Chapter 183
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 183
“Are you on bad terms with His Highness, the Crown Prince?”
I asked Benjamin as we stood on the dance floor. There was no chance of our voices being overheard by those around us.
A light, cheerful melody already filled the banquet hall.
Benjamin didn’t seem at all surprised by my unexpected question—one that could have been taken sensitively as a diplomatic issue. He didn't even flinch.
“I only met him for the first time today, My Lady.”
“Is that so?”
It’s not like you both have some genetic predisposition carved into your DNA making you want to tear each other’s hair out, right?
Benjamin hesitated for a moment before asking, “Did I make things difficult for you earlier?”
I was actually a bit surprised by his counter-question.
It was because of the strangely troubled tone in his voice.
Which is to say, it made me want to let out a little laugh.
Yes. Even though he had grown so much, and even though he had eventually seized the position of Crown Prince of that wealthy kingdom...
Benjamin was still that same little boy from his childhood.
The wounded child I wanted to care for just a little bit more.
As an adult who had witnessed his childhood scars, my heart couldn't help but soften whenever I looked at him.
Naturally, my smile relaxed a bit more than before.
“It wasn’t that, but I’d like for the two of you to get along.”
“And why is that?”
Well, because it’s just nice to see two handsome men standing together?
...I couldn't exactly say that.
“Because you are both Crown Princes? For those of us with blue blood, isn't it only natural to wish for those who will ascend the throne to be at peace with one another?”
Wow. The words are just flowing out.
Good job, Tulia. Well done.
Compared to when I first became Tulia and practically slammed my head into the floor in front of Grandfather, wasn't this a monumental improvement?
I had also realized something.
The language of the high nobility was essentially taking nonsense and spinning it out into long, elegant phrases so it didn't sound like nonsense at all.
“If that is what you wish, I shall do so.”
But when such a straightforward answer came back...
...I felt strangely embarrassed for no reason.
“Right, yes. Um. Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Benjamin maintained a faint smile throughout. I couldn't help but think his appearance was so perfect it was almost criminal.
Even now, countless nobles stealing glances at us as they danced were looking at him with their jaws practically on the floor.
So how must I feel, looking at him from right in front of his face?
“Now that I think about it, you said earlier that you had a lot you wanted to say. What is it?”
“There is something I wanted to ask you.”
“What would that be?”
Benjamin’s playful smile deepened. He didn’t answer immediately, instead just peering into my eyes.
Feeling puzzled, the thought of the White Tulip Dye drifted into my mind like a trailing tail.
Is he asking to do business together?
There’s a saying in The Milk Bread: ‘Secrets make a male lead even more of a male lead.’
Benjamin Fluers also had a hidden story: he was the ‘Secret Master of a Great Merchant Guild.’ It was even a guild he had established himself.
When I was playing the game, I just thought of it as a simple male lead buff.
But now that I had become Tulia and received daily reports on Benjamin, I couldn't help but be impressed.
Benjamin had pushed himself to the absolute limit.
It was by no means an easy feat for a young prince with no support base, who lived through daily abuse, to become the secret master of a great merchant guild.
Success was even less guaranteed.
They said if he slept three hours a day, he was sleeping a lot.
While secretly preparing, growing, and hiding the guild...
He also had to solidify his own meager position and earn the King’s trust.
That young boy often went with only an hour of sleep a day. That was how little he had to start with.
But thanks to that, the tall young man standing before me now possessed a merchant guild that practically shoveled in gold, and he had even seized the title of Crown Prince of the Sorsen Kingdom.
If it’s a male lead buff, is it the physical constitution that allows him to grow so tall despite getting so little sleep? Is that it?
Just then, the melody took a sudden, intense turn, and my body spun in time with the music.
“Tulia.”
Even as I stumbled, I felt relieved that I hadn't stepped on Benjamin’s foot for the fourth time.
“I want to ask what kind of man you like.”
But at his following words, there was no way I could avoid stepping on his foot on the next step.
Startled, I hurriedly apologized.
“Are you okay? I’m sorry...”
“It’s fine.”
Answering shortly in a perfectly calm voice, Benjamin asked again.
“So, what kind of man do you like? You, personally.”
“...Why do you ask?”
At my counter-question, Benjamin blinked a few times.
“Isn't there only one reason a man would ask a lady such a question?”
He was flamboyant in every way, yet every word he spoke was incredibly poised.
“Because I want to be to your liking.”
“...”
For a moment, I caught my breath without realizing it.
A beat late, I realized that the way Benjamin addressed me had shifted from ‘My Lady’ to ‘You.’
That’s right... Didn't he just call my name, too?
I had been staring blankly into his honey-colored eyes, and it was only after the steps changed a few times that I finally managed to look away.
I simply couldn't stand the curiosity.
Just how.
How high is his favorability?
How high must it be for him to say something like this?
