Episode 112. The Prelude to Revenge
True to the impatient nature of the Prince's secretary, Meson handled the matter swiftly. He personally visited Marquis Letium, carrying the investment cancellation document drafted by Noah.
Marquis Letium fidgeted, sensing an ominous premonition at the unexpected visit from the Prince's secretary.
Meson placed the document in front of the Marquis with a polite demeanor, and the Marquis quickly opened it, concealing his trembling heart.
However, as the Marquis read through the contents of the document, he could not help but tremble.
“...Why, why suddenly...!”
With mining imminent, if Noah, the largest investor, were to cancel his investment, the other investors would undoubtedly be shaken. In the worst-case scenario, the mining could be canceled due to a lack of funds.
Think of how much money the family had invested! It was a situation that could have potentially plunged the entire family into crisis.
The Marquis half-raised himself and looked at Meson, but Meson gave a mechanical answer with an expressionless face.
"I will pay the penalty imposed by the Norfolk investment firm. Furthermore, please understand that I cannot presume to disclose the detailed reasons."
“This cannot be. Mining is imminent, and it is impossible without His Highness’s funds! I, I wish to meet His Highness in person!”
Meson paused for a moment, then calmly replied.
“First, I will report that you have requested an audience with His Highness.”
“Yes, Lord Loktar. I entrust this to you.”
"I will contact you."
Meson was about to leave the room after offering a naval greeting. The Marquis, who had been lost in thought, suddenly asked a question in a low, husky voice.
“Could it be... that His Highness is furious because of the matter concerning the Countess Timberlin?”
Meson slowly turned his body.
He personally hoped that the matter would be smoothed over. What Noah wanted was a warning to the nobles and an apology from those involved, and if that were resolved, there was no reason to cancel the investment.
So, it was a problem that could have ended with just this level of intimidation.
So, Meson gave Marquis Letium a small hint.
“Her Highness the Grand has suffered from a high fever for several days. And the fever... started at the department store VIP cafe. His Highness is convinced that a Shine Party took place at that cafe.”
At Meson's hint, the Marquis's face turned pale. He trembled his jaw, then roughly rubbed and ran his hand across his face.
"I understand."
"Then."
As the door quietly closed, only the sound of his rough breathing filled the Marquis's office. After gasping for breath for quite some time, the Marquis slammed his fist on the desk and immediately called for the Marchioness.
As the surprised Marchioness ran into his office, the Marquis asked her while fuming.
"You went to that cafe with Juliana that day, didn't you?"
"Yes?"
As the surprised Marchioness blinked and asked again, the Marquis asked back in a suppressed voice.
"Did you have a shine party with Juliana for the Princess Consort?"
The Marchioness almost let out a scream without realizing it. She covered her mouth with her hand and stammered with a flustered look on her face.
“Ah, no, that, that is...!”
“Are you out of your mind?!! Don’t you know I’m going to get the Prince’s money invested?! You should be inviting the Princess to treat her, and what?! A Shine Party?!”
At those words, a chill ran down the Marchioness's spine. The green eyes that had shone like a beast came vividly to mind.
“H-honey...!”
“Of all people, why did you have to mess with Noah Astrid!!”
“Shine Party... Ah, it wasn’t!”
The Marquis nervously pushed his disheveled hair back and even took off his jacket. Then he spoke sharply.
“Whether it’s true or not isn’t important. The problem is that it looked like a Shine Party to the Prince. It’s no use saying it’s not true a hundred times.”
“...Then what should I do?”
"Tell Juliana Timberlin to come. Right now."
Olivia, whose fever had subsided, recovered quickly, and the doctor prepared a week's worth of medicine and returned to the palace as if fleeing.
Leaving behind the words, “Your Highness, you must always stay healthy. Understood?”
Meanwhile, some servants were hiding behind a tree, watching the Prince and his wife.
“...Even if you have just recovered from an illness, why go out of your way in this weather...”
