Chapter 36: After waiting back

Rodrick nodded nervously:

“Of course, of course!! Whatever Your Highness the Princess needs, just say the word, and I will do everything in my power!”

Heidi nodded in satisfaction.

“Sit down. I’ll make a note of what you’re to do later. First, tell me how to save you.”

“Thank you, thank you…”

Rodrick, weak all over, propped himself up, grabbed a handkerchief, wiped the sweat pouring down his face, and shakily sat back down in his seat.

He cautiously asked:

“Your Highness… how do you plan to save me?”

Heidi tapped the table in front of her and said:

“Right now, if we want to save your life, the top priority is to stop things from escalating.

The Crystal Rock Centipede incident is beyond repair, but the earlier matters absolutely must not be exposed.”

Rodrick nodded, swallowing hard, then made a slicing motion across his own throat with his thumb:

“So, you mean… we’re going to get rid of that mutt called Ein?”

To Rodrick, everything had started with that bastard Ein.

Without him, he was pretty sure he’d be lying back counting money happily instead of in this mess.

“But… his wife is a noble. Isn’t it risky to act against him so casually?”

At the mention of ‘wife’, Heidi’s stomach twisted painfully, and the muscles in her face twitched uncontrollably.

Did he have to say ‘wife’!?!

Trying to pick a fight, was he!?

Heidi clutched her chest, suddenly hit hard, then forced herself to stay calm and shook her head:

“No, we can’t touch him.”

No matter how much Ein wronged her, she had to bring him back first before thinking of what to do next.

If he were killed, that would be pointless.

Besides, even if Ein was weak, he was still a Hero.

None of the lowly adventurers in the local guild would be a match for him.

“So, Your Highness means…”

“That woman, Vivian, send a team to kidnap her.”

Rodrick’s face instantly turned pale.

“Vivian? That imperial noblewoman? Won’t that cause trouble!?”

Heidi sneered coldly.

“Trouble? What trouble? The third daughter of a low-ranking imperial noble on Kingdom soil is no different from a commoner. She really thinks too highly of herself!”

“But…”

Rodrick hesitated, and Heidi was growing impatient.

“Tomorrow, I’ll have that Ein called out. You just arrange for your people to make a move. Remember, leave no trace. Once you succeed, immediately move the person out of the city. The further the better.”

Thinking back to that woman’s countless rude behaviors last night and seeing the two of them happily dating now, a surge of anger flared in Heidi’s heart.

So she added:

“Tell your people to be clean about it. Don’t do anything disgraceful, and don’t kill her. Once the heat dies down, I want to personally teach her a lesson!”

By now, even someone as slow as Rodrick could see the personal grudge between these two.

He dared not say more, just wiped the sweat off his face again with force:

“But what about the Crystal Rock Centipede incident… what should we do?”

He’d been too harsh in his accusations just now.

Even if the earlier issues could be covered up, this alone was enough to ruin him.

Heidi took a letter from her bosom and threw it on the table.

“Send this letter to Duke Brian as fast as possible, and I guarantee you’ll be fine. Don’t forget—you owe me a favor.”

Duke Brian, one of the kingdom’s great nobles, and the local Viscount Sean Edgar belonged to his faction.

He was on the weaker side among the dukes, so he hadn’t participated in the previous Marquis Coup against Heidi’s claim to the throne.

He was one of the few who remained loyal to the Royal Family.

Like Ein, he was a pillar that kept Heidi’s position stable.

He had close ties with the higher-ups of the Kingdom Adventurers Guild.

As long as he stepped in, securing the guild master position would be a breeze.

Besides that, Heidi planned to ask him to help transfer Sean out of Tafia for a while.

That way, with Vivian kidnapped and Sean transferred away, Ein’s network of connections in Tafia would collapse instantly.

He’d be utterly isolated and helpless.

Then, using the favor owed to Rodrick, Heidi would have him keep sending people to hassle Ein nonstop—enough to keep him sleepless and unable to eat, completely unable to gain a foothold.

After that, she would casually step in to comfort him, offer some favors, and use the advantage to smoothly bring him back.

