Chapter 99
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 99
I instantly shifted my expression, offering a more radiant smile.
I could see the princes’ faces flushing a deep crimson, far more intense than before.
That’s right.
Tulia is pretty, isn’t she?
Dazzling enough to make you go blind, right?
Besides, this dress cost a staggering 300 million gold.
A dress worth 300 million in real-world money.
Naturally, Grandfather had ordered it specifically for my visit to the palace. The jewels encrusting the entire garment were as extravagant as the price tag suggested.
The granddaughter of a Grand Ducal House, dressed in an incredibly expensive gown.
And on top of that, a lady established as the greatest beauty in this world’s setting?
The princes wore dazed, dreamy expressions. Looking at them, they seemed to already be fantasizing about marrying me and securing a powerful position within the Grand Duchy.
Well, I’d smiled specifically to encourage those kinds of dreams.
Honestly, what is wrong with this game? It’s far too full of allure.
Allure? More like a lure for jerks, bastards, and psychos.
“Princes.”
“Yes, yes!”
“It seems the servant assisting you is badly injured.”
“Ah…”
The princes briefly exchanged glances. It was obvious they were highly satisfied with my words; smiles were already spreading across their lips.
“Yes, we are simply mortified to have shown such an unsightly scene to a precious lady.”
“He is a lowly thing, so please do not look. We worry your beautiful eyes might be tarnished.”
Are they really that delighted that I "mistook" Benjamin for a servant? They’ve truly been pieces of work since they were young.
I shifted my gaze to Benjamin.
Even though he was being explicitly treated as a ‘servant,’ Benjamin didn’t look depressed or resentful at all.
On the contrary, he was smiling.
Like a sinner forced to wear a mask of joy, he simply stood there smiling despite his limp.
I read in ‘The Milk Bread’ that he smiled desperately because they beat him more if he didn’t.
Seeing it with my own eyes was far more shocking than reading about it in his reminiscence to Corico.
“It wouldn’t be a good look for a servant to become a cripple after traveling so far. Moreover, this is the palace Her Majesty the Empress granted to me. If she finds out such a thing happened here, she will be most displeased.”
I intentionally mentioned the ‘Empress’ to strike fear into them. To the princes of a mere kingdom, the Empress of a Great Empire would be an untouchable figure.
“…!”
As expected, their faces turned pale.
“My chief physician is quite skilled, so I shall have him treat the boy. In the meantime, why don’t you princes join me for tea?”
“T-That sounds wonderful!”
“As expected of Grand Duke Frezier’s granddaughter, your heart is as beautiful as your face. What greater honor could there be?”
Fortunately, it seemed the rumors of Tulia’s atrocious personality hadn’t reached foreign ears yet.
“Lady Tulia.”
Meanwhile, the maid I had sent to fetch help returned. When a significant number of servants suddenly swarmed the area, the Sorsen princes looked slightly flustered.
Look at them getting scared. Trash.
Hurling silent contempt at them, I instructed the maid to take Benjamin away. Then, I turned back to the princes with a bright smile.
“Shall we go have tea, then?”
* * *
Tulia’s chief physician, Aiden, carefully examined Benjamin’s shoulder.
Just as she had suspected, Benjamin’s collarbone was broken.
“This will hurt for a moment. Please bear with it.”
“…!”
After placing a cloth in Benjamin’s mouth to bite down on, Aiden forcefully set the bone. Most adults would have screamed, but Benjamin merely held his breath for a second, showing no sign of pain.
Aiden focused on treating him, using expensive medicinal herbs and high-quality bandages without hesitation.
“This tea is for nourishment. It costs 500,000 gold per cup, so please drink every drop.”
With a face beaded with cold sweat, Benjamin asked with a smile, “Why are you treating me with such courtesy?”
“Because my lady instructed me to treat you with respect.”
“If you mean your lady…”
“Lady Tulia Frezier. She is my master.”
“I have received a kindness from a precious lady. Please tell her I am grateful.”
“I will. Prince.”
Benjamin’s eyes wavered slightly at the title ‘Prince.’
He looked down at the tea. His reflection flickered in the clear liquid.
Usually, his half-brothers would kick him mercilessly in the face, but today, perhaps because they were inside the Empire, they hadn’t touched his face much. Only his lip was slightly split.
He was used to this kind of violence.
But right now, his entire body—his very emotions—felt numb for a different reason.
“Because my lady instructed me to treat you with respect.”
That lady knew he was a prince.
She must possess incredible knowledge to have memorized the lineages of foreign royalty.
If so, she must also know that he was the son of a mere low-ranking concubine.
She would have seen his current state with her own eyes… and known.
She must have heard them shouting that his mother was lowly, and their talk of selling him off to an Imperial noble later.
“It seems the servant assisting you is badly injured.”
Was that lady’s remark an act of consideration, or a mockery?