"You're making a fuss".
"Unusual. Behavior or state is very different from the norm."
This is the word that the servants of the mansion and Meson thought of while looking at Noah over the past two days.
Olivia accepted Noah's touch as if she had given up. He eventually took off her coat and dressed her in a thick fur coat meant for the dead of winter. Watching him skillfully tie the blue ribbon at the neck, Olivia muttered.
"You're being overly dramatic."
"Just because your fever has gone down a little doesn't mean you're fully recovered."
“I know that. But it’s not flu yet.”
"It seems you don't remember Herod's flu, but it's worse than the flu. The weather is different from Pulder."
"By the way, Your Highness, you aren't even wearing a coat."
“I don’t know how long you intend to keep telling me to pass the message, Duchess? You, my dear, with such a good word available? I even use it sometimes, you know?”
Noah shrugged and changed the subject, and in the end, Olivia had to go for a walk wearing fur. Of course, it was only natural that the walk had to be stopped because it was too hot.
Noah's ordeal did not end there.
He seemed like someone who had made up his mind to take care of all of Olivia's meals.
Olivia stopped chewing her steak and cautiously looked up. Immediately, she met Noah's eyes.
As their eyes met, he naturally raised a glass of water and held it to her lips. It was something that would not be found in the customs of any country.
Olivia quickly put down the cutlery, took the glass of water from him, and set it down.
"Should I spoon-feed you the steak too?"
Olivia could see the shoulders of the maids serving the meal twitch.
Her face is burning, and she doesn't know what to do with herself.
"Aren't you coming to work today either?"
"I intend to work here for the time being. If you want me to work, please finish your steak, Duchess of Rosemond."
“...Please don’t keep putting the glass of water to my lips.”
As Olivia poked at the steak and whispered, Noah rested his chin on his palm and asked back slyly.
“Is that also because you’re embarrassed?”
As soon as he finished speaking, she frowned and glared at him, causing Noah to burst into laughter.
Seeing the look of displeasure lingering on her doll-like, elegant face, Noah kept wanting to feed her all sorts of things.
He wanted to see this face, so he deliberately held a glass of water to the corner of her mouth and carried her around in his arms.
Noah straightened his posture and wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin.
"Actually, I have to go to the office briefly today. The merchants are scheduled to come this afternoon, and of course, they intend to arrive by then. Even if I don't come, please start picking out the goods first."
"Yes. Don't worry, go ahead!"
Olivia spoke forcefully.
A short while later, after seeing him off at the entrance, she headed to the study for the first time in a while.
She took out the old leather bag she had kept in a corner of the study, then took out a thick textbook. She aimlessly ran her hand over the worn surface of the book.
When Olivia was carrying this book around and studying, she was as busy as if she were running through a battlefield.
There are four hours left until the appointment with the merchants.
Olivia rested her chin on her hand and tapped the desk with her fingers.
The sound of birds could be heard from beyond the window behind her. She suddenly turned her head to look outside, and the servants of the mansion were moving very busily.
Olivia, who had been staring blankly at the busy group, touched the glossy corner of her textbook with her fingertips and muttered.
“Well... what should I do?”
Olivia, who was always busy living her life, was extremely flustered by the situation where she had nothing to do.
Eventually, she started reading all the newspapers she hadn't been able to read recently, and her gaze stopped at one page.
[Establishment of the first royal school for commoners on the Norfolk continent.]
It was an article stating that the first royal commoner school on the continent was being established, as King Leonard personally ordered its founding.
The article, a mix of objective facts and appropriate praise for the King, changed slightly in tone in the middle and later parts.
“...However, the Ruble Party argued that even if it were the first royal school, there was a significant qualitative difference from schools for the nobility...”
Olivia stroked her chin and read the article carefully.
Meanwhile, Count Seymour and Marquis Letium paced back and forth in the drawing room with pale faces. Their minds were filled with thoughts of how to change Noah's mind.
