CH 9

“Why, aren’t, you, coming!”

With Kaiel gone and her qualifications as imperial physician revoked, Delia’s days were filled with boredom.

“Why, aren’t, you, coming, yet!”

To make matters worse, her plausibility score had been plummeting sharply for several days. With her score almost depleted, Delia grew anxious.

‘This won’t do. I need to at least meet Niol and try something.’

On a day with a chill in the air and a pale sky, Delia wrapped a thin cloak around herself and left the auxiliary palace. 

She realized it was better to forget about meeting Niol by doing something else rather than actively seeking him out. 

‘It’s ridiculous how he’s nowhere to be found when I look for him.’

Delia decided to take a stroll through the garden after a long time. As she crossed the garden and reached the entrance of the imperial palace, she heard a commotion.

“Damn it. They have it easy, flipping the tables with a single word. What are we supposed to live on?!”

A rough voice reached her from beyond the palace wall. 

Overhearing gossip about someone she knew was quite unpleasant, so Delia strained her ears and pressed herself against the wall.

As a torrent of harsh curses directed at the Crown Prince and the imperial palace continued, Delia decided to step in. The voice beyond the wall continued.

“They were quiet all this time, and now they suddenly interfere with trade? That damned Crown Prince!”

“So noisy, yabbering on and on.”

Delia had remained silent, but the moment she heard “damned Crown Prince!”, she abruptly appeared before them.

“Excuse me. Watch your language.”

The group, who had been sitting in front of the palace as if protesting, fell silent at the sudden appearance of the young lady. They exchanged glances for a moment before bursting into laughter.

“What’s it to you if we talk? Huh? The higher-ups should know our struggles, right? If you don’t know, mind your own business and go.”

Delia pondered for a moment before speaking in a serious tone.

“Stop before you get dragged away by the guards for slander. You’ll be killed if you’re caught.”

“AHAHAHAHAHAHA!”

If Delia had emerged from the palace entrance, they might have been somewhat wary. However, since she had appeared from behind the wall, none of them seemed to think that she was familiar with the imperial palace.

“Why don’t you stop before we get angry, little girl? Or else we’ll have our way with you. Ehehehe.”

The man let out a disgusting laugh. Delia’s expression hardened. It was partly due to his unpleasant laughter, but also because she noticed the small tattoos etched on their faces, arms, and necks.

Three waves.

While everyone involved in buying, selling, and smuggling lapocia was guilty, those with this tattoo were even worse.

They smuggled lapocia from Floren, forced it upon people, and tormented them until they were completely addicted. The moment people lost all their possessions to lapocia, they handed them over to Floren’s lapocia farms for a hefty sum.

That was what these people did.

It was truly wicked.

‘Scum…….’

Delia cursed inwardly, glaring at the man.

At that moment, a low voice spoke from the back of the group.

“Say, Miss. That damned Crown Prince. What was he thinking, strengthening regulations with Floren all of a sudden? After staying quiet for so long?”

The tone was more curious than sarcastic. Delia turned towards the source of the voice, but the speaker was hidden from view by the rest of the group. She responded in the general direction of the voice.

“You have to look at everything in the long run. His Highness merely saw the forest for the trees. You need a lush forest for trees to grow healthy. And please refrain from calling him the damned Crown Prince. It’s offensive.”

To be honest, Delia also didn’t know why Niol had suddenly agreed to the trade regulations. It didn’t happen this way in the original story.

But she couldn’t just say, ‘I don’t know!’ in this situation! Moreover, they had insulted the Crown Prince, Niol!

So she came up with a plausible answer, comparing the Empire to a forest and the people to trees.

The low voice then countered.

“You’re wrong. There’s a forest because there are trees. Can you call it a forest without trees? Perhaps His Highness is shortsighted.”

“Ha.”

Delia barely managed to compose her contorted expression.

The ‘trees’ she was referring to were the ‘people,’ not these thugs. And yet, this person was claiming that they were the ‘trees’?

