I Was Happy to Be Dumped by My Fiancé, But Something Seems Off - Episode 20

“Bertina, it’s morning.”

“Mmm…”

Even as she protested by pulling the comfortable duvet over her head to show she didn’t want to get up, the duvet was forcefully stripped away, exposing her to the sunlight. Resigned, Bertina sat up and glared with half-closed eyes at Argent, who was already dressed and standing there with a cheerful smile.

“Good morning, Argent! You’re quite early today.”

“I can’t sleep well when the pillow changes. You slept soundly, Bertina.”

“That’s right! Being able to sleep anywhere is important.”

“Haha, true enough.”

One could say that sleep is one of the most important activities for humans. Suppressing a small yawn, she got out of bed, washed her face with the warm water Argent had prepared, finished her morning skincare with the toner and cream provided by the female priestess, and sat down at the vanity to have her hair combed.

“I met with the High Priestess a little while ago, and it seems the Annaloro ducal family has complained to the royal family that the High Priestess took Bertina away without permission. The royal family’s agents will probably be here soon.”

“So, we need to leave the cathedral before they come.”

“Yeah. Once you’re dressed, we have an errand for the High Priestess. She asked us to pick up a sedative for after the charm on the king is lifted.”

“Understood.”

Their destination was a small town in the south, half a month away by carriage from the kingdom. Their task was to retrieve the sedative from a pharmacist acquaintance of Inanna’s there. Inanna could easily go alone using teleportation magic in an instant, but this time, it was a pretext to get Bertina and the others out of the royal capital.

Although Bertina and the others would also use teleportation magic to travel, their return would only be after a signal from Inanna.

“I suppose by the time we return to the royal capital, everything will be over?”

“It should be fine to think so… Oh, right, I also heard this from the High Priestess.”

What Argent told her was about Luigi, the Duke of Moldio.

“He came to the Annaloro residence to pick up Clarissa and the Duchess of Moldio. Apparently, even after seeing his wife playing at being lovers with your father, Duke Moldio didn’t change his expression at all.”

“…”

So, this was the situation of the remaining members confirmed through clairvoyance magic.

What was even more surprising was that, unlike her mother, there were no traces of Luigi being charmed.

Bertina was horrified to learn that her uncle Luigi was accepting Anies’s actions while in his right mind. Normally, wouldn’t anyone have some reaction upon seeing their wife, even if it’s their own brother, loving another man?

“The High Priestess has the priests investigating whether Duke Moldio might be a demon, but…”

“From your perspective, Argent, is Duke Moldio human?”

“Yeah. He seems purely human. If he had magic power, I’d definitely notice, and above all, he doesn’t smell like a demon.”

“Is there a smell?”

“Humans can’t tell.”

If he, a demon, said so, then it must be true.

“If Uncle is in his right mind, then persuading him to stop Auntie is impossible, isn’t it?”

“Probably. If he had any intention of stopping her, he would have done so long ago.”

“Because he doesn’t want Auntie to hate him?”

“Maybe. Or perhaps…”

“Or perhaps?”

“Perhaps he has a fetish for watching his wife being intimate with another man.”

“That’s too realistic, stop it!”

Since she needed to fix her hair and change clothes, she asked Argent to leave the room for a while. Bertina called a female priestess and changed from her nightwear into a comfortable dress suitable for walking outside. The scary part was that it had been prepared for Bertina at some point without her knowing. There was no need to say who had prepared it.

Leaving the room, she took Argent and headed to Inanna’s High Priestess chambers. She felt relieved to see Inanna properly dressed so early in the morning.

“Good morning, Bertina-chan! Did you sleep well?”

“Yes. Very well.”

“That’s good! I think you’ve heard from the demon prince, but shall we have you go right away~? Have breakfast over there. There are lots of delicious shops, so enjoy yourselves for a while.”

“Will you be alright, Lady Inanna?”

“I’ll be fine! It’s just dealing with the boy. Besides, it’s a perfect chance to put the royal family in my debt. Lately, I’ve been troubled, they’ve been using this place as an employment spot for noble sons and daughters with nowhere to go. Since most priests are commoners, these nobles immediately act arrogant and push their work onto others, so there’s no benefit. Although there are some children who do work properly.”

Bertina understood that Inanna’s true intention was likely this when she said she’d lift the king’s charm early.

The cathedral generally doesn’t interfere in politics, but does so actively during emergencies. Especially when Inanna gets involved, it’s during serious times. Now was such a time.

Though anxiety flashed through her about leaving matters concerning the Annaloro ducal family and Anies to Inanna, she was told that Bertina’s presence would actually be more dangerous, so she had no choice but to entrust it to her.

Using the teleportation magic Inanna prepared, they immediately arrived at the southern town where the pharmacist who made the sedative was located.

Since it was in the south, the wind blowing was slightly warmer than in the royal capital. A sweet scent rode the wind, and when they searched for its source, it came from a shop not far from where Bertina and the others were.

Curious, they approached and saw the shop was moderately crowded. Looking at the dishes the customers were eating, they had come for breakfast.

“Let’s go in too.”

“Alright.”

Entering the shop, they were guided to a table by a server and ordered two morning sets. For drinks, Bertina chose hot milk, while Argent chose hot milk with chopped chocolate.

After the server left, they slowly looked around the shop. It was a fairly old building but had a clean feel. The owners’ cleaning was thorough.

“By now, the royal family’s envoy has probably arrived at the cathedral.”

“Worried?”

“Of course.”

“What we need to do now is complete the errand the High Priestess asked of us and stay in this town until the situation calms down.”

“That’s right!”

If they stayed quietly, no one would notice Bertina was in a rural town. And since they knew it wasn’t a distance that could be covered in just one day, it was even more unbelievable.

Even telling herself this, her uneasiness wouldn’t calm down.

She had a bad feeling.

—While Bertina and the others were waiting for their breakfast, at the cathedral, Riet in disguise stood before Inanna.

“Bertina isn’t here!?”

“Nope, she’s not!”

“Where did she go!? And that attendant!?”

“Together, together~. What’s wrong, Crown Prince boy?”

“Please tell me where they are!”

“No~ way, I can’t hand them over to Crown Prince boy when Bertina-chan is in danger. Do you know why?”

“Would that attendant be fine then?”

“Yes. Crown Prince boy, if you come, Bertina-chan will run away. Do you understand why?”

“Tch!”

Even unspoken, Riet understood Inanna’s point and twisted his face in frustration. Soon, knights would arrive here under the king’s orders to “protect” Bertina.

Officially, it was protection. The real purpose was abduction.

“…Last night, Father told Mother and me that it’s decided. Clarissa will be Crown Princess, and Bertina will be Clarissa’s shadow. He wouldn’t listen to our words. If Bertina is captured…!”

“…I see~ …If Anies-chan doesn’t genuinely intend to make Clarissa-chan the Crown Princess, then this is the king’s own decision…”

“What are you…”

Having organized her thoughts, Inanna smiled seductively and patted the confused Riet’s shoulder.

“Don’t worry about Bertina-chan. But if you’re still concerned, how about helping me out~?”