After a while, Juliet made her way back to the carriage.

“Sister, it’s me.”

Juliet called out while knocking on the carriage door, but there was no reply. The curtains were drawn, so it was impossible to see inside.

When there was no response, Juliet became downcast, prompting the knight to knock in her stead.

“Your Highness the Crown Princess, Her Highness the Second Princess wishes to speak to you…”

Yet, no matter how long they waited, there was no response, almost as if Charlotte wasn’t there to begin with. Suspicious, the knight opened the door,

“Excuse me. Your Highness the Crown Princess!?”

Only to find that no one was inside. The knight cried out in shock.

***

Even though knights were keeping watch on each side of the door, no one was on the other side of the carriage.

Charlotte used the bracelet as per Ethelbert’s instruction. In an instant, her outfit changed into that of a simple one with a cape, albeit the ribbon was missing for some reason. Meanwhile, the dress she previously wore was automatically stored into the magic tool.

How convenient.

After getting changed, Charlotte opened the window on the other side of the carriage before quietly and slowly slipping out. She took advantage of the blind spot created by the carriage and the surrounding foliage to sneak out of the orphanage premises.

The knights are surprisingly sloppy.

Her worry about being caught was unfounded as she managed to slip past easily. The inattentiveness of the knights could even be considered a dereliction of duty.

Or did they simply think that Charlotte wasn’t that important? After all, she was merely a pathetic crown princess, one who wasn’t even as popular as the king, let alone the second princess.

Unlike in her previous date, her hair and eye color hadn’t changed, so Charlotte pulled on her hood to hide her face. She tied her long hair into a ponytail with the ribbon on her chest before tucking it under her cape.

She was walking through town when a certain conversation made her stop in her tracks.

“Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess—…”

“—…The princess.”

Some men could be seen eating on the terrace of a restaurant.

“True to her reputation, Her Highness Juliet is very generous. Isn’t it thanks to her that the construction of the orphanage started sooner?”

“Indeed. The previous lord didn’t pay much attention to the orphanage, much less the territory. My experience at the orphanage was terrible.”

“Didn’t they say that the orphanage and the school will be built together? The school will be open to public for free, right? It’s great that adults can attend too. Many children still can’t read and write properly.”

“What were the king and the crown princess doing this whole time!? We really owe Princess Juliet for this.”

One of them laughed.

“Haha. Employment is increasing due to the discovery of resources inside a mine and the product development led by His Majesty the King. Last year, a minimum wage was established, along with a system for employment.”

“His Majesty enacted a law that students should have at least one day of rest a week. There are some exceptions, though.”

“I think so. Also, the school lunch system was apparently the idea of Her Highness the Crown Princess.”

“What’s that about?”

“Oh, you didn’t know? It made a major stir in the newspaper the other day, something about how commoner schools will provide students with lunch for free, or at least at a very low cost. They’ll be preparing dormitories soon, and some schools will even provide apartment complexes that students’ families can rent for cheap.”

“Wow, that’s amazing”

The conversation went on.

“Taxes will go up a bit in exchange for free medical treatment for minors and increased stagecoaches. Plans to extend train tracks to the countryside are also underway.”

“I heard! The current king and the crown princess are doing a good job, unlike the shitty former king and lords!”

“The previous one and the one before didn’t even stand a chance.”

“Do they have to raise the taxes, though?”

“To be fair, it seems like most of the tax increases are aimed at the wealthy, so there’s that.”

The words “taxes raise” reminded her of the conversation she had with Frederick in his office. At that time, she was presenting him with her report pertaining systems such as free education.

“Since they are going to be free, I think that certain standards should be set for secondary and higher education. It would be too expensive to invest in those who are unwilling to learn. If a student’s grades fall below the minimum standard for an unjustifiable reason, they shouldn’t be eligible for free education. I’d also like to introduce a preparatory exam as a separate criterion from grades.”

Although Frederick had no comments about school lunches or low-cost housing, he didn’t agree with her idea regarding the free education.

“The reason we are introducing free education is to prevent educational discrimination based on family background. In that case, we should make it free without setting standards. Those who grow up in not-so-well-off families with limited financial resources may become depressed and unmotivated. Even if they don’t put their heart into studying, children should be given as many chances as possible.”

“Certainly, but…”

Even though Frederick had a point, Charlotte still felt as if something was amiss. Later, she figured out why.

“No need to worry. Technology will eventually develop and become more complex, increasing jobs that require specialized knowledge. However, that’s still a long way off, so expect secondary and higher education to be free for quite some time. By that time, Juliet will have long since graduated.”

“…”

“Juliet’s grades, which barely meet the minimum standards, will be forgotten and she won’t be ridiculed.”

So that was what Frederick was concerned about. As she listened to him, her gaze sharpened.

Juliet was the standard no matter what.

If the eligibility for free education was based on a minimum standard, then obviously the sensitive Juliet would worry about her grades. Even if the new schools had nothing to do with her—even if she had already graduated—she would probably be hung up about it for a while.

Charlotte thought that it was too soon to worry about that. After all, they still had the financial aspects and public’s perception of education to consider. However, Frederick disagreed.

“We’re considering making higher education completely free, so review it. I expect the report to be ready one week before the meeting. Dismissed.”

While that would certainly be ideal, introducing free higher education was a task for far off in the future, probably when Charlotte had succeeded the throne, or her children, or even the generation beyond that.

By that time, taxes would be much higher, which wouldn’t be a problem if the national income was above average. However, at their current stage, it was still too early to make any promises. Leaving it as a plan while laying the groundwork was the most they could manage. From there, they would decide based on the situation at the time.

Perhaps His Majesty can raise the income of the people all at once and make it happen…

In the first place, such ideals were born because the average income of the people within the Kingdom of Lymore had been increasing every year. But ideals were called such because they were unrealistic. Charlotte felt that they should limit their expectations and hope that the system could be implemented earlier than expected.

“—I can accept the slight increase in taxes because we would also be benefitting from it.”

As Charlotte was lost in a sea of memories, the man’s voice brought her back to reality.

“They do think about us commoners.”

The man continued.

“They’re living well off our taxes, so they better be. This is King Frederick the Hero and his successor we’re talking about.”

She turned her back on the men who were laughing loudly and walked away. If she were to listen anymore, she would feel even worse.

When she could no longer hear them, she exhaled. The subtle difficulty in breathing she was feeling disappeared.

They are strangers, so obviously they don’t know.

After all, they had only heard rumors about Charlotte’s lifestyle. They just assumed that because she was royalty, she enjoyed a lavish lifestyle. They just believed that she had the same abilities as Frederick.

—For the sake of such people.

She worked without sleeping to complete her duties. But as royalty, it was her obligation to improve the country, so she shouldn’t expect to be repaid. A duty that required her to sacrifice both body and mind—a duty that should’ve been Juliet’s. A duty on top of so many other duties she already had.

Completing it gave her a sense of accomplishment, but before it could sink in, another duty was waiting for her, and so on and so forth.

Whenever Juliet was playing, sleeping, or enjoying a peaceful tea time, Charlotte was working, working, and working for the sake of Juliet and the people who had no idea about her hardships, or that she was being worked to the bone like a slave.

So tired.

Despite not having done any strenuous exercise, she could feel her body becoming heavy.

◇◇◇

“—Three days of house arrest in your room.”

Upon returning to the royal castle, Frederick gave her such a punishment.

---

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***T/N: Fk Frederick seriously.

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