Chapter 17

Chapter 17

I couldn’t grasp why, but the duke seemed extremely upset. Somewhere the crown prince’s ears must have been burning. Since I had been somewhat responsible for the situation in the garden, I quickly said, “I-I was the one who irritated him first.”

“Well done,” the duke said, praising me.

“I’m... sorry?”

“We can use your condition as leverage to request something from the crown prince. You have matured beautifully into an admirable member of the House of Eckhart, Penelope.”

The duke was becoming increasingly impossible to predict, leaving me stupefied more often than not.

“He needed to be taught a lesson. Being praised as a war hero has made him too cocky.”

“F-father...”

If anyone heard him talk like this, he would be charged with treason. The duke didn’t seem fazed.

“You must know, Penelope, that we Eckharts always take a neutral stance in politics.”

“Yes, of course.”

I hadn’t known that at all.

“He may be next in line, but being heir to the throne isn’t the only thing a prince needs to survive. After the empress died, he lost the support of many.”

“...”

“The empress consort is the second prince’s mother and she successfully spread her influence throughout the palace while the crown prince was away at war.”

“...”

“It isn’t yet clear who will be the next emperor,” the duke said.

I’d had no idea that such a detailed political backdrop existed. The stupid game had only told me what I needed to know in order to win over the male protagonists.

No wonder he acted like a madman at the ball.

I hadn’t even been able to guess why the empress consort and second prince had tried to assassinate the crown prince, but now it made more sense.

“So, continue to act as you have been,” concluded the duke. Then, with a satisfied smile, he said, “Since you have done something commendable, I shall have to give you a reward instead of a punishment. Is there anything you want?”

“A reward?”

I’d come in here expecting a punishment, not the opposite. I stared at the duke with wide eyes, and he gave a curt nod.

“Shall I summon the jewelers again? Or, since the season is changing, how about a whole new wardrobe? You could have all new dresses fitted.”

My jaw dropped at the sheer expense he was talking about so casually.

Wow. I wasn’t expecting this.

However, as Penelope had already accrued more clothes than I could ever use, I didn’t really need any of the things he was offering. I thought for a moment before replying, “I’ll think on it, and let you know what I want later, Father,” I said as I prepared to leave.

With a click, I closed the office door behind me. That was when a white window popped up in my vision.

<SYSTEM>

Your relationship with the occupants of the manor has improved.

You’ve gained +5 reputation points as a result.

(Total: 5)

“What?” I laughed, perplexed.

What did I do?

I’d done nothing to improve any of my relationships, only threatened the servants a little to teach them their place.

Was being hurt by the crown prince such a big deal?

The duke had reacted completely unexpectedly, and everything was unfolding so differently from how I’d imagined. At the same time, I also felt satisfied. After all, increasing my reputation points and affection scores could only be a good thing.

All right. Let’s keep this up.

* * *

“You’re back, my lady?” Emily said, greeting me promptly as I entered my room.

I nodded idly and made my way to my desk briskly. I had a lot of things to think about, including what reward I wanted from the duke.

“My lady. Here...” Emily scurried over, handing me something. “You were holding this against your neck when you fainted. Lord Derrick told me to just throw it away, but I kept it and washed it just in case.”

“Oh.”

I stared at what Emily was holding out. It was the white handkerchief that Winter Verdandi had given me. I’d forgotten about it completely.

“Thank you, Emily,” I said, praising her since she’d done something to my liking for a change. She visibly brightened.

The handkerchief was completely white again, and there was no sign that it had ever been drenched in blood. I stared at the fabric, considering what I should do with it.

I need to thank him.

Though I hadn’t required help, I couldn’t just ignore his kind gesture. And as he was one of the male protagonists, I would definitely be seeing him around.

“Emily, would you go to the butler and tell him to summon a jeweler tomorrow?”

“A jeweler?” Emily seemed confused at the sudden request. Then she clapped her hands together, exclaiming, “Oh! Do you wish to purchase new accessories for the festival?”

“Festival?” I asked, puzzled.

“Our empire’s founding festival is next week! Since the crown prince has returned, I’ve heard the festivities will be even grander than ever before...”

“Please don’t talk about the crown prince,” I said bitterly. Emily gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth.

The very mention of him made my stomach turn now. She was looking at me apprehensively, so I waved her away.

