfied face. ¡°That academy is ruined.¡± Joshua even clapped and added. ¡°And it¡¯s very fortunate the mad dog has gone far. I might not see your face for a while. That bastard said that if I stepped into the ducal mansion, he would cut my hair to its roots.¡± The Principality of Liloney was quite far. I heard he had gone far away to investigate the last assassination. But the day Alex would come home became even further. ¡°If you wait here quietly, the mad dog will take care of everything.¡± Joshua declared proudly. I just silently nodded. There was no need to go to the academy anymore. Sending Alex, haha. No matter how much I thought about it, there was no revenge better than that. My stomach felt relieved. But still, I had to protect what I had to protect. ¡°Here, Grandpa.¡± In addition, I had to make sure that there were no obstacles to various plans for the future. ¡°¡­Please write a letter to ask students, no¨C just the graduate students. What do they know. Also, don¡¯t destroy the academy itself. I still have work to do at the academy.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that. I¡¯ll make sure to cut only those at the top.¡± Grandpa nodded firmly. It was then. Suddenly, outside the greenhouse, I heard a light flapping of wings. ¡®Uh?¡¯ It was just the sound of Peep¡¯s wings. But I thought it couldn¡¯t be Peep. Didn¡¯t she say it would take a week to secretly transport? It hadn¡¯t even been a day, let alone a week. However, my expectation was wonderfully off. Because a yellow lark with a cute voice sat on my head and started talking. ¡°What?¡± In a panicked voice, I asked Peep, who arrived way sooner than expected. ¡°You said it would take a week?¡± Grandpa and Joshua looked at Peep and I with startled eyes. ¡®No, I can¡¯t believe this embarrassing situation happened so quickly¡­¡¯ ¡°Uh, Grandpa! This, this¡­¡± I truly panicked, so I blinked rapidly and spoke hastily. I was very flustered, feeling the gazes of the servants around me. To think that Peep appeared at this point when I was finally getting closer with Grandpa¡­ ¡°Melissa, that kind-hearted girl¡­ She said now she wasn¡¯t a Prelai and sent Peep to me¡­¡± And after one glance at Grandpa, I added quickly. ¡°This time I didn¡¯t really threaten, I didn¡¯t get angry and I didn¡¯t bully! I really didn¡¯t want it, but Melissa just suddenly¡­¡± There was so much karma accumulated in childhood that I had no choice but to make excuses in a hurry. But before I could finish my words, Peep flew up with a shocked face. Tears welled up in Peep¡¯s eyes. Then, with a whoosh, Peep flew into my room. ¡°¡­¡­.¡± It was a much more extreme reaction than I expected. Ame: ^^ from now on, this project will be updated twice a week! I¡¯ve created a stock~ EDIT: I changed the title for this arc as after reading more, it will fit bette CH 19 It felt like bombs were dropping non-stop as soon as I returned to the ducal residence. The academy¡¯s nonsense¡­ and now Peep. I was stunned for a moment, staring at the disappearing fluffy backside. However, after clearing his throat once, Grandpa said, ¡°Follow her.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Summoned beasts are emotionally very dependent on their masters.¡± Grandpa looked down at me and continued. ¡°Even if you said it carelessly, it probably hurt her, so go and comfort her.¡± Just now¡­ Did Grandpa call me a ¡®master¡¯? Astounded, I stared at Grandpa. Definitely, I thought that he would be angry with me for taking Melissa¡¯s pet in the end. ¡®It should be worse¡­¡¯ Of course, even if Grandpa didn¡¯t go that far, I didn¡¯t expect him to recognize me as Peep¡¯s owner right away. ¡®And in front of the dukedom¡¯s employees¡­¡¯ ¡°Ah¡­ uh¡­¡± As I hesitated with surprise coloring my face, Grandpa added lowly. ¡°Summoned beasts only follow their master¡¯s orders. Peep listened to your order, so that means you are Peep¡¯s owner.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°That¡¯s it. Don¡¯t dwell on the past.¡± Grandpa patted me on the back. Oh my god. Grandpa¡­ He just gave me sincere advice about the symbol of Prelai, the summoned beast, right? Something felt very odd. ¡°Alex¡­ Please don¡¯t curse in front of the summoned beast. Isn¡¯t it said that the personality of the summoned beast follows its master?¡± ¡°Joshua, if you start giving jewels to your pet, you have to keep giving until forever. Don¡¯t get it wrong.¡± ¡°Melissa, how can you listen to everything Peep says without a backbone? You have to decide your matters.¡± I was actually envious when the only adult in Prelai, my grandfather, gave his grandchildren summon advice. And when the same thing happened to me, I was stunned¡­ and a little touched. ¡°Apart from all that, you are my granddaughter. But why are you looking at me about your pet?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± I couldn¡¯t bring myself to say that I might not be ¡®his granddaughter¡¯. I really¡­ I really couldn¡¯t get it out. There was no way to prove it anyway. In fact, there was no answer or attitude I wanted from Grandpa. That was the problem. Even if Grandpa said, ¡®Of course you are Hyde¡¯s child,¡¯ I thought I would be overcome with guilt. However, if he said, ¡®It¡¯s okay even if you¡¯re not Hyde¡¯s child,¡¯ I thought I would cringe from the thought he was also aware of the fact. Anyway, the situation was the problem, not the person, and neither the other family members nor I had the right answer. ¡°And the Duchy of Prelai is not the academy. So¡­¡± Meanwhile, Grandpa spoke in a firm tone. ¡°Skipping meals and pouring coffee, candy and medicine to do research is no longer allowed.¡± I coughed. My stomach churned, and I secretly tried to take some stomach medicine. ¡°Anyway, go ahead and appease your pet.¡± Really, the situation itself was very embarrassing. It was awkward to brazenly say in front of Grandpa that I was the owner of Peep from today¡­ So I decided to express only very slightly that I took his advice. ¡°Yes, I got it. I¡¯ll chase after her right away and soothe her fragile ego, and I¡¯ll also fix her whining habit. Taking my grandfather¡¯s advice to heart, I am now reborn as the true master of Peep.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s a joke¡­¡± Then I immediately started running to my room, which Peep flew to. ©¤?? At that time. A guest hurriedly came to Heaton¡¯s office in the Imperial Palace. ¡°Your Highness!¡± It was Rodrigo. Rodrigo had run to Heaton right after meeting Kiana. ¡°You come here too often.¡± Heaton sighed lightly. ¡°You know that we are not accepting guests because of His Majesty¡¯s illness. No matter how much it is me, if you keep visiting me like this, it¡¯ll catch the attention of the imperial doctors.¡± ¡°Only this time!¡± Without even a greeting, Rodrigo sat down in front of Heaton and started talking to him. ¡°Please help me just this time.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°I have a favor to ask.¡± Heaton looked at Rodrigo with a cold face, then quickly erased his expression. Rodrigo didn¡¯t notice the change in demeanor and went on. ¡°Kiana Prelai¡­ I want to marry the princess.