Karina returned to her room.
She raised her hand and grabbed her throbbing head.
'I'm tired.'
She already felt exhausted from dealing with Jeremiah in that short time.
"Michael. Just bring me a glass of water."
Mikhail was worried at Karina's obviously exhausted appearance.
"Are you okay?"
He asked, pouring water into a cup and handing it to Karina.
"It's okay."
Mikhail said seriously as he watched her drinking the water.
"I'll help you."
"Huh?"
Karina asked back with a puzzled expression at his sudden words.
"What do you mean?"
"I can help you. The Grand Duchess' divorce."
"Ah..."
Karina was a little taken aback by his words that he would help with the divorce.
Mikhail came closer to Karina.
He then wrapped his hand around her empty cup.
"I hope the Grand Duchess will be free soon."
Mikhail’s gaze deepened.
“There is absolutely no reason for the Grand Duchess to be treated this unfairly in the Grand Duke household.”
Mikhail spoke so calmly that it seemed like he was angry at first glance.
However, his voice did not feel cold at all. It felt as if he was getting angry on her behalf, which made her feel strange.
“I am the Grand Duchess’s escort, so I will stay with you even if you leave the Grand Duke's household.”
In those words, she could sense the sincerity that he would take her side no matter what.
She felt gratitude and reassurance at the same time.
“Thank you for saying that.”
Karina smiled, her eyes furrowing gently.
Mikhail’s eyes widened as he met her smile.
“But it is not the time yet.”
Karina said with a serious expression.
“Just getting a divorce is not the end. I have to wait until all the preparations are complete.”
“What preparations do you need? Please tell me. I will prepare everything you lack.”
Karina laughed silently at his words.
Along with the divorce, she was preparing for a future where she would live independently on her own.
“No, this is something I have to do myself.”
She wanted to live a life of her own, without being swayed or ignored by others.
To do that, she had to learn to stand on her own without relying on others.
She already thought that she shouldn’t rely on others.
“And it’s right for me to end it.”
Karina wanted to end all the past wounds and relationships with her own hands.
It seemed that only then would she be able to erase every last bit of regret that remained within her.
“This is all for me.”
Mikhail could sense strong determination in Karina’s eyes as she spoke.
Mikhail watched Karina, lost in thought, for a while.
“If the Grand Duchess says so, then so be it. I will believe whatever the Grand Duchess says.”
Mikhail smiled with the corners of his lips raised.
Karina could feel warmth in that smile.
“Whew.”
A deep, suppressed sigh echoed through the office.
A visceral discomfort welled up from deep within his chest.
This was because he kept recalling the image of Karina being held in the arms of the escort magician earlier.
That alone was enough to make him angry, but what made him even more uncomfortable was the last thing Karina said.
'Divorce?'
The impact of the word divorce was enormous.
The moment he heard the word divorce, Jeremiah felt his breath catch in his throat.
But he soon came to his senses.
'What on earth are you planning?'
Jeremiah dismissed divorce as nonsense.
'Do you think divorce will be that easy?'
Her complacency was laughable.
And the more he thought about her actions in saying those words, the more he became annoyed.
Crunch.
The birch quill broke in his hand, which he had unconsciously exerted all his strength.
As a result, his hand was covered in ink.
"Gasp! Your Highness!"
Jansen, who was next to him, quickly ran over and tried to wipe his hand.
"Enough."
He raised his hand to stop Jansen and got up from his seat.
In this state, it was impossible to process paperwork.
It felt like something hot like a flame was slicing through his chest.
It seemed like he wouldn’t be able to calm down unless he relieved this boiling energy.
“I’m going to the eastern training ground. Tell everyone to vacate the area.”
“Yes...?”
Jansen was flustered.
Jeremiah had been visiting the training ground often lately.
So he was used to being ordered to prepare for a duel.
However, this was the first time he had been ordered to vacate the training ground entirely.
“Right now.”
“Ah... Yes, yes!”
Jansen quickly went out to deliver the order.
