"What do you mean by illegal transaction?"
Odelia raised her eyebrows.
"If something like that had happened in my territory, there is no way I wouldn't know."
"So that is why I came to verify it. Whether you missed it because you didn't know... or if you overlooked it."
Behind the man with the wry smile, stacks of documents piled up by the soldiers and confiscated bundles of belongings were visible. The atmosphere was as if a conclusion had already been reached.
Damian slowly walked out from behind Odelia. With a hardened expression, he approached the head of the investigation team.
"Is His Imperial Majesty also aware of this fact?"
"...This is an investigation conducted by order of His Majesty."
For a moment, the investigation team leader's expression contorted subtly, and his answer was delayed by a beat. Damian did not miss that brief hesitation.
"It must be Lady Fabiana's will, not the Emperor's command."
A sharp gaze pierced the investigation team leader. At his words, a brief look of anxiety crossed among the few subordinates behind him.
"I see... So, is this mess Fabiana's will?"
Odelia's voice lowered to a chill. She took another step forward and met the eyes of the investigation team leader.
"How ridiculous. Most of this estate was brought in with the dowry she gave, along with the Empress's ring. Lady Fabiana, she must be aware of this; yet to plunder this place, intimidate the people, and frame them—if this investigation is truly her intention, isn't this a contradiction?"
The investigation team leader parted his lips as if momentarily speechless. Odelia did not stop.
"Very well. If you wish to investigate so much, go ahead. However, I will prove it myself. Instead of Lady Fabiana... I will prove it directly to His Imperial Majesty."
The investigation team leader's face turned from red to stiff. Anxious eyes spread among the soldiers behind the team.
Odelia smiled coldly.
"You, if you wish to trample my territory, do so. In return, I will document the entire process and the circumstances of the orders and submit them to His Majesty. Whether Lady Fabiana truly ordered all of this, and whether she authorized even such a riot! His Imperial Majesty must know. I hope you will prove yourself honorably before His Imperial Majesty."
"...Let's adjust the command."
The investigation team leader bowed his head with a hardened expression.
"Then..."
Odelia spoke in a low voice, then unhesitatingly extended her arm and slapped the investigation team leader's cheek with her fist. A heavy impact sound rang out, cutting through the air in front of the unit.
The surroundings were steeped in honesty.
The investigation team leader staggered and soon fell flat on his backside. His cheek swelled up red, and one side of his lip split open, oozing red blood.
He chewed something in his mouth, then spat it out, saying, 'It's done.' It was a molar.
His eyes trembled, a mixture of bewilderment and anger, but Odelia stood before him without backing down even an inch.
"This is my demand for an apology."
The voice was cold and hard.
"I accept this as your apology for intimidating my people."
The villagers surrounding the castle gate held their breath and looked at each other. Then, as someone clapped softly, relief and cheers soon erupted from all around.
"Long live the Baroness!"
"That is the spirit of our lord!"
As the voice burst out as if released from suppressed anger, the soldiers of the investigation team flinched in discomfort.
The head of the investigation team gritted his teeth but ultimately stepped back without saying a word. The atmosphere remained tense, but everyone knew who the true owner of the seat was.
"Also, if you mess around carelessly, you might have your teeth knocked out one by one as an apology."
Philip, watching the scene, nudged Damian proudly and spoke to him.
"It was like that even during wartime. Odelia used to train the new recruits."
He was subtly curt with his words, and he wondered why he was acting so naturally, as if he knew him, considering they had just met. It seemed that Phillip regarded Damian as nothing more than one of Odelia's loyal subjects or friends.
Damian, who had not bothered to answer or correct himself, turned his gaze back to Odelia. If Calix had been nearby, he too would have nudged him and said something.
Take a look, Your Majesty.
Why would you protect a woman like that? She's perfectly fine protecting herself on her own.
***
"You couldn't even properly subdue a mere woman, and you came back beaten up like this?!"
She grabbed the investigation team leader by the collar.
"How do you think I felt when you crawled into the Imperial Palace like a defeated soldier?!"
"Fabiana... the thing is... that woman is too..."
"That woman?! What about that woman?!"
Fabiana let go of his collar and strode around. The remnants of the broken fan rolled on the floor.
"How dare she lay a hand on my investigation team? How dare she trample on my honor like this?"
Soon after, her gaze turned cold, filled with chill.
"She has nothing to show for it, backed by the Emperor's favor. She must think that is her shield, but I will make sure that shield can no longer protect her."
Fabiana called the maid.
"Call the Duke of Devon here immediately. I have something to say."
The maid hurriedly ran out, and her dwelling was filled with cold life.
The drawing room is heavily scented. Fabiana was twisting her wine glass, looking at the broken fan. When the door opened, the Duke of Devon entered. The gray-haired man sat down with his characteristic dry smile.
"Why did you call this old man? Even if you blamed me so much last time, do you have anything else to ask for?"
From the first word, it was sarcastic. Fabiana put down her glass and forced a smile.
"I have news that my father would be happy with."
"Is this news that I will be happy about?"
Devon snorted.
"Is there anything you have done that has made me happy?"
Fabiana swallowed the mockery and turned her gaze to him.
"Odelia."
"What is that?"
The corners of Fabiana's mouth slowly rose.
"The last of the Rubis family. Do you know that she is the only child who survived?"
Devon's eyes widened.
"What... Do you have any evidence?"
"In the year of Odelia's debut, she sparred with the Emperor's knights. That's when my father said. The ministers said that Odelia was just like the old marshal. I wasn't there at the time, so I couldn't see it, but did my father agree to some extent?"
"...Nonsense! Didn't you say that the child of that house is a son?"
Fabiana let out a short sneer on the tip of her nose.
"Oh, you're stuck. If she had dressed as a man, she would have looked like a son. Especially at a young age, it must have been difficult to dress up as a boy."
"Where is such a ridiculous speculation going..."
"Guess?"
Fabiana tapped the fan with her fingertips and struck it lightly.
"Use your imagination, Dad. Otherwise, does it explain why Calix is so into the girl? And why is she so desperate to rebuild Talamand?"
"It must be because the lowly have a territory. But.. For a commoner who didn't know anything, her situation wasn't quite bad. That's... Right."
A subtle agitation crossed Devon's face. Fabiana did not miss the subtle gap.
"So... I had some people find an interesting record."
Devon swallowed involuntarily.
“What... a record.”
"They were records hidden by the late Empress. Father, think carefully. Why did the late Empress join hands with us back then? Compared to the Marquisate of Rubis, who were Margraves, our Devon family was far behind even at that time."
Devon's frown furrowed.
"Her Majesty the Empress only expected one thing from us."
Fabiana whispered softly, shaking the fan slightly.
"The Empress knew that the child of the Rubis family was a daughter."
"...!"
Devon's eyes shook greatly.
"However, since their resolve was firm enough to disguise a girl as a boy, she realized that she could not marry Liam to that child. So, she probably thought that if there was any possibility of her becoming Calix's partner, she should nip it in the bud."
She slowly folded the fan and uttered the last word sharply.
"Ultimately, all fate was sealed from that moment on. The Empress erased Rubis's daughter, and our family took her place. And now, that daughter who should have been erased has returned."
Devon's face instantly hardened. It was a face mixed with confusion and anger.
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