¡± Rodrigo¡¯s grasp of the situation itself was not very slow. After he exchanged a few words with Kiana, he noticed that she was no longer obsessed with him. ¡°What else can I say? You can do it if you want to.¡± Heaton smiled grimly and spoke as if it was nothing. ¡°If it¡¯s that princess, doesn¡¯t she already have a crush on you?¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Rodrigo bit his lower lip for a moment, and he replied in a sullen tone. ¡°She seems to have changed her mind. Because it started when she was young.¡± ¡°Oops.¡± Heaton turned his gaze back to the papers he was looking at, seemingly unimpressed. ¡°I think it will be easy if Your Highness helps me a little.¡± Rodrigo continued with twinkling eyes. ¡°Isn¡¯t it true that I tried to marry someone of the Duchy of Prelai? The breakup with Melissa was very one-sided, so if Your Highness can directly hold them responsible for it¡­¡± ¡°Rodrigo.¡± Heaton said lowly. ¡°You know, I listened to your unreasonable request last time. I sent your brother out to battle on the borders, didn¡¯t I? Is that not enough?¡± ¡°Instead, he made my mark there and came back earlier than expected and further gained my father¡¯s approval!¡± The Duchy of Purves was a place where succession was based on ability. So, the second son, Rodrigo, was also aiming to become the successor. Until now, however, he had been losing to his oldest brother. His personal ability was no match for his brother, so Rodrigo was trying to increase his value with his connections. ¡°But marriage is different. There is no marriage in the empire like with the Duchy of Prelai.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°At this point, we have to consider the very slim possibility that Kiana will be coaxing her family. Please press the marriage as soon as possible.¡± With a disapproving look on his face, Heaton remained silent. ¡°Your Highness.¡± Noticing the strange atmosphere, Rodrigo subtly lowered his voice. ¡°We are close friends. Your Highness must listen to my request. Actually, it¡¯s nothing compared to what I¡¯ve done for Your Highness.¡± Heaton¡¯s eyes narrowed. Yes, it was true that he had been helped in the past. And after that, they became best friends and hung out. ¡°The real power of this palace is Your Highness¡­¡± Rodrigo said with a servile smile. ¡°No matter how powerful Prelai is, they won¡¯t be able to do anything about Your Highness¡¯ suggestion. You are the next emperor.¡± It had already been seven years since the emperor was bedridden with a chronic illness. Despite the efforts of all the talented doctors, his condition did not improve. Still, the emperor did not appoint Heaton as crown prince. It was because the body of the crown prince who disappeared six years ago had not yet been found. In any case, it was true that after the crown prince disappeared, Heaton became the real power of the Imperial Palace. The emperor was ill and the empress had been living in isolation since the crown prince disappeared. In his youth, the emperor had several empresses for diplomatic reasons, but her hand was precious. Therefore, he had only three children¡ª the crown prince, the son of the empress, Heaton, the son of the third empress, and Celiette, the daughter of the fifth empress. Celiette was behind Heaton in the line of succession, and her birth mother had died prematurely, leaving her without any support. Therefore, she was not even a person to be wary of. Moreover Heaton¡¯s birth mother, Third Empress Dolores, was holding her own in politics. Nonetheless, Heaton was very annoyed that he was not the crown prince. ¡°Still, I am not the crown prince. Is it possible that my beloved brother might still be alive?¡± When Heaton muttered so, Rodrigo chuckled. ¡°But, isn¡¯t Your Highness already investigating and secretly eliminating all the young men the same age as the crown prince who have blue eyes? Blue eyes themselves are not common, and as you know, there is no way to change the color of the eyes.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°So don¡¯t worry. He must have fallen off a cliff at that time and died.¡± And he lowered her voice to a whisper. ¡°Because I pushed him myself.¡± It was Rodrigo¡¯s way to reassure Heaton and remind him of his help. Heaton stared at Rodrigo. He was a young man who was used because he was said to be the best friend of the missing crown prince. It couldn¡¯t have been a real friendship. For example, he wouldn¡¯t even tell him about his determination to get rid of the Duchy of Prelai, which was disgusting in many ways. Besides, he didn¡¯t like the fact that he kept asking him for favors, and constantly cited the past as if he was threatening. ¡°Yes, Rodrigo.¡± Heaton grinned, changed his attitude, and spoke kindly. ¡°Try to do well with Princess Kiana. I will help at the right time.¡± It would be better if he could tie Rodrigo up with the Duchy of Prelai and send them all away. In any case, there would be one less person who knew the truth. ¡°Princess Kiana¡­ No, you weren¡¯t betrothed to the new priestess, so you can¡¯t just force the princess to get married. However, if she doesn¡¯t have a particularly suitable marriage partner, you may be able to pressure her to think positively.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± Rodrigo grinned and nodded. ¡°Who would be interested in the youngest granddaughter, even if she was offered? Honestly, no one said it because they¡¯re afraid of Duke Prelai, but¡­¡± Rodrigo¡¯s voice got lower. ¡°There¡¯s no way that princess who can¡¯t summon a magic beast is a real Prelai.¡± And he even snickered as if he was having fun. ¡°Anyone can see that she is not of Prelai¡¯s bloodline. It¡¯s unknown why the dukedom is still holding onto her.¡± Laughing heartily at Rodrigo¡¯s words, Heaton immediately wrote a brief letter to Duke Prelai. The content was exactly what he had mentioned to Rodrigo earlier. ¡°Anyway, see.¡± And Heaton shook the letter in front of Rodrigo as if telling him to look. ¡°Then, do well.¡± ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll send it to Prelai¡¯s residence tomorrow morning.¡± Seeing Rodrigo bow down in gratitude, Heaton smiled. And the next morning. With the marriage proposal from Rodrigo, the Duchy of Prelai was completely turned upside down. Ame: An overprotective family never gets old to me :> go gramps and Joshua! Burn that squid dry! + for those who missed my edit last episode, I changed the title for this arc as after reading more, it will fit bette CH 20 ©¤?? I went straight to my room, and found Peep burying her face in my pillow and sobbing. ¡°You said you¡¯re upset, so why did you come here¡­¡± Peep protested, beating the pillow with her small wings. I said I would fix Peep¡¯s whining habit, but at that, I immediately raised a white flag. ¡°Okay¡­ That¡¯s right.¡± My legs loosened at the word ¡®academy¡¯ and I lay down on the bed with a sigh. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have gone there¡­¡± The memory of the last betrayal was enormous. It was more so because the academy supported me. ¡°But Peep, does that mean this is where I belong?¡± I muttered quietly. ¡°No matter how much I search the original, there is not a single scene in which the family reminisces about me during the time I was gone.