“Go speak to the butler.”

“Yes! I’ll go immediately!” Emily exclaimed before rushing away.

The room fell quiet again after her departure. Rapping my fingers on the desk, I began to think.

“So, the festival is next week...”

The game was made up of many different episodes, each one focusing on one of the male protagonists. For example, the ability to pursue the crown prince’s storyline had been made available after I’d made some progress with Derrick and Reynold.

I found it surprising that I’d met Winter immediately after the prince. According to the game, I was supposed to meet him at the palace banquet, so nothing so far differed much from the original game. Now that I’d encountered Winter, the only character that remained was the knight Eckles. The duke had appeared with the final protagonist in tow around the time of the festival, I was sure of it.

“What did Penelope do during the festival again?

All I could remember was receiving a notification that said the duke had brought a new protagonist to the manor. I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Eckles in hard mode. There was an episode in both Derrick and Reynold’s stories that revolved around attending the festival together. I’d been too busy dying over and over trying to beat it to pay any mind to Eckles.

“Just thinking about it is making my blood pressure rise.”

I hadn’t actually succeeded in going to the festival with anyone in the end. I could feel bile rising in my throat. It made me so angry. Trying to tamp my frustration down, I slammed open the desk drawer and retrieved the piece of paper I’d hidden deep inside.

I read through what I’d written previously and muttered to myself, “I need to find him before the duke does.”

After surviving my encounter with the crown prince, I resolved not to squander the only life I had. I’d reach one of the endings as soon as possible and get the hell out of this stupid game. That meant I had to focus all my efforts on whoever was easiest to gain affection points with.

“Eckles,” I said. My eyes gleamed as they landed on the final protagonist’s name. “I choose you.”

* * *

In the following days, I was busy roaming around outside the manor, ostensibly on “walks.” The manor was so large it could be easily compared to a small village. Past the beautiful gardens and broad fields was the tourney hall and quarters used by the knights in the employ of the house. There was a small forest beyond that.

There must be a break in the wall somewhere...

What I was actually doing was looking for an opening that would allow me to escape the manor unnoticed for the festival, but the grounds were so vast that the task was proving difficult.

Failing for yet another day, I plodded back to the garden. After asking Emily to fetch some refreshments, I sat down under an enormous tree and read for a while.

As I was nearing the climax of the book, I heard the rustle of clothes nearby.

“Emily. Hand me a bookmark, would you?” I held out my hand without looking, immersed in the story. It was only when I’d finished the few remaining pages that I realized she had given no answer.

“Emily?” I asked, looking around.

“How... are you feeling?” The person holding the platter of refreshments wasn’t Emily.

“Uh...” I said stupidly.

[Affection Score 8%]

I stared at the letters above Derrick’s head. It had been 6% when I’d last seen him, and I couldn’t fathom how or why it had increased again.

A slight breeze blew past us, carrying the refreshing scent of flowers. My hair fluttered around, a few strands blowing into my eyes, which pulled me from my lethargy. Realizing I hadn’t stood to greet him, I hurriedly rose.

Derrick stopped me. “It’s fine. No need to get up.”

“I’m all right. I was just about to head inside anyway,” I told him.

“So, you don’t need the refreshments?” Derrick asked.

“Ah...” I frowned, eyes falling to the platter he was holding.

Damn it, why did Emily give it to him, of all people?

“Did Emily ask you to carry this for her?” I asked politely.

“No. I told her I would bring it to you since I had something of importance to speak to you about.”

“To me?”

He hated the very sight of me. Why would he want to talk to me? I was perplexed. It soon occurred to me what he wanted to discuss.

“You wish to speak about that day at the palace, right?”

Though the duke had been lenient, Derrick wouldn’t let it go so easily.

Ugh. I’ll just give him the apology I meant to make to the duke.

I sighed, selecting my words carefully. Words tumbled out of my mouth, mechanical and dry.

“You told me not to cause any more problems. I’m sorry for what happened.”

“...”

“You must have been quite inconvenienced by my actions, Lord Derrick. I promised Father that I’d keep to myself for a while. If you require a stricter punishment, however—”

“What I wanted to say,” he said, coldly cutting me off, “wasn’t regarding that.”

His face was twisted into a discontent scowl as he peered down at me.