The Villain is Being Suspiciously Kind

It was three days later, inside Citrinas atelier.

The value of the craftsmanship is increasing.

She decided at that point to increase the percentage of wages paid to Adilac and Lita.

Unlike Feinmann in , Citrina had no intention of exploiting her workers.

Citrina glanced towards the workshop.

How much do you have left, Adilac?

Sipping her morning coffee, Citrina looked back at the two craftworkers. As the workload increased, Lita joined them as an assistant.

Umabout fifty more.

Were halfway there, Citrina-nim!

Still, its not good to work three days and three nights. Make sure to take tomorrow off.

Their faces fell. Since they had insisted on pulling all-nighters and working overtime, Citrina had also stayed overnight.

She was determined to do something to help.

Ill make sure to wash my hair tomorrow when I take the day off.

What, you dont wash your hair?

In Citrinas mind, the distance between her and Adilac grew a bit wider.

My ancestor, if I do say so myself, could have lived for a hundred and sixty years and been a rich person by the next day. So he only washed his hair once a week, since he was aware of how he spent his time. Isthat so. Well, success and money are always good.

Yes! I should work harder.

Adilac turned her attention back to her craft.

-Shes so dirty.

Ignoring Gemmas hushed whispers, Citrina sat down at the table and read the letters with some trepidation. Letters had been arriving one by one from high-ranking nobles, perhaps due to the events at the ball.

There were letters asking for simple customized jewelry. It was well within Citrinas capacity to arrange the letters and find a time to meet with them.

Since the dukes request came first, Ill have to ask them for a delay.

Citrina neatly organized the letters and replies. Then she calmly opened up the days gossip paper.

Huh?

What was this?

Her face hardened.

Along with her hands.

She froze for a moment until Adilac called out to her.

Citrina, is something wrong?

No, nothing.

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Citrina read the front page of the gossip paper. The pictures within the gossip paper creaked and moved as if by magic. One name caught Citrinas attention.

An envoy from the Holy Kingdom of Caisairan had entered Petrosha Empire. The paladin Genfiros was the leader of the delegation and paladin Elaina Foluin was the deputy leader. The appointment of a female novice paladin as the deputy leader was quite unusual. It was a testament to Elaina Foluins strong role in the Holy Land.

Elaina has returned to the Petrosha Empire.

Citrina thought back to the day of the ball when she had heard talk of Elaina.

It had been a week or so since then, and it had faded to the back of her mind, more or less.

Come to think of it, what happened to Baron Foluin?

Baron Foluin was nowhere to be found, and Baroness Foluin no longer visited Citrina.

Even after four years, it was hard for them to reach out to each other.

Especially with Elaina.

Citrina didnt have a vendetta. She harbored a small amount of guilt that she had changed Elainas chances for a happy future.

I dont think Ill see much of Elaina in the future.

Citrinas ambiguous position as a fallen young lady of the Foluin Barony had been resolved, with her nobility and ties to the barony severed.

The envoys would be meeting this afternoon at Venitri Grand Hall

so she should avoid Venitri Grand Hall today. She did not wish to see her again.

But as always, the heart does not get what it wants.

-Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! The opening ceremony of the Holy Kingdom! Thats so cool!

-Really?

-Theres going to be a ton of people in the crowd! Do you think Ill get a good view?

Gemma whispered ecstatically from inside Citrinas pendant.

-Are a lot of people going to be there?

-Of course! Ill just show my face for a second.

No, no, no. She felt a little guilty that Citrina was just sitting around while the craftworkers worked so hard.

Youve been reading the article about the Holy Kingdom, havent you, Citrina?

Adilac spoke, finishing her work and coming to her side. She must have wondered what Citrina was reading to cause her face to become so serious.

Yes. Rumors about the Holy Kingdom are abundant.

really?

-Lets go check out the rumors. If we go to that place with a lot of people, wont we be able to hear more?

Gemmas voice sounded as sweet as the devils whisper.

Citrina weighed her options. If rumors were going around about the mission of the Holy Kingdom, she would surely hear news of Elaina.

Elaina resented her. So it was likely she would try to bring Citrina down, even if it was a petty vengeance.

Lets go to the square and gather rumors about the envoy.

Citrina did not yet recognize Elaina as her true enemy. She didnt know exactly what Elaina thought, but they couldnt destroy each other while they shared a name.

Then Ill be out a bit this afternoon.

Ok. Goodbye, master! Maybe we can also sell our jewelry to the Holy Kingdom!

