“100! We have 100 gold pieces!”

Mister G’s excited voice filled the theater.

My heart raced. Finally, the time had come for Ulysses and I to go head-to-head.

“At least I got the family out safely.”

If Henry, Tara or Asil had tried to claim them instead of me, Ulysses’ anger would have been directed elsewhere.

Ulysses’ anger should only be directed at me.

Our family has been involved in a lot of shady deals, so it’s better for Ulysses’ anger to be directed at me, who is relatively clean in the eyes of the family.

“But the asking price is higher than expected.”

But it’s not completely unmanageable. I sold estates and territories just to afford this. I confidently raised the placard. The auctioneer quickly spotted me and called out.

“Oh! We have 110 gold! Do we have any more?”

“120 gold.”

That’s right. A familiar voice came from the box across from me. Even though he was wearing a mask, his frustration was evident in his voice.

The auctioneer added to the excitement.

“120 gold pieces! We have 120 gold! Any more?”

I raised my placard again.

“130 gold.”

“130! We have 130 gold!”

As the price rose, I could feel Ulysses’ eyes on me. He raised his placard again.

“140.”

“150.”

“…200!”

Ulysses and I continued to raise the bid as if it were a competition. Dahlia’s Brilliance, increasing in 10 gold increments, had now reached 200 gold.

That was the same amount as Raphael’s commission. To go above that price would be a loss.

But…

“400.”

It didn’t matter. After I bought Baron Ella’s estate, money would flow like water for me.

I grinned at Ulysses across from me.

“I didn’t sell Count Zachary’s Manor and buy Baron Ella’s Manor for nothing.”

Baron Ella’s Manor contained a dormant diamond mine.

The mine consistently produced high quality diamonds without running dry. It was a dream come true, a diamond mine, not just a gold mine. Thanks to it, Baron Ella was sitting on a pile of wealth.

“Now it’s my pile of wealth.”

Haha, I didn’t hide my satisfaction as I held up the poster and looked at Ulysses. The auctioneer shouted excitedly.

“400! Do we have anything over 400?”

There wouldn’t be. Even the largest diamond in the world is yellow if it’s of lesser quality than a flawless diamond. Buying more than 400 gold would be a loss.

Mr. G shouted loudly.

“Dahlia’s Brilliance is sold to the lady with the butterfly mask in box three for 400 gold pieces!”

“Even cheaper than I expected.”

Paying 400 gold for such a large but ignorant royalty might seem foolish to others, but not to me.

Ah, it felt good. Ulysses staring at me with all his might felt satisfying. This was what I wanted.

From now on, I would threaten Ulysses.

“If you don’t stop bothering me, I’ll continue to do things like this.”

I didn’t look away from Ulysses and smiled smugly as I waved the fan.

It was similar to what Evelyn would do, but the conditions were different, so I felt no guilt.

With this, Walpurgis Night was over.

I would pay the price and receive the jewels, then leave. Thinking so, as I stood up from my seat, I saw her.

“Young Lady Hebe?”

Dahlia from the first-floor balcony was looking at Ulysses with a disgusted expression.

“Why is Dahlia here…?”

And not far from her, I saw a familiar man.

“Raphael…?”

Why would Dahlia be here to ruin things…?

And Raphael seemed to share my sentiments, looking at me with the same expression of disappointment.

* * *

A few hours earlier.

Dahlia hurriedly dropped the letter she held in her hand and ran into the street.

“No, no… This can’t be happening!”

Dahlia’s father, Count Hebe, is a serious addict. Amiable on the outside, but deeply into alcohol and gambling.

That’s why Dahlia works in the Magic Tower.

Still, the debts have been manageable so far with Dahlia’s tireless work.

Of course, the debt she incurred when she got engaged to Ulysses could be a problem, but since it was legally borrowed from a bank, it wasn’t a big deal.

But this time was different.

“Borrowing money from loan sharks just to go to that damn auction…!”

Dahlia’s tears welled up as she unfolded the crumpled invitation, despite her futile attempts to control herself.

The annual auction night, Walpurgis Night, was an ominous and glamorous affair.

The one who lent her the money was the host of Walpurgis Night.

Luckily, Count Hebe intervened before she arrived, otherwise she would have been buried in massive debt and illegal business.

“It hasn’t been long since I borrowed this money. If I return it now, I can pay the interest!”

With tears streaming down her face, Dahlia ran through the brilliantly lit streets, feeling small in the grandeur.

But just before reaching the opera house where Walpurgis Night was being held, Dahlia stopped.

“Can I really face them alone?”

The loan sharks were after exorbitant profits.

Even if she tried to repay the money borrowed, if they deliberately vacate the premises, inflate the interest, and things don’t go as planned, they resort to violence like anyone else.

Although she’s the Crown Prince’s mistress, she’s just a young lady from a poor county family, not even as rich as the barony family.

On top of that, she is threatened by ruthless loan sharks under the guise of Count Hebe’s illegal business dealings…

“Why does no one ever help me in my life…!”

If unjust accusations of borrowing from loan sharks were pinned on her, her engagement to Ulysses would be ruined.

And the emperor didn’t seem to look favorably upon her either!

“Sniff.”

As Dahlia sat in the street, crying helplessly, a shadow loomed over her. The owner of the shadow spoke to her kindly.

“Oh, dear lady, I cannot just pass by when I see a lady crying in the street.”