¡± Peep slowly raised her head and looked at me. Surprisingly¡­ There were no tear marks. Peep didn¡¯t cry at all. As expected, she was on a high level. It was a very sharp point. Then I saw it. Even if it wasn¡¯t me, it was a family that was already broken because they were awkward and not familiar with each other. No combination of family members was on good terms. ¡°You¡­¡± I looked at Peep and asked. ¡°¡­Don¡¯t you miss Melissa?¡± I honestly thought she would. Since she called me ¡®evil master¡¯ all the time. Peep tilted her head to the left, then asked me instead. Look at this. Very good at changing the subject. ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Instead, Melissa must be struggling to save the poor all over the world.¡± I replied indifferently. ¡°You know, I¡¯m narrow-minded and victim-conscious, so thinking about Melissa just makes me unhappy. So I try not to think of her at all.¡± (TL/N: Victim consciousness is a stage of consciousness in which people deny personal responsibility for the things that happen in their lives. People in victim consciousness believe that the world is acting upon or against them, and they are the innocent targets of other people¡¯s action or behavior.) The memories of Melissa, which I learned with the regression, were warm. In addition to being obsessed over by Rodrigo and Heaton, she was the crush of many other men. ¡®What¡­ Is it natural for Melissa to be kind?¡¯ Even when bullied in the social world, she persevered with steadfastness and courage. Even the family members who were indifferent to each other at least said hello to her. Because she always approached first with a smile. ¡°Thinking about it, it¡¯s like she¡¯s only being exploited by me in this life.¡± When I spoke weakly and looked at Peep, she tilted her head to the other side and said, ¡°¡­Okay?¡± What. That was a very interesting statement. Maybe it worked to pretend to be a little pitiful, as Peep seemed to have forgotten that she was upset. Of course, my mind was spinning as soon as Peep said ¡®I can be even faster.¡¯ Melissa didn¡¯t make Peep do anything special. Because it wasn¡¯t a particularly useful ability. ¡®Then can the delivery time be shortened by repeating the delivery? If the time can be shortened, can she be trained to carry heavier things?¡¯ Peep shouldn¡¯t have said ¡®work went better than expected¡¯ in front of a professor. Since I instinctively thought of how to work more efficiently. ¡®For now, I have to make her work non-stop.¡¯ ¡®If I say it now, it will cause an uproar. I¡¯ll sneakily try a little tomorrow.¡¯ ¡°That¡¯s¡­ because the circumstances are different.¡± Peep seemed to be sincerely admiring, so I answered with equal sincerity. ¡°It¡¯s because of the normal force.¡± ¡°We can all stand on the ground thanks to the force that supports objects in opposite directions to gravity.¡± <¡­If only magic engineering is ruined.> ©¤?? ¡°What should we do, Princess!¡± As soon as I woke up from sleeping in, the spy maid came running, her steps thundering. ¡°The Duchy of Purves has sent a marriage proposal to the Princess, and it¡­¡± I yawned once and answered slowly. ¡°Does it contain Prince Heaton¡¯s opinion?¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Her spy maid opened her eyes wide and opened her mouth. ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°Other than the imperial family, is there any other family above Prelai? And if anyone from the imperial family dared to speak about this marriage, it would be Prince Heaton.¡± I responded calmly and stood up. A sigh came out. Rodrigo moved much faster than I thought. Of course, it wasn¡¯t unexpected. I was the one who covered my dorm room with sticky notes and thought of all the possibilities. Since I got information about the original work, I already had a plan to deal with this much. Even in the original, Rodrigo used this method to get Melissa. He enclosed a letter of opinion from his close friend, Prince Heaton, to pressure the Prelai family. It was only natural that at this point, Heaton was the only person who could hold down the Prelai Dukedom with power. ¡®And then he was in great pain because he wanted Melissa too. A scumbag who covets his friend¡¯s fianc¨¦e.¡¯ Prince Heaton, who had Melissa in mind later, changed his words, and it fizzled out. But now Heaton didn¡¯t even know my face. So, without any internal conflict, he would issue an order like ¡®Prelai, take responsibility for the wedding with Rodrigo¡¯. Surprisingly, there was only one excuse for disobeying the order. If it was an arranged marriage, it had to be done according to the advice of the imperial family. However, it would be different if there was already a partner. It was perfect as breaking apart a couple in love could be interpreted as the imperial family abusing their authority. ¡®So, if there¡¯s a man I have a connection to, I can just say I will get engaged to him.¡¯ However, this plan had two weak points. The first was that there was no man I have a connection to, and the second was that no matter how much I planned to get out of the house, it was a total loss if the owner of the house, my grandfather, would not allow it. After all, Grandpa was the head of Prelai, and wouldn¡¯t it be more reasonable to make decisions for the whole of Prelai than for me alone, who has a high probability of not being blood related? Still, I couldn¡¯t marry Rodrigo. And I did help Hou yesterday. I sighed once and stood up slowly. ¡°First, let¡¯s go to Grandpa.¡± ©¤?? ¡°What?¡± Joshua jumped up after hearing the informant¡¯s words. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that crazy guy?¡± The news that Rodrigo had sent a marriage pressure letter to the ducal residence was delivered immediately. ¡°I! I don¡¯t particularly care for Kiana!¡± In a rage, Joshua rummaged through his closet and put on the most flashy, logo-studded clothes. ¡°Still! I can¡¯t take that petty blackmailer as a brother-in-law!¡± He also picked out limited-edition shoes that he didn¡¯t wear often as he usually saves them. ¡°Uh, where are you going?¡± Joshua gnashed his teeth in response to the informant¡¯s urgent question. ¡°The mansion!¡± Joshua, who even wore shiny cufflinks, hurriedly headed to the ducal residence. He was heading home for two consecutive days. To be honest, Prelai and Purves were an acceptable combination. Alex was so obviously crazy that it was virtually impossible to connect with a high-status young lady. She might be able to live off his face for a day or two, but it was clear that any woman of even the slightest culture would not be able to stand Alex¡¯s rough words and actions. And Joshua was a celibate. Kiana didn¡¯t remember because she was young, but Joshua remembered how close their parents were. The expression of the happy couple, who seemed to be dripping with honey just by looking at each other, was clear in his mind. Every night, their mother even whispered in a warm voice, ¡®Mom loves you so much. My family, let¡¯s be happy forever.