Chapter 26

It wasn’t that he couldn’t bring it up it, but…

‘To be precise, I was rejected in a roundabout way.’

Victor coughed and scratched his cheek.

“Actually…”

Contemplating whether to tell the truth, he finally shook his head violently once.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I can’t help you, so please do it yourself.”

“What?”

“Umm, I guessyou  could say that I’m a little… you know, sorry? An older brother who doesn’t take good care of you, suddenly visits you and encourages you to think about getting married right away.”

“Suddenly?”

Victor was startled by his sharp eyes.

Lark, who was looking at his expression for a long time, said with a sigh.

“Listen, sir. That’s not what I asked for. Whether we get married or fight afterwards, we can only do it if we have a point of contact, so just tell her naturally to make time for me.”

Lark stood up from his seat, leaned back against the desk, and glared at Victor with his arms crossed.

“There’s nothing I can do if I get rejected, but you should have tried to get the word out. Sir, you messed up my plans.”

He said, fluttering through the papers he was holding.

“I devoted two weeks on preliminary research, an hour and a half to finding a place, and six hours and thirty minutes just to come up with a plan. Do you have any idea how much money this time is worth?”

“… Pardon? What do you mean?”

Victor, who approached with puzzled eyes, was handed the document in Lark’s hand and began to read it.

Victor’s mouth widened in surprise.

{National wedding preparation plan}

Tangential plan to form a smooth relationship with the target

-Date: 1519. 07. 11, Imperial Calendar

-Location: 896 Deccan Street, Pine Restaurant.

(More than 95% of the survey samples have positive reviews. 95% of all are willing to visit again. Most preferred by noble women between the ages of 15 and 20.)

*Estimated arrival time: around 6:30pm.

– Menu selection

1) Course A, beef steak main.

(Liquor orders are added after asking whether the target is drinking. The default setting is 1405 red wine from Aloeve.)

*After basic pleasantries, identify the target’s personality and reaction, and select the way of speech, questions, etc.

** Quickly become friendly with the target. The target has a nervous attitude. If you need to induce a comfortable conversation,

Q1. Princess, do you drink? The beef steak here goes well with red wine from Aloeve.

**The target values ​​courtesy. That means formality. If you need time to get to know each other,

Q2. Princess, can you drink? If you don’t mind, I’ll recommend one. The red wine from Aloeve tastes pretty good.

… …

… …

“W-W-Woah…”

What did I just see now?

Lost in words, Victor flipped over the papers with trembling hands.

From the first meeting on the restaurant to next place, dessert shop (there were also as many as seven options depending on the target’s response), and last course was divided into a walk or a carriage outing. And until the moment of parting…

‘This is crazy.’

This report, which had even included the post-meeting plan, predicted dozens of expected developments based on the other person’s various reactions, and devised the most efficient way to elivit the most favorable impression, is simply perfect…!

‘… Should it be called perfect?’

This crazy report can only be called as ‘thoroughly calculated’.

‘Is this serious? He seriously planned this? In six and a half hours?’

At Victor’s disgusted expression, Lark raised his eyebrows sharply as if asking him if there was something wrong.

“You’re not joking, aren’t you? You’re really serious?”

“Joking? Why would I spend so much time doing such inefficient things?”

Having put the absurd report on the desk, Victor took a deep breath.

‘This man is really serious.’

Victor Diollus, 17 years old.

He joined the Knights Order at the age of 14, and has been proud that he knows the man named ‘Lark van Rashmagh Descarde’ better than anyone else after spending time in his company for three years.

A man who was morbidly obsessed with ‘perfection’ and was impeccable close to ‘perfection’.

It was probably hard for everyone who knew Lark to imagine that he couldn’t do something, that it was ‘difficult’ for him, or that he ‘failed’.

But today, Victor learned a very surprising fact. There were things that even this perfect man couldn’t do.

“Excuse me, Your Highness.”

“What is it?”

Victor advised seriously.

“This is not how dating works.”

Lark immediately narrowed his brows.

“What?”

“I mean dealing with people, or more specifically, dating the opposite sex is completely different from staying in the office and studying imperialism or taking economics lessons. It’s not something that needs to be approached systematically.”

“…? I don’t think it’s a good idea to listen to you who’s never held a woman’s hand, but…”

Lark added, shrugging his shoulders.

“There is nothing in this world that cannot be mastered by learning and analyzing.”

“Wow…”

Victor sighed.

“Who in the world meets a woman this way? Everyone has different preferences, different ways of expressing, and different points of excitement. Don’t you agree?”

