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Chapter 4
“Eek! Y-Your Grace, please calm down…!”
Crash!
“Get out! All of you, OUT!”
Beautiful silver hair and blue eyes. Evelyn Rosenthal was the greatest beauty in the Empire.
…And also the greatest lunatic bitch.
“You worthless idiots! Is there seriously not a single person here who can do their job properly?!”
After getting dumped by the Crown Prince, it would’ve been stranger if that crazy woman hadn’t thrown a hysterical fit. People were practically thinking the young duchess had finally reached the point of dying.
The system was unexpectedly serious about maintaining “Evelyn-ness.”
After driving away all the maids who had brought in tea, I panted heavily.
“Damn it… Is that enough now? Huh? Are you satisfied?!”
[The player’s actions have been judged to exceed the required threshold.]
[The story flow has returned to normal values.]
This was the price of taking a new route.
The original Evelyn would have gone running to the Crown Prince—or anyone else—and acted “like Evelyn.” But because Evelyn had quietly stayed inside the mansion, a sort of bug had occurred.
At least once a day, I had to throw an absolute fit.
Otherwise my body would move on its own and cause trouble.
In other words, moving voluntarily was the best way to minimize the damage.
Still, investigating Jonas under these conditions wouldn’t be easy.
“Isn’t there another way to raise Freedom?”
[Complete quests.]
“…Like I don’t already know that!”
I scowled deeply, then suddenly froze at a thought.
Complete quests?
“Wait. Can I receive quests besides the main quest?”
[Quests are provided by nearby individuals.]
“Hey! You should’ve told me that sooner!”
This damn system!
I hurriedly yanked the bell rope to summon a maid.
“Ginny! Ginny!”
Hearing the bell, my personal maid Ginny rushed inside.
“Y-Your Grace! Did you call for me?”
She looked so terrified it was almost pitiful.
First, I pointed out the obvious task in front of her.
“It’s filthy! Can’t you clean this up immediately?!”
“Y-Yes…”
Ugh, my throat hurts.
Damn it, I spilled the tea earlier, so there’s nothing left to drink.
Ginny cleaned up the shattered teacup and began wiping the floor with a rag.
But how was I supposed to obtain quests from people nearby? Was I supposed to ask if they had worries? Or if they needed something? But Evelyn would never normally ask things like that…
Ah, was it like this?
Something was floating above Ginny’s head. A faint exclamation mark. Exactly like the ones hovering over NPCs in games.
Ding!
[Quest Name: Maid Ginny’s Worry]
Objective: Ginny has a sick widowed mother and five rabbit-like younger siblings. Recently, her mother’s condition has worsened greatly. Visit her mother and cure her illness.
Restriction: Reward reduced by 50% if your identity is exposed.
Reward: +4 Stats
Ah, now I was finally getting the hang of it. No wonder the main quests gave such huge stat rewards. The game must’ve been designed so you could also raise abilities through smaller side quests like this.
After carefully reading the quest details, I waited until Ginny left.
“Wait, I think there was a mini-map somewhere… Ah, found it.”
When I activated the mini-map, the quest location appeared as a blinking dot.
Strike while the iron is hot, right?
I stole an old robe from the maids’ quarters. I chose the plainest dress possible and pulled the hood down tightly so my face wouldn’t show.
Being recognized was only part of the problem. If anyone saw me, I’d end up having to throw another tantrum.
I quietly opened the door. Thanks to the lazy midday atmosphere, I managed to slip outside unnoticed, hiding around corners as I went.
Naturally, I used the servants’ back entrance.
Only after confirming no one was around did I cautiously head toward the blinking point on the mini-map.
Ginny’s house was basically a shack.
If she worked for a ducal household, the pay should’ve been pretty decent. So why was she still living in a place like this?
“…Who’s there?”
As soon as I stepped through the space that barely qualified as a doorway, a rough voice came from the dark interior. The sun hadn’t even set yet, but no light reached the inside of the room.
“…”
“Who are ya, barging into someone else’s home without permission?”
As I moved closer, I saw a gaunt woman struggling to sit up from a pile of rags. She looked so pitiful it was hard to look at her directly.
