The Price of Grapes and a Prince in Disguise
“A monster like that was living in Shade Grafton?”
“Yes.”
Count Shade gave me a subtle look. He had just been told that some kind of creature had been stealing and eating the grapes from his territory. Any lord would have reacted the same way.
“Well done, mage. I thank you for your courage.”
“It was nothing. I only used a bit of magic, after all.”
It really was nothing. So hand over the money. Right now.
The count smiled contentedly and opened his mouth again.
“I would like to see your face. Would you mind lowering your hood?”
“Of course.”
I boldly pulled back my robe. I had no problem showing my face. My full appearance was revealed beneath the reception room’s lights.
Immediately after, the count drew in a sharp breath. The attendants around him flinched as well.
Oh, you poor thing, burning your face so badly at such a young age?
Then pay me a lot. Hurry up.
“What happened to your face…?”
“There was an unfortunate accident. One I didn’t intend at all.”
“For a woman to suffer something so horrific…”
The count trailed off. Misfortune was the easiest way to stir people’s hearts. It wasn’t for nothing that web novel protagonists always started as orphans. Tragic backstories drew readers in.
Wait, isn’t that actually for a completely different reason? Whatever. Doesn’t matter.
“Tanner.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Give this person ten gold coins as a reward.”
“Understood.”
I accepted the pouch of gold and left the count’s castle. Ten gold coins. I wasn’t sure if that was a lot or a little for killing a monster that hid underground. Considering it only cost him a few grapevines and the process had been remarkably clean, I felt like twenty would have been more appropriate. As expected of a count. Heart of steel. To remain so composed and award such a modest sum even after my mental attack. Next time I meet him, I should roll up my sleeves and show him my arms too.
“Lady Ruina. How did it go?”
“It went well. I received ten gold coins.”
“Ten gold coins…”
Chris’s eyes glazed over. She was in desperate need of money right now. It was like watching a starving person stare at a loaf of bread. Fortunately, Chris hadn’t lost her entire fortune. She had only gambled with just enough funds to restart her business. Instead of throwing herself into the Grafton River, she had bought up goods.
“If we sell the grapes in other regions, we can make a lot of money. Especially in places where fresh fruit is hard to come by.”
“I thought you’d learned your lesson after that big loss and would play it safe, but you’re the same as ever?”
“Lady Ruina. People die if they change too suddenly.”
Happy Mid-land’s transportation technology wasn’t very advanced. The best they could do was load wagons, and in that environment, grapes spoiled after just a few days of travel. It wasn’t that selling grapes elsewhere made you rich because it was easy. It made you rich because it was difficult.
“There’s a way to do it.”
“Miss Chris, please thoroughly check whether that method is truly viable. It’s possible other people didn’t fail to think of it, but rather tried it and failed, which is why it doesn’t work.”
“I’m different.”
She really was. I never expected her to fail a life-risking gamble and immediately jump into another one. Or maybe her brain had already rewired itself so she couldn’t do anything else? It seemed that way.
Anyway. I looked around the inn’s hall. One person was missing.
“Where did Sir Leon go?”
“Sir Leon went to investigate the village.”
“Why?”
“He said if such a strange monster had settled here, there must be a reasonable explanation. He wanted to check for any last traces of the Holy Grail.”
“The reason that turtle-tentacle monster settled here was because of the grapes.”
“Exactly.”
“It must have really loved grapes to even steal all of your wine, Miss Chris.”
“Ah.”
The reason only the highest-grade grapes in Shade Grafton had suffered poor harvests for several years was because the tentacle monster had been secretly snatching them. It had an uncanny knack for picking only the best ones. For something that looked like that, it had quite the gourmet tendencies.
I put a pipe in my mouth and asked Chris a question.
“What are you going to do now, Miss Chris?”
“I have to work hard to earn money. I won’t stop until I establish my own trading company.”
“Where is your next destination on this trade route?”
“For now, I’m heading to the same place as you, Lady Ruina—Belmonte Winterhaven. Why?”
“Then let’s do this.”
I placed fifteen gold coins on the table—the ones I’d won from the chess bet plus the reward—and said,
“This is an investment. Let me in on that grape transportation venture.”
“If it’s now, I can offer you a 6:4 split. You get 6, Lady Ruina.”
“Let’s make it 5:5.”
Coming up with all the methods and executing them was Chris’s role. It would be unfair if she did all the hard work but received less money. The deal was settled.
Chris opened the pouch, took out a gold coin, and sniffed it deeply.