Jeremiah held his sword and headed toward the training ground with a fierce aura.
Word spread throughout the mansion that the floor of the eastern training ground had been shattered by Jeremiah’s blow that day.
“What? Really?”
“Yes, the maid who was in charge of cleaning the central staircase saw it herself.”
“Are you saying that Jeremiah really caught Karina embracing his guard?”
Caroline's refreshing laughter filled the room.
"Ahahaha, things are going so well."
Caroline was satisfied that things were going so well as if they were going to work out easier than she had expected. She had been very angry at Mikhail's behavior when he ignored her call a while ago.
'He looks so different from me, so I was going to give him a special chance. What a fool.'
She wanted to call him right away and beat him up for his arrogant behavior, but she only heard that he was out with Karina and not at the mansion.
So she was waiting for them to come back.
While waiting, she had told Jeremiah, whom she had met at the restaurant, bad things about Karina.
"You've been talking nonsense lately, but now you're doing well. You're so annoying."
Caroline hummed, thinking of Karina's awkward appearance.
Caroline wished that Karina and her escort, who were so annoying, would get hurt even more.
She felt sorry for the appearance of the escort wizard, but she couldn’t forgive him for ignoring her.
“You can’t take advantage of the opportunity, so what can you do? That’s why you're acting as a bodyguard for such a stupid woman.”
Caroline snorted and laughed.
Caroline thought about something for a moment and smiled wickedly.
She called her close maid, Nicole.
“Send a letter to ‘that place’. I told them to meet.”
“When should we do it?”
Nicole asked as if she was used to it, even though she didn’t say where.
“Tomorrow night would be good. And make sure to bring it, like you always do.”
“Yes, Princess.”
Nicole, her close maid, bowed her head and answered.
The room was left alone after Nicole left.
Caroline smiled brightly, her expression extremely excited.
A few days later.
“Grand Duchess.”
Mikhail called Karina.
“The matter you left at that ‘flower shop’ last time. I just got a reply.”
The 'flower shop' he was talking about was Selena and Hasten.
Karina bought the entire building of the bar where they met.
It turned out that the first floor was a bar and the second floor was an inn. They had deliberately agreed to call it a 'flower shop'. They called it a bar for no reason, or an information shop.
It was to prevent suspicious words from accidentally coming out if someone heard it.
Karina planned to keep the existence of the information shop a secret.
There were many reasons.
After the divorce, there were many things she needed to do to live a leisurely life in a faraway place where no one knew her.
She had to create a fake identity, and she had to buy a mansion and land.
Money was essential to maintain a comfortable and easy life.
Karina planned to secure her own independent source of funds that would be difficult to trace through this information shop.
To do that, she decided that it would be better to hide the existence of the information shop itself.
'There was no need to tell anyone.'
In fact, Karina's judgment was not wrong.
The more capable and good the information organization was, the better it was for it to remain hidden from the surface.
'I'm going to raise them quickly in the future, so it's best to avoid external checks and attacks as much as possible while they're growing.'
Karina planned to use her knowledge of the future to greatly expand her scale and influence in the information industry.
So much so that no one could ignore them.
The start was to persuade Selena and Hasten to become her people.
Since it was her first time, she asked them to do something simple like find someone.
"But who is this person?"
“Why?”
“Well, after hearing the report, I don’t think he’s someone you’d want to keep close to you.”
“Don’t worry. He’s not someone I’d want to keep close to me.”
Karina motioned for Mikhail to give her the report and held out her hand.
The document she received contained exactly what Karina had expected.
“It’s the same as before.”
Karina smiled with the corners of her lips raised.
“What else?”
Mikhail continued his report on Karina’s question.
“Last time, the director of the orphanage was using most of the support money for alcohol and personal expenses, and the rest was being given to the Princess.”
“That’s exactly what happened.”
Karina’s eyes narrowed.
“They also found out some interesting facts.”
“Interesting facts?”
Karina looked closely at Mikhail’s words.
Karina’s eyes widened as she confirmed the contents.
“...Is this true? If it’s true, it’s an unexpected gain.”
