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A villainess locked away in a desolate tower—I had possessed her body.
Chapter 39
"Unpaid settlement accounts...?"
April asked, her expression puzzled.
Seeing her innocent, crystalline eyes, my resolve from moments before seemed to waver, but I clenched my ‌‌‌fists and steadied my ‌‌wavering heart.
In truth, April's words about leaving posed no problem. The Blaire Grand Duke's household had decided ‌‌‌‌to treat her as a guest rather than a hostage.
Yet something about her mention of independence inexplicably stirred my irritation. ‌‌‌
I couldn't fathom why.
Was it because ‌‌‌‌this strange woman, whose work ‌‌‌‌capacity was unparalleled, would show such obvious disdain the moment tasks dried up—and I feared I'd suffer losses from her departure?
Or perhaps I worried that April's presence in the ‌Grand Duchy would be discovered, entangling me in tedious disputes with ‌‌‌‌Salt?
Or could it be that I simply wanted to monopolize the benefits she would bring?
No. None of that was it. Such trivial matters had never concerned ‌‌me.
Admittedly, when April first arrived, I had found ‌‌‌‌my disrupted plans troublesome.
But at some point, I began finding her bustling movements amusing, and I grew curious about what she did ‌‌‌when confined to her chamber, never venturing out.
And sometimes, watching her care for and help so ‌‌‌‌many people despite ‌‌‌having no obligation to do so... I felt something complicated ‌‌stirring within me.
I ‌‌couldn't precisely define any single emotion I felt when observing April.
Yet one thing was certain.
Above all else, one thing was absolutely certain.
Her departure from the space we shared profoundly irritated me.
"Literally, let's settle the unpaid accounts."
"Um, is there an account I haven't settled...?"
Of course there wasn't.
So I knew I was being unreasonable...
But my promise to treat her as a 'guest' rather than a captive was a matter of the Grand Duke's honor. I couldn't renege on it.
Ultimately, however contemptible the ‌method, the most certain way I could detain April was only one.
* ‌* *
"During the first month, it was appropriate for us to cover all expenses since ‌‌the princess came here involuntarily. But from the second month onward, wasn't the princess ‌‌‌remaining at the Grand Duke's Residence of her own volition?"
"Pardon?"
Vroom, vroom.
I heard what sounded like an auditory hallucination of an engine starting.
Why on earth was this topic arising?
The Grand Duke began pressing me down with a faint smile playing at his lips.
"Now that the princess has developed a steady income, I believe she's in a position to easily cover the accumulated lodging and meal expenses."
Wait.
Accumulated lodging and meal expenses?
Hearing such an utterly bizarre phrase, I found my mouth gaping open.
Yet the situation was unfolding rapidly, regardless of my will.
"From the second month until now, the princess has voluntarily resided and taken all meals in the most luxuriously constructed building within the Blaire Grand Duke Territory. Moreover, she's consumed without exception the dishes and desserts provided by the territory's most expensive chef."
Ah, no. Of course, that's an ‌irrefutable fact...
'Then I should have starved!?'
With each word the Grand Duke spoke, my complexion grew increasingly ashen.
"And that's not even counting the dresses, jewelry, and ‌‌‌‌daily necessities—you know perfectly ‌‌well how extravagantly ‌‌high nobility ‌‌spends on such things." ‌
"...!"
"If we're to bill for all of it, we're looking at no less than 10 million Tri per month, and factoring in the painters' fees, that comes to roughly 80 million Tri."
What? 80 million Tri!?
"And then there's the salary for the escort knight I recently hired..."
"Wait, please hold on."
Apart from my shock at a figure that ‌vastly exceeded my expectations, I couldn't find a single flaw in his calculation.
If anything, it possessed an unsettling persuasiveness.
Moreover, seeing the Blaire Grand ‌Duke's grave expression—or rather, that expression tinged with something almost like madness—made it abundantly clear he had no intention ‌‌‌of backing down.
"You weren't treating me as a guest...were you?"
"A guest, you say."
Before me, now visibly smaller than when I'd first broached the subject, the Grand Duke stroked his chin with an ease that bordered on arrogance.
"I'll be generous and waive the first month's ‌‌‌expenses as a courtesy. So how much does that leave?"
I immediately set about calculating.
'Even ‌‌deducting one month, that's 70 million Tri. If I liquidate ‌‌‌all my remaining royalties and the money from the blackout curtains, I might manage it, but....'
If I did that, independence would be nothing more than a distant dream.
Moreover, for the sake of my work, I absolutely had to live in the heart of the Blaire Grand Duke Territory.
The heart of the Grand Duke Territory?
Considering the safe streets even at night, the well-maintained ‌‌‌roads, and proximity to commercial districts, it was essentially the equivalent of Gangnam in South Korea.
And thinking about what land prices were like in Gangnam right now, the conclusion was....
'There's no way I could save enough to buy a mansion in the heart of the Grand Duke Territory while spending 10 million Tri every ‌month.'
Even assuming my business thrived, it would take at least three years.
Three years?
