A Strange But Effective Villainess Life - Chapter 7

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 7
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The drawing room was undeniably luxurious, befitting an estate that practically screamed of money lavished upon it. Even a single cushion bore the prominent logo of the Capital’s most renowned designer. The taste was truly… well, let’s just say it was ostentatious.
“This cushion is quite nice. Must be expensive, huh? Wow, so this designer makes cushions too.”
As I patted the cushion and spoke, Joshua answered curtly.
“It’s a limited edition that someone with zero fashion sense like you wouldn’t even begin to appreciate. What are you doing? Why aren’t you settling in comfortably?”
Joshua, whom I hadn’t seen in years, remained exactly as he always was. That mouth of his had never produced a kind word in his life. In fact, he’d been far more of a headache to Grandfather than I ever was. So the best strategy was to ignore Joshua’s remarks. Still, the benefits that fell my way whenever he was nearby were considerable, so I had to eagerly snatch them up.
I was settling quite comfortably against the cushion when Joshua looked at me with a sullen expression.
“When did you arrive in the Capital? Not even a word of contact.”
Wow. He really was as cunning as his summoner. I let out a soft laugh and crossed my legs.
“You already knew everything, so why are you acting like this, Editor-in-Chief of Lorelai?”
Joshua’s relaxed expression immediately hardened. I gestured toward his summoner, the green snake, and shrugged.
“Even if I couldn’t summon a summoner myself, I grew up with you in the Prelai Family, didn’t I?”
At those words, Joshua fell silent with his eyebrows raised.
In the Capital, a trashy gossip magazine called Lorelai had become wildly popular. It was a vulgar third-rate publication that exposed people’s secrets and private affairs, but precisely because of that, it sold incredibly well. And Lorelai was published by none other than Joshua. However, there was a separate figurehead editor-in-chief, so no one suspected Joshua’s involvement.
That figurehead editor was his summoner. Joshua’s summoner, a green snake named Lea, possessed the ability of humanization. She could transform into a woman with green hair and green eyes for a limited duration.
Knowledge of the summoner’s ability was restricted to members of the Prelai Family alone. It was kept secret as a precaution against unforeseen circumstances. This allowed them to deceive others flawlessly. The reason people didn’t know where Joshua’s wealth came from was precisely because of this.
Grandfather and Alex, upon learning the truth, pressured Joshua to shut down Lorelai immediately. Of course, Joshua refused to yield to that pressure and defiantly ran away, living quite comfortably ever since.
“I heard the editor-in-chief of Lorelai is a beautiful woman with green eyes and green hair. I figured it out easily enough.”
Though truthfully, it was information from the original work.
【Oh, how clever.】
Lea raised her head proudly and complimented me.
Being acknowledged by a summoner felt satisfying. So I nodded in return and gave recognition to the summoner as well.
“That’s right, I’m incredibly clever. You’re a stupid snake who doesn’t understand the beauty of right angles, but you do have a decent eye for assessing human intelligence.”
【….】
After building rapport with Lea that way, I turned my attention back to Joshua and spoke.
“Anyway, you must have informants spread throughout the Capital. You would’ve known I arrived last night, right?”
“…Yeah. I did know you arrived.”
To gather all the gossip that appeared in Lorelai, Joshua maintained an extensive network of informants.
‘In other words, Joshua is a luxury-addicted information broker who controls both information and public opinion in the shadows….’
Though his reach was limited to the Capital, it meant that whenever I needed information, I could come to Joshua.
“Then I’ll just state my business and leave quickly. I came to ask you two things.”
At my words, Joshua scoffed and crossed his arms.
“Did you perhaps leave something with me? Why are you being so presumptuous?”
“Someday I’ll be able to help you too, right? We’re not strangers—we’re family who should help each other.”
Joshua was about to drink his tea when he choked on it and coughed. Then he looked at me with disbelieving eyes.
“Of all people, Kiana, you suddenly show up after six years and say something so family-friendly? Are you really Kiana?”
His crimson eyes became eerie in an instant.
“Don’t tell me another soul has possessed Kiana’s body.”
Joshua’s face turned ice-cold in a heartbeat. He spoke in a low, almost melancholic voice.
“Tell me that secret—the one only the two of us know about in this world.”
