That Piece Of Trash Was Me - Chapter 157

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

 

 

Chapter 157

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dave, who had been slapped, couldn’t even cry out and just bowed his head with his mouth frozen shut.

 

“Tsk, you still haven’t grown up!”

 

“Your Imperial Majesty, th-that’s not it…”

 

“Not it?”

 

Emperor Alessandro shouted in a furious voice.

 

“I’ve heard everything up until now, so where do you get off playing dumb? Can you still call yourself a prince of the Debriyang Empire after this? How dare you come to your mother and cause trouble? And over jealousy about a gift meant for your brother?!”

 

At Emperor Alessandro’s words, Dave completely froze.

 

From what he was saying, it seemed he had been listening to Dave yelling at Empress Carmi for quite some time.

 

But on the other hand, he also felt wronged.

 

Usually, Emperor Alessandro favored him more than that crippled Crown Prince. He was never a warm father figure, but at least he always maintained Dave’s dignity and cherished him.

 

This was the first time in his life he had been slapped like this.

 

“Go to your palace immediately and confine yourself!”

 

“I-I shall withdraw…”

 

Dave trembled as he left the Empress’s palace.

 

“…Your Majesty.”

 

Carmi finally relaxed her hardened expression. She was barely managing to smile, but her eyes were full of fear and bewilderment.

 

The Emperor just now seemed like a husband who had slapped his son to take her side, but that wasn’t really the case.

 

If he truly wanted to take her side, he should have only ‘lectured’ Dave. Not used violence like this.

 

Moreover, Carmi hadn’t seen the Emperor in a long time!

 

“You’ve only replied that you’re busy whenever I’ve requested an audience, so what brings you to the Empress’s palace today.”

 

Empress Carmi knew how to maintain a warm smile like beach sand in any situation.

 

Emperor Alessandro, who had been cold throughout, finally relaxed slightly and spoke.

 

“I came because there’s something to discuss with the Empress.”

 

“Yes, please tell me. Your Majesty.”

 

“It’s about Ferdinand.”

 

“Has something happened to the Crown Prince?”

 

A while later.

 

After hearing everything Emperor Alessandro had to say, Empress Carmi nodded very reluctantly.

 

She barely managed to put a smile on her lips, but it was as jarring as graffiti drawn on a perfect statue.

 

After the Emperor left.

 

Empress Carmi’s clenched fists tightened with force. Her nails dug into her palms until they bled, but the Head Maid pretended not to notice with a pale complexion.

 

“…Head Maid.”

 

“Yes. Your Majesty the Empress.”

 

“Are there any useful items in the Empress’s palace warehouse?”

 

“As you know, we spent everything paying for the White Tulle Salon…”

 

“Sell the Gibara territory in the south.”

 

“…!”

 

The southern Gibara territory was a granary region, one of the highest-grade lands the Empress owned. If sold, it would be enough to immediately restore the empty warehouse of the Empress’s palace.

 

Of course, it would be more profitable not to sell it and just receive the money that rolled in every year, but right now Empress Carmi’s eyes were bloodshot.

 

She desperately needed money.

 

“Dispose of it as quickly as possible and order a tiara made with expensive diamonds.”

 

“A tiara, you say?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Empress Carmi rose from her seat with coldly glittering eyes.

 

“I need to visit Lady Tulia Frazier with that tiara.”

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

A few days later.

 

Empress Carmi visited the Grand Ducal House of Frazier, had a pleasant conversation with Tulia Frazier, and specially bestowed upon her a tiara made of beautiful diamonds.

 

 

 

“Since you had such a wonderful debutante, I’m bestowing this as a congratulatory gift.”

 

 

 

Carmi struck first before Tulia could even refuse.

 

 

 

“Throughout the history of this empire, no lady has ever refused a gift bestowed by the Empress, so you’ll gladly accept this gift too, won’t you? Lady Tulia.”

 

 

 

On the very day Tulia respectfully received the tiara with both hands.

 

Emperor Alessandro made a tremendous proclamation that would turn the empire’s high society upside down in an instant.

 

Since Crown Prince Ferdinand had received the same number of medals as the Founding Emperor, he would officially hold a triumph ceremony in the Emperor’s name.

 

The temple, which had always been on the Crown Prince’s side, was secretly pleased, but since war itself went against God’s will, they couldn’t openly celebrate.

 

Instead, countless tributes and gifts arrived one after another at the Crown Prince’s palace.

 

Among them, what naturally drew the most attention were the large quantities of white tulle dyes that Empress Carmi had ‘reluctantly’ purchased.

 

The dyes decorated with expensive lace and silk were all contained in dazzling crystal bottles, looking like small works of art.

 

They were delightful just to look at.

 

The nobles lamented that the Crown Prince still suffered from that sacred ‘disability’ amid the changed political situation.

 

 

 

“Honestly, isn’t that right? If His Highness the Crown Prince didn’t have that sacred power excess syndrome, how could he have gotten engaged to a retainer’s daughter like Lady Sophia.”

 

“Of course. He would have been engaged to at least a duke’s daughter, or at worst a marquis’s daughter.”

 

“But I noticed last time at the debutante that His Highness the Crown Prince seemed to pay quite a bit of attention to that Lady Tulia Frazier…”

 

“Shh. The Second Prince is also courting Lady Tulia.”

 

“Ahem, let’s talk about such things quietly later.”

 

 

 

In any case, a triumph ceremony held in the Emperor’s name was bound to be designated as a national holiday.

 

Each noble family of the Briyang Empire had to decorate the fronts of their mansions with purple silk celebrating the Crown Prince’s triumph.

