Maryen hesitated. That’s when Idrisch took something white from his pocket and gently placed it on Maryen’s hand.

Her eyes widened as she looked at what was inside the mask she had been wearing. She glanced at Idrisch again, her gaze completely different from before.

If earlier she was captivated by his appearance, this time, it was pure greed.

What’s going on? What is it?

I took a step closer to see what it was.

A white, square object, and green embroidery?

That’s it! It was the handkerchief that was stolen from me last time! The one I received from Ozhahr.

So, Idrisch was impersonating Ozhahr.

〈The young lady likes handsome men. She often half-jokingly said that she regrets not having met Ozhahr, who is known as the country’s most handsome man. Of course, half of that was a joke, and half was probably sincere.〉

That’s what Hanayang had said. I had even noted it down.

Wow, I had taken that so lightly.

“Oh, are you Ozhahr Serbiyan?”

Idrisch burst into a hearty laugh. He did indeed resemble Ozhahr a little in his gentlemanly demeanor.

This was truly a brilliant strategy that only Idrisch, with his handsome looks, could pull off. After all, Ozhahr was famous as the country’s most handsome man.
However, there was no guarantee of success. Ozhahr and Idrisch were both so handsome that it was difficult to compare them, but their demeanor was entirely different. Ozhahr had a much more refined physique compared to Idrisch, and his aura was much gentler. Their hair and eye colors were also different.

As if sharing my thoughts, Maryen raised a finger and pointed to Idrisch’s hair.

His neatly combed hair was a striking black.

“But your hair color…”

“Isn’t our family in Lovero not very welcome?”

It was a subtle remark. There was interaction between the territories, but the ongoing power struggles surrounding the throne had not ended. Especially the ceaseless tension between Serbiyan, Lovero, and Agila, the most powerful factions.

“Ah, so you’re hiding that.”

“Yes.”

“Why did you come to Lovero for that reason?”

Her voice carried a hint of suspicion.

“I wanted to visit Lovero’s Full Moon Festival someday. Of course, I also had a strong desire to meet and talk with the Smiron family.”

“Our family?”

“Yes, the last trade was very satisfactory. If it’s acceptable on your end, I’d like to further improve relations with Smiron.”

There was a moment of silence. What Idrisch had just said was purely based on my guesswork and deduction.

While staying in Lovero, whenever there was free time, we investigated the upper echelons of the Smiron family. We scoured the market and found that most of the items they imported came from Serbiyan.

So, could it be that they exchanged fangs as a commercial transaction?

That was the speculation.

But to ask it directly like this.

I clasped my hands tightly.

Please say yes. Please.

Time passed slowly. Even I, who was far away, was sweating profusely.

Maryen smiled.

She smiled? Really?

“Yes, indeed. Thanks to you, even the upper echelons of our family have seen significant profits.”

That’s right! I cheered inwardly. But Idrisch wasn’t satisfied with that.

“Oh, and I was a bit surprised by the token of trust you sent. I didn’t know you would send something so valuable.”

“Oh my, I’m also pleased that you accepted it. In fact, among the Lycanthrope families, it’s quite common to exchange fangs as tokens of trust, but we were worried that you might misunderstand our intentions even in Serbiyan.”

“Of course, I understand.”
Idrisch readily agreed, but as Maryen feared, it seemed that Serbiyan didn’t understand the true meaning of the gift.

If they had understood its value, they wouldn’t have used the fangs received as a token of alliance to attack Roderio and frame him. They couldn’t have possibly imagined that the fangs alone could be traced back to them.

Now, everything was clear.

Idrisch would fully believe my words, and his anger toward Lovero territory would dissipate.

His anger would be directed solely at the real culprit, Serbiyan.

Good. The world’s destruction has taken a step back. I changed the course of the novel!

I was in a moment of jubilation. I was so excited that… Yes, I let my guard down. My foot got caught on the table next to me.

Whoa! I grabbed the table to prevent myself from falling, but instead of just preventing a fall, I tilted the table as well.

No, if I fall, no…

Crash!

I fell with a loud noise, and the square’s ground was uneven.

Not only that, all the wine that had been on the table fell and shattered.

The gaze of the people around me focused on me.

Of course, Maryen and Idrisch’s gazes were no exception.

Uh, what should I do? No.

Maryen didn’t recognize Idrisch, so I wouldn’t be recognized either. I was wearing a mask.

Idrisch, who had locked eyes with me, tapped his own mask with his finger.

It seemed like he wanted to say something.

What is it?

What about the mask? …No way.

I felt a shiver down my spine and groped my face.

Oh no! Where’s my mask?

“That woman!”

Maryen immediately recognized me and pointed her finger. She seemed ready to charge at me like an angry bull.

Wasn’t she the one who got angry when I fell into the water last time?

Darn it.