CH 403

Laughing at Fools

After getting a lot of information, which took her about an hour, eating some snacks, rolling around in bed for a week or so, and doing other things to waste time, Ludwig sent her a message telling her that Shalloak was on his way. She went straight to the town where Ludwig was staying.

As planned, she got there a day before Shalloak arrived, which gave her and Ludwig a lot of time to get ready. She got a room at an inn to stay the night so that he would feel welcome and she could get back at him for what he did that day. The small town didn’t have anything close to luxury lodging, and it took some work to convince the poor innkeeper to give her the room. He kept apologizing that he “can’t possibly accommodate someone like Your Highness here.” In the end, she convinced him that he had nothing to worry about as long as he ran a clean, normal business. Mia cared most about whether or not the inn had a place to take a bath. Luckily, it did, and she took a refreshing dip before going to bed.

The next day, she was rested and ready to meet Shalloak at the inn, where she showed him to her room. It wasn’t very big, and there were already a lot of people inside. Ludwig stood beside Mia. Anne was on the other side of her. Bel, who had asked to come along so she could see Mia’s heroic actions, sat down in a corner of the room to watch.

“First, I’d like to thank you for coming all the way here,” Mia said with a smile that showed she was in control. She stood up and curtsied elegantly. “It’s nice to meet you. “I’m Mia Luna Tearmoon, princess of the Tearmoon Empire,” she said to him in a way that couldn’t have been more polite. The last time she went to see him, he didn’t even get out of his chair. He greeted her while he was sitting on his throne with all the arrogance of a king meeting a serf.

Mia was different, though. True majesty doesn’t need to show off. Bluffing and blustering would only bring down the respect that is already there. On the contrary, one’s high status was shown by how well they followed rules and etiquette. So Mia acted with the greatest dignity, as if to contrast the crudeness of his previous performance.

Oh, I can’t wait! This will be a lot of fun!

She was anything but calm on the inside. She was so happy that she could hardly hold it in. She wanted to say so many many things to him. She was so eager to start a talk that she ended up introducing herself first, even though she had planned to just wait and see.

“Oh, it’s such a pleasure to be welcomed with such warmth. My name is Shalloak Cornrogue, and it is my pleasure, Your Highness.” He got down on one knee, and she nodded to show that she understood.

“Please sit down. We’re not in a hurry, so let’s start by having some tea.” She pointed to a tea set and a variety of tea cakes. In particular, she had asked Rania to make her a collection of the best Perujin cookies. Shalloak hadn’t given her even a crumb in the previous reality, but Mia was different. She was going to crush him under the weight of her kindness to show him how much better she was. She wasn’t doing it for small reasons, like to avoid Anne’s warnings about overeating by saying she was snacking as a sign of respect for their friend. That would be slander.

“I must say, though,” Shalloak said, “I’m surprised that the princess of Tearmoon is staying in such a…” He looked around the room, but stopped when he saw something in Mia’s hair. “Excuse me, but the hairpin you’re wearing is very interesting.”

“Oh, this?”“ With a smile, she took it out of her hair. “It’s made from a beautiful tree called the ‘Unicorn’s Horn,’ which grows in one of the empire’s woods.”

“Ah. A tree. I see,” he said, and his attention level dropped a bit. Mia gave him a sweet smile.

“Does it seem strange to you?” She asked with a small laugh. “That I, a princess of a powerful kingdom, wear a wooden hairpin? Also, you didn’t finish your last phrase, but I’ll guess that you think it’s strange that I’d choose to stay in an inn like this. Do you agree?”

Shalloak’s eyes got a bit bigger. “You’re exactly right. In fact, a person of your stature doesn’t belong in a tiny place like this. I worry about what people might say about it. It would be bad for your reputation. Don’t you think your carriage would be better than this place? I’m sorry if I’m being too forward, but I saw the carriage Your Highness has parked in front, and it’s beautifully made. Now that’s a coach fit for a princess!” he said.

Mia smiled in satisfaction at his statement. “Yes, the carriage is nice, but it doesn’t have a bath.”

