A fortune-telling princess Chapter 144

 

‘Is he trying to charm me? If I’m not careful, I might end up giving away all the money I have. Focus!’

“What are you talking about? I already paid the deposit and the remaining balance.”

“Oh, did you?”

“Huh?”

Camilla glared lightly at Jaynor, who grinned shamelessly. 

 

How dare he try to collect payment twice!

 

The one entrusted to handle the Doraldo matter was none other than Kan.

Though she hadn’t met Jaynor directly, she had visited the Kan branch formally and submitted a request: to shoot Doraldo with a warning arrow once a day.

‘Well, not just one arrow. Two.’

One arrow carried a detailed breakdown of the damages caused to her store by his actions.
The other arrow bore a stark warning.

As D-Day approached, Doraldo’s pallor visibly worsened, all thanks to these warnings.

“Did you get the money?”

“Thanks to you.”

Yesterday, when an arrow landed dangerously close to his heart, Doraldo finally sent someone to deliver compensation for the damages. He also promised not to cause any more trouble at her store.

“What were you going to do if he didn’t respond by the last day?”

Camilla’s request specifically excluded assassination. In other words, even if the last day came, she hadn’t planned to kill him.

“I would’ve found another way.”

“Your goal wasn’t the money, right? You just wanted him to stop causing trouble at your store.”

“Exactly.”

The money—just over a thousand gold—might be a huge sum for ordinary people, but for her, who earned far more through magic stones, it was pocket change. She had no intention of hiring a hitman just for that.

‘Because that wasn’t the point.’

What she really wanted was to put a definite stop to Doraldo’s pest-like behavior.

She also felt a need to repay, in some way, the mental anguish her employees like Lila had suffered because of him.

“I’m not one to sit back and take it quietly.”

“In that case, there were simpler ways to handle it.”

“Simpler ways?”

At her question, Camilla sighed briefly as she noticed Jaynor’s sly smile. She immediately understood what he meant by “simpler ways.”

Seeing his casual attitude toward life—and death—she clicked her tongue.

‘I’ll never understand him.’

Is that his nature, or the result of living a repetitive life?

“Here, take this.”

“What’s this?”

Camilla retrieved something from the bedside drawer and handed it to him. It was a brooch shaped like a black rose.

“A magic stone?”

“You recognized it instantly. It contains a protective enchantment. I had it custom-made.”

“For me?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

Instinctively, his eyes filled with a cautious glint. Though his lips retained their usual smile, his gaze sharpened as if trying to discern her intentions.

“It’s to thank you for the last time.”

Back then, things had been chaotic, and she hadn’t had the chance to properly express her gratitude. Now, saying it outright felt awkward, so she had prepared a small gift instead.

Holding the brooch, he stared at it with a slightly dazed expression. But soon, his habitual smile reappeared on his face.

“But why are there two of them?”

“Huh?”

“There are two brooches. Why?”

“That….”

Perhaps she shouldn’t have made two.

While crafting the rose-shaped brooch, she had prepared an extra for someone else. After all, when she was in the Gracia Empire, that person had helped her quite a bit.

However, when the time came, she couldn’t bring herself to say, “This is for you.”

“Giving me two? How generous.”

“…Right.”

In the end, Camilla swallowed her words with a short sigh.

“Then, can I give one to someone else?”

“Someone else?”

“My father.”

“…What?”

“I think he’d like it.”

Camilla was momentarily speechless at Jaynor’s mischievous smile, which suggested he already knew everything.

In the end, she gave him a faint smile and nodded lightly.

“By the way, about the Tower of Guardians.”

She abruptly changed the subject, feeling awkward.

“This is the first time, isn’t it?”

“That it collapsed?”

“Yeah.”

The Tower of Guardians had never fallen before.

Just to be sure, Camilla asked Jaynor, doubting her own memory.

“It’s the first time.”

He seemed intrigued, unable to hide his curious gaze, as though he found the unprecedented event fascinating.

Watching his expression, Camilla sighed softly once more.

‘He didn’t used to be like this.’

Lately, he seemed to be dropping the pretense around her more and more.

When he treated human lives like dust for the sake of his own amusement, it sent chills down her spine.

“So you don’t know why it happened either?”

“Nope.”

“How strange.”

Unprecedented events like this always left her feeling unsettled.

