The Time-Limited Villain Supports My Breakup

Chapter 25

｡･:*:･ﾟ★ Translated by Divine ｡･:*:･ﾟ☆

“W-Which one…?”

The owner looked over with a puzzled expression.

After scrutinizing the man from top to bottom, the owner’s eyes lit up, similar to when he saw Daphne.

“Oh, you have a discerning eye!”

Whether he recognized the customer or not, the owner quickly approached him and began chatting away. It was during this interaction that I quietly tried to slip away.

“…Moreover, the price is only 50 gold.”

I paused at the owner’s words.

’50 gold? He clearly told me it was 20 gold, right?’

Without batting an eye, the owner stated a price that was twice as high. 

I checked again just in case, and it was indeed the same one.

“It’s the last one we have. It’s definitely a bargain if you take it now.”

He claimed there were only a few left earlier, but now he was shamelessly saying there was only one left.

In fact, with a simple glance, anyone could see that there were multiple identical bottles still available. 

Moreover, the man was near her just a moment ago. 

If he had intended to buy the potion, he surely would have heard the price.

Blatantly attempting fraud.

‘Who would fall for such a trick? Unless he’s a fool…’

“Yes, then I’ll take this.”

However, the man simply nodded calmly.

I couldn’t help but gape in disbelief.

Was he really going to buy it like that? Was he really a fool?

“Thank you!”

The owner grinned widely with a face like he hit the jackpot. 

“I’ll wrap it up quickly, so wait a moment…”

“Just a minute.”

Before the owner could gather the items, I quickly stepped forward. 

If there was a scammer like this in a place where I might conduct business later, it wouldn’t be good.

I narrowed my eyes and spoke firmly, “You’re blatantly committing fraud.”

“W-What do you mean?”

Flustered by my accusation, the owner stammered.

“When I asked about the price a moment ago, you said it was 20 gold, but now you’re saying it’s 50 gold. Did the price go up in the meantime?”

“T-That’s…”

The owner seemed at a loss for words.

“If you don’t even know what kind of medicine this is, why are you meddling?”

Unable to find a plausible excuse, the owner snapped at me.

His voice was so loud that it echoed through the bustling square, drawing the attention of the people around.

“If you don’t know how to price things, why are you even commenting!”

Empowered by the stares, the owner shouted confidently.

Well, he had a point.

But I knew that you shouldn’t arbitrarily change the price of a rare product supplied from somewhere else. 

Especially not from a place like the temple, which claimed to be pure and righteous.

‘What this means is…’

I tilted my head with a curious expression.

“That’s quite strange. I doubt the temple ever allowed you to freely change the prices.”

“…!”

“Is this really sourced from the temple?”

This implied that the medicine wasn’t produced by the temple. Of course, there was no evidence, but…

“…!”

Just by looking at the owner’s face turning so red, it was clear, wasn’t it?

“W-What do you mean by that?!”

The owner jumped up and shouted.

“This is indeed something I personally brought from the temple!”

“So, does that mean the temple truly allowed you to change the price at your disposal?”

“That’s…!”

The owner couldn’t say anything.

Of course, they couldn’t. Even if they could argue that there might be some misunderstanding about the price, claiming that the temple permitted such an autonomous change would escalate the situation.

“No answer, I see.”

“P-Profit…!”

“Are you not confident…”

I tilted my head as if wondering.

Although the owner seemed to be talking to themselves, anyone witnessing this commotion would have heard.

“What’s going on? What’s wrong?”

“No way, is it really fake?”

“Impossible, you can’t scam people in the name of the temple!”

As the murmurs from the people grew louder, the owner’s face turned increasingly red.

“This is insane!”

Finally, the owner spat out curses at me.

“Who are you? What right do you have to interfere in someone else’s business? You don’t even know anything about medicine…”

“But you were the one who sold the fake first.”

The owner snorted dismissively.

“How do you know without touching it?!”

“Ah, do I have to touch it to know?”

“Of course! I crafted it to look exactly like the temple’s potion. You can’t possibly tell just by looking! How meticulously I…!”

Getting carried away by his own excitement, the owner blurted out words and then belatedly realized it.

However, many people had already heard his words.

The owner’s face turned contemplative.

“T-That’s, um… a slip of the tongue. I was so flustered that I unintentionally blabbered nonsense…”

The owner struggled to justify himself. Just by looking at his behavior, it was apparent.

‘No matter how well you hide your identity…’

If you just endured this situation, you’re a pushover.

I approached the owner slowly.

“L-Lady Peregrine…!”

As I got closer, it seemed the owner recognized my face hidden within the robe, and his face turned pale.

“You dared to try to scam me.”

“T-That’s…! I didn’t know it was Lady Peregrine…! I apologize! I’m truly sorry!”

He bowed repeatedly. However, I didn’t accept it and sharply retorted.

