I quickly twisted around and grabbed his arm. It was time to display my acting skills. I blinked slowly.

“What did I just say?”

“Hmm?”

“Oh, wait! I don’t remember anything, though I’m not drunk at all. But really, I’m not drunk at all!”

“Your voice has completely changed.”

Karl chuckled, clearly not believing me. It was strange to switch from being perfectly coherent to suddenly acting drunk. But as always, insisting was key. What could he do if I claimed to be drunk? The heat of embarrassment on my face surely supported my claim.

“People say anything when they’re drunk. It’s manners to forget those words…”

I glanced at Karl cautiously. His stern expression, as if offended by my insult to the Princess Consort, confirmed he was on Floria’s side. Better to be considered mad than dragged in front of Floria for my outburst. I hoped he wouldn’t change his mind about letting it slide.

“I’m really not drunk at all!”

Karl observed me intently before coughing into his fist.

“Alright, enough.”

“I’m truly not drunk…”

“There are many eyes and ears in the palace, even unseen ones. Be careful with your words.”

“…Yes, I’ll be careful.”

Relieved that he seemed to let it go despite not believing my act, I waited for Karl to leave. But instead of leaving, he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.

“Aren’t you leaving?(Please leave.)”

“You’re back to normal quickly.”

“…….”

Contemplating whether to repeat the embarrassing act, I watched as Karl chuckled.

“I have something to say.”

“Now?(Can’t you just go?)”

“I was planning to contact you, so it’s fortunate we met like this.”

Karl’s expression turned serious. He seemed almost hurt, hesitating unusually before slowly beginning to speak.
“About the request you made.”

“Yes, what about it?”

Were they finally going to refund my money?

“We failed.”

“Excuse me? Failed what?”

“The package got stolen during delivery. The catalog was taken.”

Really now. Who would steal a free catalog? As I stood there dumbfounded, Karl rubbed his neck, frowning. His serious expression made it seem like it wasn’t just a catalog that was lost, but a diamond ring.

“We tried to redeliver, but a new season’s catalog had already been published.”

Talk about being conscientiously odd. This is the same person who charged 160 gold for delivering a free catalog. Wait a minute. If the request failed, I could get my money back!

“So, is there anything else you’d like to request?”

“No, there isn’t.”

I cut Karl off sharply.

“There must be something.”

“I said no.”

Stop beating around the bush and give me my money back.

“Think carefully.”

Karl gazed at me with a curious look, as if urging me to spill any secrets I might be hiding.

…Do you know something?

As I looked at him suspiciously, Karl shrugged.

“Well, if you don’t want to, that’s fine.”

“When will you return the advance and the down payment?”

“Ah, that.”

Karl rolled his eyes, then said confidently.

“It got stolen too.”

“Excuse me?”

“So, I can’t refund it right now. Tell me if there’s anything else you’d like to request.”

How could he say something like that so confidently? His relaxed posture in the chair was incredibly infuriating.

“Stop joking and tell me when you’ll return it.”

“Somebody stole it.”

This guy… Despite my glaring, Karl just shrugged nonchalantly. His demeanor was so irritating that I wanted to grab him by the collar and shake him.

“If that’s the case, take this at least.”

Karl dangled a bracelet with a purple gemstone.

“This is quite expensive. I’ll return the money soon, but for now, keep this.”

Karl gestured with his hand as if asking me to take it. But the thought of accepting just that bracelet as a settlement made me shake my head and hide my hands behind my back.