WHCTC | Chapter 31

“I’m a bit late, aren’t I? Hahaha!”

Kayan glared sharply at the real estate agent, trying to ascertain if it was indeed him.

“Did you perhaps scam me…”

“Scam?!”

The real estate agent, whose face practically screamed, “I am a scammer,” jumped up, protesting vehemently.

“I was going to renovate the entire mansion for you from the beginning! To match the market value and price! It just took a bit longer because I was recruiting technicians!”

I stood there with my arms crossed, watching the spectacle unfold.

This was the skill of the Red Hawk Information Guild’s leader.

“Now people are going to flock here just to see the manor. Don’t you think it’s a total mess? When they see it, everyone will immediately realize, ‘Ah, they got scammed.’”

“Ah… what should I do?”

“So, we fix it up. Then they’ll think, ‘Oh, he wasn’t a scammer; there must’ve been some circumstances.’ All you need to do is renovate it into an 8-billion-gold mansion.”

The Red Hawk Guild leader went straight to the real estate agent and threatened him, ordering him to immediately renovate the manor to match the market value.

The land and size weren’t bad. It was just too old and lacked basic interiors, which made it possible to flip it.

‘Catch a scammer with another scammer.’

The Red Hawk Guild leader wasn’t exactly a person of great virtue. This real estate agent likely hadn’t only targeted Kayan but had other scams under his belt too.

He must have buried those cases in exchange for demanding, “Fix up the mansion to match the price.”

“Right, let’s start with the exterior, shall we? Oh dear, let’s fix the gate first!”

The workers the real estate agent had brought started moving briskly.

Kayan silently stared at the interior designers. His mere gaze was enough to motivate the workers to hustle.

Next to him stood Connie, her face set in determination.

Earlier, I had asked Connie for a favor.

“Connie, could you take charge of the practical aspects of this project?”

“W-What?! Princess, that’s impossible… I’m just a commoner, and I’ve never worked in a noble manor like this before!”

“But you worked in the royal palace. The palace is far grander and more splendid than any noble’s estate.”

“I-I was just a lowly worker there…”

“And among those workers, your skills were so exceptional that you were assigned to me, right?”

“B-But, Princess… I’m still not used to this…”

Despite her initial fretting, once the situation began, Connie, with a stern expression, gave out orders one by one.

“Ah, using wood here is so outdated. Are you trying to make fools of us? Before I make crutches out of that wood for you, just use stone for the exterior instead.”

Following Connie’s commands, the interior workers moved diligently.

“Hah.”

The knights murmured as they watched the manor transform by the minute.

“Wow, this… for free…”

At that, Connie widened her eyes and scolded them.

“H-Hey, what nonsense are you spouting? There’s no such thing as free in this world! This is all because Barclid owes the princess a debt.”

“…Excuse me?”

“You need to become a splendid noble house and a strong supporter for the princess! You may not reach the level of the Serano Dukedom, but do your best!”

From now on, I decided never to believe Connie whenever she claimed she wasn’t used to something. Even Kayan flinched at Connie’s energy.

“D-Don’t forget how much you’ve been given!”

I smiled as I watched the scene unfold.

Seeing me, Hans, who had come close at some point, whispered.

“Princess.”

“Yeah?”

“Did you… predict this outcome? Is that why you gave out those orders?”

“I have to make sure they’re worth the money.”

I smiled lightly.

“The money that the baronet and his knights earned by risking their lives against monsters in the north is precious.”

“…Princess, you’ve truly grown up in the royal palace. Wrapping up matters so perfectly…”

At Hans’ admiration, I looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

“What? Wrapping up? What kind of weak statement is that? Are you talking about finishing a hunt after catching just one squirrel?”

“…Excuse me?”

“Making them worth the money is a given. And we still have to calculate separately for the initial scam, don’t you think?”

Hans blinked slowly.

“Wowwwww!”

Then he suddenly picked me up, spinning me around.

“I was mistaken! You may be dressed in such pretty clothes and adorned with glittering jewels, but you’re still the princess I know!”

“…Huh?”

“You’re just like the princess of old! The one who couldn’t let anything go and relentlessly pursued those who crossed her, all while smiling brightly and hitting them with stones!”

Hmm, the point of his admiration felt a bit off.

Was that supposed to be a compliment?

Hans, despite his large frame, sniffled and muttered.

“Thank you, Princess.”

“Hm?”

“Honestly… I was really shocked. I never imagined we’d be mocked to this extent…”

Ah.

He must have overheard the whispers between the boutique owner and the guild leader too.

“Seriously… who would call this a noble’s manor?”

“It’s just some lowly mercenary family that doesn’t know their place.”

“Didn’t they say she sat next to the coachman? Maybe she thinks she’s on the same level as the coachman.”

At first, it must have made them angry, but insults like these tend to hurt more as time passes.

The Barcklith family, which they had built together with united hearts and minds, had now become a public laughingstock. And they were only just beginning to realize it.

“…I can’t imagine how Kayan must have felt… I can only think about how foolish we were…”

Hans pressed his face into my shoulder, overcome with emotion.

I leaned back as much as I could to avoid his piercings.

Hans, overwhelmed, said in a heartfelt tone, “Thanks to you, Princess, we at least know what to do now.”

Oh, honestly. I can’t handle this.

I patted his shoulder and said gently, “What nonsense are you talking about? Get a grip. Don’t think you’ve figured anything out. You still don’t know anything, and you have a long way to go.”

Saying they knew what to do now? Absolutely ridiculous.

“What?”

Hans opened his eyes wide in shock.

“A long way to go?”

“But it’s okay.”

I smiled kindly and spoke with confidence.

“This is just the beginning.”

As I expected, Anna would soon make her move against me.

***

At the same time, in Anna’s room.

“What?”

Anna widened her eyes as she listened to her subordinate’s report.

“Princess Ivnoa went to the Barcklith baronetcy?”

A seductive smile spread across her face. With her brown hair and green eyes, she was undeniably beautiful.

But it wasn’t her looks alone that had earned her the position of consort. If it were just about beauty, the deposed crown princess would have been far superior.

Ambition.

It was that unyielding ambition to seize power that had brought her from the bottom to where she stood now.

‘It was a good move to beg that idiot crown prince for the position of consort.’

Her goal was now singular: to make her son, Hugo, the emperor.

‘The eastern front won’t be easy. Edwin will die there… and all I have to do is get rid of Ivnoa.’

A princess with no background other than a fiancé and a high rank in the line of succession.

She had holed herself up in the palace, making it difficult to lure her out, perhaps due to something her brother had told her…

“Hahahahaha!”

Anna laughed aloud.

“The princess really is reckless! I thought she’d crawl back to Simon Serano’s feet again, but instead, she’s walking straight to her death?”

“But, Your Highness, the Barcklith family is incredibly strong. Their mercenaries are highly skilled and should be more than capable of protecting the princess.”

“Is that so?”

Anna raised her eyebrows and tilted her head. In truth, she didn’t know much about the mercenaries from the far northern region.

“Even so, it’s worth a try.”

Anna grinned and rested her chin on her hand.

“After all, there’s no way we’d get caught, is there?”

Black magic, by its very nature, was designed from ancient times to ensure its caster could not be traced.

“Whether it works or not, there’s nothing to lose, right? Send someone skilled tonight.”

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