Chapter 14
To be honest, yes. I had a bit of a personal motive. A desire to blow off some steam.
Ever since I woke up as a pathetic princess with no future, I hadn’t been able to sleep peacefully for even a single day. Stress had been piling up around the clock.
Coincidentally, I’d had a strange dream last night. Something like a white glutinous rice cake was drifting through the air, asking, “Would you like to make a contract with me?” I couldn’t remember what I’d answered, but…
Anyway, Lisianthus’s visit was a boon for me. I had successfully received the contract items and confirmed what needed to be confirmed.
The only problem was that he brought a new headache along with him.
For the time being, I couldn’t let it show that I was on good terms with the Duke of Castline, or that we were in a contractual relationship—or that we were associated in any way at all.
Why else would I have gone out of my way to warn Raymon, “I’m going to keep acting like a madwoman, so don’t mind me”?
But this guy, Lisianthus, had come straight here exactly as the Duke sent him, without a single excuse to hide behind…
Is this another test from the Duke? Is he telling me to maintain my rock-bottom reputation on my own?
We met, and we’ll probably have to meet occasionally in the future, so am I supposed to go around making sure everyone thinks, “Those two hate each other”? Isn’t this test a bit too harsh for a pathetic princess with no money, power, or reputation, Your Grace?
So, I hummed to myself, looking back and forth between the burnt-out yew branch, the wide-open garden window, and Lisianthus, my mind racing.
Then, I broke into a delighted smile.
“Let’s raise some hell, so no one ever forgets what happens when we meet.”
Lisianthus’s eyes trembled slightly. I grabbed his hand and pressed the half-burnt branch from earlier into it.
“Light this for me.”
“Hu-huh?”
Lisianthus obediently set the branch ablaze. Holding the branch as it crackled with sparks, I gave a joyful little hop. Then, I scanned the surroundings.
The window was very wide. So wide that someone slipping out into the garden wouldn’t even be noticed.
First, I set the tablecloth on fire.
Lisianthus was horrified.
“You—you, right now, what on earth—! What are you doing?!”
“Wahahaha! It’s burning well! Wa-haha! Destruction of property is the best!”
“Are you planning to burn down the Rose Palace?!”
Can’t he see? Am I watering the plants right now, or am I setting a fire?
“What does it matter if I burn down my own palace? No, wait, it does matter! Because the one who set the fire will be you!”
“What kind of bullshit is that?!”
I don’t know why this guy, who was just playing with fire indoors himself, is acting so innocent. Isn’t it obvious? Why do you think I asked you to light it?
Two heads are better than one, and it takes two to tango.
Even if today’s events leaked out, my conscience was clear.
Why?!
Because the cause for Princess Titania—who usually only caused minor property damage—finally snapping and going on a rampage…
Would obviously be ‘the mad dog who came to insult the stupid princess for making his precious older brother come and go on the pretext of being sick’!
I might as well turn this would-be arsonist into a full-blown one a little early.
I gripped the branch and danced.
“This is revenge for my cracked skull! Mwa-hahahahaha! You Ministry of Finance official in charge of the Rose Palace budget! You must have been so happy embezzling funds with the Head Maid! I’ll rip your stomach open to get it back! Uhahaha!”
“Wh-what?! Embezzling the budget?”
Lisianthus grew more horrified with every word I spoke. I don’t know why he’s acting so surprised at everything I say. It’s not like he didn’t know Titania was a princess in name only, treated with utter contempt.
Ignoring Lisianthus’s reaction, I went my own way.
No one can stop me; I walk the path of chaos like a rhinoceros’s horn!
“Try and put it out, you maids! This won’t be the end of it!”
“You, you, you-you-you, have you really lost your mind?! Where in the world is there a member of the Imperial family who sets fire to their own palace!”
“Right here!”
Exactly.
Even when Titania fell from her balcony and nearly died, no one even mentioned the word ‘renovation.’
In that case!
I just have to make it so they have no choice but to renovate!
Dodging Lisianthus as he tried to grab me in a panic, I squeezed myself through the wide-open window.
Hop!
