85

The four-wheeled carriage carrying Elena, who had put an end to her life in the academy, crossed the entrance to the grand duchy. Crossing a garden so vast that it could be called a forest, the main building of the mansion could be seen in the distance.

Hiiiiing.

The whinnying of the horses sounded, and the vibrations that had been shaking the carriage stopped. The closed carriage door opened and Elena lifted her skirt and stepped on the ground.

"Well done."

Perhaps he had heard that she would come beforehand, Grand Duke Friedrich came out and welcomed her with a gracious smile.

"I'm back, Father."

When Elena greeted her politely, Grand Duke Friedrich came up and hugged her lightly. It was an act to look like a loving father and daughter. Elena suppressed the discomfort that rose to the top of her neck and smiled. Just like they wanted.

"Liv, how long has it been?"

Elena pretended to be glad to see Leabrick standing behind Grand Duke Friedrich.

"You've been through a lot."

"Liv had a hard time. Thanks to your care, my life at the academy was easy. Thank you."

As it had been a reunion after a year or so, friendly regards had come and gone. It was clichéd, but this conversation was also a part of noble life, so she couldn't skip it.

"Don't stand here. Let's go inside. Let's have a cup of tea and talk about things we haven't talked about."

"Yes, father."

Elena responded to the recommendation of Grand Duke Friedrich and moved to the drawing room in the mansion. Of course, Leabrick was with them. When the maids stepped down with the finest refreshments, the three began to talk.

"You had a lot of trouble at the academy getting credits, didn't you?"

"No, it wasn't hard because I thought it was an opportunity to learn something I didn't know."

Elena showed more maturity than she had once shown when she first came to the Grand Duchy. This was because it would make Elena more valuable to them, give them confidence in her and induce them to drop their guard.

"You make your speech quite plausible. So, you've shown mastery in art?"

Grand Duke Friedrich had already set the stage for dialogue as if he had been briefed through Leabrick.

"It's not that great enough to say that it's a mastery. When I see an esoteric piece of art, I have thoughts of this and that. In doing so, I seemed to have developed an eye for detail."

"Haven't the value of the works you bought increased significantly?"

Leabrick answered instead.

"There are a lot of works to see in the long run, but some of them have almost doubled the price purchased by the princess."

"Really? Did it go up that much?"

"That's what the appraisers I've seen recently said. The artist's reputation has increased and the value of their work has greatly increased."

Elena covered her mouth with her hands and made a startled gesture as if she didn't think it would be that valuable.

'Double it? I guess so. It's the most expensive before the crash.'

Although it has been covered up, the art world has been in turmoil since Raphael's Belladonna was released. After a hundred years of stagnation, rather than development, it was difficult to distinguish between paintings with similar techniques and styles. In the end, the absolute criterion for determining the value of a work of art became the artist's reputation. Art dealers and connoisseurs were the ones who helped to fabricate such fame and increase the value.

But now that has become difficult. With the announcement of Belladonna, some collectors who had paid more money to purchase paintings raised the question of whether it was worth it.

The art world fell on fire. It was not enough that collusion made it difficult to adjust the prices of artworks, it was a direct hit to survival. One of the reasons for this was that up-and-coming painters who saw Belladonna began to create unique paintings, influenced by Raphael's style and technique.

This trend made people in the art world feel threatened, because if new style paintings flooded the market, paintings that had been stagnant for 100 years would lose their rarity. If this happens, the value of paintings that have been bought at high prices, deceived by the words of art dealers and appraisers, will fall, and collectors will be angry. Knowing this, the art world's professionals desperately colluded on prices and stabilized collectors with false emotions. In an attempt to escape the present, they turn their backs on what will one day be a much bigger wave.

"Oh, that's good. I wondered if I did damage, but the value went up."

"The princess has a good eye."

For some reason, Leabrick did not spare any praise. Elena's eye was highly regarded for her ability.

'I want to see it already. How would you look if the price of the artwork I bought plummeted?'

Elena changed her mind. She thought it would be better to give more damage based on trust.

"I'm so glad my father and Liv acknowledged me. So, I'd like to be more aggressive in purchasing art works, can I?"

