How to Survive as a Princess in a Reverse Harem Game - Chapter 92
It seems it wasn’t entirely the case.
If I were to go by what I’d learned, Evgenia’s authority should have been substantial. So why was she letting Morris Futurum off the hook?
‘Does he have some sort of leverage over her? Or… could she truly love Morris Futurum?’
After all, they say that love can render even reason powerless.
Regardless of the reason, either possibility was troubling. It was an angle I hadn’t accounted for.
Now, there was only one thing left to do: hope that Morris Futurum had made that mistake.
“Your Majesty, may I perhaps directly request the compensation you mentioned earlier?”
“Go ahead.”
She was likely saying she’d hear me out and decide whether to grant it.
“I’d like to request a large quantity of young barley powder, turnips, kohlrabi, and cinnamon, all imbued with anti-decay magic. Would that be possible?”
Hearing my request, Evgenia’s expression turned peculiar.
“May I ask why you need those things?”
“They’re good for the body, so I thought it would be nice to distribute them along with the iron supplements.”
“It’s a good idea, but are you sure you’re fine with that? This is supposed to be a ‘reward’ I’m giving you.”
“Yes, that’s enough for me.”
At my prompt reply, Evgenia tilted her head slightly, as if she couldn’t understand. Judging by her expression, she must have been considering some kind of monetary compensation, so my peculiar request likely seemed baffling to her.
‘Though, to be honest, I have another reason for asking.’
Of course, I couldn’t share that reason yet. It wasn’t something I could be certain of, and there was always the risk that the information might leak to Morris Futurum or someone else, much like it had with coquo.
‘That would be a problem.’
After a brief silence, Evgenia, seemingly feeling that my request wasn’t suitable as a formal reward, offered to prepare it separately.
I expressed my gratitude, and thus, my private audience with Evgenia concluded on a positive note.
* * *
A few days later, I went to the royal distribution center outside the palace with Reno and Isaac to distribute the trial batch of iron supplements.
As before, we decided to hide our identities by wearing enchanted robes and cloaks that blurred others’ perception of us. While my personal safety was a concern, the real issue was how conspicuous the two of them looked. Isaac’s commanding presence was hard to ignore, and Reno’s elven medietas made it likely that commoners would feel too intimidated to approach.
Though I needed to establish my presence among the people, I felt that revealing myself from the beginning would diminish the impact. Instead, I planned to make an appearance midway through.
‘Making an entrance when they least expect it leaves a stronger impression.’
At the distribution center, alongside the boxes of iron supplements, there were sacks of grains and vegetables I had specifically requested from Evgenia.
Perhaps feeling guilty about the whole Morris Futurum affair, Evgenia had also sent additional staff to the distribution center. Thanks to that, handing out the iron supplements didn’t seem like it would be too difficult.
Before opening the doors to the distribution center, I was coordinating briefly with the palace healers when someone pointed at the sacks of grains and vegetables and asked me a question.
“Princess, should we distribute these as well?”
“No. For now, we’ll only hand out the coquo.”
“Then when will these be distributed?”
“Later. I have a separate use for them, so don’t worry about it right now.”
Leaving behind the curious onlookers, we finished our preparations, and the distribution center finally opened its doors. We waited solemnly, anticipating the arrival of visitors.
However, hours passed, and no one showed up.
‘Why isn’t anyone coming?’
Even though most commoners were illiterate, we had placed a wooden signboard in front of the distribution center to let people know about the change. The idea was that anything new in a familiar location would naturally draw attention. But no one came.
‘This makes everything we prepared pointless.’
It seemed the task of distributing the trial batch wasn’t given as a quest without reason—this was turning out to be more challenging than expected.
“Is it normal for so few people to come?”
“Yes, it’s not unusual. The Hezica medicine is notoriously unpleasant, so people tend to avoid it…….”
The royal healer, who had answered me absentmindedly, suddenly clamped a hand over their mouth, as if realizing their mistake. They glanced at me nervously, gauging my reaction. To ease the tension, I let out an exaggerated laugh.
“It is awful, isn’t it? I almost spat it out after taking one bite myself.”
“You actually ate it……?”
“I thought it was only right to try what the citizens of the kingdom are eating.”
For a moment, soft murmurs of admiration spread among the people around me.
“Come to think of it, I heard the coquo was also your invention, Princess. You seem to care greatly for the citizens.”
“As a member of the royal family, I simply did what was expected of me.”
Ding!
[<System> The royal healers’ respect for you has increased.]
[<System> Your reputation among the royal healers has improved.]
