It Turned Out She Wasn't a Favored Concubine - Episode 24

“Perlo Shanaier!”

Perlo exaggeratedly covered his ears with both hands and grumbled.

“So loud. Anyone would think you were meeting an old friend.”

His rude tone right from the start was oddly comforting. Better to be blunt than insincere like some people.

“You’re the one who’s late! Do you know how long I’ve been waiting?”

I complained, still unable to calm my excitement. Perlo crossed his arms and replied indifferently.

“Late? I arrived right on time.”

He was right, so I couldn’t argue further.

I took a deep breath and slapped the table.

“You know I cleaned up the mess from last time. Now it’s your turn to keep your promise.”

“Oh yeah, you chased a cat around the palace, right? Rumors say you poisoned it to watch it die painfully, beat the servants who failed to catch it until they were covered in bruises, and that the ghost of a cat you killed came back to punish you. Are you sure you cleaned it up properly?”

I’d heard the rumors about poisoning the cat and beating the servants. But the ghost part was new.

I replied with a detached expression.

“Yeah, I handled it. A cat ghost? That could happen.”

Perlo leaned back, raising an eyebrow like I was insane.

Even I didn’t know what I was saying.

My image-rehabilitation plan was on hold. My relationship with Rosadel was beyond repair, and rumors were spreading that I had beaten the maids of Arlin Palace out of frustration over the cat. What motivation could I possibly have?

That’s why I had been eagerly awaiting this meeting with Perlo, who held clues to returning to my original world.

“Thanks to you, I’ve earned the title of a crazy, ill-tempered woman. I’ll make sure you pay for that.”

“Weren’t you always a crazy, ill-tempered concubine?”

“No! Well, a little misunderstanding led to that. I was trying to improve my image lately. But someone ruined it.”

“A misunderstanding… I suppose that’s possible.”

Perlo nodded to himself, as if something made sense.

“What are you nodding about?”

“I’m thinking maybe your reputation as a temperamental concubine is a misunderstanding. You’re not even bothered that I’m speaking informally to you.”

Even if Perlo was the greatest Motus artisan, he should still show respect to royalty.

But whether he did or not didn’t matter to me.

And that first impression—well, technically the second, since we first met at the auction—was so intense that imagining Perlo bowing and speaking formally gave me goosebumps.

“Well, you looked like a kidnapper when we first met, so I gave up. I’m speaking informally too, so it’s fine.”

“Kidnapper? You came over on your own! I was shocked that day, you know. But since you kept my name out of it, I’ll grant your request. You asked about inter-world travel using Motus, right?”

Perlo casually swept back his red hair and dropped into a chair.

His arrogant demeanor reflected the confidence of someone who was the top authority on Motus.

Personality and skill are separate things, so I suppressed my nerves and spoke carefully.

“Right. Tell me everything about it.”

Perlo raised an eyebrow slightly. He stared at my tense face for a moment, then stroked his chin.

“I’m really curious about your reason. I spent three days thinking about it and still couldn’t figure it out. I heard you’re from a marquis family and lived recklessly since childhood. Why would a noble lady be interested in this?”

I couldn’t reveal that I wasn’t really Arne.

I replied firmly.

“I told you I don’t have to explain my reasons.”

“Fine, got it.”

Perlo didn’t press further. He walked to the bookshelf, pulled out a thick research book, and placed it on the table.

“What? Don’t tell me that book contains information about Motus and inter-world travel?”

To think the secret I’d been chasing for months was right there—it was almost laughable.

But Perlo shook his head.

“No way. The topic I’m sweating over wouldn’t be in a book like this. I brought it to scribble on. I think better when I write.”

He opened the book and tapped the author’s name.

“I chose this book because I hate the author. Years ago, he tried to steal my research, but I got him back.”

Perlo chuckled and flipped through the pages mischievously. His wicked smile made me wonder what happened to that author.

“I’ll tell you everything, but you already know the basics from the auction, right?”

“Of course. I’ve read quite a few books too.”

“Alright then…”

Perlo hesitated, then drew a circle on a blank page of the book. I naturally sat in the chair beside him.

