Chapter 34
Thanks to Douglas Mateo’s quick reflexes, I managed to avoid colliding with the porter. That could have ended very badly.
Startled, Mileta hurriedly looked me over.
“…My lady! Are you all right? Honestly, who carries a load so big they can’t even see ahead?”
“I’m fine. Just startled, that’s all.”
“……”
Douglas had completed his duty flawlessly, yet still wore a sullen expression.
It’s written all over his face.
In the past, there had been a few occasions where Douglas had been assigned to guard me.
Some of those times, he had been tasked with guarding both me and Maxim.
The reason I brought Axiun’s knights instead of the Imperial Guard was simple — to humiliate Axiun by using Deoric’s knights at my whim.
I know. Even I can admit how utterly rotten I used to be.
Even now, Douglas was wearing that glum look because he was suspicious — wondering if I might try to sow discord between him and his lord by mentioning that I’d nearly collided with a porter.
Of course, the me from before might have done exactly that.
But that aside…
Douglas is just fun to tease.
I knew well that this perpetually dour-faced man was skilled enough to serve as vice-captain of the Deoric Knights.
But when it came to a poker face, his skills were abysmal.
“Thanks, Doug.”
“…It’s Douglas.”
Clearly, he didn’t like me calling him by a nickname.
Which, of course, only made it more amusing for me.
I would have loved to tease him a little longer, but unfortunately, I didn’t have the time.
Soon after, Mileta pointed to our destination — an old, shabby shop.
It didn’t even have a signboard, making it impossible to tell whether it was open or closed.
But that only confirmed my suspicions. Besides, Mileta had never once been wrong — except on the day I died, that is. Still, when it came to her work, she left no room for doubt.
When I opened the door, not even a bell rang to announce our presence.
Inside, it was quiet — no customers, and hardly any goods to speak of.
“Mr. Goldman, are you here?”
When Mileta called toward the back, there was the faint sound of movement.
While we waited, I glanced around the shop interior.
“Ah, what brings you here?”
An elderly man with a bent back shuffled out from the back.
He wore a thick-lensed monocle, and still had to squint to make us out.
“I came to see the goods you sell, Mr. Goldman.”
“…My goods?”
“Yes. This one here.”
From her coat, Mileta took out the wave-patterned crystal orb.
Goldman’s face stiffened in surprise.
Naturally — the day I bought this orb (well, Axiun bought it), the shopkeeper hadn’t been Goldman.
As the maker, Goldman had sold it to that merchant.
Later, I learned he had sold it for an absurdly low price. Even after its value skyrocketed, Goldman never saw a coin of the profits.
If it had ended there, I wouldn’t be seeking him out now.
In the past, Goldman had been under exclusive contract to Sezan Beautain, earning her enormous wealth.
But before that, he’d endured a difficult road.
When Goldman discovered his orbs were being sold for outrageous sums, he grew resentful toward the merchant who had underpaid him.
By the time Sezan had amassed a large stockpile of them — having recognized their value early — Goldman falsely accused her of having arranged the low-price deal through a third party.
To clear her name, Sezan negotiated with him and signed an exclusive contract, officially employing him. In the end, it benefited them both — but the scandal had dealt her social standing a heavy blow, and it took a long time to recover.
Best to eliminate that kind of risk early, don’t you think?
Besides, if I partnered with Goldman now, I could save both time and cost in producing the orbs.
“I’d like to propose a business deal with you, Mr. Goldman.”
“…Regarding this orb?”
It had been so long since anyone had shown interest in his work that he looked almost bewildered.
“Is it strange that I’d be interested? Do you think it’s not worth the attention?”
“……”
My words made him pause, his expression turning serious.
He didn’t like someone ignorant poking at his pride.
But he wasn’t afraid to raise his voice to a noble if it was for the sake of his craft.
Knowing that, I had expected his reaction.
“Let’s hear the terms of your offer.”
As he adjusted his monocle, light flashed off the lens.
That was exactly what I’d been hoping for.
Mileta handed me the prepared contract.
Everything went smoothly — at least until noon.
