Chapter 04

The villains of romance novels and the capitalists from her “previous life” had one thing in common.

They both valued a person’s usefulness above all else.

“If you’re useful, you’re kept alive. If you’re not, you’re discarded.”

Hadn’t the Creator God proclaimed it since the dawn of time?

“Heartless Tarandia, gullible Balthazar, greedy Pavil, unruly Boliver.
And Tillerd, the hypocrites who flutter among them like butterflies…”

The five families blessed by the Creator God…

Ah, and for the record, that really was love.

After all, if you love your children, you start the very first page of the holy scripture by roasting them.

In any case, the five families had, generation after generation…

Extremely…

Extremely strong dispositions.

You couldn’t expect blood or tears from the Tarandia imperial family—they didn’t even have hearts to begin with.

…Which was precisely why she was now being dragged away by a villain like a canary hauled into a coal mine.

“Don’t be so frightened, Lady Tillerd.”

The villain smiled, his beautiful eyes curving into a bright, gentle crescent.

“We’re only traveling together because we’re headed to the same destination. I’m not making you uncomfortable, am I?”

“Oh, goodness, Your Highness. Of course not. I’m delighted that we have the chance to travel together.”

“I’m glad you feel the same, my lady. Let’s use this opportunity to get to know each other.”

The life of a noble was no different from that of a self-employed business owner with highly developed social skills.

One wrong move, and you could die.

“I’ve survived for now, but if I can’t prove my usefulness, I could still end up dead.”

Still, you couldn’t entrust your life to a madman.

Lillian subtly glanced at the knights in black uniforms escorting him.

The Shadows.

A special strike force belonging to House Balthazar, the maternal family of the First Prince.

They were a group of ability users who obeyed no one but the First Prince.

The First Empress had loved the Emperor dearly.

But once again, the Tillerds had made their move.

They had allied themselves with House Pavil and tirelessly slandered the First Empress…

“The First Empress died of heartbreak.”

Naturally, the villainous First Prince had been placed at a disadvantage in the struggle for power.

“It’s only natural he’d hate me, a Tillerd.”

But…

As the Creator God had said, “Balthazar of the Earth” was famous for being easily deceived.

To put it nicely, they were simply soft-hearted toward others.

Which meant she might be able to earn a little trust.

And what was the essential virtue shared by noble ladies and self-employed merchants alike?

Watching patiently until the perfect chance to survive presented itself.

As evening gradually fell, that first opportunity arrived.

One of the Shadows, who was setting up the camp tents, let out an irritated shout.

“Ah!”

“What is it?”

“Damn… My artifact’s broken.”

The female Shadow, with black eyes and dark blue hair tied high into a ponytail, slipped off her ring and frowned.

“Damn it. That monster must’ve scratched it.”

Lillian’s eyes lit up.

“Jeanne Balthazar.”

A collateral member of House Balthazar and one of the most renowned talents among the Shadows.

Summoning her courage, Lillian approached.

Never forget. A crisis is an opportunity.

“If you don’t mind… may I take a look?”

The moment she finished speaking, every Shadow turned to glare at her.

Shing. Shing.

Some even partially drew their swords before sliding them back into their scabbards, as though issuing a warning.

Oddly enough, Lillian loved it.

“Ah… They’re all so dependable.”

Mercenaries were difficult to trust, whether in skill or character.

But this?

Being escorted all the way to the border by elite knights with guaranteed abilities…

That was an incredible bargain. It was worth easing their suspicions a little.

Lillian reached into her bag and took out a magical torch and a bottle of resin.

The instant she produced a torch capable of reaching 1,400 degrees without any fuel cartridges, the Shadows visibly flinched.

“Do ordinary noble ladies carry something like that around?”

“She’s from one of the Sacred Families.”

“Still… she’s a Tillerd.”

That’s right.

A Tillerd.

The foremost experts in control-type artifacts.

And, amusingly enough, Lillian was a direct descendant of that family.