“It’s gold…”
“You can make people feel bad with such a pretty face? If that’s a talent, then it’s definitely a talent.”
“Lady Ruina. When are we leaving? I need to get the grapes ready by departure time, so it would help if you told me in advance.”
“We’ll leave first thing tomorrow. There’s nothing left for us to do in this village.”
In truth, I wanted to leave today, but since Leon still had some lingering attachment, waiting just one more day seemed right. I raised my hand and placed an order.
“One glass of mead, please.”
“You seem to drink every time I see you, Lady Ruina.”
“I don’t really like alcohol, but mead tastes good.”
“You don’t need to add that disclaimer about not liking alcohol. It completely undermines your credibility.”
After tightly tying the gold pouch, Chris clapped her hands and asked,
“Right. Then will you provide escort services for free? You have a stake in this trade now too, Lady Ruina.”
“That’s true. Since we’ve traveled together and built some rapport, I’ll do it cheap—one gold coin.”
“…You call that cheap? It used to be less than that.”
“My magic skills have improved.”
“Unbelievable.”
Chris looked dazed at my firm declaration. It was quite an amusing sight. I blew smoke toward the ceiling and finished with a smile.
“Just kidding.”
“Sir Kairen. Are you enjoying the festival?”
“Bernhardt. I told you not to use my real name while I’m traveling incognito.”
Kairen answered quietly, his gaze fixed on the window. The streets were still packed with people enjoying the ongoing festival. Seeing this, Bernhardt stroked his beard and chuckled.
“If Sir Kairen hadn’t gone around making strange chess bets, I would have strictly used your alias even in private.”
“I wasn’t caught, was I?”
“Not even after rumors spread that the young master of a high-ranking noble house was enjoying the festival?”
“I wasn’t caught, was I?”
Kairen casually brushed off the continued scolding and tapped the table with his fingers. On the table lay a pipe made of Star Silver. It was brand new, never used. While fiddling with the pipe, Kairen slowly spoke.
“What about the wine?”
“It was delivered safely.”
“You weren’t caught?”
“I’ve never met that person, so what would there be to catch?”
“But suddenly giving away top-grade wine for free would naturally raise suspicion.”
“It’s the festival period. The festive mood helped it pass without issue.”
“Then that’s fortunate.”
Kairen carefully placed the pipe into a leather case and took a sip of mead. He frowned and muttered,
“Why do people like this sweet stuff so much?”
“It’s probably because it’s a drink spread by the God of Alcohol. Made with divine power, it’s always refreshingly cool, so it’s only natural people seek it out.”
“It’s not to my taste.”
Clink. Setting down his glass, Kairen stood up. It was clearly a move to head outside, but Bernhardt calmly stopped him.
“Sir Kairen. You haven’t used the magic tool yet.”
“This thing is really uncomfortable.”
“It’s not even dyeing your hair. Why is it uncomfortable?”
“It feels like I’m wearing something over my head. You’d only understand if you tried it yourself.”
With a small sigh, Kairen took out the magic tool and looked at the mirror on the wall. The first thing that caught his eye was his brilliant golden hair, woven as if from pure gold. Below that was the face of a handsome man with strong features—all thanks to inheriting a heavy dose of his father’s blood. However, no one ever mentioned his face when talking about Kairen’s lineage. They couldn’t.
Kairen slightly lifted his head. His eyes met their reflection—eyes mixed with orange and deep purple, the color of twilight. Those twilight eyes were the clearest proof that he carried the blood of the Eterno Imperial Family. It was only natural that other minor features went unmentioned.
Click.
When he activated the magic tool, the eyes and hair that drew everyone’s attention changed to brown. Having perfectly completed his disguise, Kairen spoke to Bernhardt in passing before leaving.
“So, about that person. Do you know where they’re heading next?”
“For something said in passing, that sounds incredibly earnest. I don’t know. Lady Ruina hasn’t been telling people around her about her destination.”
“……”
“Shall I look into it?”
“No. It’s fine. If it’s fate, we’ll meet again.”
Kairen answered coolly and stepped outside.
Kairen. The fifth prince of the Eterno Empire. Twenty years old. The perfect age to enjoy a festival.
“Lady Ruina. Don’t you think there are way too many bandits in this world?”
“They’re not bandits, they’re mercenaries. Banditry is just their side job.”
After correcting Chris’s mistaken knowledge, I burned away the legs of the mercenaries blocking our path with flames. This happened on the third day after we left for Belmonte Winterhaven.