Justitia and I had met before.
But we had never actually talked.
After all, by the time she made her debut in society, I had already fallen to the status of deposed crown prince.
That meant I wasn't someone a merchant would take an interest in.
So I had no choice but to judge the person named Justitia based solely on rumors and appearances.
And I reached a conclusion.
'Something's off?'
All I'd ever done was look at her from afar a few times in the past.
But my memory of Justitia was absolutely not of a fragile person.
A trader who, despite her young age, could sweet-talk even seasoned nobles with her three-inch tongue.
That was exactly what she should have been.
"Thank you, Prince Abel."
Justitia sat down across from me.
She was putting on a carefully composed expression, but I could see right through it.
Her heart, pounding so hard it was on the verge of bursting.
'She's on the edge.'
It felt like watching someone unused to gymnastics barely holding on, on tiptoe, atop a balance beam.
It was familiar.
Not long ago, I had seen someone who gave off exactly this same feeling.
Right....... She was like Freyja when the first Monster Wave was rolling in.
'Her compulsion is showing unconsciously.'
The reason...... I thought I knew.
It was thanks to the information Johannes had gathered.
I gained confidence.
This was my first deal, but it seemed I'd be able to steer the game in my favor.
'Cornering someone who's been weakened isn't exactly pleasant, though.'
Unfortunately, I was in no position to take other people's circumstances into account right now.
'It'll only take a moment, Justitia.'
If she could get through that time safely, there would be no loser in our deal.
We'd be able to achieve what's called a 'win-win,' where both sides profit.
I sat down and crossed my legs, resting my clasped hands on my knee.
It was time for the deal.
***
"Before we negotiate, there is one thing I would like to ask, though."
"Why am I here?"
"......Yes."
"It's nothing much. I'm fulfilling my duty as the Grand Duke's husband."
"I see. Unlike the rumors going around, it seems the two of you are a devoted couple."
She might be on the edge, but a merchant was a merchant.
In the span of just a few exchanged words, Justitia had gotten her emotions in hand.
That was a relief.
After all, this deal mustn't end too quickly.
"Is Sir Johannes going to listen in as well?"
Justitia's gaze turned toward Johannes.
"I'd like you to think of it as consideration. I heard that you brought only a single maid along, Miss Justitia, even though you came a long way."
"Yes, her name is Cattleya. She is my precious maid."
"Making someone like that wait endlessly outside the drawing room would be a bit much, wouldn't it? And you might find it threatening to be alone in an unfamiliar place, Miss Justitia. So the idea is to balance things out, with you standing Miss Cattleya by your side and us standing Johannes by ours."
Of course, it was a stretch.
With the First Prince and the Grand Duke seated here, matching the number of subordinates could hardly balance anything.
It was purely a means of overpowering her momentum.
Slurp.
Freyja, seated beside me, drank her tea.
As an aside, she had already emptied four cups before Justitia arrived and was drinking yet another.
"I thank Your Highness for your consideration."
Justitia bowed her head with proper etiquette.
"Then, since it seems your curiosity has been resolved, let's get right down to business."
When I gestured, Johannes handed me the ledger he had prepared.
"The truth is, I noticed a few unreasonable parts in the previous deals."
"Would you tell me which parts?"
Coming at me head-on in return, huh.
What a fine attitude.
I smiled and pointed out the ledger's loopholes.
"I can explain those."
Naturally, Justitia had her defenses prepared.
Monster by-products that only became valuable after being reprocessed, the cost of transporting monster carcasses all the way to the capital, the condition of carcasses that weren't intact because of fierce fighting, and so on.
They were answers with some merit.
The problem was that, even taking that into account, the prices had been slashed far too low.
'But I can't attack that point.'
The reason was simple.
Justitia had been slashing prices in a very reasonable way.
'If she'd been bleeding them dry outright, it'd be a different story.'
She'd crossed the line only just enough that it was awkward to point out.
Honestly, someone like Justitia counted as a relatively conscientious merchant.
Even if you searched the entire continent, it would be impossible to find a merchant who kept to business ethics this well.
"If not for me, you would not have received even half of this."
And she herself recognized that as a strength.
She truly was a troublesome woman.
But ironically, Justitia's thorniness was actually helping my ultimate goal.
Justitia and I ran on parallel lines for quite a while.
Of course, this tedious standoff was very much part of my intent.
Adjusting so that the balance didn't tip to either side, I dragged out the negotiation time.
Meanwhile, I kept checking the golden interface I'd tucked into the corner of my vision.
'Not yet?'
I needed to buy a little more time.
Hm, steering a conversation into going nowhere was pretty hard work.
