This Emperor Is Running a Marriage Scam - Chapter 95

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

Chapter 95

I felt like someone was watching me, so I looked around. I only saw the coachman waiting by the carriage.

He was reading a newspaper with a stern expression, then glanced at me briefly.

“….”

I couldn’t tell if he was pretending not to see us after watching us, or if he really didn’t notice until I looked at him.

Well, either way, it didn’t seem like something I needed to worry about.

I gave up trying to find the source of the gaze and asked Rea.

“So The Lord is visiting today?”

“Yes, he came with the Princess.”

Ah, so Nelloa is here too.

Suddenly the coachman scolded.

“You should say ‘The Lord has arrived,’ not ‘he came.’ What kind of way is that to talk, you brat.”

It was an unexpected lecture.

But Rea, as if used to this kind of thing, snorted and stuck her tongue out at the coachman. Without responding to his words, she looked at me and pointed toward the back of the orphanage.

“The Lord is inside with the Orphanage Director, and the Princess went for a walk back there.”

“A walk?”

“Tsk. This is why uncultured brats are hopeless.”

The coachman clicked his tongue again and this time scolded me.

“When a kid speaks rudely, you should think to correct them. ‘Is’ should be ‘is present,’ and ‘went’ should be ‘has gone.’ Don’t you know?”

I looked at the coachman.

His stiffly tensed neck, upturned nose, and condescending gaze.

“What are you staring at like that? You people with no status.”

The coachman wasn’t really lecturing because he thought he should teach proper manners. He was just looking for an excuse to look down on us and speak condescendingly.

“Ah, status. That’s right, status is important.”

I agreed with the coachman’s words and asked.

“But why don’t you speak respectfully to Rea, Ajusshi?”

“What?”

“The Imperial Knights who came this time are going to become her parents, so she’ll soon become a Baron’s daughter, right?”

“…!”

The coachman’s face turned red.

His lips just trembled, then as if nothing had happened, he silently fixed his gaze on the newspaper he was reading. It seemed he decided to pretend the entire conversation never happened since it became disadvantageous to him.

I wanted to say more, but I couldn’t fight in front of the child.

‘Ugh, I have to be patient.’

I handed the snack bag to Rea.

“The children must be waiting. Hurry and take this to share with them. Nuna will come again next time.”

“Yes, Nuna.”

Rea, who received the bag, suddenly looked up with bright eyes.

“But, will you see me off when I leave?”

“Of course.”

When I answered immediately, Rea’s expression brightened considerably and she nodded.

Then she took the snack bag I brought and returned what she had brought out to me.

“Nuna, after I go inside, please make sure to look at what’s in the bag.”

After greeting me, Rea carefully carried the snack bag and went inside the orphanage.

I watched until the door closed, then checked inside the bag.

As soon as I opened the bag, a faint floral scent reached my nose.

“Flowers?”

The bag was full of wildflowers. When I put my hand in, the soft petals felt fluffy to the touch.

What I grasped from within was a piece of old cloth.

“What’s this?”

The width of the cloth was a bit smaller than my palm, but the length was longer than expected. Several pieces were sewn together and came trailing out.

There were some kind of letters and patterns crookedly embroidered on it.

I examined the cloth piece carefully.

[Hailey Nuna, thank you. – Rea]

I noticed patterns embroidered with hearts.

Actually, since the children were young, it was hard to tell what they had embroidered. But I could make out a few that the older children like Eric, Matha, Paul, and Odeli had sewn.

[I love you]

[I like you]

The longest one read ‘I’m lucky to have met Nuna.’

Seeing how grateful the children were to me warmed my heart.

“Hehe, how cute.”

All I did was share snacks with them a few times.

I looked up at the room where the children would be.

The children, who had somehow gathered and pressed against the window, all raised both arms to make a big heart.

‘I love you too.’

I quickly raised both arms to make a big heart too. The children who were giggling and jumping around moved away from the window.

Soon one came back and waved a rice cake skewer. It was time for them to eat their snacks.

I waved back and started rolling up the cloth pieces again carefully.

‘I should hang this on the wall next to my bed.’

Then an unwelcome voice snapped at me.

“Why are you here?”

