The next day. His words were meaningless, and then he met the Saintess again. Lucia suddenly came to visit the Grand Duke's family. A large carriage with a luxurious white pattern appeared in front of the Grand Duke's family. The carriage door opened, and Lucia appeared with a gentle smile.
"This is the Grand Duke's residence."
Jeremiah, who came down after receiving the butler's report on the appearance of the uninvited guest, did not hide his displeasure on his face.
"I don't remember calling the Saintess. It's rude to come here without any notice. Please go back."
Jeremiah tried to send the Saintess back immediately, but it was impossible.
"If it were a personal visit, then yes. Of course, I know that there are procedures involved. But today, I have come on orders from His Majesty the Emperor."
Lucia smiled innocently and showed that she was completely oblivious to his cold treatment.
"His Majesty has asked me to go to the Grand Duke's residence and check on the Grand Duchess' health."
Lucia asked, leisurely looking around the interior of the Grand Duke's residence.
"Where is the Grand Duchess?"
***
About an hour before the Saintess arrived at the Grand Duchess' residence, Karina was video chatting with Selena, Hasten, and Aiden using the magical communication device Mikhail had given her.
"Your Highness. Are you feeling better now?"
"It's been a while, everyone."
It had actually only been a few days, but with all the big events happening in a row, it felt like it had been a long time since she had seen them. Karina smiled brightly and expressed her joy.
"We were so worried!"
Aiden, who was usually calm and collected, was openly talking about his worries, which made Karina chuckle.
"I was really worried. Thank you. I'm okay now."
She felt grateful to those who truly cared and worried about her. Unlike before her regression, her heart felt like it was full of clouds knowing that there were people who cared about her health and well-being.
"How are you guys? Did everything go well while I was away?"
"Um... Where should I start..."
While Selena was choosing her words, Hasten, who had been standing still with a blank expression behind her, opened his mouth.
"We were just continuing to do our jobs."
It was said that even while Karina was away, he went around investigating and gathering information and continued to work as an intelligence agent.
'I said it's good because he's sincere and capable.'
Karina was satisfied with their appearance, which remained unchanged from her first Impression.
"You must have had a hard time."
"First, I have written a report on important matters and sent it to the escort wizard, so please check it."
"I see."
After hearing Selena's words, Karina looked at Mikhail, who was standing next to her. He shrugged his shoulders, opened a shelf drawer, and handed her a bundle of documents he had taken out from it.
"I was going to give you this when you felt a little better."
"I told you it's all better now?"
"Hmm. For something like that, you seem to have a lot on your mind."
"...!"
Karina's shoulders trembled slightly as she was struck by Mikhail's words.
'Did you see all that?'
She was sweating inside. In fact, she had been busy reminiscing about that day ever since she returned home from the banquet hall in Jeremiah's arms. She was full of thoughts about Jeremiah, who had followed her behind Lucia. Although she was flustered and bewildered by the situation she had experienced for the first time, the fact that he prioritized her above all else wasn't all that bad. No, it was actually good. It was good enough that she hesitated whether she should accept it purely and be happy. However, she tried to remain as usual so as not to get excited for no reason. She was nervous that something bad might happen if she let her guard down. It was a complicated and subtle feeling, both happy and sad, and happy and anxious. Anyway.
'I thought I didn't show it at all.'
She thought she had hidden it well. Mikhail seemed to see right through her, and her face blushed in embarrassment. Clearing her throat, Karina pretended not to know and changed the subject, looking at the report. And then she was surprised.
"What's this?"
The regular report that summarized various things about what Selena and Hasten had been doing so far had a neat and clear summary of the businesses Karina had invested in, the land she had purchased, and the profits from her investment shares. She didn't think it was particularly surprising since she already knew that they would all be successful.
'How many zeros are there anyway?'
Her eyes widened. The money she had made from her business investments was dozens of times more than she had first thought.
"The money I invested has grown this much?"
Selena added, smiling as she looked at Karina, who was dumbfounded.
"It's thanks to the Grand Duchess's keen eye for foreseeing the future of business."
"That's true, but...still, to this extent?"
It was such a large amount of money that she wouldn't mind leaving right now with nothing.
'With this amount, I could probably buy three or four whole estates in the provinces?'
Selena's financial management and administration skills were truly admirable.
"This is really great."
"No. I just used the money I earned a little more aggressively. And with a little luck, the results turned out better than I expected."
Selena simply answered humbly.
"Bonus! I'll give you a big bonus."
Karina spoke seriously because it wasn't something that could be simply ended with just being lucky.
"Then I am grateful."
Karina was satisfied with her attitude of accepting the bonus without hesitation.
"And did you know? The area of Wellen, which the Grand Duchess had asked me to buy, has been found to contain a large quantity of top-quality diamonds. Thanks to this, land prices have skyrocketed."
