Ending Conditions of the Princess and the Knight

Following Taeri, who was filled with an unexpected passion, a determination ignited in Claude that he had never experienced before.

“Lucky you, Brigitte Dewey. Today, thanks to the princess, you narrowly escaped a meaningless death.”

“What are you talking about? Who is this crazy guy?”

“If you were a childhood memory of the princess, you should be cherished and kept close to her. How unfortunate.”

“What memories are you talking about? I only remember standing at the back and getting hit on the back of my head.”

“That’s exactly what I mean. Isn’t it a memory that you should be grateful for and cherish for a lifetime? I saved you today.”

“Oh, really? Then, without even a speck of such memories, won’t you meet a miserable fate right here today? You thug with nothing but a sword for a head, take care of yourself. Do you understand?!”

The atmosphere, which seemed to have loosened due to the intense fight between the two, suddenly turned icy cold.

Their relationship wasn’t just bad, it was so bad that they wished for each other’s death.

Even though it was just words, the fight was intense as if it involved blood and flesh.

Ignoring Bridget’s provocation with a low laugh, Claude looked at Taeri standing awkwardly in between them and suddenly wrapped his arm around her shoulders, subtly pulling her towards him.

Then, with a triumphant look, he began to reveal Bridget’s past actions one by one.

“Princess, you shouldn’t let old feelings weaken your heart and associate with someone like this. This woman is a vicious criminal who has tried to sabotage my work and poison me many times.”

“……Bridget, did you give him poison?”

Taeri asked with a surprised look, realizing that what she thought was just an empty threat was actually an attempted murder.

“How dare you meddle in our relationship with such baseless accusations?”

Bridget immediately raised her nails like a ferocious beast, but she did not deny her own criminal acts.

Instead, with a twisted smile on her face, she confidently confessed to what she had done.

“Yeah, I did it because he kept provoking me. Isn’t it natural to not want to see an ugly person thrive? I told him to eat shit and die! The eunuch has no place in our land. Got it?”

She had an undeniably remarkable personality and determination. On one hand, it evoked admiration, and on the other hand, concern.

Although it seemed like a one-sided advancement, the opponent wasn’t just any character in this world. They were the protagonist.

In the end, no matter how much they fought, Taeri was worried that Bridget would be the one to lose.

“Um, let’s not do that anymore, okay?”

“But I’ve already done it, haven’t I?”

“I mean, let’s not do it in the future.”

“It’s okay, there’s no need to be scared. I just gave that scoundrel tea.”

“Yes, that woman sent me tea. She neatly packaged the poisoned tea and sent it.”

“See, that’s all. There’s nothing special about it. There are plenty of deadly poisons in the world, and the weak cannot survive in life, right? If you can’t handle it after drinking, you die. Is that my fault? It’s their fault for being weak. You should have been stronger, right?”

Wondering if such a dangerous outlook on life existed, Claude proudly shared with a growl, baring his teeth, as if it were a basic principle ingrained in them.

“Don’t worry, I drank all the poison you sent me, and I got over it. IThere were occasions when my temperature rose and my stamina dropped, but it didn’t last more than three days, just a tickle.”

“That…… You cam close to dying multiple times.”

“Is that so?”

“You should have a sense of crisis.”

Surviving after drinking a cup of poison, what a useless tale. Why talk about it as if it’s something to be proud of?

However, it seemed to have clearly stimulated Bridget, as she clenched her teeth and confronted Claude, who flaunted his survival as if it were a trophy.

“You seem confident, boasting about how many times you’ve survived. Just wait and see. Some of the things I’ve given you have a long incubation period. You’ll realize how painful it is to be chronically ill while gnashing your teeth!”

“Stubbornness without purpose.”

“Why is it purposeless? If you’re a wizard, you should resist oppression. Don’t surrender. Yes, live diligently instead of dying. I will definitely bring you down with my own hands.”

They were curses pouring down relentlessly. However, Claude completely ignored them and focused solely on Taeri, skillfully taunting her as before.

“Did you hear that? You must understand why she should stay away. Her identity is also suspicious. It’s too knowledgeable and skilled for someone who’s just a teahouse owner. I should have searched the teahouse… Ah, but since the shop is already ruined, there’s no need, right?”

I think there’s an invisible ‘LOL’ emoji at the end of that sentence. While sighing at how well people can manipulate others, Taeri couldn’t help but notice Bridgette’s keen sense of humor.

There is a small difference between poison and medicine. But if left unchecked, Bridget’s knowledge of poison could be an important hint about her as a future plague doctor.

Claude once again thoroughly supervised his friends.

“Don’t associate yourself with such poisonous beings.”

“Oh no! I accidentally acquired the title of ‘poisonous being!'”

