Lord Baby Runs A Romance Fantasy With Cash [EN]: Chapter 122

☆ 122 ☆

* * *

“Haa…”

Only after walking back to the Diluculum Hall did a large sigh escape me.

I realized then that I had been holding my breath in tension.

“Why are you sighing like that?”

Turning towards the voice, I saw Raphael with his arms crossed and a frown on his face.

“You never have a peaceful day. What kind of trouble are you causing now?”

“I know, right.”

Unable to say anything, I just laughed.

Raphael frowned, looking displeased, and nudged my arm.

“Why are you acting weak, so unlike you?”

“Can’t you say something encouraging?”

“…Well, cheer up or don’t, whatever.”

I chuckled, watching Raphael mumble as he turned away.

“I need to think about it more, but it seems I’ll have to partner with the new Imperial Prince this time.”

Raphael frowned.

“Do you know what that means?”

“I know.”

What a guy, still worrying about me as a friend.

“That’s why I said I need to think about it more. The Paeraton family has been quietly staying out of external affairs.”

“It’s practically been absent from central politics.”

“It’s time for a change.”

This was the most important reason I came to the capital.

Raphael stared at me for a moment, then ruffled my hair wildly.

“Hey, what’s that!”

With his hand still on my head, Raphael said with a sulky face.

“We’re allowed to cause some trouble, not listen, and live as we please.”

I looked at him with a slightly surprised expression.

“Even the people who participated in the Dawn Festival are acting prim and proper, but everyone our age was like that.”

My face was reflected in his olive-green eyes, a subtle mix of yellow and green.

So that’s what Raphael’s eyes look like.

Raphael paused, then ruffled my hair again.

“Ahem, the people who passed the preliminaries are all three or four years older than us, and anyway, we’re the youngest ones here. They should understand if we cause some trouble, what else can they do.”

“Is that why you skipped out so much?”

“Skipping out once in a while is good for you.”

“It’s not just once.”

“Anyway! The truth is, they only act proper in front, but behind the scenes, they’re still troublemakers.”

He whispered as if telling a secret with a mischievous expression, and I chuckled.

Raphael makes me feel like I’m ten years old.

Just having a friend like him made this Dawn Festival meaningful to me.

“Raphael.”

“What, are you touched?”

“Let me give you some advice.”

I looked at Raphael with a serious face.

“If you ever get a girlfriend, never ruffle her hair like this.”

“…….”

“This is real, life-saving advice, so engrave it in your cerebral cortex [the outer layer of the cerebrum, composed of folded gray matter and playing an important role in consciousness].”

Raphael looked at me with an absurd expression, but he slowly took his hand off my hair.

“Girlfriend, my foot.”

He rubbed his hands together, trying not to look awkward, and grumbled.

I smiled, fixing my hair.

My family doesn’t care whether I act like a ten-year-old or an adult; they see me as me.

When I first went to the Duke’s mansion, I was so happy that they didn’t try to exclude me from family matters just because I was young.

At the same time, they try not to burden me.

Have fun and come back.

That was the condition my dad set when I participated in the Dawn Festival.

‘It’s a bit strange to hear that from someone my age.’

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to completely relax my shoulders.

No matter how peaceful it is now, the anxiety about the future doesn’t disappear from my heart; it just crouches there.

‘But I can find strength because I have people like this by my side.’

I nudged Raphael’s arm.

Raphael said, “What?” and nudged my arm back.

We left Diluculum Hall, bickering.

And then.

“Hee, you two look close.”

“I’m glad my younger sister has a close friend. Shall we talk for a moment?”

“But did you just touch our youngest’s arm?”

Raphael ran for his life.

* * *

The entire empire was in an uproar over the appearance of the new Imperial Prince.

It was obvious that this would overturn the seemingly peaceful existing order and cause a major upheaval.

Some thought that what was coming had finally arrived.

Everyone knew that the Emperor had been keeping the powerful Empress in check for the past few years.

They expected him to draw his sword someday and diminish the Empress’s power.

