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Chapter 54 Part 10 – The second princess of Hydrangea, Margaret, invades.

Soon after, Bradd’s misunderstanding was cleared up, but to make things worse, our attendants with sharp ears overheard our conversation, and the butler and housekeeper came running in with smiling faces.

That’s not it!! I told you it’s a misunderstanding!! Don’t hug me so tightly. I can’t explain!!

「I’m so happy!! Scarlet-chan, you made your decision so quickly!! Ahh, what kind of ceremonial outfit shall I prepare for you!! I’m already looking forward to it!!」

Stop ittt!! I have no plans of becoming Bradd’s bride!!
Why …… Why did it become like this!?

…… After that, it took me about an hour to clear up the misunderstanding of everyone in the mansion. Ahh, I’m tired ……

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Inside the carriage on the way back, Princess Margaret was silent.
There was not a trace of the excitement she had shown when talking with Scarlet.
Her violet eyes were sorrowful.
The maid seated across from her shrank back in fright.

Princess Margaret was not particularly intimidating nor tyrannical. On the contrary, not many masters are as easy to deal with as she is. However, when she is immersed in contemplation, she exudes a frightening atmosphere. The sensitive, young woman cannot stand this unusual atmosphere.
In addition, Margaret usually moves before the maid. In hindsight, Margaret’s actions proved to be correct, but she was so quick to make the first move that the maid at the time could do nothing but be flustered. Margaret neither scolded her nor was sad over it. She considers it as just natural as no one is more quick-witted than she is. As a result, the maid is constantly tormented with a sense of helplessness. It doesn’t last long. It is because they are confronted with the cruel truth that they are unimportant to the princess, whether they are there or not. That is why the position as Princess Margaret’s maid is dreaded as both the happiest and unhappiest position in the royal palace.

Margaret was now ruminating over every word of the conversation she had with Scarlet.
She was also thinking about Scarlet’s reaction to her words.

Scarlet may have seemed flustered to onlookers. And it may look as if Margaret has the upper hand in the conversation. But that’s not it. Scarlet was just trying to be accommodating to her. It was just like how an adult lowers their eye level to match the child’s.

Although she tried to be cheerful and uninhibited in the situation, Margaret’s heart was filled with the bitterness of her inferiority complex.
Margaret bit her lip.

As a genius, she had seen through Scarlet’s hidden unfathomable talent.
Scarlet could clearly see how the entire continent was going to move in the future, just as if she had a bird’s eye view of the board. She accurately knows the weather, disasters, where the resources are, what is going to be popular, and everything else. If that was all, a good fortune teller might still be able to do it. In fact, Hydrangea has a fortune teller named ‘Mother’ who boasts an extremely high accuracy rate, even though she is a wanderer. However, Margaret knew that Scarlet was not such a simple person. It is hard to believe, but Scarlet has the experience of influencing the future of this kingdom as the queen.

Of course, Margaret does not know that Scarlet has experienced 108 loops. Therefore, she concluded that Scarlet had already done a simulation of everything inside her mind and drawn the conclusion that a future of doom awaits her if she ascended to the throne, that’s why she has given up and the reason behind why she insists on becoming a shut-in in her family’s territory.

Whether this is simply due to Scarlet’s own abilities or with the help of the 「Ruby of the True Emperor」, she does not know. The only thing that is certain is that in the near future she will not be able to keep up with Scarlet, who has reached that level at less than 4 years old.

「…… No ……!! I won’t allow that to happen ……!!」

Margaret clenched her fists and stiffened her shoulders, causing the maid to become frightened and jumpy.
Oblivious to this, Margaret stared into the void with obsessed eyes.

「…… No!! No!! No!! I’ve finally found a friend. I won’t allow her to leave me. Compared to seeing her leave me, I’d rather ……!!」

Margaret bent her hands like claws and ruffled her bangs madly.
Seeing the sudden change in the normally calm and collected Margaret, the maid finally couldn’t stand it and let out a muffled scream …… But then her voice was suddenly cut off.

「…… Compared to seeing her leave you, you’d rather just kill her? You’re going to kill her!? …… Because then your beloved Scarlet won’t be in anyone’s hands right!? Hahahaha!? Isn’t that the craziest madness!? What an amazingly trashy princess. Such selfish and precious love …… It makes me feel so excited, I love that!?」

Suddenly, a hysteric cracking voice echoed through the air. There was a drawing of a peculiarly large, red lips on the mask. It was like a kiss mark left by giant lips covered in lipstick. It was strangely graphic and unpleasant. Except for the mouth, the rest of the mask is smooth with a bright white color. He was dressed in a white tailcoat and his legs were crossed. Unsightly stuffed animals with the shape of deformed cats, dogs and various other animals were pasted here and there on his clothes. Those stuffed animals looked so crazy that they seemed to be losing their minds. They were all looking in the same direction, but only their eyes were movable and their eyes were constantly bobbing and shaking. He was dressed in ceremonial attire but had those eerie stuffed animals attached to his outfit, making her feel as if her senses were going haywire just by looking at him. He was seated next to the maid, across from Margaret, and put his hand on her shoulder in an overly-familiar manner.

