Chapter 51

"Ugh..."

In the midst of a fierce wave of dizziness, Charlotte managed to open her eyes.

Her body should be stationary, yet the sensation of slowly spinning and continuously falling made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

(This place...)

"Why! Why has His Majesty the King summoned all of us at this timing!?"

"!"

The sound of a panicked man's voice made Charlotte realize the situation.

She was lying on a luxurious bed in a corner of an opulent room. Trying to get out of the bed, Charlotte fell flat on the floor.

The sound made the man turn around.

Her blurry vision began to focus, and she clearly recognized that the person there was Randolph.

"You seem to have woken up, Charlotte."

"Your Highness Randolph."

Propping herself up with her arms, she looked up at Randolph.

"Quite a sight. For a beautiful woman like you to be lying on the floor and looking up at me!"

"..."

"Frankly, it's a waste for someone like Oswald. Of course, I think you two are well-matched, being equally impudent. If you weren't a filthy slave from another country, I could have made you my wife."

"......"

Charlotte finally pressed her lips to suppress the impulse she had been holding back.

"......Ugh......!"

"What are you trying to vomit!?"

Charlotte's reaction shocked Randolph greatly.

But to be honest, she hadn't been listening to him at all after a certain point.

(This is undoubtedly 'transfer sickness'...! I understand, I understand, my body! It seems this feeling is something my body has firmly remembered. Since waking up, I had only experienced high-precision transfers by Lord Oswald and his subordinates, so I had forgotten about it.)

Holding her mouth, Charlotte pleaded to Randolph.

"I'm very sorry, Your Highness Randolph. I'm being quite presumptuous, but I seem to be suffering from transfer sickness and would like a cup of water."

"Transfer sickness, you say? Very well, I'll get it for you."

With that, Randolph took a step toward Charlotte and snapped his fingers.

"!"

Immediately, a magic circle appeared above her head, and water splashed down.

Charlotte, unable to avoid it, was drenched from head to toe, her hair and dress soaked, and droplets began to fall.

"How is that? A full cup of water. If you need more, just say so, and I'll give you more."

"......"

After blinking repeatedly, Charlotte opened and closed her hands.

Then, she looked up at Randolph and smiled.

"Thank you, Lord Randolph. Thanks to you, I feel much more awake."

"......!!"

Seeing her bold smile, Randolph's face showed a slight hint of fear.

(The shock just now has straightened out the chaotic flow of divine power! Perhaps because I was hit by someone else's magic? The dizziness has stopped, and the nausea has greatly decreased. This could be a great discovery for dealing with transfer sickness!)

Thinking this to herself, Charlotte smiled calmly again.

"Moreover, I am honored to be invited to such a private space. Where are we exactly?"

"Hmph. It's pointless to try to find out."

Randolph sneered and squatted down to look at Charlotte.

"We are inside a barrier passed down through the royal family. It's constructed with a special magic circle and is firmly isolated from the outside. Even if you have a spell that can reveal your location, the barrier cannot be penetrated with a small amount of magic, and you cannot be detected from the outside."

(That means the lost tag is also ineffective.)

She had already confirmed that the lost tag given by Oswald was still hanging from her chest.

However, if she couldn't break through the barrier of this place, her location wouldn't be known.

Charlotte was relieved by this.

(If Lord Oswald doesn't know about this place, it's really for the best!)

Oswald's magic power had not yet recovered from its depleted state. Randolph clearly harbored hostility, and she didn't want to cause trouble for Oswald.

But Charlotte's thoughts were soon shaken.

"For the current Oswald, managing the Holy Maiden Charlotte is the top priority. If she were to go missing and not return safely—"

"!"

Randolph's lips twisted into a dark smile.

"What punishment do you think His Majesty the King will impose on Oswald?"

"..."

Those words made Charlotte feel a sense of crisis for the first time.

The danger to herself didn't matter.

But if it caused trouble for Oswald, that was a different story.

"Why is that?"

To buy time, Charlotte asked Randolph.

"Why do you hate Lord Oswald so much? Even if Lord Oswald is a powerful person, Your Highness is a noble royal. There's no advantage in mistreating a powerful subordinate."

"Royal..."

A strong anger flashed in Randolph's eyes.

"Do you really know nothing, or are you just pretending?"

"Know what?"

"That's right. You're trying to mock me by pretending to be ignorant."

What was he talking about?

The cold droplets of water from the splash were dripping from her golden hair, gradually cooling and robbing her of her body heat.

"That's why I was against it! If such a wicked person were to be with Oswald, it would only make things worse. Not only my father, but even my brothers agreed and even arranged a marriage!"

(Charlotte suddenly realized something.)

(Could it be that the king's purpose in ordering my marriage to Lord Oswald was not just to seal me?)

She had felt a bit puzzled about it.

(Lady Elvira and Lord Ignatius also mentioned that 'many noble families had proposed marriage to Lord Oswald.')

Indeed, Charlotte had seen this at a ball. She later learned that the three sisters who had proposed marriage to Oswald were the daughters of families involved in the country's finances.

(For the king, it should be wonderful for his excellent subordinates to have a close relationship. Conversely, the necessity of placing a sinner like me in the position of Lord Oswald's wife was low...)

Even if Oswald was the only one who could seal and kill Charlotte.

(Charlotte had been restricted by a contract spell. If that were the case, it should have been easy to make her obey even without Lord Oswald being by her side.)

She had heard that the previous Charlotte had resisted quite a bit when her power was sealed by Oswald.

Still, it was just that.

The first time Charlotte tried to rebel, she could have just called Oswald. She had been thinking that the purpose of arranging a marriage and binding her to Oswald's side was unclear.

(This contradiction couldn't be resolved by the idea of 'placing me under the management of the royal family.' But if the kings had another purpose...)

It was none other than Oswald.

(Perhaps the kings didn't want Oswald to marry the daughter of a powerful family. If that were the case, they didn't want to give Oswald any more support.)

Randolph had shown strong anger at what Charlotte had just said.

(The word that touched his sore spot must have been 'royal.')

Oswald's position in this country is that of a 'duke.'

Charlotte had heard from Ignatius at a recent ball:

"He was discovered to have immense magic power and was adopted into the Langheim Duke's family."

(What if that was a lie to the public? Because 'duke' is a title given to the branches of the royal family.)

Oswald might not have been adopted to inherit the Langheim Duke's family.

Charlotte reached a conclusion.

"That person..."

Recalling Oswald's red eyes, Charlotte raised her face.

Randolph, who was in front of her, glared at her with the same red eyes as Oswald.

"Lord Oswald. He is one of the royals of this country, isn't he?"

That must be the biggest reason why Oswald is a thorn in Randolph's side.

"What are you saying now, when you already knew?"

Randolph said irritably.

"It's truly despicable. Oswald, born to a beautiful woman who isn't even a noble, is our half-brother...!!"

(Not just a royal by blood...)

If Oswald is Randolph's half-brother, his status is clear.

(...Lord Oswald is a hidden prince...!!)