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Chapter 6
“Hmm…….”
After thinking for a moment, Madam Abigail carefully replied.
“Would a purchase price of 600,000 Deurk for the dresses alone be acceptable?”
Cassia must have been quite intimidating, because that was a fairly reasonable price.
But my goal was to get cash as quickly as possible.
“Add shoes and bags too—900,000 Deurk.”
“Gasp!”
At my offer, the madam’s eyes widened as if they would pop out.
For reference, 900,000 Deurk was roughly the price of a mansion with a garden near the capital.
In Korean money, that would be about 900 million won.
“Y-you really intend to hand over the shoes and bags as well?”
The madam asked me in disbelief.
But despite the huge amount, the corners of her lips were already slowly rising.
She was clearly tempted by my offer.
After all, among the shoes and bags were many limited-edition items.
The longer they were stored, the more their value would increase.
On top of that, all of Cassia’s dresses were top-tier, and in perfect condition.
That was because of her extremely picky personality—she would make a fuss even if the fabric was slightly damaged.
And if you added the premium of “belonging to a princess,” the boutique would not lose at all.
……Now that I think about it, it feels a bit wasteful.
‘Should I have squeezed a little more? Maybe 50,000 Deurk more?’
For a moment, I thought it over, then shook my head inside.
‘If I can sell it this easily, then losing a bit of money is acceptable.’
Right now, I can’t afford to waste time.
Honestly, this amount isn’t even a loss.
Meanwhile, Madam Abigail, who had been watching me closely, suddenly trembled.
Her face had turned pale white like paper.
“P-Princess……?”
Oops.
Seeing her call me in such a shaky voice, it seemed she had misunderstood my silence.
“I-is there something I said that offended you……?”
Hmm.
I narrowed my eyes.
Well, seeing her so frightened does make me feel a bit sorry.
But since she’s already scared, maybe I can use this a little more?
“These items,” I said. “You know I sold them extremely cheaply, right?”
The madam looked momentarily troubled.
Her face clearly said, “No…… I actually paid a proper price……”
But I shamelessly continued.
“So, in return for selling them cheap, you need to keep your mouth shut.”
“W-what do you mean……?”
“Keep it a secret that I’ve been selling dresses and accessories for now.”
I put on the most dignified expression I could, like a villainess.
If it became known that I was liquidating luxury goods instead of destroying them like usual, the imperial family might start investigating the reason and make things troublesome.
So this must remain hidden at least until I officially join the knight order.
“If this leaks outside,” I said.
I didn’t finish the sentence.
Instead, I calmly drew my hand across my neck.
“Eek!”
Madam Abigail’s face turned completely pale.
“I-I understand! I will remember it!”
Hmm. Maybe because Cassia was such a notorious troublemaker in the original story, she was very obedient when threatened.
That’s good.
After sending Madam Abigail away,
I got busy.
First, I fully remodeled Cassia’s personal carriage.
I planned to leave the palace and sell it in the capital.
‘If I want to get a higher price, it’s better to repair it as much as possible.’
That was my calculation.
‘Sniff. My beloved ride… my Fe**ri…….’
With teary eyes, I looked at the carriage.
My hand gently stroked it, full of affection.
‘Even though we are parting like this, I will never forget your sacrifice.’
After that tearful goodbye and finishing most preparations cleanly,
I opened the jewelry boxes one last time.
“Whoa, it’s blinding.”
The light coming from the jewelry boxes was so bright that I instinctively squinted.
Earrings, necklaces, bracelets, rings, anklets, brooches, jeweled hairpins, tiaras……
‘I didn’t realize there were this many types of jewelry.’
I was a little impressed, but soon fell into serious thought.
‘Should I sell all the jewelry too? No.’
I shook my head.
Dresses, shoes, and fashion accessories were too bulky to carry to the north.
But small jewelry pieces seemed quite useful.
Even if I didn’t sell them now, they could be emergency funds later.
‘And they could be useful for persuading stubborn people.’
I know.
Society calls this bribery.
But come on—this is a situation where the world’s destruction is at stake. Who cares about bribery?
Besides, I could even use them to find weaknesses.
‘If someone ever refuses to cooperate and I have to use bribes……’
My eyes gleamed.
‘I’ll keep records and stab them later!’
Who would dare throw a princess in jail just for giving a few jewels?
I smirked, then quickly came back to my senses.
‘Anyway, I should order purification agents soon.’
The only place that could produce purification agents was the Imperial Institute of Magical Research.
And it was impossible to hide the fact that I was ordering them.
It was under the imperial family.
‘Then what.’
I shrugged.
‘I’ll just order it openly.’
Honestly, the original Cassia had so many past incidents and troubles that
people would likely just think: “She’s doing something weird again to impress Jiskar.”
‘Then, while I’m at it, I might as well give the researchers some of these hard-to-sell jewels.’
I planned to earn points with the researchers.
I would be dealing with the Imperial Magical Research Institute often in the future.
‘And lastly…… the final thing I need to do.’
I threw myself onto the soft bed.
Ah, this softness.
Rolling around on the mattress filled me with deep happiness.
‘I’m going to relax.’
Until the purification agents were secured, I planned to fully enjoy this luxurious princess life.
Recently, strange rumors were spreading in the imperial palace.
The subject of those rumors was Cassia Sortiz del Astrid.
She was the imperial family’s biggest troublemaker and known as the empire’s worst villainess princess.
“Hasn’t the princess been acting a bit different lately?”
“Yeah, she hardly gets angry these days.”
“And it’s been two weeks since she last called the jeweler or dressmaker.”
“Isn’t that a record? She would’ve called them at least five times by now.”
The maids looked at each other in confusion.
“A princess who doesn’t cause trouble or throw tantrums… am I dreaming?”
One of them raised her hand and pinched her cheek hard.
“Ow.”
The sting confirmed it wasn’t a dream.
Then the maid who started the conversation spoke excitedly again.
“But there’s something even more surprising. I heard this directly from a friend who works in the princess’s palace……”
The maids suddenly grew quiet.
“Y-you have a friend working there?”
“Your friend must be suffering a lot……”
After all, the princess’s palace was known among maids as a “place of exile.”
No one wanted to work there, even with double pay.
It was a place where maids were replaced every week because they couldn’t handle the princess’s temperament……
But the speaking maid shook her head meaningfully.
“The other day, my friend accidentally broke a flower vase while arranging flowers.”
The maids went pale.
“H-how did it go?”
“Did she survive?”
Under everyone’s gaze, she nodded.
“The princess just told her to clean up the broken pieces and leave.”
“What? She didn’t slap her?”
