I Was Hired by the Black-Minded Prince for My Life's Ransom - Chapter 46

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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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Episode 46. Vanillin’s Worth
Had I lost consciousness somewhere in between?
As the acrid scent of medicinal herbs seeped into my lungs, I opened my eyes.
“……ugh.”
Blinking, my blurred vision slowly swam back into focus.
Where was I?
Judging by the atmosphere and the drifting scent, which felt no different from before, I seemed to still be inside the Party Venue.
‘There were plenty of rooms on the first floor… must be one of them.’
My head throbbed.
I tried to lift my hand to press my temples.
Or rather, I tried to.
But my body wouldn’t….
‘It won’t move.’
I stared down blankly.
Sure enough, my wrists, my waist, my legs—
my entire body was bound tightly to the chair.
“You’re awake.”
A plume of smoke.
As hazy wisps clouded my vision, I lifted my head.
A Grey-haired Man was languidly smoking a herbal cigarette.
Or rather, medicinal herb, as they’d called it.
Even through the fog in my memory, the image remained sharp—the very same person who’d scooped me up at the Party Venue moments before.
And with that realization came fragments of recollection, surfacing in waves.
― I’m afraid you’ve been deceived. The 3rd Prince isn’t here.
― So I’d appreciate it if you’d simply perform your role as bait.
My throat went dry.
I ran my tongue over my lips.
Afraid, confused, without my wits about me.
My fingertips trembled, but what consumed my thoughts was something else entirely.
Something far more pressing than my own safety.
“Are you saying I’m bait meant to draw out the 3rd Prince?”
“…….”
The Grey-haired Man’s eyes narrowed as he lay half-reclined on the sofa, burning the herbal cigarette.
His head tilted slightly to one side, as though surprised.
“That’s your first question? Trussed up like that?”
His voice carried unmistakable fascination.
He shifted his upper body upright and flicked ash from the cigarette carelessly.
Every gesture exuded a languid, decadent air.
“Answer.”
“Ah… yes. I mean, it’s true, but…”
S-so frightening….
No, wait—didn’t I ask first?
I fumbled with my lips and averted my gaze.
I lacked the courage to say such a thing aloud.
As though sensing my fear, the man let out a soft laugh.
“Let’s just say my superior desires the ruin of the 3rd Prince.”
“Superior….”
I echoed his words under my breath.
While seemingly vague, the answer was actually quite clear.
There was only one person who would wish for Yuri An’s downfall.
‘So it’s the 2nd Prince.’
Thinking it through, everything aligned.
The 2nd Prince summoning him so abruptly must have been—wasn’t it meant to keep him detained until they lured me in?
But if that was the case, they were operating under a grave misunderstanding.
I curved my eyebrows into a crooked smile, laughing awkwardly.
“Do you truly believe the 3rd Prince will come to rescue me?”
This image of a Saint really is terrifying.
Then again, if I actually were a Saint, perhaps my superior would dash recklessly to my aid, consequences be damned.
But the Yuri An I knew would never be that sort of person.
No—the moment he realized the location was this kind of place, he’d turn on his heel without hesitation.
The man’s eyebrows lifted with interest.
“You think he won’t come, then?”
“He’s too clever for that.”
He wouldn’t walk knowingly into a trap.
And he wouldn’t sacrifice his own interests to save someone.
“Besides….”
“Besides?”
“…never mind.”
I clamped my lips shut and shook my head.
I shouldn’t think such things, but perhaps he’d be relieved.
One troublesome person disappearing from his life.
Hadn’t he just said this morning he was disappointed?
My head drooped slowly.
Then came a soft snort of laughter from above.
“So… you weren’t worth much to the 3rd Prince after all.”
…….
“Truly valuable things are always worth saving — even at great cost.”
I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it again.
Every word was true. I had nothing to say.
I was just an ordinary maid, after all.
Even my agreement with Yuri An had been something I arranged myself.
My station was hardly elevated to begin with.
‘There’s no reason to save me.’