Thinking perhaps a thief had come in, she wore a wary expression.
“As ya can see, there’s nothing worth stealing here. Must’ve got the wrong place.”
Normally I’d take time to investigate carefully, but I didn’t have that luxury. In times like this, the direct approach was best.
Alright. Straight to the point!
“Are you Ginny’s mother?”
“That’s right. Do ya know Ginny?”
“I came from the place where Ginny works to conduct an inquiry. I heard you’re ill… What illness do you have?”
She still looked suspicious, but apparently decided telling me the name of the illness was harmless.
“Namtaru disease. But why’re ya asking?”
“Think of it as something like a welfare visit from her workplace.”
I tossed out a vague excuse and left the house again. I planned to visit a nearby herbal medicine shop.
But then I slowly stopped walking at the bizarre realization of what had just happened.
“Wait… Did I just use polite speech?”
It had come so naturally that I hadn’t even noticed, but what I’d just done was absolutely not something Evelyn would do.
I’d been kind. And I’d even spoken respectfully!
To a commoner!
“No way…”
Did that mean there were no restrictions when dealing with people who didn’t know I was Evelyn?
Ding!
[ Stat Assistance Notice]
[When interacting with others without revealing your identity, Freedom restrictions do not apply.]
“Holy shit, jackpot.”
So as long as people didn’t know who I was—or couldn’t recognize me—I could act however I wanted!
Feeling as though heaven itself had shone a light upon me, I clasped my hands together emotionally.
Hell yes! Thank you!
Pretending to wipe away nonexistent tears with my sleeve, I stood up.
Now wasn’t the time for this.
Fortunately, there was an apothecary nearby.
After hearing my explanation, the physician narrowed his eyes.
“Medicine for Namtaru disease…?”
“Yes. Is there a cure?”
“Hm. Would temporary medicine do?”
“Huh? What do you mean temporary?”
Was it an incurable disease?
Then did that mean this quest was impossible from the start?
When I asked, the physician hesitated before answering.
“Namtaru’s a peculiar illness, y’see. There’s medicine that eases the pain and prolongs life, but the patient has to keep taking it until they die. It’s expensive too…”
“No way…! Then you’re saying it can’t be completely cured?”
This damn system!
“No, not exactly… There is medicine that can completely cure it, but the price is a bit… ahem, very expensive. The herb ingredients are hard to obtain… Though I do happen to have exactly one in stock…”
Ah. Money.
Without a word, I pulled out a pouch from my robe.
The physician’s eyes widened when he saw the dazzling gold inside.
“Customer, please wait just a moment! I’ll prepare the medicine immediately!”
Money really was king.
The physician who’d looked annoyed just moments ago hurried inside at lightning speed.
So this was why Ginny remained poor despite working for a ducal household—the medicine was insanely expensive. So expensive that she couldn’t quit even while suffering under my abuse.
Well, considering Evelyn was so violent that maids rarely lasted long, I’d heard the wages were extremely high. Given the circumstances, Ginny really couldn’t afford to leave.
Soon, the physician handed me a potion-like medicine. The price I paid for it was a whopping fifty gold.
Pocket change for nobles, but an amount commoners might never touch in their entire lives.
…Hopefully I wasn’t being scammed?
But still!
Even if I was, who cared!
I had money overflowing anyway.
“Please come again, customer! You’re always welcome here!”
The power of money truly was incredible.
I waved lightly and started walking away.
Holding up the small glass bottle to the sunlight, I watched the cloudy green liquid slosh around inside.
“Hm, this thing costs fifty gold…”
Ridiculously expensive.
The moment I looked forward again, someone brushing past me bumped my shoulder.
“Ah! My medicine! My stats!”
No! He said it was the last one!
I frantically reached out after dropping the bottle. But the glass vial had already fallen from sight under the pull of gravity.
Just before the thin glass surface could smash against the ground, someone swiftly snatched it out of the air.
Eyes widening, I looked up.
Black hair as dark as the night sky.
Blood-red eyes.
“…!”
Second Prince Rakiel?