“So, by predicting the number of all cases, I have devised the most efficient choices of action that will produce the most efficient outcome.”

“Are you studying now? Are you solving a problem?”

“It’s not much different.”

“Huh…”

Looking at Victor in bewilderment, Lark swept his hair with a tired look.

“And I think you’re misunderstanding something, but I’m not dating.”

“Then?”

“Princess Rubette is the ideal marriage partner for me right now. But it’s not like I can just ask her out of the blue. I should at least know her and marry her with a certain amount of affinity before proposing the marriage. And this is just part of the plan.”

“Your Highness.”

“Hm? I’m listening.”

“I’ve made it clear to you that Rubette liked Kedrick Reiger for seven years. She’s pure.”

“Yes.”

“Rubette is different from you. She’s a kid who thinks that human-to-human feelings and things like that, as a very important value.”

“So?”

“For the sake of the bright future of the Empire, let’s get married, although we don’t love each other! If you said that, do you think she’d say yes?”

“Are you stupid? Do you think I’d say that out loud?”

Lark frowned, added.

“Of course, at first, I have to act like a man who is interested in the princess as the opposite sex. Then as I get closer and know the other person properly, I will become more like the princess’ taste.”

“… Do you want to be successful in marriage and live acting for the rest of your life?”

“I’m willing to keep up with the princess if she wants to.”

“…”

Victor, who was staring at Lark for a long time at a loss of words, shook his head firmly.

“If you’re going to do that, find another girl.”

“What’s wrong with you? You used to talk like you were going to help me even if it wasn’t a bet. Didn’t you say you’d like anyone but Kedrick Reiger next to the princess?”

“Yes. Of course I did say that, but no. I changed my mind.”

Victor added, his eyes gleaming sharply.

“Is it possible to have a happy marriage with a husband who will pretend to like her for the rest of his life? I’m Ruby’s older brother and I want Ruby to be happy, so I’m going to take the lead in stopping you.”

“Oh.”

Lark raised his hands as if he were surrendering to Victor’s ferocity.

“Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to… treat the princess with lies.”

“Then what’s the difference?”

“Mm.”

Lark, who was worried while stroking his chin, nodded gently.

“Right, there’s nothing different now that I thought about it.”

“Ugh.”

“However…”

This is hard. Lark rubbed his forehead and fell into his thoughts.

“I’ve never learned anything like dating or love.”

“Look, there! Because that’s not something to learn.”

“Yes, I know what you mean. But I don’t know right now because I’ve never experienced it, so if I want to understand what it is, shouldn’t I have a teacher to guide me?”

“…”

In front of Victor, who opened his mouth blankly at the incomprehensible logic, Lark grinned.

“So, if you’re worried that I don’t really care about the princess, there’s still a different chance that I’ll be sincere.”

“What…”

“I need to meet a girl before I know, right?”

Lark said skillfully. One could tell he was still calculating inside.

Victor chuckled, then shook his head.

“Sure, then. Instead, I can’t help you, so please do it yourself. Either go directly to Ruby and ask her out on a date, or whatever.”

“You’re this uncooperative?”

“Hmm.”

“I heard that the princess loves staying in the house and doesn’t go out very often. If we could have met easily, I wouldn’t have asked you to do it from the beginning.”

“…”

Lark sighed deeply with a tired face and looked a little sad.

In the end, Victor, who was agonizing, spat out, pretending he couldn’t win against him.

“It seems like Ruby goes out every day these days. She works out every evening in a vacant lot of Serburn Street.”

***

Serburn Street.

Serburn, located on the outskirts of the capital, was an area in the midst of development, and there were many spacious vacant lots because old buildings were demolished.

A perfect exercise spot for jogging in the morning and evening without being noticed.

As always today, while I was jogging alone in the evening, Wishit spoke to me through the sound in my head.

{What are you doing? Working out?}

{Yes.}

{Hey, by the way, it was a good opportunity to meet the crown prince, why did you reject it so easily?}

{Ah, that one? Hmm, even if it’s a pity, I have to reject it.}

As soon as Victor suddenly mentioned dinner with the crown prince, I remembered that I had forgotten.

‘Yes, that’s right. Victor was supposed to be home today.’

I wondered why Victor had come home all of a sudden, but come to think of it, he just came as planned.

Victor, who came home on this day, was…

‘Was going to introduce me to someone.’

As I recall, this day was the worst.