‘Ah, she said she went for a walk alone.’

I managed my expression and turned around.

“Hello, Princess. We meet again.”

Nelloa crossed her arms and looked me up and down.

“You looked so dirt poor that I thought you’d be selling that pretty face of yours soon.”

Ha, her personality is still the same.

“I hear you’re selling something called tto-skewers or whatever and business is doing well?”

‘Oh no.’

Nelloa was a possessor, so she would know rice cake skewers very well.

‘Then is she approaching me because she noticed I’m a possessor?’

“What a ridiculously childish name. What are tto-skewers? Skewers you eat again, so tto-skewers?”

“?”

The pronunciation was different.

‘Tto-skewers is how little kids with short tongues pronounce it?’

The coachman chuckled at Nelloa’s mocking tone, but I was relieved.

She didn’t seem to have any idea that tto-skewers were rice cake skewers.

“With a name like that, it would be memorable at least. You looked stupid, but I guess you used your head a bit?”

Then the coachman said.

“Those tto-skewers must be that thing.”

The coachman was pointing toward the window where the children were.

The children, who had somehow pressed against the window again, were waving the rice cake skewers they were eating and greeting me when I looked at them.

“Those are rice cake skewers though…?”

Nelloa’s narrowed eyes eventually widened.

“No, no way? You?”

Nelloa, who had turned pale, seemed convinced of something and opened and closed her mouth.

Seeing that, I realized how I should respond and smiled brightly.

‘Ah, it would be difficult to ask if I’m a possessor here.’

This question was a double-edged sword. If she asked me whether I was a possessor, it would be like confessing that she herself was a possessor.

So I could just play dumb and that would be enough.

“Huh? Why are you so surprised?”

“You, you…”

Nelloa’s eyes, which had been darting left and right busily, finally calmed down. It seemed she had finished her own thoughts.

“How do you know about tteok skewers?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“There’s no food like that in the Empire. How did you make that?”

“I just made what came to mind.”

“How does something like that just come to mind? That food is!”

“Huh? Princess, do you happen to know where that food is from?”

“What? Why are you asking me that?”

I deliberately scratched my head and stuck out my tongue.

It’s a bleh face. Take that.

“I made it as it came to mind, but seeing what you’re saying, Princess, it seems like you know it well.”

I clasped my hands together politely.

“If it’s not from the Empire, is it food from the Kelite Kingdom? If you know, could you tell me? I’d really like to check if it’s the same or if there are any differences.”

With an “Ah,” a single sigh, Nelloa’s eyes began to waver again.

She couldn’t confess that she was a possessor when she wasn’t even sure if I was one or not.

“Huh.”

Nelloa, who seemed to have a headache as she rubbed her temples with her fingertips, thought about something for a moment then gave instructions to the coachman.

“I’m going to take her behind there for a quick conversation, so tell the Lord that we should head home now.”

The coachman bowed his head.

“Follow me. I’ll tell you what I know.”

It seemed she wanted to confirm things where there were no watching eyes.

Nelloa stopped at a place where there was a shabby junk warehouse.

I wondered what she would say, but she clapped her hands.

“Oh right, right, I left something behind.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll go get it, so don’t move a muscle and wait here.”

“Wait, you say?”

“It won’t even take 5 minutes. I’ll be right back. If you dare move around in the meantime, I’ll tell the Lord and won’t let you off easy, so stay right here quietly, don’t move a muscle.”

Nelloa, who forced me to wait while even threatening me, disappeared with quick steps.

“?”

When she turned around, it seemed like the corners of her mouth quickly went up, but was that just my imagination?

Anyway, she said she’d be back soon, so I should wait a little.

I adjusted my bag and waited for Nelloa, who would return soon, while anticipating the kinds of things she might interrogate me about.

But somehow the back of my head felt cold. It felt like someone was glaring at me, making goosebumps rise all over my body.

Clatter! Crack!

Then I heard a strange sound in my ears.

‘What?’

The moment I turned around in surprise, I was so shocked that my body froze.

The door of the junk warehouse had fallen off and part of the warehouse wall had collapsed.

But what I could see beyond that was an oval-shaped large hole with a dark blue glow.

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