Chapter 105
Chapter 105
“Do you know Leilyranda Jackmüller?”
At my question, Cassis slightly furrowed his brows. He didn’t seem to remember, but Roen, who knew all the nobles and royals, nodded that he did know.
“I do know of her. After all, she is the empire’s only princess.”
“Ah, so the rumored princess’s name is Leilyranda.”
“Yes, but she doesn’t really have occasion to appear in public. Though I suppose she’ll make her social debut since she is a princess.”
Roen then proceeded to share everything he knew about Leilyranda.
I thought, ‘So this is how people generally perceived the female protagonist before the original story began.’
“But Irina, why the princess?”
“Well…”
It seems no one knows.
“I think the princess attended the party.”
“What?”
“But she didn’t identify herself directly as the princess.”
From the circumstances, she really did seem to be the princess.
“Then perhaps you just misunderstood. There wasn’t even a response saying she would attend the party.”
Roen asked with trembling pupils, apparently sensing that the situation had become complicated. I shook my head.
“Regardless of where a party is held, invitations must always be sent to the imperial family, right? They usually just indicate in advance whether they’ll attend, so proper preparations can be made.”
To begin with, there’s no gathering that royalty aren’t invited to. They are people who can go anywhere simply because they want to.
So even if it goes against etiquette…
“She’s still the princess, isn’t she?”
“That’s true…”
At that moment, Cassis cautiously raised a question.
“Then perhaps the princess simply came because she wanted to?”
“That’s one of the reasons I’m suspicious.”
You see.
I laid out one by one the reasons why I was suspicious of this situation.
The puzzling things the princess said to me, the circumstances suggesting her familiarity with Sian Terezia, and even what Sian had told me yesterday. I conveyed all of it.
“That’s what happened.”
“…”
“…”
Everyone’s reaction was as expected—they seemed shocked.
“For these reasons, although it’s not yet clear, I think it wouldn’t be a bad idea to include Princess Leilyranda as one of our investigation directions.”
In the current situation, we can’t even estimate what demonic beasts are or where they originated from.
When Marquis Cloi commissioned the Academy, our side along with Lemiere also put in a request for investigation, but it will take quite some time before any meaningful results emerge.
For this reason, we needed to investigate not just the demonic beasts themselves, but also their surroundings in advance.
“But investigating based on circumstantial evidence alone is dangerous, Your Grace. Besides, Princess Leilyranda hasn’t built up any significant faction so far. She practically has no presence.”
Roen seems to have quite a different opinion from mine.
And truthfully, Roen’s opinion isn’t entirely wrong.
“So I don’t think it’s necessary to take the risk. Although the relationship between the princess and Sir Sian is a bit suspicious.”
“Mr. Roen, I’m not necessarily suspecting that Princess Leilyranda did something. But as you know, it’s true that our current information about demonic beasts is extremely limited, right?”
“That’s right.”
“So that’s why I’m suggesting we start from there.”
The reason I’m so persistent about the princess is that I remember she’s the female protagonist of the original story. The fact that she’s the female lead means she’s an entity with great influence on the flow of the world.
Even if the past has changed because of me, just as Cassis remains the hero who will save the world, Leilyranda too must have some connection to the world’s destruction.
Besides, the conversation with the princess was too unsettling. Can a person make you feel this uncomfortable?
I recalled Leilyranda Jackmüller, the princess and original female protagonist, whom I had met.
[How was it, exactly?]
‘It was scary.’
I wanted to run away the whole time…
‘It was different from Sir Sian.’
It was completely different from the pressure I feel in front of Sian Terezia—more like fear.
Yes, exactly like a demonic beast.
It was similar to the fear I felt when I was left alone in front of a demonic beast. A tingling all over my body, a stiffness as if no movement was permitted.
Why would I feel this way in front of a person?
I wondered if it was because she’s the original female protagonist, but I don’t know. I’ve never felt like this in front of Cassis, who was the male protagonist and hero of the original game.
Was the original female protagonist always like that? I’m not sure. To be honest, I don’t remember well.
‘What’s certain is that things have changed a lot from the original.’
I know it makes sense to consider the original story abandoned after Cassis’s bankruptcy, but the plot hasn’t even officially begun yet. So why does the female protagonist already seem so different?
However, I couldn’t give such detailed explanations to the people here, so I had no choice but to insist.
Roen didn’t look too pleased, but he nodded.
Cassis, who had been quietly listening to our conversation, seemed to have reached his own conclusion.
“Both opinions seem to have merit. But as Roen said, immediately linking the imperial family with demonic beasts is dangerous.”
