How the Villainous Consort Avoids His Death Ending

After a long and arduous voyage, the port of Belforte finally came into view before their eyes. A golden bell hanging at the top of the lighthouse reflected the morning sunlight and glowed softly. Its clear chime rang out for a long time across the calm sea.

“It has been a while.”

Tristan spoke calmly at his side. I glanced at him and smiled faintly.

“It truly has been long. In many ways.”

A small smile appeared at the corner of Tristan’s lips as well.

As the ship approached the dock, port officials and laborers guided the vessel in with light hand signals. The sailors aboard skillfully threw the ropes and dropped the anchor.

“Welcome to Belforte, Your Grace.”

After confirming the blue and white flag of Hezekia, the harbor master greeted them politely. Tristan nodded and replied in a formal manner.

“Thank you for your efforts.”

Even after securing lodgings near the port and finishing the transfer and arrangement of their simple luggage, the surroundings remained quiet. No one paid them much attention, and no one gave the fleet a second glance.

However, it did not take long for the situation to begin changing, little by little.

The next morning, Gehardt and I visited one of the largest merchant guilds in Belforte. Since it was a guild that only handled bulk purchases above a certain quantity, it was a place I had not even been able to step into before. Because an appointment had been arranged in advance, we were immediately shown inside by a staff member, though he did not appear to have high expectations for our trade goods.

“So you brought goods from the Sarr Empire?”

The employee greeted us with a somewhat indifferent expression. I smiled gently and gave Gehardt a look. From the leather bag he had brought, he carefully took out several sample boxes and placed them on the table.

“These are…?”

“As stated, products from the Sarr Empire.”

I had not even considered bringing bulky silk bolts, embroidered carpets, fragile porcelain, or golden spices that could easily break during transport. Instead, I had only brought items like spices and tea leaves that could be conveniently packed into small boxes. I was confident that this alone would be more than enough.

The employee’s expression after opening the boxes did not deviate much from my expectations.

Holding his breath, he leaned in close to examine the spices, then dropped a few tea leaves onto his palm and gently rubbed them. The tips of his fingers trembled ever so slightly.

“I have never seen top grade goods of this level before. Did you truly bring these from the Sarr Empire?”

“If not from the Eastern Continent, where else could one obtain goods like these?”

“Well, yes, that is true, but… to acquire such a quantity at this level of quality must not have been easy…”

As if that even needed to be said.

Of course it has not been easy. Even now, thinking about all the hardship I had endured was enough to make my head burn. There were times during the voyage when I would dream of being driven out of Ashrana empty handed. I had nearly gone down in history as the Grand Consort who single handedly ruined the entire Grand Ducal estate of Hezekia.

I shuddered, shaking off the painful memories, and barely maintained my smile. There was no need for this employee to know anything about that long and grueling journey. I shook my head calmly, pretending it was nothing.

“It was nothing. So, are you interested?”

“Grand Consort, of course I am. With this quality, just how much stock do you currently possess?”

“I have more than enough. Not only these goods, but many kinds of crafts of even higher quality as well.”

When I roughly outlined the items by category along with their quantities, the employee’s mouth slowly fell open. It was an overwhelming amount, enough that even seasoned traders would struggle to imagine handling it in their dreams.

“Is that… truly so?”

“Of course. If you come to the fleet, I can show you the samples.”

“P please wait just a moment, Grand Consort.”

The employee’s face turned pale, then quickly flushed red. His earlier indifference vanished without a trace as he hurriedly ran outside to call the guild manager.

Similar scenes repeated themselves at the second and third merchant guilds we visited. Merchants who had initially been suspicious or cold completely changed their attitudes the moment they saw the samples and rushed in eagerly. On the way back, Gehardt kept grinning and whispered quietly beside me.