I began to think that this is the reason why I was brought to this world, starting from when Sophia was still a child. There is a lot of information I don't know, and there's also information that I know but is skewed from what it should be.
One of them is the first encounter between Sophia and the Duke's daughter, Vladilena Elrich.
Red eyes and blonde hair tied into a ponytail. I should have realized her from the beginning. I was too complacent with this relaxed life. It never crossed my mind that something like this could happen, right on the day after the flashback scene in the treehouse.
A bitter taste suddenly fills my mouth. I can no longer savor the sweetness of a single bite of food. Therefore, I return the box containing Swiss rolls to the three adorable girls in front of me.
"My stomach hurts," I say as an excuse. "I'll go to the toilet for a moment."
The three girls furrow their brows without replying with words.
I descend the rope ladder and run towards the back door of the house. The toilet is inside the house, right next to the well outside. I lock myself in for a moment to reflect on these inexplicable events.
Vladilena Elrich just introduced herself. There's no doubt that this was the first time Sophia and I met that girl. This means that Sophia and Vladilena had forgotten about each other by the time they were in the Academy. If that's the case, this might be the only interaction we had with Vladilena before entering St. Patricia Academy.
Yes, I hope that's the case.
Unfortunately, I've also made a mistake. I shouldn't have let Vladilena become close with Mika and Sophia. Considering that the visit of my father's guest might not be a one-time thing. Vladilena could come here whenever the envoy of Duke Elrich visits.
Although Vladilena's current pleasant nature is endearing, no one knows how she will be in the future. It would be a relief if Vladilena changes her original disposition from the novel due to Sophia's influence. However, the catalyst for their conflict arises from Vladilena's jealousy upon seeing the Crown Prince's interest in Sophia.
Now, preventing Vladilena from visiting seems impossible. The situation has already escalated. Perhaps it's time to modify the storyline a bit.
Let's make Vladilena into Sophia's friend.
For such a grand purpose, I needed a plan. However, devising a plan without any clues would be difficult. Therefore, my first goal was to find some clues.
It was pleasantly convenient that Vladilena first met "Martha" when her role had already been taken over by me. This way, I could gather information about Vladilena directly from the source. I could befriend her without worrying that the original Martha's reputation—being a troublesome cousin—would prevent her from getting too close to me.
With determination, I left the restroom. Despite being close to the back wall, the restroom door faced the front, so I needed to take a slight detour through living room before reaching the back door.
"Duke Elrich didn't mention the exact amount."
"Oh, it's going to be challenging for me to decide. I also need an estimate to print how many."
I overheard a conversation between my father and his guest in the front room as I passed through living room. Briefly, I heard my father being asked to print something.
"You should check the face value first."
I decided to eavesdrop for a moment. After all, I was curious about how much money was in the brown envelope handed to my father.
"One, two, three, …"
Father counted each bundle of money, probably consisting of ten notes each. If multiplied by the denomination, which was one thousand, the down payment would be a hundred thousand.
"A hundred thousand urvel! Oh my, that's a lot."
It turned out to be true. Oh yes, the currency in Sophia's Story is urvel. I didn't know its conversion rate, but if even my noble father was taken aback, a hundred thousand urvel was no joking matter.
"This should fill the front page."
"This can fill news and opinion pages for—let's count—thirteen days... okay, let's round it up to fourteen days. Our publishing operates only five days a week, so your article can run for three weeks," explained my father.
I gathered one piece of information. Apparently, my father also worked for a newspaper publisher, not just relying on his position as a viscount.
"A full page?" the Duke's envoy asked.
"Are you kidding? There's no such thing as a full-page article!" My father chuckled. "But, the main articles usually run around 1,000 words and are placed in the center with a large image. Well, you could say that your article will dominate. It's not wrong to say that the main page will be yours alone."
My father extended his hand asking for a handshake. However, my father's handshake was rejected.
"Don't be too happy yet, Lord Julius. That's just the down payment. As far as I know, Duke Elrich usually pays an advance for fifty percent of the total."
"Are you saying that Duke Elrich wants to have his article run for six weeks?"
"No, not like that. I actually know that it will burden your printing business too if too much party campaign is stuffed in there. Especially on the main page."
Well, the general public—without being force-fed—was already sick of political activities. If Duke Elrich's party activities were covered for six consecutive weeks, my father's newspaper subscribers would likely stop buying.
"Making sure each content is acceptable to the readers is our job," my father responded.
"No, it's not allowed. It will also affect our party's reputation. Besides, you can't exploit your employees arbitrarily, can you?"
"Well, as long as their payment is fair, I don't think there will be complaints."
The Guest shook his head. "Let's do it like this. Occasionally place our articles on the front page, sometimes in the middle, and sometimes don't include them at all. However, you should still print them separately from your newspaper, then send them to me."
"Oh! That's how it is. Alright, I understand. Maybe that way is indeed better."
Unlike Father, I didn't understand at all. My mind still lacked the capacity to comprehend business-related matters. Could it be that the Guest wanted to distribute it himself rather than relying on Father's printing press?
Oh, right, I got carried away eavesdropping. I should get back to the treehouse immediately. After all, why was I eavesdropping on party campaign matters? Damn, I thought the Guest was giving my Father an advance payment for printing something illegal. I mean, counterfeit money or something like that. After all, whether it's Vladilena or myself, we are the villains in 'Sophia's Story.' It's not wrong for me to think that our family is also involved in criminal activities.
I opened the back door. I could see the three little girls still up in the treehouse. I quickly climbed the rope ladder and joined them. There didn't seem to be any Swiss rolls left in the box.
"Stomachache, huh? Now you know how it feels! So greedy for food!"
Instead of inquiring about my condition, Sophia greeted me with insults.
"Shh! Don't be like that, Sophia," retorted Vladilena. She turned to me. "I'll bring more, okay, Martha?"
Now I'm confused, who is actually the protagonist in this story? No, actually, I'm more puzzled by how Vladilena's personality can flip when she's at the Academy.
I plopped down and then held Vladilena's two hands. "Really? Wow, it turns out being friends with the rich is nice, huh!"
"Hehehe...." Vladilena chuckled, wrinkling her forehead.
"Well, since Martha is back, what should the four of us play?" Mika asked.
"Hide and seek!" exclaimed Sophia.
"Poor Lena if we play hide and seek," I interjected. "She's still unfamiliar with this place."
"Don't worry. I'm an expert at finding hiding spots," Vladilena responded. "In fact, this morning I managed to sneak here without my father knowing."
She came here without the Duke's permission? That mischievous child, my father could be accused of kidnapping you!