I jumped down into the garden. A lush green view filled my eyes. Truly… there was nothing to see. Even for a palace where a princess lives, you’d think they’d plant some flowers, but instead of clicking my tongue, I set it on fire.
“Burn! Burn it all!”
Every time he heard my manic voice, Lisianthus’s face grew paler.
The fire spread through the ankle-high shrubbery, and a pungent smell filled the air.
I’m sorry, gardener!
I’m sorry, yew tree!
Actually, I’m not sorry to the gardener! You must have enjoyed embezzling, thinking the Rose Palace was a place where guests rarely visited!
You sold off the expensive flower seeds and planted nothing but evergreens and weeds!
In the first place, about 70% of the servants assigned to the neglected Rose Palace were spies planted by others, and the remaining 30% were people who had drifted here because they had no power at all.
But even if they ended up at the Rose Palace by accident, they all gradually became tainted by the spies around them.
In short, they all played a part in neglecting the Princess, ignoring her, embezzling money, and making her out to be a fool.
How truly stupid of them.
Even the spies secretly shoved into this palace have backings, even if their superiors plan to use them and throw them away.
But I have no idea what those servants with absolutely no backing or background were thinking when they dared to ignore a Princess.
To summarize: despite being part of the Rose Palace, there wasn’t a single person who felt guilty toward the Princess or tried to look after her in secret!
Let them all suffer a bit!
“What are you really doing?! You’re in danger too! Are you trivializing fire? Do you want to die?!”
Just as I intended, the Rose Palace building—which hadn’t been properly insulated or fireproofed since its construction—burned vigorously.
Before long, the outer walls of the drawing room and the entire area bordering the garden transformed as if a demon had surged out from hell.
As things reached this point, horrified voices could be heard from a distance.
“Fire!”
“My goodness, didn’t they say Young Master Lisianthus was in there?!”
“Her Highness…!”
Hmm, not much time left.
Calculating the timing in my head, I looked at Lisianthus, who was still staring at me with incomprehension, and gave him a bright smile.
“I’m not trivializing it.”
“What kind of madness is this…?”
“It’s dangerous, so—well, they wouldn’t even repair the balcony after the Princess fell from it. But if a fire breaks out and lives are at risk, no one will suspect the Princess set it herself, right?”
I threw the branch Lisianthus had lit for me far away. I could hear the constant sound of something burning. I stepped on the branch with my foot. The fire went out sooner than expected.
I whispered into Lisianthus’s ear. I saw his ear twitch.
“When they rebuild the Rose Palace, sneak some of the Duchy’s people in and make a secret passage.”
“…….”
“I’ll pay you back later. For now, well. As you said, I’m just a mayfly Princess who’s at risk of burning to death if someone sets a fire for fun.”
Lisianthus’s eyes widened at my words. His lips parted as if to say something. It was at that exact moment.
“Your Highness!”
A maid’s horrified scream rang out.
I immediately shoved Lisianthus away.
Then, literally rolling my eyes back, I pointed a trembling, rage-filled finger at him.
“That man! That madman! He dared to try and burn the Princess! Just because he has some magic sword!”
“Your Highness!”
“Is no one there?! He dared to set fire to the Imperial Palace! He tried to harm the Princess! Seize that traitor!”
As I raved as if I wanted to chew Lisianthus up and spit him out, the terrified maids and servants rushed over and held me back. My eyes met Lisianthus’s.
His eyes, which had been frozen in momentary shock, were now dyed with a meaningful light.
Yeah, unless you’re an idiot, you should realize why I’m doing this.
“Your Highness! You mustn’t!”
“You there, call for help! Put out the fire!”
Lisianthus’s expression shifted. He took on a look so loathsome and irritating that anyone would want to punch him.
His lines were the finishing touch.
“What is that crazy bitch talking about? She’s the one who was too pathetic to dodge! After insulting me by calling me a fool who can’t even dodge fire with a sword!”
As if consumed by rage, Lisianthus ground his teeth and drew his sword.
Whoosh!
As if it had been waiting, flames erupted from Lisianthus’s blade.
