The Enemy of My Enemy
"Look, I get it," I said. "Cutting off your foot was no guarantee of a cure, and it might have killed you anyway. On top of that, if the Offering Festival were ruined in the process, there's no telling what kind of living hell this entire region would become. As for taking it public... well, yeah. If the temple's custody of a Holy Relic is so laughably lax that House Cortez could smuggle it out just by setting their minds to it, who's to say those priests could solve anything at this point?"
That was the crux of the problem.
The imperial palace was rotting from the inside out, and the temple was no better. The very fact that they were split into Noble and Commoner Factions, bickering over whether to treat only highborn clients who could pay exorbitant fees or heal everyone equally, was utterly absurd. With the ongoing war against demonic beasts, the diligent, duty-bound, and truly skilled priests were always the first to die on the front lines. The only ones left occupying high office were the incompetent cowards who excelled at nothing but self-preservation and political scheming.
In the middle of all this, if word got out that I—an imperial princess—had cured an affliction the temple deemed hopeless, one of two things would happen.
Either I would be revered as a saint and turned into the temple's captive mascot, or I would be branded a heretic and persecuted. And whichever path it was, I would inevitably draw the paranoid scrutiny of the Emperor and the future crown prince.
"I only helped because I could," I added casually. "I don't know who the mastermind is yet, but the true villain is someone else entirely. I'm not about to blame a victim caught in the crossfire."
Phlux bit his lower lip hard. A complex, turbulent swirl of emotion surfaced in his warm brown eyes.
"Your Highness has saved me, my family, and this entire city."
"Come on. The Offering Festival isn't even over yet. It's a bit early to declare the city saved, don't you think?"
"This crisis began because of my mistakes," he said with resolute earnestness. "I want to assist Your Highness until the very end. If there is anything you require, name it."
My eyes lit up.
"Oh, I'm not the type to turn down an offer like that. Perfect timing, actually. A replacement Holy Relic will arrive soon to take the place of the counterfeit. Can you help me swap them without anyone noticing?"
"Yes," Phlux replied without hesitation. "I still have several reliable people planted inside the southern temple."
"Then tell me something." I paused, gathering my thoughts before asking in a lower voice, "Do you have any idea whose hand Priest Cronen is holding?"
Phlux fell into deep thought for a moment.
"...Are you suspecting High Priest Marzid, and Imperial Consort Cleo behind him, as the culprits?"
"It's tricky. Just last year, her own son completely butchered his turn at the Offering Festival. If a major catastrophe erupts right after my visit, the fallout could easily splash back onto her. Besides, looking at what happened in the imperial palace recently, she doesn't seem to have much real knowledge about the true dangers of demonic energy or demonic beasts. Of course, she'd weaponize anything if it served her purposes, but still..."
A frown creased my forehead as the words left my mouth.
Bringing down the consort a peg or two in the palace had been satisfying, but ever since I heard the findings of House Castrein's investigation, an unsettling dread had taken root in my chest. A gnawing certainty that the 'enemies' I was aware of were merely the tip of the iceberg.
That was why I couldn't stop moving. I had to struggle with everything I had so that things might shift, even by a fraction of an inch—so that the people I cared about could safely reach their promised happy ending.
"You have a point," Phlux agreed slowly. "Regardless of Consort Cleo's political cunning, orchestrating a plot like this requires specialized knowledge and occult techniques regarding demonic beasts. While the Landt Marquisate is an ancient, prestigious lineage, their expertise doesn't lie in such arcane fields. It is very likely the true mastermind is someone else entirely. Whoever they are..."
A fierce flame ignited in the young count's eyes.
"...I will never forgive them."
In the original novel, he had been renowned for his razor-sharp intellect, so I wasn't too worried about his judgment. At the very least, he would never ally with Consort Cleo. But I couldn't afford to have him join Bibi's side only after the entire southern region collapsed into chaos, as had happened in the book.
"Have you ever considered joining hands with the Castrein Duchy?" I asked.
Phlux winced, rubbing his temples as if hit with an immediate headache. Beside me, Debbie remained silently at her post, observing me with unreadable eyes.
"Having been saved by Your Highness, it is difficult for me to harbor ill will toward the Castrein Duchy that protects you, but..."
"But?"
