W1.A1-25: I Want You

Celine finally stepped into the room while trying to keep her nerves under control.

Two people entered her sight as she finally walked in. One was a man who was sitting on a chair with his legs crossed. Behind him stood another person, a woman.

For some strange reason, Celine had a weird feeling as she laid her eyes on them—or, to be specific, on that man.

But she couldn't be sure about it because she couldn't see their faces. After all, similar to her, they too had their faces covered in the party masks. Though the man's lean physique at least made it clear that the person was the fat landlord, Vilet, this also confused her, as she hadn't seen him around yet.

Even as she was thinking all that, she didn't forget that she was in the presence of a person who might be a real royal member.

Not wasting her time on her irregular thoughts anymore, Celine walked forward before greeting the man with noble etiquette.

Curtsying elegantly, she greeted the duo, "I, Celine Marvson, greet the two distinguished guests."

Her gestures were graceful, and her greeting was minimal but adequate. She didn't mention anything about him being a member of royalty, as guessing incorrectly might not be good. There was also the fact that she also doubted it somewhat.

The man in the chair was dressed in simple clothes, not like one would expect of a royal. But it was also possible that he didn't want to attract attention, or maybe it was his character.

"Mm." The man nodded at her greeting calmly, while the lady behind him didn't say anything.

He then asked, "So, Madam Celine, I wonder what kind of proposal you have come to offer."

Celine once again had that strange sense of familiarity when she heard his voice, but she still couldn't put a finger on it.

But she had no more time to contemplate, as the guy had already posed a question.

Celine had already prepared her lines, so she quickly began to answer.

"I have not come here on the same business as those outside, sir," she said. "I am just here to sort out a deal that I had made with Mr. Vilet, which he has reneged on now."

"Oh?" The man sounded curious as he asked, "What kind of deal, I wonder?"

"My family owns a few farmlands that have been the backbone of our financial development." She began to explain and continued, "A few years back, seeing the abundant produce of those grounds, I had planned to have them processed and packaged before being sold to the merchants from other cities."

"Hm." The man nodded. "A wise prospect indeed," he said before asking, "Then what's the problem? Are you lacking in finances?"

"That's not it." Celine shook her head. "I had already planned for every aspect before I started with my ideas." She then pursed her lips before saying, "But the people I assigned for the installation of the processing plant at my site suddenly suffered some "issues" and declared their incompetency to complete the task."

"That would still have been fine, but the problem was that I had already purchased the materials for the construction." Her tone was a bit angry at this point as she narrated, "I was unable to do anything regarding the people I had employed earlier, and when I tried to reach other contractors from the nearby towns, I found that no one was willing to work with me anymore."

Her voice containing sarcasm, she said, "The reason was that someone had spread the rumors that my family's finances were in a weak state." Shaking her head, she added, "But even when I made it clear that all that expense was for the materials required for the construction, no one paid me any heed."

Her face could not be seen, but her expression was probably one of anger as she continued, "After that, Mr. Vilet came forward to offer "help" by providing me with a loan, provided that I gave him half of the produce we cultivated."

"Oh, did you accept his offer, then?" asked the man.

"I had to." Celine nodded before falling silent.

The man also paused for a moment before he said, "But you forgot to mention the part where the soil in your farms and orchards suddenly, all at the same time, went through some changes that reduced your total produce." His tone seemed amused as he added, "Thus, to fulfill the agreement regarding the share you had promised Mr. Vilet, you had to give your own share." He then gave her a look before asking, "Am I right?"

Celine was stunned, as her shock could be seen in her eyes.

But her surprised state only lasted for a moment before she had already regained her calm and said, "So he already told you, huh?"

"He did."

Then they both fell silent as Celine looked towards the floor, lost in thoughts.

Finally, after a minute, she nodded. "Fine."

She then opened the leather purse she was carrying with her and took out some papers from within.

Waving them in her hands, she said, "These are property deeds for half of the land I own; I had wanted to make a deal with Mr. Vilet to cancel our previous agreement in exchange for these."

"What do you think?" She asked him, "Is it viable?"

"Cutting your losses, eh?" The man nodded. "A good idea indeed."

All of a sudden, he stood up from his seat.

Walking towards Celine, he said, "This settles the deal for Vilet's side, but what makes you think he'll accept the deal?"

He paused his steps after arriving in front of her. "Of course I can make him do it," he said. "However, I wonder how I will benefit from that." He looked at Celine, waiting for his reply.

Hearing his words, Celine understood his intentions. But this made her see a bit of hope, as she had already predicted such a situation and had made sufficient preparations for it.

Holding her purse, she took out another set of papers. "This is what I can offer in exchange," she said while waving the papers. "The deed to my mansion."

"Your mansion?" The man sounded truly surprised. "You're really willing to part with that?"

Celine nodded. She had already assumed that the man in front of her seemed to have acquired all the information regarding her from Vilet. That means he should also have understood the value of the property she was offering.

"Of course I'm not offering it immediately." She then added, "I will require Mister to sign a contract stating that while the property will be transferred to your name, you will have to wait for five years before actually talking over it."

"Oh?" The man nodded but then shook his head. "I don't want it," he said, speaking in a dignified manner. "Did you really think it would be enough to please a royal?"

Celine was stunned. Not only because of his interest in the mansion but also because of his admission of his identity as a royal.

Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself.

"Then what do you need?" She could only ask. "Lord?"

"Hahaha!"

The man suddenly started laughing uproariously.

Just as Celine was feeling nervous and afraid, the man ceased his laughter before he said, "Wonderful, Madam Celine." He seemed to be smiling behind his mask as he spoke. "Those were the words I wanted to hear."

Pausing for a bit, he then mused. "As for what I need?"

Looking at Celine, who was eagerly waiting for his reply, the man smirked.

"I want you."