CH 49
Marienne stared blankly at the Princess for a few seconds, trying to process her words. It was an act that threw all etiquette to the wind, but it couldn't be helped.
“Are you having Vileon watched?”
“Interesting. I thought your first question would be how the driver heard what was said inside the carriage…”
“I’m curious about that too.”
“Right?”
She couldn't let herself get sidetracked. Marienne shook her head.
“How long has that driver been working for Your Highness? Are there others working for you at the Byers estate besides the driver?”
“Do you really think I would tell you that?”
“I suppose I didn't expect you to.”
Marienne backed down quickly. Still, the fact that the Princess was spying on Vileon and his family was shocking.
“Is there really anything worth reporting about Sir Byers? The man is devoted to you and you alone…”
“True. Until now, the reports have been unremarkable. But if one waits long enough, interesting things like this eventually surface.”
Odette pointed a finger at Marienne.
“As in your case.”
“Huh.”
“And let's be clear about this.”
Odette explained that she hadn't chosen Vileon as her partner precisely because he was precious to her, a fact Marienne should have heard from Chloise.
Marienne looked at Odette with a blank face.
“It seems Chloise Byers didn't tell you.”
Odette looked surprised. For a moment, it seemed her estimation of Chloise had risen slightly.
“She's so obsessed with matchmaking. I thought she lost all discretion when it came to that subject, unable to tell what should and shouldn't be said. But she managed to keep this a secret.”
“…What secret?”
“I once stayed overnight at the Byers estate.”
The explanation followed: she had been inspecting a construction site when she got stranded by a downpour that started in the afternoon.
Returning to the Imperial Palace soaked to the bone would have surely made her ill, so Odette ended up taking refuge at the nearby Byers county estate.
“I'd just lain down to sleep when the second child of the house knocked on my door. She came in and asked if her brother wasn't to my liking.”
Odette's eyes took on a reminiscent look.
“She took it upon herself to try and match me with her brother.”
“I see…”
“I was both tired and dumbfounded. But even in my agitated state, I could see her sincerity. She was confronting the princess rumored to be gloomy, all to help her own flesh and blood's unrequited love come true.”
Then Odette said, “Marienne.” Called upon so suddenly, Marienne couldn't help but tense up. Odette gave a bitter smile in response.
“As you can tell just from the story about the Crown Prince, my so-called flesh and blood…”
The bitter smile soon changed into an icy sneer.
“They are busy trying to harm one another.”
Unworthy people occupied positions far too high.
“But the Byers family wasn't like that. That one night was enough for me to understand how Byleon could be such a thoroughly good person.”
Odette's gaze drifted to a distant point.
“I think in that moment, I was terribly jealous of Vileon Byers.”
Does Vileon know that the Princess was jealous of him?
Somehow, I don't think he does.
Odette, too, would likely take this secret to her grave. Considering the Princess's pride, it was only natural.
“That's why I became even more certain. I told Chloise that even if Vileon were the last man on earth, I would not take him as my partner.”
Odette said, as if murmuring softly.
“I will rise to a very high position, and that position is one where, if necessary, I would have to order the execution of my own husband's family.”
“Gasp.”
“She's a bright child, so she understood immediately. Though… she did barge into my bedroom to confront me.”
Odette shrugged.
“At least she hasn't spoken of it until now. To think she kept her mouth shut even from her brother's new love, whom she'd been so eagerly awaiting. I'm honestly a little surprised.”
“That's probably…”
Marienne belatedly tried to swallow her words, but Odette told her it was too late and to just say what was on her mind.
“Perhaps it was because she was afraid she'd lose her head if she spoke carelessly?”
At that, Odette laughed out loud.
“You're a strange one. You're afraid of me, yet you say everything on your mind. You must not value your life very much.”
“That's not true. I value my life a great deal.”
Now that my sweet favorite character has become my lover, that's even more true.
“And compared to usual, I'm being extremely careful with my words and actions right now.”
Odette chided her, asking how she always had to have the last word. Marienne considered retorting to that as well but decided to keep her mouth shut.
“Those whom Vileon holds dear are important to me as well. If anything were to happen to them, he would be shaken. That's the kind of man he is.”
Odette paused to catch her breath before speaking.
“He finds his reason for living in those he loves.”
As she spoke, the Princess seemed much older than her actual age. There was even a slightly transcendent quality to her.
I understood why the Vileon from the original novel sometimes felt a sense of precariousness from Odette, as if she could disappear at any moment.
Odette definitely had that side to her.
At an age when most people radiate their brightest energy, she was shadowed by a unique loneliness and sense of ephemerality, born from living with a sickly body, trapped in a prison without bars.
One knows they cannot reach her, even if they extend a hand, and that they can offer no comfort.
And yet, it was an aura that made it impossible to leave her behind.
If you turn your head, she might just vanish.