“A forest made of rotten trees will soon crumble. His Highness has no obligation to waste his precious time trying to save even rotten trees, does he? You need to cut out what’s rotten. So, why don’t you all repot yourselves before you rot and decay?”

As Delia spoke with a hint of anger in her voice, the low voice remained silent.

‘Hmph, speechless, aren’t you?’

Most of the group either blinked in confusion, unable to understand their conversation, or simply nodded along to the man on their side. Then, angered by Delia’s last remark, they began to yell. 

Just as Delia was about to leave before they lunged at her, the low voice, which she thought had fallen silent, spoke up again.

“So. The Crown Prince strengthened regulations for the forest and the trees? Is that the only reason?”

The same question again.

Delia suppressed her frustration at the dragging conversation and replied.

“Yes.”

“Wrong.”

Delia almost screamed in anger. She didn’t want to waste another breath on these vile individuals. But the low voice continued calmly.

“You’re half right and half wrong. The Crown Prince didn’t just see the trees and the forest. He probably wanted the apple inside the tree the most.” 

Especially the red, sweet, and alluring apple.

As the man spoke, he finally emerged from behind the group. The man, who had been wearing an old, worn-out cloak, walked into their midst. 

His gait was graceful and resolute, unlike his attire, and the group began to wonder when he had joined them.

Delia also realized that the man’s voice was becoming increasingly familiar with each word he spoke. From a rough, low voice to a mellow, pleasant baritone.

As soon as she checked the character list, Delia froze.

“Your…… Your Highness?”

The group’s clamor instantly died down.

“What! Your Highness?”

The man who had sneered at Delia earlier looked at the other man with a pale face. The words of the red-haired young lady flashed through his mind.

“Stop before you get dragged away by the guards for slander. You’ll be killed if you’re caught.”

To be caught by the… the Crown Prince…?

The man pulled back his hood, which had been covering half his face, and brushed back his messy hair, revealing his handsome, well-defined features.

“As expected, nothing beats hearing it firsthand. Right, Delia?”

“Why… Why are you here……. What are you doing here?”

Niol glanced down at the group and spoke.

“Assessing the situation. I had no idea it was this serious.”

As the group, gradually grasping the situation, began to scatter, Niol spoke in a light yet firm tone.

“Don’t run. You’ll be caught anyway.”

And indeed, the group was soon apprehended by the palace guards.

“To the prison.”

After issuing a brief order, Niol added with a pleased chuckle.

“Now that they’re caught, will they be executed? For slander?”

“…….”

Delia was still staring blankly at the situation. Why on earth was Crown Prince Niol doing the work that the guards should be doing!

“You look curious about why I’m doing this.”

Indeed, once again Niol saw right through Delia’s mind. But suddenly, his smiling face gradually sank like a lead weight.

“Your Highness?”

He spoke heavily.

“I heard that you lost your position as an imperial physician. Since the internal affairs authority lies with Her Majesty the Empress, I couldn’t do anything about it……”

As he spoke, Niol, who became instantly dejected, pulled down the hood of the cloak he had just taken off.

“I really wanted to keep you by my side.”

Delia tried to recall if there was such a side to Niol that she had written in the original work.

Niol was skilled at dealing with women, and it only took him a few seconds to win someone’s heart, not someone who would act like this.

‘What is he thinking?’

Delia carefully approached and lifted the hood of the cloak that Niol had pulled down.

“Your Highness. Please show me your face.”

Not expecting her to approach first, Niol’s eyes widened before quickly narrowing to half-moons.

“As expected, I like you, Delia.”

That’s when it happened.

Ding.

At a completely unexpected moment, a familiar notification rang in her ear. And the status window that appeared.

[Protagonist ‘Niol’ feels joy.]

[Plausibility score increases by 5 points.]

Huh?

Delia doubted her eyes.

All this time, she had thought Niol’s sort of ‘advances’ toward her were just to provoke Kaiel’s mood.

‘He felt joy? Niol did?’