~Chapter 06~
6. A Meeting That Shapes Fate
2023.08.06.
Before long, a deep, impenetrable darkness had settled.
The wind that blew in through the open window swayed the curtains.
Alice’s body appeared and disappeared in intervals as the fabric shifted.
Alice spent a long time pondering how she should live from now on.
Her first goal was easy to decide.
Revenge.
But with what I have now, I can’t do anything.
The influence Chase had built belonged solely to him. That was because Alice had always stayed thoroughly in the shadows, never once standing in front.
Even if I asked him to hand it over now, Chase wouldn’t. I should have created double ledgers and siphoned off some money for myself.
The Alice of the past had been naïve.
Even while managing several businesses for Chase, she hadn’t pocketed a single thing for herself.
How embarrassingly foolish I was.
To oppose Chase, and to take revenge on the mage Iris, she needed money.
I’ll also need people of my own.
But even that didn’t feel like enough.
What else do I need?
Calmly, Alice began making a list of what she had to do.
When her thoughts were somewhat organized, a knock sounded, and Regina entered.
Alice turned to see Regina, her brown hair neatly pinned up, carrying a letter and a small box.
“His Highness Chase has sent you a gift.”
“A gift? From His Highness?”
Alice was dumbfounded.
Because of the poverty he had endured as a child, Chase was a man stingy with generosity.
Before becoming crown prince, it had been even worse. Even while they dated, most of the expenses came out of Alice’s own pocket.
Naturally, she had never received a proper gift from him before he became crown prince.
The only “gift” he had ever given was a hastily scribbled poem.
At the time, Alice had thought it quite romantic.
She told herself that she had received his effort and time—things money couldn’t buy.
But in truth, the poem had been written by his aide, and Chase had merely copied it while swapping out a few words.
Even when she found that out, she had tried to excuse him, thinking, Choosing the right words to fit a poem is even harder.
I must have been insane.
With a face gone cold, Alice took the letter and box.
In any case, this wasn’t like Chase at all.
“Oh my, ruby earrings! They’re small and lovely—they’ll look wonderful on you, my lady.”
By Chase’s standards, this was an effort. But Alice felt nothing.
She shoved the box aside and tore the letter open without even using a paper knife. Regina flinched in shock.
“My lady, let me bring a paper knife!”
“No need.”
Alice waved her hand dismissively and read the letter straight through.
It was probably written by the aide again—the very first sentence was unusually poetic and desperately sentimental.
When she finished, Alice tossed it onto the table.
“What did His Highness say?”
Regina’s eyes sparkled. She had always cheered for Alice and Chase’s relationship as if it were her own romance.
She believed that if Alice, the unwanted daughter of a viscount’s house, became the prince’s partner, Alice’s life would change completely.
In truth, things already had changed. The Viscount and his wife no longer openly tormented Alice, though their secret mistreatment continued.
They kept gaslighting me, insisting it was all thanks to them, and I should be grateful.
Pushing down the rising anger, Alice spoke flatly.
“If you’re curious, read it yourself. And you can have the ruby earrings.”
“What? You’d give me such a precious gift? But it was from His Highness!”
“They don’t suit me. A gift should go to someone who will cherish it. By the way, what’s Iris been up to lately?”
“Miss Iris went to the hot springs with the master and mistress.” Regina glanced at her nervously.
“The hot springs, in winter…” Alice muttered softly. She could already guess what they were up to.
Will things really go the way you want, sister?
Alice pictured the Viscount, his wife, and Iris, and the corner of her lips lifted.
After Regina left with the box, Alice returned to her thoughts.
She had no intention of forgiving Chase for using her so thoroughly and discarding her.
And she fully intended to punish Iris, who had stolen from her and dragged her into scandal.
I won’t let Prince David die in vain, either.
Though they had never been close—since she had been Chase’s fiancée—David had always treated Alice with courtesy.
Even when he was unjustly dethroned as crown prince because of her, he had blamed Chase instead of condemning Alice.
“It seems my brother is a fool who only knows how to ruin good people.”
To save him, she would also need to prevent his marriage to Iris.
This time, things will be different.
Alice’s eyes gleamed with a fierce light.
Whenever the Viscount and his wife sought to escape the summer heat or winter cold, they took Iris traveling with them.
Whenever that happened, the magical cooling and heating devices in the mansion were turned off, and the fireplaces were left to go cold.