¡¯ And yet, one day, suddenly throwing everyone away¡­ Joshua didn¡¯t want to create a family. And Melissa became a priestess of the monastery. She was now a person who could not be married for the rest of her life. ¡®In the end, only Kiana can marry a high-ranking noble¡­¡¯ Kiana¡¯s reputation was at what one would call ¡®rock-bottom¡¯. Looking at it objectively, if it¡¯s the Second Prince of Purves, Prelai would be in a position to say ¡®thank you¡¯. If there wasn¡¯t pressure from Prince Heaton, they didn¡¯t even have a reason to refuse. ¡®But I don¡¯t like what that bastard is doing!¡¯ So Joshua, gnashing his teeth, stormed into the ducal residence. Immediately, he received a report from a servant that Kiana was in Seukali¡¯s office. It was when Joshua slammed the door open. ¡°Grandpa.¡± Kiana¡¯s clear voice was heard. Ame: ¡®_¡¯ I have a feeling Peep is really originally Kiana¡¯s summon, but so far in both timelines, Melissa doesn¡¯t seem like a white lotus¡­? CH 21 ¡°Since I fixed Hou, please do me one favor. I don¡¯t want to marry that Rodrigo.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I have a pretty good idea. A way to easily overcome Prince Heaton¡¯s pressure¡­¡± ¡°Kiana!¡± Seukali yelled as if it was absurd. He definitely looked angry. ¡®Ah¡­ Is it difficult to completely ignore imperial pressure?¡¯ Just as Joshua let out a deep sigh and strode into the office, trying to side with Kiana. ¡°Kiana, hold on. Just listen to me.¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t be angry. I¡¯ve already roughly thought of everything¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m mad at you.¡± Seukali firmly cut Kiana off. ¡°You didn¡¯t need to fix Hou to ask me a favor.¡± Hou, who had recovered quite a bit and was in the office rather than the greenhouse, widened his eyes and flapped his wings indignantly. ¡°Of course that¡¯s a good thing!¡± It was a mess. Regardless, Seukali looked straight into Kiana¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°All you have to say is, ¡®I don¡¯t want to marry that bastard.¡¯¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Remember. From now on, you just have to say what you want.¡± Kiana had a resolute face as she looked at Seukali, but she muttered rather timidly. ¡°But it¡¯s true that he had engagement talks with Melissa¡­¡± ¡°Do you think if she didn¡¯t become a priestess, she would have been quietly betrothed to Rodrigo?¡± Seukali reacted sharply. Kiana nodded coldly. ¡°Right, Grandpa¡­ You are surprisingly insightful. If it¡¯s Melissa, she would have rumors of infidelity with numerous men, and the engagement would drag on all year long.¡± It was a simple yet detailed prediction, too quick to agree. Looking at such a Kiana, Seukali slowly said, ¡°Anyway, just ignore this.¡± And he tore up the letter from Heaton. ¡°¡­Yes?¡± ¡°Besides, it would be difficult to get along with Prince Heaton even if your marriage went according to his will.¡± Tossing the fragments of the letter in the trash, Seukali looked at Joshua and asked sullenly. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ That is¡­¡± Joshua realized he no longer had anything to do in this house. ¡°I will go.¡± So he immediately shut the door and left the office. And after lingering in front of the door for a while, he muttered so loudly that it could be heard even at the back of the office. ¡°Well, I wonder if someone will see me off¡­¡± The office was silent. ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m a noble myself, so according to etiquette, I can¡¯t go out alone, right?¡± The office was still silent. ¡°Since Grandpa has bad legs, shouldn¡¯t the younger one come out?¡± Eventually, the door burst open. Kiana came out with an expression that seemed to say many things. She stared at him. Joshua shrugged his shoulders and said, ¡°As expected, you couldn¡¯t bear to let me go off alone, so you came out to see me off?¡± ¡°What.¡± Kiana answered bluntly. ¡°Why will I walk you out? I¡¯m just going to exercise.¡± Joshua laughed. ¡°Why do I want you to walk me out? I¡¯m just going to exercise.¡± ¡°What kind of exercise? Walking exercise? Breathing exercise?¡± Weren¡¯t these the same words she spat when he tried to see her off when she came to his house? It was so cute that Joshua gazed at her a little more. ¡°What exercise? The exercise of bringing your brother out? Ah, let¡¯s seriously not talk about walking or breathing.¡± Kiana glanced at Joshua and replied as she walked straight. ¡°Constant velocity motion.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°It is motion with constant speed.¡± ¡°¡­If only magic engineering is ruined.¡± ©¤?? An informant brought news of Rodrigo¡¯s marriage proposal to Marquis Cesare¡¯s residence. ¡°Ragnac.¡± Like a painting, Cesare sat resting his chin on his fist and listened to the report, then lazily uttered. ¡°I can¡¯t pretend not to know the plight of a benefactor. I guess I¡¯m going to go for a walk in the capital tonight.¡± ¡°Oh, oh, tonight?¡± Ragnac asked with trembling eyes. ¡°Too¡­ I think you¡¯re in too much of a hurry. You always emphasized that the relationship between you and the princess was ¡®a simple relationship where we can only use each other¡¯. But the reason for doing this¡­?¡± ¡°It¡¯s what I was originally going to do.¡± Cesare calmly replied and laughed fiercely. ¡°It¡¯s just a matter of getting the timing right.¡± ©¤?? Joshua climbed into the carriage with an awkward expression. ¡°It bothers me very much that servants keep looking at my head, so I have to go quickly.¡± According to the spy maid, when Joshua left, he said something like, ¡®If I come back here, my head is not normal.¡¯ I also felt awkward as I looked at Joshua, who had climbed into the carriage. It was the first time I saw Joshua since we abruptly parted yesterday because of Peep. In other words, it meant that yesterday¡¯s conversation hadn¡¯t ended properly. I thought we were like strangers, but the realization came flooding in that it wasn¡¯t to that extent. Then wouldn¡¯t it be possible to trust a little¡­ a little more than I thought? As much as the number of letters I didn¡¯t know, as much as the loneliness of the graduation ceremony without a bouquet of flowers¡­ ¡®If all of us had joined hands and prepared before the regression, the result could have been different.¡¯ But ultimately, this bean flour family could not cooperate at all, and were struck in the back. The members of this family had excellent individual abilities, but that was all. We did not have the minimum personality, so we couldn¡¯t overcome the crisis by sticking together as a family. ¡®This time, we¡­ We should try to do even a little bit of cooperation.¡¯ Everything could have been a lot easier if I didn¡¯t struggle alone and trusted my family bit by bit. ¡°Hey, Brother.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Are you going to look into His Highness the Crown Prince?¡± If the reply was uncooperative as yesterday¡¯s, I would try to explain it in more detail. However, Joshua gave a different answer. ¡°I thought that the plump prince who ate happily was already dead. But, well, it¡¯s not like I know everything. I¡¯ll investigate first.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°For example I¡­ I didn¡¯t even know Hou was hurt like that. I didn¡¯t even know he was sleeping in the greenhouse. Just¡­¡± His eyes sank. ¡°¡­I just thought he went somewhere far away to carry out Grandpa¡¯s orders. He often did.