Chapter 56
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I possessed the body of a villainess locked away in a desolate tower.
Chapter 56
Why did the Embrose Marquise want to hire cheap labor through the Ilamena Alliance?
The answer was obvious.
'It must be because of the chronic problem plaguing the Embrose Trading Company.'
In the past, when word spread that the Embrose Trading Company was raking in enormous profits through their shipping operations, they became the primary target of bandits on both land and sea routes.
More precisely, they were targeted by brigands.
Since the compensation costs for shipped goods were set quite high, the risks could only continue to escalate.
The fact that labor costs for security had grown to threaten their profits was something I'd already learned firsthand in Salt.
So naturally, the head of the Embrose Trading Company would do everything possible to cut labor costs.
'And there's nothing quite like the Alliance's workforce for that.'
Having already utilized them for the Dam construction in the Grand Duchy, I understood well how crucial the Alliance's personnel—who could freely cross borders—were to operating a trading company.
However, the reason the Ilamena Alliance and Embrose hadn't yet formed a connection was precisely....
'Nowadays, they rarely establish ties unless introduced by someone. Especially not with people from the Empire.'
The Cletan Empire was an undisputed great power commanding the entire continent, and its influence reached neighboring nations. Under normal circumstances, they would have had no need for outside assistance.
But as the Embrose Trading Company expanded, they began conducting logistics operations in regions beyond the Empire's reach, changing the situation entirely.
However, that was merely the Embrose Trading Company's concern.
These small nations, tightly bound together, rarely conducted business with those from the Empire.
In particular, the Golbro Count family of the Ilamena Alliance was notoriously difficult to approach.
They maintained such a closed operational policy that they wouldn't even meet with anyone unless introduced by someone with whom they'd built trust through long-standing dealings.
'From the Embrose Marquise's perspective, she had no choice but to accept my proposal.'
Soft grass rustled beneath my feet.
As the tall grass tickled my ankles, I found myself already standing in the main garden of the Imperial Palace.
"...I suppose things worked out well."
"What worked out well?"
Just as I was about to step into the garden, a voice made me freeze completely.
I didn't need to look to know who the voice belonged to.
'This isn't even a forbidden garden, so why on earth...?'
It was ironic—despite wandering wherever my feet took me, I'd unconsciously avoided the direction I'd gone last time.
But I couldn't waste any more time.
"Y-Your Highness, the Crown Prince?"
"Spare me the tedious formalities."
I froze rigid, my body already bending into a bow.
At the same moment, my eyes met his golden gaze as he stood watching me with his hand raised.
"I apologize for my rudeness the other day."
After a brief silence, an awkward apology escaped my lips.
After all, his eyes showed no particular hostility.
Moreover, I belatedly realized that during the tea time, he'd shown me considerable kindness from his perspective.
"No, it's fine. Though I must admit, I didn't expect the young lady to wander into my territory."
"I simply lost my way somehow...."
"Hmm, is that so?"
Lyden, who had been stroking his chin with a straight finger, leaned toward me.
As the distance between us closed, a subtle woody fragrance drifted through the air.
A gaze as smooth as flowing water swept across my body, and shortly after, an unexpected question reached my ears.
"Which one is your true self, exactly?"
"...Pardon?"
"The dear Blaire Grand Duke described you like a social misfit, yet right now you seem perfectly composed."
Oh no!
"She has such a firmly established sense of self that she tends to hold ideals that are generally difficult for others to comprehend."
"Having secluded herself without even making her social debut, she lacks knowledge of proper etiquette."
Belatedly recalling how the Grand Duke had described me at the last tea time, I hastily abandoned my perfectly composed posture and adopted a more awkward one.
"H-he, hehe...."
And I began to laugh nervously.
But the moment my eyes met the Crown Prince's subtly curved gaze, I felt the urge to stop laughing.
Please let this be my imagination. Please!
"Too late."
Yet hope was always followed by reality.
I pretended not to notice that things were spiraling beyond my control and awkwardly asked back.
"I-I'm sorry, what do you mean...."
But the Crown Prince, leisurely observing my pitiful efforts, responded in a languid tone.
"I'm quite generous toward capable individuals, so I'd prefer you not feel unnecessarily uncomfortable."
"Pardon?"
"It means you don't need to act strange."
"Ah, I...."
Exhaling deeply.
After releasing a breath, I added while feigning the most neutral tone possible.
"...I am indeed a social misfit. Even now, I'm terrified I might make a mistake before Your Highness."
"Hmm."
But this cunning and wicked Lyden paid no mind to my desperate declaration of madness.
Instead, he wore an expression as though he'd discovered something genuinely amusing.
'At this rate, I'll be caught without any defense.'
Without the Grand Duke to shield me this time, all I could do was escape this situation as quickly as possible.
"Then I shall take my leave."
"Wait."
I was caught after all.
As I forcibly turned my head, which refused to move, Lyden, standing motionless in place, smiled gently.
"By the way, you're returning to the Grand Duchy soon, aren't you?"
"Ah, yes. That's correct."
"Were you originally staying at the Grand Duke's Residence?"
"Yes, yes."
"So you have no intention of remaining in the Imperial Palace?"
"I... yes?"
I'd been nodding along, simply trying to navigate the situation, when his naturally flowing question caught me off guard and I opened my mouth.
Perhaps anticipating my reaction, he kindly elaborated on his veiled inquiry.
"You need to manufacture and distribute that thermos, don't you? Surely the Imperial Palace would be in a far more advantageous position than the Blaire Grand Duke Territory buried away in the north."
"...."
"Besides, Mother happens to hold you in particularly high regard. It wouldn't be bad for you to become a companion to the Imperial Family in the meantime."
How does that sound? Does it appeal to you?
The way he proposed it with such absolute confidence felt like he was asking, 'You can't possibly refuse this, can you?'
But his proposal didn't end there.
"And here, you could find a suitable husband with decent prospects. The Imperial Palace receives frequent visits from promising young men, after all."
Yet I couldn't give him the response he wanted.
Because....
'This smells incredibly suspicious!'
Everything that had just come from Lyden's mouth was an opportunity most people would struggle to obtain even once in a lifetime.
If I were truly just an insignificant cadet branch lady of Blaire, I would have seized this chance without hesitation, but still.
"I must humbly beg your pardon, Your Highness."
I turned my body completely to face Lyden.
While taking in his brilliant golden eyes clearly.
"That would be difficult, I'm afraid."
"...Difficult?"
His tone suggested he couldn't believe I was directly defying him.
But I paid no mind as I continued with a gloomy expression.
"Yes, it's difficult. The truth is, I...."
Before I could continue, I suddenly felt grateful.
"I have quite a bit of debt."
"Debt... quite a bit?"
"Somehow or other... I've accumulated an enormous debt to the Grand Duke. You could say it's debt of such magnitude that I can't even marry...."
The Grand Duke had fashioned me into a social outcast.
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