Problem solved.

Heidi smiled slyly inside.

Ein, you really shouldn’t think so highly of yourself.

All those past incidents—if it weren’t for your fiancé status with me, not a single one would have been possible for you.

This time, let me remind you just where you stand.

“…Tsk, I have a bad feeling about this.”

Ezra suddenly felt a chill run down his spine inside the clothing store, even goosebumps breaking out.

He unconsciously twisted his body.

From behind the curtain of the fitting room came faint rustling noises.

After a moment—

“Ta-da! How about this set?”

The curtain was pulled back to reveal Vivian dressed in tight black tights paired with a white sweater, topped off with a newsboy cap.

She stuck her tongue out and made a V sign, trying her best to look bright and cute.

She was also wearing a pair of plain glasses, maybe to look more well-behaved?

Unfortunately, the two enormous, aggressive mounds under the sweater were far too prominent, drawing all attention and ruining the overall effect.

Ezra gave a half-hearted response:

“Not bad, I guess.”

Vivian was clearly unhappy with this answer, puffing out her cheeks in displeasure.

Then she sighed helplessly.

“Not this either? I’ve tried mature style, sexy style, loli style, cute style—you didn’t react to any of them.

It really hurts my feelings—”

“What kind of reaction am I supposed to have?”

“Hmm… urgently pounce on me and pin me down, strip me right off?”

Ezra covered his eyes, utterly speechless.

Some previous information had mentioned that witches tended to have strange, eccentric personalities because of their reclusive nature and lack of social contact, each with their own quirks.

But the problem was, this girl technically wasn’t even a witch.

He just couldn’t figure her out.

Vivian looked at the huge pile of clothes she’d brought over and, after some thought, picked up one item and nodded resolutely:

“No choice. Let’s try this one.”

“Wait… what’s that?”

Vivian held a small black one-piece garment.

In Ezra’s original world, it would be called a catsuit.

It looked small, but once put on, its elasticity would make it fit perfectly to the body, giving the effect of wearing something yet seeming naked.

Generally, this was more like lingerie than clothing.

Succubi often loved to wear these openly anywhere.

Why on earth would a store like this sell such an item?

No time to think about that.

Seeing Vivian pick it up and head toward the fitting room, Ezra hurriedly stopped her.

“Wait, you’re really going to try that on!?”

“Yeah, what’s wrong?”

The witch showed a carefree expression, shrugged off Ezra’s hand, and cheerfully entered the fitting room, followed by the sounds of rustling fabric.

Ezra was dumbfounded and looked around.

It was still afternoon, and the clothing store was quite large.

There were plenty of customers and staff around.

Vivian’s figure couldn’t be hidden by anything.

Just imagining how her chest and waist would almost burst out of that thing made Ezra’s stomach churn.

If she really appeared in public like that…

No, just thinking about it gave him a stomach ache.

But there was no way he could rush into the fitting room to stop her—that would be even more inexplicable!

Even facing an onslaught of beastmen, Ezra had never felt so helpless.

In his panic, with a “swish” the fitting room curtain suddenly opened.

“Wait, don’t—hmm?”

Ezra froze.

Vivian was wearing the same clothes she’d come in with.

The ridiculous catsuit hung on her arm, untouched.

“…Not wearing it?”

“Nope.”

The witch walked up to Ezra, lightly flicked his forehead, and grinned mischievously:

“What, you wanted to see me wear it? You pervert~”

“…Uh.”

Completely flustered, Ezra watched Vivian walk past him, pick up the clothes she’d chosen, pay for them, and then return.

Seeing Ezra still dazed, Vivian blushed slightly and leaned close to whisper:

“I don’t want anyone but you to see me in something like that.”

“…”

“Don’t be so impatient. You can see it however you want once we get home.

Hehe, or do you want to take it further?”

“I…”

“Great expression. Let’s go~”

Having seen enough of Ezra’s red-faced embarrassment, Vivian grabbed his hand and led him out of the store.

For a long time afterward, Ezra could only cover his face, unable to calm down.

He had to admit it—this girl was definitely beyond his ability to handle.