“Considering the source of the information and the situation, there’s a high probability that the report is true. To be honest, it’s harder to think that only one orphanage is embezzling the support money. What should we do?”
“What should we do?”
“It might get bigger than you think.”
“I want it to get bigger. Ask them to investigate more broadly.”
Mikhail couldn’t help but worry, even though Karina answered confidently.
“The Grand Duchess might get hurt because of this. People’s trust and faith in the Grand Duchess will fall.”
"Are you worried about me right now?”
Karina answered lightly as if joking.
“...”
However, Mikhail’s stiff expression didn’t loosen up easily.
Karina smiled as if she had no choice but to open her mouth.
“I’m fine, so don’t worry. And even if I pretend not to know, it will come out someday. In that case, it might be better for me to come forward and reveal it. You might even think it’s fortunate that you found out early.”
“....”
“If you care about me, then do what I say. And if something happens, you can protect me. You’re my bodyguard, right?”
Mikhail licked his lips a few times at Karina’s trustful words.
Then he nodded his head with a smile as if he had lost.
“I understand.”
“What about the orphanage children?”
“For now, I regularly provide the children with firewood, food, daily necessities, and even medicine for the sick.”
“I see. Then, let’s go back to the flower shop and...”
“Here’s one more.”
She thought he was done reporting, but he handed her a thick piece of paper.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a list of the businesses you wanted.”
“Already?”
Karina’s eyes widened in surprise.
The day she had persuaded Selena and Hasten to accept her work.
She had only mentioned it once, saying that she would leave it to them later.
Karina received the documents in awe.
“But why did you ask me to find out about this? It’s not helpful at all.”
What Karina wanted was the business plans of businesses waiting for big investors.
‘High-risk, high-return businesses.’
No one was willing to invest in a business that met these criteria.
The risks were literally too high.
And most of the business plans were either too absurd or too grandiose to be realistic. But it was different for Karina.
'I already know what will succeed.'
Karina smiled brightly, raising the corners of her lips.
She raised her hand and grabbed her throbbing head.
'I'm tired.'
She already felt exhausted from dealing with Jeremiah in that short time.
"Michael. Just bring me a glass of water."
Mikhail was worried at Karina's obviously exhausted appearance.
"Are you okay?"
He asked, pouring water into a cup and handing it to Karina.
"It's okay."
Mikhail said seriously as he watched her drinking the water.
"I'll help you."
"Huh?"
Karina asked back with a puzzled expression at his sudden words.
"What do you mean?"
"I can help you. The Grand Duchess' divorce."
"Ah..."
Karina was a little taken aback by his words that he would help with the divorce.
Mikhail came closer to Karina.
He then wrapped his hand around her empty cup.
"I hope the Grand Duchess will be free soon."
Mikhail’s gaze deepened.
“There is absolutely no reason for the Grand Duchess to be treated this unfairly in the Grand Duke household.”
Mikhail spoke so calmly that it seemed like he was angry at first glance.
However, his voice did not feel cold at all. It felt as if he was getting angry on her behalf, which made her feel strange.
“I am the Grand Duchess’s escort, so I will stay with you even if you leave the Grand Duke's household.”
In those words, she could sense the sincerity that he would take her side no matter what.
She felt gratitude and reassurance at the same time.
“Thank you for saying that.”
Karina smiled, her eyes furrowing gently.
Mikhail’s eyes widened as he met her smile.
“But it is not the time yet.”
Karina said with a serious expression.
“Just getting a divorce is not the end. I have to wait until all the preparations are complete.”
“What preparations do you need? Please tell me. I will prepare everything you lack.”
Karina laughed silently at his words.
Along with the divorce, she was preparing for a future where she would live independently on her own.
“No, this is something I have to do myself.”
She wanted to live a life of her own, without being swayed or ignored by others.
To do that, she had to learn to stand on her own without relying on others.
She already thought that she shouldn’t rely on others.
“And it’s right for me to end it.”
Karina wanted to end all the past wounds and relationships with her own hands.
