"…"

In front of the room where I was to meet Lady Lidiana, my body trembled from tension and fear.
Unable to bear the weight of the sin I would commit from now on, my tears spontaneously overflowed.
Even though I don"t have the right for that.
Regrets or repentance aren"t allowed for me.
Because, the reason why I moved was much too selfish.

"What is the matter? Princess Consort is waiting. Please hurry up and enter."
"Y, yes."

The royal guard turned a suspicious face towards me as I wouldn"t enter no matter how much time pa.s.sed.
Even if I keep standing here, n.o.body will help me.
Unwillingly, I took a step towards the door.

―― I don"t want to die.
I loathe myself, who from that feeling alone would betray even that person whom I loved with genuine feelings.

When the letter arrived, I was so surprised I almost dropped it.
The Crown Prince"s fiancée - Lady Lidiana, who will marry him in a month, invited me for a tea party.
For a moment I tilted my head wondering why she invited me, but I suddenly understood the reason.

―― If she wants to become my friend, I welcome her.

She certainly did readily nod when I impudently asked to be friends with her. I recalled that.

"… She"s honest to a fault…"

The words escaped me on their own.
Surely, she"s serious about getting along with me. That pure feeling is too painful for the current me.

"Ara, it"s just right."
"Ah!"

Suddenly a seductive voice resounded next to my ear.
When I hurriedly turned around, the woman who called out to me on that day - on the night of the victory celebration party was stooped over, looking at me while giggling. Her clothes were all black. I scowled at her clothes that emphasized her voluptuous body, but in the end I didn"t say anything.
Instead, I reflexively hid the letter. The woman observed me with interest.

"Fufu, it looks like I surprised you."
"H, how did you come here… The security…"
"It"s unfortunate, isn"t it? It"s not impossible for us. Lady Miriallia? I didn"t want to do it either. However, it was the order from that person. To confirm you are fulfilling your promise properly."
"…"

―― That person. At those words, I bit my lip.

The person I decided to foolishly cooperate with.
When I wound the black turban around a branch at our mansion, this woman immediately brought me to a certain mansion in the suburbs.
There I was introduced to a person whom I"d seen at the victory celebration party, who"s now under medical treatment.
Andre van de la Wilhelm.
The eldest son of the King"s younger brother, Lord Garay.
While surprised to meet the beyond unexpected personage, I hurriedly knelt, then he told me.

"You are my collaborator?"
"Eh…"

In response to the question Lord Andre asked while sitting at an office desk in the back of the room, I promptly raised my face.
Insolent fellow, told so with a glare, I hurriedly prostrated myself.

"I, I apologize."
"I"m royalty of the Wilhelm Kingdom. If you are a Wilhelm n.o.ble, try to mind your behavior and words more."
"Y, yes… Excuse me."

I further bowed my head while astonished by the arrogant att.i.tude much different from the royalty I know: the Crown Prince and Lady Lidiana, who even though isn"t yet royalty, is treated as a princess consort. "Fufufu", I heard somebody laugh.
When I raised my face after getting permission to, I saw a woman lean coquettishly against Lord Andre"s shoulder. And it wasn"t only the one who brought me here. There were two more.
Those two were at Lord Andre"s feet, but weren"t they the woman who had come with Lord Andre to the victory celebration party? Their wafting seductiveness made me blush despite being a fellow woman.
When I met eyes with them, they smiled meaningfully.

"Out of respect for your good-willed cooperation, I will ignore your disrespect from before. You want to trick Freed too. Our interests coincide."
"Eh… That, I…"

I was taken aback by the words Lord Andre said suddenly.
What in the world is he talking about? I"m not thinking of tricking the Crown Prince.
I tried to object, however pierced by Lord Andre"s strong gaze, I held my tongue.

"Lord Andre. Lady Miriallia doesn"t understand the situation she found herself in well. Could you offer her a more detailed explanation?"
"Yes."

Lord Andre gave a composed nod to the words of the woman who"d brought me with her.
And then he smirked. Although his face should be similar to the Crown Prince, his smile was awfully distorted.

"I don"t think it"s necessary, but let"s start with self-introductions. I am Andre, son of the Royal Prince Garay. Of course, you know me?"
"Y… yes. I am…"
"You don"t need to give your name. I was looking for a collaborator. And you agreed to that. I heard that from this woman. There"s no mistaking it, right?"

Lord Andre asked the woman without even looking at her. The woman nodded to him with a smile.

"Yeah, Lord Andre. I believe Lady Miriallia will unmistakably help you, Lord Andre."
"Hmph, she doesn"t seem very useful, but it can"t be helped. I don"t have time to choose somebody else."
"Well, let me tell you. It"s alright. Lady Miriallia is greatly displeased with his fiancée. Surely, she"ll readily cooperate."
"Oh?

Lord Andre looked at me with an unpleasant smile.

"That is to say you"re in love with Freed. And you hate the woman who"s his fiancée? Hahahah! Women are always so foolis.h.!.+ n.o.body realizes how that man truly is."
"U… umm."
"Irritating. It"s an irritating talk. But, whatever… Very well. I"ll generously forgive you."

For an instant Lord Andre"s eyes gleamed with hatred, but he immediately erased that gleam and again showed an unpleasant smile.

"Woman. Was it Miriallia? I want your cooperation. There"s no way you"d say no, right?"
"…"

I only felt an unpleasant premonition at the word cooperation. Although I now regretted coming to such a place, I couldn"t do anything.
While trembling I spoke.

"Umm… Cooperation? What in the world should I do…?"
"It"s not a big deal. I just want you to help a little. I have a little, just a little, grudge against that man. I want him to go through something painful. I want your cooperation with that. That"s all."
"T, the Crown Prince? T, that"s… i, impossible."

My heart, that thought it would be fine if Lady Lidiana went through a slightly painful experience, wilted rapidly.
After all, even if I know it won"t come true, he"s the person I love. I cannot cause harm to the Crown Prince.
I might have poked my nose into something considerably bad. Driven by anxiety, I looked at the woman next to him who"d brought me here as if to cling to her. As if to rea.s.sure me, the woman spoke in an unnaturally gentle tone.

"It"s alright, Lady Miriallia. We"re not asking you to do something to His Highness Friedrich. You"re displeased with Lady Lidiana, right? I want to ask you to do something to her. That"s all."
"That"s… all?"

When I asked back to confirm, the woman charmingly smiled.

"Yeah, that"s right. I said at the beginning, right? I don"t mean to ask you to do something difficult."
"T, that"s…"
"About the Crown Prince. This is a secret, but various things happened between Lord Andre and the Crown Prince in the past… And so, there"s a little discord between them. That"s why this time, by surprising the Crown Prince a little, Lord Andre is thinking of making peace with him. Right? Lord Andre?"
"Ha? With that man? Stop joking."

The woman remonstrated Lord Andre, who raised an outraged voice.
Her voice was so sharp, it felt like a blade.

"Lord Andre? … Please cut it out. Have you already forgotten what I talked about just the other day? The next time you can"t fulfill my request―― I said that, did I not?"

As the woman oozed a chill anger, Lord Andre shrank back for the first time. In a fl.u.s.ter he nodded.

"… Yes, g, got it. It, it"s as the woman says. Forget my words from before. I want to make peace with Freed. For that reason, I intend to play a little prank. Um… On his fiancée. At any rate, he"s intimate with his fiancée. She"s just the right target."

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