Chapter 115: The Man Who Hasn’t Changed  

“Lady Willem, you have quite an eye for flowers.”  

“Oh, Your Highness, you flatter me.”  

Her small eyes fluttered excessively.  

A colorless, odorless woman was shamelessly flirting with Arthur.  

‘What is this?’  

Rosetta, already in a foul mood, found her irritation bubbling over.  

As she quickly approached the two, Arthur noticed her and greeted her with his usual gentle smile.  

“My consort, you’re here?”  

“Yes, Arthur.”  

Rosetta had come to confront him, but seeing Doris Willem clinging to Arthur, she took a moment to catch her breath.  

“Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Princess.”  

As befitting a well-educated lady of a count’s family, Doris offered a proper greeting to the Crown Princess.  

Of course, Rosetta’s patience didn’t last long. Her discomfort immediately turned toward Doris.  

“I told you I didn’t need you. Why are you still here?”  

“Ah, Your Highness, that’s because…”  

“Rosetta, I asked her to come. I permitted Lady Willem, the daughter of Count Willem, to accompany you.”  

“…Is that true?”  

“Indeed. You refused her, so I invited her instead. I couldn’t just send back the daughter of a noble family, could I?”  

“……”  

Rosetta was at a loss for words. Doris took advantage of the silence to chirp in a sweet voice.  

“It’s alright, Your Highness.”  

“Now that the Crown Princess is here, I suppose there’s no choice. Lady Willem, you may leave the palace.”  

“Yes, thank you for the delightful time. I’ll contact you through my father.”  

“Very well, see you again.”  

Doris, who Rosetta thought was overly polite as she backed away, finally disappeared from the garden. Watching her leave until she was out of sight, Rosetta turned to Arthur.  

“Arthur, why did you let Count Cornwell off so easily?”  

“You mean about that matter?”  

Arthur replied as he casually touched a rosebud that was burning red. The petals had bloomed excessively, likely due to the recent hot and humid weather.  

“And what about the Graham family? How could you let it end like this? The duchess needs to be taught a lesson to come to her senses!”  

“Rosetta, the Graham family has been cleared of tax evasion charges. It’s over.”  

The affectionate title ‘my consort’ had shifted to ‘Rosetta’ at some point. Rosetta frowned at the sudden chill she felt.  

Arthur, however, kept his eyes fixed on the roses.  

“Rosetta, it was foolish to act without solid evidence. Haven’t you learned anything from this incident?”  

“I don’t understand what you mean, Arthur.”  

“They are far more cunning and intelligent than we think. Look at how they handled this—didn’t they escape the sudden audit by the Ministry of Finance with ease?”  

“That’s… that was beyond my control.”  

Arthur chuckled at Rosetta’s response. It was a clear mockery.  

“The Rosetta I knew was more thorough and ruthless.”  

Arthur’s hand, which had been fiddling with the rosebud, suddenly crushed it. The crimson petals scattered haphazardly, piling up at their feet.  

Rosetta bit her lip hard.  

“Are you telling me to harm the duchess?”  

“Not yet, but if necessary, I suppose?”  

Arthur dropped the crushed rosebud to the garden floor and ground it underfoot.  

“Arthur, why are you acting like this? I was angry because the duchess deceived me and didn’t understand my feelings. I wasn’t trying to kill her.”  

For a moment, Arthur’s perfectly composed expression cracked.  

Rosetta had changed. She was no longer the woman he once knew.  

Arthur was more aware of this than anyone. The woman who had once fought alongside him to destroy the Beast Kingdom was far more ruthless and terrifying.  

“Have you been by my side all this time with such thoughts?”  

Finally, his golden eyes turned to Rosetta. There was a hint of anger in his voice.  

“In the end, you’ve changed too. The Rosetta who loved me wouldn’t have acted this way.”  

His words hurt Rosetta deeply.  

“I’ve changed? I’m here in the palace because I love you and trust your words, Arthur. You’re the one who’s changed. Why did you call for Lady Willem?”  

“Are you trying to pick a fight with me?”  

“That’s not what I meant!”  

“Just go back. Today is not the day.”  

“Arthur!”  

Without offering any proper explanation, Arthur left first. Rosetta called out to him desperately, but he didn’t even look back as he exited the garden of the main palace.  

Ever since his regression, nothing had gone according to plan.  

To be precise, everything had changed since Yuria became the saintess—everything except for him.  

Even in the recent tax investigation of the Graham family, unexpected petitions from the citizens had poured in, like it was orchestrated. Every move the other side made had been flawless.  

It was said that someone had incited the citizens to submit petitions.  

Xavier Auguste.  

He was the duke who had once been so consumed by his obsession with Rosetta that he ignored everything else and even committed treason recklessly.  

But the Xavier who’s now by Saintess Yuria’s side was not the man Arthur knew.  

And that wasn’t all. No matter what he tried, Saintess Yuria continued to reject and push him away.  

Was he the only one who hadn’t changed?  

‘I suppose I can only rely on that.’  

There was one decisive event from the past that had allowed him to destroy the Beast Kingdom—a calamity that not even a saintess could prevent.  

“When this scorching heat passes, that flower will bloom.”  

