“Thank you for your kind words. However, three years ago when my wife met with a mysterious accident, I swore on my family name and honour that I would not give my heart to any woman until I brought the one responsible to justice.”
“…”
Count Furst urged his horse forward slightly. He moved closer to Duke Balkan and continued speaking.
“So it seems I cannot be with the Duke’s daughter until I find and punish the culprit.”
As soon as Count Furst finished speaking, Duke Balkan’s face hardened.
At the same time, Merlin’s hand gripping his staff tightened.
I raised both my hands.
Clap clap clap.
At the sound of my applause, all eyes shifted from Count Furst to me.
Only Duke Balkan continued to stare at Count Furst without wavering in the slightest.
As I lowered my hands, I made eye contact with Merlin.
Beneath the gentlest of white eyebrows were two eyes filled with intense killing intent.
A chilling fear crept over me, but that was all.
I had already tasted far greater terror.
My experience of defeating Keren, who was superior to Merlin, drove away that fear.
Having fought and won against a lion, why should I cower before a wolf?
Merlin’s eyes widened slightly, but then the killing intent in them only deepened.
At that moment, Duke Balkan spoke.
“Ah, so that’s why you’ve coldly rejected the advances of so many women all this time? Why didn’t you say something sooner? If I had known about your vow, I could have helped you find the culprit by now.”
“It was a personal matter. I didn’t want to seek help from others.”
“But it’s already been three years. If you haven’t been able to find them on your own in that time, doesn’t that mean you likely won’t be able to find them alone going forward either?”
“It’s a family matter. It’s fine.”
Duke Balkan smiled gently.
Surprisingly, Duke Balkan’s expression now looked kinder than anyone else I had met so far.
“No, no. Listen to what I’m saying. Didn’t you make a promise to your beloved wife? You even swore on your family name and honour. In that case, shouldn’t that take precedence over everything else? Don’t you agree?”
“…”
“Whether it’s your stubbornness, pride, or even your honour and values, if they hinder you from fulfilling that promise, it would be right to cast them all aside.”
“Do you think I’m just being childish now, Duke?”
Duke Balkan looked at the Count with an expression of pity that anyone could see was fake.
“Oh dear, don’t misunderstand me. I simply meant that if you were to marry into our family, it would become a family matter for us as well, so I could help you directly.”
The Count’s brow furrowed intensely.
“Surely you’ve made such arrangements as well. Or is our family not to your liking?”
He’s certainly not one to be underestimated.
I suddenly recalled the words of the jester.
He had said that one of the season pass holders had been targeting Count Furst for three years, and that this person was quite influential.
While it can’t be said for certain that it’s Duke Balkan, if it is him, he has some nerve.
Count Furst pondered for a moment before speaking.
“Now that I hear you out, what you’re saying does seem to make sense.”
“Oh? Is that so?”
Such a reaction when the Count agrees so readily.
This old man is impossible to predict.
Duke Balkan’s eyes sparkled as he looked Count Furst up and down.
Count Furst said:
“However, I still don’t think I can be with the Duke’s daughter. I want a wife who can guide my son well as a mother. The Duke’s daughter is too young and inexperienced to be a mother.”
“Isn’t it the wet nurse who raises the child, not the wife?”
“Fabre’s birth mother raised him herself without using a wet nurse.”
“Tsk tsk tsk.”
Duke Balkan simply clicked his tongue, saying nothing more. As a result, Count Furst couldn’t respond either.
A brief silence fell, then Duke Balkan opened his mouth.
“I understand your thoughts on my daughter well.”
He erased the regret from his expression as he continued.
“Then let’s get to the main point. The New Continent Company. I’m selling all my shares.”
Count Furst narrowed his eyes for a moment.
“Pardon?”
“It’s not just me. All the nobles here have decided to sell their shares. They’re probably only worth a penny now that the company is nearly bankrupt, but that doesn’t matter. We’ll put it all on the market. Buy it if you want.”
Count Furst turned his head to look at me. I was just as confused.
From the beginning, we had thought Duke Balkan would buy up others’ shares to become the majority shareholder.
But saying he’ll sell everything now means he’s willing to take a massive loss.
I glanced at the nobles standing behind. As expected, they all had sour expressions, but they kept their mouths shut.
Count Furst said to Duke Balkan:
“If you sell your shares now, it’s like losing all the money you initially invested. Even if the company grows significantly later, you won’t have any stake in it.”
“Do you think I don’t know that, Count Furst? There’s no need to tell me something even a child would understand.”
“Duke Balkan, what are you…”
“This is boring.”
The Duke’s words cut off the Count mid-sentence, resulting in an awkward silence.
As Count Furst tried to speak again, Duke Balkan turned his head away.
“I’m getting tired of looking at this place too. Shall we go back?”
Merlin bowed his head slightly, then rode ahead on his horse.
As Duke Balkan moved, all the other nobles began to follow behind him.
It looked like servants and maids following in the footsteps of a king.
Count Furst closed his mouth and silently watched them leave.
“We should go too. Who knows what might happen if we stay here.”
Count Furst remained still for a long while even after hearing my words.