Dahlia immediately stopped crying.

The smell of soap, the soft voice.

Dahlia looked up and was surprised to see the man’s identity.

“Marquis…!”

It was Raphael.

The paragon of integrity, Raphael Celestian.

Raphael smiled and held out his gloved hand.

“Is there something troubling you, Young Lady Hebe?”

Ah, perhaps there is hope after all.

In Dahlia’s eyes, Raphael looked more princely than Ulysses at that moment.

With a sense of relief, Dahlia wiped away her tears and clung to Raphael.

“Please help me, Marquis!”

—

“Here we are.”

Outside the opera house, Dahlia nodded in response to Raphael’s question.

At Dahlia’s request, Raphael accompanied her to Walpurgis Night.

“…”

Dahlia swallowed her nerves and looked at the opera house.

Despite the total darkness of the night, the Opera House shone brightly. The dazzling lights made Dahlia feel momentarily revived.

“Wait, if anyone sees me like this…”

Noble families familiar with Walpurgis Night would know. The Praviche family would probably be there as well.

While it’s not yet certain if Raphael is real, he is, after all, Evelyn’s fiancé.

If they see her with Raphael, who knows how they’ll manipulate the situation between her and Ulysses.

The Praviche family wouldn’t hesitate to do anything for Evelyn’s sake.

Even if Evelyn pretended to have given up on Ulysses and pretended to be looking out for her, they might not extend the same courtesy to her.

“Anyway, I’m an adult now. I can be here.”

Dahlia considered the difficult situations she would face if she encountered Evelyn inside.

Evelyn’s malice, the Emperor’s wrath, Ulysses’ disappointment!

Noticing Dahlia’s uneasiness, Raphael asked her curiously, “Why is that, Young Lady Hebe? Let’s go inside.”

Already holding the invitation from the gatekeeper and having received her mask, Dahlia looked at the pristine white mask presented to her.

“No, I shouldn’t involve the Marquis.”

Even though her shameful family situation was already out in the open, she didn’t want to be even more disgraceful in front of someone as honorable as Raphael.

Regaining her composure, Dahlia took a step back from the Marquis.

“I’ll go in alone, Marquis. I apologize.”

“May I ask why?”

Instead of getting angry at Dahlia’s erratic behavior, Marquis responded with a friendly question. Dahlia, her face flushed with embarrassment, avoided his gaze.

“I don’t want to get you in trouble, Marquis.”

Of course, not wanting to expose the Marquis to any more of her shameful behavior was the main reason.

“By the way, Young Lady Hebe, you mentioned you wanted to pay me back for the handkerchief.”

Dahlia looked at the Marquis in surprise. ‘Why bring that up now?’ she wondered. Marquis smiled kindly.

“Please consider this repayment. When I see a young lady in such distress, I fear for my peaceful sleep tonight.”

“Ah…”

Suddenly, Dahlia had a thought.

Was there another man who spoke so kindly and offered such comfort? At least Ulysses didn’t do that for her.

While many men were kind to her, there were few who would accept her flawed self.

As if enchanted, Dahlia’s head nodded involuntarily. The Marquis smiled in satisfaction and extended his gloved hand.

“Shall we go then?”

“Yes!”

As Dahlia nodded, the heavy doors of the opera house opened.

Step by step.

Guided by the attendants, Dahlia and Marquis entered the auction house.

“You may go to box K5.”

“Thank you.”

Marquis was polite even to a mere auction house attendant. Dahlia blushed slightly, but couldn’t say much.

“Ugh.”

As soon as they entered the auction house, Dahlia wrinkled her nose and covered it. The auction house was filled with a pungent scent of perfume.

Everyone wore masks, but their eyes gleamed with desire as they looked at the items on the auction block.

“Where is the organizer?”

Although they entered to meet the organizer, Dahlia didn’t know where to go. Just as Dahlia was scanning the area and trying to navigate the crowd, she froze.

“…!”

Box seats on the second floor. In them, a woman with pink blonde hair and a butterfly mask was elegantly watching the auction block. Dahlia forgot to breathe.

“Evelyn Praviche!”

Evelyn was indeed here. Dahlia looked nervously at Marquis.

Though hidden behind a mask, Marquis seemed taken aback, his complexion paling.

“I didn’t mean to involve Marquis…!”

Seeing his fiancée in such a place must have been shocking to the upright Marquis.

Just as she was about to send Marquis away, the loud voice of the auctioneer filled the theater.

“Now for the most anticipated item of the evening. The largest diamond ever found! Resembling the sun with its bright yellow color! A jewel that will go down in history, Dahlia’s Radiance. Do you see it? That dazzling color! A 590 carat diamond. Starting at 100 gold!”

Dahlia’s eyes involuntarily returned to the stage. A jewel with her name on it was being auctioned off for 100 pieces of gold.

But before she could think any further, a very familiar voice dominated her attention.

“100 gold.”

“…!”

Dahlia turned her head to the source of the sound. Pew number 7 across from Evelyn.

“100 gold! The golden-haired gentleman in Box 7 has bid 100 gold!”

A very familiar, dazzling golden-haired man wearing a golden mask.

“Your Highness…?”

It was Ulysses. There was no mistaking him.

Dahlia, already afraid of doing something wrong, couldn’t help but worry that she wouldn’t be able to marry Ulysses. And now the Crown Prince of the Empire, whom she was supposed to be an example to, was in an underground market.