Arthur murmured to himself as he gazed up at the cloudless, deep blue sky.  

The Flower of Calamity, Lonicera.  

When that flower blooms, it brings a great frost and disaster to the world.  

＊  

Returning to the ducal residence, I resumed my daily life.  

Xavier seemed swamped with the sheer volume of work, and I was no different.  

The relentless hot and humid weather was exhausting.  

As a temporary solution, I hung magic stones emitting cool air from the ceiling, but even that couldn’t compete with the oppressive heat that made sweat bead up instantly.  

But as the saying goes, blessings come after hardship.  

“My lady, there are so many orders we can’t keep up!”  

“Once I used it, my freckles and blemishes faded so much that I didn’t even want to sell it to others!”  

“We’re getting flooded with inquiries about when the next batch will be available!”  

The weather was on my side.  

And my diligent sales agents delivered outstanding results.  

While the efforts of dozens of agents played a role, the excellent effects of the sunscreen cream spread by word of mouth, and orders began pouring in. As a result, my bank account balance grew exponentially.  

As promised, the top-performing sales agent was rewarded with a bonus, a promotion to team leader, and the position of my personal maid.  

“I’ll work hard!”  

“Alright, I’m counting on you.”  

The new personal maid was older. She was a widow with no children, living alone.  

“And make sure to listen to Maya. She’s younger, but she’s your senior.”  

“Yes, my lady!”  

Her voice was loud enough to echo like a train whistle. Maya, covering her ears with a frown, spoke.  

“Hey, I mean, I’m your senior, so can I speak informally?”  

“Yes, senior! Of course!”  

“Alright, enough noise. Follow me.”  

“Yes!”  

Shaking her head, Maya led the new maid to the side room. She would probably stay there for a while, training the new recruit.  

Thinking about Maya pretending to be a strict teacher made me chuckle.  

Smiling, I picked up a letter Maya had left on the dressing table. The green-tinted envelope had silver lettering embossed on it.  

[To my goddess, from King Lucas Lacuni of Moirai.]  

Lucas?  

The letter felt like one from an old friend, bringing a strange sense of warmth despite the complicated feelings attached.  

‘So, you’ve become a king.’  

[Hello, goddess.  

Ah, you told me to call you duchess, didn’t you?  

Thanks to you, I’m doing well. You probably noticed from the envelope, but I’ve become a king. I’ve risen to a status far beyond that of Duke Xavier Auguste.  

I hope you’ll acknowledge the difference.  

I apologize for not inviting you to the coronation. I thought you might not want to come, and honestly, it wasn’t much to see. So, please don’t even think about looking toward Moirai.  

I don’t particularly want to see you either. They say first loves are best left as memories.  

The weather’s been strangely hot lately, so take care of your health.  

And thank you for the holy power medicine and patches you sent through Pope Melvin. I can’t believe you actually pulled it off.  

Thank you. You’ve saved our people.  

I truly respect you. That’s not a joke—it’s genuine.  

When the empire’s regulations ease, I’ll make sure to pay for them properly.  

Oh, and don’t return the enclosed item. It’s useless to me, so I’m giving it to you. It’s practically littering the streets here, and I don’t know what to do with it.  

If you don’t want it, give it to a beggar.  

From the one who treasures your gift, Lucas.]  

“Haha, that’s so like Lucas. Even as a king, he’s incorrigible.”  

I could feel Lucas’s concern about me potentially coming to the cursed land.  

“What did he enclose?”  

Shaking the envelope gently, several small stones tumbled out of the opening.  

“Magic stones?”  

And not just any—these were the highest-grade stones from Moirai.  

They were worth more than enough to cover the cost of the holy power storage devices I’d donated.  

“Such pride… Thank you.”  

I could feel Lucas’s thoughtfulness. He probably didn’t want to burden me, knowing I might need his help in the future.  

I was glad I had trusted Pope Melvin and donated the storage devices to the temple.  

It was personally fulfilling to be able to help the beastmen as well.  

「Saintess Yuria saved a man who had collapsed on the road and later went on to save countless lives.」

Perhaps the prophecy that had flashed through my mind the day Daniel jumped into the ducal carriage referred to this.  

‘I feel so full today, I don’t even need to eat.’  

And with the heat sapping my appetite, I wasn’t hungry anyway.  

But my throat was parched, and I desperately needed hydration.  

‘Should I ask Maya to have some sparkling water with me?’  

Just as I was thinking that, a delicious smell wafted in through the open window.  

“Oh, meat! And it’s charcoal-grilled beef!”  

Who in their right mind would grill meat in this heat?  

Thank you so much!  

Excited, I forgot about calling Maya and headed downstairs. Someone was clearly hosting a barbecue party in the garden.  

“Welcome! I, Wilhelm, am grilling meat to celebrate my return!”  

General Wilhelm?  

Beside him was General Ethan, looking utterly defeated by the heat.  

Had they just returned from their leave?  

“My lady!”  

“Oh, my lady!”  

Wilhelm, with his bright face, and Ethan, looking like death warmed over, called out to me simultaneously. As I greeted them warmly, I found myself muttering under my breath.  

“Huh? I thought it would just be the two of you?”

Unexpectedly, the garden was filled with unfamiliar people.