"Thank you for coming, Marquis Raeven. I would like to ask your advice."
"My advice, you say?"
Marquis Raeven picked up the cup of tea that was served by Princess Renner then looked at her with a doubtful expression.
"Yes."
Princess Renner was unfazed by his rude attitude and continued speaking with her usual gentle smile. "I believe no one in the court is better versed in such matters than you, Marquis Raeven."
Hearing her words, Marquis Raeven and Prince Zanac, the second prince of the Re-Estize Kingdom, who had accompanied Marquis Raeven, turned serious and exchanged a glance.
"So, what is it you wish to discuss?" Marquis Raeven relaxed his slightly furrowed brows and addressed Princess Renner.
"Don't ask too much of him, dear sister. Marquis Raeven, one of the Six Great Nobles and a member of the Noble Faction, also has his position to consider."
Prince Zanac, pick up a sugar cube and drop it into his tea while speaking at his sister with a meaningful smile.
Like, Marquis Raeven, who was considered as an opportunist was in truth a man deeply devoted to the kingdom, working quietly behind the scenes to keep it from collapsing under the constant infighting between the two factions. Prince Zanac was actually the same, others might mistaken him as a power-hungry man, but he was actually the only royal child who genuinely cared for the kingdom.
"Of course not, Onii-sama," Renner replied softly. "I merely wished to ask whether Marquis Raeven has noticed the strange movements of Marquis Boullope and the other nobles in the Noble Faction."
"Strange movement?" 2x
The two, of course, already knew exactly what she was referring to. Even if those nobles tried to conceal their actions, they could not fully erase their traces and it was enough for certain people to begin taking notice.
Because of this, they had dispatched their own spies to uncover what those nobles were plotting. To their shock, they discovered that the nobles were colluding on something far more significant than they expected. Even certain members of the Royal Faction were involved.
What made the discovery even more alarming was that the nobles appeared to be in league with former members of Eight Fingers, the criminals who had become wanted fugitives after escaping from prison. With their cunning minds, Marquis Raeven and Prince Zanac instantly realized there had to be a mastermind behind them as mere fugitives could never hope to bribe such greedy nobles with high position on their own.
The revelation unsettled them deeply, but caution quickly overtook their shock. As two of the few figures in the kingdom genuinely committed to its stability and determined to avoid any mistake that might cause its pillars to collapse, Marquis Raeven and Prince Zanac would not allow anyone to tear their nation apart.
"Yes." Renner continued softly. "Ordinarily, it might have been best to first consult with the three Great Nobles of the Royal Faction. However… one of them, Marquis Blumrush, is feeding information to the Empire, isn't he?"
Marquis Raeven's heart gave a jolt at her words, and he anxiously called out to halt her."Please, wait just a moment!"
However, his words didn't stop Princess Renner and she continued speaking while keeping her smiling yet a bit creepy face. "You knew, right? You, who are secretly known as the opportunist bat, all the while guiding both the Royal Faction and the Noble Faction, acting to make sure that the kingdom does not collapse?"
Marquis Raeven was so shock by the revelation of Princess Renner that he almost couldn't believe her. Prince Zanac on the other hand was stunned in disbelief with his jaws drop as he couldn't believe that his supposedly sheltered sister could know so much information.
Princess Renner continued to reveal more of the secrets that was happening inside the kingdom startling the two even more, yet her expression remained the same, beautiful and innocent yet that made her even more scary in the mind of Marquis Raeven and Prince Zanac.
"What are you… monster?"
Sweat trickled down Raeven's chin as he spoke, his voice trembling. But Renner seemed utterly unfazed by his rude remarks, answering only with a bright and almost radiant smile.
"Understood. Let us drop all the pretense. Prince, you don't mind, do you?'"
"Un."
As a noble and a cunning one at that, Marquis Raeven quickly collected himself, regaining his composure before addressing Prince Zanac.
After receiving the prince's reply, Raeven turned back to Princess Renner. His expression was more serious than before; he had decided he would no longer underestimate this golden princess.
"However..." Marquis Raeven paused, "before we proceed, I would like to speak to the real Princess Renner."
The moment those words left his mouth, there was a strange silence that wrap the atmosphere. Princess Renner stared at Marquis Raeven without any emotion, yet a second later, Princess Renner revealed a twisted smile and predatory eyes that would make anyone who know Princess Renner have a second thought if they saw her again.
Beneath her angelic smile and demure grace lurked a mind sharpened like a dagger that would manipulate and devour all those she could use.
"Ah, it's better than I thought!" Marquis Raeven turned excited seeing the true face of Princess Renner. Like others, he also couldn't believe, that the princess that was loved by all her people to be pure and virtuous, would turn out to be a crazy and corrupted girl. Yet, those smile that sent shiver down to his spine strangely didn't disgust him, instead, he was thrilled.
"Those eyes… they're the same eyes I saw when you were a child! Have you been acting all this time?"
While Marquis Raeven was in his emotional ecstasy, Princess Zanac couldn't help but move a a little further from him as he felt that this guy was some sort of a pervert. Yet, neither Marquis Raeven nor Princess Renner paid him the slightest attention.
"You see..." Princess Renner paused as if reminiscing about the past, before continuing in a soft, almost dreamy voice. "I had been… fulfilled."
"Are you referring to Climb?" Marquis Raeven asked after a brief pause.
"Yes, indeed." Princess Renner nodded, then fell silent. She turned her head toward the window, gazing at the scenery outside. Though her eyes seemed unfocused, neither Raeven nor Prince Zanac interrupted, waiting patiently for her to speak again.
"But…"
"But?" 2x
"Acheval-san… changed my view of the world."
"Acheval?" Raeven and Zanac exchanged puzzled looks.
"You mean the leader of the Metal Vessels?"
"Yes." Renner's smile grew madder at the thought of the man who had driven her crazy. She could not recall when it began, but his figure had gradually taken root in her mind, pushing aside Climb, the man she had once been utterly obsessed with.
...
"Achoo!"
"Are you okay, Acheval-san?"
"Yes. Someone might be talking bad about me," Shido replied, rubbing his nose. Still, he couldn't help but wonder who it might be. 'Must be either a guy who hates me… or a girl who likes me.' With a shrug, he pushed the thought to the back of his mind, there were more important matters to deal with right now.
"Really? It could also be a girl who's fallen for you, though." Lakyus eyed Shido suspiciously, making him cough awkwardly.
If they weren't standing in the middle of the street, she might not have been able to resist her emotions and would have jumped straight into his arms.
"Well, I won't deny that."
"…Narcissist." Lakyus was momentarily speechless at his thick skin, but a small chuckle escaped her lips thinking this side of him was oddly endearing.
"Let's stop talking about this. Didn't you want me to accompany you?"
"Ah, right! Let's go~"
Hearing Shido's words, Lakyus's excitement returned. Without thinking, she held his hands naturally before leading him toward the various stores scattered across the capital.