Eventually, he urged his horse forward and said:
“It seems they’re determined to bring down the company.”
I kept pace beside him and replied:
“Unless you want to marry the Duke’s daughter.”
Count Furst shook his head.
“I can’t become family with the one who killed my wife, Ran.”
I looked back at Count Furst.
His eyes were filled with certainty.
If he had known this all along, he wouldn’t have spoken neutrally about Duke Balkan in the carriage. He would have considered him an enemy that must be killed at all costs.
In other words, the Count became convinced that he was the culprit during this meeting.
“Why do you think Duke Balkan did it?”
Count Furst’s eyes narrowed halfway.
“Duke Balkan let his guard down. He probably thought it would be fine since three years had passed. So he revealed his true intentions, which he had never shown before. But I haven’t forgotten what happened that day. I can’t forget.”
It was somewhat disjointed, so I asked directly to be sure.
“You think Duke Balkan assassinated your wife in order to marry his daughter to you?”
“Yes, Ran. That’s what I think.”
His words were filled with indescribable anger.
I hesitated a bit, but I still couldn’t tell him about the jester incident.
If I were to bring up the subscription service, I would have no choice but to talk about Fabre, who had thwarted numerous assassination attempts, and I had promised not to speak of that.
Moreover, even if I did tell him.
Count Furst would surely try to capture that jester to find out who ordered his wife’s assassination.
No matter how rational he is, when it comes to his dead wife, he’s likely to act impulsively.
But the more you stir up the underworld, the stronger the stench it gives off, and the person doing the stirring ends up covered in all sorts of filth.
The best way is not to tell him and handle it myself behind the scenes.
“I’ll look into the incident from three years ago in my own way. If it turns out that Duke Balkan was indeed the one who ordered it, we can seek revenge then. It’s not too late.”
“No, it will be too late. Duke Balkan won’t wait until then. As soon as we leave here, there’s a narrow valley. His black knights might be lying in wait to take my head.”
I glanced at the Count.
His eyes were so full of anger that they had completely lost their usual intelligence.
I met his gaze and said:
“Duke Balkan is giving you a chance. He’s saying, ‘If you become my son-in-law, I’ll help you. But if you refuse, I’ll destroy your current position no matter what losses I suffer.’ Something like that.”
“I don’t know.”
“If he was going to act right away, there would have been no need to talk about selling shares. Why mention that if he’s just going to assassinate you in the valley? He could just kill you and take over the company.”
The Count’s mouth opened slightly.
He soon closed his eyes and rubbed his temples, then sighed and said:
“Hoo. Now that I hear it, you’re right. Once I got the idea that Duke Balkan killed my wife, hoo. I started seeing him only as an enemy. But not yet. Right. You’re right. It’s not to that extent yet. Because there’s no compelling evidence that he’s the culprit.”
There was still anger in his voice.
But it seemed to have changed colour.
From red to blue.
This should be good enough.
“I’ll take responsibility for looking into it. Leave that part to me, and for now, try to find a way to save the company. The fate of the Furst family is at stake, after all.”
Count Furst nodded slightly, agreeing with my words.
As we exited through the entrance we had come in, a loud voice was heard from one side.
“Count! You’ve come out! Are you alright? We were very worried that something might have happened to you.”
The knight commander, who quickly ran up to us, brightened upon seeing the Count.
He’s certainly a pure-hearted person.
Just incompetent.
“I’m fine. Did Duke Balkan do anything to you?”
“No. He didn’t do anything. The black knights also left quietly, escorting the nobles.”
“That’s good then. We’ll return to the mansion.”
“Yes. I’ll guide you to the carriage.”
Afterwards, we slowly moved to the point where the valley began.
The carriage and coachman were there, just as they had been before we left.
As he boarded the carriage, Count Furst said:
“You’re certainly right, Ran. It seems Duke Balkan is still watching me for now.”
He loosened the scarf around his neck and relaxed his body with a relieved expression.
I sat across from the Count and said:
“Is there anyone else you suspect?”
The Count shook his head tiredly.
“I’m not the type of person who makes enemies. While many may envy me, there shouldn’t be anyone who wants me dead.”
“Aren’t those the same thing?”
“They’re different.”
“Still, among the many nobles, there must be at least one or two. There are plenty of people with twisted minds.”
“For envy and jealousy, you just need to throw them suitable bait. Make it so that even if they distrust me, they can’t do without me. So it can’t be that.”
Giving those who envy you no justification to hate you.
How meticulous must one be in words and actions to achieve that?
“I see. Then I’ll look into Duke Balkan’s side for now. It probably won’t take long…”
Zzzzt.
At that moment, goosebumps rose all over my body, forcing me to stand up abruptly.
“Ran? What’s wrong?”
I couldn’t take my eyes off a certain direction.
“It’s approaching.”
“What is?”
“Powerful magical energy.”
Count Furst furrowed his brow.
“Could it be that the Duke’s mage is trying to attack us?”
“Yes, it seems so. But…”
“But?”
I flung open the carriage door. Then I leaned halfway out, focusing my eyes in the direction I sensed the magical energy.
There was a giant eagle soaring through the sky.
That eagle was also looking directly at me.
