It seemed he had truly grasped this vicious princess's weakness this time.
Lynch and Miss Valente exchanged a look, both seeing the amusement in each other's eyes.
Although they didn't know the exact reason, it seemed she was truly terrified of this matter being exposed.
That made things simple.
Destroying someone's spirit? Appreciating art? An introducer? Hehehehe.
Lynch sneered. Ignoring her thanks, he picked up an empty teacup from the table and casually tossed it back down. “Is this the etiquette of a princess of Salter when showing gratitude?”
Actually, the maid had already prepared the black tea and pastries earlier, but because Princess Chloe had just arrived, the maid was dismissed before she could pour the water. Although Her Highness's lips were trembling with rage at Lynch, she still obediently reached out to touch the bell used to summon the servants.
“Hm?”
Before she could touch the bell, Lynch's sudden voice made her flinch instinctively, and she glared at him warily.
“Do the nobles of your Kingdom of Salter only have their servants show gratitude on their behalf? Is this the sincerity of your thanks?”
“You...”
In Her Highness's eyes, pouring tea and water were tasks meant for maids. Forcing her, a noble princess of a foreign nation, to do it was an immense humiliation. It wasn't that she couldn't do it—when facing her superiors, like her father, the King of Salter, it was nothing. But doing it for a commoner like Lynch, whose status was far below hers, felt like an absolute insult. She was so furious that her vision blurred, and she couldn't even speak.
“You don't understand? Then it seems your gratitude lacks sincerity.” Lynch casually tossed the teacup aside and said to Miss Valente, “Since that's the case, there's no need for us to waste time here.”
“Indeed,” Miss Valente said softly, covering half her face with her folding fan and smiling with quiet elegance. “After all, she is a princess, so it is understandable. Let us return, then, and pretend we never came today.”
With that, the two made a move to stand.
“Don't!” Her Highness bit her lip so hard it almost bled. Her face flushed crimson, and her hands shook as she clumsily picked up the teapot, trembling as she poured two cups of black tea for them. “I... I am sincere. I... I thank you.”
Before her voice could even fade, she was already choking back sobs. Her eyes grew red, and she looked up, desperately holding back tears to prevent them from falling on the spot.
Lynch picked up his teacup with a half-smile and raised it to Miss Valente, who was secretly giggling. He didn't know how the tea tasted, but drinking it felt incredibly satisfying anyway.
“Since you seem quite sincere, let's hear it. What exactly is going on?”
Princess Chloe let out a long breath, her anger easing slightly. Just as she was about to sit down and explain, she saw Lynch's face stiffen again.
“Hm? You're quite bold. Did I tell you to sit?” Lynch squinted at Princess Chloe and said coldly, “Stand up straight, and speak right there.”
A humongous humiliation. Chloe felt as if steam were rising from her head. Hot blood rushed to her face, her teeth gritting audibly as she glared at Lynch as if she wanted to devour him alive.
“I don't like that look in your eyes. Unwilling? If you're unwilling, you can sit. We won't make things difficult for you; we'll just leave right now. What do you say?”
Her slender legs instantly froze in place, and she didn't dare budge an inch. The tip of her nose turned bright red, and tears streamed down her beautiful face.
“Hmph, so you actually feel wronged?” Lynch rolled his eyes while holding his teacup. He felt a bit like a pompous eunuch from a historical drama, riding on someone else's authority as he sneered with a haughty air, “When you set me up the night before last, why didn't you think about whether I felt wronged? Not only did I not provoke you, but I also had good intentions and truly wanted to help you. How did you treat me? If you had succeeded, I might never have been able to clear my name for the rest of my life. Did you ever stop to think if I would be angry, or if I would feel wronged?”
Princess Chloe pursed her lips tightly, wiping the tears from her face as she sobbed, “I only...”
“Did I tell you to speak?”
Lynch set his teacup down with a heavy clatter, making Her Highness flinch. Although her legs didn't give out, she instinctively lowered the hand wiping her tears and stood perfectly straight, behaving herself.
“Maybe you have a thousand or ten thousand reasons, but first of all, I didn't provoke any of you. I have no obligation to understand or accommodate your reasons. To be targeted for no reason, and with such a malicious scheme to boot—did you think I would be grateful? Perhaps in your eyes, a commoner like me is just an ant that you can crush at will. But even if I am an ant, I will bite back hard before being crushed. And you, my Princess, did you prepare yourself to be bitten before you set me up?”
Under Lynch's threats, the fourteen-year-old girl had clearly fallen into his rhythm. She didn't even dare wipe her tears, standing rigid as she sobbed quietly.
“Scared now? Look at you, crying with snot all over your face. You don't look like a princess at all. Now let me ask you, as a well-bred young lady, what should you say at a time like this?”
“Th... Thank you.”
Lynch's eyes widened. Huh? Thank you? Girl, are you a freaking masochist?
“No, s... sorry.” Chloe lowered her head and whispered, “I shouldn't have used those methods. I was wrong, and I won't do it again.”
That felt much better. Lynch shot a look at Miss Valente, who secretly bared her teeth at him before saying softly, “Alright, alright, Mr. Lynch. Her Highness was merely misguided and did something wrong. Since she already knows she was wrong, why don't we give her a chance to explain?”
