TVTLQ - Chapter 57
The Villainess Wants To Live Quietly
The relationship between Prince Arsan and his half-brother, Viktor Cerba, was a side story told from Penelope's point of view in the original work.
This time I had two goals.
The first is to provide Blanc with a strong backing that can help him escape from the influence of the Duke of Montrose.
It was only natural that my business plan required Blanc, but I couldn't clash with the female lead's family.
The second is to create my sponsors.
There was Mr. Dominic, who supported the investment, and Princess Penelope, who was in partnership with me, but those two alone were not enough to grow the top company.
Just as much as Blanc, I needed someone to push me.
For example, a person with influence who can easily solve problems or market entry problems in other countries.
'Prince Arsan is the right person."
He was the future husband of Princess Penelope and the next King of Borsha. He is also related by blood to the royal family of the Kingdom of Medidas, which has a monopoly on the production of expensive spices.
And above all, the Kingdom of Borsha was scheduled to grow rapidly within a year.
To hide Princess Penelope's shortcomings, the Emperor marries her to the Prince of Borsha, a small country. It would have been a humiliating marriage for the Princess if she had not had affection for the Prince.
However, that sadness is short-lived. A few months after the marriage, the Prince ascends to the throne of the King, and from then on, Borsha's blocked luck begins to open at once.
Several mines valuable to the kingdom were discovered one after another, and the West Sea bordering the territory began to emerge as a new center of trade.
Borsha suddenly became wealthy and emerged as an emerging power on the continent.
Would that kind of person be on my side?
It's like gaining a thousand soldiers and ten thousand horses.
"While working at the top, I recently heard a rumor. The blood of the Borsha royal family, which was officially known to be dead, was actually alive."
Feeling eyes focused on me, I slowly opened my mouth.
"Of course, not all rumors can be trusted, so they could have been nonsense. However, I thought I should check the truth of the rumor. Her Royal Highness, what is the purpose of the second gift exchange?"
"... It is prepared for the family of the person you are marrying."
"You're right. If the rumors were true, I should have prepared my formal attire. If it was false, there was a need to catch and punish those who spread false rumors that confuse people ahead of the auspicious event."
I deliberately paused to tease them. I heard someone gurgling.
"We were careful as this was a sensitive matter that had to be investigated in confidence. I also put in a request to the information guild..."
"Just get to the point!"
"We located him today."
Duchess Joséphine took a deep breath.
"Is that the truth?"
"Why would I lie about my safety? I'm sorry for not telling you before. As it is a sensitive issue, there was a need to clearly understand and report it."
"It's false."
At that time, the Prince, who had been silent until now, opened his mouth. Duchess Joséphine flinched and was surprised by the angry voice.
He was still wearing his robe hood. Seeing that he didn't show his face, he seemed momentarily angry and intervened.
I asked casually.
"Why do you say it's a lie?"
"The royal bloodline you are talking about obviously refers to the Prince's half-brother, Victor Cerba. One. Viktor Cherba was killed in the attack. The kingdom's knights searched the bottom of the cliff, but they couldn't even find the body."
"You know quite a bit of detail. But I did not tell a lie to Her Majesty the Princess. Viktor Cherba is alive. He just covered everything up and hid himself as if he were dead."
"What do you know!"
The other person screamed loudly. Duchess Joséphine and Penelope watched him with worried eyes. It seemed like she was half worried that the Prince would show up in front of me and half concerned about his condition.
"The kingdom did its best to find him. Even in the middle of the night, the lights were brightly lit like daylight. But in the end, what I found was something that looked like it had been bitten by an animal...."
The Prince gasped. It appears that trauma has been triggered.
Viktor Cherba, the King's illegitimate son and Prince Arsan's older brother. Nine years ago, he fell to his death from a cliff after saving Prince Arsan.
Of course, that's not true.
"... Are you okay!"
Duchess Joséphine urgently looked at him. The Prince slapped her hand away.
My mouth, which had been taking a deep breath for a moment, opened again.
"I kept looking for him after that, wondering if I had missed something or if he was still alive somewhere, but without success. But you seem to have figured out in one fell swoop what others have failed to do even after ten years of practice."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because I am the one who did that foolish thing."
The Prince roughly took off the hood of his robe. The Duchess was shocked, but the incident had already happened. I pretended to be surprised as if I had finally recognized the other person
"Prince."
I belatedly bowed and paid my respects. I thought as I looked at the pure white marble floor. The Prince finally did what I wanted.
I was just waiting for the moment when his identity would be revealed. Now that the Prince has revealed his identity, things have become easier.
I made up a scared voice.
"Please forgive my rudeness. It was not my intention to dare to humiliate the Prince."
"You didn't mean to spread nonsense and ridicule me?"
"Prince, why do you dismiss this news as mere nonsense? I really only reported the truth."
"Rosenia, stop it."
Penelope, who was worse off, lightly reprimanded me.
"What's all the fuss about now?"
I shook my shoulders as if I was feeling unfair.
"If you don't believe me, why don't you go find him with me?"
"What....?"
The Prince's voice wavered. Seizing the opportunity, I raised my head and spoke to him.
"The location has already been identified. This is a relatively recent finding, so it is unlikely that the person has moved their residence in the meantime. If you want to punish me for insulting the Prince, it is not too late to punish me after actually verifying it."
The Prince seemed to have forgotten what to say at my bold request. Duchess Joséphine was on the verge of fainting. Penelope, who was the only one who remained calm, asked me.
"Rosenia, can you take responsibility for what you just said?"
She was giving me a choice. If I apologize now and step down, she will pretend it never happened and move on.
Since the secret affair was discovered rather than a secret affair with the Prince, they seemed to think that if the matter escalated, it would only annoy them both.
This is because if it were revealed that a man and a woman who were not yet married were together, an unnecessary scandal could occur. And if that happens, both people will be harmed.
But unfortunately, that wasn't what I wanted.
"Yes. There is no change in my intention."
Penelope wrinkled her face. At the same time, the Prince spoke.
"Let's go as you wish."
"Prince!"
"Anyway, isn't this what this person said she would convey to me through the Princess? Just the order is different, the result is the same."
The Duchess reluctantly stepped down due to the will shown by the Prince. He said, looking down at me with cold eyes.
"If what you say is false, you will definitely be held accountable."
"Of course."
I grinned.
It was a victorious smile that convinced me that the other person had fallen for me.
***
The Prince's return to the Kingdom of Borsha turned into a visit to his half-brother.
After the situation was resolved.
"These are the formal clothes I made in advance, just in case."
What came out of the box Blanc brought was a formal dress made of high-quality fabric. The robe, embroidered with eagle and olive leaf patterns in silver thread, glowed softly under the bright lamps.
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