The Second Heroine!
Step by step, we left the auction house in Liana’s capable hands. Diana and I strode confidently toward the exit.
“Um, Your Highness… are you sure we don’t need to help her?” Diana’s fingertip pointed toward the back of the hall. Liana was diligently binding the wrists and ankles of every participant with ferocious focus.
“It is fine. Liana is an exemplary vassal, after all.”
By the time we reached the entrance I pushed the heavy doors open. A guard I had never seen before leveled his sword at us.
“Don’t move! His Majesty the Regent Princess has ordered your detention! Hands in the air!”
“Hiiik…!”
I’m the Regent Princess who gave that order, you know?
Diana shot both hands skyward, eyes brimming with tears. The guard glared at me.
“Why aren’t you raising your hands? Are you not afraid of the Regent Princess?!”
“…Your name, good sir?”
The guard thrust his chest out and jabbed a thumb at himself, beaming with pride.
“I am Arnold, proud Captain of the Varshain Imperial Guard!”
Once I knew his name, courtesy demanded I reveal mine. Even though the situation was so absurd I was fighting back laughter, I kept a straight face and spoke.
“This princess is Iris Varshain.”
“Right! Iris! For disturbing the empire’s order, I hereby arrest—eeek?! Y-Your Highness the Regent Princess?!”
The sight of the captain collapsing in pure terror finally broke me. The laughter I had been bottling up exploded like a volcano.
“Pfft— Well, it is possible not to recognize this princess. Assist Liana and secure the auction house.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am!”
“Ah, and one more thing.” A job well done deserved a reward. “This princess shall send a modest gift to your home. Consider it a small token of appreciation.”
“Th-thank you!”
Captain Arnold bowed repeatedly before leading his men inside. I watched them go.
Hmm… is that the end of it? The short but dazzling reign of the ultra-luxurious black-market auction had been brought to a close by Liana and me alone. Punishing the participants and repatriating the auction items could wait. For now, my work was finished.
I sat on a nearby bench to wait for Liana when—
“Thank you again for helping me! Goodbye!”
Diana gave a quick bow and tried to slip away. Last time she had vanished too quickly for me to stop her, but today would be different.
“Wait a moment!”
“Yes? Is something wrong?”
Wrong? Of course not. This was a recruitment pitch. Swordsmanship, magic, scholarship—none of it mattered. My gut was screaming at me.
Do not let this woman escape. If you miss her, death awaits.
How could I ignore a warning that loud inside my own head? If she refused, I was fully prepared to kidnap her.
“Did you not once say you wished to become a talented individual this princess requires?”
“Well… yes, I did say that.”
Hehe. This made the conversation much simpler. She was already hoping to work for me. An offer from me would surely move her to tears of gratitude.
“Would you consider working in the imperial palace for this princess? Naturally we will elevate your status from commoner and provide a generous salary!”
“……?”
Her reaction was nothing like I had imagined. Instead of joy, her face showed pure bewilderment.
“Why are you being so kind to me? If you only mean to use me and throw me away like the others… please leave me alone.”
Who the hell used and ghosted our precious Diana?!
I finally understood her reaction: distrust, betrayal, fear. She had once taken a warm hand expecting a brighter tomorrow, only to discover it was a blazing inferno. It seemed she had gradually lost the ability to trust anyone.
But who was I? A woman drowning in money, second-in-command of the empire, and someone fated to die the moment the prologue began. I could not find even the tiniest reason to abandon her.
“Are you saying you distrust this princess at this very moment?”
“…Yes.”
Her honest answer surprised me. She was speaking her mind clearly to someone of imperial blood who stood above the law. Since I was a transmigrator it didn’t anger me, but had I been a native of this world, Diana would have earned the crime of insolence and lost her head just like the original Iris.
You’re lucky, Diana.
Proving myself to her wasn’t difficult. I simply had to show her a certain well-fed, well-treated knight.
“Wait here a moment. There is someone I wish to introduce to you.”
“…Understood.”
Roughly thirty minutes later, the restrained participants and host were escorted out by the guards, followed by Liana. The icy expression she wore while handling criminals melted into delight the instant she saw me.
“Your Highness~!”