I felt like someone who had been running under the scorching sun and suddenly discovered a glass of cold water.
Why was that?
Why did I feel such a sense of desperation in that moment?
Technically, there was no reason for it.
I had been steadily raising the favorability of the male leads, and Benjamin expressing interest in me was likely just the result of that effort.
Even though there was no reason to be frantic, my heart began to race the moment I heard Benjamin’s words. Like someone who had been running for a long time.
I wanted to check Benjamin’s favorability right this instant, but the haughty words ‘Cooldown’ kept blocking my pounding heart.
Should I use it?
Or not?
No, let’s just use it now. I’m going crazy with curiosity.
If it hadn't been for the sight of a certain woman catching my eye right then, I would have checked Benjamin’s favorability immediately, regardless of whatever prank Kim Ddong-byul might pull later.
An elderly noblewoman, elegantly dressed, was watching us with a gentle expression.
Since it was an Imperial banquet—and a victory celebration at that—there were many high-ranking guests, including many older nobles who preferred tea parties over the dance floor.
Unlike the many ladies with flushed, excited faces, these older women, adorned in large jewels and sober-colored dresses that would be too much for younger ladies to pull off, looked full of anxiety.
It’s probably because of Ferdinand.
The legitimate heir to the Imperial family, whose every weakness had been erased at once.
Their hearts weren't fluttering because of the Crown Prince’s handsome appearance; they were likely pounding with fear because of the days they had stood by Empress Carmi and ignored him.
However, the elderly lady who had just been looking at us fondly didn't seem to be a noble of the Brillant Empire.
That was likely why she could enjoy the banquet with such a peaceful heart.
Seeing that elderly woman smiling softly in a way befitting the occasion reminded me of something.
Another detail that never failed to appear in the reports sent by Sir Trini, whom I had sent to look after the young Benjamin.
—He seems to seek affection exclusively from middle-aged or elderly women.
Being the meticulous person I am, I suspected the Prince might have certain sexual preferences in that direction. However, I feared that writing down every single detail might shock our Princess of Frezier—no, my master, My Lady—so I will just drop a hint.
I simply wish to say that the Prince has absolutely no interest in ladies his own age.
And oh, this is truly difficult to mention, but the Sorsen King’s fifth concubine tried to force a kiss on the Prince and failed...
As expected, such reports are far too explicit, so I will stop at just dropping a hint.
Anyway, My Lady, from what I can see, the Sorsen Royal Family is insane in many ways...
How is that ‘just dropping a hint’?
He wrote it all down!
Anyway, perhaps now was the chance to ask about the truth of the matter.
“Prince. No, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Call me Benjamin.”
“Benjamin. I heard that in the Sorsen Kingdom, you had absolutely no interest in ladies your own age.”
“Have such rumors reached you as well?”
“Countless rumors always follow a handsome man.”
“Then you must have heard this rumor too.”
Benjamin still wore a smile.
“The rumor that I wag my tail only for middle-aged or elderly noblewomen, like a mistress sold off for a pittance.”
“...It didn't go quite that far.”
Sir Trini, who stayed by Benjamin’s side, had just added a slight comment that his sexual preferences were strange.
“In any case, it is true that I showed no interest in ladies my own age.”
“Then why are you showing interest in me?”
Depending on the situation, it could be a difficult question to answer.
But Benjamin’s expression remained as relaxed as it had been from the start. A smile he held throughout, as if he had met a spring breeze.
“When I was a young boy with no power, there was someone who secretly sent help. I speculated to myself that the person must be an elderly lady.”
“Why?”
That was me, though?
“Because at the time, my only asset was a decent face. As a member of the royal family, I was well aware that there were elderly women who secretly harbored a taste for pretty young boys.”
“...Well, um. Prince.”
“Benjamin.”
The voice correcting the title was a bit firm.
Actually, since I was the type of person who wanted to speak informally to everyone except my father and grandfather, I changed it immediately.
“Yes, Benjamin.”
The smile of the man gazing at me deepened.
“Yes. Tulia.”
“No matter how much they might have such tastes... No, how old was Benjamin back then? Why would an anonymous benefactor think such a thing?”
Do you know how much I paid Sir Trini?
How could you have such a terrible misunderstanding?
A sense of injustice I couldn't voice rankled in my chest. I was a bit dumbfounded, and honestly, I felt a little sorry for him too. All those feelings were just jumbled together.
“Back then, I truly had nothing else. I thought I had to repay them by fitting the tastes of an elderly lady. So, I had neither the desire nor the time to look good for ladies my own age.”
As I listened, something felt a bit strange.
“Then why did you ask me to dance?”
“Because you are her.”
“...”
“Sir Trini’s master.”
In that moment, I felt it clearly.
The sudden strength in Benjamin’s hand as it held my right one.
“Did I grow up well enough to suit your tastes?”