What do you think about men’s makeup?
I used to think it was something only celebrities or actors did.
That was the extent of my awareness.
I thought I would never have anything to do with makeup in my lifetime.
“Please don’t frown. Your mascara will smudge.”
“Got it.”
“And keep your mouth still.”
“………”
That was until I came here.
When I said I was going to a social gathering, Emilia casually led me to my room.
And this is how it ended up.
Last time, I had to bring a portable pouch, so I had limited types of cosmetics, but this time, I could do whatever I wanted, and she was just beaming.
It seems like it’s been over ten minutes since I started.
When the heck is this going to end?
I glanced around Emilia’s room.
Come to think of it, this is the first time I’ve entered Emilia’s room since we moved.
The neatly organized room with not a single piece of clutter explained Emilia’s near-obsessive compulsive personality.
With such a personality, it’s amazing she cleans my pigsty of a room.
It must have been somewhat torturous for her.
“Have you found out anything about the ring?”
Breaking the awkward silence, Emilia spoke up first.
“No, unfortunately not.”
“Is that so?”
I shamelessly told a lie.
I had gone to seek information, but I hadn’t asked anything.
I merely had to provide an alibi to the Intelligence Agency that I was trying to learn about the ring.
The agency must’ve poked around a bit, but they probably found nothing.
No one but a few royals and Majins knows about the Ring of Miracles.
“What do you think it means? Giving that ring.”
“I chose it myself. There’s no special meaning.”
“I think it was to provoke Mr. Hainkel’s vanity to make him choose that… ”
Emilia said in a rather unsure voice.
From the perspective of someone who knows nothing, it could look that way.
Deliberately tricking me into thinking something precious was in the safe and giving me an insignificant ring.
“I guess you could think that.”
“Then let me change the question. What do you think about Crown Prince?”
“He is a dignified person. Beautiful and wise, someone worthy of the position of the Emperor.”
“No, not that…”
Emilia sighed in frustration.
I feel like I’ve received this question at the Imperial Palace too.
Suddenly, I don’t understand why Emilia is asking it again.
“Can I ask one more thing?”
“When did I ever ask for permission?”
“Oh, right. Then for my last question. If you had to marry one of two people—someone you truly love or someone who brings you benefits, who would you choose?”
“The question is invalid since I don’t have someone I truly love.”
That person’s already gone from this world.
“That’s why I said if.”
“I’ll tell you when I find one.”
Emilia pouted slightly, as if a little miffed.
Was it not the answer she wanted?
I could not figure out why that question had popped up so suddenly.
“All done.”
I looked into the hand mirror Emilia handed me.
I couldn’t help but be amazed.
It didn’t even look like I was wearing makeup, but my eyes looked twice as big as usual.
At this rate, maybe I’ll start enjoying putting on makeup.
…No, I take that back.
“Well then, I’ll be off. You don’t have to see me off.”
“No, of course…”
*Thud!* *Clang…*
The moment Emilia slammed the door on her way out, a metallic sound echoed through the mansion.
Specifically, it sounded like metal had fallen to the ground and bounced.
A dagger…? It probably fell after being knocked loose from a place like the wardrobe when the door slammed.
Looking at Emilia’s stiff expression, it seemed almost certain.
“Did something fall?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Really?”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
As I tried to head back to Emilia’s room, she hesitated and blocked my way.
Even in the midst of that, her face showed no trace of embarrassment, proving she was a professional.
A good idea suddenly popped into my head.
I quickly concentrated on the surrounding mana… and played a little prank using Gravity Magic.
I made sure not to let Emilia notice the spell.
“Now, I really will go.”
“Okay.”
I could only regret not being able to see Emilia’s expression when she checked that little prank.
*
“……?”
After seeing Schlus off and coming back.
Emilia’s eyes widened when she opened the closet door.
There was something that shouldn’t have been missing.
To be precise, it was not where it ought to be.
“How…?”
The clear metallic sound I heard a moment ago was undoubtedly the sound of a dagger falling.
The dagger must have hit the bottom of the wardrobe and rattled about.
There were no other items in Emilia’s room that would make such a sound, so it was certain.
But why? Why on earth—
“What happened?”
Could it be hanging unscathed on the wall of the wardrobe?
As if it had never fallen?
I had heard the sound at the same time as Schlus, so it was not an auditory hallucination.
Could the entire group have been hypnotized?
If not, did the dagger fly back up and hang itself on the wall?
In any case, it felt like something supernatural was at play.
“What on earth is going on?
Emilia stepped outside and slammed the door just like before.
*Thud!* *Clang…*
Then a similar sound echoed once again.
Immediately, she dashed to open the closet door, and this time, the dagger had fallen.
“What the heck is going on?!”
With her confusion escalating, Emilia grabbed her head and collapsed onto her bed.
There was no way to explain what had just happened.
Perhaps there might be something else in this mansion.
With how large the mansion was, it wouldn’t be odd if a ghost or two existed.
Just when I was starting to think that—
“Uugh!”
Emilia shivered and shook her head.
That can’t be.
No, it shouldn’t be.
Emilia concluded that she must have misheard, settling down her pounding heart.
While a person could die quickly if stabbed in the heart, lungs, or liver, that was not the case for ghosts.
