Chapter 26

Resignation from the imperial succession rights and confinement.

Third Imperial Princess Anais thought this level of settlement would be best.

It wasn’t that she harbored any personal ill will toward her.

If it hadn’t been me, Anais might have been living happily as one of the main protagonists of the萝pan world by now. There might have occasionally been villains or minor conflicts, but everything would eventually be wrapped up neatly, and it’d be enough for her to just act cute.

But Anais herself chose to break free from that comfortable world.

‘I wish I had bitten my lip and endured.’

Perhaps if she’d gritted her teeth and held on, she might have been given another chance.

The Emperor was still in his forties. He was of an age where there was no rush to designate a successor.

Moreover, he was the type to overlook Siena’s wrongdoings over several years, showing how much he favored his daughters. He probably loved Anais just as much. I had also heard that Anais’ mother, Ryeon-hwa, had a very good relationship with him.

Ultimately, it was Anais herself who missed the opportunity.

And it wasn’t just me who thought this way.

“Alan. What do you think about why Anais dropped out? By the way, as a warning, don’t give me a thoughtless excuse.”

Siena’s direct inquiry. I hadn’t intended to make any excuses anyway.

“She cut off her own retreat.”

“Maybe she gave up everything and just wanted to live quietly?”

“If she had intended that, she would have maintained her enrollment. By cutting off all public activities and staying secluded in school, who would dare to harm her? Although she might endure a bit of political maneuvering, it would still be possible to barely graduate.”

“Hmm, you think the same way as me.”

Siena’s eyes curved into a round shape. She clearly appreciated that our thoughts were in sync. This was an expression she had been showing frequently lately.

There was one difference between us, though.

Whereas I had simply estimated the situation and left it at that, Siena was expecting resistance from Anais. She seemed to want her younger sister to flare up and put on a show.

She was already keeping a close eye on Anais from afar.

“Do you know about Count Downsher? He runs a large art business.”

“He was originally one of Her Highness Anais’ close associates. What has he done now?”

“He recently became my dog, and today he came to share an interesting report with me. Allegedly, Anais is suddenly and hastily liquidating her collection. Why would she do that if she’s not planning anything?”

“…”

The news that Anais was urgently liquidating her collection.

This was different from ordinary people selling their collectibles to raise money.

She was not only an Imperial Princess but also the granddaughter of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire who ruled the great Chinguk Empire. She reportedly received rare gifts every birthday, sometimes even for no reason.

Jade screens, gold fans, thousand-year-old ginseng. Things like that.

The treasures that captivated the wealthy, who flipped at the allure of oriental mystique. Moreover, these were gifts from the royal palace there, so they came with added value.

As a princess, it was odd for her to suddenly sell such valuable pieces, given that she wasn’t in dire need of money.

‘She’s not just accumulating money recklessly, surely.’

Siena seemed convinced that the reason was revenge.

“At this point, I bet she’s out of her mind because of the morphine business.”

“Do you think she intends to interfere with our operations?”

“I kind of have an idea of what she might try.”

Siena said that she foresaw two possible scenarios.

Anais might be siphoning off some morphine to instigate subversion. Or she could be contaminating the morphine currently stored within the military ranks.

Siena clearly believed that her goal was to drag down the esteemed status of morphine among the soldiers.

“So, she must be raising funds for this? She’d need money to bribe the military, wouldn’t she?”

“I don’t know, Your Highness Siena. In my opinion…”

“Ah, never mind. I’ve already taken care of it.”

“What kind of… measures do you mean?”

“I’ve warned my sister. She needs to be on guard because there are many people who are jealous of our morphine operation. She might soon encounter those attempting foul play, so she ought to be thoroughly cautious… I’ve heard they’ve added more personnel managing the morphine and appointed responsible officers.”

“Princess Victoria would indeed do that.”

Meaning, the two sisters had set a trap for the youngest, Anais.

Of course, Victoria probably wouldn’t have considered her youngest sister as an enemy.

At most, she might suspect the merchants losing profits from opium or the opium farmers whose annual tons of customer demand (the military) switched to morphine instead of opium.

“If Anais does something foolish targeting morphine and gets caught, her sister will be surprised, but… do you think she will show leniency to her younger sister?”

“Instead, she might think it’s necessary to make an example of her. She might consider harsh retaliation a path for the Third Imperial Princess.”

“That’s right. That’s my sister.”

Siena smiled happily. From this, it was clear she eagerly anticipated Anais making a mistake.

Buying off soldiers or doctors to steal morphine.

