Somire (2)
The first day of the imperial banquet was drawing to a close. Most of the nobility had already begun to filter out, and the princes and princesses had departed long ago. The only ones remaining in the hall were drunken aristocrats and the sycophants gathered around the Crown Prince and Somire.
"The hall has grown quiet," I remarked.
"Well, it is quite late," Franche replied.
I kept my eyes on Somire a while longer, hoping to piece together the puzzle, but she didn't betray any useful information. A pity, but it can't be helped. I would just have to wait for the next opportunity. If push came to shove, I could always enlist Seldas's help.
"We should head back and prepare for tomorrow, Lady Franche."
"Yes, let us do that."
Having no further business at the banquet, we made our exit.
Our destination was the Descartes Capital Villa. True to the prestige of a ducal family, they maintained a luxurious residence right here in the Imperial Capital. Must be nice to be filthy rich.
"We are honored to welcome you, My Lady," the butler greeted us warmly.
Fortunately, the servants managing the capital villa treated Franche with the utmost respect—likely because she frequented this place. There was no sign of the cold neglect she faced at the main estate.
"How would you like your meal prepared?"
"Hmm..."
At the head butler's question, Franche glanced over at me. She scanned my face for a brief moment before nodding.
"Prepare a meal. Ah, and what about the rooms? I haven't visited the villa in some time."
"Your quarters are always kept in pristine condition so that you may stay whenever you wish, My Lady."
"Good to hear. Call us when the meal is ready."
"Right away, My Lady."
Oh, am I finally going to sit at a proper table and eat actual meat? The sheer anticipation made my heart flutter.
Before we could walk away, the head butler spoke up. "My Lady, if I may ask one question..."
"What is it?"
"The gentleman beside you... who might he be?"
"My personal escort knight," Franche replied smoothly.
"Ah, I see. We shall serve him with the utmost care as well."
I was so deeply moved that tears almost welled up in my eyes. Finally, since transmigrating into this godforsaken world, I was being treated like a human being. Until now, I had faced nothing but suspicion, abuse, and persecution...
"Let us head to the room."
Holding back my overwhelming tears of gratitude, I followed Franche to her quarters. The room was just as magnificent as her chambers at the main estate.
"Sit down," she said.
"Yes, My Lady."
I sat opposite Franche at a small tea table.
"First, let me give you some good news," Franche began, leaning forward. "The strategy you laid out was a success. Several nobles showed keen interest in my boutique. They will likely pay us a visit soon."
She had worked hard even when I wasn't by her side.
"Then the rumors will spread starting with them. On top of that, we have the prince and princess. I thought our plans had gone slightly awry, but this turned out even better."
The outcome was so perfect it could easily be called the best-case scenario. We had abandoned the lesser nobles to gamble on the imperial family, yet we ended up catching both rabbits.
"Yes, that is fortunate. Anyway, the most important matter remains," Franche's expression turned serious. "You found out something about that bitch of a Saintess, didn't you?"
I hadn't uncovered all the details just yet... but I nodded and answered. "Yes. There are more than a few suspicious things about her. However, we lack concrete evidence."
"What did you find? Tell me."
I connected the events that had occurred so far with my deductions and explained them to Franche, including the details I had previously kept to myself.
"Hmm. So the assassins who attacked you before carried the Persia crest."
"Yes. At the time, I hid it because I was worried it would blow up into a major political issue. Besides, it didn't seem like the Persia family was actually behind it."
Tap. Tap. Franche tapped her finger on the table, lost in thought.
"The mastermind wouldn't be the Persia family," Franche agreed. "They wouldn't handle things so sloppily."
Indeed. Who would use such incompetent fools for a grave task like assassinating a Duke's daughter?
"For now, it is a fact that the Saintess investigated my background."
"Exactly. If we assume that and connect the dots..."
"You are saying that the Saintess went as far as to commission my assassination?"
I nodded. Franche's brow furrowed in deep displeasure.
"She provoked me because she saw me arrive at the banquet perfectly fine. But I cannot understand her motives at all. We have never had any contact before this."
That was the strangest part. At that point in time, before the main scenario even began, Franche and Somire had absolutely no connection prior to the banquet.
Could she be a player? If she were a player, her desire to kill Franche made perfect sense. That was the standard method to clear the game's basic route. She probably decided to eliminate her before the story even kicked off. However...
Then, using such a low-level guild makes no sense. This game's mechanics were so bizarre that only hardcore veterans or obsessive players remained. Would a player hire such a sloppy, incompetent guild? It was absurd.
Did she regress? This assumption also fell flat. A regressor who had a reason to kill Franche would possess various pieces of information, just like me. They would have commissioned a much better guild.
The fact that she hired those fools seems to connect the cases while simultaneously severing them. Planting the Persia family's crest was likely just a crude attempt to sow discord.
"Hmm..."
"Are you still thinking?"
"Yes. There is a part I cannot understand at all."
"What is it?"
"The fact that she hired such sloppy, incompetent fools as assassins."
Franche agreed with my assessment. "Indeed. Even if she knew my circumstances, sending such pathetic assassins when the Duke's knights were accompanying me makes absolutely no sense."
There was one cheat-like explanation that could bridge all these contradictions: the assumption that Somire was indeed a regressor but was simply too stupid to utilize her information, or that she was a player who had just entered the game and lacked detailed knowledge.