“Think of this circle as Motus. Split it in half, and you get two Motus fragments—Dimotus. For Motus to function, it must be divided into two Dimotus.”

“Right, because spatial movement means moving from one Dimotus to another.”

Perlo nodded at my response.

“Exactly. So popping into a place without a Dimotus is technically impossible. Inter-world travel breaks that rule.”

“So… it’s technically impossible?”

Perlo smirked, sensing my intent.

“Technically. But there are exceptions to everything. Motus is no different. There’s a rumor among Motus artisans about a Motus that can move on its own without being split into Dimotus. If that exists, then popping into an empty space becomes possible.”

“Wait, that really exists? Have you seen it?”

I leaned forward in excitement, causing Perlo to nearly fall backward.

“Whoa, no. If I’d seen it, I’d have finished my research already.”

He adjusted his chair and moved away from me.

“It’s just a rumor among artisans. Most ignore it, but I, with my genius intuition, dug into it and traced the source.”

“Where was it?”

“Zaren Kingdom. But they’re not friendly with the Empire and don’t welcome foreign artisans, so it was hard to investigate. However…”

Perlo gave me a sly smile.

“Thanks to the famous Giskal von Edelheit winning the war, I finally got a chance to investigate freely.”

I hadn’t expected Arne’s brother Giskal to come up.

Because he won the war against Zaren, Perlo could investigate the rumored Motus. It all fit together too perfectly.

“So I went to Zaren and started collecting rumors. While investigating, I heard about a strange child who appeared in a border village around the end of the war. The kid had a handful of Motus. Weird, right? So I rushed to the village.”

I listened intently, not even blinking.

“The kid had a scent. That unique scent from those born with the ability to sense Motus. And he had talent—high-level talent. The Motus he had wasn’t ordinary.”

“What do you mean?”

I urged him to continue, and Perlo recalled his amazement.

“It was a Motus without defined stages. Transparent like glass.”

“What?”

“That Motus encompassed all four stages.”

“That’s… possible?”

Perlo shook his head.

“It was thought to be impossible. But it wasn’t. Like I said, Motus still holds many secrets.”

He hadn’t revealed the existence of this undefined Motus yet.

“I need to understand it fully before announcing it. Otherwise, it could cause problems. I’ll keep it hidden until I finish interpreting the book the kid had.”

“A book?”

“That book is important. It’s written in a lost language, and even partial translation took a long time. But it clearly contains new crafting techniques. Techniques so vast that even a genius couldn’t master them alone. I suspect Zaren Kingdom may have been researching special crafting methods.”

Perlo rubbed his chin, lost in thought. I cut him off before he could digress.

“So does that book contain a way to travel to another world?”

“No, not exactly.”

He raised his palm.

“Hold on. It’s complicated, so I need to explain in order.”

I wondered if the “you” in “so you can understand” was really necessary, but I sat quietly.

“I don’t know if the book contains what you want. I haven’t finished translating it. But considering the rumor started in Zaren and the book contains new techniques, it’s not impossible.”

Rumors from Zaren and a book with new crafting methods—could that be my hope?

“What about the kid?”

“The doctor said he’s too traumatized to speak. When I ask about Motus, he shows extreme anxiety. He clearly wasn’t just born with talent—he trained in Motus crafting. So I’m waiting.”

“I see…”

Perlo, the top Motus expert, said there was a chance I could return to my original world.

But after days of fear, his answer didn’t meet my hopes.

I couldn’t hide my disappointment.

Had I been hoping for something like “You can travel to another world right now”?

Of course, I didn’t expect to return immediately.

But I’d hoped for something more concrete—something I could grasp.

My rational mind told me that confirming the possibility through Perlo was enough. But my emotions didn’t agree.

Disappointment washed over me, followed by the memory of the maids’ battered faces three days ago.

I could still see Leanne’s pale, unconscious face.

If I couldn’t escape this world, I’d end up like them—at the hands of that cruel, hypocritical emperor.

And that future didn’t seem far away…

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