Pretending to Be Human Is Exhausting Again Today - Chapter 30

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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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Pretending to Be Human: Episode 030

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The night was dark.

Grid left the Main Palace with a single document in hand.

‘Even a simple errand requires such paperwork. The Imperial Palace truly operates differently.’

The document he held was a permit from the Main Palace granting free passage in and out. It was also a mark of his status as an exclusive merchant to the Imperial Family.

‘With this, I can finally stand by that Princess’s side.’

At the thought of her face, a chill ran down my spine.

Our first meeting had been light and amusing, almost like a joke, but in truth, I had been tense the entire time.

It was the pressure I felt as a spirit user.

‘I’ll need to grow accustomed to it. And I suppose I should learn to tune out the reckless prattling of that Assassin who was by her side.’

To ease the fear from that moment, I recalled Ivan’s face. I couldn’t understand why Deina kept such a frivolous Assassin at her side, but since I had agreed to work with them, I had to endure it.

‘Well then, let me complete the Princess’s first request.’

Just as I was about to leave the Imperial Palace with light steps, a man appeared at the corner and blocked my path.

He was a head taller than me. I looked up to see his face.

“…Well, it’s been quite some time, Young Master of House Delchis.”

The man blocking my way was Loreil, the heir to the Delchis Prime Minister’s Family.

Grid smiled faintly as he met those crimson eyes gleaming ominously in the moonlight.

“To meet like this in the middle of the night, in such a vast Imperial Palace—what a coincidence. How delightful….”

“I told you not to call me that, Grid.”

‘Still only saying what’s on her mind, I see.’

Grid shrugged and corrected his form of address.

“…Yes, Loreil. My apologies. I misspoke.”

Loreil then glanced down at the documents Grid held and spoke.

“So you’ve become Princess Deina’s exclusive merchant, then.”

“Indeed. News travels fast.”

“What do you think the Prime Minister’s Family’s duties are?”

‘As if I wouldn’t know.’

The Delchis Prime Minister’s Family held the Empire’s financial lifeline firmly in their grasp, so of course he would know.

It was merely a formality anyway.

“What method did you use? Your meager surface identity wouldn’t have been sufficient to be selected as an exclusive merchant. Did you reveal your status as a shadow merchant?”

“Surely not. This was earned through fair competition. Why would the Princess conduct business with a shadow merchant?”

Once a transaction was concluded, maintaining the client’s secrets was a merchant’s fundamental principle.

Loreil, sensing Grid wouldn’t offer a meaningful answer, changed his line of questioning.

“Then, did you feel nothing when conversing with her?”

“Feel nothing? What do you mean?”

“You have keen instincts. You carry something bizarre with you. I’m asking if your senses detected anything unusual.”

‘Yes, quite a lot actually.’

Grid feigned deliberation, murmuring “Well…” as he recalled his meeting with Deina.

A shabby study, an unsettling maid as guide, the extraordinary man and woman standing nearby… but what left the deepest impression was Deina herself—dressed in an ordinary gown, sitting with a languid expression.

The moment I stepped into the Study, the dark spirit that always chattered away on my shoulder fell silent.

And after a long pause, it whispered in my ear with a trembling voice.

[Let’s run, Grid. This place scares me. That one… it scares me.]

I had encountered many people with tremendous power, but my spirit had never been this terrified. When I tried to calm it with a thought, the spirit answered through tears.

[Don’t go near it. It’s divine punishment. It’s a monster. We’ll all die.]

‘Die? What are you saying? The Princess will kill us?’

[She’s already killed so many. Countless. Mountains of them—corpse mountains, monster mountains… the one who toppled the peak.]

Cold sweat broke across my skin at that phrase.

The spirit had only used the title “peak” twice before among all the humans I’d met.

The first was the one standing at the peak of malevolent will—the Emperor of Lipeon.

The second was the one who reached the peak of the Horned Tower—the King of the Beastmen.

Even when the spirit had given them those titles from a distance, it had never trembled like this.

But Deina was different.

The spirit shook like a small creature facing a natural disaster.

And “the one who toppled the peak”—wasn’t that a description that sounded like she’d killed a king?

‘Or perhaps it’s a title foretelling the future.’

The spirit’s abstract expressions sometimes resembled the revelations that descended from the Temple.