It seemed that only then would she be able to erase every last bit of regret that remained within her.
“This is all for me.”
Mikhail could sense strong determination in Karina’s eyes as she spoke.
Mikhail watched Karina, lost in thought, for a while.
“If the Grand Duchess says so, then so be it. I will believe whatever the Grand Duchess says.”
Mikhail smiled with the corners of his lips raised.
Karina could feel warmth in that smile.
***
“Whew.”
A deep, suppressed sigh echoed through the office.
A visceral discomfort welled up from deep within his chest.
This was because he kept recalling the image of Karina being held in the arms of the escort magician earlier.
That alone was enough to make him angry, but what made him even more uncomfortable was the last thing Karina said.
'Divorce?'
The impact of the word divorce was enormous.
The moment he heard the word divorce, Jeremiah felt his breath catch in his throat.
But he soon came to his senses.
'What on earth are you planning?'
Jeremiah dismissed divorce as nonsense.
'Do you think divorce will be that easy?'
Her complacency was laughable.
And the more he thought about her actions in saying those words, the more he became annoyed.
Crunch.
The birch quill broke in his hand, which he had unconsciously exerted all his strength.
As a result, his hand was covered in ink.
"Gasp! Your Highness!"
Jansen, who was next to him, quickly ran over and tried to wipe his hand.
"Enough."
He raised his hand to stop Jansen and got up from his seat.
In this state, it was impossible to process paperwork.
It felt like something hot like a flame was slicing through his chest.
It seemed like he wouldn’t be able to calm down unless he relieved this boiling energy.
“I’m going to the eastern training ground. Tell everyone to vacate the area.”
“Yes...?”
Jansen was flustered.
Jeremiah had been visiting the training ground often lately.
So he was used to being ordered to prepare for a duel.
However, this was the first time he had been ordered to vacate the training ground entirely.
“Right now.”
“Ah... Yes, yes!”
Jansen quickly went out to deliver the order.
Jeremiah held his sword and headed toward the training ground with a fierce aura.
Word spread throughout the mansion that the floor of the eastern training ground had been shattered by Jeremiah’s blow that day.
***
“What? Really?”
“Yes, the maid who was in charge of cleaning the central staircase saw it herself.”
“Are you saying that Jeremiah really caught Karina embracing his guard?”
Caroline's refreshing laughter filled the room.
"Ahahaha, things are going so well."
Caroline was satisfied that things were going so well as if they were going to work out easier than she had expected. She had been very angry at Mikhail's behavior when he ignored her call a while ago.
'He looks so different from me, so I was going to give him a special chance. What a fool.'
She wanted to call him right away and beat him up for his arrogant behavior, but she only heard that he was out with Karina and not at the mansion.
So she was waiting for them to come back.
While waiting, she had told Jeremiah, whom she had met at the restaurant, bad things about Karina.
"You've been talking nonsense lately, but now you're doing well. You're so annoying."
Caroline hummed, thinking of Karina's awkward appearance.
Caroline wished that Karina and her escort, who were so annoying, would get hurt even more.
She felt sorry for the appearance of the escort wizard, but she couldn’t forgive him for ignoring her.
“You can’t take advantage of the opportunity, so what can you do? That’s why you're acting as a bodyguard for such a stupid woman.”
Caroline snorted and laughed.
Caroline thought about something for a moment and smiled wickedly.
She called her close maid, Nicole.
“Send a letter to ‘that place’. I told them to meet.”
“When should we do it?”
Nicole asked as if she was used to it, even though she didn’t say where.
“Tomorrow night would be good. And make sure to bring it, like you always do.”
“Yes, Princess.”
Nicole, her close maid, bowed her head and answered.
The room was left alone after Nicole left.
Caroline smiled brightly, her expression extremely excited.
A few days later.
“Grand Duchess.”
Mikhail called Karina.
“The matter you left at that ‘flower shop’ last time. I just got a reply.”
The 'flower shop' he was talking about was Selena and Hasten.
