Chapter 79

Rage welled up inside him just at the thought.

He had known Aristine would be angry and had been holding back until now.

But how could she be swayed by money?

‘To be tempted by money like this...’

Aristine, who had been deceived, was not even in his thoughts; he was only focused on Zodiak.

‘And she did all this without even asking for my permission.’

His golden eyes, which seemed about to crackle with static, glared at Zodiak.

The quick-witted Zodiak immediately sensed what had upset Tarkan and hurried to explain.

“Only ladies can sit on this sofa and take photos with His Highness!”

It had always been this way, and it would continue to be so.

Security personnel—no less, for the protection of the photos—were always on standby, monitoring everything closely.

But such words would not sway Tarkan.

“Get rid of it.”

“Then, shall we limit it to children only?”

Even as he thought his life was in danger, the merchant’s blood in Zodiak’s veins made his mouth chatter.

“Get rid of it.”

At the growling voice, Zodiak shut his mouth.

“Yes, sir.”

Aristine looked at Tarkan with a bewildered expression.

‘Why is he being so harsh on someone who does a good job?’

This was an employee who had achieved a 14-fold increase in sales through marketing.

‘If it were me, I would have boasted about it to everyone on the street.’

It was pitiful to see Zodiak, who had done well, being scolded.

But there was a more important issue.

“Then, what about the fee for the photos you promised me?”

As she cautiously brought up the topic, she could feel Tarkan looking at her with a look of disbelief.

But Aristine held her head high and firmly looked at Zodiak.

Even if he said he wouldn’t use the photos in the future, they had already been used, hadn’t they?

“Yes, of course, I will give you the fee for what has been used so far. However, the amount...”

Zodiak erased the number they had agreed on earlier and wrote a new one.

“I think it should be reduced to this level.”

Kuk, Aristine’s face was tinged with shock.

‘Two zeros are gone...’

It was still a large amount, but the disappointment was significant because of the money she had expected to receive.

A feeling of having been given and then taken away.

“My money......”

Deep sorrow clouded Aristine’s violet eyes.

Her eyes, which resembled the light of dawn, were filled with sadness, evoking a sense of pity in anyone who saw them.

Her silver eyebrows, delicately arched, added to the poignancy.

‘Why, to such an extent, just for money?’

Tarkan was flabbergasted.

Because of Aristine’s unnecessarily dramatic expression, he felt as if he had committed a huge mistake.

“I can make up for the shortfall.”

“That’s not the issue. The meaning lies in earning something through my own efforts.”

Her voice was clear.

Her focused eyes were often purple and independent.

Tarkan felt a twinge of resentment but couldn’t look away from the light in her eyes.

“Then, how about this?”

Zodiak, who had been gauging the situation, asked cautiously.

“Remove the stand, but keep the photo panels as they are.”

“What?”

Tarkan immediately frowned and glared at him.

Zodiak licked his dry lips and quickly said,

“Everyone says the two of you look great together because of how affectionate you appear in the photos.”

“It’s not particularly affectionate.”

Saying this, Tarkan turned his head with a frown.

But Zodiak had noticed.

For a moment, Tarkan’s lips had twitched.

Even now, his face was stern, but his ears were red.

“Anyway, the two of you are the most talked-about couple on this continent. We should make the most of this opportunity.”

“That’s true. It could also be politically beneficial.”

Aristine nodded.

Since she had originally intended to allow the use of the photos, there was no particular issue for her.

With both of them pointing out the benefits, Tarkan reluctantly nodded.

“Fine. But I want to review the replacement photos in advance.”

“Understood, Your Highness.”

Zodiak looked at his superior with a polite smile.

‘I’ll replace all the solo photos of His Highness with couple photos, tsk tsk.’

Although he was inwardly tutting, he was quick-witted, as befitting a capable businessman who understood consumer psychology.

When Tarkan ordered the sale of the scalpels Aristine had created, he had already sensed how Tarkan viewed his wife.