‘But for all that, Your Highness, you live to be ninety-five, don't you?’
Marienne pressed her lips into a thin line. It was a moment of sudden realization.
‘Even after having two children, you ride horses just fine. Ninety-five. Considering the average lifespan of past emperors, that's truly amazing.’
Could the secret to her long life be the success of her revenge?
Killing everyone she wanted to kill probably unknotted all that resentment in her chest. Once that was cleared up, her blood circulation must have improved, letting her sleep soundly with her feet stretched out.
And then after ascending the throne, she lived doing whatever she wanted.
“In any case, now that you're Vileon's lover, you've boarded my ship without even realizing it.”
“Is… that how it works?”
Marienne replied dubiously.
“Can't the two of you just handle the important stuff, and I just get documents approved at the Chancellor's Office?”
“How nice it would be if things worked so easily.”
Odette smiled.
“No.”
“Hah.”
“I heard about the conversation you two had in the carriage. You rattled off a plan to eliminate the Crown Prince. Vileon said he already knew about it, didn't he? But he only said that to reassure you.”
No wonder I had a bad feeling about it. So I really did spoil it for Vileon. Marienne closed her eyes in resignation.
“My Chancellor came to see me right after that. He presented the method you described as if it were his own idea. The plan itself is excellent, but his goal was also to protect you from me.”
“Protect me?”
“You said it yourself—you want to live a peaceful life. But I'm not the type to let a useful person sit idle. And now I know you're smarter than you look and would go through fire and water for Vileon.”
‘Smarter than I look.’ I feel so cherished. I'm so moved I could cry.
“In that case, using you as a chess piece to… even one day sooner…”
Odette deliberately trailed off.
“…succeed is the better choice.”
The object was omitted. But both the speaker and the listener knew what it meant.
Revenge.
“The peaceful life you dream of will probably be possible around that time.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Until then, you must not break up with Vileon.”
How gracious of her to care about the dream of a humble creature like me.
Marienne was mentally blowing a flurry of exaggerated air kisses when her eyes widened at Odette's next words. Odette repeated herself.
“If you intend to break up, do it after our work is finished.”
“No, I…”
“I'm not ordering you to endure it if you fall out of love. If you want to break up, you can. But only after my status has changed. Before that would be… inconvenient.”
She said Vileon couldn't lose his focus due to the impact of a broken heart.
After overcoming the pain of being rejected by her, he's just barely started his second love; what would happen if that failed too?
‘What am I supposed to say to this?’
Marienne was flustered. She'd lost count of how many times she'd been flustered today. In fact, she'd stopped counting after encountering the messenger from the Fourth Princess's palace.
“Thank you, but I have no intention of breaking up with Sir Byers… We haven't even been dating that long.”
“That may be true now. But what about a year from now? Can you guarantee your feelings will be the same in two years?”
“Who can guarantee something like that…?”
Marienne grumbled under her breath. Odette must have had exceptionally sharp hearing, because she caught the mumbled words and laughed.
“It would be good for me if you two last, but…”
To summarize Odette's words:
If you plan to keep dating Vileon, then you too must be loyal to the Fourth Princess's palace.
Is this demand too burdensome, making you want to break up? There's no way to back out now, so give up. Instead, just endure it until I ascend the throne.
It really hit home that she was a person of power to her very bones.
All I wanted was a sweet, lovey-dovey romance with my favorite character. But now I've ended up sharing a destiny with the original female lead.
What kind of twisted buy-one-get-one-free deal is this?
Marienne forced the corners of her drooping mouth into a smile. If she couldn't get off the ship, it was only human to want to be assigned a good cabin.
“…When this is all over, will you give me a position too?”
It must have sounded quite audacious. Odette raised an eyebrow slightly.
“The Vileon Byers I know would never be the first to suggest a breakup. As long as you don't have a change of heart, the title of the next Countess Byers will naturally be yours. It seems that's not enough for you, however.”
“A person should be self-reliant.”
Marienne fiddled with the hem of her jacket. The new work clothes Vileon had bought for her were different from her old ones, starting with the fabric.
It was light, wrinkle-resistant, and soft to the touch.
And it was incredibly expensive.
With her pitiful salary, she might be able to afford the cuff of the jacket.
“Even if Sir Byers were to gift me a diamond, it would be the property of the Byers family, not truly my own. Not that I would refuse it, of course.”
Marienne wanted to be the kind of person who could buy her own diamonds.
Honestly, don't I deserve at least that much?
It's not like I asked for a fiefdom, or for three hundred handsome servants. For participating in this grand undertaking, I think my price is quite a bargain.
“A good position… couldn't you make that happen?”
“Are you daring to bargain with me?”
Unlike her tone, Odette's expression didn't seem particularly displeased. If anything, the Princess seemed a little amused by the situation.
“That depends on how well you perform.”
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