“What?” Shalloak frowned in confusion.

“This inn, on the other hand, has a great bath. Even one of the best. Few things are better than soaking in a warm spring and then gulping from it.”

Belluga was known for its many water sources. It was said that people could become beautiful just by drinking from its springs.

“If you want to see the best of a place, you should stay in its inns and talk to its people. Isn’t that how it works? Only real locals can lead you to real riches.”

In fact, Mia knew the golden rule of pleasure-seeking: keep an open mind. Mushrooms from Tearmoon grew in Tearmoon. In Belluga, Belluga’s mushrooms. In Remno, Remno’s. It was stupid to go to other countries and still think that the best food was made up of only the mushrooms you knew from home. Mushrooms from the area were best for making meals. So, the best way to have fun was to keep looking for the best mushrooms that grew in the area. This concept of fungal fulfillment could also be applied to other things. Her carriage was nice, but to turn down a local inn because it was comfortable and familiar would be the height of stupidity and a sign of extreme narrow-mindedness. In the same way, it was silly to judge the value of everything by the thing you knew best, like money. And she was really trying to get across that last point.

“Also, about this hairpin… It was made by a certain kid who gave it to me.” Mia said, “It’s one of my favorites because it was made with love and care.”

She closed her eyes in a quiet way. “I don’t need expensive hair accessories whose only value is how much they cost. After all, I’m in a position where I can decide for myself what things are worth.”

When Shalloak heard this proud statement, he shrank a little and said, “I…see. Th-That’s a wonderful way to see things. I didn’t think Your Highness would do anything less. So, does this mean you’ll take me up on my offer?”

“Offer? Oh… Yes, that thing.”

“I did my best to make it as kind as I could.”

“I’d guess so. I think you’re giving about a third of what Forkroad is asking?”

“I heard that Marco of Forkroad & Co. has a daughter, and that she is a good friend of Your Highness. Consider the discount a payment for the friendship.”

“A payment for the friendship, you say…” Mia narrowed her eyes at Shalloak as he put on a groveling smile.

“The deal will end up breaking up a valuable friendship. I thought you would need a large amount of money to be happy with the deal, so that’s what I’m offering now.”

She smiled back at him. “So I see. Mr. Shalloak Cornrogue, this is a very good deal for us. Well, the thing is…” She stopped and gave him a glare. “I’ve been dying to tell you something, and I’d like to say it now.”

“Oh? I’m ready to listen, Your Highness.”

She looked at him and his confused face, then took a deep breath.

“If you think money can solve all your problems, you should think again!” She smiled with pleasure. “As I said before, money doesn’t matter to me. I value friendship far more. Trust, loyalty, and gratitude… All of these things are much more important to me than money. Only a fool would throw them away for money.”

“What—” Shalloak stepped back, shaking.

She didn’t know if it was out of shock or anger. She didn’t care either. “It is stupid to think that money can solve every problem in the world. That kind of thinking is what makes people lose sight of what things are really worth.”

Having told him what she’d wanted to say in the previous timeline, she let out a sigh of relief. “Stupid? Here, the only stupid mistake is… Hmph, I came here to see what the Great Wisdom of the Empire knew about life, and this is what I find?”

Mia paid him no mind. Even Shalloak’s bitter grapes tasted sweet when he got what he deserved.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, but I have to say something. Trust and friendship… These are traps. It’s a sign of weakness to fall for such emotional wishful thinking and get confused about what you stand to gain and lose. By denying that money is irrational, you give in to the trap of your feelings. What a sad sight.”

“Be careful what you say. You’re talking to the princess of Tearmoon,” Ludwig said angrily.

Mia waved him back. Then…

“No matter what you say, Shalloak Cornrogue, I am not going to change my mind. I will do everything I can to help Forkroad and Company. Sir Marco had faith in me and stuck to the rules of our agreement. So, I have to earn back his trust. To make him your enemy is to make me your enemy. I want you to remember that.”

She landed the final hit and grinned with pure joy.