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Chapter 07
The Villainess Builds a Department Store
While Father was meeting with Monsieur Hedebo, I began reviewing my plans in earnest.
From now on, there were three major things I had to do.
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Repay kindness.
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Repay my enemies.
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Create a happy future for the people I cherish.
The most urgent one right now was number one.
To be precise, I had to save Bastian, who was probably rummaging through rotten apples in a filthy alley at this very moment.
Sebastian Bellure. Bastian for short. Or Sep.
He was the abandoned prince of the royal family.
Unlike fairy tales where princesses marry neighboring princes and live happily ever after, reality was anything but romantic.
The royal marriage between Loire and Albion—two kingdoms notorious for their long-standing hostility—was nothing short of a miracle forged through the blood, sweat, and tears of diplomats.
And Sebastian’s birth between them was surely another miracle, the result of near-brainwashing levels of early education the heirs of both kingdoms had undergone since childhood.
Yet that miraculous child, Sebastian, was switched at birth with a stillborn infant and abandoned in the slums.
It was the doing of the king’s mistress, Violetta Dian de Satin.
If I followed my heart, I would rush to the slums this instant, take him straight to the palace, and expose everything.
But I had never even been granted entry to the royal palace. I lacked evidence. And most importantly, Violetta was still there.
If anything, our family would be accused of insulting the royal house and be destroyed even earlier than in my previous life.
Then the second method.
Hire him into our estate, raise him properly, and later bring him to the palace.
More realistic than the first—but still nearly impossible.
The sheltered young lady of the estate, who had never stepped outside in her life, suddenly bringing home a filthy alley child and declaring, “Raise him”?
It would be far more believable if I insisted on adopting a stray puppy.
“…Then there’s only the last method.”
The longest and most painful path, but the safest.
I would go out to the streets myself and make his acquaintance.
Whether by chance or design, I would continue encountering him and help him escape the slums.
So that his talents could sprout and bear fruit far earlier than they had before.
“…First, I’ll go to the market.”
If I couldn’t save him right away, then I’d make someone else save him instead. Father or Uncle Guillaume would surely recognize his potential.
But first, I needed to see what state he was in.
“Antoine, want to go see the market with your big sister?”
“The market?”
They say it’s best to start insurance and savings plans early.
I was about to meet my future pension fund, so I headed to Father’s study to ask permission to go out.
They should be done talking by now, right?
Just as I was about to knock, I heard them bickering from inside.
“I’d like to buy my daughter a toy.”
“A toy? Are you joking? You called me here for that?”
Perfect timing.
I opened the door wide.
“Papa! Can we go buy that toy ourselves?”
“No.”
The answer came sharp and immediate, before I could even mention the market.
“Young ladies have no reason to visit the market. If you wait quietly at the estate, I’ll bring you the prettiest doll in the world.”
Monsieur Hedebo blinked in disbelief but nodded in agreement with Father.
It was the reaction I expected. Antoine and I drooped our shoulders dramatically.
“I want to choose it myself…”
“But there’s no governess right now. How can you go out without a proper guardian?”
There it was.
The governess position was vacant. Mother was bedridden again this morning. And going with just a maid would look improper.
Well then. Only one option left.
‘I didn’t want to use this method…’
I turned my toes inward, tapped my shoe against the floor, clasped my hands behind my back, lowered my head, swayed side to side, puffed my lips like a duck, and blinked wide eyes.
“Adele wants to go on a date wif Papa…”
I am ten years old. I am ten years old. This is filial piety. This is a performance for Father’s happiness…
“Hedebo, I’m sorry, but consider the earlier request withdrawn.”
“What? Your Excellency?”
It worked spectacularly. So well that if I used it twice, my soul might truly die.
At the last moment, Father changed his mind and decided to stay with Mother instead of accompanying us.
“I’ve never seen that look on Charles’ face before. Maybe I should’ve had a daughter too…”
“It’s not too late, Monsieur Hedebo.”
He stared at me, then burst into laughter.
“What would a child know? Though thank you. Unfortunately, the woman who could bear my daughter is far away.”
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
Wait. Did he have a deceased wife? In my previous life, I thought—
“No need to apologize. We divorced. She lives abroad.”
“….”
Sir! Don’t tease children with heavy topics like that!
I used to think he simply retained his youthful mischief even in old age. Now I realized—he had actually mellowed a lot.
“And don’t call me Monsieur Hedebo. If you’re Charles’ daughter, you’re like my niece. Call me Uncle.”
The word uncle made my shoulders flinch.
In my life, “uncle” was not a pleasant title.
“…I’m sorry. I was too informal with the young lady of the Charmeuse house. My apologies, Mademoiselle Charmeuse.”
Seeing me stiffen, he hurriedly corrected himself and even switched to formal speech.
“No! It’s a misunderstanding. I was just surprised. Since you’re Father’s friend, you’re someone I can treat without… ulterior motives. So… Ah! I’ll call you Uncle Guillaume. Is that alright?”
Well, I’d already said it.
“Oh? I quite like that.”
His face brightened instantly. What a simple man.
“Now then. You’ll be heading to Rière Street, I assume?”
Near the Charmeuse estate were two main shopping districts.
Rière Street and Ripome Street.
Rière was the high-end district, filled with guilds and ateliers, its walls practically buried beneath ivy.
Ripome was the morning market, bustling at dawn like morning glories opening to the sun.
Naturally, we would be going to the former.