¡± Well, there was no way that the unfilial grandson, who didn¡¯t even care about his grandfather, would care about his grandfather¡¯s summon. ¡°And I have no idea when, where, or why he was poisoned so badly.¡± ¡°¡­I guess that¡¯s something that Grandpa would never tell us about.¡± Yesterday, I subtly asked why Hou was so hurt, but Grandpa didn¡¯t answer. Hou also immediately shut up on related topics. ¡°Then, Brother.¡± I spoke in a low tone, looking at Joshua. ¡°Can you also investigate when Hou has not been seen?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s not that difficult.¡± Joshua shrugged his shoulders once and replied indifferently. ¡°Anyway.¡± Then he got into the carriage and looked at me. ¡°I¡¯m glad the marriage ended well.¡± ¡°Did it really end¡­?¡± I let out a sigh and clicked my tongue. Grandpa¡¯s ignoring solution wasn¡¯t bad. After all, Rodrigo and I weren¡¯t officially related. But for me who knew the future, it wasn¡¯t a particularly welcome solution. ¡®I still don¡¯t know what Prince Heaton is thinking. I don¡¯t have to feel anxious.¡¯ In any case, it was the opinion of the imperial family. They liked a soft refusal with a justification over blatant ignoring. Even if I made a cause like ¡®I don¡¯t like Prince Rodrigo anymore¡¯, it was obvious that it would not work because of what I had done in the past. If the answer came back as ¡®You were so obsessed, but it was just a momentary whim? Let¡¯s take some time and try again¡¯, there was nothing I could say. So I needed a justification that didn¡¯t even have a little room. For example, such as having a lover. ¡°Joshua, and¡­¡± I grabbed Joshua and made another request. ¡°Find someone. Probably in the capital city. I want to meet him, but the sooner the better.¡± ¡°Finding people is my specialty. Who?¡± ¡°Marquis Cesare Levin.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Joshua blinked and tilted his head. ¡°Why are you looking for that shitty bastard?¡± ¡­Shitty bastard? Ame: y¡¯know it¡¯s gonna be fun when brother calls ml ¡®shitty bastard¡¯ CH 22 As for Marquis Cesare Levin¡­ Actually, I only knew his name. But I had heard his name so much that I was sick of it. ¡°Marquis Cesare Levin made a huge donation for this research. He only picked Professor Kiana Prelai.¡± That man was the one who often asked the academy to develop magic tools. He paid so much money that I faintly remember his name. When I became a professor before I regressed, he even commissioned me directly. The academy strictly controlled the entry of outsiders, so I had never seen his face. I just wanted the money to rot every time a request came in¡­ ¡°This person will pay more if you hold out. So let¡¯s refuse a little longer.¡± The dean could smell money well, so he deliberately delayed accepting the research request. At that time, Marquis Levin really just raised the money, as if saying ¡®Please accept my request quickly.¡¯ ¡°No, can I just keep putting it off like this? And if this person dies¡­¡± ¡°He is a strong, young, unmarried man. He lives in the imperial capital and hasn¡¯t had a girlfriend in years, so it must be that he¡¯s just crazy about magic tools.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± A rich man who kept sending money to a rural academy to develop a specific magic tool¡­ In one glance, he was not a normal human being. But it was important that he was a person who clearly wanted what I have. So I should be able to strike a deal for a fake love affair. No matter how much it was a deal, it was not an easy decision to fake a relationship. Nonetheless, it was clear that he was really not interested in women. In the original, he was not entangled with Melissa at all. Marquis Cesare Levin often appeared in the original, and there was no doubt that he was a rather handsome man, enough to make Melissa think that he was a ¡®handsome person.¡¯ But he really didn¡¯t have any interaction with Melissa, and he didn¡¯t do anything to warrant a description. He was handsome, but not particularly impressive. Literally, ¡®just a supporting role¡¯ in the original. I didn¡¯t know who he was, but he was the best I could get now. ¡°Joshua, by the way, I think the previous Marquis Levin was in his 60s¡­ Doesn¡¯t he have no children? Did he take a collateral blood relative as his successor?¡± Back when the dean said ¡®a young unmarried man living in the capital¡¯, I was not interested and just ignored it. But now that I needed accurate information, I prodded Joshua more. ¡°That¡¯s not true, three years ago, there was a great uproar when barbarians invaded the western Levin territory? At that time, a young man suddenly appeared and led the battle to victory and saved the life of the Marquis Levin at that time.¡± The Levin territory was always attacked by barbarians as if it was a free-for-all. But now that I think about it, at some point, I stopped hearing rumors that there was another invasion. I was only studying magic engineering. I wasn¡¯t interested in history, geography, or social trends, so this was all new. ¡°After that, it¡¯s said that the young man completely destroyed the barbarians and made the Levin territory peaceful. Besides, all barbarians that can be reformed have been made into private soldiers of the Marquisate of Levin.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°So their military has grown so much that even the imperial palace is wary, but since they can¡¯t incorporate the barbarians into the imperial army, they¡¯re just watching.¡± ¡°Aha, is that so?¡± ¡°Marquis Levin, who had no children, therefore adopted the commoner and passed on his title to him.¡± ¡°Wait a second. A commoner?¡± ¡°Yes. A commoner of unknown origin. He was an orphan who lived at the foot of the mountain working on the fields, so he didn¡¯t even have an identification card.¡± No, what kind of commoner could spend so much? When I thought of the research funds he poured into the academy¡­ he acted like he was born rich. I rolled my eyes with suspicion. Joshua¡¯s words continued. ¡°He came to the capital a year ago after taking good care of the Levin territory. No one knows why. He doesn¡¯t go to social events, so he doesn¡¯t have close friends.¡± The conclusion was ¡®I don¡¯t know¡¯. Joshua didn¡¯t even know where he was really from. I tilted my head and asked sharply. ¡°Then how did you know he is shitty? You said he had no friends.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Joshua replied with genuine displeasure. ¡°I don¡¯t remember the details, but¡­ he wasn¡¯t even wearing famous designer clothes, yet he was more handsome than me. I remember it was really annoying.¡± It seemed to be true that he was handsome as described in the original. That was good news for me. To be honest, I was thinking of proposing a contract relationship because he was someone who met the right conditions, but if I was going to go out with someone, I preferred a good-looking person. He did seem like a not-normal human, but if he was going to be weird, a handsome one would be better. ¡°Anyway, goodbye. I need to see him as soon as possible, so please tell me where Marquis Cesare Levin is.