‘When people talk about fated love, they usually scoff.’

Anyone who knew Tarkan well would do the same.

‘Who would have thought His Highness Tarkan would be so smitten with Her Highness?’

Reality is always more surprising than fiction.

Zodiak smiled at Aristine, the de facto boss.

‘I need to make a good impression on Her Highness!’

His business instincts were shouting this.

Of course, it wasn’t just because Tarkan was the one who was smitten.

‘I was shocked when I saw the data on the scalpels.’

The safety tests for the scalpels, conducted by the renowned medical authority Umiru, were determined by Aristine herself.

Moreover, the data included a guide on how to market them.

‘She’s incredible.’

The data was so impressive that even he, a professional manager, was amazed.

Thanks to this, the scalpels sold out immediately upon release, regardless of Aristine’s photos.

The photos were used to attract the general public and maximize the profits of the guild.

“So, let’s finalize this matter. What I’d like to request from Her Highness is to wear the scalpels as much as possible.”

“We’re already making them as fast as we can. Is that not enough?”

“Not at all. Orders are pouring in, and we’re always short on supply.”

“Indeed, to achieve such sales, that’s the situation we need.”

Aristine nodded, looking at the sales trend of the scalpels.

“Once the inventory comes in, I’ll send the items. Many places are already making advance contracts.”

“It’s a happy but regrettable situation to be unable to sell due to lack of stock.”

Aristine smiled proudly.

“I’ll talk to the blacksmiths. We might need to increase the workforce.”

‘Strike while the iron is hot!’

Aristine clenched her fist.

She had believed it would be successful, but seeing the results was a new feeling.

After watching her for a moment, Zodiak cautiously spoke.

“To be honest, there was something I wanted to ask when I met Her Highness like this.”

“What is it? I can’t tell you how to make rust-proof iron.”

Chuckling, Zodiak smiled.

“Many people have asked Her Highness about that.”

“Quite a few.”

“It’s that amazing and impressive. I’m curious too, but that’s not what I want to ask.”

“Then what?”

“I’m a merchant who sells goods, so I’m more interested in the act of selling than the goods themselves.”

Zodiak adjusted his glasses.

“I was amazed by the results of the scalpel safety tests. How did you come up with such ideas...”

“Well, scalpels are always subject to medical lawsuits. It’s necessary to prevent them in advance.”

When making drugs, don’t you also conduct tests?

Aristine explained that she did this to make money without issues, but it sounded different to the listener.

Medical lawsuits are caused by medical accidents.

In other words, Aristine had conducted the tests to prevent medical accidents and save lives from wrongful surgeries.

At additional time and cost. Zodiak understood it this way.

‘She really is a person who cares for and loves her people, as the rumors say.’

He looked at Aristine with admiration.

He felt a bit embarrassed about himself, who had only thought about selling more scalpels.

“That’s right. When I saw the report on how the infection mortality rate would decrease with the new scalpels, I was amazed.”

Zodiak spoke in a slightly lowered voice.

He had only thought, ‘This will sell incredibly well if we use it.’

‘But Her Highness must have thought differently.’

“Oh, that’s the key. I see you understand.”

Aristine smiled warmly.

‘Doctors can’t help but buy it when they see that! Patients will also want the new scalpels.’

It was the core of the sales strategy.

Zodiak looked at Aristine, who nodded proudly, with a moved expression.

‘The key is the report on the reduction in mortality. Of course, Her Highness’s goal was to reduce mortality, not to sell more scalpels.’

It was a perfect misunderstanding.

“Really, how could you think of such things...”

Zodiak was moved by Aristine’s concern for people.

Aristine, unaware of his inner thoughts, thought he was impressed by the report itself.

Of course, he was genuinely impressed by Aristine’s report.

‘I never thought this would be so impressive.’

In fact, there was a reason why Aristine had prepared such graphs.

‘Thank you, Nightingale.’

In her previous life, seen through the imperial eyes, there was a great person named Nightingale.

