“Come to think of it, have you met Lady Wellington?”

“…Not yet. I’m busy with various matters.”

Owen responded with a slight nod of his head to Kazef’s question. It was to conceal the displeasure on his face. Unaware of Owen’s reaction, Kazef clicked his tongue and spoke with an irritated tone.

“Now that you’re of age, it’s time to take a wife and consider having an heir. Bearing several children is crucial for the family’s survival. Even if you’re not particularly fond of Lady Wellington, think of it as your duty to secure an heir from your legal wife. If there’s a woman you fancy, you can make her a concubine later, or even elevate her status to a noble.”

“…Of course, I’ll do that. Don’t worry, Father.”

“Well, you should handle it well on your own. I have no concerns about you. It’s Hessen who’s the problem these days. What on earth is that guy up to nowadays?”

“…”

A sly smile appeared on Owen’s lips.

It was a mockery aimed at his blind father.

‘You have no idea that I control all the information about Duchy Everett, Father.’

It wasn’t for nothing that Kazef didn’t know what Hessen was doing. Owen held the family’s information and manipulated it as he pleased.

Not just information, Owen already had taken control of many aspects of Duchy Everett.

All while Kazef remained complacent trusting his eldest son completely.

“Father, he had grown senile early. He’s causing harm to the family with his absurd stubbornness.”

Returning to his room, Owen sank into the couch and murmured deeply. Putting a cigarette to his mouth, his personal handmaid approached to light it.

Crackling, as the cigarette burned, Owen exhaled, releasing a swirl of smoke.

“Accept the proposal Duke Alvinith made last time.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Also, take ‘Sophornix’ from him as compensation. Well, you… I don’t have to tell you, you know where to use that poison, right?”

“Of course, leave it to me.”

The handmaid said and bowed her head. In satisfaction, Owen smiled as he put the cigarette back into his mouth.

‘Sophorinix’ meant ‘Eternal Night’s Sleep’ in ancient language.

This poison could easily lead to death no matter how resistant a person might be.

Even Kazef Everett, who was trained to withstand poison, would likely be unable to escape death from this poison.

“…It’s about time the master of the power changed.”

Exhaling a long cloud of smoke, Owen laughed like a full beast.

* * *

The Crown Prince and Zen visited Valentino Castle well past 9.

“Sorry for the late hour, Crown Prince.”

“Duke Valentino, you’re still as stiff as ever. I thought we had become quite close.”

Me and Theodore gave the invitation to this late hour. It was inevitable as we needed to have a discreet meeting. Even though Zen could easily fly in unnoticed with Ventus’ power, it’s still better to avoid people’s eyes as much as possible.

“I had eliminated all but one of the spies Owen had planted in Veronis. We are monitoring that person’s movement in real-time and plan to use them to leak false information from our side.”

Guiding the Crown Prince and Zen to the conference room, I explained the details.

Zen nodded seriously, “I see.” The Crown Prince, after pondering for a moment, asked a question.

“I’m curious. Is there absolutely no way to pull Hessen Everett to our side?”

The words made me stood still. My hand, reaching for the doorknob, hung in the air.

After a brief silence, I smiled quietly and turned to the Crown Prince.

“Hessen won’t betray Everett.”

“Hm, is that so?”

“Yes, even though Hessen has been moving outward recently, his loyalty to Everett remains unchanged. And…”

Click, I turned the doorknob. The warm air from the room with a burning fireplace flowed out.

“Hessen doesn’t have enough power.”

“Oh?”

The Crown Prince chuckled in amusement as I spoke decisively. I entered the conference room, and continued speaking.

“I don’t know the exact number of soldiers following Hessen, but his personal strength doesn’t even compare to a tenth of Theodore’s.”

“Oh…”

“And Hessen is too swayed by emotions. Having someone impulsive like Hessen on our side would only cause harm.”

This was also the reason why Terra, Hessen’s spirit, couldn’t grow. Terra was a newly born spirit when the previous spirits of the land went into eternal rest. To foster its rapid growth, the contract holder needed to maintain a peaceful mind.

If that’s not possible, then there’s no choice but to grow over a very long time. Whether it takes a hundred years or a thousand, it’s uncertain.

“Indeed, Hessen Everett has many personality issues. Listening to it, Duchess Valentino’s words were right. Truly impressive. What analytical skills!”

The Crown Prince praised me with a big smile. I responded with a polite but awkward smile.

“Well then, today I’ll show you these documents, Crown Prince, and next, we’ll visit Duke Delacroix.”

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