A moment later, as the drawing room door opened and the Prince appeared, Count Seymour and Marquis Letium greeted him with delight and bowed at the waist.
“Your Royal Highness!”
Noah glanced at the two men, went to the seat of honor, and sat down.
"Please sit down."
Count Seymour cautiously sat down beside the Prince and asked.
“Your Highness, if you notify me of the cancellation of the investment so suddenly... please tell me the reason.”
“...”
Noah stared at Count Seymour, then turned to look at Marquis Letium sitting opposite him.
Marquis Letium, who had been wearing a determined expression, suddenly bowed his head.
“I sincerely apologize, Your Highness, for the disrespect my sister and wife committed against Your Highness.”
Count Seymour's eyes widened at Marquis Letium's sudden apology. He parted his lips and looked back and forth between the Prince and the Marquis in confusion.
Noah gazed quietly at the crown of the Marquis's head, then slowly leaned back in his chair.
“Well. It seems neither the person to apologize nor the person to receive an apology is here.”
Marquis Letium, who had been staring at the floor, let out a sigh inwardly and squeezed his eyes shut.
Noah had no intention of hiding his reasons, nor of expressing them indirectly.
As Marquis Letium raised his head, Count Seymour, growing anxious, stammered his words.
“Your Highness... I have no idea what’s going on...”
"Didn't Seymour's mistress tell you that she met me?"
“...”
"I guess she didn't. She was sitting at the same table as her friend, chatting."
Count Seymour's back was drenched in cold sweat. Noah stared intently at the Count's face, which was turning pale, and added.
"Ask your wife what she said that day to the Princess, and let me know. I could ask her directly, but something is holding me back."
“...”
Noah leaned toward the Count and slurred each word fiercely.
“I’m extremely curious to know what my wife heard that made her expression like that that day.”
Count Seymour could sense an intense determination from him that he would absolutely not let this matter slide.
There was only one thing Noah wanted to gain through this work.
To ensure that no one looks down on Olivia.
True to the impatient nature of the Prince's secretary, Meson handled the matter swiftly. He personally visited Marquis Letium, carrying the investment cancellation document drafted by Noah.
Marquis Letium fidgeted, sensing an ominous premonition at the unexpected visit from the Prince's secretary.
Meson placed the document in front of the Marquis with a polite demeanor, and the Marquis quickly opened it, concealing his trembling heart.
However, as the Marquis read through the contents of the document, he could not help but tremble.
“...Why, why suddenly...!”
With mining imminent, if Noah, the largest investor, were to cancel his investment, the other investors would undoubtedly be shaken. In the worst-case scenario, the mining could be canceled due to a lack of funds.
Think of how much money the family had invested! It was a situation that could have potentially plunged the entire family into crisis.
The Marquis half-raised himself and looked at Meson, but Meson gave a mechanical answer with an expressionless face.
"I will pay the penalty imposed by the Norfolk investment firm. Furthermore, please understand that I cannot presume to disclose the detailed reasons."
“This cannot be. Mining is imminent, and it is impossible without His Highness’s funds! I, I wish to meet His Highness in person!”
Meson paused for a moment, then calmly replied.
“First, I will report that you have requested an audience with His Highness.”
“Yes, Lord Loktar. I entrust this to you.”
"I will contact you."
Meson was about to leave the room after offering a naval greeting. The Marquis, who had been lost in thought, suddenly asked a question in a low, husky voice.
“Could it be... that His Highness is furious because of the matter concerning the Countess Timberlin?”
Meson slowly turned his body.
He personally hoped that the matter would be smoothed over. What Noah wanted was a warning to the nobles and an apology from those involved, and if that were resolved, there was no reason to cancel the investment.
So, it was a problem that could have ended with just this level of intimidation.
So, Meson gave Marquis Letium a small hint.
“Her Highness the Grand has suffered from a high fever for several days. And the fever... started at the department store VIP cafe. His Highness is convinced that a Shine Party took place at that cafe.”
