A fortune-telling princess Chapter 133

“Then why didn’t you call me out immediately? You could’ve reported it to Father.”

“What would I gain from that?”

Camilla lightly shook her head.

“If you had directly harbored ill intent toward me and plotted something, of course, I would have.”

But that wasn’t the case, was it?

Had there been even minor harm to her at the time, she wouldn’t have let it slide so easily. After all, she was someone who always returned what was given to her—both favors and grudges.

But thanks to the Duke of Escra, she hadn’t suffered any injuries or material losses.

“And I don’t like to make enemies unnecessarily.”

“For someone who says that, you seem to have a fair number of people holding grudges against you.”

“…You must be mistaken.”

Though a few names did come to mind, Camilla pretended not to notice.

As he laughed at her reaction, Jaynor suddenly spoke in an unexpected tone.

“Let me ask you a favor.”

“A favor?”

A faintly weary smile appeared on his face.

* * *

“Ugh! What is this awful taste?”

“This is disgustingly sweet.”

“Do people really eat this garbage?”

“Bring out the owner! The owner!”

The dessert café, which was usually bustling with customers, was unusually quiet today. Just moments ago, two customers who had walked in immediately turned and left as if fleeing.

The culprits were a group of men sitting prominently by the entrance, shouting and causing a scene.

“Um, manager, those guys are back.”

“Ugh, I can’t take this anymore! What’s their problem?”

“They’ve been doing this for four days straight.”

Five men had been coming to the café for days, stirring up trouble.

They would order a few desserts and then yell about how terrible they tasted, scaring off other customers.

“Oh! Manager, where are you going?!”

Having silently observed the chaos for a while, Laila stepped toward the group. The other staff tried to stop her, but it was no use.

“What do you want?”

“Are you the owner?”

The men’s faces grew even nastier as if they intended to intimidate her.

“Is there a problem with the desserts?”

“Too many to count.”

“You expect people to eat this trash?”

“I’m sorry about that.”

Laila bowed her head politely.

“I’ll refund the cost of all your desserts.”

“What did you say?”

“You think money will fix this?”

“You think we’re beggars?”

“Do you think we’re doing this for money?”

The men stood up all at once, closing in on Laila.

“Could I ask you to leave now?”

But Laila, maintaining a smile, calmly pointed to the exit.

“The door is over there. Next time, we’ll serve you something more satisfying.”

Her composure only seemed to anger them further.

“You little—are you mocking us?!”

The man closest to her raised his hand.

But even as she watched his hand fly toward her face, Laila didn’t flinch or close her eyes.

Camilla had told her to protect this café.

For her friend who had trusted her, Laila didn’t want to show any weakness.

If they hit her, she would take it and report it. Though the guards had ignored her complaints about them disturbing business, violence would be a different matter.

‘Was Chris from the Ghost Guild right about this?’

Laila had discussed the ongoing disturbances with Chris the day before. Camilla had suggested she consult Chris if there were ever any issues with the shop.

“Do you know Doralde’s Dessert Café?”

“Doralde’s? Oh, the one near the shopping district entrance?”

“Yes, it used to be the most profitable place around here.”

“What about it?”

“Their sales have plummeted recently.”

“Is that because of… our café?”

“Yes, and it seems their owner is holding a grudge. Remember when the sanitation inspectors showed up out of nowhere?”

“Yes, but they didn’t find anything serious and left.”

“The owner of Doralde’s reported you, hoping they’d catch something.”

“Unbelievable…”

“This might be related too. I’ll look into it.”

It seemed Chris had been right. If money wasn’t their motive, why else would they be causing trouble like this?

“Argh!”

“…!”

While lost in thought, Laila was startled by a loud scream. The man who had raised his hand to hit her now had his arm twisted backward.

“What the—who’s this guy?”

A new figure had appeared, twisting the man’s arm with ease. Laila’s face lit up with recognition.

“Why are you causing trouble in someone else’s shop?”

“Arison!”

Arison’s arrival brought visible relief to the other staff members. While his usual cold demeanor made him intimidating, today, his presence was a welcome sight.

“What’s the deal with these guys?”

“They say the desserts are bad.”

“Fair point.”

Laila sighed internally. She already knew Arison despised sweet desserts.

“So what’s the problem?”

“They hate it but keep coming back.”

“…What?”

Arison’s irritated face turned icy cold.

“You don’t like the desserts… but you come here every day?”

Like me?

Crunch.

“Aaargh!”