"Frankly speaking, the relationship between House Cortez and House Castrein has never been amicable. To begin with, House Castrein has enough vassal families to establish an independent kingdom of their own. We have no desire to become subservient beneath their banner, nor can we treat them as mere equals."
"Still, the enemy of your enemy is someone you can work with. At the very least, the Castrein Duchy—obsessive as they are about exterminating demonic beasts—could never be on the side of the fiends who poisoned you."
Phlux searched my face. "What is it that Your Highness truly wants?"
"What do you mean?"
"Even if I join forces with House Castrein and hunt down these enemies, it yields no direct benefit to Your Highness. I am willing to follow your wishes, but... are you orchestrating all of this solely for the sake of the Castrein family?"
"If House Castrein falls, the Empire falls," I answered plainly. "What harm is there in helping them? Besides, whoever tampered with the Offering Festival is gambling with the safety of the entire realm."
Phlux looked entirely unconvinced.
"...The collapse of House Castrein would not necessarily cause the Empire to fall. It is true they serve as a bulwark against the beasts, but—"
"The Empire doesn't exactly have friendly neighbors, does it?" I countered. "The imperial family still puffs up its chest and puts on airs, but in reality, we don't have a single proper vassal state left, nor any genuine allies. While the Empire has been slowly rotting away under centuries of complacency, neighboring nations have been steadily amassing strength. The only reason full-scale war hasn't broken out is the sheer presence of the demonic beasts and House Castrein standing guard."
Both Phlux and Debbie stared at me, slightly dumbfounded by my unvarnished assessment.
"...Have you always harbored such thoughts, Your Highness?"
"Do I think our imperial house is utterly hopeless? Every single day," I said cheerfully. "If I were the Emperor, I would have handed House Castrein everything they asked for and groveled on the floor begging them to stay on my good side. The Emperor's attempt to tie me, his only daughter, to the duchy makes sense on paper. What doesn't make sense is his spiteful motivation—trying to humble and bring them to their knees out of sheer petty jealousy."
"You are... truly different from the rumors..."
"No, the rumors are probably dead-on," I chuckled softly. "A penniless, pathetic princess making a fool of herself over a one-sided obsession with her fiancé—that was all true. It's just that I died, came back to life, and decided to live differently."
"I heard you were in a prolonged coma. Belated though it may be, my deepest sympathies for such an unfortunate accident—"
I held up a hand to cut him off. The last thing I wanted to hear was another round of polite condolences.
"Right. And I risked my life to save Bibi. I didn't plan it, but thanks to that, I now have highly capable talent like Debbie looking out for me."
Phlux's gaze shifted toward Debbie, an unmistakably wary expression flickering across his features. Catching his stare, Debbie tilted her head with an innocent blink.
"Excuse me, Your Highness. It looks like the young master doesn't quite trust my skills."
"Oh, he trusts your skills," I replied dryly. "It's the rest of you he's worried about. Your personality, your morals... your mental stability, given that you smile cheerfully in the middle of grave life-or-death crises..."
To be honest, on the night she was supposed to be kidnapped, Debbie had chirped a bright 'Right away!' the moment I called her out. It was more than a little unhinged. Phlux's lingering apprehension around her was entirely understandable after that initial impression.
Debbie, however, broke into a broad, sunny grin and turned the tables on me.
"Come now! Surely I'm not worse than a princess who suddenly started beating the young count half to death in the middle of the night, claiming it was a treatment method?"
"I hit him to cure him! I wasn't watching him like you were, thinking, 'Hehehe, how cute, I'll slit his throat the second he steps out of line!' ...Wait, Phlux, why are you looking at me like that? Didn't you say you were grateful? Didn't you say you feel completely healthy now?"
"N-No, not at all, I have no complaints whatsoever!"
"At any rate," I said, steering the conversation back on track, "my escort guards and Priest Cronen's faction are behaving far too suspiciously. Aside from the swapped Holy Relic, I suspect someone has tampered with the Offering Festival itself."
"...I understand what you're concerned about," Phlux said, his expression turning solemn. "It is certainly within the realm of possibility."
He paused, deep in contemplation, before a sharp gleam crossed his eyes.
"There is something I must tell you. May I have your ear for a moment, Your Highness?"
My interest piqued, I leaned in close without hesitation.
And what he whispered into my ear did not disappoint.