At Meson's hint, the Marquis's face turned pale. He trembled his jaw, then roughly rubbed and ran his hand across his face.
"I understand."
"Then."
As the door quietly closed, only the sound of his rough breathing filled the Marquis's office. After gasping for breath for quite some time, the Marquis slammed his fist on the desk and immediately called for the Marchioness.
As the surprised Marchioness ran into his office, the Marquis asked her while fuming.
"You went to that cafe with Juliana that day, didn't you?"
"Yes?"
As the surprised Marchioness blinked and asked again, the Marquis asked back in a suppressed voice.
"Did you have a shine party with Juliana for the Princess Consort?"
The Marchioness almost let out a scream without realizing it. She covered her mouth with her hand and stammered with a flustered look on her face.
“Ah, no, that, that is...!”
“Are you out of your mind?!! Don’t you know I’m going to get the Prince’s money invested?! You should be inviting the Princess to treat her, and what?! A Shine Party?!”
At those words, a chill ran down the Marchioness's spine. The green eyes that had shone like a beast came vividly to mind.
“H-honey...!”
“Of all people, why did you have to mess with Noah Astrid!!”
“Shine Party... Ah, it wasn’t!”
The Marquis nervously pushed his disheveled hair back and even took off his jacket. Then he spoke sharply.
“Whether it’s true or not isn’t important. The problem is that it looked like a Shine Party to the Prince. It’s no use saying it’s not true a hundred times.”
“...Then what should I do?”
"Tell Juliana Timberlin to come. Right now."
***
Olivia, whose fever had subsided, recovered quickly, and the doctor prepared a week's worth of medicine and returned to the palace as if fleeing.
Leaving behind the words, “Your Highness, you must always stay healthy. Understood?”
Meanwhile, some servants were hiding behind a tree, watching the Prince and his wife.
“...Even if you have just recovered from an illness, why go out of your way in this weather...”
"You're making a fuss".
"Unusual. Behavior or state is very different from the norm."
This is the word that the servants of the mansion and Meson thought of while looking at Noah over the past two days.
Olivia accepted Noah's touch as if she had given up. He eventually took off her coat and dressed her in a thick fur coat meant for the dead of winter. Watching him skillfully tie the blue ribbon at the neck, Olivia muttered.
"You're being overly dramatic."
"Just because your fever has gone down a little doesn't mean you're fully recovered."
“I know that. But it’s not flu yet.”
"It seems you don't remember Herod's flu, but it's worse than the flu. The weather is different from Pulder."
"By the way, Your Highness, you aren't even wearing a coat."
“I don’t know how long you intend to keep telling me to pass the message, Duchess? You, my dear, with such a good word available? I even use it sometimes, you know?”
Noah shrugged and changed the subject, and in the end, Olivia had to go for a walk wearing fur. Of course, it was only natural that the walk had to be stopped because it was too hot.
Noah's ordeal did not end there.
He seemed like someone who had made up his mind to take care of all of Olivia's meals.
Olivia stopped chewing her steak and cautiously looked up. Immediately, she met Noah's eyes.
As their eyes met, he naturally raised a glass of water and held it to her lips. It was something that would not be found in the customs of any country.
Olivia quickly put down the cutlery, took the glass of water from him, and set it down.
"Should I spoon-feed you the steak too?"
Olivia could see the shoulders of the maids serving the meal twitch.
Her face is burning, and she doesn't know what to do with herself.
"Aren't you coming to work today either?"
"I intend to work here for the time being. If you want me to work, please finish your steak, Duchess of Rosemond."
“...Please don’t keep putting the glass of water to my lips.”
As Olivia poked at the steak and whispered, Noah rested his chin on his palm and asked back slyly.
“Is that also because you’re embarrassed?”
As soon as he finished speaking, she frowned and glared at him, causing Noah to burst into laughter.
Seeing the look of displeasure lingering on her doll-like, elegant face, Noah kept wanting to feed her all sorts of things.