The fact that Emilia, often called the cold-hearted assassin, was scared of ghosts was a secret even to the agents of the Intelligence Agency.
“By the way…”
Feeling a bit more relaxed, Emilia recalled the questioning with Schlus.
That frustrating exchange I had with him.
“It seems he still hasn’t caught on.”
I tried asking just in case.
I was curious if he had figured out the meaning of the ring.
But it was clear that Schlus had no idea.
He probably thought it was just a worthless ring he happened to get.
It was actually not that simple.
It was essentially a confession from the Crown Prince…
“Haah. What a buffoon.”
There were too many pieces of evidence to support this.
First of all, it was so out of the blue for the Emperor to ask about marriage with the Crown Prince.
Maybe he misunderstood it as a joke, but Schlus brushed it off, yet the Emperor’s gaze was undeniably sincere.
And the safe. It blatantly stimulated Schlus, who was recognized as an expert in spell-breaking.
Schlus, captivated, opened the safe and ended up with the ring in question.
Lastly, I heard through the Intelligence Agency that the Crown Prince wore a ring exactly like Schlus’.
At this point, it was clear.
The Crown Prince had given the ring to Schlus as a roundabout confession, and though Schlus had a chance to change it, he took it.
The Crown Prince must have interpreted this as a sign of approval and started wearing it as a couple’s ring.
Meanwhile, Schlus himself knew nothing about this…
“I wonder if something big will happen later.”
After all, Schlus already has someone he loves.
The Saintess of Flechette, Iris, whom he adores deeply.
Just seeing the absurd prank I pulled in front of him was enough to show that.
Considering how Iris often came to Schlus to offer help, she seemed to harbor some feelings for him.
If the Crown Prince found out, he’d probably be furious to feel deceived.
At that time, Schlus would have to make a choice.
Whether to choose the beloved Iris.
Or the beneficial Crown Prince.
But that thick-headed fool sidestepped the question, leaving the decision unclear.
“What if…?”
Just two choices.
What if a third one were added?
Such a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
“If I intervened…”
Schlus is certainly a favorable figure to the Intelligence Agency.
After winning his heart, if I revealed I was actually an agent of the Intelligence Agency, I might gain his active cooperation.
“……What nonsense am I thinking?”
Realizing how ridiculous that notion was, Emilia covered her eyes with her arm.
Winning a competition for Schlus against both the Saintess and Crown Prince was absurd from the start.
And what about revealing I was an agent?
Just clearing my head and thinking made it utterly nonsensical.
I couldn’t understand why I would even consider such a possibility, but Emilia felt a piercing pain in her heart and suddenly stood up.
She had to check the post she received in the morning.
The coded message from the Intelligence Agency at Walter Bank.
“It’s been a while. I wonder what it says.”
It was rare for the Agency to convey information in this way due to concerns over code decryption.
Puzzled, Emilia applied the decryption key and began to piece together the decoded message.
“Schlus. Extraction of agent personal information. Danger. Evacuate…?”
At first, Emilia was puzzled and tilted her head in confusion—
“Ha… insane…”
But soon she grasped its meaning, and her face turned pale.
*
Night had already fallen.
I stepped out of the carriage and tidied my clothes.
Is that Heinrich Castle?
Though the owner has passed away, it is said to still be used occasionally for banquets and such.
“Tsk…”
Before even entering, I could hear the sound of fireworks popping.
The loud chatter reminded me of a club back in the real world.
I really detest places like that.
I swear I won’t come to a social gathering after today.
“Please show the invitation.”
“I am Schlus Hainkel.”
“Huh?”
The guard at the entrance muttered something dumbly as he looked up.
Then his eyes widened when he saw my face.
“I’m sorry! Regardless of being top of the Imperial University class, without an invitation…”
“I should have received an invitation from the Flechette family.”
“What? One moment, please…”
The guard hurriedly flipped through the list in confusion.
When he reached the last page—
“Oh! Here it is! I’m sorry! You may enter!”
“………”
He bowed repeatedly in apology.
I was a bit tense, worried he would start hitting me again.
It was a relief he naturally had some manners.
“I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry! I apologize…”
I left the continuously apologizing guard behind and finally stepped inside the castle.
“Damn—”
And immediately felt my mood sour.
A beautiful woman in a flashy dress.
A stunning lady whose age was hard to determine was standing there— Madam Lichtenburg.
“Ha.”
“………”
She made eye contact with me, then turned away, ignoring me.
That damn bitch. What should I do?
It’s one thing to apologize profusely, but she’s acting all high and mighty.
I was going to let it slide, but seeing her face changed my mind.
I need to warn her in some way.
So she wouldn’t mess with me again.
Just as I was thinking that—
“Let’s go.”
“………Yes.”
I froze at the sight of the wheelchair that appeared behind the lady.
It was none other than Julia, who resembled her exactly.
I never wanted to meet her again.
My teeth clenched involuntarily.
A maid appeared to pull Julia’s wheelchair, following the lady.
At that moment—
Julia carefully extended her hand backward.
‘…Huh?’
Three fingers spread, a gesture for three.
Waving her hand slightly while signaling.
It meant to meet separately in three hours.
The problem was that…
“Damn it. What the hell?”
Only Han Ah-reum and I knew that code.
The issue was that Julia, a mere fictional character, had no reason to know such signals.