I gave the excitedly waving Liana a small wave in return and turned to Diana.
“The person I wanted to introduce has arrived.”
“Her? Why?”
“You will understand soon enough, so do not rush me.”
While we spoke, Liana reached us.
“Liana, this princess is curious what you did before becoming my vassal. Would you share your story?”
Fortunately Liana agreed without hesitation. Speaking of such a bleak and horrific past could not be easy.
I’ll have to give her lots of head pats later.
“Before meeting Your Highness, I survived by boiling weeds. My friends and parents who endured the same hardships left my side one by one, overcome by hunger.”
“W-wait! You weren’t a noble?”
“Liana hails from Grey Garden. She is not a slave like you, yet she lived a life even harsher than slavery.”
Liana continued softly.
“Just when I was about to follow my loved ones into death, Your Highness saved me. That is why I stand here today. I am always grateful, Your Highness!”
“This princess is also always grateful.”
Our exchange contained not a single lie. Watching us, Diana’s face swirled with conflicting emotions.
Should I risk trusting one more time?Unlike Liana, if I’m less useful, will I be discarded?Would living in the imperial palace actually be happy?
My guess was probably close. After all, I had read Dr. Hong’s Everything About Psychology cover to cover; there was no way I couldn’t read faces.
After five full minutes of silence, Diana finally spoke.
“Fine. I’ll trust you one more time, whatever. Voluntary resignation is allowed, right?”
“Of course. You may leave whenever you wish.”
(A complete lie. It would be a headache if the heroine left.)
Whether it was my words or the promise of voluntary resignation that reassured her, Diana’s expression brightened ever so slightly.
“Please take care of me.”
Divergence from The Hero's Empire Reconstruction Record has occurred.
Current divergence rate: 40%.
10,000pt has been awarded as compensation.
There is now a considerable probability of survival even after the prologue.
See? My intuition isn’t trash after all.
Upon returning to the palace I immediately drew up an employment contract exclusively for Diana.
“Press your thumb here.”
Though it was called an employment contract, its only real clause was that Diana would serve as my vassal from now on.
“Um… I can’t read. Could you read it aloud for me?”
I had planned to hand my administrative duties to her, but she was illiterate. The plan had shifted slightly, yet since she was a heroine from the original story she surely possessed combat talent. If she lacked that too, I could simply teach her to read and dump the paperwork on her anyway.
“Of course. Liana, read the contract aloud.”
Liana began to recite the terms written for Diana.
First: The purpose of this contract is to serve Iris and the Varshain Empire.
Second: Salary shall be paid on the first week of every month in the amount of 500,000.
Third: Commands must be followed absolutely, even if deemed unfair.
The fourth clause had been written in extremely tiny letters, so Liana skipped right over it and finished reading. Diana’s ears twitched as she listened intently.
“What do you think? I believe five hundred thousand is rather generous.” Five hundred thousand was comparable to the salary of a mid-level imperial healer. It was by no means a small sum.
“It really is… far too much. What exactly do you see in me to offer such a high salary?”
Diana the Suspicious Queen. This isn’t Cambodia, you know.
“It is this princess’s intuition.”
“…Pardon? What does that even—!”
“Please watch your tone, Miss Diana.”
At some point Liana had drawn her black sword and now held it to Diana’s throat. I had to praise her for remembering a knight’s duty, yet—
Diana is also an original heroine! We absolutely could not create an atmosphere of intimidation!
“Liana, this princess is fine. Were you startled? There are times even this princess finds you difficult to understand, so pay it no mind.”
“Your Highness, that’s mean…”
Diana looked slightly shaken, but once Liana sheathed her blade she returned to the playful Diana I knew.
“Are there other vassals besides us?”
“Of course. At present, this princess’s vassals are accompanying His Majesty on the battlefield.”
“…Aren’t you worried?”
Worried? How could I not be? They were fighting on the front lines with death lurking at every moment.
“This princess trusts her vassals. They are extraordinarily strong, after all.”
“I see…”
With those words, Diana firmly pressed her thumb—coated with the seal—onto the contract.
“I feel I can trust you. Diana, vassal of Her Highness. I shall devote myself to the empire from this day forward.”
“I look forward to working with you, Diana!”