I took a sip of tea to wet my throat.
Justitia did the same.
Tea moistened throats that had gone scratchy from arguing.
"It seems Your Highness has not the slightest intention of backing down."
Justitia seemed to have decided that the reason the deal was dragging on was my greed.
Of course, that judgment was right.
It was just that the greed was covering my real intention.
"It can't be helped. You know the situation in the North well too, Miss Justitia. We need gold."
"You will just buy goods from me with that gold anyway. How about this, then? I will sell you the supplies the North urgently needs cheaper than before."
"I don't think we can accept that. We need gold more than supplies."
For an instant, the corners of Justitia's eyes twitched.
The sight of the Frontline Wall and the residential district probably flashed through her mind.
'I'd been told that when she dealt with Freyja, she handed over food and supplies the territory needed on the spot instead of gold.'
But I had firmly stated that I wanted gold and gold alone.
Justitia had to be confused.
Who on earth had I commissioned with the gold I earned that way, to put up those buildings in such a short time?
'She'll never find out, no matter how much she investigates.'
I deliberately kept an ambiguous smile as I lifted my teacup.
"......."
Justitia looked at me for a moment, and once again time passed.
Hiding her inner precariousness and suspicion, she tenaciously parried the questions I threw at her.
Before long, half a day had passed since Justitia entered the drawing room, and through the frost-covered window I could see the blizzard growing fiercer.
The time I'd been waiting for was gradually approaching.
"Hm."
I gave Johannes a signal.
"Ah, my apologies. Your Highness, Your Grace. I have remembered an urgent matter, so it seems I must step out."
......Johannes, you need to work on your acting.
He was practically a robot.
It was obvious enough that, had Justitia been a little more composed, she would have openly grown suspicious.
"It's fine. Go take care of it."
"Good work, Johannes."
"Yes!"
Just as we'd scripted in advance, Johannes slipped out of the drawing room.
"......?"
It was Cattleya who reacted.
The girl stared blankly at Johannes's retreating back.
(Kyu kyu, that kid has good instincts.)
Ignis's voice rang in my head.
'Good instincts?'
(She's a Jader, that girl.)
'A Jader....... Someone born carrying aura by nature?'
(Yep. Her talent's a little below yours, but it's no ordinary talent.)
For a moment, I was tempted.
After all, compared to its heyday, the North's knights had declined in both quality and quantity.
In a situation like that, when you saw a seed with outstanding talent, you couldn't help but set your sights on it.
'Cattleya, she said.'
I decided to firmly remember her name and face.
In that moment.
"Phew......."
Justitia let out a sigh.
"Your Highness seems like a completely different person from when I saw you at the Imperial Palace."
For the first time, a topic unrelated to the deal came up.
Repeating the same talk was probably getting tiring for her too, so I decided to go along with the topic.
"Is that so?"
"Have you been lying low all this time?"
"Well, that depends on what you think, Miss Justitia."
"......Is this a story the Empress knows as well?"
Oho.
So that's what she's going for?
"Your Highness as you are now is far from the incompetent deposed crown prince the world laughs at. And...... this would be bad news for His Highness the Crown Prince."
I was about to leisurely parry the attack.
"That is a rude remark, Lady Justitia."
But someone beat me to it.
Freyja set down her teacup roughly.
"Are you trying to threaten the North right now?"
"......I was merely sharing a personal thought with His Highness."
"You must distinguish between being honest and being rude. My lord husband is now a man of the North. At the same time, he is my husband. I will never forgive rudeness toward my husband in the North."
There was an illusion that a shadow had fallen over Freyja's face.
It was because of the terrifying pressure she gave off.
An invisible force mercilessly pressed down on the two women across from us.
The moment Justitia's and Cattleya's heads bowed.
'It seems it is about time you brought it up.'
My eyes met Freyja's.
We certainly didn't have anything like telepathy.
But strangely, Freyja and I could share what we meant just by crossing gazes.
'Did you do that on purpose?'
'It was a rude remark, after all. I merely made use of it for a moment.'
'Thanks to you, it's easier to bring up the main point.'
'I am glad to have been of help to you, my lord husband.'
Freyja brought her teacup to her lips again, looking satisfied.
I took the baton my wife had handed me.
"Well, certainly, if the Empress saw me as I am now, she'd feel pretty uneasy about it. She might even send assassins."
"......?"
Justitia, who had been breaking out in a cold sweat, raised her head with effort.
"But my situation isn't all that different from yours, Miss Justitia, is it?"
"What do you mean......?"
"Adikia Violet."
When she heard the name I brought up, Justitia's pupils contracted.
