Rosie's Games

Chapter 72: Princess Isabel 2

"Five million gold coins," Rosalind said to the man sitting in front of her. She then looked at Mr. Pratt and towards Princess Isabel who was glaring at her. The man sitting next to Princess Isabel was someone that she only met once in her past life.

The Duke of Duance.

"That amount—"

"For every treatment," Rosalind continued, interrupting the Duke of Duance.

There was another silence.

"Are you aware of this Mr. Pratt?" the Duke asked.

"Miss Lin can demand as much as she likes, Your Grace. I am merely someone who is protecting her identity. I do not intend to control her or tell her what to do."

"Fifteen million in gold," the Duke snorted. "You must have been made aware that I can only withdraw five million every day from the merchant bank without arousing the suspicion of the Emperor."

Even Pratt looked surprised. He looked at Rosalind and in response, Rosalind shrugged, saying nothing. In the past, while she was doing all dirty transactions behind the Emperor's back, she could only withdraw five million gold coins in a day. The Empress— her very own sister— told her this.

Any transaction over five million gold coins would be added to a list that was then sent to the Emperor. They were doing this to avoid illegal activities and to keep track of the people that could possibly be plotting something against the Empire.

"Fifteen million is a lot, father," Princess Isabel said.

"Are you saying that your life is not even worth fifteen million, Your Highness?" Rosalind mocked. "If that is the case—"

"I did not say that! My life is definitely worth more than fifteen million. Isn't that right, father?" josei

When the Duke did not answer, the Princess added. "My life is worth more than fifteen million. To prove that, I am going to give you another five million once the treatment is done."

"There is no need for that, Your Highness," Mr. Pratt smiled.

"No. How dare someone like you say that I am worth nothing more than fifteen million?"

"It seems that your daughter needs treatment that is far beyond me, Your Grace," Rosalind ignored the woman. "Perhaps something that focuses on her psyche?"

"You— How—"

"Isabel, enough," the Duke snapped. "I did not come here to listen to you talk about your worth. The only reason why I came here is that I cannot watch my daughter suffer. What happened in that forest was your fault for being not strong enough. You wanted to chase a duke that could slay heavenly demons and yet you refuse to even make yourself strong. Did you perhaps think the North is something that the likes of you can walk in just because… their life is worth more than fifteen million gold coins!?"

"Father—"

"We will settle this matter at home. For now, leave us."

"But—"

"I will talk to Miss Lin and Mr. Pratt alone about the treatment. Miss Lin already assured us that you will not be feeling any pain tonight. Take this as an opportunity to get a good rest."

Princess Isabel once again glared at Rosalind and Mr. Pratt then she left the room without saying another word.

"I always thought that I raised my daughter with enough love and support," the Duke said tiredly, his face a little grim. "It seems that I loved her a little bit more than a normal parent should. She has become like this because of me. For that, I am going to apologize," the Duke continued. This time, there was a small sincere smile on his face.

"Your Grace does not need to apologize. I am certain that Miss Lin did not take the young Princess's attitude to heart."

Rosalind nodded in response. However, she was tempted to laugh when Mr. Pratt mentioned the word 'young." It seems that the old man was quite good with his words.

Princess Isabel is no longer young. She was far from being someone that should act like this and Mr. Pratt pointed that out without sounding too rude.

"As for the twenty million. I, the Duke of Duance will pay the fifteen and my daughter will give you the remaining five million after the treatment. I heard from the head physician that the treatment would take a toll on your body. Can you please tell me the details about it?"

Rosalind nodded and started telling him exaggerated things about the treatment. Of course, they were all lies, however, as the conversation continued, Rosalind realized that her initial perception of the Duke might be wrong.

In the past, the Duke wouldl die of an illness right after Dorothy married the crown prince. She could vaguely remember meeting the Duke once but their interaction had been limited because she simply had no other reason to interact with him.

Because of this, she trusted the rumors surrounding the Duke.

It was said that the Duke of Duance was supposed to be the heir to the throne, however, he visited the North and fought some demonic monsters, leading to the damage to his knees. Damage that even Federico and Martin Lux could not heal.

They said that the Duke's knees had been infected by some dark curse and thus, they could not touch it.

Or at least that is what they said, but just now when she looked at the complexion of the Duke she noticed that the Duke did not seem to have any curse on his body. He looked healthy even though he could not walk properly because of some pain that he would experience.

Because of this, the Duke was not selected as the crown prince, despite his popularity and talent. The current Emperor became the crown prince and ascended the throne. It was an unfortunate event that many people found to be very sad.

The Duke had many nobles supporting him in the past but over the years, the support dwindled. Right now, the Duke and his house were nothing but a sham position without real power. He was just there to show the people how magnanimous the Emperor was for keeping his brother alive and even making his only daughter a princess.

"Is that so?" the Duke pursed his lips. "If that is the case then the fifteen million might not even be enough to compensate Miss Lin. The pain and suffering is simply not —"

"Please Your Grace, it is enough," Rosalind said. Since the Duke could not see her, he could not see the sinister expression that Rosalind had on her face. "It is more than enough to save the Princess's life."

"If there is anything else that I could do—"

"No, Your Grace. It is fine. However— " Rosalind hesitated.

"What is it? Do you want something else? I could give you lands and whatever it is that you need."

"I need no such thing, Your Grace. You may not know this but I am going to travel very soon. My Master is — My Master asked me to send the ashes of his remains to his family and I will be traveling for a few months to fulfill some of his wishes."

"I— I did not know that you just lost the man who taught you. My apologies."

"There is no need to apologize Your Grace. It is my intention to keep this a secret as I did not want to expose my identity, however, I also wanted to do something else."

"Something else?" the Duke looked confused. "Whatever do you mean?"

"I grew up away from people and my Master was the only father that I knew. While growing up, he emphasized the need to help and heal people. This was etched in my skin and sculpted in my heart. Because of this, I cannot just look away when I see something that may need my help."

Again, the Duke only showed confusion on his face.

"That— knee—" Rosalind pointed at his knees. "May I touch it?"

"What?"

"Please do not get me wrong. I have heard rumors about Your Grace's bravery and heroic deeds and my Master thought very highly of you. So when he heard that something damaged your knees, he immediately told me that he would want to examine you one day. However— that day did not come as we needed to leave the Empire because of some personal matters."

Rosalind continued.

"When we came back, the Master was already too weak to go down the mountains. And so… I would like to ask a favor right now." Rosalind got up and bowed to the man. "Please allow me an opportunity to examine your knees. In exchange, I am willing to treat the Princess for free!"

"What?"

"This is for the peace of my Master's soul! I cannot let this opportunity pass! Please, Your Grace! Please allow this lowly one to check your knees."

There was another silence before the Duke suddenly let out a low chuckle.

"You might be trying to hide your identity but you sound quite young. Please do not act like this in front of me in the future. I am not the Emperor and I do not deserve this kind of respect. Raise your head! I am going to let you check my knees and I am paying you for my daughter's treatment."