Or adulterating the stockpiles of morphine currently stored in the military warehouse.

Or releasing a fake morphine product to the civilian market under the same name.

‘No matter which route she chooses, it’ll be welcome news to her. She must be restless.’

With her tongue slightly extended and licking her lower lip, she seemed ready to heavily restrain Anais once caught.

No, it would be fortunate if it ended with mere confinement. Given the pretext of surgery, there’s no way Siena would go easy on a competitor for the imperial succession.

‘Rather, it may be best for Anais to be caught quickly.’

If she struggles aimlessly before eventually getting caught, it could result in an irreversible catastrophe. Thus, it might even become difficult to conclude with simply relinquishing her succession rights.

“Well, I hope there’s some improvement this time.”

Siena seemed to be encouraging her younger sister. I, on the other hand, hoped she didn’t improve.

Anyway, it was hard for Anais to avoid getting caught, no matter what she tried.

She had lost her faction and her friends. From the moment she dropped out, vowing revenge on Siena, her miscalculation was already predictable.

‘If she targets the morphine, there’s no way she won’t get caught.’

But,

Even after our trap was set, there was no news of her actions.

At first, we expected her to immediately lash out after reportedly throwing a resignation letter at the principal’s face. But, three days passed, and she remained quiet, seemingly uninterested in morphine. She was sequestered in her palace.

“Perhaps she’s being cautious this time?”

Siena still looked calm for now.

“She’s pulling it out a bit too much, though. She’ll move eventually, right?”

By the fourth day, signs of impatience began to show.

“What is she trying to do?”

By the sixth day, her smile had disappeared.

“Maybe she thought there was no answer and gave up. She probably doesn’t want to fight against sister Victoria.”

By the time a week passed, she seemed almost resigned.

It was like being disappointed when the guest of honor didn’t show up at a carefully prepared party. She probably had high expectations and hopes that an interesting event would finally occur. It’s rare to find a sister disappointed because her younger sibling didn’t cause trouble.

“Did Anais really give up?”

If she truly let go of vengeance, that’d be a relief.

However, no matter how much I thought about it, it didn’t seem like Anais would have given up.

If she had no intentions, why would she drop out and suddenly liquidate her numerous collections? It doesn’t make sense that after selling everything, she would suddenly lose her fervor.

So, what exactly is she planning?

What is she trying to do?

While pondering, I suddenly had a suspicion and reported it to the villainess.

“Your Highness. It seems we have misread the Third Princess’s intentions.”

“Hm?”

“The Third Princess doesn’t intend to act as we expect. Ultimately, she has set a trap somewhere else.”

“So, Anais isn’t targeting the morphine?”

“She will likely target the morphine, but not in the way we predict.”

“…”

Siena was tilting her head, clearly not understanding.

She wasn’t suddenly becoming dumber; she was just underestimating the seventeen-year-old from outside the academy.

If this were the Anais from before the Psilocybin incident, she would have been caught immediately.

However, Anais had already gone through a bitter experience.

“The Third Princess must surely be aware that if she fails this time, she’ll lose everything. She isn’t blind with revenge to the point of losing rationality.”

“Is that kind of judgment possible from someone who dropped out for revenge?”

“That’s not something you should say, Your Highness.”

“That’s… you’re right, Alan.”

Still, it’s a relief that she’s self-reflective. She also seems to acknowledge that Anais might step outside her expectations.

It didn’t seem like she was happy about it, though.

“So, ultimately, I’ve set the trap in the wrong place.”

“Yes.”

“Well, then what can, or rather what will Anais do?”

“Since she has nothing but money now, we should focus on the flow of finances. You could send people to investigate any recent assets purchased by the Third Princess. Perhaps her expenditures are in places that don’t seem directly related to morphine at first glance.”

The moment I finished speaking, Siena immediately dispatched her people.

Those dispatched for information gathering were the nobles who had recently come under Siena’s control. Mostly merchants and nobles who originally served Anais. Interestingly, despite conducting investigations on their former master, none of them hesitated.

“They will bring back information soon.”

And that was the truth.

The results of the information collection came back that afternoon.

It was something that could have been understood much earlier if someone had paid attention.

“Her Highness Anais purchased a factory near the State. It’s a syrup factory, which she acquired a week ago. Lately, medicine merchants have reportedly been visiting that factory frequently.”

Anais had bought a syrup factory.

For a moment, the news felt absurd. But soon, my mind grew cold as I began to grasp what she might be planning.

“Syrup…”

The situation was looking quite messy.

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