CBDBS l CH 52

Chapter 52

“…?”

König, Eloise, and I all turned toward the faint sound.

Standing some distance away from the fountain was—

“Gerard?”

König’s adjutant, and Ria’s twin brother: Gerard Viper.

“Gerard, it’s been a while. But why are you staying so far away?”

The closer Eloise stepped toward him, the further Gerard retreated.

“Probably because he’s afraid you’ll torment him again. The way you’re tormenting Cherry.”

König spoke casually, as if the answer were obvious.

…Like me?

Wait. Did that mean Gerard had been forced into “dress-up” too?

That would certainly explain why he looked horrified at the table piled with accessories.

“Of course. Ria and Gerard are both petite—whatever you dress them in, they look adorable.”

Eloise’s words were so light, so matter-of-fact.

Huh—so it was true?!

But… petite? Who, exactly?

I was speechless.

The Viper twins were both tall, especially Ria, who could hold her own with trained knights.

Their sharp features and stern eyes didn’t exactly scream “cute.”

But then it hit me.

Next to the overwhelming Kreutz siblings, even the Vipers would look like children.

And Eloise adored “adorable” things. No wonder she’d treated the twins like dolls too.

“Those were fun times,” Eloise said, smiling nostalgically.

Though clearly, for the victims, those “fun times” were nightmares best forgotten.

“L-let’s leave the past behind us and move on to business.”

Gerard shook himself violently, as if trying to dislodge the memory from his very body.

“If you shudder like that, you just make me want to play dress-up again.”

Eloise was not an opponent to be escaped so easily.

“Hiii… P-please, my lady, just hear me out…!”

And so the rose garden rang with Gerard’s tearful pleas.

* * *

Later — the reception hall of Black Dragon Castle.

Thanks to Gerard’s “sacrifice” (now sporting earrings from the western continent’s latest fashion), we managed to move the discussion indoors.

But new trouble awaited both of us.

“This won’t do!”

“And why should I listen to you?”

Round two of the Kreutz siblings’ war.

I could only fidget helplessly between them.

All because—

“Cherry is my partner squirrel. She should be with me.”

“I only came here because Cherry was present. If I can’t be with her, then I have no reason to listen to you.”

The supposed topic was the Crystal Mines—but the real argument was: whose arms I would sit in.

…So childish.

Who would believe these two were the Empire’s most formidable powers—the Duke of Kreutz and the “Villainess of Yggdrnia”?

I sighed deeply.

Gerard looked equally drained, his voice flat as he tried to mediate.

“Milord, it’s not as though Lady Eloise intends to keep Lady Cherry forever. Could you not yield just for the duration of the discussion?”

He spoke as gently as possible, but König acted as though he hadn’t heard a word.

If Gerard is trying to persuade König like this, then Eloise must be holding some leverage…

Well, in that case.

I hopped up from the table.

Tap, tap, tap.

I crossed the low table and settled softly into Eloise’s waiting hand.

“My goodness…!”

Eloise’s expression shone with rapture, as if she’d just won the world itself. Her hands trembled as she carefully cradled me.

Meanwhile, König looked utterly betrayed.

“Cherry, how could you…”

“Chuut.”

It’s for the greater good.

I waved my tiny paws at him in reassurance.

“Thanks to Lady Cherry’s wisdom, we can finally begin.”

Gerard slipped me a perfectly ripe chestnut as thanks and began the business discussion.

The siblings’ topic: a certain mine.

“I heard you’ve been investigating the Gelende Territory,” König began, now all seriousness again.

“That’s right,” Eloise replied.

“Have you discovered anything?”

She smirked faintly. “Why should I tell you? Rose Trading Company intends to participate in the Gelende Mine auction.”

As she toyed with my tail between her fingers, she spoke with the same composure as if we weren’t discussing fortunes.

König’s brow tightened.

“You truly intend to participate in that auction?”

“Of course. Isn’t it natural for a trading company to invest where profit can be found?”

“And you’re well aware of the risks.”

“All things are high risk, high return. If the rumors are true and a mine is there, it’s a jackpot. If not… well, it’ll sting a bit.”

Her tongue clicked against her teeth.

Crystal.

Wait—crystal?

Crystals were primarily used for magical tools.

Hardly the kind of thing Rose Trading Company, known for luxury goods and jewelry, usually dealt in.

But Eloise’s eyes glittered with conviction.

König noticed too.

“Why take on such risks?”

“To chase the beautiful and the rare is only natural.”

Lounging against the sofa, Eloise’s smile turned crooked.

“Unlike someone, I have no family estate to inherit. No house to fall back on. I need money—a great deal of it.”

“You already have enough wealth to buy yourself a count’s title,” König shot back immediately.

But she didn’t flinch. Instead, she leaned closer, narrowing the space between them, making him tense.

“The more money, the better. I intend to craft accessories from crystals.”

“With something so expensive?”

Gerard blurted out before he could stop himself.

A crystal no bigger than a fingernail could buy a small house in the capital.

“Nobles will claw each other’s eyes out for it.”

Eloise’s tone was certain.

“Do you know what I hear most often when I sell to noblewomen?”

“…What?”

Gerard tilted his head, König only pressed his lips together.

“Tsk. Of course men wouldn’t know.”

Eloise clicked her tongue, snapped open her hand fan, and covered her smile with it.

‘It isn’t the same as the others, is it?’

Her voice dripped with mocking imitation. Her eyes half-lidded in false modesty, she perfectly mimicked the young noblewomen of the capital.

“Chuut! Chuut!”

I couldn’t help it—I squeaked applause, clapping my tiny paws together.

“Oh, thank you.”

Eloise beamed at my enthusiastic response.

“…What are you doing?”

König grimaced as if he’d swallowed something bitter.

“You don’t get it, little brother. The point is: accessories need something new to spark a craze. Something to start a syndrome.”

“And you believe that will be crystal?”

“Finally, we’re speaking the same language.”

Eloise’s eyes curved in satisfaction.