“Yes.”
“However, it’s also awkward to ignore a good starting point… I think it would be good to begin with my uncle.”
Cassis’s opinion was to delve into the relationship between Marquis Cloi and demonic beasts, while also understanding the relationship between Marquis Cloi and the Emperor.
If Princess Leilyranda is involved, there’s likely a connection through Marquis Cloi.
I agreed.
After checking mine and Roen’s reactions, Cassis added:
“And everyone seems to have forgotten, but one demonic beast that escaped that day still hasn’t been found. We don’t know when or where that humanoid demonic beast will appear, and if it appears in a civilian area, significant casualties are expected… So let’s quickly try to understand the situation.”
So this brief meeting concluded with three points:
The possibility that demonic beasts might have been intentionally created by someone.
That while Marquis Cloi appears to be the main culprit on the surface, there must definitely be someone behind him.
And that the princess is suspected as that person behind, but we shouldn’t jump to conclusions.
[This is quite meaningful from Irina’s perspective.]
‘Yes, I’m satisfied with this much.’
Anyway, things will work out somehow as time passes.
As I was happily organizing the materials, Cassis, who remained in his seat examining the documents Roen and I had prepared, muttered almost to himself:
“…The princess certainly has remarkably little known about her.”
“Right?”
“Even if there are issues with her birth, is this possible for a member of the imperial family?”
Cassis examined the documents detailing Princess Leilyranda’s personal information with a look of confusion.
“Isn’t that normal?”
“No… After all, a princess is a princess. People may frequently talk about her, but they cannot exclude her.”
“…”
“So it’s quite strange that she’s so unknown.”
Almost as if someone deliberately kept her hidden.
* * *
“Your Highness, what brings you here…!”
Rose Bistin asked urgently as she walked alongside the princess.
The princess moved quickly without responding. Rose followed the princess, almost running, while watching her carefully.
The princess’s mood was usually difficult to gauge, but today it seemed particularly bad. Her lips were curved in a gentle smile, but…
‘What should I do?’
From the time when ‘Lu & Cream’ was bearing the stigma of its association with demonic beasts, it had been arranged that only Rose would attend the party.
Regardless of the truth, there was no need for the princess to attend the opening party of ‘Lu & Cream,’ which was expected to be stigmatized for its association with demonic beasts.
There was no reason to invite future gossip.
So in that situation, Rose was the perfect choice.
Given that the person leading ‘Lu & Cream’ was Irina Seike, and considering how much she cherished Seiren.
The image of the Saint attending a potentially unsuccessful party out of consideration for her old relationship with Seiren was quite appropriate to present.
‘Lu & Cream,’ suspected of having a relationship with demonic beasts, and the former Saint candidate Seiren Lemiere who cooperated with it. And the Saint who attends the party to persuade her former colleague who has gone astray.
But such picturesque situations have long since passed.
‘Lu & Cream’ has become even more impressive than before, and has even gained public opinion that it can counter demonic beasts.
In this situation, the princess looked very displeased. In the end, when she insisted on attending personally, Rose had to sit at her feet all day, flattering her to try to dissuade her.
Rose got into the princess’s carriage and watched her carefully. The princess threw off her mask and smiled coldly.
“I chose someone stupid enough to manipulate as I please, but I didn’t know he was this stupid.”
Rose bowed her head.
She knew the princess was talking about Marquis Cloi, not her. Yet it felt as if it was aimed directly at her.
“Rose, what should I do? Yesterday, that man came to me and said that Irina Seike, that vicious whore, had plotted against him, and he was unjustly treated.”
“…It seems Marquis Cloi was the one who devised the stupid plot.”
“Right?”
The princess smiled brightly.
“I think so too. After all that boasting about how well he could do it.”
Demonic beasts were beings that would have appeared in the world eventually anyway. Because the world was growing ill.
It was gradually approaching destruction, and everyone pretended not to know, claiming it wasn’t their concern, that it wasn’t happening to them right now.
No one would know how many times warnings had been given. But no one listened.
Ah, there was one person who did listen.
Princess Leilyranda, sitting at an angle, recalled the black-haired man she had met earlier at the ‘Lu & Cream’ launch party.
That beautiful man from the north.
<Is that so?>
<Yes, so please. Help me.>
<…If I help you, what can I gain?>
That arrogant person who had everything.
She thought that if she could hold onto that person, she could do it. She thought the world might be able to become peaceful again.
Although she had nothing, she believed she could do it because she remembered everything. That the time given to her again was a gift from God.
But the conclusion was simple.
The world is going to be destroyed.
Again and again.
It repeats.