Citrina smiled weakly at Litas cheerful voice. Since Elaina was an envoy as a paladin this time, it somehow felt like she would be a bit more visible.

I hope so.

It will be!

maybe theyll become our competitor. We have to be determined.

Citrina knew best why the Holy Kingdom was so wealthy.

They sold holy objects.

And holy objects could not damage Citrinas atelier.

Elaina must have known about Citrinas dream to have an atelier shortly before they parted. The heroine of was like that- she knew the cards dealt to her and how to use them to her advantage.

I suppose I should respond in kind.

Taking another sip of her coffee, Citrina vowed to do a better job collecting information.

***

That afternoon, Citrina and Gemma headed to Venitri Square and were overwhelmed by the crowd gathered there. To put it mildly, there were more people than clouds in the sky.

Citrina found a spot by the squares central fountain and grabbed an ice cream, a specialty found in the square. The path from Venitri Square to the emperors castle was densely packed with people.

I didnt come here to see the paladin delegations ceremony anyway.

She looked around. Everyone seemed to be excited.

Apparently, the Holy Kingdom, Caisairan, was popular in the empire.

-Gemma, is this crowd gathered for the ceremony?

-Yeah, I think so! What do we do? Im excited!

The pendant containing Gemma flinched uncontrollably. Citrina clutched the pendant, listening to the conversation of the people on duty.

They cant be serious about handing out relics containing gods prophecies, can they?

Its the first visit of a delegation in ten years, so Im sure theyre serious.

A divineprophecy?

The delegation of paladins was a tool to revive the reputation of Caisairan.

Caisairan was a divine nation that appeared inside the original work, .

It was a small country blessed by god, and it produced paladins every year who traveled around the continent spreading gods prophecies.

The Pope, the leader of the Holy Kingdom and devout believer in god, was Elainas supporter in . It seemed like the same was true here.

More than a prophecy, I wish I could get some holy water.

I want a paladins blessing!

These were strange and familiar conversations, with talk about paladins blessings and holy water.

-Thats weird.

-Yeah? Why?

-Theyre selling things that contain prophecies from god. Does god still care about this world?

With that, Gemma tilted her head.

-Why, whats so strange?

-How can gods prophecy be embedded in an object?

As a reincarnator who was aware of her past, Citrina had a certain amount of faith in the divine realm. Her awareness of her past life was also a strange divine blessing that couldnt be explained rationally.

Did you hear that? It seems the high priest is going to offer the holy object to the emperor.

You said the deputy head of the mission is originally from the empire. Was it a baron or something?

A noble then.

A noble, yes. But it seems like theyve long since fallen.

Among the chatter of the passer-byes, Elainas story broke through. The reason Citrina had come the Venitri Square was the hear what the world was saying about Elaina Foluin.

The envoy is coming!

Its the Holy Knights! Can you see the white uniform?

Im not a falcon, so how could I see over there?

Light grumbling followed. At the sound of the envoys arrival, Citrina cleared her mind.

Gemma flew up in the sky, taking in the hubbub. Among the festive atmosphere, Citrina was the only one organizing her thoughts.

If Citrinas memories from her past life were correct, the paladins would be lined up on the boulevard in white robes. At the front of the second row, the leader would raise his sword.

It would sparkle and shine.

Elaina will be attached to the emissary, unlike the original.

She was a younger sibling who knew her heart too well, sisters who understood each other too well. They were sisters who shared the same ambition to succeed, so much so that they couldnt help but hurt each other.

I cant see the ceremony from here, but it must be amazing, right?

Look at all of the people cheering.

Citrina took one look at the crowd gathered around Venitri Square and stood up.

The people in the square were cheering. The paladin memorial service seemed to be coming to an end.

Gemma spread her wings and descended from the sky.

-Its your sibling, thats amazing.

-Thats right. Its amazing.

-But I like you better.

-I know that.

At Citrinas simple reply, Gemma slipped silently into the pendant.

Citrina hailed a carriage outside the square. The carriage drove through Venitri Square and onto the opposite side of the road from the delegation and the crowds that filled the boulevard leading to the imperial palace.

Elaina, you walked towards the imperial palace. I run outside of it. They were sisters yet they followed opposite paths.

Citrina headed back to the atelier. She needed to get to work on the bracelets for Desians knights.

It wasnt a bad feeling. That was her top priority right now, rather than the worry or resentment that she might feel for her family.