That is a possibility. But it still doesn't make sense. If someone were living a second life, they should have their head screwed on straight; there was no reason to use such a clumsy method. And even if she were a newbie player with no information, anyone with decent intelligence wouldn't make such a choice. If they thought about it even a little, there were much better and easier ways, so why use this method? Franche would die anyway if they just let things flow naturally.
There are still many doubts and contradictions, but some things are certain. Provoking Franche at the banquet was to make her enemies using her title as the Saintess. Investigating Franche's background and sending dark guild members to assassinate her was for some reason to kill her. The reason the Persia crest appeared on the assassins was, as expected, to sow discord. Finally, there is a possibility she is a player or a regressor, but this requires the assumption that Somire is simply an idiot.
It is small, but it is a harvest. Okay. I organized the information to some extent.
"My Lady, let me share the information I have organized."
I delivered the core of my thoughts to Franche, leaving out the assumptions about her being a player or a regressor.
"Yes. I understand why she provoked me. She wanted to label me as the Duke's daughter who was jealous of the Saintess. But why would the Saintess try to kill me?"
Franche's voice carried bewilderment and wonder. Indeed, she must be confused. She had found out that the Saintess was trying to kill her for no reason.
"That is the biggest question. I have thought of several assumptions, but none of them add up."
As I spoke, a thought suddenly occurred to me. Could it be that because this is a hidden route, Somire is also different? I couldn't rule that out either.
"Getting caught up with a strange woman is just giving me a headache."
Tell me about it. I was planning to just raise you and run away, but this strange bitch is interfering.
"Anyway, let us stop this talk here. We still lack information, so it is just useless speculation."
In an investigation, maintaining the initial facts is the most important. If you repeat various speculations, the data tends to get distorted.
"Yes. We have something to focus on right now."
Somire's matter was one thing, but we couldn't forget the most important business. The outcome of this event would determine our future. I am not too worried about failure, but... I was always the type to move while keeping the worst-case scenario in mind.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
—My Lady, the meal is ready.
It was the head butler. Good timing.
"Let's go."
"Yes."
Let's go eat meat.
The meal prepared at the Descartes Capital Villa was truly luxurious. It felt like being at a high-end restaurant in modern times where you'd have to pay 200,000 won.
"Did you always eat meals like this at the villa?"
"Yes. After I grew up to a certain age, I only stayed here."
Before coming here, did she only eat the garbage food I saw back then?
"Still, it is a relief. At least you had this place."
"Indeed. It is a relief that the servants here are different from the main house."
I cut the meat with a fork and knife. Yes, this feeling. This texture, with juices flowing and appetizing flesh revealed.
"Eat a lot. You only ate steamed potatoes and milk at the main house, didn't you?"
She knew... Indeed, you are the only one who thinks of me.
"Then I will eat well."
I put the meat in my mouth. Was it because it had been so long since I ate meat? Tears flowed without my realizing.
"...Why are you crying?"
"Just... it is so touching."
Ah, this tender meat. The flavor spreading throughout my mouth. This feeling as if my muscles are bulging. How long had I endured wanting to eat this?
"I feel somewhat sorry. Let's go to restaurants often when we go out in the future."
"Yes..."
Later, I should ask Franche for an allowance. I'll buy food with it, save up, and prepare to run away. Good.
"Sorry to bring this up while you are eating, but tell me the details of tomorrow's plan. I might make a mistake."
Hmm. Tomorrow's plan. It was just walking around wearing the dress. But just in case, should I make it more detailed?
"The most important thing is to make an impression from the entrance. To do that, we need to gather attention."
"That won't be easy. The imperial banquet doesn't call out names when entering."
Mmm. What could gather people's attention while preserving the Duke's daughter's honor? The best way is for the imperial family to mention it directly. But whether the Second Prince and Third Princess would do that...
"Let's go with the safest method."
"The safest method? What is it?"
"To appear the latest at the party."
The protagonist always appears late. I will use that to gather attention. The talk that Franche is doing a clothing business is already widely spread among the imperial family and nobles. Since she said she would show the results tomorrow, the expectation is met. In this state, we appear the latest.
"What does appearing late have to do with it?"
"Right now, the talk of your business is widely spread, right?"
"Yes."
"Let's say you don't appear until late in that state."
"...They will be buzzing about me. Asking where the confidence I showed back then went."
I smiled and nodded.
"That's it. We use the fact that everyone's attention will be focused on you."
"And if I appear at the end, eyes will gather on me."
"Exactly. Then they will naturally see Andrea's dress."
Franche nodded, saying "Indeed."
"It's a decent strategy. But what if the other nobles had no interest in me from the start?"
That won't happen. There are things I overheard while walking around the imperial banquet alone. Asil kept spreading bad rumors about Franche, and the places Franche passed by were filled with gossip about her. They probably plan to laugh at Franche's business results. In the first place, they don't think Franche can beat Frida.
"That won't happen. They are probably expecting failure and thinking of laughing at or slandering you."
When else would they get to criticize the Descartes Lady if not now? Usually, they couldn't even talk back and had to endure whatever she said.
"Because there are many nobles who hold a grudge against me?"
"Yes. So it will go as expected."
Even if this doesn't work, we just need to catch the Empress's attention. And the reason for entering last isn't just this. The Emperor and Empress, the main characters of the imperial banquet, will definitely appear late. If we enter slightly earlier than that time, the attention will be ours. The plan is perfect. Finally, France Corporation will be known to the world. It's time to sit on a cushion of money.