TPSR 05

Chapter 05

Carlos took out a palm-sized wooden box from a drawer.

“You will fill this box to the brim once a week. The deadline lasts until our sponsorship relationship ends.”

I narrowed my eyes.

Considering the effect of the purified stones, what he demanded was by no means a small amount.

It’s more than I expected, but….

I wasn’t in a position to haggle over such things right now.

“If you can’t—”

“Alright. I’ll do it.”

I answered hurriedly before he could even finish.

Carlos stared at me for a moment with an unreadable expression.

“Don’t misunderstand. This doesn’t mean I trust you, Princess.”

“I know. That’s fine.”

Even as I replied, my heart pounded uncontrollably.

This was the moment the first button of my plan was fastened.

He withdrew his gaze without lingering.

“I’ll prepare the necessary documents myself. Do you have any other business?”

“No. I’ll take my leave.”

Without hesitation, I hopped down from the chair.

I had just left him with a light bow and was about to step out of the study when—

“Wait.”

Carlos suddenly called me back.

“Yes?”

“…Is there a particular reason you came to me of all people?”

I understood the meaning behind that question.

There were countless people desperate for purified stones. Among them were surely those who would have accepted my proposal more readily.

So why the House of Carter—the imperial family’s greatest enemy?

An unspoken doubt flickered in his gaze.

“Well….”

I was about to answer, then closed my mouth.

Because if you’re my real father, I have to save you.

But what came out instead was entirely different.

“If I’m going to entrust my safety to someone, shouldn’t it at least be the empire’s only Grand Duke?”

At my composed reply, the question filling Carlos’s eyes faded.

His expression quickly returned to its usual dryness as he turned away.

“If you’re thinking of acting like a princess in my estate, you’d better give up now.”

“If that were my intention, I would’ve started by shouting about your insolence for treating me so poorly.”

“…At least you’re quick to grasp your position.”

“I’ll be going.”

With another small bow, I closed the study door behind me.

It worked.

Back in the guest room, I collapsed onto the sofa. My legs, freed from tension, stretched out limply.

It’ll probably take about ten days.

To formalize the sponsorship relationship, documents had to be submitted to the temple.

Until then, the ducal territory’s extraterritorial rights would protect me safely from the emperor.

At least I have some breathing room now.

I raised my left arm, where a dull ache throbbed.

One box a week, huh.

It wasn’t a bad deal.

Though I would have to reopen wounds that hadn’t fully healed, it was a small price compared to my life.

It’s a hundred times better than being bled in that lab.

I would no longer have to see the cold air of the laboratory, the hard bed, or the unfamiliar faces staring at me as if I were nothing more than an experiment.

In a way, this worked out well.

Once I handed over enough purified stones to the Grand Duke and the imperial family could no longer control him, I would leave this place.

“There’s just one more person left….”

I turned my head toward the table.

There lay another purified stone identical to the one I had given Carlos.

I hadn’t come this far merely to survive.

To accomplish my true goal, there was still one more person I needed to find.

I need to figure out how to move without the emperor noticing.

It had been four days since I left the imperial palace.

By now, the emperor must have realized I was gone.

I needed to act before they began actively pursuing me.

“Still… for now, I should rest.”

Perhaps because I finally felt safe, my body grew heavy again despite having slept for two straight days.

I slowly closed my fading eyes.

“The princess left the palace?”

In the Sun Palace bedchamber, the emperor, who had been preparing for sleep, raised himself halfway from the pillow.

Edgar bowed his head with his hands folded.

“Yes, Your Majesty. It seems she disappeared three mornings ago.”

“Another one of her tantrums, I suppose.”

The emperor clicked his tongue irritably.

Lorea was the imperial family’s headache.

As if constantly trying to prove her tainted bloodline, she darted this way and that without restraint.

Especially after learning that her blood was used in the refining of purified stones, whenever she was in a foul mood she would leave the palace for days with only a single knight as escort—

As if demanding they feel just how indispensable she was.

“What a troublesome wench….”

If he had known it would turn out like this, he should have locked her deep in an underground dungeon and broken her in, instead of making her a princess.

When he had stolen away the Grand Duke’s daughter from her dying mother that day, this had not been his intention.

If he hadn’t accidentally discovered that the child’s blood was effective for refining purified stones, he could have simply used her as leverage against the Grand Duke and discarded her afterward.

“Hmm….”

The emperor ran a rough hand through his graying hair.

“Very well. Leave it be for now. In a few days, she’ll come back with that shameless face of hers and start listing her demands.”

Judging by the way she had feigned innocence a few days ago, it didn’t seem like she wanted jewels or ornaments this time.

He recalled Lorea’s clear expression from that day.

“There’s still plenty of purified stones in reserve, isn’t there? We summoned her earlier than necessary, assuming she’d lie down for a while anyway.”

“Yes, there is still sufficient supply. However….”

Edgar added cautiously, gauging the emperor’s mood.

“This time, the princess left without even her escort knight.”

“…Without an escort?”

For the first time, doubt crept into the emperor’s perpetually displeased face.

“Yes. She has done this before, but in those instances she returned within a day.”

“Her defiance grows peculiar.”

Should he have coaxed and restrained her more firmly back then?

What absurd whim had driven her to such troublesome behavior this time?

“When she returns, grant her whatever she wants. For now, there is nothing to gain from upsetting her mood—”

The emperor, who had been waving his hand dismissively, suddenly stopped.

“‘It’s really fine, Your Majesty. I’d like to rest for a few days.’”