Everyone Was Obsessed With Me After I Became the Youngest Princess Favourite - Chapter 86

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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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This time, I wasn’t mistaken.
Those crimson eyes gleaming between jet-black hair, the sharp jawline and steep bridge of the nose—they matched my memory perfectly.
My body moved before my mind could process anything else.
“Master!”
I crossed the street where carriages were rushing past without a second thought, and Jack, his face turning pale, grabbed me urgently.
“That’s dangerous—”
“Let go!”
I felt Jack flinch at my sharp cry, but I had no room to care about that.
Master had already vanished beyond my reach, disappearing from sight.
I stared at the back alley where he had disappeared, biting my lip.
“…Lia?”
At that moment, with Jack’s startled voice, tears suddenly fell.
I looked down at the tears I had shed in bewilderment. It wasn’t just one drop.
My eyes were already soaked, and the tears streamed down to my chin.
‘Why?’
I couldn’t understand why I was crying. Yet my chest ached with a throbbing, searing pain.
‘What was I thinking, chasing after him like that? What could I possibly have said?’
Was I going to ask him now if it was truly his will to send me to House Elrad?
What did it matter if Jade had lied, or if he hadn’t?
I knew better than anyone that the truth was now beyond my reach.
Yet the heart I thought I had carefully soothed crumbled the moment I saw Master.
I still carried a debt of gratitude toward him, and at the same time, I resented and resented him.
“Attack here.”
Suddenly, Master’s voice echoed through my blurred vision.
It was a memory of special training on the Snow Mountain Cliff during the harsh winter, when the entire world seemed to turn white.
I hesitated and faltered as I watched Master point a sharp dagger at his own chest.
“Don’t back down. Even if a hundred of you rushed at me, you wouldn’t be able to wound me once.”
Spurred by stubbornness, I swung the sword I held with both hands toward his vital point.
Master blocked the attack with one hand and pulled my wrist toward him with the other.
The moment I realized my body was being dragged in that direction, my sword suddenly slipped from my hand and spun through the air.
Master had taken my dagger from me.
“Again. Don’t let your weapon be taken.”
I caught the dagger he threw back and clenched my teeth.
Did I want to lose? But what could I do when I was no match for him? He was so much taller than me, so much stronger…
“I know you’re thinking like a loser, but your opponent will always have the advantage over you.”
At his immediate words, a pride I didn’t know I possessed began to sting.
I rushed at him again without a moment’s hesitation.
I stopped counting the number of times after it exceeded a thousand.
Ragged breathing mingled with white vapor colliding against the cold air.
In the brief silence, I quickly twisted my wrist to grip the dagger and rushed forward, aiming for a surprise attack.
But perhaps I’d been too hasty—my legs gave out beneath me, and my feet slipped.
Master caught me just as I was about to fall flat on my face.
“That’s enough for today.”
“No! Just a little more…”
Sparring with Master was invaluable.
None of the other Guild members received such a privilege.
So they all whispered that it was “favoritism,” but the truth was, I understood.
‘It’s only because I’m so weak.’
If that weren’t the case.
“Yes. If you didn’t show such stubbornness, nothing would improve at all.”
I would never have heard such words.
Living this second life, I’d come to understand one thing clearly.
Master had taken me in, cultivated my abilities, and given me the goal of earning recognition—yet he was the very person who hindered me most.
Why had he taught me magic and combat so harshly, developed my power, only to reduce me to a fool capable of nothing but trivial tasks?
‘I must never encounter Jade.’
Today’s meeting made me realize it anew.
Even though my mind knew that turning Terenthium into an enemy was wrong, that blood revenge only begets more blood…
If I saw Jade the way I’d seen Master, my reason would abandon me and I’d throw myself at him without thought.
Unlike before, I was no longer alone.
I wanted to live peacefully and happily beside Diana, with House Elrad.
Shaking my head and roughly wiping my eyes, I spoke to Jack, who stood helplessly beside me, unable to wipe away my tears.
“Jack, I’m sorry for shouting. I don’t know what came over me.”
“…Are you alright now?”
“Yes. Let’s head back.”
“Okay. That would be best… But what about that?”
Following Jack’s gaze, I saw the cake box I’d been holding rolling across the street on the opposite side, trampled beneath people’s feet into a ruined mess.
The sight felt like me—discarded and rendered useless.
* * *
An alleyway in the most dangerous Crime District of the Capital City.