He really does come up with all sorts of things.
Ever since childhood, Joshua had been obsessed with gossip and devoured countless romance novels. I recalled that many of the novels he read featured plots where souls from other dimensions possessed bodies. It seemed he was even composing a story in his head right now.
I sighed once and slowly gave him my answer.
“There’s no secret that my brother and I share. We’ve never been close since the day we were born. There, satisfied?”
“You really are Kiana, aren’t you…”
The eerie look vanished from Joshua’s face immediately. He even brushed his long golden hair behind his ear with a graceful gesture. Gazing at that angelic, pretty face of his, I slowly opened my mouth.
“The first question is…”
I asked, conscious of Lea.
“If your summoner were in pain… what would you feel?”
“If Lea were in pain?”
Joshua furrowed his brow and looked at his green snake summoner. Then he answered immediately.
“I’d wish I were the one suffering instead. She came all the way to this world trusting only me.”
【Of course you should. You’re the one who should be hurting instead.】
Lea nodded with a satisfied giggle.
“Then, if someone were to heal that suffering summoner…”
I asked quietly.
“Would you be willing to grant almost any request from that person?”
“Hmm.”
Joshua answered seriously.
“If it were me, I’d dress that person in luxury brands from head to toe, even if it were Alex.”
“Well, I doubt Alex would appreciate that much… but anyway, I understand your extreme sentiment.”
Since I couldn’t summon a summoner myself, I didn’t fully grasp the value of what I intended to do for my grandfather. That’s why I’d come to ask Joshua, uncertain. But from his reaction, it seemed like an incredibly significant undertaking.
‘This might actually work out easily.’
I actively engaged my hopeful thinking.
‘If I just heal Hou and tell Grandfather that Hitten is targeting us, it might actually resolve surprisingly smoothly… Grandfather is capable, after all.’
Someone might say there was no reason to be so nervous and hesitant about merely speaking a word to Grandfather. But for me, it was absolutely something to be nervous and hesitant about.
“But hey, Kiana. Let’s say your summoner is in pain. But how would you fix that?”
Joshua tilted his head and asked.
“There’s no doctor or veterinarian who can treat summoners. You know that.”
I nodded at his reasonable point and answered.
“Don’t worry about it. It’s not your concern.”
And I continued.
“And for the second question… do you happen to have any information about the Crown Prince? Anything works.”
“What?”
Joshua’s brow furrowed instantly.
“The Crown Prince?”
“Yes.”
“…”
Joshua looked down with displeasure. It was a completely different expression from when I’d asked the first question.
Joshua broke the silence that had settled between us, his response blunt and straightforward.
“…I’m not sure why you’ve suddenly taken an interest in this, but I have no secret information beyond what we all already know.”
I studied Joshua’s face quietly. He continued, his expression hardening.
“Six years ago, the Crown Prince went on a hunting trip and picnic to the Edpa Mountains with his closest confidants. He fell off a cliff and went missing. That’s all I know.”
“….”
“Even if you were stuck in the Riloni Principality, you’d know at least that much.”
“And after that?”
“After that? What do you mean after that?”
Joshua grumbled.
“After the Crown Prince went missing, Prince Hitten seized real power and became the de facto first in line for succession. The Emperor is in poor health, after all….”
It was all information I already knew, but I listened patiently without interrupting. Joshua continued with little enthusiasm.
“However, the Emperor declared he would never transfer the Crown Prince’s position to Prince Hitten until he personally saw the Crown Prince’s body. That’s why the position remains vacant to this day.”
“Is that really all?”
“Yes. Truly, I swear on Lea—I have no information beyond that.”
Hmm… He really doesn’t know. I suppose there’s no helping it at this point. I nodded readily and spoke.
“Then promise me this. If you learn anything related to the Crown Prince, tell me immediately. And investigate the connection between Prince Hitten, our family, and the Crown Prince.”
Joshua looked at me with complicated eyes. He clearly disapproved, yet he seemed at a loss—unable to play the role of a concerned older brother now, after all this time.
After his lips moved silently for a while, he finally spoke.
“Hey, if you get carelessly entangled in Imperial Family affairs, you’ll be in serious trouble.”
Ah, he’s worried about me…. I answered with a moved expression.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“….”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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