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll figure out the location and let you know right away. But why do you want to meet Marquis Cesare Levin?¡± Joshua seemed worried. So I kindly told him not to worry. ¡°Take care and go away.¡± After sending Joshua away, I immediately turned to the spy maid. ¡°Spy, I have to go out today as well, but before that, a cup of coffee¡­¡± ¡°Wait a minute, Princess.¡± The spy maid cut me off with a terrifying look on her face. It was so scary that even the most daring knight could not help but be taken aback. ¡°Did you forget the duke¡¯s order?¡± ¡°¡­Huh?¡± I searched my memory, but there was nothing about receiving a restraining order. ¡°Eat first. From now on, you have to eat your meals on time.¡± Come to think of it, Grandpa gave the spy maid an order yesterday, to ¡®Take care of my [her] meals and sleep.¡¯ ¡°And coffee will be difficult, Princess.¡± The spy maid was very firm. She looked very confident, probably because she had a greater power behind her back. ¡°The duke also told me to ban coffee and candy beyond the proper amount for the time being.¡± ¡°Who decides the appropriate amount!¡± ¡°The duke¡¯s doctor.¡± Hmm, based on the situation, I guess I would have to try bribing the doctor. ¡°Is his doctor still Kylon?¡± ¡°Yes, Princess.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ He has been around since I was little, so he has been doing this for quite a while.¡± ¡°Anyway, you have to eat first.¡± ¡°¡­Yes¡­¡± I slightly shrugged my shoulders at the spy maid¡¯s formidable force. After forcibly finishing a meal with all kinds of nutrients, it was afternoon. The person sent by Joshua arrived at the ducal residence. You want me to tell you where Marquis Cesare Levin is now? ¡°Uh¡­ hmm¡­¡± I read the contents of the letter and frowned. ¡°¡­Clubhouse?¡± There¡­ It was an illegal gambling place. Peep, who was sitting on top of my head, tilted her head and said. ¡°I know¡­¡± In fact, Joshua also had a similar postscript at the end of his letter. If it¡¯s not urgent, you can meet him later. Don¡¯t go to places like the Clubhouse. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± The Clubhouse¡­ According to the original, it was a place where I had to take care of one day. Well, it seemed like it would be okay if today was the day to take care of it and meet Cesare. ¡°Spy, let¡¯s go.¡± After a moment of thought, I jumped up and told the spy maid. ¡°Make me look fierce. I have to break into an illegal gambling house today.¡± ¨C Scene 2. Someone Is Back The ¡®Clubhouse¡¯ was a resting place where the so-called ¡®louts¡¯ of the rich gathered and held various social gatherings. However, like most closed gatherings, a hedonistic and decadent culture took root before anyone realized. The clubhouse had no windows. That¡¯s why they were able to kill time forever in a splendid and dreamy atmosphere. Those who entered this place all wore fancy masks, relying on anonymity to easily become debauched. There were people who played bowling while drinking, and a small group playing pool. There was also a large gambling room where one could play cards or roulette. Naturally, gambling establishments were illegal. However, since the clubhouse was so closed and the main officials often used it, even if there was a crackdown, everyone would let it pass. Among them, there were two men who ordered strong alcohol while hiding their identities from the people. It was Cesare and Ragnac. Their eyes were silently fixed on the gambling hall. ¡°Marquis, really¡­ today¡­¡± Cesare nodded at Ragnac¡¯s cautious murmur. ¡°Yes. today.¡± Cesare grinned, not moving. Ragnac swallowed a dry spit. Then he looked at their target, a middle-aged man. Orca Sedes. He belonged to the imperial knights and was in charge of swordsmanship lessons for young members of the imperial family. Then, after suddenly retiring five years ago, he wasted his fortune day by day in the club house gambling hall. ¡°It¡¯s strange.¡± Cesare smiled languidly and muttered, ¡°He can be at the clubhouse gambling den every day and not go bankrupt. He wouldn¡¯t have had much retirement funds.¡± He was also a member of the hunting trip where the crown prince went missing six years ago. Of course he was, since Orca was the crown prince¡¯s swordsmanship teacher. The hunting trip was made up of people closest to the crown prince, and it was truly a gathering for the crown prince. ¡°Someone¡­¡± Cesare stared at Orca, who looked several years older than he should be, drunk with alcohol and pleasure. ¡°¡­It looks like someone gave him a lot of money.¡± Orca giggled, betting a lot, winning and losing. It was when Cesare, who had been quietly gazing at him, cautiously got up. ¡°¡­¡­.¡± The eyes of Ragnac, which had been following Cesare, widened. A young woman haughtily walked over and sat down at the blackjack table with the Orca. Although she wore a yellow bird-shaped mask, if she had such a vivid plaid dress and even a plaid ribbon¡­ ¡°That, that, that woman¡­¡± Looking very frightening with his large body despite a bear mask, Ragnac asked seriously. ¡°¡­Isn¡¯t that Princess Kiana?¡± Cesare¡¯s eyes narrowed. Ragnac added breathlessly. ¡°Princess Kiana, whom the Marquis proclaimed to be ¡®just using each other¡¯!¡± Ame: I just wanna say, the hangul for ¡®crown prince¡¯ and ¡®Cesare¡¯ are very similar¡­ CH 23 Cesare looked at Kiana in silence. Ragnac blinked, and also fixed his gaze on her. The petite woman casually sat at the blackjack table and bet her chips. She even looked more childish than usual, perhaps because she had a yellow lark with a checkered ribbon on her lap. However, it was quite impressive to see her proceeding with the game without hesitation. Cesare¡¯s eyes narrowed as well, not knowing Kiana would come here. ¡°¡­What is that game about?¡± Ragnac, who knew nothing about card games, whispered. Cesare explained the bare minimum. ¡°If the combined score of the card numbers is closer to 21 points, it¡¯s a gamble to win.¡± ¡°How do you get the cards?¡± ¡°The dealer will give it to you at random until that deck is gone.¡± It was then. Kiana had been playing the game normally, including betting normally. But suddenly, she shoved a colossal amount of chips onto the table. Then she spoke in a clear and loud voice, ¡°I¡¯ll bet everything on this.¡± For a moment, everyone¡¯s eyes focused on the blackjack table. It was such a great amount. Maybe the equivalent of the money going around this whole clubhouse. Even if she was a princess of Prelai, that was no different than betting her entire fortune. Even Cesare and Ragnac, who were about to face a big problem, held their breath. ¡°Now¡­ Doesn¡¯t Princess Kiana not know what card she gets?