About a week later, the princess finally emerged with dark bags under her eyes. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her eyes were completely bloodshot. If that Sage boy saw her in this state, whatever hundred-year love he had for her would probably freeze over on the spot.
"Please put me in contact with an information broker in the royal capital."
"Lady Rose! Meeting with such ruffians is far too dangerous!"
Predictably, Anna shouted in an attempt to change her mind, turning pale, but Rose ignored her and marched straight up to me.
"I take it this was also part of your scheme, Kai?"
She demanded an answer, her tone stern and leaving no room for evasion.
"Nah. Reaching this conclusion actually took you far longer than I'd expected."
Rose ground her teeth in frustration at my reply, then barked sharply:
"Take me to them."
"Understood."
I pushed myself up from my chair and set off toward Mujina's place.
When I asked Mujina, the black-robed girl, to pass along the information in question, she scoffed:
"Boss, didn't I already tell you that?"
Wearing her usual wicked grin, Mujina puffed on her pipe and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke.
Beside me, Rose glared at me with sheer daggers in her eyes, but I ignored her entirely.
"Tell it to this woman one more time. I'll pay extra."
I requested the intel essential to our plan.
"Sure thing."
Narrowing her eyes, Mujina stared intently at Rose and began to speak.
"The chivalrous thieves, the Wind Cats..."
Rose crossed her arms and sank deep into thought. I always thought this about her, but her ability to focus was truly remarkable. Judging by her demeanor, she had fully grasped the significance of the intel. For a sheltered princess, she had a surprisingly flexible mind.
"Boss, you look awfully pleased with yourself."
I shrugged at Mujina, who was eyeing me with a smirk.
"I suppose."
I gave a slight nod. The royal selection was a stroke of good fortune for me, too. After all, it would all be decided in four or five years. What's more, once this woman was crowned queen, I'd finally be relieved of my duties. For the sake of my slow life, Rose had to win this contest by any means necessary.
Mujina looked back and forth between Rose and me, then gave a candid observation.
"You folks really are something else."
For better or worse, we stood out. In all likelihood, everything about us was already an open book to her. I couldn't place a shred of trust in people of her sort. Even so, as long as she took pride in her craft as an information broker, she remained a useful business partner.
"Save your thinking for later. Let's move."
"Right."
Whether she properly registered my words or not, Rose gave a distracted reply and started walking.
After settling the bill with Mujina, I followed after her.