He wanted to see this face, so he deliberately held a glass of water to the corner of her mouth and carried her around in his arms.
Noah straightened his posture and wiped the corners of his mouth with a napkin.
"Actually, I have to go to the office briefly today. The merchants are scheduled to come this afternoon, and of course, they intend to arrive by then. Even if I don't come, please start picking out the goods first."
"Yes. Don't worry, go ahead!"
Olivia spoke forcefully.
A short while later, after seeing him off at the entrance, she headed to the study for the first time in a while.
She took out the old leather bag she had kept in a corner of the study, then took out a thick textbook. She aimlessly ran her hand over the worn surface of the book.
When Olivia was carrying this book around and studying, she was as busy as if she were running through a battlefield.
There are four hours left until the appointment with the merchants.
Olivia rested her chin on her hand and tapped the desk with her fingers.
The sound of birds could be heard from beyond the window behind her. She suddenly turned her head to look outside, and the servants of the mansion were moving very busily.
Olivia, who had been staring blankly at the busy group, touched the glossy corner of her textbook with her fingertips and muttered.
“Well... what should I do?”
Olivia, who was always busy living her life, was extremely flustered by the situation where she had nothing to do.
Eventually, she started reading all the newspapers she hadn't been able to read recently, and her gaze stopped at one page.
[Establishment of the first royal school for commoners on the Norfolk continent.]
It was an article stating that the first royal commoner school on the continent was being established, as King Leonard personally ordered its founding.
The article, a mix of objective facts and appropriate praise for the King, changed slightly in tone in the middle and later parts.
“...However, the Ruble Party argued that even if it were the first royal school, there was a significant qualitative difference from schools for the nobility...”
Olivia stroked her chin and read the article carefully.
***
Meanwhile, Count Seymour and Marquis Letium paced back and forth in the drawing room with pale faces. Their minds were filled with thoughts of how to change Noah's mind.
A moment later, as the drawing room door opened and the Prince appeared, Count Seymour and Marquis Letium greeted him with delight and bowed at the waist.
“Your Royal Highness!”
Noah glanced at the two men, went to the seat of honor, and sat down.
"Please sit down."
Count Seymour cautiously sat down beside the Prince and asked.
“Your Highness, if you notify me of the cancellation of the investment so suddenly... please tell me the reason.”
“...”
Noah stared at Count Seymour, then turned to look at Marquis Letium sitting opposite him.
Marquis Letium, who had been wearing a determined expression, suddenly bowed his head.
“I sincerely apologize, Your Highness, for the disrespect my sister and wife committed against Your Highness.”
Count Seymour's eyes widened at Marquis Letium's sudden apology. He parted his lips and looked back and forth between the Prince and the Marquis in confusion.
Noah gazed quietly at the crown of the Marquis's head, then slowly leaned back in his chair.
“Well. It seems neither the person to apologize nor the person to receive an apology is here.”
Marquis Letium, who had been staring at the floor, let out a sigh inwardly and squeezed his eyes shut.
Noah had no intention of hiding his reasons, nor of expressing them indirectly.
As Marquis Letium raised his head, Count Seymour, growing anxious, stammered his words.
“Your Highness... I have no idea what’s going on...”
"Didn't Seymour's mistress tell you that she met me?"
“...”
"I guess she didn't. She was sitting at the same table as her friend, chatting."
Count Seymour's back was drenched in cold sweat. Noah stared intently at the Count's face, which was turning pale, and added.
"Ask your wife what she said that day to the Princess, and let me know. I could ask her directly, but something is holding me back."
“...”
Noah leaned toward the Count and slurred each word fiercely.
“I’m extremely curious to know what my wife heard that made her expression like that that day.”
Count Seymour could sense an intense determination from him that he would absolutely not let this matter slide.
There was only one thing Noah wanted to gain through this work.
To ensure that no one looks down on Olivia.
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