After concluding the deal with Goldman, I took a deep breath of fresh air.
Even the riverbank’s damp scent seemed fragrant somehow.
“Good work, Mileta.”
“I’m glad I could be of help, my lady.”
This time, she didn’t slip up and call me anything else. She even winked at me.
“Well then, we have some time. Want to look around before heading back?”
“Shall we?”
“Sir Douglas, you’re fine with that too, right?”
“…Would I have a choice?”
If I thought about it, his tone was laced with sarcasm, but I was used to it.
Better that than false politeness. Honestly, I even enjoyed it.
Still, it did feel a bit unfair.
He judged everything I did through the lens of my past, twisting it into some sly scheme.
I wished he would look at me as I was now.
“Sir Douglas, I like how consistent you are.”
“What are you talking about?”
At this point, it seemed better to poke at him until he snapped, then rebuild from scratch.
“Isn’t it true? I don’t have a lover anymore, I only look at Axiun, and yet you’re convinced I’ll cheat again the moment you look away.”
Even I could admit his caution wasn’t baseless.
But right now, I was saying it just to needle him.
“Am I wrong, then?”
Oh-ho. Knew it — he doesn’t take a poke lying down.
That was one way he was the exact opposite of Axiun. In fact, Tessa, captain of the Deoric Knights, was more like Axiun in that way — her face was so unreadable, you could never tell what she was thinking.
A quick glance over my shoulder showed Mileta quietly following.
I picked up and put down trinkets from a street stall as I continued.
“No, I’ve really changed now.”
“How am I supposed to believe that?”
“Don’t you trust what your lord believes? And you still claim your loyalty is beyond reproach?”
“This is my loyalty.”
He fired back without missing a beat, which was so very like him that I almost laughed out loud.
“Hm. Maybe so. Not sure if Sion would agree, though.”
Provoking him was child’s play for me.
In the past, I’d done far worse.
I could see him struggling to hold his temper.
“Why are you doing this kind of work anyway? It’s not like the Imperial family is short on money. If this gets out, it’ll tarnish not only the Imperial name, but also the reputation of your fiancé — my lord, the Regent. Can you still say you’ve changed?”
“Sir Douglas, don’t say things you can’t take back.”
Mileta, silent until now, snapped at him.
I raised my hand lightly to calm her, signaling that it was fine. Then I turned back to Douglas.
I knew what he meant — he thought I was deliberately doing things to bring shame to Axiun.
“The Imperial family isn’t broke. Careful what you say — people might take it the wrong way. The budget is fine, and tax collection has no gaps. I’m excellent with money, I’ll have you know.”
Even with my confident tone, Douglas just gave a wry chuckle and looked away.
Back then, the first thing I did when eyeing the throne was examine the Imperial finances.
You had to know exactly how much you had to work with before making any moves.
That hadn’t changed now — in fact, the situation was better, since I hadn’t meddled.
“You know I swore before the priest at the festival that I wouldn’t vie for the throne.”
“What does that—”
“It matters. I promised to protect Rexin until he could stand on his own. Do you think that’s the end of it? That the throne will be safe just like that? No. The nobles will test him endlessly, questioning whether he’s fit to be Emperor.”
“……”
Now that they knew I wasn’t a rival, they would turn their attacks on Rexin.
In the past, they’d targeted me to bolster his legitimacy.
Their intentions were transparent — and I knew exactly what to expect.
“The throne doesn’t defend itself. I swore to protect Rexin, and to do that, I need my own funds. Or should I stop all this and dip into the Imperial budget instead? Would that help Axiun more?”
“……”
It had been a long time since I’d driven someone into a corner like this.
I was almost giddy, enjoying every second.
Watching Douglas’s composure crumble in real time was exhilarating.
Clearly, I was better suited to playing the villain than trying to be gentle.
“No, my lady.”
“I thought so too.”
With his concise answer, I let it drop.
He stared at me for a moment.
“What are you waiting for? Pick something. It’s your reward for guarding me today.”
Still lingering by the stall, I tossed him a pair of gloves.
