The Poisonous Princess Who Successfully Infiltrated the Enemy as an Employee - Chapter 17

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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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Chapter 17.

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Barcan and I left Byeolgung Palace and made our way toward the Imperial Palace, where the Banquet Hall was located.
“Is there anything I should be careful about?”
“Your mouth.”
…….
His blunt answer came without a moment’s hesitation, and I felt my jaw clench.
“……I didn’t mean that. I meant things like etiquette. It might be different from Delmar, right?”
“That mouth certainly is different.”
“……Not my mouth!”
I couldn’t hold back any longer and let out an exasperated cry. Barcan, who had been walking with his eyes forward, paused to think before speaking.
“They won’t hold a foreign princess brought here for peace to an overly strict standard. Especially not…….”
…….
Barcan trailed off. But I could guess what he’d meant to say.
‘Especially not a princess whose mind isn’t entirely sound.’
‘Well, it doesn’t matter.’
If this were truly a place where I needed to be careful, he would have seized my arm and warned me repeatedly.
Yet no one had bothered to teach me the etiquette of the Castilo Imperial Family.
‘Neither the Guild nor anyone from the Grand Duke’s House.’
It did make me wonder if they were being too lenient with me.
I nodded.
“Then I’ll just act as I normally do.”
Barcan replied evenly.
“That won’t be easy.”
“Why not?”
I tilted my head as I looked up at him.
“Is His Majesty very frightening?”
“That depends on the person.”
Barcan continued without slowing his pace, his gaze still forward.
“The imperial bloodline of Castilo carries Dragon Blood.”
“Dragon Blood……?”
A mysterious and absolute force from ages past—one that once made humanity kneel and laid all things beneath its feet.
Though that blood had grown thin with time, the ancient aura etched into the royal line and the remnants of the Dragon Word within them were said to invoke an instinctive sense of pressure and dread in those around them.
“That sounds frightening. Aren’t you saying it’s a power that silences people with fear and keeps them from speaking their mind?”
Barcan glanced at me briefly, then turned his gaze forward again.
“Perhaps. But you might be unaffected.”
“What? Unaffected? What do you me―”
Before I could finish, the attendant guiding us spoke.
“We’ve arrived.”
We had finally reached the Banquet Hall.
The heavy doors of the hall slowly swung open, moved by the knights who stood guard before them.
Beyond the doors, the Banquet Hall was breathtakingly opulent.
From the high ceiling, chandeliers gleamed softly with trapped sunlight, and along the long table, dishes were arranged with geometric precision, as if measured by a ruler.
Barcan and I entered first into the empty hall, as no one had yet arrived.
After we were shown to our places and waited a moment, the members of the imperial family began to appear one by one.
The eyes of all who entered the Banquet Hall fixed at once on Barcan and me, standing at the far end of the table.
The first to enter was the Crown Prince, Cain.
Upon spotting me, he offered the briefest smile, then withdrew his gaze as if nothing had happened.
The First Princess and the Fifth Princess then entered and took their seats.
The contrast between the two sisters was strangely stark.
Both were beautiful beyond words, yet the First Princess was harshly expressionless, as though she had been dragged to this gathering against her will.
Like a beautiful doll drained of all vitality, her gaze was fixed somewhere in the void, lifeless and hollow.
The Fifth Princess, by contrast, was different.
Perhaps it was the privilege of being the youngest—lavished with every affection as she grew.
Her eyes sparkled with unguarded curiosity, and she examined me with open interest, assessing every detail.
Finally, the Emperor and Empress entered.
I found myself marveling inwardly.
The Empress carried an air of elegance, while the Emperor radiated authority.
‘……This won’t be easy.’
That was the first impression I had upon entering the Banquet Hall and seeing the imperial family.
The aura they emanated was unmistakably different from ordinary people.
The Emperor took the seat of honor, and the imperial family members arranged themselves in order to his right.
Barcan and I sat across from them, positioned like a shield facing that vast concentration of power.
For a moment, a suffocating silence descended over the Banquet Hall. For some reason, even my light lips would not part easily.
After a pause, the Emperor broke the tense silence and spoke.
“You’ve had a long journey, Princess.”
It was a brief statement.
There was no unnecessary flattery—just a short utterance that carried such weight it commanded the very air of the hall in a single breath.
Ah, so this is what Barcan meant by Dragon Blood.
I lowered my head gently, struck by a pressure I couldn’t quite name.
“Thanks to your kindness, I arrived comfortably. I am grateful for the invitation to this honored gathering.”
As the Emperor nodded, the Empress turned her attention to Barcan and offered her greetings, and brief courtesies were exchanged with the other imperial family members.
The meal itself began in earnest.
The dining time was so dull and peaceful it seemed almost wrong.
I’d expected it to be the sort of meal where barbed jests and cutting insults would fly, a tense battle of wits played out with eyes wide open.
‘Have I read too many novels?’
The Emperor and Barcan conversed with surprising ordinariness, speaking of the Empire’s welfare and security.
Their talk was so dry one would scarcely sense any hostility between them.
From the Demonic Beast situation in the Northern Grand Duchy, to tax issues regarding merchants traveling between the Northern Territory and the Capital, to matters of the Allied Forces breaching the Empire’s borders.
