What the ladies took out of their bosoms with solemn expressions was….

“…What is that?”

It was something like a red soup. The ladies took them all out and placed them on the table.

As I stared blankly at the scene, the ladies looked at me, took out spoons, scooped up some soup, and popped it into my mouth.

“Now Miss Rowenloa is an accomplice too, right?”

After eating the food the ladies fed me one spoonful at a time, a spicy flavor spread through my mouth.

“Oh… delicious……”

I sat down on the chair the ladies pulled out for me, staring intently at the food as if entranced.

Then Countess Meilon disappeared somewhere and soon returned with her hands full of alcohol, which she placed on the table.

“Well then, shall we indulge ourselves after such a long time?”

That’s right.

This gathering wasn’t the elegant meeting I had imagined, sipping tea and enjoying bread.

This was… a ladies’ escape gathering.

“Goodness, these days if I don’t eat spicy food like this regularly, I feel so stuffy inside!”

“I know exactly what you mean.”

So… Countess Meilon had introduced spicy foods from other empires through her acquaintances, and the ladies couldn’t forget the taste, which transformed this gathering from a simple tea time into a deviation where the ladies enjoyed spicy food and alcohol.

Honestly, the food suited my taste too, so I couldn’t help but understand their feelings.

When the atmosphere had heated up considerably, Countess Meilon came to my side and whispered,

“Everything said when things get this heated must remain secret. Understood?”

I nodded at her words.

The ladies, with alcohol raising their spirits, started saying all sorts of things.

From complaining about their husbands to criticizing their children, and even badmouthing the emperor.

Even Teacher Camilla, my idol, was no exception.

“Now, ladies. Miss Rowenloa has something she’d like to discuss.”

The ladies looked at me after hearing this, and after hesitating for a while, I finally opened up to them about what had happened.

They seemed deeply immersed in my story, and then suddenly pounded the table with their fists.

“That man is absolutely terrible!”

“You should have just slapped him and left!”

Hearing the ladies’ reactions, I was flustered and rolled my eyes around, but soon became one with their mood.

“Right? I’m not the strange one here, am I?”

“Miss Rowenloa, you’ve done nothing wrong! That man is just terrible!”

“Miss Rowenloa, is he perhaps a student at our academy? If so, I could just…”

Hearing that, I shook my head.

Teacher Camilla frowned as if disappointed.

After my story ended, it was time for various ladies to share their concerns.

I learned how Countess Meilon had become an information broker.

“By the way, have you found that yet?”

Countess Meilon shook her head at the ladies’ question.

“No matter how much I search, that recorder product isn’t being sold anywhere. It seemed to be traded on the black market until recently… Miss Rowenloa, do you happen to know anything about it?”

The ladies’ gazes fixed on me.

I shook my head with an expression of complete ignorance.

“I do know the inventor of the product, but I’m not familiar with sales-related matters. I’ll try to contact them to see if I can get some for you ladies.”

This way, I secured a good connection point with the ladies.

I had deliberately stopped supplying recorders to the black market.

I had already gathered enough funds to start a business, and temporarily halting sales was good for amplifying people’s interest in the product.

I took a sip of alcohol from my glass with a satisfied face.

The ladies, now completely drunk, had become fearless and started chattering about everything happening in high society.

When my eyes met Countess Meilon’s, she smiled slyly and shrugged her shoulders.

She wasn’t drunk.

How many hours had passed?

Around the time the sun began to set, Countess Meilon stood up and suggested we start wrapping up the gathering.

Maids who had been waiting outside came in to tidy up the place, and they began putting the dishes, which someone had already washed clean, back into their bags.

While the maids tidied up, the noble ladies were talking among themselves, taking deep breaths, and then giving various instructions to the maids with composed faces.

They couldn’t hide their flushed cheeks, but as the windows were opened wide, the heat in their faces seemed to gradually subside.

“Well then, Miss Rowenloa, if you ever need anything, feel free to contact me anytime. It would be even better if you could contact me with news about finding those items.”

