Chapter 79

Prince Orca led me to a street slightly away from the bustling area. From the way he walked, it seemed like this was a shop he visited often.

'I thought all the good shops in the capital were in the bustling area.'

With a bit of suspicion, I followed Orca, and before long, a narrower alleyway appeared. The dark and quiet atmosphere made it feel like we were heading to a secretive and dangerous place.

'And the guide is the villain Prince Orca...'

I began to regret following him so lightly. At that moment, as soon as we entered a small door without a sign, my mouth dropped open at the scene that unfolded.

"Wow..."

The bright light pouring in made it hard to believe we had just walked through a dark alley, and a massive garden was revealed. The garden was so large that it felt like a huge glass greenhouse had been moved into the city. 'Is this a shop?' I wondered. Even if a shop was famous and profitable, it would be difficult to occupy such a vast space in the bustling area. I understood why we had taken the winding alleys. As I admired the flowers, Prince Orca spoke.

"Choosing flowers to decorate the mansion is an elegant hobby of the capital's noble ladies. Gentlemen who want to gift beautiful flowers to ladies are also good customers."

Indeed, that was true. Recalling my past, my mother often went out to buy flowers to decorate the mansion. Especially on days when we had a light tea time or a dinner party, she would carefully fill the space with fresh flowers.

'Of course, I would lock myself in my room when guests came.'

As I thought about this and looked around, I saw many elegantly dressed noble ladies, much like my mother in life.

"The mansions of the capital's prominent families are all decorated with flowers from this garden. The palace is no exception. So, this garden... has many distinguished regular customers."

In other words, if you make a presence here, you can quickly become known among the capital's prominent families. I looked at Prince Orca with renewed respect.

'Using flowers as the starting point for rumors.'

I had never thought of that. I only thought that showing off wealth would quickly spread rumors in the capital, so it would be good to collect expensive artworks.

'This is the villain's strategy from the novel...!'

It was a very elegant and sophisticated strategy that made my eyes widen.

"Here, take it."

Prince Orca naturally handed me a pink rose that was waiting to be sold and smiled. It was so natural that I didn't even have a chance to refuse, and he shrugged.

"I'll pay properly."

"No, that's not what I was worried about..."

"Then there's no problem."

Prince Orca smiled and started walking forward.

"Recently, it's become a trend among noble ladies to decorate their mansions with lilies. Especially the gold lilies are very rare and more expensive than gold. One flower costs 100 gold, so... it's quite a price."

Ordinary flowers can be bought in dozens for 1 gold, but 100 gold for one flower. With a mix of surprise, a scene I had passed by without much thought came to mind.

'The Viscount Bain's mansion was decorated with lilies everywhere.'

I thought it was odd for my uncle and Melissa to decorate with such elegant flowers, but it seems this was the current trend in the capital.

'But there were no yellow lilies.'

I quickly looked around the garden, but among the many flowers, there was no trace of yellow lilies. As I looked around, a staff member approached us quickly.

"Is there a special flower you're looking for?"

His question was directed at Prince Orca, not me. In such a situation, it is polite for the gentleman escorting a lady to lead the conversation, but since Orca was a prince, he was an exception. Instead, he had the right to be treated.

'It seems they didn't recognize Prince Orca.'

Even in the bustling area, no one had noticed his identity. It was a situation where he could easily be upset, but Prince Orca smiled as usual and engaged in conversation.

"I'm looking for gold lilies."

"Gold lilies are..."

The staff member, who had been bowing, quickly checked Orca and my attire. Since the flowers were more expensive than gold, he was trying to gauge if we had the financial means. This was a common habit of merchants dealing with expensive items. Fortunately, his assessment was positive.

"Those flowers are in a special greenhouse. You'll need to talk to the owner directly. I'll guide you."

Following the man's lead, we headed deeper into the garden, where an arch decorated with flowers appeared. Beyond it, a small glass greenhouse filled with yellow lilies was visible. The owner, a man, was already inside the greenhouse, talking to someone. It seemed the conversation wasn't going well, as both parties had poor expressions. When we entered the greenhouse, the two continued their conversation, ignoring the new visitors.

"I am Viscount Ilian! You're saying I can't take this flower?"

"Of course, it's fine if you pay the price."

"But I offered a bill of exchange."

"Viscount, even if it's a bill of exchange issued by Viscount Ilian, we can't accept a payment due in three years."

"Ah! This is for the Silver Jubilee to be presented to His Majesty! Weren't you happy to be part of such a glorious event?"

I had a rough idea of what was going on. Viscount Ilian was trying to buy yellow lilies to flatter the emperor for the Silver Jubilee, but he was offering a bill of exchange with an unreasonable payment term. This was a common tactic used by high-ranking nobles to exploit merchants. As time passed, the value of money increased, but the payment for the bill of exchange was only the face value, so it was a loss for the person receiving the money later. Therefore, it was impossible for the merchant.