“The tongue that spoke lies will be dealt with later.”

“…!”

“First, deal with the anger of those people over there.”

At my words, the owner quickly lifted his head. 

Many people who had figured out they were scammed were looking at him with cold eyes.

“How dare you try to scam me?”

“Using the temple’s name for deception!”

“Return the money I’ve given you so far, you fraud!”

The people’s protests grew louder. Not wanting to get caught up in the chaos, I took a step back.

However, it seemed the number of people scammed by him was not small, as the crowd was swelling.

‘I might get caught up in this at this rate.’

I looked around for an escape route. Then, I noticed the man who had almost lost a considerable amount to the scammer, still standing there in a daze.

“Ah…”

He seemed bewildered by the crowd that had gathered.

“This way.”

I grabbed his arm and led him forward. Even through the robe, I could feel a solid frame beneath.

“U-Um…”

The man seemed surprised and hesitant.

“You don’t want to get caught up in that crowd, do you?”

“…”

He silently followed at my words.

I didn’t stop until there wasn’t anyone on the street. 

In fact, I hadn’t walked that much, but Daphne’s poor stamina couldn’t handle even this.

Breathing heavily while leaning on my knees, I heard the man mumbling.

“Uh, thank you very much.”

Even though we escaped the commotion together, his breathing remained steady.

“It’s okay.”

I waved my hand.

If it weren’t for him, I might not have realized I was cheated.

“Be more careful. The more money you have, the more suspicious you should be. Don’t trust so easily.”

“…Thank you for the advice.”

He replied in a subdued voice.

It wasn’t as if I intended to make him feel sorry, but I, feeling apologetic for some reason, raised my upper body.

“Not that I sought gratitude; it’s just…”

However, I couldn’t articulate my thoughts properly.

It was because of the unreal appearance before my eyes.

His hair, like fragments of moonlight, had a mysterious charm, resembling the color of the moon.

Clear and transparent red eyes that were like rubies.

Additionally, the coolly shaped eyes slightly turned upwards at the ends, adding a strangely sensual touch.

His skin was incredibly clean and transparent, as if crafted from glass.

While radiating an innocent vibe, the well-defined Adam’s apple and the slightly protruding larynx indicated a definite male presence.

The wide shoulders hidden behind the robe and the taut shirt visible underneath all hinted at something extraordinary.

‘If there were angels, would they look like this?’

“Uh… Milady?”

He also had a pleasant voice. I hadn’t heard the melody of a harp before, but perhaps it would resemble such a tone…

‘…Wait a minute.’

This couldn’t be a dream, right?

I snapped back to reality and focused on the man in front of me.

Silver hair and crimson eyes. I immediately recognized who this man was.

‘Of course, silver hair and crimson eyes are symbols of the royal family!’

However, at this point, it was just before the original story began.

In other words, the Crown Prince should currently be on the battlefield, fighting against the monsters to conquer the continent’s railway.

If that’s the case, there was only one answer.

Luciel, the Crown Prince’s half-brother, a supporting character who was expelled to the Mage Tower when he received the title of Grand Duke.

‘In the original story, it was only mentioned that he died due to a rare disease and didn’t even formally appear…’

Why was he here now?

“Are you okay?”

Perhaps my confusion was shown on my face, because Luciel asked me with a concerned expression. I quickly came back to my senses and replied.

“…I’m fine. I was just momentarily blinded by the sun.”

It was true that the sunlight was dazzling, especially as it poured behind him.

Of course, there was something even more dazzling than that…

“I’m glad that you’re okay.”

Luciel smiled bashfully as he looked at me.

I had thought he would look good when he smiled due to his eye shape, but in reality, it was even more beautiful than I had imagined.

“Ah, I apologize for not introducing myself. My name is Luciel Winterose Gresvel.”

His greeting brought me back to my senses. I hadn’t introduced myself to the prince, who was also the Grand Duke.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Your Highness. My name is Daphne Peregrine.”

“Ah, Lady Peregrine.”

I expected some kind of aversion or discomfort when he realized who I was, but Luciel continued to smile gently.

Moreover, despite being a grand duke with a much higher rank than me, he used polite honorifics.

Of course, his courteous and gentle demeanor matched well with his speech…

‘He’s stuck in the Mage Tower and rarely goes out. Does he not know who I am?’

While pondering about it, Luciel looked down with a sad expression.

“If you hadn’t saved me, I don’t know what would have happened…”

His originally innocent face momentarily took on a cold light. Then, he smiled again refreshingly.

“Thank you once again.”

His appearance was like a single rose blooming in the snow. I politely addressed Luciel.

“I had no other intentions. If it weren’t for Your Highness, I might have fallen for the scam as well.”

After all, if it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t have even known I was almost cheated.

“…Ah.”

Luciel seemed a bit embarrassed. His blinking eyes looked like a doll that had just become self-aware.