C12
A week ago, late at night.
At the moment when I was reeling from the explosive comment by the Duke that 40 million won was loose change.
I wondered what to do with the pink diamond the Duke had given me.
Even if I use it carefully, there's no way I can resell it.
Although its original purpose is as an accessory, I had no intention of carrying this around.
If I were to wear this necklace and proudly walk around the Academy and social circles, it would only provoke Philap, the heroine's suitor, who failed to make a successful bid.
I might be a minor villainess, but I didn't want to provoke the main character.
Even worse was getting involved with the heroine, who attracted all sorts of misfortunes.
To be honest, I wanted to raise money by reselling it.
However, if the Empire's unique jewel is taken to the auction house, there's no way the news won't reach the Duke's ears.
"The Duke is so complicated; it's insane."
If I sell the jewel, it will damage his pride, and he might think I belittle his sincerity.
In addition to going on a hunger strike and being confined, putting the diamond in the auction house was not in line with Deborah's character.
In the end, until there's a brilliant way to get rid of the pink diamond, I have no choice but to use it at family events.
I just have to walk in front of the Duke a few times.
Originally, it was a dramatic accessory that made the heroine stand out at the Academy, but it ended up in the wrong hands.
"Of course, it's better than nothing. That's obvious."
I gazed at the meticulously crafted pink jewel, admiring it inwardly, then opened the case and stored it inside.
Perhaps because it was a precious and expensive item, the design of the case was luxurious, and even the quality certificate it contained was unusual.
Suddenly, I became curious about how many carats this jewel had, so I searched for the velvet envelope with art nouveau decorations.
The envelope was sealed with what appeared to be melted gold.
As I carefully scraped the gold seal because I didn't want to ruin the beautiful envelope, I squinted my eyes as I looked at the emblem imprinted on it.
"What's this?"
There was a faint logo imprinted on the seal, so I wondered what it was. But when I looked closer, it seemed to be a cat with a tail.
"Eh...?"
The moment I saw the shape, an uncomfortable feeling I couldn't ignore began to linger in my mind, like a small stone in a shoe.
Does someone with that seal appear in the novel?
The people of the Azutea Empire expressed their preferences, beliefs, or the individuality of their guilds and families through seals, just as the Seymour family expressed the distinctive feature of their bloodline through the two-headed snake.
That's why I thought it might be related to a character or group that appeared in the novel.
"A cat? Who used it? Who?"
While I worried about it, pulling my hair, I suddenly remembered a scene in the novel where this seal appeared, so I quickly stood up.
"Blanchia!"
The sudden realization seemed to ignite a surge of emotion throughout my body.
The cat's tail was the seal used by the Master of Blanchia when making a satisfactory deal.
Unlike the other characters in the novel, the Master of Blanchia used various seals to secretly express his mood.
The scene comes from a chapter where the Crown Prince takes an active role because the Master of Blanchia was the schemer of the Crown Prince.
In the novel, the Crown Prince would rush to the Master and make a request whenever a problem arose.
"Deborah keeps harassing Mia. I want to get rid of that vicious woman, but it's not easy because she is a descendant of Seymour. If you find a way to get rid of her, I'll give you whatever you want," the Crown Prince, who wanted to earn points with Mia, ordered the Master of Blanchia to bring him Deborah's weaknesses.
At his request, the Master of Blanchia secretly spread a rumor that there is a way to curse the person one hates, which led Deborah to contact a sorcerer.
Deborah even made a cursed doll that resembled the heroine, eventually falling into the trap set by Master Blanchia.
"Hm, it's a cursed doll. How should I take advantage of this terrible thing?"
As if being spoon-fed, the Crown Prince asks questions unknowingly, and the Master steals gold coins from him.
"It will be easier if you accuse her of blasphemy."
"That's right! Even the great Seymour family are just humans in the face of the sanctity and authority of the saint."
The Crown Prince gave a huge reward in money and land to the Guildmaster, who had provided conclusive evidence to bring Deborah to trial.
The cat with the raised tail was the seal that Master Blanchia used when sealing the order he received from the Crown Prince.