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Gosh¡­¡± Usually, one would bet before the dealer revealed the last card. So it was really a gamble. To bet that much money on a game where you didn¡¯t even know your cards¡­ Everyone was looking at Kiana like she was crazy. In that serious atmosphere, Kiana opened the cards given by the dealer. ©¤?? The spy maid behind me looked like she was about to cry. It was understandable. Before I came, I had scraped together my budget. And all that money was changed to chips at an illegal gambling house. She almost fainted when after that, I sat down at the table casually. I instructed Peep earlier, ¡®I don¡¯t want any noise, so pretend to be a doll¡¯. Then, Peep didn¡¯t even move. In the meantime, she even gave advice to the spy maid. Anyway, I played game after game, betting a small amount of money each time. Still, I was watching closely as the dealer dealt cards from the deck. And¡­ ¡®It¡¯s now.¡¯ When I was sure, I easily pushed all my chips onto the table. ¡°I¡¯ll bet everything on this.¡± I could feel the attention being drawn to me. Of course, since the amount of money I bet was really great. While everyone was murmuring, I just laughed quietly. ¡°Well, then¡­ We will open.¡± After all the betting was over, the dealer opened the cards. In an instant, the table was noisy. ¡°No, what is this?¡± ¡°Is, is it possible?¡± ¡°What kind of nonsense¡­¡± Everyone who saw the results was amazed. I was the only one who remained calm. The sum of my card numbers was 20. It was closer to 21 than any other person¡¯s cards at the table. There was nothing unusual. I got up from my seat with my usual expression, not agitated at all. ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll end here. Spy, bring all the chips over.¡± It was a truly enormous amount because others had to match my bet. And although the spy maid was dumbfounded, she was diligently sweeping up the chips. ¡°One moment.¡± One of the people at the table jumped up and got angry. ¡°This, isn¡¯t there something?¡± He seemed quite agitated for he accidentally spit as he rambled on. ¡°Does it make sense for a girl I¡¯ve never seen before to come and play and then suddenly sweep it all away like this?¡± I looked at my opponent, completely relaxed. That¡¯s right, someone like this should come out by now. It couldn¡¯t be described how good it felt when everything worked as expected. So I answered with sincerity. ¡°This would have happened because it made sense, right?¡± I shrugged at the middle-aged man. Anyone could tell with a glance that he was drunk. Clearly, he was an alcoholic gambler. Still, I was polite as I was a courteous princess. ¡°Is there any reason why it doesn¡¯t make sense? Why are you arguing about something that has already happened?¡± ¡°This, this is a trick! It¡¯s a trick!¡± Hmm. Apparently, the middle-aged man seemed very comfortable with me. Then I should speak comfortably as well. ¡°Looks like you¡¯re quite a gambler, to the extent that you even call me, who is wearing a mask, a ¡®girl I¡¯ve never seen before¡¯¡­¡± I scanned the man from head to toe. He was big, and his hands were full of calluses; he probably held a sword for quite a bit. However, he must have lived dissolutely for a long time for his body was not taken care of at all. ¡®He¡¯s just an ordinary gambling addict.¡¯ Thus, I advised with a sincere and warm heart. ¡°Saying it¡¯s a trick when you¡¯re not good at grasping cards? If it¡¯s like that, I think you¡¯d better just stop gambling here. Life will be folded.¡± (TL/N: ¡®folded¡¯ as in ¡®giving up¡¯ or ¡®lost¡¯ ^^ Our Dr. Kiana is making betting puns now! Just what can she not do?) ¡°What, where? The blood on your head hasn¡¯t even dried yet!¡± [TL/N: a Korean idiom to say a person is too young and inexperienced to be doing something or acting a certain (usually rude/arrogant) way. The English equivalent will probably be ¡®you¡¯re still wet behind your ears¡¯.] ¡°What and where, we¡¯re at the gambling house. And no one should ever have blood on their head. Why are losers so talkative?¡± ¡°Hey! Do you know who I am, huh? Do you know where I used to be from!¡± ¡°How will I know, loser who is wearing a mask? I¡¯m a current high-ranking noble, and I¡¯m not interested in other people¡¯s past? Why are you talking about gambling when you¡¯ve lost? I don¡¯t think the loser should do that.¡± ¡°You, I am¡­!¡± ¡°What? I can¡¯t hear the voice of the loser well as the chips are rattling?¡± ¡°Really¡­!¡± He jumped up and grabbed my wrist, which was holding the cards. ¡°You must have done something to the cards!¡± With that momentum, the people at the other tables also began to murmur. ¡°Isn¡¯t that a bit strange?¡± ¡°Yes. Suddenly, betting a lot of money¡­¡± ¡°Do you think it¡¯s her first time here?¡± ¡®Good, good. Keep thinking. The more controversy there is, the better.¡¯ I calmly waited without retorting even as the middle-aged man squeezed my wrist. Meanwhile, the atmosphere gradually became more and more ugly and violent. Finally, the person I was waiting for appeared. ¡°Ah, just a moment¡­ Please calm down.¡± The person who slipped over was a man with a smooth voice. ¡°Dear guest, violence is troublesome.¡± The man removed the middle-aged man¡¯s hand from my wrist and pulled him away from me. And he spoke in a soft voice akin to the flowing water. ¡°I am the owner of this place.¡± A moment of silence passed. The middle-aged man also hesitated. ¡°If there is a problem, of course our clubhouse should check it out.¡± All eyes were on the owner of the clubhouse. Absolutely. As no one else, but the owner himself appeared. A man whose identity was shrouded in a veil, who appeared only when a really big problem arose. Every night, the clubhouse was flooded with dark money. Originally, the person who made the most money in a gambling house was not a gambler. It was the owner of the house. It was clear that he was amassing an enormous fortune here. ¡°Hmm, but¡­¡± I quietly observed the owner. The colorful mask he was wearing had a large designer logo engraved on it. It looked like it was personally commissioned and specially made. Even the clothes were full of logos of famous luxury goods. And well-maintained, fine-grained blond hair was long and flowing. ¡°From our observation, it doesn¡¯t seem like this lady is cheating. In fact, it¡¯s obvious that she¡¯s not good at cards.¡± In the dreamy atmosphere, the owner spoke softly. ¡°It looks like she is new to the clubhouse, but it seems she has had beginner¡¯s luck. Isn¡¯t that the magic of gambling?¡± The owner with a sturdy physique easily overpowered the middle-aged man and put him back in his seat. Then he turned his face towards me and said respectfully. ¡°Our house did lose a lot of money because of the lady. But we will accept it neatly.¡± CH 24 I stared at the owner. Because of the mask, it was not possible to identify the facial features. However, everything from the earring in one ear to the ring, belt and shoes were all luxury items. There were large logos on them. ¡°Hmm, well¡­¡± I got up slowly and held the owner¡¯s hands tightly as if expressing gratitude. Then I said with a frown. ¡°It¡¯s not beginner¡¯s luck or the magic of gambling, it¡¯s just a bit of intelligence.¡± It was then. Peep, who was pretending to be a doll in my arms, suddenly flew up. With her beak, she violently peeled off the owner¡¯s mask. ¡°What is this!¡± The owner tried to cover his face quickly. But at that critical moment, I was tightly holding his hands, so he missed the timing. With that, the face of the owner was revealed in the clubhouse. Instantly, the clubhouse became noisy. ¡°Who, who is that?!