Continuing from the barking and growling, the newly sparked flame of a poisonous being grows in size, as if they will tear each other apart.

If left like this, it feels like they will engage in a one-on-one battle here. Taeri firmly grabs whatever part of Claude’s clothes she can and tightly holds him, immobilizing him.

“Please, don’t provoke Bridget too much.”

“I always try not to, but it’s her who’s not cooperating. But since you emphasize it like that, I’ll try to be cautious.”

Although the response is diligent, the underlying meaning is exactly like this: Ah, I try to live a good life, but that person keeps making me look like a bad guy.

Is it possible that we don’t understand each other at all? Taeri quickly turned her mind, deciding to shift the topic of conversation to a completely different subject rather than simply opposing him.

“Although it’s a late greeting, thank you for helping me.”

Although it is currently causing a new disturbance, Claude quickly put an end to a situation that could have been disadvantageous for her by completely expelling the men who were causing a commotion.

Rather than claiming to have good manners and discernment, one could say that his ability to assess the situation was excellent. If he hadn’t intervened against those men, today’s incident could have escalated into a massive confrontation between the local forces and the foreign faction.

If he didn’t desire immediate war, it would have been unwise to escalate the situation. Taeri desired the same outcome.

“I never intended to create a disturbance from the beginning. I’m not sorry for those who lack manners, but I feel sorry that the situation has escalated like this. And as for the consequences… I will find a way to compensate.”

“No, please just leave it. Arrogant individuals will naturally act on their own. I don’t want to do anything on behalf of such people, but in place of an apology, I sincerely apologize on behalf of Valoran.”

As a gesture of apology, Claude also mentioned that if she wished, he could find the men in question and confront them face-to-face. He could bring them in within 10 minutes if she merely spoke the word.

“Because the crime of undermining the dignity of the royal family is not a light matter.”

Dignity, come to think of it, it was a rather unpleasant situation looking back. Was it intentionally created to draw out her character?

If she were a true princess, the psychological impact would have been significant, and it wouldn’t be easy to overlook and forgive such audacious individuals.

However, Taeri, who was not a real princess, did not have the desire to immerse herself in that role to that extent.

It was part of her decision to go outside and prepare herself early on.

She shouldn’t expect the same hospitality outside as she experienced inside the hotel. She knew she would only be respected as a princess within those walls.

Bridget brought her here, claiming that her status would be eternal, but in reality, Taeri knew it wasn’t true. Status is not an immutable attribute for a princess standing at the foot of the slope.

‘I’ll have to save my emotions for another day.’

This is only the beginning, and if the possession lasts longer, how many more incidents like today will occur? Acting like this every time will only prolong the time it takes to reach the ending.

So I said thanks for the apology, but no thanks.

“No, it’s okay. You’ve already given enough warning. Still, I appreciate the apology.”

Receiving such an apology for an unexpected event, even though I didn’t expect it, was somewhat touching and made me genuinely feel good. So I added my honest thoughts, saying, “You’re really a good person.”

However, the expressions of the two people who overheard it up close twisted strangely.

Good? Me?

It had been ages since he received such innocent praise. While Claude was counting the days in a daze, Bridget jumped up and down.

“Are you crazy? Where do you see him as good? He’s the one who shamelessly utters words that destroy human dignity! He may not be garbage in his mouth, but he’s perfectly capable of being a filthy rag…! But why does this lunatic keep acting in front of you?”

“Quickly reveal your hypocritical and dirty nature,” she sharply prodded Claude, but he responded with a clean face and completely different words.

“Tolerance is a noble virtue. It’s a waste to bestow it upon cheap humans. Next time it happens to you, don’t put up with it, just do as you please.”

Claude still couldn’t agree with the princess’s praise of him as a good person, because he had a conscience.

But why bother denying it so vehemently? Is there really no part of me that wants to play the role of the guy who wants to kill while someone sees me in a favorable light?

Somehow, a subtle force entered his shoulders.

“Is it okay to do the same next time?”

“If that’s what you want.”

“No, I don’t intend to cause such trouble in public places.”

I thought he would ask me to be cautious in the future, but he told me to continue. No, he even told me to do more? Feeling like she was being portrayed as a troublemaker, Taeri responded with a bewildered expression.

“Shouldn’t the viceroy be the one asking me to restrain myself?”

“That’s not the case.”

“Why…?”

“Because I can’t guarantee that a similar incident won’t happen again. Each time, it may be difficult for you to show tolerance. I’m just expressing that it would be challenging for me to let it go every time.”

Afterwards, he added, “Kill them, but do it quickly” After contemplating something for a moment, he further imposed another restriction, “However, the truly wicked ones should be killed in the most agonizing manner possible.”