Vallentin left Siani’s office without saying a word, thinking to himself.
“The deal is done.”
However, as reality slowly set back in, his steps began to slow.
“…Entry permit?”
It was indeed the outcome he had been desperately waiting and hoping for, to the extent that he was willing to go as far as beheading his own father, the king, to achieve it. That all of it was resolved with just this document from Siani was astonishing.
“…”
Vallentin, after looking at the king seal for a while, shifted his gaze out the window. Holding what he had long dreamed of, everything seemed no different than usual. The vast ducal garden, the scattering wind, and the warm sunlight.
“Why do I feel…”
Vallentin’s eyes furrowed. It was astonishing that the stubborn old man had called him, even taking back his words. This meant that upon returning to his homeland, the possibility of succeeding the throne was open.
What’s with this uneasy feeling?
The paper fluttering in his hand felt too light. The easily stamped king seal seemed too trivial. In a word. It’s boring.
The recognition of his father, the status of a prince. The interest that had made him ready to commit parricide had suddenly waned.
“I’ll go, but…” Vallentin looked back at Siani’s office instead of the corridor ahead. “She’s too cruel.”
Remembering the relieved face that said the deal was done made him laugh. Because the desire to conquer always thrilled and delighted him.
“What are you doing there?”
Then, from a distance, Francis and Inein walked up.
“Why did you come?”
“Well, the princess called us. Did she call you too?”
Siani wouldn’t move without a clear purpose. In other words, to put it nicely, she was neat, and to put it bluntly, she didn’t show unnecessary interest to anyone.
“…Why all of a sudden?”
It was strange that she had called the three of them in a row.
“Huh? This is an entry permit!” Francis’s eyes widened when he saw the paper Vallentin was holding. “Congratulations, Vallentin. It’s time to leave.”
“Indeed, the cosmetic research is over, so it’s about time to leave. Congratulations, Bro.”
It was certainly something to congratulate.
“I guess.”
However,
“You all should leave too.”
Vallentin answered with a face that said he wouldn’t die alone. Their gazes toward the closed office seemed to shake as if they were waiting for a death sentence.
* * *
“Here.” I handed the prepared documents to Inein and Francis as well. “The selection of key personnel for the crown prince’s palace will start soon.”
There were various ways to organize the imperial institution. The most common was to receive letters of recommendation from prestigious individuals.
“I wrote these recommendations myself.”
“Are you telling us to go to the crown prince’s palace?” Francis asked with a puzzled face.
Even a clerical position in the parliament was hard to come by, gathering recommendation letters through academic connections, regional ties, and kinship. Yet, their reaction was odd even though someone like me, a power behind the throne, had written them a recommendation for the crown prince’s palace.
“Were you planning to stay here forever?”
I had arranged for them to receive an education equivalent to that of the Imperial Academy for today’s purpose.
“But soon, the crown prince will ascend to the throne, and Vallentin will return to his homeland.” Inein, who rarely took the initiative, spoke for the first time. “If you send us away, there will be no knights directly under Princess left in this Duchy Felicite.”
“You all know.” Surprised by their unexpected words, I crossed my arms and looked at them. “The position of direct knight was a pretext I came up with to get you out of the underground castle.”
“…”
“I never said I would make you my direct knights.”
I had gathered them under the name of direct knights purely out of mutual necessity. In other words, a win-win situation. Surely they wouldn’t have developed loyalty to me. But after finishing speaking, I momentarily doubted.
What’s with those expressions? Having lived so long, I might be numb to emotions, but my ability to notice was like that of a shaman. Just like Vallentin, their expressions were not what I had expected.
“Princess is really…” Francis murmured quietly. “Cold-hearted.”
Hmm?
* * *
It was after sending them off.
“Daisy, who are the junior maids on duty for the orders today?”
“Junior maids? Um, it’s Leizi, Heli and Natasya.”
I thought about whether any of them were similar in build to mine. The first two seemed too small compared to me… Natasya should be about right.
“Tell Natasya I’ll go to submit the order forms instead of her today, so have her clean the office. She shouldn’t come out until I return, so you stay with her.”
“Oh my, why would you do such a thing, Milady? If you have something else to assign, I’d rather go myself.”
“You can’t because you’re my close maid.”
“Huh?” Daisy’s eyes widened at my firm tone.
Someone might be watching me. Through an incident at the magic shop, I was aware that Redian had people following me. But it would be useless to confront or get angry about it. It’s easier to deceive their eyes.
Having dealt with various crazy male leads, I had witnessed their collection of obsessions. Redian was the craziest among those madmen. No matter how much I explained, he wouldn’t understand why stalking and confinement were wrong.
“If you go, it will all be recorded in the entrance log. Obviously, they’ll think you’re acting under my orders.”
I went over the plan in my head once more.
“Most importantly, I have someone I need to meet.”
But before that…
“Do you have the scent pouch I made last time?”
“Ah, the one with the incredibly strong and unique smell? What ingredients did you use to make it, Milady? The smell permeates the entire room where it’s stored!”
I don’t know, but my body might still carry the scent loved by the Devil King.
“Right. Bring that.”
It was essential to be fully prepared.
And that afternoon, wrapped in a robe, I recorded my entry under the name Natasya and headed to the central street.
Hmm, let’s see.
In the original story, from the central fountain, walk fifty steps, then at the corner, pass the red bricks, follow the last letter of the sign, and at the fork, look to the right…
“Is this the spell circle?”
Directly in front of me on the wall was a seemingly meaningless drawing. At a glance, it looks like just old graffiti.
After confirming that not even an ant was passing by, I gently touched the drawing. “Marktub.” As soon as I recited the remembered password, a strange sensation of being pulled occurred.
“Who… are you?”
The wall flipped, revealing a space where I faced a man. Despite the cold look in his eyes, the hot chocolate he was holding gave off a sweet scent.
“If I’ve found my way here, who else could I be?”
The man’s bland gaze scanned me from head to toe. “Ah, a client.”
Yes. This was the unnamed underground guild mentioned in the original story. They would later become a powerful force supporting Redian, who became the emperor, so their information and strength were unquestionably immense.
“I’m sorry, but we’re not accepting requests right now. The atmosphere has been tense lately…” However, the man responded in a kind but soulless tone. “We don’t know when our lord, no, our master will give orders, so all agents are on standby.”
“I’m not here for the agents. I want to buy identity insignias. Maybe two big ones will do.”
Buying and selling identity insignias in the underground guild was a simple task that took less than ten minutes. However, the price I offered was more than double the current market rate.
“Hmm, let’s go inside and talk about the details.”
After a moment of hesitation, the man happily led me inside. The expression on his face was as if selling forged identities was as easy as selling gum.
“Please wait, and a designated agent will assist you.”
The gentle yet dark lighting and a library that filled an entire wall, along with a single black velvet sofa, created an atmosphere that was mystical yet chilly.
“Ipos, you b*stard! I told you not to take requests. It’s been chaotic enough with the lord waking up and all.”
“Identity insignia, two big ones. She’s inside, so just do it.”
“What…? Oh, please come in. Welcome, Lady.”
Amidst the commotion, another man appeared and smiled at me. The instant change in expression was as skilled as changing a mask.
“Do you have a specific identity in mind? With our custom service, we can create a being that has never existed in this world.”
But all of them looked…
As expected. Their fair skin, red lips, and sharp yet smooth eyes would have captivated me if I hadn’t been prepared.
“First, let’s look at the list of identity insignias you have.”
The man pulled a book from the library and approached me. As he got closer…
“Ah…?”
He hesitated as if sensing something.
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