Temptation (1)

As if she had read the tangled mess of thoughts racing through my head, the masked woman decided she had no further interest in dancing around the point and opened the carriage door.

What little I glimpsed of the interior was steeped in black velvet so deep it seemed to swallow even the light. Despite the cramped space, an oppressive aura poured out the moment my eyes fell ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠upon it, thick enough to choke the breath from my lungs.

"This hardly seems the place for the conversation we need to have. Would you care to accompany me for a short while? I will answer whatever it is you wish to know."

Her voice was soft, yet laced with a chill compulsion that left no room for refusal. Swallowing dryly, I scooped Despair's Fang up from where it lay discarded on the ground and climbed into the carriage.

The door shut with not so much as a creak, sealing us off completely from the noise of the outside world.

In the hush of the carriage, she kept her mask on and rested her clasped hands upon her knees. In that very instant, sunlight spilled through the window and glided across the ring on her finger, illuminating the crest engraved upon it with perfect clarity.

A familiar emblem flashed through my mind.

Three crossed swords—the coat of arms known as the Iron Judgment.

...No way.

No—there was no mistaking it. That was unmistakably the marquisate's crest. It was the exact same ring Croffle, the first villain I had faced at the entrance ceremony and again during the outdoor practical, had worn.

My mental database spun into overdrive.

A figure who never appeared in person in the original game, only ever mentioned in passing. The older sister of Croffle, shrouded in mystery because she never showed herself in high society.

"You may have covered your face, but it seems even the famous Iron Judgment cannot be hidden."

The moment she noticed my gaze lingering on the ring, her shoulders stiffened ever so slightly.

"Your eye is far sharper than I expected. It cannot be helped. They call it the 'pride of the house'—something one must never remove even with a blade at one's throat."

A faint note of admiration mixed with resignation colored her voice. Then, slowly, she raised her hands and removed the mask.

The face revealed beneath was nothing like what I had imagined.

In place of Croffle's manic cruelty sat a cold, intellectual beauty steeped in bone-deep exhaustion and cynicism. Eyes utterly unlike her brother's—deep and glacial—fixed straight upon me.

"As a student of Solaris, you will already be well acquainted with my brother's infamy. Yes. I am that child's older sister—Crua."

Having named herself, Crua let out a long sigh.

"What my foolish brother did to the duke's daughter is... unforgivable. The ducal house made no direct demands for compensation, yet..."

A self-mocking smile touched her lips.

"The hyenas clinging to power around us were never going to let such an opportunity slip by. Well, what followed was the predictable, tedious story you can already imagine. Our house was driven to the brink in an instant."

Crua closed her eyes briefly before continuing.

"My father devised a plan to rebuild our crumbling house by forging a bond so deep no one would dare touch us—sacrificing a great deal in the process. Using me."

"Surely not..."

At my murmur she turned her head to look at me. Not a shred of emotion showed in those eyes.

"Exactly. He arranged my engagement to His Highness the Crown Prince."

I stared at her, eyes wide with a mixture of shock and disbelief.

"I consider my father's judgment sound. A tie to the royal family was the surest way to raise our house again. However... my betrothed, His Highness the Crown Prince,"

Her voice dropped, cold as a drawn blade.

"is renowned across the continent as a notorious womanizer."

"...You must have suffered greatly."

Crua turned away instead of answering. Her profile, reflected in the swaying window, remained utterly expressionless. The silence that had filled the carriage was broken by ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her quiet voice.

"But the greater problem is that the royal family has absolutely no intention of dissolving this engagement. They need me to cover up the Crown Prince's scandals and to continue receiving the marquisate's support. I am nothing more than a hostage in this sordid political farce."

"Then that sword you bought at the auction earlier..."

"I went looking for a suitable bribe to present to the royal family under the pretext of a wedding gift. I simply took a mild interest and bought it on impulse."

"As expected of a marquisate—your pockets run deep. To spend thirty thousand gold on a mere whim."