Selena praised Karina, saying that she had a different eye for business as well as land. Hasten stroked his chin, estimated the amount, and added.
"If we mine and sell the diamonds found there, we will make a huge profit. It will easily be two to three times the profit we have made from our investments so far."
"We'll have more money than we have now? Two or three times what we're making now?"
'Were there really that many diamond deposits in the land of Wellen?'
Karina was dumbfounded after checking the estimated diamond reserves listed in the report. Selena laughed as she watched her blankly staring at her, unable to believe it.
"If you just create a route for mining and selling diamonds, money will grow without you even doing anything."
Then Mikhail, who was listening from the side, spoke up.
"If you can make two or three times as much by simply selling it, wouldn't you be able to make dozens of times more profit by processing and selling the diamond? Let's designate a good jewelry manufacturing company and make a contract. I know a good place."
Selena agreed with Mikhail, saying it was a very good idea.
"There is no need to hand over the core profits that can be obtained from diamond mining to someone else. I will look into it separately. Then we will have the exclusive right to sell the best diamonds."
After hearing what the two had to say, Hasten shook his head as if he was astonished, then made a joke that didn't sound like a joke at all.
"Congratulations on becoming one of the richest men in the Empire, Lady Karina, the tycoon of the Wellen region and a mysterious investor."
Karina was dumbfounded by the unexpected report. But the more money the better, so she thought it would be better to do as they said.
"Then I will ask you to do so."
And this time she looked at Mikhail and asked.
"Michael. Don't you need a place like a villa where you can relax during the vacation season?"
Since he lives in the magic tower, he probably doesn't need a separate house, so he said a villa instead of a house.
"Since you like to wander around, I think it would be a good idea to have a few comfortable places to rest, either far from the tower or in places you often visit."
It was something she kept in mind as a way to repay him for the help he gave her and the life he saved her from.
"Well."
He added after thinking about it for a while.
"I don't care where, just choose the place you like, Karina."
He answered with a sly grin.
'Are you asking me to just pick a good place and arrange it for you?'
Karina pondered over a few popular vacation spots.
"With this, all the preparations you initially told us are complete. Whenever you want, just tell us that you want to leave."
Selena's voice flowed out from the video screen.
"..."
The preparations she had just mentioned were the bare minimum that Karina had deemed necessary for independence immediately after returning. Karina, who understood the meaning of those words, was silent for a moment.
'That means I can leave at any time.'
It was something she had been hoping for, but when she heard that she was ready, she wasn't as happy as she thought she would be.
'Why?'
Karina already vaguely thought she knew the reason. However, she unconsciously refused to think about it. Instead, she was looking for a reason not to leave yet.
'I haven't gotten a divorce yet...!'
The reason she had stayed here and not left until now was to divorce him and end the relationship for sure. So that he would not come looking for her in the future. But now that Lucia had appeared, it was no longer a good reason. Still, she kept hesitating and faltering.
'Am I really going to divorce him?'
Even though Jeremiah wanted her, not Lucia? A foolish thought churned deep inside her heart.
'If there really is such a thing as fate, my fate is Karina, and only you.'
Hesitation gripped her ankles as she recalled his sincerity conveyed through his earnest face and desperate voice.
'I keep looking at the color of your eyes, which is exactly the same as mine...'
The emerald necklace he personally gave her in the carriage on the way to the banquet hall.
'You're pretty. You really suit each other.'
His bright smile, beaming at her, dazzled her eyes. But she already knew. It was a very fragile and dangerous faith that could easily be broken by even the slightest shock. It was hard to even call it faith, knowing that it would be broken so quickly.
'Ha.'
A long sigh escaped her teeth. She was aware that she was being suffocated. A bitter mockery came to her mind at the familiar situation where her mind did not follow her thoughts and will and played around on its own.
While she was lost in thought, the one who broke the silence was Aiden, who opened his eyes wide in surprise.
"Your Highness, are you leaving?"
"..."
"...Where to?"
"..."
Karina remained silent for a moment, unsure of what to say. Then Aiden's voice began to tremble slightly, filled with anxiety and sadness.
"Then I won't be able to see you again?"
"That's not it."
She denied that question right away. Karina knew how well the orphanage children, including Aiden, followed her. When she went to the orphanage and spent time with the children, they didn't hold her back and said goodbye. However, when she got on the carriage, she couldn't hide her sad and regretful expression.
'Those little kids were waving outside until the carriage I was in was out of sight.'
After finding out that fact, Karina told them to go home quickly so they wouldn't catch a cold because it was cold. However, the children who usually listened well and said, "Yes, yes," didn't listen at all to me at this part. They were worried that she wouldn't come back to the orphanage, and they were always careful not to bother her if they kept asking her to come. Karina could see how many separations the children, who were still young and fragile, had gone through. She felt so sorry every time she saw them like that.
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