The man’s wrist, still held by Arison, bent with another unsettling sound.

“What’s your connection to Camilla?”

His voice was freezing, and the remaining men were paralyzed.

“I asked, what’s your connection to her?”

“What connection?!”

“Don’t play dumb. Are you coming here to see her?”

“N-no!”

“Or… are you trying to boost sales when she’s not around to score points?”

Like me?

Crunch.

“Aaaargh!”

Watching Arison’s escalating wrath, Laila pressed her temples, feeling a headache coming on.

Why did everything have to revolve around Camilla? And how was she supposed to stop him?

The chill in Arison’s voice was palpable, freezing the other men in their tracks. They felt an unmistakable sense of doom—something had gone terribly wrong.

“What’s your connection to her?” he demanded.

“Wh-what connection?!”

Camilla? Who’s that?

“You keep coming here, even though you claim the desserts taste bad. Are you showing up just to see her?”

“N-no!”

“Or… are you trying to boost sales while she’s not here and earn her favor?”

Like me?

Crunch!

“Aaargh!”

As Arison’s actions grew more brutal, Laila pressed her fingers to her temples, fighting off the pounding headache.

Why does everything always lead back to Camilla? Why does he think she’s the center of everything?

‘What am I supposed to do?’

Camilla wasn’t even here—how was she supposed to stop him? Laila sighed repeatedly, the brief relief she had felt at Arison’s arrival now completely gone.

A low hum suddenly filled the air.

“……”

Thunk.

“…Ugh.”

Before anyone could intervene, Arison abruptly released the man’s wrist. Reaching into his pocket, he retrieved an object and moved to another table. With great care, he placed it down: a communication orb.

─ Arison.

As the connection was made, a familiar voice flowed from the orb. Instantly, the oppressive atmosphere in the café dissipated.

“Camilla.”

As Arison said her name, a strange warmth seemed to envelop him.

─ You answered quickly.

“The orb happened to be nearby.”

─ So, you’re home.

“Well… yeah.”

Arison glanced around the café, as if silently warning anyone to stay quiet.

“Are you done with your work?”

─ Almost.

The last time they’d spoken, she had been overwhelmingly busy. Arison hadn’t reached out since, not wanting to bother her.

─ Arison.

“Yeah?”

─ Thank you.

Her sudden words left him momentarily speechless.

“…For what?”

─ For Kan.

“……”

─ You didn’t get hurt, did you?

Her voice carried a trace of concern, causing a small smile to tug at the corner of Arison’s mouth.

‘…He’s smiling?’

‘S-scary…’

Everyone around him froze in shock at the rare sight.

“How did you know?”

─ That’s not important right now. Arison.

“Go on.”

─ I’d like you to leave things as they are.

“…Did they show up in front of you again? Did they threaten you?”

─ Not at all.

“Then why?”

─ Um… I just don’t want you to get hurt. I’d rather you stop doing dangerous things.

“……”

Mom! He’s smiling again! It’s terrifying!

While everyone else reeled in shock, the air around Arison became noticeably gentler.

“Fine.”

─ Promise me.

“I promise.”

“Anything else…?”

─ Oh! Dive! Be careful with that! Arison, I’ll call you back later.

“Wait—!”

The connection abruptly ended.

“……”

Arison stared at the communication orb in silence before slowly sitting down in front of it. Folding his arms, he continued to gaze at it without looking away.

Everyone else watched him, holding their breath.

Ten minutes passed. Twenty minutes.

Unable to stand it any longer, Laila cautiously approached him.

“What are you doing?”

“Waiting.”

“…Excuse me?”

“I’m waiting.”

Could it be?

“She said she’d call again.”

“Um, I don’t think…”

She didn’t mean right away, did she? Laila swallowed the rest of her words, unable to voice them as Arison’s unwavering focus on the orb made her feel too awkward.

Forcing an uneasy smile, she retreated quickly, as though fleeing the scene.

* * *

“Does it hurt?”

“No, I’m fine.”

Fine? His knee was scraped raw.

Dive had fallen and skinned his knee while playing with King. Yet instead of crying, the boy insisted he was fine, reluctant even to show his injury.

Seeing his stoic demeanor stirred a fresh wave of anger in Camilla. Just thinking about Sevine, that woman, reignited her simmering fury.

Should she march over and rip out that woman’s hair?

Watching Dive leave with an attendant for treatment, Camilla let out a short sigh. Her gaze fell on the communication orb lying nearby.

‘Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I last talked to Arison. Did I end the call too quickly?’