The Former Empress Roughly Hides Her Abilities - Chapter 87

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 87】

 

Despite various commotions, the negotiations with Garta Kingdom concluded successfully.

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff came to fully accept Rianel’s existence.

 

She might not be the god of the desert kingdom, but they came to think she must be something similar.

 

With that, jealousy and envy disappeared, and peace came to their hearts.

 

‘This is right.’

 

‘Why bother competing needlessly? Competition is for people.’

 

Therefore, they could genuinely celebrate their achievements.

 

‘Honestly, we knew we’d succeed.’

 

‘How could a department with Rianel possibly fail?’

 

Rianel didn’t know it, but her name had become synonymous with guaranteed success and promised bonuses among civil servants.

 

Anyway, an achievement was an achievement.

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff, who loved company dinners, set up a drinking party.

 

‘If we don’t celebrate something that will go down in Ministry of Foreign Affairs history, when else will we raise our glasses?’

 

“Everyone worked hard!”

 

“Tomorrow’s a holiday anyway, so drink to your heart’s content and drop dead!”

 

“Assistant, please have a drink. Wait, should I call you Team Leader now? Since you haven’t returned to the Special Tax Bureau, you’re still Assistant for now, right?”

 

Ministry of Foreign Affairs civil servant Mori asked while pouring alcohol.

 

He wanted to tell her to put down roots in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but Princess Tiren, the chief protocol officer, and Special Tax Bureau people were also present.

 

“Please call me whatever you’re comfortable with. And I’ll pass on the alcohol.”

 

“Is that so? Then I’ll call you Assistant. But on a day like today, isn’t it okay to drink? Besides, last time your drinking habit was quite cute… Anyway, you weren’t a nuisance.”

 

There were people who would pour out curses or break things when they drank.

 

Verbal violence consisting purely of academic knowledge felt mild in comparison.

 

Of course, that didn’t mean he wanted to experience it himself!

 

“I find hangovers difficult to bear, so I’m planning to abstain from alcohol for a while.”

 

More importantly, next to Rianel sat Princess Tiren and others who had declared they wouldn’t drink, all gathered around the table.

 

“Ah…”

 

Mori, who finally noticed Tiren, grinned. His face was already flushed red.

 

“Come to think of it, isn’t Your Highness really amazing?”

 

Normally he would have refrained from chattering in front of the person involved (even if it was good praise), but alcohol and atmosphere made everything possible.

 

When the Princess became protocol officer, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff thought, ‘As long as she doesn’t cause trouble.’

 

Their expectations were that low, but the Princess not only immediately saw through Prince Zarban’s trap but also showed the wit to inform a trustworthy adult.

 

‘She’s only twelve years old!’

 

That was the most surprising part.

 

It wasn’t like the Princess was wealthy enough to treat jewelry like stones either.

 

‘I would have stuffed a gem or two in my pocket.’

 

‘Or I would have waited until the Prince left and then gone to the cave.’

 

Opportunities to monopolize jewelry didn’t come often.

 

But Tiren reported it without a moment’s hesitation as soon as she saw the Prince’s letter.

 

“Weren’t you tempted? It was a chance to monopolize the Prince’s jewelry.”

 

Foreign Minister Karina asked, and others nodded their heads.

 

Tiren spoke clearly.

 

“I learned a lesson from last year’s incident. The lesson that when something I don’t understand happens, I shouldn’t try to solve it alone.”

 

There was substance in the Princess’s voice.

 

The former head maid had coaxed Tiren into making a large donation to the temple.

 

That was possible because Tiren feared the unknown.

 

But after realizing she had been betrayed, she grasped the truth.

 

‘I shouldn’t try to understand things I don’t know.’

 

No one knew how the afterlife worked anyway.

 

She had invested money in unknown matters and worked hard to achieve desired results.

 

‘How foolish that was.’

 

If she had just acknowledged what she didn’t know as unknown and what she feared as fearful and left it alone, she wouldn’t have been deceived.

 

‘I was thinking wrong.’

 

It was the same when building the noodle factory.

 

There was no reason for her to do everything from one to ten by herself, and the factory ran well just by receiving assistance from knowledgeable people.

 

Tiren delivered the Prince’s letter to Rianel as soon as she saw it.

 

“Among the people I know, the Princess was the smartest person!”

