What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 46

#046 Twice Lived (4)

“After Father was dragged off to prison, Claudine seemed to harbor poison.”

“She completely changed. She was so gentle when she was young.”

The two village representatives, Teddy and Marie, began to speak in trembling voices.

I glanced at the two middle-aged people’s plates.

Clearly, it was an uncomfortable setting, as the untouched main courses were growing cold.

“Claudine’s father… enjoyed gambling. At first, he only invited acquaintances to hold small games, but at some point, he started inviting villagers to the inn.”

“I heard about that. He would induce the villagers to wager the gifts they received from the imperial family or nobles as stakes, and then cheat during the gambling to take everything.”

“Yes, yes. That’s right, Your Highness.”

Marie sighed deeply and lowered her head.

Ten years ago, Cardinal Boutier caught a fraudulent gambling operation here.

Benjamin said he clearly remembered the sight of the criminal spitting at the residents as he was dragged away, shouting, ‘You’re all just as filthy!’

“After my father was arrested, Claudine focused on renovating the inn for a while.”

“The villagers also kept quiet. Then, a few months later, a great noble came, and from then on, Claudine began to demand a portion of the gifts as a commission.”

“Did the people of Luca ever try to resist as a group?”

Cristel asked Teddy. I was also curious about this.

No matter how famous Luca’s Le Ciffre Inn was, if the whole village had united to refuse, there would have been no way for her to force them.

There seemed to be about a thousand residents, and the inn’s employees were also from here.

On the other hand, Claudine, who was in her twenties, was practically alone.

“Well, at first, we thought it was nonsense.”

“Most people ignored Claudine, and no one paid the commission until the great noble gave the gifts and left.”

“But what happened…?”

“Claudine gathered people and set fire to the inn.”

“What?”

“Le Ciffre Inn?”

Cristel and I raised our voices simultaneously.

Prince Cedric’s garnet-like eyes flickered like lava for a moment.

“Yes. She said let’s all die together, let’s see if we can live like this without the inn… She poured oil on the entrance while shouting just like her father, and that’s when we realized things had gone wrong.”

Marie raised her fist and thumped her chest.

Perhaps because her frustrated heart wasn’t relieved, she repeated deep breaths.

“We were the ones who put out the fire then.”

“……”

“The inn burned down nearly a third, and we were the ones who jumped into the flames with our bare bodies and carried water. Claudine didn’t move a single step. We saved the inn because we were afraid that the dignitaries would no longer come to the village… It was us.”

“Claudine just watched, as if she was supervising us.”

The two voices grew smaller and smaller.

They seemed to be crying in defeat and laughing in self-loathing.

I took a long breath.

That day, the villagers had practically completely lost control to Claudine.

Recalling the story I had just heard and the face of Claudine, who seemed so kind, gave me goosebumps.

I know that impressions and personality don’t always correlate, but it seemed rare for the difference to be this great.

“We are responsible for half of the situation.”

Teddy finally blamed himself. I quickly shook my head.

“When Claudine’s father initially lured unsuspecting people into gambling, many residents treated it as someone else’s problem. Some even pointed fingers, saying, ‘Why did you go to the gambling den?’ So, the fact that Claudine took over the inn and things turned out this way…”

“Please don’t say that.”

I stopped him.

It was unacceptable for the perpetrators to be confident while the residents shrank back.

The middle-aged man trembled slightly and looked up at me.

“If something that was usually given suddenly disappears, everyone tends to act defensively. Moreover, if it affects their livelihood, the reaction is even more obvious. Putting out the fire back then was an action you took for your livelihood, and it’s not something to be ashamed of. Claudine is the one who should be ashamed because she threatened your lives.”

Even Marie, who had raised her face, stared blankly at me.

The four pairs of eyes turned to me, and my cheeks instantly grew hot.

Still, I felt like I had to finish what I wanted to say.

“The same goes for fraudulent gambling. There is a clear criminal in prison, so I hope you don’t blame yourselves for that person.”

I stopped there and closed my mouth.

I don’t usually talk this much, but once I get upset, my insides spill out like an overfilled dumpling.

Teddy and Marie remained silent for a long time, then slowly nodded and wiped their cheeks.

For a while, the dining room was filled only with the sound of sniffling and murmurs of ‘thank you.’

“Let’s proceed as planned.”

The prince, who had been staring at me, opened his mouth. There was little expression on his beautiful face.

‘Plan’ meant arresting Claudine under the prince’s authority and sending her to the lord’s castle prison.

It was the simplest and most certain method, and it was also the plan that Prince Frederick had immediately put into practice ten years ago.

Last night, the prince couldn’t hide his displeasure at the fact that the work his mother had resolved was being carried out again.

I nodded slightly at his words.

Now that the situation was somewhat understood, we had to clean up and prepare to leave again.

“Let’s go out.”

The prince said to the village representatives.

In some ways, it was a ‘trashy’ dismissal, but I knew that this time he was telling them that for their sake.

They had poured out their difficult circumstances and even cried in a place where they were barely able to eat, so they seemed almost exhausted.

Moreover, if Claudine were to see this, there was a possibility that she would notice something.

Soon, the middle-aged people got up from their chairs and bowed deeply.

“I have a question.”

At that moment, Cristel opened her mouth clearly.

“If you could go back to the day the inn caught fire, would you do the same?”

“No, no. No, Princess.”

Marie shook her hands and denied it. Teddy also bowed and added.

“At that time, there was also a drought, so we were very desperate. But now… Even if we don’t have gifts, we can get by without anyone starving if we support each other.”

“……I see. I understand.”

Cristel, who had been pondering something, replied. Soon, the two representatives left the dining room.

I checked that the door was closed and then opened my mouth quietly.

“Princess, could it be…”

“I think the villagers need a second chance.”

Cristel met my gaze with clear, bluish-gray eyes.

It was a resolution so clear that I was momentarily speechless.

“As the Prince said, it was an act of trying to live. But because of that, they were tied down and suffered the same things as yesterday for ten years. If the inn owner is arrested like this, the immediate hardship will be resolved, but…”

She trailed off rarely. The fingertips holding the water glass were white with strength.

“Even if Claudine is defeated, their broken hearts won’t be healed on their own.”

Cristel, speaking like that, was shining like the only star in the night sky.

I stared at her, a little dazed.

I knew that she was the protagonist of and the character Eunseo loved, as if I had heard it a million times.