 

Wouldn’t it be better to have unique and beautiful purple fabric that was different from others?

 

With this meaning, the White Tulle Salon became busy beyond capacity once again, but few knew that the real owner of that salon.

 

Tulia Frazier’s expression was crumpled like she had eaten shit.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Lady Tulia. Shall we summon His Grace the Grand Duke?”

 

At Ruk’s question, Max, who was beside him, shook his head.

 

“No. It would be better to call the Marquis rather than His Grace the Grand Duke. Lady Tulia. Shall we summon the Marquis immediately?”

 

I looked at these two advisors with strange eyes.

 

“Grandfather urgently went down for a territory inspection and Father went down to the border even more urgently, and you want me to summon them?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“So just because of this tiara?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Yes.”

 

“…Sigh.”

 

Are these the sycophantic retainers who fawn over tyrants that I’ve seen in history?

 

“Go ahead and destroy the country, destroy it.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“Yes?”

 

“No.”

 

I just chuckled and let it go.

 

I knew both of them were saying this out of deep concern for me.

 

Diamond tiara.

 

In the center was embedded a white diamond as large as a thumb, and around it, small diamonds were densely set like constellations, forming lines.

 

A tiara that radiated tremendous brilliance even while still, with an overwhelming presence.

 

This tiara that Empress Carmi had personally given me as a gift was the start of all the problems.

 

“So she wants me to wear this and dance with that Dave bastard at the triumph ceremony.”

 

No one flinched even when I called the Second Prince a bastard. Instead, they were glaring at the tiara with eyes burning even more fiercely than mine.

 

“It’s a suggestion, but in reality it’s coercion. After giving such a gift, what young lady could refuse a request made personally by the Empress.”

 

“Exactly. Really now. If it were the Foundation Day banquet, that would be different. Grandfather would be there then.”

 

But this triumph ceremony was literally a ‘special’ event, so Grandfather absolutely couldn’t spare the time. Father was even more out of the question.

 

That meant I had to attend alone as the representative of House Frazier, and there would be no adult to protect me.

 

Empress Carmi had targeted this exact moment to suggest I dance the first dance with Dave.

 

“She still hasn’t given up on me…”

 

What a persistent and bold Empress.

 

Daughter-in-law?

 

Should I just throw myself down on the floor of the Empress Palace and scream, ‘Your Majesty the Empresssss, please give me foooood. Prepare it as a 528-course meaaaal.’

 

‘Sigh.’

 

Anyway, it wasn’t good for me to keep being linked with Dave.

 

Charlotte, who worked as the chief designer at Baektul Salon and could hear many stories from the noble ladies, had also told me that the nobles in the Imperial Capital were currently pricking up their ears about the relationship between Dave and me.

 

Empress Carmi was probably intentionally linking Dave and me while spreading rumors bit by bit.

 

This isn’t even some Seodongyo strategy.

 

“If something goes wrong, I could end up walking in as that Second Prince bastard’s fiancée.”

 

“What will you do? Perhaps we should speak to His Grace the Grand Duke…”

 

Ruk spoke up worriedly, but I shook my head.

 

“There is a way.”

 

“What method? I’ll help design it properly right away.”

 

Max, Father’s advisor, lit up with interest, but I shook my head.

 

This isn’t something you righteous types can handle.

 

Anyway, Marquis Aster Frazier, that is, our father, was the father of the ‘true male lead’ in .

 

In other words, he was someone who had moral standards.

 

So I couldn’t bring myself to tell them the plan I had come up with as Tulia. It would completely shatter my image.

 

Ruk and Max might immediately look at me like I was some kind of villain.

 

Anyway, I smiled and stood up. Of course, my smile didn’t look much like a smile, so Ruk and Max hesitated and averted their gazes.

 

That was right.

 

Even without this matter, I was currently in a very bad mood.

 

“More importantly. Baektul Salon urgently sent someone, right? Let them in and you two leave.”

 

The news I had just heard earlier.

 

Word had come that someone had secretly smuggled out Baektul seeds.

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Lady Tulia. It’s been a while since I’ve greeted you. Have you been keeping well?”

 

Though I had told the people of the Grand Ducal House that this was someone from Baektul Salon, the figure who removed his robe was none other than Jeremy Ramus, the head of the information guild.

 

“Of course. I’m very healthy. Healthy enough to split in half and beat up whoever dared to steal my Baektul seeds.”

 

“You’re going to kill them?”

 

“Do I look like someone who would kill a person just because some seeds were stolen?”

 

“Then…”

 

“I’ll torment them to the point they wish they were dead.”

 

“…”

 

When I rested my chin on my folded hands and smiled wickedly, Ramus Jeremiah broke out in a cold sweat.

 

“It might be better to just die… But your choice seems more appropriate. They’d be difficult to kill. Their status is too high.”

 

“Well, it couldn’t be some nobody who managed to steal a bunch of strictly managed Baektul seeds. So tell me, Ramus Jeremiah.”

 

“Yes, Lady Tulia.”

 

“Who is it?”

 

I rolled my eyes up and cackled wickedly.

 

“Which bold bastard… I mean, which person dared to touch my source of income?”

 

“…”

 

Ramus Jeremiah took a sip of tea as if his throat was parched, then hurriedly presented a thick stack of documents.

 

“It’s this person.”

 

“So it’s this bastard.”

 

I skimmed through the documents while lifting one corner of my mouth in a crooked smile. Blood was still flowing from my finger where I had hastily grabbed the papers, but I didn’t even feel the pain.

 

“You’re dead. This bastard.”

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