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"My dear princess, I will give you the whole world."
Her father, Count O'Hara, was different from any other nobleman. To put it in a good way, he was a free spirit, and to put it badly, he was a "self-indulgent person who was too indiscriminate about whether to take a daughter." Fortunately, in Loark's social circles, he was known as the former. The only reason was that he was the richest man in the empire, who couldn't even talk about it.
Originally, they were quite wealthy and venerable, but there were no such nobles in Loark, the capital of the Belice Empire. As the continent's greatest power that has been passed down for thousands of years, there were so many nobles that they could kick their feet.
Count O'Hara was one of them. That's fine, but not exceptional.
Then, when the current Count O'Hara became the head of the family, the situation changed.
He had been studying abroad for a long time since he was a child, and he had a very belligerent and open-minded personality. After gradually expanding its foothold from the colony to tobacco farming and breweries, it entered the mining industry in the south in earnest. Some people bit their tongues, saying that he was about to be ruined by his move to bet all the wealth he had accumulated at once, but in the end, his investment achieved remarkable success.
No. It was a mere success, but its value was indeed enormous. Blowing up the largest gold veins and gem mines on the entire continent, he became the richest man in the Loark social world in a matter of years. His only successor and only daughter was Evangeline O'Hara.
The Count, who divorced his wife before the child was even a child, was too fond of his daughter. Since childhood, they have traveled all continents together without taking a single moment from their side. It was a very unconventional move in an aristocratic society where girls were taught social preparation and bridal classes at home.
"My daughter should know how to do anything."
Riding, swordsmanship, playing cards, and foreign languages. Regardless of gender, he taught his daughter everything she wanted to learn.
Evangeline, who lived freely with her father until her late teens, settled in the imperial capital of Loark before making her social debut. And Count O'Hara was also very unique about his daughter's marriage.
She made her debut in the social world, established herself as a bride, and gradually overturned the custom of talking about each other in earnest.
His daughter had the best groom.
That one thing was important to him, so there was no need to weigh it down. Before the proper social season could begin, the Count went to the Duke of Theses at once. He was a Duke whom even an aristocrat didn't dare to look at, but Count O'Hara, a born businessman, took advantage of the opportunity.
A solid mine that everyone is reluctant to do is the one that hits the jackpot.
He went to the previous Duchess, the mother of the Duke of Theses, with a portrait of his daughter and a property title, and built a wall on the spot. To put it simply, the Duchess readily agreed to his provocation, saying, "Even if I look around the world, there will be no Duchess like your daughter."
Since the nameless young lady suddenly became the Duke's daughter-in-law, it was no wonder that there was a great upheaval in the social world.
There were all kinds of back-and-forth stories, such as that he must have done the work behind the scenes, and that if he had known it would be like that, he would have tried to come out in her house, but the ship had already left. The Duke of Theses, the head of all the nobles, known for his nobles, unexpectedly agreed, and the game was over. One by one, praise began to be heaped by those who saw Evangeline's shocking beauty in person, and the marriage between the two became a foregone conclusion.
Of course, the other families who had been aiming for the Duke could not give up easily. They pinned their last hope on the previous Duchess's only condition "I want to teach her duties as the next Duchess in my own home."
They expected that this free-spirited young lady who had lived abroad would not be able to endure a strict and noble mother-in-law like Duchess Theses, but for some reason, Evangeline showed no more perfection than the previous Duchess without a single problem or rebellion.
Two years after she entered the House of Theses, no one could doubt her existence
In the meantime, it was Evangeline who held a funeral as a daughter-in-law when the previous Duchess passed away, and who inherited the annex and garden on the west side, which are the symbols of the Duchess of Theses, by inheriting her mother-in-law's will. As the sole heir of Count O'Hara, thanks to her enormous financial resources and her father's overwhelming patronage, she was proudly reborn as the queen of the social world.
Exactly until the end of his twenty-second birthday.
"Tell me in detail. I don't know what happened."
She immediately called in Philip, the manager at the top, and pressed her hands on her lap. It has been one year since her father left for Addis in the Eastern Continent, and the day of his return is not far away. No, she believed it wouldn't. For her wedding ceremony in a few months, the person who should have been preparing to leave for Belice by now evaporated in an instant.
"How did this happen that the ship sank..."
"I apologize, Lady. We were also contacted so suddenly."
Philip, who was stunned by the stunned face, was also distracted by the sudden news. He was busy beating his chest as if he couldn't believe it.
"My master said that he started in Addis two months ago after clearing all his business. But he met a storm in the waters of Lehman..."
"Didn't you know something was wrong? In his last letter, my father said that he would not leave until next month, but how could he have boarded the boat two months ago?"
"That's it.... He said that he wanted to sneak back and surprise the Young Lady, and ordered me not to tell you."
"Oh..."
She pressed her forehead. As much as she knew her father's boisterous personality, she had a rough idea of what would happen. The hope that she had hung onto if she had made a mistake was slowly shattering.
"...Then my father really is."
"It seems that there are no survivors because it was such a big accident, and even this was found a few days later by a merchant ship from another country."
"Are you sure?"
"Actually, I don't know the details. All I can say is that the ship has sunk and the Master is missing..."
Philip, who had delivered only the worst news in a row, lowered his head as if he had no face. He wondered if the young lady would cry out in despair, but she was unexpectedly calm. The way her clear pink eyes slowly flickered was like a living doll, but strangely calm.
"You didn't find my father's body."
"Yes, but in many ways... circumstances."
"We will search the nearby waters and islands right away. First, I need to find out if there are any survivors. We also investigate and tell me how much jewelry and things were on the ship and how much is left."
Her voice was firm. She is now the next Duchess, but until two years ago, she traveled on merchant ships around the world. She didn't directly participate in the top work, but she didn't forget how the work was done.
"What are you doing? You don't move right away."
"Young Lady, that's it..."
However, contrary to Evangeline's will, Philip became even more embarrassed. No matter how calmly she tried to go, she had forgotten one of the most important things.
"I don't have the funds to do that anymore, Miss."
***
The Senate meeting room in the imperial palace was filled with a long table with Deccarno in the center. He mechanically looked at the agenda that was constantly on the agenda and put down the quill. It was his signal for a short break of about an hour.
"Your Excellency. Shall I bring you some more tea?"
"Nope. That's it."
Duke Deccarno waved his head at his aide, Michael. After all, he didn't take a break to rest. If the meeting that has been going on for hours is not interrupted at this point, most of the people here will just nod their heads without knowing what he is talking about. As expected, at this time, a man in a navy uniform crept up to the nobles who were coming forward.
"How many hours have you been? I don't think anyone is a thesis."
"..."
It was a disrespectful remark to the Duke, who nominally held the command of the army, but he sat down on the chair across from him without hesitation. Pylon, the eldest son of the Count of Summulton, was a naval colonel and one of the few friends of the Duke of Deccarno.
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