"Princess, you want to buy aggressively?"

When asked again, Elena put her eyes on the floor and said, looking at her.

"I've been paying attention to some of the works, but the purchase price is too high to even think about."

"Princess, I'm already spending a considerable amount of money on buying."

Leabrick had a serious face.

"I know. I know… and it's obvious that the value will go up, but I'm going crazy because I can't buy it. One of the works I was looking at was sold at auction houses twice as much in a year as the purchase price."

"Even so, you can't. There's a lot of a risk."

"Liv, can you really not?"

Elena looked at Leabrick, pleadingly, and turned her eyes to Grand Duke Friedrich. When there were only two of them, Leabrick was the arbiter, but if there is a versus with Grand Duke Friedrich, things will change. Having been entrusted with full authority, Leabrick is just one thing. If Grand Duke Friedrich decides, she will have no choice but to follow.

"Well, it's an aggressive purchase…"

Grand Duke Friedrich smoothed his beard.

Elena spoke confidently when he showed signs of thinking.

"I can do it. I've always been indebted to you, and I want to be of some help."

"Are you confident?"

"Yes, you've seen the value of the artwork I bought earlier increase. If I wasn't confident, I wouldn't have brought this up."

Elena had maintained a passive attitude until now, but today was different. She actively appealed to her will and tried to seek the permission of Grand Duke Friedrich.

'If I do well, I can sway the finances of the Grand Duke.'

What Elena wants to buy is a super high-end art piece. Since most collectors have no intention of selling, they often have to pay nearly a dozen times the price to buy them. Elena planned to buy mostly the lesser of such works. And these were the paintings that deserved to plummet in value over the next year. It could only be a blow to the position of the Grand Duchy, which had already mobilized astronomical funds for the Noblesse Street development project. Elena looked at Grand Duke Friedrich with eager eyes and waited for an answer.

"I'll give you permission."

"Your Highness!"

Leabrick's voice went up. She had never made a loud noise in front of Grand Duke Friedrich, so she could guess what she would feel now.

"Please reconsider. This is not the time. Even if the unexpected additional project cost is added…"

"That's your fault."

Leabrick bit her lips at the accusation of Grand Duke Friedrich. Elena, who was watching the figure from the side, endured the laughter that brushed her neck. He was speaking vaguely to avoid the point, but she knew very well why Leabrick was treated like that.

The purchase of land in the slums, the natural marble mining contract, Elena had linked all of the unexpected events to the sabotaged project. The damage was so great that even the Grand Duke did not speak of it, but he showed that he was not happy about it.

'I'm officially Princess Veronica, even if I'm a substitute. Even if the price of the purchased artwork drops, you can't abandon me.'

Elena is essential to the Grand Duke until Veronica returns.

"Thank you, Father. I will meet your expectations."

Elena smiled at this moment with sincere thanks to him.

"Is there anything else you need to talk about?"

Looking at Leabrick, who could not hide her discomfort, her lips, which had been tightly closed, opened when Grand Duke Friedrich noticed.

"I invited a teacher to guide the princess from tomorrow."

"Teacher?"

"Madame de Flanrose."

Elena was surprised. In retrospect, Madame de Flanrose had never been her teacher. No, there was no contact with her at all. That means Elena's involvement and behavior affected her in some way. Elena came to her senses and responded as naturally as possible.

"I know I'm not good enough. I'll humbly learn from Madame."

"You'll have to. If the princess doesn't do well, the throne of the Crown Princess will be given to Duke Reinhardt's Lady Avella."

"…!"

Elena's eyes were as big as the full moon.

'You're preparing for the appointment of the Crown Princess? Already?'

In the original history, shortly after Sian graduated, Cecilia was made the Crown Princess in a surprise marriage announcement. It was a measure so fast that even the Grand Duke and the Four Great Families could not get their hands on it. In the end, the Grand Duke, who had failed in his plan to make Elena the Crown Princess, forced the non-elective ceremony on the grounds that it would delay the succession. As a result, Elena is sealed as the queen.

'It's twisted again.'

A small change that Elena didn't recognize became a big wave and changed a lot.