The angel in white, the angel with the lamp.

She was often called by such devoted nicknames, but in fact, Nightingale was also a stubborn statistician.

She drew graphs to show the causes of death in the British army and pointed out the poor hygiene conditions in military hospitals. She statistically convinced that mortality rates would significantly decrease with proper hygiene management.

The concept of hygiene was introduced to reality thanks to Nightingale’s statistics.

‘So, I decided to follow her example.’

Nightingale had used it to persuade people, change the medical field, and change the world.

“Showing kindness to people regardless of nationality...”

“Huh?”

Aristine looked up at Zodiak’s unexpected words.

“After all, until recently, Ailugo and Silvanus were enemy states.”

“We even went to war.”

“Yes, and to put it bluntly, Silvanus lost.”

Zodiak glanced at Tarkan.

The biggest reason Silvanus lost was Tarkan.

Thinking about this, it was also strange that Aristine and Tarkan were a happy couple.

Aristine, sensing what Zodiak was thinking, spoke.

“It was the greedy leader’s ambition that plunged the people into suffering. It was a war that benefited no one, including the people of Silvanus.”

Aristine’s gaze turned to Tarkan.

Tarkan, who had been looking at her all along, met her eyes immediately.

Aristine’s lips curved into a gentle smile.

“I actually think it’s fortunate that the war ended quickly thanks to Tarkan.”

Tarkan looked at her without any reaction.

With a gaze that didn’t waver.

“It’s fortunate that Her Highness thinks so. You are truly a deep thinker.”

Saying this, Zodiak thought he understood why ‘His Highness Tarkan’ had opened his heart to Aristine.

“Even though you’ve only been in Ailugo, an enemy state, for a short time, you’re already making scalpels for the people of Ailugo...”

“The people of Ailugo welcomed me warmly.”

While the queen and other royals might have a different story, the common people welcomed Aristine with surprise.

Aristine would probably never forget the moment she was married with the blessings of so many people, even if it was a political marriage that would soon end.

People’s hearts were genuine.

Zodiak smiled.

The people of Ailugo welcomed the princess because they had won the war.

The perspective of the victor and the defeated is clearly different.

“I understand why people call Her Highness the goddess of peace.”

“No, I think you’re misunderstanding something, even though I don’t know what...”

Aristine’s muttering didn’t reach him.

‘I just wanted to make some money.’

Trying to clear up the misunderstanding, Zodiak only nodded and said, “Yes, yes,” with a polite smile.

He didn’t listen at all.

His eyes, seen through his glasses, looked at Aristine as if she were a modest person who was embarrassed.

“No, I’m saying you’re misunderstanding.”

“Yes, I see. Would you like to touch the pink jelly cats?”

At Zodiak’s polite question, Aristine tilted her head back and said, “Ha...”

‘Did he ignore everything I said?’

Annoying.

Aristine huffed and spoke.

“Yes, I want to touch them!”

Honestly, they looked incredibly cute, and she had wanted to touch them since she heard the guild’s name.

* * *

“The cats were cute.”

Coming out of the Pink Pink Jelly Cat guild, Aristine murmured with a satisfied expression.

“They were so warm and soft. I didn’t expect their tongues to be so rough... It’s amazing.”

Aristine thought of the thirteen cats Zodiak had raised.

The cat that lay down, the cat that pressed against her thighs, the cat that licked her hand, the cat that meowed and ran away.

“I think I understand why it’s called Pink Pink Jelly Cat...”

Tarkan, who had been watching her as if entranced, asked.

“Do you want to keep one?”

Aristine looked up at Tarkan, ready to nod.

But after blinking a few times, she smiled and shook her head.

“No.”

It was a clear answer.

“It’s a life, so I don’t think it’s something to decide so easily.”

Of course, if she became the princess’s cat, it would live a life of luxury without Aristine having to manage or take responsibility.

But.

‘When we divorce later, I might have to leave the cat behind or can’t take it with me.’

Forget the husband, I need to make money.