Karina bought the entire building of the bar where they met.
It turned out that the first floor was a bar and the second floor was an inn. They had deliberately agreed to call it a 'flower shop'. They called it a bar for no reason, or an information shop.
It was to prevent suspicious words from accidentally coming out if someone heard it.
Karina planned to keep the existence of the information shop a secret.
There were many reasons.
After the divorce, there were many things she needed to do to live a leisurely life in a faraway place where no one knew her.
She had to create a fake identity, and she had to buy a mansion and land.
Money was essential to maintain a comfortable and easy life.
Karina planned to secure her own independent source of funds that would be difficult to trace through this information shop.
To do that, she decided that it would be better to hide the existence of the information shop itself.
'There was no need to tell anyone.'
In fact, Karina's judgment was not wrong.
The more capable and good the information organization was, the better it was for it to remain hidden from the surface.
'I'm going to raise them quickly in the future, so it's best to avoid external checks and attacks as much as possible while they're growing.'
Karina planned to use her knowledge of the future to greatly expand her scale and influence in the information industry.
So much so that no one could ignore them.
The start was to persuade Selena and Hasten to become her people.
Since it was her first time, she asked them to do something simple like find someone.
"But who is this person?"
“Why?”
“Well, after hearing the report, I don’t think he’s someone you’d want to keep close to you.”
“Don’t worry. He’s not someone I’d want to keep close to me.”
Karina motioned for Mikhail to give her the report and held out her hand.
The document she received contained exactly what Karina had expected.
“It’s the same as before.”
Karina smiled with the corners of her lips raised.
“What else?”
Mikhail continued his report on Karina’s question.
“Last time, the director of the orphanage was using most of the support money for alcohol and personal expenses, and the rest was being given to the Princess.”
“That’s exactly what happened.”
Karina’s eyes narrowed.
“They also found out some interesting facts.”
“Interesting facts?”
Karina looked closely at Mikhail’s words.
Karina’s eyes widened as she confirmed the contents.
“...Is this true? If it’s true, it’s an unexpected gain.”
“Considering the source of the information and the situation, there’s a high probability that the report is true. To be honest, it’s harder to think that only one orphanage is embezzling the support money. What should we do?”
“What should we do?”
“It might get bigger than you think.”
“I want it to get bigger. Ask them to investigate more broadly.”
Mikhail couldn’t help but worry, even though Karina answered confidently.
“The Grand Duchess might get hurt because of this. People’s trust and faith in the Grand Duchess will fall.”
"Are you worried about me right now?”
Karina answered lightly as if joking.
“...”
However, Mikhail’s stiff expression didn’t loosen up easily.
Karina smiled as if she had no choice but to open her mouth.
“I’m fine, so don’t worry. And even if I pretend not to know, it will come out someday. In that case, it might be better for me to come forward and reveal it. You might even think it’s fortunate that you found out early.”
“....”
“If you care about me, then do what I say. And if something happens, you can protect me. You’re my bodyguard, right?”
Mikhail licked his lips a few times at Karina’s trustful words.
Then he nodded his head with a smile as if he had lost.
“I understand.”
“What about the orphanage children?”
“For now, I regularly provide the children with firewood, food, daily necessities, and even medicine for the sick.”
“I see. Then, let’s go back to the flower shop and...”
“Here’s one more.”
She thought he was done reporting, but he handed her a thick piece of paper.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a list of the businesses you wanted.”
“Already?”
Karina’s eyes widened in surprise.
The day she had persuaded Selena and Hasten to accept her work.
She had only mentioned it once, saying that she would leave it to them later.
Karina received the documents in awe.
“But why did you ask me to find out about this? It’s not helpful at all.”
What Karina wanted was the business plans of businesses waiting for big investors.
‘High-risk, high-return businesses.’
No one was willing to invest in a business that met these criteria.
The risks were literally too high.
And most of the business plans were either too absurd or too grandiose to be realistic. But it was different for Karina.
'I already know what will succeed.'
Karina smiled brightly, raising the corners of her lips.
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