Chapter – 2
“To my beloved princess, I shall give you the whole world.”
Her father, Count Ohara, was unlike other nobles. Put nicely, he was a free spirit; put less kindly, he was a doting fool utterly incapable of discretion. Fortunately, in Loark’s social circles, he was seen as the former. And the reason was simple: he was the richest man in the empire, a fact no one dared dispute.
Though his family was already wealthy and prestigious, Loark—the capital of the Bellice Empire—was filled with countless such noble houses. In a continent-spanning superpower that had lasted thousands of years, ordinary nobles were as common as dirt underfoot.
By that measure, the Ohara family could be considered just one among many. That would have been fine, except Count Ohara changed everything when he became head of the family.
Having spent much of his childhood studying abroad, he was both fiercely ambitious and unusually open-minded. He started in the colonies with tobacco farms and distilleries, gradually expanding his reach, and eventually moved decisively into the southern mining industry. Many scoffed at his audacious investments, calling him reckless, but his gamble paid off spectacularly.
“Spectacular” is hardly enough to describe it. Within a few years, he struck some of the richest gold and gem mines on the continent, rapidly becoming Loark’s wealthiest and most influential socialite. His only heir, his daughter Evangeline Ohara, was set to inherit everything.
Having divorced his wife over irreconcilable differences before Evangeline could even walk, the Count doted excessively on his daughter. From her earliest years, he never let her out of his sight, traveling the continent together. For a society where noble girls were typically confined to learning etiquette and preparing for marriage, this was radical.
“My daughter should be able to do anything.”
Riding, swordplay, card games, foreign languages—anything she wished to learn, regardless of traditional gender roles, she learned from him.
By the time she reached her late teens, Evangeline had lived freely alongside her father. Only when it came time to debut in society did they settle in the empire’s capital, Loark. And Count Ohara’s approach to her marriage was just as unconventional.
Rather than observing the usual courtship period, letting matchmakers assess potential suitors, he pursued a single goal:
The best husband for his daughter.
He wasted no time. Even before the social season began, he went straight to the Teze Ducal family. This was a household that even the most ambitious nobles would hesitate to approach—but being a natural businessman, the Count saw opportunity where others saw risk.
The seemingly unprofitable mines that everyone avoided? Those were exactly where fortunes could be made.
Presenting Evangeline’s portrait and proof of her inheritance, he approached the dowager duchess of Teze and struck a deal on the spot. Simply put, he challenged her: no one in the world could compare to his daughter as a future duchess. The dowager agreed without hesitation.
Thus, a previously unknown young lady became the future wife of the Teze Ducal family, and the social world erupted in shock.
Whispers followed: “Surely there was some scheming,” “We should have acted sooner,” and so on. But the die was cast. Even the proudest nobles could not resist the union once the Teze Duke himself gave consent. And as those who witnessed Evangeline’s breathtaking beauty began to praise her, her marriage became a settled fact.
Of course, other families with designs on the duke did not surrender easily. They pinned their last hope on one condition set by the dowager duchess: that she wished to personally instruct the future duchess in her household duties.
They expected the free-spirited foreign girl to fail under the rigorous, noble guidance of the dowager, yet Evangeline exceeded all expectations. Not a single mistake, not a hint of defiance. She became more flawless than even the dowager herself.
Two years after entering the Teze household, no one dared question her position.
During that time, she handled the dowager’s funeral as a future daughter-in-law, inherited the western annex and gardens that symbolized the Teze duchess, and solidified her place. As the sole heir of the Ohara family, backed by her father’s wealth and influence, she had become the queen of the social scene.
All this, until just before her twenty-second birthday.
“Tell me exactly what happened. How could this be?”
Evangeline pressed her hands neatly onto her lap and summoned her top manager, Philip. It had been a year since her father left for the eastern continent’s city of Addis. His return was imminent—or so she had believed. He should have been preparing to leave for Bellice for her upcoming wedding—but he had disappeared.
“The ship sank… How could this happen…”
Philip’s face turned pale. Even he struggled to accept the sudden news. His chest heaved as if he could not breathe.
“Two months ago, the master completed all his business in Addis and departed. Unfortunately, he ran into a storm in the Lyman Sea…”
“Are you sure this isn’t a mistake? His last letter said he would leave next month. How could he have set sail two months ago?”
“…He wanted to return secretly and surprise you, ma’am. He instructed us not to inform you.”
“I see…”
Evangeline pressed her forehead lightly. Knowing her father’s boisterous nature, she had some sense of what had happened. Slowly, hope that it might be a misunderstanding began to fade.
“So… my father really—”
“It seems the accident was so severe that there are no survivors, and in fact, the wreckage was discovered days later by a passing foreign ship.”
“Are you certain?”
“The exact details are unknown. All we know is that the ship sank, and the master is missing.”
Her manager, Philip, hung his head apologetically. He feared she might break down in despair, but Evangeline was unexpectedly calm. Her clear pink eyes blinked slowly, almost doll-like, yet resolute.
“First, search the surrounding seas and islands. Check if there are any survivors. Also, investigate what cargo—gems, valuables—was aboard and what remains. Report back everything.”
Her voice was unwavering. Though now the future duchess, she had spent two years on merchant ships, traveling every sea of the world. She hadn’t run the company herself, but she had never forgotten how things operated.
“What are you waiting for? Move immediately.”
“Well… that is…”
Philip’s face fell further. No matter how composed she was, he had overlooked one crucial fact.
“Miss, we no longer have the funds to do so.”
◇ ◆ ◇
In the senate hall of the imperial palace, a long table stretched across the center with Duc Decarno at its head. He had just put down his quill after mechanically reviewing the latest agenda. It was the brief signal marking a short recess.
“Sir, shall I bring more tea?”
“No. That’s fine.”
Duc Decarno shook his head at his aide, Michael. He wasn’t taking the break for himself; it was a tactic. If he didn’t pause now, most of the nobles would nod mindlessly without understanding a word.
At this moment, a man in a naval uniform approached casually.
“How long has it been? No wonder they call you Teze; you’re relentless.”
Though the remark could be considered insubordination to a duke with supreme military authority, he slouched in the chair across from Decarno without hesitation. The man was Phailon, eldest son of the Sarmelton family, a naval colonel, and one of Decarno’s few friends.