“We know the Masipacius family is struggling these days, but you’re not included in that Masipacius, so feel free to contact us anytime.”

With that, the ladies boarded their carriages, leaving behind the message to contact them anytime.

Countess Meilon approached me, who was left alone, and smiled.

“Come visit anytime, Miss Rowenloa.”

…What a kind yet frightening lady.

But thanks to Countess Meilon, I had made up my mind.

After hearing my concerns, the ladies had said,

「But if it bothers you that much, doesn’t that mean you liked him quite a bit too, Miss Rowenloa?」

「That’s right, that’s right. Honestly, if you weren’t interested, if you felt deceived, you would have just cut him off… You wouldn’t be worrying like this.」

…I needed to talk more with the crown prince.

And my resolution was fulfilled not long after.

That night, someone knocked on my window.

Someone wearing a black cloak.

I stared at him for a while from inside my room, then finally opened the window.

He made an embarrassed sound, “Ahem,” and then entered my room.

“…I thought you might not like me coming in this appearance, but I felt I should deliver this to you.”

He handed me something wrapped in sturdy leather.

“What… is this?”

He flinched at my words.

“Why are you speaking…?”

“Why am I speaking formally, you mean?”

He nodded at my question.

“Knowing you’re His Highness the Crown Prince, how could I dare speak informally?”

Hearing my stiff words, the crown prince seemed to realize something and took off his cloak.

Then, scratching his head, he looked back and forth between me and the document he had handed over.

As I took the document, his face, which had been tense with nervousness, seemed to relax a little.

“Um… I investigated the nobles who showed suspicious behavior before you were kidnapped.”

When I unwrapped the leather and read the document, I found papers showing that part of the Veltune Crescent family’s assets had been transferred to someone.

As I continued reading through the document, I noticed something strange.

“Gelean Polmyn…?”

Wasn’t Gelean the name of the man who had acted as the leader of the three who kidnapped me?

“Do you recognize that name?”

“…There was a man named Gelean among the people who kidnapped me.”

Hearing that, the crown prince pointed to a specific part of the document and said,

“The Polmyn family is one where the original head died in an accident, and his son hastily inherited the position. It seems they were about to go bankrupt when they saved the family with money sent by Veltune and started indulging in various luxuries.”

I bit my lip upon hearing this.

“And please look at the next page.”

Following the crown prince’s words, I turned to the next page and found it densely packed with evidence proving that Gelean had contacted Leila and Bershua multiple times.

“They were seen meeting in a dark alley, exchanging something shiny.”

Communication stones.

Behind my kidnapping were Veltune, Leila, and Bershua.

Just as I had suspected.

“…I’ll keep these documents.”

The crown prince nodded at my words.

An awkward silence flowed between us.

“Um… perhaps you should be heading back now……”

“I’m truly sorry.”

Just as I was about to end this uncomfortable meeting, the crown prince bowed to me.

Surprised, I hurriedly bowed as well, but he made me stand up straight.

“I never intended to deceive you deliberately. I just enjoyed conversing with you so much… and I don’t have many opportunities to talk with peers my age. I think I lacked consideration.”

Moonlight fell on the crown prince’s face as he spoke carefully.

His white pupils reflected the light, making them sparkle more than usual.

I could feel my face instantly turning bright red.

“Ah, that… um……”

As I stammered in embarrassment, unable to say anything coherent, the crown prince hesitated for a moment and then extended his hand to me.

“Please forgive me. And… please allow me to continue conversing with you like this.”

After hearing those words, I stared at his outstretched hand for a while and then carefully took it in mine.

He made an expression of deep gratitude and slowly brought my hand to his lips.

This unfamiliar sensation made my whole body feel strangely twisted.

“These documents—keep them safe and use them when you need to. I’ve made copies and stored them in my study just in case, so let me know if you need them.”

I nodded, and the crown prince smiled brightly at me.

We talked for a long time that night.

About what kind of lives we had lived so far, and what kind of lives we wanted to live in the future.

After a night that was both long and not so long, three years passed.

For me, those three years were both short and long.