"Of course, it would be a pleasure to be part of such a glorious event. But the payment must be made properly..."

"What? Are you saying I'm being unreasonable?!"

The viscount, who had found a pretext, glared and raised his voice.

'Anyone can see you're being unreasonable...'

But the owner, facing a noble viscount, couldn't bring himself to say it. If it were a commoner, he might have been chased away for talking nonsense. The viscount belonged to a very high-ranking noble family. The merchant gritted his teeth and bowed deeply.

"Viscount, I am in a very difficult position. I gathered expensive gold lilies from all over the empire, trusting in you. If you don't pay, I'll go bankrupt! Not just me, but the other gardens that sold me the gold lilies will also go bankrupt if they don't get paid."

"Hmph. Who said I won't pay? I said I'll pay in three years!"

The merchant was at a loss on how to deal with the viscount's unreasonable demands.

'You're going too far!'

To be so unreasonable!

"Stop it!"

Outraged by the viscount's absurd behavior, I stepped in, and the people arguing turned their attention to me. As soon as I received their gaze, cold sweat trickled down my back.

'I got involved without realizing how annoying the viscount was...'

If the viscount could make even a timid person like me angry, he must be quite something. Since I had stepped in, I couldn't retreat with timidity as an excuse. I took about 50 deep breaths in my mind and lifted my chin confidently.

"I'll buy the gold lilies that the viscount wanted to buy."

"Excuse me?"

"What?"

Surprised by my unexpected words, the merchant and the viscount blinked in disbelief. The merchant, who was in a more desperate situation, recovered first.

"The viscount ordered all the gold lilies in this greenhouse. I bought them from all over the empire at a premium, based on his promise to pay more than the market price. Can you really take all of them?"

The merchant asked me with a mix of hope and anxiety. I estimated the quantity of flowers in the greenhouse and my budget and nodded. After all, I had come out today to spend money. I was exchanging it for fame. So, it was a fair trade. The merchant's face brightened at my confident response, while the viscount's face darkened.

"You're trying to take the flowers I reserved. Who are you... from which family...?"

The viscount glared at me and then noticed Prince Orca standing beside me, his mouth dropping open. Even a viscount would recognize a prince with low recognition.

"Uh, t, that..."

Flustered, the viscount stepped back and cleared his throat.

"Suddenly, my stomach... urgent business... let's talk next time!"

The viscount greeted the merchant and hurriedly left. The merchant, confused by the sudden change in the viscount's attitude, looked at us with a puzzled expression.

"Who are you that the viscount would react like that? I've never heard of such a young high-ranking noble couple... May I ask which family you are from?"

The merchant, who had become more polite, asked us cautiously. Surprised by the absurd misunderstanding of us being a couple, I waved my hands, but before I could deny it, I felt a large presence behind me.

"Couple is this way."

It was a familiar scent and voice.

"That way is just friends."

Surprised by the unexpected appearance of someone who shouldn't be here, I turned my head to see Altair standing there with his usual cold expression.

"Uh, how are you here?"

"Passed by."

"Really? You passed by here?"

'Somehow, he seems even more stoic than usual...'

Surprised in many ways, I blinked, and Altair, who was examining me, frowned.

"That flower..."

He seemed to have noticed the rose I had received from Prince Orca.

Before I could explain the flower, Altair took it from my hand and said to the merchant.

"I'm sorry to my wife, but I'll buy all the gold lilies."

"Uh..."

The merchant looked at me with a troubled expression, but since this was for the reputation of 'Aylesford,' it didn't matter much whether I bought them or Altair did.

'It's strange for Altair to take the flowers anyway.'

But Altair always had a reason for his actions. I nodded to the merchant as a sign of permission, and he smiled broadly, relieved that the complicated situation was resolved.

"Well then, I'll give you all of them! But how will you pay..."

"Go to the central bank in the capital, and I'll pay immediately."

Altair took out a checkbook from his pocket, signed it on the spot, and handed it to the merchant. The amount section was blank.

"Blank check!"

"If you consider future transactions, the amount is..."

"Of course, I'll charge a reasonable amount!"

The merchant, trembling, read the signed name on the check.

"Altair Aylesford, Baron..."

The merchant's face showed a bit of anxiety upon confirming the name of a relatively unknown baron, but Altair didn't seem to care.

"If you're worried, I'll take the flowers after confirming the payment."

"Thank you for your generous offer. I'll send the flowers as soon as the payment is confirmed. Are you also presenting the flowers to His Majesty?"

"No, to my wife."

"Excuse me? All these gold lilies?"

"Yes, all of them."

Altair casually picked a bouquet of gold lilies from the greenhouse.

"I'll take this bouquet first today."

The bouquet was placed in my arms.

"Uh..."

Surprised by the sudden gift, I widened my eyes, and Altair, with his usual expressionless face, showed the pink rose to Orca.

"I'll take this one. I like pink."