She quickly composed her expression, but my eyes, having gone through a week of intense growth, didn't miss that small change.
"The eldest son of the Violet Trading Company and your elder brother, Miss Justitia. And...... currently your rival in a fierce competition over the position of the next company head."
"How did you find that out?"
Justitia's voice was calm.
A restrained tone. If anything, that proved Justitia was greatly flustered.
"I was surprised too. To think the company head has fallen ill with an incurable disease. My condolences. He must still be young."
I set the ledger down on the table.
There was no need to hold it anymore.
"You don't want to lose to Adikia Violet, do you, Miss Justitia? Don't tell needless lies. I may not look it, but I'm someone who competed with my younger siblings for the position of the next Emperor."
Well, compared to the Violet Trading Company's mudslinging fight, my competition had been all too peaceful.
"You must have been at a disadvantage from the very start, Miss Justitia. After all, the Albion Empire's succession basically follows the principle of the eldest son inheriting."
One gains the high ground simply by being born into the world first.
I could say that because I had tasted that benefit firsthand.
'After all, there were even retainers who tried to shield me after my Aura Heart was ruined.'
Though they had vanished without a trace or been demoted.
"If Adikia were at least incompetent, there might have been a chance. But Adikia is competent. Far more than you are, Miss Justitia."
In truth, the two of them were probably neck and neck in terms of their ability as merchants. Justitia might even be better.
The decisive gap that divided their victory and defeat was none other than the presence or absence of a 'conscience.'
'I've heard of Adikia's notoriety.'
A man who wouldn't shrink from any vile act for the sake of profit.
He was even someone who had cast aside the duties proper to a human being.
"Abe, was it? Your younger sibling's name, Miss Justitia."
At those words, Justitia's shoulders flinched.
"A renowned child prodigy. After all, the rumors that the youngest was born with the greatest talent of the three siblings even reached the Imperial Palace. There was even talk that the position of the Empire's next chancellor was already in the bag."
"......And what good does that do? Abe is already dead."
Just as she said.
The youngest of the Violets, touted as material for the next chancellor, had left this world far too young.
"An accident, was it? I recall the bridge collapsed under the carriage on the way back from a vacation, and the fall was fatal."
"Yes, an accident. It was an accident."
"It seems you don't think so, Miss Justitia."
"Well. No evidence has turned up, so it is hard to say anything."
"Meaning there's no physical evidence, but you have your suspicions."
Justitia suddenly let out a laugh, as if deflated.
"I brought up something I should not have. I never imagined I would be counterattacked like this."
"Counterattack? That's putting it too harshly."
"You dig into a person's sore spot and act so brazen about it."
"Weren't you the one who attacked first?"
"Yes, that is right. That is why I am listening quietly."
"Your tone is as twisted as can be, though?"
"I get the feeling you are actually pleased that I am responding with such a sharp attitude. Is that just my imagination?"
It wasn't her imagination.
I'd relaxed a little, because only now did it finally feel like I was talking to the person called Justitia Violet.
Wasn't that nice to see?
For the precarious look in her eyes, as if she might shatter at any moment, was gone.
That was how a conversation ought to be.
"Yes, that is right. I have my suspicions. The city guard and the court both concluded that my younger sibling's death was a simple accident, but I do not believe it. Adikia Violet, my elder brother, grew jealous of my younger sibling's talent and trampled the bud to death before it could sprout. That is what I believe."
"And you think that murderous intent will come for you this time, Miss Justitia?"
"Yes. From the day my elder brother becomes company head, I will live a life hunted by death. He is not a man who leaves potential trouble behind, my elder brother. Especially since I am the one who cannot get over Abe's death, he must want to kill me this very moment."
"But killing two of his siblings would be too much of a risk."
"That is why he must be waiting for Abe's death to be forgotten. After all, if I were to die while we are competing for the position of company head, it would only rekindle the suspicions that had been dying down."
"Is there anyone besides you who suspects it, Miss Justitia?"
"If someone profits from another's death, rumors are bound to come out, at least. It is the kind of story reporters would die for, is it not?"
"True. And besides...... once you die, the company head's death will soon be announced too."
"A man who committed three crimes against his own blood to seize the position of company head. If such a label were attached to him, the suspicion would grow uncontrollably. Even if Adikia were innocent."
"That suspicion would shake even the Violet Trading Company."
"At the very least, it could not maintain its grip on the Empire's economy. My elder brother would not stand for that. So...... he will aim for the time when, after he has completely taken control of the company, my death would deal no blow to it."
"You're talking quite freely."
"It is thanks to Your Highness loosening my throat. The tea tastes excellent."
