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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 53
Chapter Title: The Doomed Male Lead Picked the Wrong Opponent
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Masera, sitting in the glass greenhouse with Cynthia, fidgeted with the small gift box in his coat pocket, hesitating.
It was an opal hairpin he'd bought at the shop, but he'd missed the right moment to give it to her.
'If there's an occasion to apologize next time, I'll give it then...'
Wait. Did that mean he planned to mess up again? Thinking it over, he felt a bit pathetic about himself.
In the end, he took out the gift box and placed it on the table.
Cynthia's red eyes, as she was eating cherries, blinked rapidly.
"What's this?"
"A gift of reconciliation."
"Just how badly did you want to apologize?"
A flush of delight colored Cynthia's cheeks. She quickly opened the box and examined the opal hairpin from every angle, a happy smile spreading across her face.
"Wow, it's really pretty. You picked one that suits my hair color perfectly? I'll wear it every day. Thank you!"
Cynthia pinned it into her hair and showed it to him.
"Is it pretty? Does it suit me? I request a positive response full of sincerity, heartfelt praise, and compliments only."
Masera, staring at her with a dazed expression, slowly opened his mouth.
"...It's pretty."
Watching Cynthia beam like a child, Masera was overcome with an unbelievable feeling.
"Getting started is hard, but once you see the happy smile of the person you love, you'll feel like you can command the whole world. There's joy in giving, not just in receiving."
It was exactly as the chatty florist had said.
Treating her carelessly brought guilt, while showing kindness brought shared joy. This was just a natural part of human relationships.
'But she's not someone I love.'
Such a thing would never happen.
Masera repeated this to himself and avoided the gaze of the grinning Cynthia.
"Eugene! Come quick and have some cherry cake!"
At Cynthia's call, Eugene came running from the garden where he'd been playing with a ball and sat beside her. He seemed somehow more polite than before.
"Say ahh."
"Ahh."
If it had been before, he would have acted prickly and refused, but now he obediently accepted the cake she fed him.
"Tasty, right? The Brigadier General brought it."
"Yeah. It's good."
With his cheeks flushed red, Eugene no longer seemed like a wary cat but more like a puppy wagging its tail.
As Masera sighed watching Cynthia win over even Eugene,
"You look like a family. It's heartwarming to see."
A maid who had brought Eugene's fork and milk smiled warmly.
'Family...'
Was it because Cynthia had received family affection that she knew how to give it?
Masera felt a strange sensation watching Cynthia and Eugene smile at each other.
The next day was the day to attend the Duke family's tea party at the godmother's invitation.
"Now, as the Brigadier General's wife, you'll be mingling with many people. Think of it as acting as staff for headquarters."
So, basically, I'm the Foreign Minister?
Building connections, impressing superiors, and standing in the right lines—social life is the same everywhere.
As I sighed, Diego handed me a notebook like a who's who directory.
"These are the people attending today."
"Thank you, as always."
"Just doing my job."
I put on a modest dress, tied my hair up, and pinned in the hairpin Masera had given me.
I'd requested strong makeup, but my assigned coordinating maid had strongly discouraged it, saying I'd look like a ghost.
'I'll have to see Helen regularly from now on. Not thrilled about that.'
Still, no need to be hostile based on personal feelings. After all, we have to pretend to be friendly sisters.
I headed to the Duke's residence, pondering what might happen at the tea party.
The Duke family's tea party was held in the central garden with its lavish fountains. Aren't they cold? Do people here have cold immunity?
Shivering, I walked into the tea party venue.
"My little sister, welcome."
Helen greeted me with a bright smile. For some reason, she seemed genuinely welcoming today.
"Snow White has arrived. I heard you were injured— are you okay?"
The godmother, Mrs. Hills, and Mrs. Verache looked at the bandage on my hand with worried faces.
"I'm fine. And thanks to you, Godmother, and my aunts, the honeymoon was truly fun and happy."
"Really? Tell us all about it. I've been looking forward to it."
I sat at their table and shared honeymoon stories.
Things like viewing a muddy river, the ferris wheel breaking down, making pen pal promises with people met on the pilgrimage path, and befriending cathedral priests to get free exorcisms if possessed by demons next time, and so on.
The ladies listening burst into laughter.
"Sounds fun just hearing about it. Your life must never be boring."
As we chatted like that, Helen stood up, drawing everyone's attention.
"The development project for the Knox region owned by my sister has begun. As it's a legacy of the Variesa Royal Family, there's a high possibility of vast resources, so exploration has started under Brigadier General Vicente's lead."
She continued with a grin.
"At the next banquet, we'll hold an investment briefing for my sister. If you're interested in investing, please talk to my sister or me."
Why was she suddenly acting like she was helping? I eyed her suspiciously.
Then, a man who looked like an aide approached Helen and whispered in her ear.
Helen, listening intently, looked at me with a pitying expression.
"Cindy. There's a bad article about your project—did you know?"
"No, I didn't."
Somehow the news had spread, and the surrounding murmurs grew louder.
Helen sighed deeply and patted my shoulder.
"A famous explorer who went there exposed that Knox is just a barren wasteland with nothing, and claims of value there are baseless lies. Critical articles keep coming out, apparently."
Soon, conversations from the next table over reached my ears.
"There was that string of bankruptcies from the recent diamond mine investment, right? Turned out there was nothing."
"A wealthy officer went bankrupt from that and died penniless."
"Brigadier General Steve was smart to pull out his investment fast. The real one is the Ds that the Duchess inherited, right?"
Exposing Knox as fake while claiming her own land was real.
I don't know what's in Ds, but was it worth going this far?
Following the previous incident, with articles like this, it was enough to plant fear in people. They'd want to cut losses quickly, even at a cost.
"The massive debt from the project funds coming back is the biggest problem, right? Even a tycoon collapsed without precedent."
People whispered predictions that even Masera del Vicente would go totally bankrupt.
"This is why marrying wrong changes your fate. If he'd married another tycoon's daughter, this wouldn't have happened. With that kind of money, you can hush up any scandal."
Someone said it outright and cackled.
"The war hero got duped by the white rat princess. This might lead to divorce?"
They were crossing lines, treating him as suddenly penniless.
They shut up under the godmother and princesses' fierce glares.
Helen covered her mouth in a troubled expression, then took my hand.
"Cindy, let your big sister help. With my husband's support, you can avoid bankruptcy..."
So this was her plan—to saddle us with debt and keep us under her thumb.
I shook my head.
"No, it's fine. I'll just take your beautiful intentions."
Thinking I'd given up and decided to liquidate the project, the ones openly sneering now grinned broadly.
Demons who find others' misfortune entertaining. Should I call an exorcist priest?
"Princess, we'll help you, so don't worry too much. We're family, after all."
I smiled sweetly at the godmother and princesses looking at me worriedly.
"Thank you. But we've already secured the funds. Queen Grace II of Media brought in a huge investment."
At my words, the surroundings went quiet as if cold water had been poured.
Clang-!
The sound of someone startled dropping a teacup.
I could see the joy of those mocking others' misfortune cooling in real time.
Helen stared at me blankly.
"...Queen Grace II invested? In a private individual?"
"Not private anymore—it's an international company now. We're operating it jointly."
The queen's letter had arrived just this morning.
So now, I'd earned the title of 'Representative' instead of the embarrassing 'Princess'!