 

No one could argue with that.

 

At the same time, they were amazed.

 

‘Does being next to Rianel make even a twelve-year-old like this?’

 

Surely at last year’s Emperor’s birthday celebration, she wasn’t someone who spoke her opinions in such a clear voice.

 

‘Amazing.’

 

The Princess’s presence in the Empire wasn’t very significant.

 

Partly because she was still young and hadn’t had her debutante ball, but also because her chances of becoming Emperor were slim.

 

But seeing the cleverness and judgment she showed today…

 

‘If she grows up properly, she might be worth having expectations for?’

 

Of course, that was assuming the Emperor had no children and the Princess kept Rianel by her side for advice.

 

Anyway, she had certainly given them hope.

 

Karina raised her glass and sat next to Tiren.

 

“Would you like to toast even without alcohol? Since we might encounter each other again in the future.”

 

The basics of diplomacy were social skills and choosing sides.

 

Judging that there was nothing wrong with getting on the Princess’s good side, Karina extended her glass with wine sloshing in it.

 

“Sure!”

 

The Princess burst into laughter and clinked her glass containing fruit juice.

 

“Wow, Your Highness drinks it all at once. You have excellent potential as a diplomat.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Of course. Ah, I’m getting drunk.”

 

With alcohol flowing and relief that work was finished, the atmosphere became softer.

 

Even the Special Tax Bureau people, who had stubbornly occupied seats to avoid losing Rianel, relaxed loosely.

 

‘They’re not being clingy with our Team Leader unnecessarily…’

 

‘It seems like they’re roughly accepting that our Team Leader will return to the Special Tax Bureau?’

 

‘Well, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is already full. They probably don’t really need our Team Leader.’

 

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was a department of extroverted civil servants who loved alcohol and chatter.

 

Moreover, transfers prioritized personal will.

 

It seemed unlikely that the somewhat introverted Rianel would enjoy this kind of atmosphere.

 

Wilbrin looked over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs staff and raised her glass.

 

“Shall we toast too?”

 

“Cheers, cheers!”

 

As alcohol flowed, hostility softened.

 

‘Well, what wrong could these guys have done?’

 

‘The Saint who stuck our Team Leader in the protocol assistant position is the one at fault.’

 

As the atmosphere completely relaxed, they switched seats with each other and chattered away.

 

“Heh heh heh…”

 

“Ah, so the Saint…”

 

How much time had passed? At one Ministry of Foreign Affairs civil servant’s comment, the topic jumped to Rianel.

 

“But Assistant, I mean Team Leader, is your expression always like that?”

 

It was something he’d always been curious about, and he found the courage to ask thanks to liquid courage.

 

“You always have the same expression, so if I see you wrong at night, I wonder if someone placed a statue there and it’s scary.”

 

The Tax Bureau people had no choice but to agree.

 

They couldn’t argue about why he was picking a fight, because they had similar thoughts themselves.

 

Her expression was always expressionless. The angles at which she moved her arms and legs were consistent. The words that came from her mouth were like listening to an encyclopedia, with no intonation, making it impossible to tell if she was angry or happy.

 

‘Honestly, she’s still like that now!’

 

Rianel was drinking non-alcoholic grape juice.

 

Her attitude of setting down the glass without any change in expression was exemplary enough to be featured in a textbook, but it was also true that she seemed to lack human warmth.

 

Even now, it was impossible to tell whether she was satisfied with that juice, or if she was forcing herself to swallow it because there was nothing else to eat.

 

Asil, who had been watching her, set down his glass.

 

“That expression shows satisfaction. The juice must taste good to her.”

 

“What?”

 

How can you tell?

 

They looked at Rianel.

 

Rianel was very slowly emptying her glass, then refilling the empty glass with the drink and continuing to drink.

 

‘Her expression doesn’t look satisfied at all though.’

 

‘Well, if it didn’t taste good, she wouldn’t pour more into her glass…’

 

‘You have to make deductions based on such trivial actions?’

 

At that moment, Rianel, who had set down her glass, picked up a piece of meat that had been served as a side dish and ate it.

 

Benny, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs employee, said.

 

“I see! That face also shows joy—”

 

“No. That’s disappointment. The meat must be dry and tasteless.”

 

“?!”

 

It looks exactly the same as before though?

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