Chapter 15
A clear, hearty laugh echoed loudly through the room.
Even Dwayne turned his head away as if avoiding it, but his shoulders were trembling uncontrollably.
He was clearly trying his best to hold back his laughter.
What exactly is so funny?
Aria looked over the cards again, but she couldn’t find anything particularly strange.
The vassals of the viscounty had truly been in life-threatening danger because of parasites.
“So, those parasite-like things got thoroughly taken down by parasites.”
The Duke, still wearing a curved smile, rubbed his red lips lightly with his fingertips as he spoke.
He seemed surprised himself, as if he hadn’t expected to laugh that loudly.
“If that’s true, I can roughly guess what happened. Well, how absurd.”
Valentine was famous for its abundant resources, enough to sustain itself.
Among them, the most renowned was undoubtedly the Diamond Mine.
Diamonds are the only ore that can be used to create mana stones.
Mines were found across the world, but none had crystals as pure or as hard as those from Valentine’s diamonds.
Their price soared endlessly, as if there were no limit.
Viscount Cavendish had also approached them in hopes of securing trade rights to the diamonds, but after being rejected, he resorted to petty retaliation and tried to extort money instead.
The problem was the abundance of resources.
The creatures of Valentine were strong.
Animals, humans—
…even parasites.
The viscount’s subordinates once ate a snake they found by chance.
Seeing its shimmering, rainbow-like scales, they believed it was a sacred creature and roasted it on the spot. Absurdly enough.
The result was disastrous.
Some were paralyzed and left completely stiff, some lost their sight, and soon many of them died.
All of this had been recounted by the future viscount while bragging at Count Cortes’ salon.
Ah, now I understand why he laughed.
Trespassing into someone else’s territory, hunting wild animals without permission, and then ending up on the brink of death—only to demand compensation afterward.
It was ridiculous enough to make anyone laugh.
“Come to think of it, I’ve heard that those not born in the principality suffer stomach illness if they don’t boil the forest water before drinking it. Every living thing in this land is called a monster.”
The Duke glanced at Aria and explained with amusement.
“Then how did you know that?”
[Lady Dana said I’m weak because I’m from outside the border. Betty said eating raw food causes infection.]
“Don’t tell me… you deduced all that just from hearing that you lit a fire in the forest?”
The Duke asked in admiration.
That’s not it…
Aria felt slightly guilty and hugged the wolf more tightly, pretending not to care.
The wolf panted happily and licked her cheek.
“Dwayne.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Tell the viscount this: the worms he carelessly harbored in his body can only be treated with deworming medicine manufactured in the principality. If he wants it, he must pay an appropriate price.”
“Understood.”
“And he hunted in the Ingo Mountains without my permission, so that price must be charged separately. The amount…”
He tapped his fingers on the desk as if thinking.
He seemed to be considering how much to demand.
Aria stretched out her arm and pointed precisely at the final line of the document—the compensation amount demanded by Viscount Cavendish.
1 billion Charr.
The Duke followed the direction of her finger with his gaze, then looked back at her intently.
He would surely say something like “as you sow, so shall you reap.”
“You’re quite wise.”
At that moment, a smile spread across the Duke’s lips. It was a devilish smile that made her spine tingle just by watching.
As if he intended to make them pay dearly for daring to look down on Valentine.
He might already be imagining Viscount Cavendish crawling through the mud, clinging to his feet and begging for death.
Scary… I would’ve thought that before.
Aria’s thoughts were a little different now.
Now she felt disgust instead.
Those who trampled others’ rights through unjust means just to satisfy their greed.
They would only realize it once they experienced it themselves—how much pain those who suffered because of their greed had endured.
Aria stared at the Duke with admiration.
The devilish method of paying back tenfold what one received—there was something to learn from it.
Dwayne, who had been watching her from the side, coughed lightly.
Then he whispered into the Duke Tristan’s ear, who was still wearing a chilling smile.
“Your Highness.”
“What.”
“Please… rein in your killing intent. It seems the young lady is frightened.”
Huh? Why would he think that?
Aria quickly pulled out her card after overhearing him.
She had something she had wanted to say for a while.
[Father, you’re so cool.]
“….”
Where exactly?
Dwayne seriously wondered if something in the child’s perception was broken. Especially her sense of fear—it seemed almost nonexistent.
“She says I’m cool.”
The Duke casually read the card Aria had written and took it without hesitation.
Again?
Aria looked down at her suddenly empty hands, a question mark forming above her head.
“I might actually have a talent for raising children.”
Did he even think before speaking?
Dwayne could only think such disrespectful thoughts toward his lord.
Ignoring his subordinate’s stunned gaze, the Duke spoke to Aria.
“You helped me, so I should repay you. Is there anything you want?”
Something she wanted.
Aria did, in fact, have something she wanted.
Not getting expelled.
Lloyd told me to get out once I recovered.
But even if she asked not to be thrown out now, nothing would change. Simply surviving in the Duke’s castle wasn’t enough.
If she wasn’t accepted as part of the family, she wouldn’t be able to interfere in the Valentine incident until it happened.
She needed to approach the Duchess as soon as possible.
I should make them my allies.
It was a rare opportunity.
After a moment of thought, Aria smiled brightly again, her eyes curving.
[I want to meet and play with Father every day, like today.]
She lifted her head quickly, and her rabbit ears perked up with her.
It was adorable.
So overwhelmingly adorable that it made one’s heart tighten—
But Dwayne, watching seriously from the side, whispered to the Duke.
“This confirms it. The young lady has never received proper care from an adult.”
“Oh?”
“That’s why, out of all adults, she ended up relying on Your Highness… Agh!”
Even a loyal retainer who couldn’t help but speak his mind paid the price once again and rolled on the floor.
Aria, who hadn’t even seen how he was struck, gently patted his back in concern.
Sob, the young lady… an angel…
Before Dwayne could even be moved, the Duke grabbed Aria by the nape of her neck and lifted her.
“Don’t touch him. He’s dirty.”
He treated his own subordinate like a germ.
“If you want to meet me, come yourself. If you ride my hunting dog like today, I can find you anywhere.”
The Duke agreed quite readily.
And once again, he took the card from her hand.
The Duke of Valentine said:
“If you ride my hunting dog, I can find you anywhere.”
Aria, riding the wolf without much thought, was startled.
Because the wolf suddenly ran in the opposite direction.
This is toward the mountain range.
It was the Ingo Mountains she had just passed.
She considered stopping the wolf but decided to observe for now.
She was also curious what the Duke was doing near the mountains.
He said I could come see him anytime, so he can’t be in a dangerous place.
The wolf soon stopped running.
An unfamiliar estate appeared.
A manor built in the forest marking the border of the Duke’s domain—the place where Valentine had once purchased Aria.
Come to think of it, this is the place that screens outsiders.
Black-clad knights stood guarding the manor gate.
They were the First Knight Order, the elite of Valentine—the Black Hawk Knights.
A black hawk emblem was engraved on their uniforms.
In the imperial capital, just seeing that emblem made crowds part like a miracle.
It was likely because the Black Hawk had become a symbol of evil and misfortune in the Empire due to Valentine’s influence.
Then one of the Black Hawks noticed Aria and acknowledged her.
“Ah, young lady…”
Shh.
Aria pressed a finger to her lips, signaling silence.
Then she pressed her ear against the manor door and listened to the sounds coming from inside.
