A few days later.

I called Sione and declared that I would personally investigate the Dark Alley.

Surprised, she jumped up in place and tried to dissuade me.

“The Dark Alley is a dangerous place, Lady Bella. It’s not only vampires but also other creatures who freely commit nefarious deeds.”

“I heard Cain often goes there for work… Is it really that dangerous?”

“Yes. There are similar places in human countries, but here, the dimension is different. It’s a place where the fundamental logic of supernatural beings, power, and violence still applies.”

According to Sione, the Dark Alley in the Chepeshu Kingdom is recognized as a kind of extraterritoriality, where even my father can’t easily interfere.

People dying for a few coins is commonplace, and they think nothing of corpses rolling around like trash.

“Lord has been working for a long time to change the archaic notions of the supernatural beings who trivialize life. As a result, the kingdom has become peaceful, but he couldn’t change the nature of the supernatural beings.”

“Well, so they strategically leave the Dark Alley alone. If you touch it too much, there might be riots.”

“Your analysis is correct.”

Eliminating criminals who are causing trouble in the Dark Alley with my father’s power is a straightforward task.

If I sweep away the area designated as the Dark Alley with magic, the problem will be neatly resolved.

The problem lies afterward.

When the supernatural beings, who have lost their territory, don’t have a place to vent their violent nature, where will their anger be directed?

“In fact, Lord’s policies resemble those of humans a lot, so there are many people silently harboring discontent. It’s not that supernatural beings don’t wish for a peaceful life, but suppressing innate instincts seems to be quite challenging.”

“That makes sense. Forcing supernatural beings to live like humans is no different from coercion. In such cases, it’s better to gradually strengthen regulations and make them accustomed. I learned that it’s a good method, and it seems my father is doing that too.”

“You’ve already covered that much in your studies. You’re truly remarkable. I look forward to seeing you grow as the smartest girl in the kingdom.”

I shrugged my shoulders while listening to Sione’s stormy praise.

Being a princess with plenty of money, proficient in magic, and increasingly beautiful as I grow older, I might be at risk of catching princess syndrome.

“Anyway, I wouldn’t recommend Lady Bella taking a forefront role in this. How about using people to investigate instead?”

“In that case, it might be good to ask for Cain’s help separately. I heard Cain is actively going in and out of the Dark Alley, collecting information firsthand.”

“That’s really a good idea. With the information from the Fernan family and our financial support, there will surely be good results.”
Just a few months ago, I had nothing substantial to boast about except for the hollow facade of being a princess. However, now that I have the support of Lady Lera and Baron Vaughn, there are many more things I can do. I was no longer a child who had to rely on the protection of others. I gained the ability to act on my own. Seated at the desk, I began writing a letter to the Fernan family in neat handwriting.

Until a few months ago, I struggled with a pen for quite a while to produce a convincing letter, but now things were different. With the content in my mind flowing smoothly onto paper, I dried the ink after blotting the paper a few times and handed it to Sione.

“Send this to Cain’s side, Sione. As soon as possible.”

“Understood, Lady Bella. I look forward to his response.”

After some time, having received Cain’s positive reply, I sent a considerable amount of investigation funds to the Fernan family. Thanks to Baron Vaughn’s active cooperation, the investigation progressed steadily.

About a month later, Cain visited the Rose Palace. His hands were laden with gifts.

“Why did you bring so much? You could have just come empty-handed.”

“How can I meet Lady Bella without bringing anything? It’s small but a token of my respect. Please accept it.”

“If you put it that way, I can’t help it. Thank you.”

The gifts Cain brought looked luxurious at first glance. It felt a bit burdensome, but I decided to accept them as a sign of respect.

After moving to a secret chamber, Cain began delivering reports related to the investigation. Among this report, there was special information—the news that an important figure related to the assassin case had been discovered.

“A man named Tian, who used to work in accounting for the Repel family. It seems he had direct contact with the Assassin Guild. However… there are some suspicious points.”

“What do you mean, Cain?”

“He stepped into the Assassin Guild after being expelled from the Repel family. I couldn’t find out the details, but it seems he committed significant misconduct during his tenure.”

I raised an eyebrow.