I wouldn’t save myself if I were him.
I hung my head in dejection.
“What’s with that expression? Did something hurt your feelings?”
Another bull’s-eye.
I nodded weakly.
It seemed to be true.
‘Even if I’m not worth saving… couldn’t you come anyway?’
The fact that such a shameless thought crossed my mind said everything.
The man watching me smiled with amusement and snapped his cigarette holder in half.
“Don’t cry. I have no interest in comforting women.”
“I’m not crying.”
“Then what’s hanging from your eyes — sweat?”
He spoke with mock sympathy, then gathered his coat and rose from his chair.
“If the 3rd Prince doesn’t come, I’m afraid I’ll have to kill you.”
Click. He grasped the door handle and pulled it open.
Then, with an indifferent expression, he turned back to me and lit another cigarette.
“So pray hard. Pray that the 3rd Prince comes for you.”
Bang.
The door slammed shut before I could respond.
* * *
Ha.
I snorted.
What do you know?
The 3rd Prince won’t come here.
I’m certain of it.
So I had no choice but to escape on my own.
I looked around.
One small mercy was that this appeared to be that man’s Private Office.
A deep red Oriental Patterned Carpet, cherry-wood bookshelves, and….
“He’s not very clever, is he?”
A desk scattered carelessly with Tobacco and Matchsticks.
They used to say if you lack teeth, your gums will do.
I wriggled my toes hard, inching the chair forward.
Even at the pace of a caterpillar, I could reach the desk if I wasn’t interrupted.
Scratch.
I clamped a Matchstick between my front teeth and struck it against the rough edge of the desk, sparking flame.
My mind was growing foggy again… but that wasn’t what I intended to burn.
“Ugh.”
I brought the matchstick clenched between my teeth to the rope binding my body.
Crackle. Crackle.
Soon the rope began to fray and snap, strand by strand.
Once I’d broken through the first strands, the rest came undone without resistance.
“Ah.”
I was free in moments.
I stretched both arms wide, my joints popping.
After years of confinement under Dai, this was nothing—child’s play.
I quickly bit down on a medicinal herb and lit it; the clean scent sharpened my mind at once.
“Ah… I’m alive.”
Now all that remained was to escape through that wide-open window.
But before that.
I hesitated and looked around the interior again.
“Perhaps I should gather a peace offering, since he’ll be angry…?”
That man—presumably an associate of the 2nd Prince.
And supposedly the host of this party, filled with nobility.
Wouldn’t that make this place something of a treasure vault?
— This business has disappointed me greatly, Vanillin.
Yuri An’s cold voice lingered in my ears like a phantom.
I should look around, to make up for this morning’s failure.
I examined the interior carefully.
Honestly, I didn’t need to search far and wide.
The desk was piled high with ledgers and documents, and the drawer was crammed with a Party Attendee List and stacks of mysterious transaction records.
‘Wow…’
This is a goldmine.
I swallowed hard.
‘If I took it all, I’d surely be praised.’
But I shook my head firmly.
Greed was a luxury I couldn’t afford.
If I carelessly poked around and got caught, it would be disastrous.
‘Just a few important-looking things….’
I swallowed again and turned my attention to the bookshelf.
The desk and drawers were good, but that thick bookshelf crammed with documents had caught my eye since earlier.
Documents that might strike a harder blow to the 2nd Prince.
Information that might bring Yuri An more joy.
Just as I was about to pull down a thick ledger wedged at the far end of the shelf.
[…nillin?]
A faint, familiar voice brushing against my ears.
My body went rigid.
My trembling gaze snapped toward the window.
What…?
[Vanillin. Answer me if you hear me.]
Low, soft, and yet strangely urgent.
Was it a hallucination?
My lips parted, trembling.
No sound came.
Honestly, I couldn’t believe it.
The person I’d wanted most to see—yet never dared to hope for.
“Your Highness…?”
[Vanillin.]
Slip.
The ledger slipped through my fingers.

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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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