¡± ¡°Arrest him!¡± Immediately, several guards who had been hiding their identity in the gambling house rose up and arrested the owner. ¡°It¡¯s Arlene Kerf! There¡¯s a bounty!¡± With the appearance of the hidden guards, the inside of the clubhouse quickly became a mess. The face behind the mask was strange. It was filled with confusion. Well, it was understandable since his mask was abruptly removed and he was captured by the guards. Relaxed, I looked at him and shrugged. ¡°Oh, I thought you¡¯re Joshua, huh¡­ The unsightly outfit, wrapped in luxury goods, is just like Joshua Prelai.¡± Then I hugged Peep again and added. ¡°Really, you deliberately dressed like Joshua? And the hair¡­¡± I tugged his blond hair. ¡°¡­it¡¯s a wig.¡± Naturally, the long blond hair fell off, revealing plain brown hair. ¡°Oh my God!¡± ¡°Actually, I thought he was Prince Prelai too!¡± There were a lot of shouts. Apparently, there were many people who assumed that the owner of the clubhouse was Joshua. Joshua didn¡¯t have a friend who would actively step up and say, ¡®That man isn¡¯t Joshua Prelai.¡¯ So it was a good environment for misunderstandings. ¡°Goodness.¡± I clicked my tongue and said admonished. ¡°You must have been Joshua¡¯s stalker, not Joshua¡­ No, what¡¯s wrong with you, imitating Joshua¡¯s fashion¡­ Do you have nothing else to do?¡± In the original, this was one of Heaton¡¯s traps for Prelai. But in reality, the owner of the clubhouse was Arlene Kerf, a first-class bounty that Heaton was looking after. Instead of going to jail, he struck a deal, doing clean-up and pretending to be Joshua. It was a very deep and dismal trap, based on the obscure source of Joshua¡¯s enormous wealth. Arlene Kerf appeared only when there was a big problem and sorted out the situation. Thus, he was rarely seen¡­ Anyone who saw the clubhouse owner would think it was Joshua. Luxury goods with big logos and long blond hair¡­ He was wearing a mask, so no one could confirm it. But still, all the scoundrels at the clubhouse guessed similarly, muttering in the background, ¡®Joshua is making a lot of money here.¡¯ Surprisingly, Joshua knew about this. But he didn¡¯t really care because he didn¡¯t feel the need to react. He even casually said, ¡®There¡¯s no benefit to him if he imitates me. It seems he¡¯s impressed with my fashion.¡¯ Actually¡­ It was just excessive self-consciousness. He was puffed up with pride, thinking, ¡®He must have wanted to copy me.¡¯ Yes, Joshua¡¯s personality was such that he deeply loved all the attention that was poured on him. When appropriate, Arlene disappeared after the clubhouse closed. Turns out it was to hit Prelai¡¯s head in a way none of us could ever have imagined¡­ Anyway, this was how Heaton had used the clubhouse to make the rumors true. In other words, Joshua¡¯s innocence would be proven only if the owner¡¯s face was revealed before the clubhouse closed. It was something that had to be solved eventually. Hence, I quickly ruined the clubhouse, and used some brains to bring Arlene Kerf in front of me. Since he was a criminal ready to run away at any time, it was useless to attack recklessly. Plus, he was already in collusion with the top of the imperial guards, so even if I officially reported it, it was of no use. So I could only make a pretty big fuss to lure him out. ¡®And the surest and most controversial thing in a gambling house is, of course, getting rich quick.¡¯ I sighed and dropped the card I was holding onto the floor. Gambling wasn¡¯t my thing either. ¡®Ugh, I really don¡¯t have aptitude for games like this where you just spend and spend money¡­ Too shallow and not aristocratic¡­¡¯ ¡°Soy.¡± I ordered firmly. ¡°The clubhouse will be closing soon. Before that happens, quickly exchange these chips for money.¡± There was mayhem in the clubhouse. The once-hidden guards were arresting Arlene and making a mess, searching here and there. Employees were running away and customers were scrambling in confusion. ¡°Quickly, all with gold coins. Before it gets any messier.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± The muscular spy maid disappeared instantly, quicker than anyone else. And soon, a robust man with blue hair stood in front of me. ¡°Thank you, Princess. Thanks to this, I was able to catch the enemy of the family.¡± ¡°Yes, congratulations.¡± I took off my mask and smiled. Then the man standing in front of me also took off his lion-shaped mask. This blue-haired, brown-eyed man¡¯s name was Avian Lisinis. He was the captain of the 5th Guards, one of the capital¡¯s guards. Healthy-looking tanned skin, soft impression, and round eyes that looked kind. Avian was also the second son of Lisinis, one of the only three dukes in the empire. Before coming to the clubhouse, I sent a letter to Avian, which said ¡®If you secretly hide in the clubhouse right now, I¡¯ll let you catch Kerf.¡¯ It was usually impossible to have the guards hide in the clubhouse as to begin with, the imperial guards and the clubhouse were already in collusion. However, the situation changed when the name ¡®Arlene Kerf¡¯ was mentioned. Avian would come unconditionally, even if it was only with a handful of elite guards. The reason Arlene Kerf had a bounty was because he killed the Duchess of Lisinis and escaped. Arlene Kerf, who once worked as a servant for the Lisinis family, killed the duchess and stole her jewelry and fled. After that, Avian, the second son, entered the capital guards on his own accord, saying that he would somehow catch Arlene Kerf. The guards were the largest group of public power in the capital, organized on a merit basis regardless of status. To prevent personal gain, one couldn¡¯t get married even if he or she achieved the position of guard captain. Therefore, it was very rare for a high-ranking noble to join the guard. Therefore, the fact that Avian joined the guard and rose to the rank of captain of the 5th Guard was proof of the enormous resentment he harbored towards Arlene Kerf. Having even lived with Arlene, Avian could recognize him just by looking at his face. ¡®He would be in a frenzy if he knew that the prince was backing Kerf. Please make a fuss.¡¯ I looked into Avian¡¯s eyes and slowly suggested. ¡°There must be someone behind such a heinous criminal doing business openly in the capital. Investigate this first.¡± Then I firmly added. ¡°Directly from the Lisinis family.¡± It meant that you, the party involved, should investigate instead of entrusting it to the guards and the imperial family. Doing so would give less room for Heaton to play around in the middle. I wasn¡¯t sure how loyal Arlene was to Heaton, but it was worth trying. ¡°Yes, I understand. For now, let¡¯s get out of here. It¡¯s a very bad place.¡± For Avian, a solid model student, the clubhouse was clearly terrible. ¡°I only knew this place as a social gathering place for nobles. I didn¡¯t expect it to be such a messy place.¡± Genuine disgust could be felt. ¡°It¡¯s a place that should have been cracked down a long time ago, why is the top condoning it¡­?¡± Avian held out his hand to me like he was going to escort me. I stared at the strong hand for a second.