But who would have thought he would bring out another Imperial Prince?

They thought he would only clip one wing, but this was a far more drastic measure than expected.

It was like planting a flag and telling them to compete for the next Imperial Throne.

As expected, the footsteps of businessmen and nobles who frequented the Empress’s palace decreased with the appearance of a much sharper blade than anticipated.

It wasn’t that they had severed ties with the Empress, but they had to watch which way the water would flow.

The one who felt these changes most acutely was the Empress herself.

Clang!

The vase that the enraged Empress threw shattered miserably.

“How did you handle things?! Why did that bastard return to the Imperial Palace with a perfectly fine face?!”

The Empress glared at her closest aides, breathing heavily.

Before driving him out, she had placed a Geas [a magical compulsion or binding] on him, put him in restraints, and handed him over to a slave trader.

She thought he would live a life worse than death, unable to even put up proper resistance.

The Empress knew very well how cruel those who bought beautiful, strong, yet helpless slaves could be.

Even she thought it was the perfect move.

But then she heard the news that the slave trader had been annihilated and he had escaped.

“When that vermin escaped, what did you say? You said that he couldn’t break the Geas anyway, so he would live like a bug even if he escaped!”

The aides all bowed their heads.

In fact, the Empress had agreed with them at the time, feeling good about it, but they couldn’t say that.

“But what’s the reality! That son of a bitch is shamelessly acting like an Imperial Prince!”

“Your Majesty, please forgive us. But you must be firm, especially at times like these.”

“Firm? You tell me to be firm? After making such a mess of things, you dare say that!”

The Empress, shouting, gnashed her teeth and muttered.

“I should have killed him after all. Even now—”

“Your Majesty, you must not forget. Those who kill a member of the Imperial Family are cursed.”

The Empress frowned, looking displeased.

That was why she hadn’t killed the young Imperial Prince and had instead placed a costly restriction like a Geas on him.

Not only the person who killed him but also the person who ordered the killing would be cursed.

The Empress slumped onto the sofa.

After taking a few deep breaths to calm her anger, she opened her mouth.

“Tell me.”

“It’s clear that he made the announcement in a surprise attack at the first meeting of the Dawn Festival finals. It seems that no one except Count Chesia knew.”

“If we had followed the formal procedures, we wouldn’t have stood by.”

“He targeted the Dawn Festival, where everyone’s attention is focused, but it’s difficult for adults to react immediately… The Emperor is very determined.”

The Empress’s eyes gleamed.

“How dare he, who do you think put him in that position?”

It would have been difficult for him to become Emperor if her family hadn’t supported him.

“…What about the Paeraton Princess? She will naturally be Esteban’s partner, right?”

“Well, um… We heard that the Imperial Prince sent flowers, but there has been no contact from the Duke’s family—”

Thump!

The Empress slammed the table roughly.

“Just because she’s a bit smart, she dares to ignore the Imperial Prince’s sincerity?!”

“It must be because they are being cautious due to political issues.”

“If she thinks about that, she should be even closer to Esteban. Does she think that a bug who has been wandering outside all his life can be Esteban’s opponent?!”

The Empress was furious.

“I didn’t like her from the start. How much shame did I suffer back then because of Aphelia?”

She was too embarrassed to go to social gatherings for a while.

The aides exchanged glances, watching the Empress’s mood.

Eventually, the chief aide cautiously opened his mouth.

“We still need to secure the Paeraton Princess.”

“How can you say that when she dares to ignore my son like that?!”

“If the Paeraton Princess becomes close to His Highness the Imperial Prince, it will definitely be a great help. That’s why Your Majesty brought up the Princess’s story.”

It would be a great signal to those who are wondering which side to take.

The Empress suppressed her anger.

“I will put aside my pride for the sake of my cause.”

She had already tolerated and overlooked the Paeraton Princess’s arrogance several times.

“But I will definitely repay the debt for hurting the pride of the Empress of this country someday.”

Creak.