As a man entered a dimly lit, humid tavern, the executives seated around the round table immediately rose to their feet.
“Master, you’ve arrived.”
The man removed his robe and swept back his black hair, passing by their greetings without acknowledgment.
“Um, Master…”
A woman with graying hair and thin silver-rimmed glasses called out to him hesitantly.
As the man turned his head, Rope swallowed hard and spoke.
“The atmosphere within the Guild has been unsettling lately. Not long ago, Master suddenly, without any reason, Jade…”
She couldn’t bring herself to finish and closed her mouth.
She couldn’t forget that horrific scene—the crimson blood of a colleague she’d shared revelry with until recently, gushing forth.
Moreover, Jade was young but ambitious and loyal, a promising prospect the Guild had invested considerable effort in cultivating over the years.
The executives who had served this man for so long couldn’t comprehend why he’d so abruptly, and without any explanation, eliminated such a valuable asset with a single stroke.
“Hah.”
Just as the executives’ gloomy expressions settled over their young faces, the man let out a hollow laugh.
“So what do you want me to do about it?”
“…No, sir.”
“Then shut your mouth and do as you’re told.”
The man moved again without waiting for a response.
The executives, watching his retreating figure with vacant eyes, felt a chill run down their spines.
He had never possessed much humanity to begin with, but lately he seemed even more sinister.
Yet they had no choice but to bow deeply and show their obedience.
Regardless of how he conducted his affairs, they had to follow their master’s will.
* * *
A month had already passed since my tour of the Capital City.
Time seemed to flow far too quickly, but truthfully, much had transpired in the interim.
The moment I returned to the Duke’s Mansion, I discreetly wandered through the estate, checking whether any servants had been bribed not only by Darel but by other guilds as well.
Of course, if someone had infiltrated perfectly from the start, it would be difficult to catch them, but based on my investigation, there didn’t appear to be any obvious leaks in our information security.
And fortunately, my anxious heart eased a few days later.
On the appointed day, I met a man who sat on a bench as if it were his own home, waiting for me at his leisure.
“The Guild Master of Darel? You came personally?”
Surprisingly, the person who brought me the jewels along with a work report was the Guild Master of Darel himself.
It was difficult to gauge precisely, but he seemed to be a skilled operative on par with a first-class agent.
If he was moving personally, the security of the Elrad Duchy seemed trustworthy enough.
‘Of course, things would have been different if Lucio had been at the mansion…’
In any case, Darel had performed far better than I expected.
Over the past month, the Capital City had been abuzz with the newly discovered pink mana stones.
Because the price was so exorbitant, only the Imperial Family and a select few nobles and wealthy merchants in the Empire used magical artifacts, and they were also the only consumers of mana stones.
The Delis Trading Company sent them invitations to attend the company’s historic first auction, and distributed all of my first mana stones as gifts.
Once these people realized that my mana stones were of superior quality despite their appearance, their eyes lit up, and they flocked to the auction held by the fledgling trading company.
‘And then appeared the highest-grade pink mana stones…!’
Already, the existing mana stones were distributed in such limited quantities that even those with money couldn’t obtain them.
This was because the Bellus Duchy, which owned the largest mana stone mine on the continent, strictly limited the quantity of mana stones it exported to other nations.
So those who had always treasured mana stones as if their lives depended on it were instantly captivated by my stones—high in purity and beautiful to behold.
Thanks to this, the auction concluded successfully at prices incomparable to ordinary mana stones, and the name of the Delis Trading Company, which was practically just starting out, rose dramatically in an instant.
And after that day, everyone became curious about which country and whose mine these pink mana stones were being extracted from. They said people were pressuring the Delis Trading Company, which had the exclusive distribution rights, and scrambling to obtain the stones separately.
In truth, I had initially thought that to break into an already established mana stone market, I would need to offer low prices and sell in high volumes to be competitive.
But instead, by pursuing a premium strategy, my workload decreased significantly while my profits increased substantially.
I understood that the trading company would naturally do its best since higher prices meant greater gains for them, but I was bewildered by the far greater success than anticipated.
It was truly convenient that the troublesome work was being handled entirely by others on my behalf, since I couldn’t engage in direct operations.
‘But what pleased me most of all was…’
The moment I saw the first payment statement delivered along with the jewels for creating new mana stones came to mind.
My eyes went wild at the endless stream of numbers, and my entire body trembled. I had never experienced such exhilaration before.
‘Financial therapy truly is the best cure!’

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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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