The sudden appearance of Rania, claiming to be Duke Sorfel’s daughter, and now the collapse of the Tower of Guardians—it was all so unusual.

‘Why are such things happening in this life?’

Could it be that her actions, which deviated from her past selves, were somehow influencing other events?

‘Is it possible these things were meant to happen but are occurring earlier because of me?’

She’d considered this when she first met Rania, but she had no way of knowing for sure, since she didn’t know what happened after death.

Even Jaynor, who claimed to have died alongside her, probably knew nothing more about the future.

“Still,” Jaynor’s voice broke her train of thought.

“Events that were supposed to happen don’t just… not happen.”

“Is that so?”

Now that she thought about it, he was right. While she had occasionally altered the outcomes, the events themselves had always occurred.

“Then, I guess we can expect a major incident soon?”

“A major incident?”

Around this time? What was it…?

“Oh!”

She remembered.

“The Sword of Guardians.”

That sword would be stolen soon.

****

“Dessert is served.”

“…….”

“…….”

“Enjoy.”

“You want us to eat this?”

“You’re supposed to eat it?”

“Of course.”

“And this black liquid… what is it?”

“I’ve never seen a drink like this before.”

She had invited Arsion and Petro to the café. A new menu item had been added, and she thought it would suit them perfectly.

“Coffee.”

At last, the long-awaited black beans from the Gracia Empire had arrived.

Having already prepared grinders and filters, Camilla had experimented endlessly to find the perfect coffee taste to suit her palate.

‘It’s not quite the coffee bean I remember.’

Oddly enough, these “black beans” didn’t need roasting.

Naturally dark and aromatic, the beans emitted a rich coffee scent that grew stronger when properly dried.

“Coffee? What’s that?”

“Just try it.”

To cater to their dislike of sweet things, she had served them pure, original Americano, brewed with expensive ice.

“You seriously want us to drink this?”

“We’re supposed to drink it?”

These men!

Both Arsion and Petro hesitated to touch their coffee, repeatedly questioning whether it was safe. Its dark appearance didn’t help.

“Is this poison by any chance?”

“Of course not.”

“Are you sure this is edible?”

“Do you think I’d serve you something inedible?”

Still doubtful, they finally raised their cups and took a sip.

Gulp.

“…It’s bitter.”

“Bitter indeed.”

That was their first verdict.

“But….”

“The aftertaste is clean.”

“It’s not just bitter.”

“There’s a nutty flavor, and a hint of acidity.”

Wow! They immediately noticed the subtle complexities of coffee.

Though it wasn’t sweet, as she expected, they seemed to enjoy it. They kept sipping their drinks.

“This is another new item for the café.”

Camilla also presented desserts made by Lila, including tiramisu and other coffee-based treats.

Once again, Lila had perfectly recreated these desserts from Camilla’s memories. A true genius pâtissier!

“Hmm.”

“How is it?”

“Better than the usual stuff.”

“I think it’s excellent.”

Though their comments on the sweetness were still lukewarm, they didn’t push the desserts aside like before. That’s a major success, right?

“The sweetness pairs well with the drink.”

Exactly! Sweet desserts are perfect with coffee!

Camilla nodded in satisfaction. She was already planning to offer a coffee-and-cake set at a discount.

“By the way, Lord Petro.”

She shifted topics, finally getting to the reason for their meeting.

“How is Duke Jabilon doing?”

Petro’s eyes widened slightly at the unexpected question. They hadn’t been particularly close—if anything, their relationship had been distant.

But soon, Petro’s lips curved into his characteristic soft smile.

“He’s doing well. I’ll pass along your regards.”

No need for that.

“By the way…?”

“……?”

“Is the Duke planning to travel soon?”

“Pardon?”

“I mean, is there any chance he’ll be away from the duchy for a while?”

This question caught Petro off guard. He stared at Camilla, trying to decipher her intentions. After a brief pause, he nodded lightly.

“Next week, by royal decree, he’ll be traveling to the Kingdom of Eblica. It’s related to international trade, so I can’t disclose much. I hope you understand, Camilla.”

“That’s it!”

“Excuse me?”

“Oh… Haha….”

Realizing she had stood up and shouted, Camilla quickly sat back down, laughing awkwardly.

‘It’s then.’

It was during that trip that the Sword of Guardians would be stolen.