Chapter 54
“11 million!”
“12 million.”
“Wow, Your Highness is really persistent. Is it okay to waste the national treasury on something like this?”
“15 million. The money for this auction will be withdrawn from the imperial private fund, so no need to worry.”
As the bids rapidly climbed, the other guests were stunned.
What was this madness?
An amount of money they might never even see in their lifetimes was being thrown around for a single painting.
Meanwhile, Esha, who had bowed out at around the 1 million mark, looked depressed.
“I can’t believe this… I couldn’t buy it because I didn’t have 16 million marks. In the end, the world really does revolve around money…”
I was speechless.
“Why would you even want to buy that? Esha, you see my face every day!”
“…But limited editions trigger my collector’s instincts.”
They were all insane. No one here was sane.
I scooted a little further away from her.
Even while I was having this conversation with Esha, the bids were climbing higher and higher.
“21 million!”
“22 million.”
“Are you seriously doing this? 23 million! I’m nearly out of liquid cash here, can’t you give me a break?”
“Absolutely not. 24 million.”
“Oh, for real! 24 million and one mark!”
Ashael smirked and raised his bid.
“Is that the limit of your great merchant wealth? I’ll end this now. …25 million marks.”
“Damn it…”
Finally, Dindin gave up.
“Fine, whatever. I’ll just hire an artist later and get another portrait done.”
He muttered as he glared at Ashael.
In full view, Ashael calmly wrote out a check and handed it to the auctioneer.
“I… I actually lost in a spending contest…”
Then he glanced at Laura and murmured in lingering regret,
“You’ll have to draw me a portrait later, okay, noona?”
Used to this kind of chaos by now, Laura shot him a cold glare.
“Who said I’d draw you anything? From now on, the word portrait is banned—just so you know.”
“…?!”
Dindin opened his mouth in protest, but out of his sight, Ashael’s lips curled quietly in triumph.
That’s what you get for barking at a lion, you clueless pup.
Meanwhile, Angel stood apart from Ashael.
He had come only to guard the prince, and without any inherited wealth of his own, the sky-high prices at the auction felt like they belonged in another world.
So instead of chandeliers or jewels, Angel had been watching something else:
Laura, seated beside Ashael—gasping in awe, reacting with shock at the prices, showing expressions no different from his own.
“Everyone’s lost their minds, haven’t they? Spending that kind of money… you see my face every day!”
Angel was searching for a reason to label her a villainess.
Because if he could find one—he could convince himself that he didn’t actually love her.
Eventually, the auction neared its conclusion, and the final item appeared.
“Thank you for waiting!”
The auctioneer cried out.
At the same time, magical lights illuminated the final item placed on a pedestal, making it gleam.
“The final item of today’s auction is a tiara crown submitted by His Highness the Crown Prince. Crafted with utmost care by royal artisan Audrey, this masterpiece is lavishly set with pink diamonds…”
Though technically jewelry, the fact that it was called a crown meant that only those of appropriate status could wear it.
That included dukes or duchesses with autonomous territories, princesses, or imperial consorts like a crown princess or empress.
And among everyone present, the only one with such status was Laura.
Which meant—it could only be a gift prepared by Ashael for her.
Angel felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
What difference would it make, even if he loved Laura?
There was no chance she would choose him.
Choosing someone with financial security wasn’t about gender—it was basic human instinct.
He would watch his foster brother kiss the woman he loved, guard them from the shadows, and live protecting their descendants.
‘I should just give up.’
This hopeless love…
It was at that moment—
“How dare you—!”
From the far end of the seating area, a hooded woman who hadn’t placed a single bid all night suddenly sprang to her feet.
Her hood fell back, revealing a tear-streaked face.
It was Benny—the maid who had once served Princess Marienne.
The one who had vanished the day Marienne died.
She was holding a dagger.
Its tip aimed straight at Laura.
“What right do you have to wear that tiara?! That crown belongs to the princess! How dare you!”
Benny moved with swift, precise motions.
It was as if despair had granted her supernatural strength.
Angel, acting instinctively, threw himself between her and Laura.
‘Damn it.’
But—there was no pain. No stab. No scream.
“Aaack—!”
What he heard instead was Benny’s shriek as she crashed to the ground.
“That was close.”
Laura grinned mischievously, having expertly kicked Benny down.
That roguish smile—
It was the expression that Ashael, and sometimes even Angel, had seen and thought:
“She really does seem like a villainess sometimes.”
Laura picked up the fallen dagger and asked calmly:
“Are you alright, Sir Angel?”
Seeing her so completely unfazed, Angel had no choice but to admit:
She’s not a villainess. Not a saint either. Just… Laura as she always is.
Benny was immediately restrained.
After all, she had drawn a dagger in front of the Crown Prince himself.
“Who let you in?”
Ashael looked down at the kneeling Benny.
She spat at me instead of answering.
“She died because of you! You stole what was hers—you! It’s your fault she died!”
I easily dodged the spit, unbothered.
The best way to deal a fatal blow to someone in denial was to show them the truth they wanted to avoid.
“I also regret what happened to Princess Marienne. But…”
“Isn’t the real reason she died because of you?”
“W-What are you saying, you devil! You’re just trying to confuse me with your twisted words—!”
“Think about it. What was the key reason Princess Marienne was named the mastermind? There were many, but the decisive one was… you betraying her, wasn’t it?”
Had she forgotten?
Benny’s eyes widened. Her breathing turned ragged.
Only now was she recalling that day.
“No… Shut up… That’s not… I just…”
Benny began trembling uncontrollably.
Then, as if her strength had left her, she collapsed to the floor in tears, shaking her head.
“I… I just wanted to live. Serving the princess… that was enough for me… but she tried to throw me away so easily… I didn’t think… I didn’t think she’d really die…”
She rambled incoherently.
One of the knights clicked his tongue.
“She probably witnessed it herself… No wonder she’s traumatized.”
Understandable.
Even if the princess betrayed her first, she had still been Benny’s master for many years.
And to think she died because of her.
‘No point trying to interrogate her in this state.’
I wasn’t even curious how she got into the auction.
‘It was probably the Duke’s doing.’
I left Benny behind and stepped out into the hallway.
“What will you do with Princess Marienne’s remains and belongings?”
We hadn’t had to worry about such things for Prince Malken.
He had many attendants and Princess Luigi handled everything.
But Marienne had come with no one but Benny.
A rather pitiful procession for a princess.
“First, we’ll report it to her homeland… and then prepare her remains and belongings to be returned. We can’t handle it ourselves.”
“I see.”
I entered the guest chamber Marienne had used.
It was modest—just fitting for a princess from a small kingdom.
Inside, royal attendants were organizing her things section by section.
Surprisingly, there was quite a bit.
Apparently, her extended stay in the Empire had caused her luggage to grow.
While looking around, I noticed a bookshelf.
Where books should have been, there were rows of identical vials.
“What’s this? Alcohol?”
I shook one, sealed tightly. It sloshed inside.
“It’s a cure,” Ashael said.
“A cure?”
It must have been the treatment Marienne had supposedly developed while I was in quarantine.
“She made quite a lot.”
Seemed like Marienne had intended to distribute and commercialize it.