「Oops, I forgot to introduce myself!! My name is Addis the Faceless, one of the Seven Phantoms!! Do you know what the Seven Phantoms are? Those rotten, sharpened, broken claws!? I’ve thrown away being a human in order to become stronger, and then I had to throw away many more. All that’s left is the dregs. Nuhahaha!! We are a laughable group that are wretched, but invincible!?」

Margaret gasped in surprise. Not because she was startled by the strange-looking mysterious person that suddenly appeared in the carriage. She will not be perturbed by something like that.

What made her horrified was the fact that the maid remained frozen and did not move. And it was not only the maid. The imperial guards that could be seen from the carriage window and maybe even the coachman, the horsemen, even the flowing scenery, everything has stopped.

「…… Time has …… stopped ……?」

「…… Wrong guess!!! Erroneous!? Incorrect. Bzzzzt!! It’s called 「Dark Illusion」, my lovely lady. Only those who have mastered martial arts can enter this crazy world inside the mind. The Seven Phantoms are all regular visitors. Normally, only those who have 「Dark Illusion」 or 「Evil Eye of Manipulation」 can enter this place!? But today, we are going to make an exception and show it to our cute, but scary princess!! Politely and gently. Since I am a gentleman toward girls. …… It’s a family motto that’s been in my family since my grandson’s generation!? …… That’s why …… there will be a penalty for incorrect answers!! It’s time for the genius princess that everyone loves to be happily disgraced and humiliated!! Here I go!?」

Margaret silently dived toward the chest of the masked man, whose body was bent forward, while slapping on his knee and cackling. Her blade flashed. Then a dull thud was heard.

「…… W-W-W-What the hell is this!?」

Touching the hilt of the dagger that pierced deeply into his mask, the man exclaimed.

「Thank you for leaning forward so carelessly. Thanks to that, I could reach your height. For now …… Farewell.」

Margaret stabbed the man with all her weight on the dagger she grasped with both hands, then she threw open the carriage door. While grunting, Margaret mercilessly tried to pull out her dagger from the masked man as he staggered. With a scream, the masked man fell out of the carriage. As soon as the ends of his long tailcoat passed in front of her, Margaret closed the carriage door.

Margaret breathed roughly as her shoulders heaved. Although she doesn’t know who he is, she was relieved that she was able to bury him. She had a gut feeling that he was a dangerous opponent and her body moved quickly to eliminate him. It was a reaction Margaret was able to make because of her strong will.

「…… Hey hey!? Thank you for the wonderful gift!! That feeling pierced my heart and brain!? I was so happy that I thought my heart would stop!!」

Margaret’s spirit still wasn’t broken when the door on the opposite side of where she pushed him out slammed open and the masked man peeked out from behind it. She threw another hidden knife at the masked man. The masked man twisted his neck and took the knife right in the face. He pushed the knife, which was dangling with only the tip stuck in it, deeper into the mask and cackled as his body shook.

「Look at this!! Now it’s a match!! I’ve got horns just like a snail’s antlers!! Pyoro-pyoro-pyoro-pyoro!! It’s the basis of a love story. Maybe it’s a plot that he likes her so much that he somehow ends up teasing her!? That sounds great, youth is the springtime of life!! You’re trying to hide that you’re embarrassed. Your face is turning red!? Like it’s going to burn!! So …… I’ll give this cool blue diamond to you as a present.」

Seeing the blue heart-shaped jewel with a chain hanging from his hand, Margaret felt fear for the first time. It was beautiful and shiny, but a sense of disgust ran down her spine as if it was a horrid filth bubbling up. The light reflecting on the jewel was cold and malevolent.

「Oops, I forgot. A good man never forgets to put on makeup!? Girls love romantic stuff!? Men always have to smile!!」

The man quickly placed his index finger on his mask and drew a U-shape. A strange sound could be heard and marks were engraved on the mask. The crescent-shaped arc, which had been drawn up to the ears, overflowed with blood bubbles.

「…… I gouged too deeply. Ehehe. But, for the sake of my beloved child, I’ll do my best!! Isn’t this also a part of male instincts!?」

The masked man tilted his head to the side. The blue diamond shone eerily and vines swirled and poured out from around the pendant. The vines crawled up to the man’s chin, seeking his blood.

「…… Hahahaha!! It tickles!? Come on, you guys, you’re getting the wrong date partner.」

When the man twisted around and coquettishly said so, the vines immediately stopped moving.

「The sacrifice for the Witch of Doom is over there. Go ahead and enjoy the fresh flesh of the impertinent princess!!」

It was a crazy scene that made people’s heads become weird.
Margaret could not stand it any longer and finally screamed.
The 10-year-old girl’s spirit was broken and she showed a terrified expression appropriate for her age as she screamed.

「…… Save me!! Father!! Scarlet ……!!」

The little girl’s pitiful cries echoed through the deep forest, then, it ceased.