Her skill at sarcasm was first-rate.
But it seemed she wasn't paying an empty compliment when she said the tea tasted good.
Slurp.
Justitia roughly emptied her teacup.
"Just as you investigated, Prince, I intend to seize the position of company head in order to save my own life. And for that, I need results."
"Is that also why you're trying to open trade with the North by yourself?"
"That is right. After all, monster by-products are goods the Imperial Palace, the Magic Tower, and the nobles are desperate for."
My face was reflected in Justitia's violet pupils.
"But so what? Surely you do not intend to tell Adikia that I am attempting to trade with the North?"
"Adikia would already have a grasp of that much."
"That is right. That is why it is different. Your relationship with Her Majesty the Empress, Prince, and my relationship with my elder brother."
"Hmm?"
"In you as you are now, Prince, I glimpse the unmistakable makings of a sovereign. Makings that the Empress, who wants a feeble deposed crown prince, could never tolerate."
"Whereas Adikia doesn't care what makings you have, Miss Justitia?"
"Yes. Honestly, just keeping up with that man is a struggle for me. Adikia probably dismisses my coming and going in the North as pointless flailing. And in reality, it is."
"Well, rare as monster carcasses may be, it'd be hard to produce explosive results with them."
"So it does not matter to me at all if the deal with the North falls through."
I chuckled.
"Right, I suppose not. You certainly have no need to close the deal."
At last, the time had come to bring up the real main point.
"But are you truly all right with that? If you're looking for 'results,' it'd be better to trade with the North and pave the way."
"......I do not quite follow what you mean."
"Don't play dumb. I already know everything, after all."
......To be honest, this was a bit of a bluff.
'Johannes succeeded in investigating Justitia's purpose.'
Justitia was looking for something in the North.
And it was presumed to be something that couldn't even be compared to the trading rights for monster carcasses.
Results that would go beyond closing the gap with Adikia in one stroke, and could even turn the tables.
That was lying dormant in the North.
'A huge gain worth taking the risk for.'
Johannes hadn't been able to uncover exactly what it was.
Well, that was only natural.
After all, it had to be top-secret information Justitia was keeping strictly hidden.
That I'd been able to lead the conversation this far was largely Johannes's doing as well.
'Partly thanks to Justitia coming over more easily than I expected, though.'
The real showdown started now.
If possible, I wanted to put a period on it here.
I had to see through the goal Justitia was hiding and completely collapse her composure.
Only then would the effect of the 'event' set to happen in a few minutes be maximized.
'It's nearly time.'
I looked at the golden interface....... No.
[Time until the next occurrence: '00:17:23'.]
I looked at the 'time.'
At the function newly gained by purchasing the [Intelligence Bureau (E)].
It was right then.
"I truly do not know what you mean."
Justitia played dumb.
Right, however shaken her composure was, she wouldn't open her mouth easily on this topic.
She'd sooner invoke her right to remain silent.
'If I keep bluffing, Justitia will catch on soon enough.'
Think, Abel Draco Whitelion.
How can I draw out the secret Justitia is desperately trying to protect?
Ding!
......A sound broke my train of thought.
'What?'
I wondered if it had thrown in a timer function since there wasn't much time left.
[A clue to an Ancient Legacy has been secured!]
[An Ancient Quest is presented across the ages!]
An unexpected card had been dealt.
===『Ancient Quest - The Ancient Legacy』===
- The age of long ago, now called the 'Ancient' era. All races formed an allied army to subjugate the Demon Realm, but they failed. However, they did not give up. For the descendants who would someday carry on their will, they left behind a great legacy. But the only ones who can find the legacy are beings equal to the 'Irregulars' who enshrined it. 'Abel Draco Whitelion,' the only Irregular of the present era, has acquired information about the legacy. Collect every Ancient Legacy.
- Time limit: none
- Reward: a 'Skill' each time an Ancient Legacy is obtained
======
Blinking repeatedly, I muttered without thinking.
"The Ancient Legacy...... is what you're after."
I managed to hastily fix the end of my sentence.
It was awkward as could be, though.
"......Pardon?"
Justitia's expression completely crumbled.
Jackpot.
'Holy shit.'
I'd been trying to deduce it with my meager brain working as hard as it could.
And it just pops the right answer straight into my mouth?
'This is fantastic!'
I felt like jumping up from my seat right then and bursting into song.
But the golden fortuitous encounter's gifts didn't end there.
[Ancient Quest received! As a first-time bonus, the location of the nearest Ancient Legacy has been marked on the 'Map'!]
Goddammit.
This is what makes being born with the makings of an Irregular worth it.