As the granddaughter of the Frezier Grand Ducal House, her status was as noble as his brothers’. People that high up usually enjoyed tormenting him.
So, it could be a mockery.
Even this polite medical treatment could be an extension of her amusement.
Despite these thoughts, his face reflected in the tea was still smiling.
“You, with your lowly mother.”
“She seduced Father with her body. You filthy brat.”
“Brother, a royal stallion probably costs more than this guy.”
“Don’t you dare cry! You’re bad luck! You’re just trying to get Father’s sympathy with those tears!”
The mockery and violence of his half-brothers.
The King, who knew and turned a blind eye.
The Queen and the other high-ranking concubines looked at him and his mother with the same horror they would show a bug.
So, he always had to smile and cater to them.
Living like that, it felt as if this smiling face had become his default expression. No matter how many times he was kicked in the stomach, no matter how much mockery and contempt he endured, it had been years since he had shed a single tear.
And yet.
Drip.
Drip, drip.
In that moment.
With a sudden, piercing realization, tears rolled down his cheeks and created circular ripples on the surface of the tea.
The physician paused and asked, “…Does it hurt very much?”
“No…”
Clutching the hot teacup with one hand and covering his face with the other, Benjamin let out a choked sob as if a dam had burst.
“It’s because… I’m so ashamed…”
He was so ashamed of his pathetic state, so utterly miserable.
“It seems the servant assisting you is badly injured.”
When she said those words, that pink-haired girl named Tulia hadn’t been smiling at all.
If she had wanted to toy with him like his half-brothers back home, she would have spoken with a sneer on her lips.
Instead, those light-green eyes had looked almost… angry.
Having spent his entire life reading others’ moods to survive, the young prince had become an expert at sensing people’s true intentions. And so…
He realized, belatedly, that the noble lady’s actions were purely out of ‘consideration’ for him.
He realized that his condition was so wretched that a noble lady he had met for the first time today felt the need to show him such mercy.
“…”
The smiling face was carved into his soul like a blade; he couldn’t even wipe it away.
He couldn’t remember how to cry out loud, or even how to make a neutral expression. It felt as if a whole part of him had been cut away since he was very young.
And so.
While still wearing that smile, Benjamin Fluers covered his face and let his tears fall for a long, long time.
* * *
When that kid grows up, he becomes a total mess of a character.
Benjamin Fluers.
A man with a dazzling, beautiful appearance that looked like the incarnation of a golden angel.
The character summary for Benjamin Fluers in The Milk Bread was as follows:
Incredible popularity.
All sorts of scandals and rumors.
He would playfully accept invitations from women, but in truth, he was a male lead who was incredibly innocent and pure.
That was the Benjamin Fluers of The Milk Bread.
Because of his severe mysophobia, he was always depicted in illustrations wearing white gloves.
Of course, a male lead’s mysophobia is usually just a trivial illness for the female lead to cure.
Though all his defenses would eventually crumble before Corico, I felt deeply uncomfortable. No, I felt grossed out.
Why do I keep seeing the male leads right when they’re getting beaten up?
When I played as Corico, the game only showed me pretty and nice things. Why do I keep witnessing scenes of abuse?
Does Tulia have no human rights? No right to protect her eyes?
Leon got beaten by Lisian.
And Lisian was practically self-harming with Loquium herbs.
Is this what the world looked like in its raw state, before Corico—the light of the world and savior of the male leads—appeared?
Feeling a sudden thirst, I took a sip of tea. Then, I asked with a smile, “Is it delicious, Princes?”
“Yes? Yes…”
“It… it really suits my palate…”
“I’m glad. It’s a snack my grandfather particularly enjoys. Please, have as much as you like.”
“W-We are honored.”
I smiled and crunched on a cookie myself, regardless of how wide the princes’ eyes grew.
“There are plenty more, so let me know if you need more.”
“Yes…!”
The princes, who were eating cookies heavily dusted with incredibly spicy chili powder, eventually took turns leaving the table, claiming they needed to use the restroom.
Their eyes were bloodshot, and they were practically dripping tears.
Hmph.
Enjoy your scheduled stomachaches.
They’re probably dying of pain right now.
Why would you hit a kid? Seriously.
If the male lead dies because of you, are you going to take responsibility?
I’ll die too if that happens, you know? Huh?
Hiding my spiteful thoughts, I shoved another chili-dusted cookie into my mouth.
I had brought these along to season any bland food I might encounter, but I never thought I’d use them like this.
It was a bizarre snack, but to my palate, it was just a ‘spicy cracker’ level of heat, so it was manageable.
Of course, to those princes, it must taste like the literal fires of hell, a flavor they’d never experienced in their lives.
As the princes disappeared one by one toward the restroom, I finally rose from my seat.
“Lady Tulia Frezier. I shall escort you to the Empress’s Palace.”
It seemed the party was finally about to begin.