No wonder it had felt chilly.
“Don’t be too sad, my lady. Next time they’ll surely take you along.”
For ten years, Regina had offered the same consolation as Alice rubbed warmth back into her arms.
Alice didn’t believe it, but she nodded and smiled anyway.
It’s better with Father gone. That’s one less person to interfere with my plans. I’ll have to end things with Chase before they return.
Seeing Alice smile brightened Regina’s own face. Then she began to chatter again.
“Did you hear? Baron Photon was caught secretly meeting Lady Jane behind his wife’s back! The Baroness clawed his neck so badly that now, whenever he goes to the gentlemen’s club, he always wears a scarf.”
Regina prattled on endlessly. Most of it was society gossip, though some involved the royal family.
“Oh! And did you hear? His Highness the Crown Prince is going hunting with Prince Chase. They’re going to Count Joshua’s lands.”
So they’ll meet Iris.
The love story of Iris and David was widely known. Iris, while strolling through Count Joshua’s estate, would “accidentally” lose her way and wander into David’s hunting grounds.
There, she would befriend a bird.
Then Prince David shoots the bird, and Iris bursts into tears.
Feeling guilty, David would later send her a jewel-crafted bird from the capital—and that’s where their love would begin.
Iris claimed she got lost by accident, but that wasn’t true. How could she have known about the princes’ hunting grounds? That sort of thing is tightly guarded for security.
Currently, the Warton family wasn’t politically powerful.
That meant they shouldn’t have had access to such royal information.
So either she was already in contact with Chase… or…
A flash of realization struck Alice. She looked sharply at Regina.
Sensing the intensity of her gaze, Regina fell silent mid-story.
“M-my lady?”
“Regina. Where did you hear those stories?”
“Wh-what do you mean?”
“The things you just told me.”
“Oh, that? From the gossip paper the maids pass around.”
“A gossip paper? The one you all share?”
“Yes. It’s published every two weeks. It’s cheap, fun to read, and surprisingly accurate sometimes.”
“Can I see it?”
“What? But it’s not really the kind of thing a lady should read…”
Regina’s confidence wavered.
Alice tilted her head, watching her. Regina waved her hands.
“It’s nothing strange! It’s just… not all the content is appropriate for you.”
That only made Alice more curious.
“Bring them. All the issues you’ve kept.”
The gossip paper had predicted the princes’ hunting grounds exactly. In the past, Alice would have brushed it off as coincidence. But not this time.
Reluctantly, Regina brought them. The stack was considerable.
“Quite a collection.”
“Oh, that’s three years’ worth. The paper first started three years ago. At first it was tiny, but it kept growing. Now it’s nearly the size of a real newspaper, and it’s published more frequently.”
Alice examined them. Sure enough, the early issues were printed on poor-quality paper, some parts already smudged or faded.
“I’ll read them and give them back.”
“There’s probably nothing you’ll enjoy in there…” Regina trailed off.
That might have been true for the old Alice.
But this Alice was different.
If this was what had allowed Iris to turn her meeting with David into “fate,” then Alice needed to seize it first, to twist that fate.
Once Regina left, Alice began reading from the very first issue, covering every single one up to the latest.
She spent several days poring over the gossip papers and tracking down hints of the publisher.
At last, she finished the final issue.
It’s all real. They mixed in lies, but only cleverly—peel them back, and they all point to actual events. Whoever writes this is recording what they see, hear, and experience.
Exactly the kind of eyes, ears, and mouth Alice needed in both society and politics.
Her eyes glittered as she spread the papers before her again.
Regina might not know, but the publisher left plenty of traces.
By analyzing the timing and content of each issue, Alice could narrow down their active region.
Special banquets, specific events.
She listed them out and cross-referenced the guest lists.
The last thing to confirm was the handwriting. Alice pulled out stationery from her desk drawer.
She sent invitations for tea to those she suspected of publishing the gossip paper.
“Well then. Let’s wait for the replies.”
Alice climbed onto her bed. It was early to sleep, but she had an important plan that evening and needed rest.
She intended to make Chase, who stubbornly refused to part ways, finally and completely let go of her.
It’s something that can only happen if he helps me. But he will… won’t he?
A strange confidence filled her.
Her heart beat quickly, though softly, at the thought that she would meet that man tonight.
Poor David ….