“Kedrick, Kedrick, Kedrick! I’m sick and tired of it! An unlucky bastard with only that face and nothing else!”

“Don’t curse Kedrick! And, if you’re going to tell me to meet someone other than Kedrick, don’t come home! I’m fat and ugly, who wants to meet me?!”

Rubette, who was in love with Kedrick, flatly refused because she had no intention of seeing anyone else.

Eventually, Victor went back angry without being able to say who he was introducing.

‘So the person who was going to be introduced to Rubette was the crown prince.’

Realizing that, I immediately declined Victor’s dinner offer.

“Please tell His Highness the Crown Prince that we will meet next time when we have the chance.”

Why did I kick this great opportunity while I was trying to meet the crown prince?

{Because it was obviously intentional. The crown prince wants to meet me.}

{What do you mean intentional?}

{Now the crown prince is single, he’s looking for a marriage partner.}

{… Ummm, the crown prince wants to marry you?}

{What’s with your tone? How can you ignore my status? My family is pretty filled. From the crown prince’s point of view, there’s no one else like me.}

It could be seen as similar to the marriage of the chaebols.

[T/N: Rich people in modern Korea.]

I’m the only daughter of Duke Diollus. Putting everything else aside and considering only my status, I’m a very attractive party for the current crown prince.

{You know what, Wishit? If the imperial family takes over our family, the empire will become the only party of unparalleled imperial power.}

The Descarde Empire boasted a strong imperial power thanks to the existence of spirits.

Since the Diollus wielded the same power of spirits as the imperial family, the nobles were able to keep the imperial family in check a little bit…

‘If the bloodlines of the divided spirits’ families are tied together, the imperial family will be absolutely invincible.’

I guessed the prince’s plan and said.

{For the crown prince, marriage is just a means. He’s trying to use me.}

{Well, yes. Let’s assume your guess is correct. Isn’t that a good thing? The crown prince wants something from you, and you also want something from the crown prince, right?}

{What are you saying? I only want to ask the crown prince to model instead of getting married.}

{Aren’t you supposed to marry someone anyway? Born as the daughter of a high-ranking duke in the Empire… Unless you’re a misogamist?}

{No. If I find someone I like, I might get married. But it won’t be the crown prince.}

{Why? You said his face and body are your taste. Is his personality not your type?}

{You have to meet him to know what his personality is like. There’s a chance that even his personality is completely my taste.}

{Then what’s the problem? Ah, is the crown princess seat burdensome?}

Crown princess. When she later became empress, she became the most acclaimed woman in the empire and took the place of being admired by all.

I smacked my lips.

{… It’s killing me. The crown princess is the top predator in a class-based society. I do want it.}

{What? So you don’t feel pressured, do you? What’s the problem, then?}

In many ways, the crown prince is the number one groom.

I don’t really care if the imperial power grows because I marry the crown prince. I’ll be the one who rules with benefits anyway.

However…

“I cannot tolerate polygamy.”

{Ah!}

Wishit exclaimed and then fell silent.

The emperors of Descarde Empire are obliged to produce as many spirits as possible. They are the only ones allowed to have multiple spouses in this county, where monogamy is the norm.

Surprisingly, this is not an option. It is an imperial law that the emperor must have more than five wives.

So if I were to marry the crown prince, I would have to divide my husband with at least four women.

‘That’s not right.’

Coming from the 21st century, I shook my head.

{Anyway, I will never marry the crown prince, and even if it is not marriage, there is a way to enlist the crown prince, so think about it more. By the way, are you sure you don’t want to run with me?}

{… It’s annoying.}

I’ve been jogging for several days already, but I’ve never had Wishit run this vacant lot with me.

Even though he always sticks next to me like a chewing gum, when I go out to exercise, he just slips into the fountain of spirits and exchanges only electric tones with me.

“Huh, ha.”

I went around the wide vacant lot one more time, leaving Wishit who seemed to have lost interest and had no words.

‘Wishit?’

Without knowing when he had arrived, I found Wishit in a corner of the vacant lot.

“Pfft. You said it was annoying…”

He, who always appeared as the crown prince in uniform, was waiting for me in a comfortable outfit that I had never seen before, perhaps even thought of exercising together.

I slowed down my running speed and approached Wishit.

Standing with his arms folded, he smiled and said to me.

“Hello.”

A sudden greeting that didn’t suit him.

I looked around and made sure no one was there, and instead of replying with my mind, I answered with my mouth.

“Mm, hello.”

“…”

For some reason, Wishit, who had been smiling, blinked blankly with that expression.