The aging Emperor would soon die. Time was the certain death sentence God had pronounced upon humanity.

But if the one delivering that sentence wasn’t time itself, but a human being instead…

‘I’m sorry, Coco. Hearing you say that… I can’t run away anymore.’

They say that when people face overwhelming fear, they smile instead.

Grid comforted his spirit Coco and steeled himself.

‘This is my chance to reach the highest seat, Coco. Even with death at my side, I cannot let this slip away.’

I had no intention of asking such foolish questions as how I had discovered Coco’s existence. What mattered more was whether that power would be on my side or not.

Thus, ignoring Coco’s screams, I concluded the contract with Deina. It was the first time in my life that I had disregarded Coco’s advice.

‘…I cannot tell this man about such circumstances.’

In a brief moment, Grid quickly finished his recollection and responded with an expression of difficulty.

“I’m not entirely sure. Apart from her unusual hair color and eye pupils, I haven’t sensed anything strange about the Princess.”

“….”

Loreil narrowed his eyes. His gaze suggested disbelief.

‘He must have sensed something from the Princess just as I did, given his keen intuition. But he has no intention of standing with me.’

Since Loreil had decided to align with the Prime Minister’s Family, I would offer him no cooperation.

Loreil spoke with a furrowed brow.

“There may be dangers lurking beyond what you imagine. Will you still hide the truth?”

“I haven’t the faintest idea what you’ve been saying all this time….”

“…Tsk.”

Determining that further words would be futile, Loreil clicked his tongue and stepped back. The path opened before me.

“Then, I shall take my leave.”

Grid offered his farewell and turned to depart. But just before passing through the fork in the road, Loreil stopped him once more.

“I heard you replaced all the servants at the Separate Palace.”

“Yes, is there a problem?”

“…Tell the newly arrived Servants to tidy the Garden first.”

“Pardon?”

What was this about?

Grid blinked at the sudden request.

Loreil didn’t spare him a glance, walking toward the darkened Road as he spoke.

“It’s far too much of a jungle to take tea there.”

With that cryptic remark, he vanished into the shadows.

Grid stood gazing into the darkness, muttering to himself.

“…I’ll relay it directly.”

He found himself thinking that what emanated from Loreil wasn’t merely caution—there was something else beneath it.

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At last, the Emperor’s decree arrived.

[Four days hence, at evening, you are permitted to attend the banquet. For this occasion… two sets of attire have been sent… and a partner….]

Though the decree was brief—fewer than five hundred characters—I lacked the composure to parse its full meaning.

The text was cluttered with conditions and stipulations, but the true obstacle stood before me, her gaze fixed upon me with unwavering intensity.

The one who had brought the Emperor’s decree in person was none other than….

“You’ve finished reading it, Deina? You understand the contents, don’t you?”

“…Yes, I understand, Jeina.”

My younger sister—the Fourth Princess, Jeina.

I offered my sister a bitter smile as she stared at me without blinking.

‘Jeina hasn’t changed at all.’

The last time we’d met was five years ago. The only difference was her hairstyle.

She remained the same sister—bound together by radiant confidence, righteousness, and the pride of Imperial blood.

“It’s an imperial decree from His Majesty, so you must follow it. Surely you haven’t forgotten dining etiquette just because it’s been so long since you attended a banquet?”

“I remember everything, so don’t worry.”

“I can’t be certain. I’ll have an etiquette instructor come and verify. If your standards don’t meet the requirements, I’ll speak directly to His Majesty and postpone the banquet.”

And she was still as stubborn as ever, impossible to reason with.

I stepped back, telling her to do as she pleased. There was no way to stop Jeina when she was being willful.

“Jeina, did you come all the way to the Separate Palace to check if I’m doing well?”

“As if.”

I asked out of faint hope, but her answer was a denial, as expected.

“Being invited to a banquet is proof you’ve recovered. There’s no need for me to verify that. I came to check whether you’re worthy of being called a member of the Imperial Family.”

‘Worthy.’

It was a word I hadn’t heard in ages—one that drove a nail through my heart.

Jeina had spoken those same words before, in the past.

‘You’re beneath my expectations. I was foolish to hope for anything from you. From now on, you have no right to the title of Imperial Family member. Today will be the last time I call you sister.’

It was what had happened the last time she visited the Separate Palace, five years ago.

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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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