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Chapter 80 Part 6 – The women take a step forward with pride in their hearts. To protect, to fight, to compromise.

Margaret lowered her long eyelashes.

「…… I do think that I’m a nasty girl. But in order to protect the future of Hydrangea, I have no choice but to live like this. For the sake of keeping powerful people like you in this kingdom, I can’t afford to care about pretenses. In exchange, if you feel that I am not fit to be the princess of this kingdom, you are welcome to abandon me.」

Margaret bit her lip.

It was a sad determination and willpower for a 10-year-old girl to have.

There’s no way I can hate Margaret after she says something like this. And Margaret knows it too. We express our true motives without any falsehood. But my heart is not pure enough to not take advantage of what can be taken advantage of. That’s why when we have a long conversation, there are always sparks flying as we try to read each other’s mind in the final stage. There is no need for flowery words. This is our way of socializing and friendship.

「…… You know, Scarlet, as powerful as you guys are, even if you move to another kingdom, they will be more wary of you than they should be. No one would believe that the dream of the owner of the Ruby of the True Emperor is to be a recluse. But I know your true feelings very well. I can wholeheartedly support you in realizing your dream. Besides, if you leave Hydrangea, you will have to give up some of the assets in the territory, such as the silver mine. It is much easier to get rid of the obstacles here together with me and make the path we have created until now easier to walk on, than to make a new path in a new place. Let’s work together and get along well with each other for a long time.」

Margaret’s words were straightforward and clear. This princess was well aware of our hidden silver mine. She conveyed this while smiling like an angel.

But she’s not telling a makeshift lie. Margaret has the pride of a true royalty and will not contradict what she has said. When I was a queen, I too desperately tried to protect what little pride I have left. That is why I feel close to Margaret and trust her.

Or should I say that our chess pieces are compatible with each other. This is surprisingly important when partnering. No matter how good the taste may be, if the chess pieces do not match, the relationship will eventually go sour. I mumbled a string of puns inside my mind and nodded my head.

After all, Margaret is the most necessary factor for the national stability of Hydrangea which is imperative for my grand dream of living as a recluse. This is all the more so since I am aware of the turbulent future as the four great kingdoms will soon blatantly reveal their ambitions to invade Hydrangea. The foolish prince of Hydrangea would not even be able to sit at the same table with the demon-like princes of the four great kingdoms. As long as Margaret is in charge of the royal family, I will settle in Hydrangea.

「…… Understood. Best regards from now on, my comrade-in-arms.」

…… Even if I don’t say much, she should be able to understand what I mean. I took Margaret’s outstretched hand and shook it firmly. A secret agreement was established here.

「If you would marry me as Rufus, we would be able to cooperate even more. Also, we can always have private talks in bed.」

Margaret said with a straight face.

That’s not a funny joke. Although I am disguised as a guy to avoid being kidnapped and forced into marriage with any of the four princes, I am undoubtedly a girl.

「Don’t go too far. I may become a recluse, but I haven’t given up on love.」

This time for sure I will enjoy the romantic love that I could not achieve when I was a queen.

「Love? There is no such guy among the Hydrangea nobility that can match Scarlet. Besides, you’re currently disguised as a guy. Unless the person that’ll become your lover and you can share your secrets with is by your side …… guess that’s not possible.」

Margaret tilted her head to the side as she held my hand.

How can you say that!?

I, too, could have found one or two possible candidates for a boyfriend if I had looked around a little ……

But after thinking it over, I was at my wits’ end.

…… Oh no!! The only guys close to me that are close in age are Bradd and Seraphy!!

Both of them are my so-called sworn enemies who killed me when I was a queen in the previous 「108 times」. There is not a shred of romance. If I were to marry either one of them, I would inevitably scream in trauma when I wake up in the morning and see their faces. It wouldn’t be morning coffee, but morning shout. The shock could cause me to have cardiac arrest. Marriage would literally be the graveyard of my life ……

In the first place, I am only four years old. I have plenty of time. While dreaming of the day when I will be able to return to my identity as a young lady, I will secretly polish my feminine power, and with my oozing charm, I will put many men in the hell of distress by making them wonder, 「Why is my heart beating so fast even though he’s a guy?」

…… Umm, Margaret-san, I think it’s about time for you to let go of my hand.

「…… Noo. I’m Scarlet’s number one.」

Margaret put her other hand on top of mine, squeezed my hand tightly, and shook her head like a spoiled, whining child. When she switched to showing a gesture appropriate for her age, the gap between the two personalities was devastatingly powerful. If I were a guy, I would be completely defeated. However, in Margaret’s case, all of her actions are calculated. But why am I only popular with women, like Alisa and Margaret? It was the same when I was a young lady in the previous 「108 times」. Because Alisa followed me around, I ended up getting pursued by a lot of lesbian. I want luck with men, not women. I looked up and sighed.

…… Anyway, as expected of a genius princess. You saw right through my thoughts.

Even without Margaret’s suggestion, I had been planning to offer a carriage of the same model to the royal family in order to put a royal premium on the value of my family’s carriage. However, I did not expect that the princess would give me permission to use the royal crest with a single sentence. I was delighted. If I had tried to make a request in the normal way, I don’t know what kind of unreasonable demands would have been made to me. And of course, Margaret knew that I was happily playing the abacus in my head to see how much profit I have made when converted into money.

Thus, our luxurious and extravagant carriage was to be fitted with not only the crest of a duke, but also the crest of the royal family. Along with a few tricks along the way. No discerning noble would have missed this.

The long flashback scene ends and the stage returns to the present.

I lit all the lanterns that were attached to the carriage before the luxurious carriage entered Countess Rosenthal’s mansion. The polished doors reflected the light and the royal crest was faintly visible on the ground.

「Scarlet-san …… Could this be a magic mirror ……!?」

As expected of the knowledgeable Seraphy. That’s right, this is an application of the oriental magic mirror. The unevenness from the back side of the mirror, which cannot be caught by the naked eye, produces complex shadows. This technique was presented to me during my reign as queen in the previous 「108 times」. It had not come to Hydrangea at this point in time and none of the nobles would have any idea about it. They would probably think it’s magic.