The leather of the sofa screamed sharply as the Empress’s nails scratched it.

* * *

Inside the Echesis Mercenary Group’s hideout.

In the form of Surah, I finished negotiating the next request with Echen.

Even though the work was done, Echen didn’t urge me to leave, even though I didn’t seem to want to get up.

I drank the iced chocolate that Echen had prepared and soothed my tense stomach.

“So, what do you want to say?”

Echen pushed Earl Grey cookies in front of me and asked.

Bitter cookies when drinking sweet drinks.

He knew my taste before I knew it.

I opened my mouth, crunching on the cookies.

“You know, at the party… Ah, this is a story about my friend.”

“Yes, of course, it’s a story about your friend.”

I pouted.

“It’s about that friend I told you about last time, the one who was a slave and became a Sword Master, so she’s worried.”

Echen smiled as if he understood.

“Ah, what about that friend?”

“That Sword Master asked her to be his partner at the party. What does that mean?”

“What does it mean? Usually, you ask someone you’re interested in to be your partner, right?”

“Well, the situation is a bit complicated. That friend received partner requests from three people.”

“Hmm.”

“She’s popular, right?”

I cleared my throat and raised my head.

“Why are you so proud? It’s a story about your friend.”

Oops.

I was so excited because it was the first time I had gone to a party outside the family and received partner requests.

“W, when you have a popular friend, I feel good too. It’s natural.”

I quickly changed the subject, hiding my burning cheeks.

“Actually… it’s not like those guys asked my friend to be their partner because they liked her.”

Echen had a very subtle expression.

I felt like he was looking at me with pity….

‘Why is that?’ I soon realized the reason.

“No! I’m not saying that to be jealous or to insult my friend!”

I quickly waved my hands.

“If we follow my friend’s words, not my opinion, it’s not because they like her!”

“I’ve been thinking this for a while, but your friend has terrible intuition.”

“No, she doesn’t? She’s only ever heard that she’s smart.”

Echen shrugged, watching me huff and puff.

“So?”

“Everyone has their own reasons. One is just a loner with no friends, and the other two need something my friend has.”

“Loner?”

“There’s a kid who has no friends and is possessed by a lonely wolf.”

“…Poor guy.”

Echen turned his head and muttered something, but it was too quiet to hear.

“What did you say?”

“It’s not important. But, are you sure about that thought?”

“Yeah, both have clear goals, and it would be easier for them if my friend became their partner.”

“I think if you asked the Sword Master himself, he would have said no.”

I was very surprised.

“How did you know? You could open a fortune-telling shop!”

I had been slightly ignoring him because he kept saying it was romantic feelings and kept missing the mark!

Echen chuckled, seeing me looking at him with sparkling eyes.

“It’s obvious.”

“How is it obvious?”

Echen paused for a moment at my question.

“Before that, I have something to ask.”

Is he asking for a consultation fee?

“What is it?”

“Your taste.”

“My taste?”

“Do you still like men who are dull to their own feelings?”

“Huh?”

“Men who don’t know they like you, or rather, deny and push away their own feelings… Do you like those kinds of men?”

No, why is that question coming up here?

I stopped eating the cookies and looked at Echen.

Echen’s gaze was very deep as he looked at me.

For some reason, my heart was beating a little.

‘No, this isn’t it.’

It’s because I think Echen might like me.

It’s because of the memory of tossing and turning in bed, thinking about his face.

This is definitely not exciting.

“Echen.”

“Yes, Surah.”

“…….”

Right, to him, I’m Surah.

A woman in her twenties.

I straightened my back with all my strength.

Actually, I had been thinking about it since before we met today.

That I had to draw a clear line with Echen.

The reason I kept putting it off….

It’s just that this is my first time having a ‘some’ relationship [a Korean term referring to the ambiguous stage between friendship and dating].

That’s all.

I swallowed hard and opened my mouth.

“Echen, let me make one thing clear.”

Echen’s expression also became serious, as if he sensed an unusual aura in my voice.

“I’m actually… an old woman.”