My inflated dreams ‌‌‌of independence crumbled to dust ‌‌‌with a single sentence from the Grand Duke.
'This is a complete ant farm trap.'
But I couldn't just impose myself on any random household either.
Lady Rainy's face briefly crossed my mind, but remembering that she was supporting five children who seemed to multiply like rabbits, I inwardly shook my head.
So what ‌‌‌on earth was I supposed to do?
"Princess." ‌
"...Yes?" ‌‌
This time, a softer tone reached my ears.
"When exactly do you plan to settle your outstanding room and board expenses? I believe this month's earnings have already been accounted for."
"W-well, that's true, but...."
Sob....
Was I really about to be stripped of everything with my eyes wide open?
But there was no way to escape. Had I been able to refute his words, I would have done so a hundred times over by now.
In the end, I was the first to raise the white flag, acknowledging my defeat internally.
"I'll have it for you by tomorrow...."
My money, my future!
Unlike me, whose soul was being threshed in real time, the Grand Duke's face remained perfectly composed.
"Fine. One more thing."
"...Yes."
"The contract period is six months."
"Six months... a contract?"
As if reading the room, his next words flowed smoothly.
"Our head chef mentioned it. He said we need to contract ‌‌‌‌for six months' worth ‌‌of ingredients all at once for the desserts the princess frequents. So it's only fair the princess also signs a six-month boarding contract."
"Ah... yes."
My mind, ‌‌already robbed once, couldn't muster a single counterargument.
And so another unfair contract was sealed. ‌
"If there's no discussion of termination four months before the contract period ends, it automatically renews. That concludes my business."
Four months' notice for a six-month contract period.... ‌‌‌
Was ‌‌‌this even ‌‌‌right?
But with all my strength drained away, all I could do was stand there and nod numbly.
Before the Grand Duke turned to leave, having confirmed my reluctant acceptance, he glanced back at me once more.
"Princess. Do you know what 'poverty' spells backwards?"
"...'ytrevop'?"
"No. You."
Click.
"...What?"
It wasn't until long after the door closed that I realized he had been mocking me.
By the time my belated fury surfaced, everything was already over.
* * *
"Have Lemeia marry Count Ravioli."
King Berga's thunderbolt of a command descended.
"F-Father?"
Thump.
Lemeia, who had been summoned early in the morning and yawning incessantly, couldn't bear the shock and dropped to her knees on the spot.
'This can't be happening.'
Was ‌her betrothal to the pathetic Count Ravioli not merely a show of restraint for Lyden's benefit?
It was the moment Lemeia's steadfast conviction crumbled to dust.
Knowing well that a king's command, once given, rarely changes, Lemeia pleaded desperately.
"I-I'm not ready yet. We only became engaged not long ago! Besides, I must ‌‌‌attend to state affairs..."
"Yes."
State affairs—that blasted state affairs!
Berga, whose remaining patience had finally ‌‌‌‌‌snapped entirely, rose from his seat.
"Ever since ‌‌‌‌you've meddled in state affairs, the work has only piled up like mountains."
At first, Berga had believed Lemeia could manage it.
He had even encouraged her and supported her.
But now, all that remained in Berga ‌‌‌‌‌‌was disappointment and fury toward his only daughter.
"Do you know how many Administrators have resigned in recent times? Lord Ruberic, who turned sixty not long ago, can barely move about, they say."
Ha!
A sharp, heavy sigh rang through Lemeia's ears like a bell.
"Because you've made such a mess for me to clean up!"
At the stinging rebuke, tears welled up in Lemeia's eyes.
"Father, Father..."
She attempted to deploy her beautiful features, crafting a pitiful expression, but even that seemed useless ‌‌‌‌now.
Berga, his face cold as ice, issued another decree.
"Go marry someone."
"I cannot marry that man!"
Could anyone truly be ‌‌‌this unreasonable?
Finally, Berga's voice erupted with fury.
"Are you defying your father's command?"
"The Crown Prince of Cletan will take me under his protection!"
"Lemeia Salt!"
Only then did Berga see clearly the delusions his daughter harbored.
He had no idea where to even begin correcting her.
"...The Crown Prince is not someone to be trusted carelessly."
"He is magnificent! And so handsome!"
"What? Have you truly lost your mind?"
Berga's voice rose, his neck flushing with rage.
"Do you not know what sinister rumors follow ‌‌‌him? There are whispers—dark ones—that he has made pacts with the Dark Mages. The rumors that ‌‌‌‌shadow ‌‌‌‌him are most ominous."
"It's all slander. His Highness the Crown Prince would never do such things!"
"Do you truly not know that he has turned his blade toward our Salt family?"
Yet the moment Berga's eyes met his daughter's, he realized it was already too late to turn back.
"...Confine the princess. Lock her away until the wedding, and have her receive proper instruction in her duties as a bride."
"What? Father! Father!"
Thud.
Ignoring Lemeia's anguished cries, the door closed behind Berga. Yet his face, left alone in the silence, grew darker still.

---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, ‌‌please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------