“Hmph.” Lynch pointed to the sofa on the other side. “Sit and speak. Let me tell you, I have no interest in hearing made-up stories. You had better tell the absolute truth. If there is even a single lie, we will never pay attention to you again.”
Like a child who had made a mistake, Her Highness sat obediently on the sofa, her hands on her lap, and said truthfully:
“Two years ago, someone offered a massive bounty for the replica held by the Willwood tribe, which eventually led to the replica being stolen by pirates. Alice from the Willwood tribe came to me for help. I and they are, are...”
“I have no interest in knowing that. Don't waste time.”
“Thank you.” Princess Chloe let out a sigh of relief and continued, “Although I didn't know who the bounty poster was at the time, I still spent two years finding the replica, and subsequently even found the genuine one.”
Miss Valente pressed, “You can tell the difference between them?”
“It is very difficult. Unless you put the two together, you can only feel a very subtle difference. It is impossible to tell them apart with just one.”
Miss Valente gave Lynch a deep look. Lynch cleared his throat and looked away. The noble lady wrinkled her nose before saying, “Continue.”
“I used the replica as bait to help the Willwood tribe lure out the culprits one by one. Everything was going smoothly, but a few months ago, Prince William, who had been cooperating with us all along, suddenly changed his stance and wanted to halt the railway project.”
Here came the key point. Lynch and Miss Valente straightened up simultaneously, listening even more intently.
“Can you keep... what comes next a secret for me?”
“Do you think you are in any position to make demands?” Lynch sneered. “However, I swear by the fallen Lady of the Red Moon that I will keep it a secret for you.”
“Thank you.” Princess Chloe sniffled and whispered, “My family's demand of me was to do everything in my power to facilitate the railway project, and they were the largest supporters of the project. The preparatory work for the entire project was nearly complete, so their sudden change of stance put me in a very passive position. I spoke with his representative, Howard, many times. In the end, they made a demand of me: to borrow the replica gem of the Willwood tribe, promising to return it to me after Prince William's investiture ceremony on July 28th. Since this would allow the railway project to proceed smoothly and complete the task my family gave me, I did not refuse.”
Lynch stroked his chin and nodded. What Her Highness said was extremely close to their speculations.
“But then I suddenly realized something was wrong. They knew from the very beginning that the replica came from Willwood. This was information I only made public later; before that, it was always a secret. Only the pirates who executed the job and the mastermind who posted the bounty knew. Therefore, I began to suspect that they were the ones who posted the bounty, and that they had been eyeing the gem since two years ago. Furthermore, they were well aware that it was a replica, which means their target from the start was the replica, not the genuine article.”
“Two years ago... that seems to be exactly when the preparatory work for the railway project began...”
Lynch swallowed the latter half of his sentence. What he recalled was that nearly two years ago was exactly when accidents began to occur frequently during the early preparatory work for the railway project. There were no coincidences in the world of the occult. He would never believe that there was no connection between the two.
“Since their target was specifically this replica, their only possible plot was the Gate of Falsehood and Reality behind it. Feeling somewhat uneasy, I looked into it deeper. Only then did I find out that they had already done a lot of tampering during the preparatory work over the past two years. Although I don't know exactly what they did, their goal must be related to that mystery relic. Moreover, they insisted on obtaining it before the investiture ceremony. I suspect he wants to use it around the time of the ceremony, or perhaps even during it.”
Hiss. Lynch felt a chill run down his spine. In an instant, no fewer than ten complex conspiracies crossed his mind, every single one of them revolving around struggles for royal power or political backstabbing.
“Manifestation grade mystery relics are simply too dangerous. There are always people who believe they can control them, but every single time, they only bring immense catastrophe and countless deaths. Without exception. And no matter what they want to do, it will definitely trigger a massive political event. When that happens, both I and the Salter royal family will be dragged into it. The royal family might be fine, but I will certainly not escape. To protect innocent lives and to save myself, I came up with this plan: taking the opportunity to swap the genuine gem for the fake one, and then leaking the news to Howard. But this matter must be kept secret. Once Howard and his people find out, they might terminate the entire project in a fit of rage, and my secret defiance of the royal family's orders will certainly not end well for me.”
“Phew, I understand now.”
Lynch let out a deep sigh. He finally realized why those photographs possessed such immense power, to the point that even a master occult expert like Mr. Klin was powerless against them.
Within the early preparations for the entire railway project, there were likely hidden details connected to the manifestation grade mystery relic, such as times, locations, and information on how to acquire it. And those who had accidentally come into contact with it had died one by one in bizarre ways, including Donnie and Mr. Klin, and nearly including Officer Natalie.
“Perhaps Prince William and his people's goal really is the Gate of Falsehood and Reality. Such a dangerous thing... what on earth do they want to do? Hm? What's wrong with you?”
Lynch was lost in thought when he suddenly noticed that Miss Valente's expression was somewhat strange, as if she had been frightened.
“I have a suspicion,” Miss Valente whispered, twisting her folding fan. “If it is to be used around the time of the Crown Prince's investiture ceremony, I suspect Prince William's true goal in acquiring that mirror might very well be his father, the King of Lande, Emperor Rudolph II, and his sister, Eldest Princess Sophia.”
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