No matter how suspicious the Shadows were, they couldn’t simply ignore the words of a daughter from the illustrious family of garbage immortalized on the very first page of the holy scripture.

In the end, Lillian managed to pry the ring from the reluctant Shadow.

“So you use a ring-type artifact?”

“Ah… yes.”

“The casing is cracked, but fortunately the internal circuit is still intact.”

If the circuit had been damaged, that would’ve required professional repairs.

A damaged control circuit could trigger an ability backlash severe enough to draw blood.

But something like this?

It was easy enough.

Lillian’s hands moved swiftly.

“First, coat it with resin.”

A transparent adhesive used to keep the parts of accessories from coming apart.

“Then lightly heat it with the torch to harden it.”

This was the best emergency repair she could manage under the circumstances.

“This is all I can do out here. Once you reach a city, you should have it repaired properly.”

“Hah… Ahem. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Lillian smiled wistfully.

“After all… this is about all I can do.”

This should at least earn me some dinner, she thought.

Just then, a lazy, low voice drifted from behind her.

“Hmm… So you have a talent like this?”

There it was.

The villain’s signature passive-aggressive question.

The breathtakingly beautiful man tilted his head, smiling.

“I thought your younger sister, Iris, was the one running the artifact business.”

“That’s right. I only know a few little tricks.”

Lowering her eyes, Lillian smiled faintly.

Until they reached the border, this was the persona she intended to maintain.

Useful.

But not too useful.

If she appeared overly capable, she’d be worked to death.

If she seemed useless, she might simply be killed.

“Haha. Even so, you’re impressive. Instead of running away from home, why not just come work for me?”

“Oh my, Your Highness. Whatever do you mean? Even hearing that as a joke makes my heart race.”

You think I’d fall for that?

The male leads in romance novels were utterly merciless toward every woman except the heroine.

And this man, in particular, despised people who greedily reached beyond their place.

“If I suggested we join forces because we hated the same people, he’d immediately think I was suspicious and kill me.”

Just endure it a little longer.

She still had plenty of sleeping pills left in her bag.

Late that night, after every light in the camp had gone out—

“Hmm… hmm.”

Evren quietly hummed to himself.

At his feet lay the tattered remains of an assassin’s clothing, all that was left after being erased by his ability.

Just then, his closest aide, the black-haired swordsman Elias Balthazar, emerged from the darkness.

“…Your Highness. Are you all right?”

“I’ve been having a pleasant time entertaining the guest the Empress sent me.”

Monopolizing the control stones already, and now she was sending assassins too?

Wasn’t that a bit excessive?

“Your Highness… do you truly trust Lillian Tillerd?”

“Why not? She claims she knows where the control stone mine is.”

“But—”

“What do we lose by watching her for a few days?”

If she was lying, they’d simply give her a few days to put her affairs in order.

More importantly…

“When someone’s fiancée is fooling around with another woman, do they usually go this far?”

Evren had been born without human emotions.

He knew how to smile beautifully, but…

He couldn’t really distinguish between people and objects.

So whenever he needed to understand human psychology, he relied on his aide, Elias.

“…She was famous for loving her fiancé for ten years, wasn’t she?”

“So?”

“If someone like that discovered her fiancé was having an affair with her younger cousin… losing her sanity would be entirely understandable.”

Still smiling, Evren narrowed his eyes.

As expected…

He still couldn’t understand.

“By the way… you moved the Controllers to the rear this time, didn’t you?”

“Yes. We’ve kept enough distance so you won’t be inconvenienced.”

“…”

“Your Highness?”

“Hmm… It’s nothing.”

Evren gave a slight shake of his head.

Among all supernatural abilities, the Ability of Annihilation was one of the most destructive.

Yet ever since earlier today, that instinct had been whispering to him.

A pleasant scent.

There’s a Controller I like.

I want to touch them.

I want to have them.

I want to break them.

Every time he looked at Lillian Tillerd, he could swear he heard that voice.

Impossible.

“Perhaps… I’ll test it a little.”