Since these were largely subjects that held little interest for me, I listened passively and devoted myself to filling my plate.
I thought the meal was finally winding down.
And then.
Just as empty plates were being cleared and dessert was placed upon the table.
Suddenly the Emperor turned to Barcan and spoke.
“The Escar Grand Duke House’s knights have not been without merit in this recent war.”
The Emperor’s voice was low and dignified.
“Had the Grand Duke’s knights not stood at the fore, the war would surely have dragged on much longer. The Imperial House has not forgotten how the Northern blade shone in service of the Empire.”
I nodded inwardly at the Emperor’s words.
‘So this is what he’s been leading toward.’
This banquet clearly had a purpose. The imperial family had not summoned us here without meaning.
‘Whether to humiliate the Grand Duke through me, or to genuinely commend the Grand Duke House.’
Yet throughout the meal, the Emperor had said nothing about the Grand Duke House’s deeds in the war.
At the very moment I thought that strange, the Emperor finally raised the subject.
‘Yes, a chest of Gold Coins is far better than criticism or ridicule.’
It seemed the Grand Duke House’s finances were not particularly generous, so I found myself hoping he might simply press some Gold Coins into their hands.
To the Emperor’s praise, Barcan replied with undisturbed composure, his tone measured and dry.
“You are too kind, Your Majesty.”
The Emperor continued with a benevolent smile.
“However, if the Northern military strength remains undiminished even after the war’s end, it may create unnecessary misunderstandings both within and outside the Empire.”
“…….”
What? I felt the warm atmosphere shatter and lifted my head to look between the Emperor and Barcan.
The Emperor soon erased his smile and spoke.
“Now that the war is over, it would be wise for the North to set aside its excess killing intent and reduce its forces.”
The air in the Banquet Hall froze in an instant.
I rolled only my eyes left and right, studying the expressions of the imperial family and Barcan.
Barcan naturally showed no emotion outwardly, but it was not difficult to sense his displeasure.
Barcan exhaled softly for a moment, then opened his mouth.
“I do not fail to understand Your Majesty’s concerns. However, the Northern blade is directed not at threatening other nations, but at the Demonic Beasts that threaten the Empire. I trust that Your Majesty understands this better than anyone.”
“I do, Grand Duke. And yet, there are those who say the Escar Grand Duke House’s forces dedicated to confronting Demonic Beasts are excessive.”
Barcan’s head, which had been facing forward, turned toward the Emperor.
“I cannot speak to who said such a thing, but had they witnessed firsthand the Demonic Beasts pouring down through the winter and borders of the Grand Duchy, they would not have dared utter such words.”
Then Crown Prince Cain stepped in.
“Grand Duke. His Majesty speaks from concern that the situation has become overheated―.”
But Barcan did not give Cain room to interject and cut him off mid-sentence.
“The Demonic Beasts pressing down from the North increase in number each year, yet the Imperial House has reduced its support funding each year. Were you aware of this, Your Highness?”
“……That is.”
“I thought there must be a reason. War demands tremendous resources, after all. Yet the Northern Territory wages such conflicts daily. In this war with Delmar, it was our Grand Duke House that sent the largest contingent of troops. You’re aware of that as well, aren’t you?”
“…….”
A brief silence fell, and the Emperor exhaled a long sigh.
“Yes. The Grand Duke’s stubbornness remains unchanged. Very well—let us set aside these tedious matters.”
Hah. I was flabbergasted.
I’d expected him to praise the Duke and announce some magnificent reward. No matter how strained relations between the Imperial House and the Grand Duke House might be, there was reputation and face to consider—surely he would provide something appropriate.
There were war spoils to be distributed, after all.
‘But what? Reduce the troop count?’
And they’d been cutting the Imperial subsidies every year?!
In the original work, those connected to the male protagonist might not appear villainous, but from my position living within the Grand Duke House, there were no greater villains than this.
I cast a sidelong glance at Barcan.
‘How can you just sit there listening to this?’
Granted, Barcan had made his position quite clear that he would never reduce troop strength, but without securing even a single chest of gold coins, this was no different from a loss.
After all that effort! And accepting this mad princess by force!
My anger flared without reason. The hand holding my fork trembled slightly.
At that moment, the Emperor’s gaze turned toward me.
“It was not out of ignorance of the Grand Duke House’s achievements that I spoke thus. But surely, no matter what anyone says, the one who has borne the greatest sacrifice for this peace is none other than Princess Evelina of Delmar. The princess is a symbol of the peace brought to both nations. Coming alone to a foreign land, entering an unfamiliar house—how much heartache must she endure.”
Heh. A bitter laugh rose in my throat.
It was obvious he meant to diminish the Grand Duke House’s sacrifice by exploiting this mad princess.
I disliked Barcan’s temperament, but hearing the Emperor say such things so brazenly made my skin crawl.
If anyone was going to criticize, it should be me.
The Emperor smiled warmly at me, as though bestowing a favor.
“If the Imperial House were to do nothing for a princess who made such a great resolve for peace, that too would be improper. If there is anything you require or desire, feel free to speak freely.”
At the Emperor’s words, I raised one eyebrow slightly.
Look at that.
For a moment, my lips trembled.
I’d barely managed to suppress a smile from rising.

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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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