"Oh, this is the first time I've seen you use that cat seal. I thought it was a decoration because you didn't even touch it."
"Haha, I use it in particular when I have a satisfactory deal. It's a seal that represents this little one, don't they look alike?"
The Crown Prince laughed, dumbfounded, alternating between the golden beast next to the Master and the cat.
"You're teasing me. But what does a cat's raised tail mean?"
"They were originally 10 gold, but I feel generous, so I'll explain it to you if you give me just 9 gold and 99 silver. It's a special discount only for the Crown Prince."
"It seems I'll go bankrupt like this. I shouldn't have said that."
Having managed to remember all their trivial conversations, I took a deep breath while clutching my heart, which was beating so loudly that it hurt my ears.
"Let's calm down."
But I'm so excited that it's hard to calm down.
I wanted to meet the Master of Blanchia, so I reconstructed the contents of the novel until my head ached.
Opening the envelope, I unfolded the quality certificate of the jewel with trembling hands.
"...It's here."
As expected, the name and address of the jewelry store that sold the pink diamond were written inside the certificate.
Thinking that I might be able to contact Blanchia, a secret organization, through this address, my heart began to swell with anticipation.
"The key to the almighty trap of the Crown Prince. There's no rule that says I can't use it."
Thanks to the outstanding intelligence and game-making skills of Master Blanchia, the Crown Prince was able to have the most prominent role among the fishes in the novel and gained the support of many readers.
To be honest, all the Crown Prince did was order Master Blanchia to do this and that while giving him money... It was all just a big setup, but the Crown Prince was number one in the popular vote. Every time.
"I want to do business with Master Blanchia too."
Deborah was in a position where she couldn't make good use of the talented human resources of the Duke because she had lost her reputation due to her misbehavior.
The Duke Seymour only provided Deborah with three things: a maintenance fee, a servant to serve her, and a guard.
For her, who had no one to trust, Master Blanchia was like long-awaited rain.
She boasted about how fantastic he was; a capable person who would do anything without hesitation if you gave him a lot of money, and she had a lot of money.
Plus, if the Crown Prince used him all the time, he must be good at keeping secrets.
"How to find Master's shop was the problem..."
The novel presents a scene in which, after entering the store run by Blanchia, the Crown Prince tells the secret code to an informant posing as the store manager.
Unfortunately, in the novel, no specific name or location information was described.
There are not just one or two stores in this vast Empire. It was too reckless to visit them one by one, saying secret codes.
Today, however, I found a clue about the location of Blanchia's guild member in the quality certificate of the jewel.
I believe the jewelry store that sold the pink diamond is related to Blanchia.
I was lucky.
I couldn't believe that I, who was always an easy target, would hit such a jackpot.
Although I didn't consume caffeine, my hands and feet were trembling, so I couldn't even sleep that night.
But with Master Blanchia in front of my eyes, I tried not to express my excitement.
It was obvious that if I showed it, I would be looked down upon.
"I'm going to put an end to my easy life now."
Of course, Deborah's facial features were so cold that she looked strong even when she was expressionless.
I opened my mouth while making a "cold expression" that I had practiced in front of a mirror.
"If you want to know, give me 99 gold. Originally, it was 100 gold, but I have something I want to ask you, so I'll give you a 1 gold discount."
"Hahaha!"
When she imitated her lines in the novel, the Master, who had been blinking blankly, suddenly burst into laughter as if he were crazy.
She was surprised at how broad his trembling shoulders were.
Because he's someone who deals with information, there was a prejudice in the novel that he would be small; but the upper part of his body, covered by the black cloak, seemed larger than his guard's.
Did he do some exercise? Seeing that he can make things move without touching them, it seems like he knows how to use magic. Who the hell are you?
As I looked him up and down with a feeling of suspicion, our eyes met.
The Master opened his mouth, smiling.
"I swear, Princess, you're the first client who has piqued my curiosity. So, I forgot my duty as an information dealer. I apologize."
"...?"
"Then, what kind of request does the Princess, who made you come here, have?"
I slowly recalled the contents of the requests I had arranged in my head.
I opened my mouth as I looked at him.
"The first request..."