"Even a marquisate does not throw that kind of fortune away on idle amusement. Since the money was destined for the royal family anyway, consider it my small act of rebellion."

"And giving a sword like that to me means..."

"It was obtained as a wedding gift. If the marriage partner disappears, the gift becomes unnecessary and will naturally find a new owner."

At last every piece of the puzzle snapped into place. I finally understood why she was making such an absurd proposal.

"I need a justification to break this engagement. An absolute justification that forces the Crown Prince's side to declare the annulment first—not me."

It was a gamble. Her final, desperate throw of the dice, staking everything on me.

"Steal the Crown Prince's heart. Make him discard me and desire you instead. The moment he breaks this engagement for the sake of marrying you, I will be free—and you will receive your reward."

She indicated Despair's Fang lying beside her with a glance.

"Succeed, and I will become your shield with every power I can muster within this house—not merely the sword."

My mind whirled at a frantic pace.

My goal was to create a happy ending for Basil and the heroines. Yet here I was, suddenly expected to star in a romance-and-war drama with the Crown Prince.

At that exact moment, a familiar system window materialized before my eyes.

The risk was far too great.

The moment I failed, I would become a hunted man pursued by two of the most powerful forces in this world. Forget happy endings—I might not even survive until tomorrow.

Yet the reward was so lethally sweet it threatened to paralyze rational judgment, even knowing the weight of the life I was staking against failure.

With Despair's Fang, I could smash every bad-ending flag that lay ahead with overwhelming force.

Support from the marquisate?

Even diminished as they currently were, the backing of a noble house was an extraordinary card that would give me wings in this world.

If one measured pure political weight, the ducal house naturally stood higher. But the closer I grew to Ricotta, the more I became an obstacle standing in the way of the true protagonist couple.

Above all, I had already experienced her suffocating possessiveness more than enough to last a lifetime.

This side was different. Crua's proposal came with a clear "justification" of a pure transaction, promising businesslike support rather than emotion.

It was the most ideal form of backing—one that would never bind itself to my every move the way Ricotta did.

I met Crua's gaze head-on. Her eyes looked cold, yet beneath them lay the desperate resolve of someone who had staked everything she possessed.

Before accepting this insane proposal, however, there was one thing I absolutely had to confirm.

"There is something I wish to ask first."

At my quiet voice, Crua's brow twitched faintly.

"Why me?"

"Hmm?"

"All I did was perform a single act of kindness on the street. I find it difficult to accept that such a trivial reason is enough to make me a partner in a matter that decides the fate of your house."

At my question, an intrigued smile curved Crua's lips. As if she had been waiting for my suspicion, she leisurely raised her fingers one by one.

"The reasons are simple. First—you possess goodwill."

She indicated the road we had come from with a tilt of her chin.

"In a dangerous transaction that requires touching the royal family, the most important thing is the partner's integrity. You did not turn away from someone in distress even though you expected no reward. That alone proves you are not someone who will easily betray."

She folded one finger.

"Second—you possess desire."

This time her gaze moved to the bag containing Despair's Fang.

"I have no need of a fool who is merely kind. I require the tenacity to see a deal through to the end for the sake of one's own gain. The flame of desire I saw in your eyes at the auction house pleased me."

Crua folded her second finger and regarded me as though she could see straight through me.

"Goodwill and desire. Because you possess both of these contradictory qualities, you are the ideal partner for this transaction."

"......"

"And finally..."

With a soft voice, the last remaining finger folded with elegant grace.

"That face of yours."

"...Pardon?"

For a moment I doubted my ears. I could scarcely believe the words had come from the same mouth that had just delivered such sharp analysis.

"No matter how determined one is to seduce, a certain level of beauty is a basic requirement to catch the eye of that womanizer—ah, of His Highness the Crown Prince, is it not?"

Faced with her brutally realistic final remark, I found myself completely at a loss for words.