Chapter 97

97

"By the way, have you met the daughter of the Duke of Wellington?"

"...Not yet. I've been busy with various matters."

Owen slightly bowed his head in response to Kazev's questioning, hiding his discontent. Unaware of Owen's true feelings, Kazev clicked his tongue and continued in a dissatisfied tone.

"You're not young anymore, so you should marry and have an heir soon. Having many children is important for the continuation of the family. Even if the daughter of the Duke of Wellington doesn't suit you, you should endure and have an heir from your wife. If there's a woman you like, you can make her a concubine later."

"...Of course, I will do that. Don't worry, Father."

"Yes, I'm sure you'll handle it well. I don't worry about you. The problem is Hessen. What is that guy doing these days, really...?"

"..."

A crooked smile formed on Owen's lips.

It was a mocking smile directed at his father, who was as good as blind.

'Father, you have no idea that all the information of the House of Everett is under my control.'

It wasn't that Kazev couldn't know what Hessen was doing.

It was because Owen had the family's information network in his hands and manipulated it as he pleased.

It wasn't just the information network. Owen had already taken control of much of the House of Everett.

While Kazev, who trusted his eldest son Owen entirely, was complacent.

"Father is senile. He's causing harm to the family with his unreasonable stubbornness."

Owen muttered to himself as he sank into the sofa in his room. As he put a cigarette in his mouth, his personal maid came over to light it for him.

Puff, Owen inhaled deeply on the burning cigarette and exhaled a long stream of smoke.

"Accept the proposal the Duke of Albinis made last time."

"Yes, Master."

"And get 'Soporix' from him as payment. Well, you... I don't need to tell you where to use that poison, do you?"

"Of course, leave it to me."

The maid bowed her head and affirmed, and Owen smiled in satisfaction as he put the cigarette back in his mouth.

'Soporix' means 'eternal night's sleep' in an ancient language.

The poison can easily lead to death, even for someone with strong resistance.

Even Kazev Everett, who was trained in poison, could not escape death from this poison.

"...It's time for the throne to change hands."

Exhaling a long, murky stream of smoke, Owen laughed like a satisfied predator.

* * *

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

"I apologize for the late hour, Your Highness."

"Lord Valentino, you're still so formal. I thought we had become quite close."

Theo and I had invited the two of them at this late hour because we needed to meet in secret. While Zen could fly undetected using Ventus' power, it was still better to avoid people's eyes as much as possible.

"Owen has eliminated all the spies he planted in Veronis except for one. We are monitoring the remaining one in real-time and will use him to spread false information."

I explained in detail as I led the Crown Prince and Zen to the conference room.

Zen nodded solemnly, saying, "I see," while the Crown Prince pondered for a moment before asking a question.

"I have a question. Is there really no way to bring Hessen Everett to our side?"

At this, I stiffened. My hand, which was about to grasp the doorknob, hovered in the air.

After a moment of silence, I turned to the Crown Prince with a quiet smile.

"Hessen will not betray the House of Everett."

"Hmm, is that so?"

"Yes, although Hessen has been acting more independently recently. His roots are in the House of Everett, and that won't change. And... "

Click, I turned the doorknob. Warm air from the fireplace in the conference room seeped out.

"Hessen lacks the power."

"Really?"

I affirmed, and the Crown Prince laughed as if finding it amusing. I continued as I entered the conference room.

"I don't know how many private soldiers follow Hessen, but his own power is less than a tenth of Theo's."

"Really?"

"Moreover, Hessen is too swayed by his emotions. A person who acts impulsively like Hessen would only cause us harm."

This was also the reason why Hessen's earth spirit, Terra, couldn't grow.

Terra was a newly born earth spirit after the previous one went into eternal rest, and the contractor needed to maintain a calm mind for it to grow quickly.

If not, it would take a very long time to grow.

It could take a hundred years or even a thousand.

"Indeed, Hessen Everett has many personality issues. As I listen, it seems the Lady Valentino was right. Impressive analysis!"

The Crown Prince laughed and praised me. I merely gave an awkward smile in response.

"Today, I will show these documents to Your Highness, and next, we will visit the Duke of Delacroix."

As I explained, Theo nodded in agreement. The Crown Prince and Zen took their seats, and I laid out the documents on the round table.

"...This is..."

The Crown Prince's expression hardened as he saw the magic formula for creating a commander.

He was not a novice in magic, having received teachings from the Great Sage Blesset, so he immediately understood the implications of the formula.

"...No way, this can't be. What is this?"

The Crown Prince held the document in his hand and muttered in disbelief. It was the expected reaction, but I was surprised to see him so shocked, given his usual composure.

"It's too early to be surprised."

"Lord Valentino, explain. Is this magic formula... what I think it is?"

Theo calmly nodded as the Crown Prince asked him, confused.

"Yes, the materials used in this magic formula are human death and souls."

"...Such madness..."

The Crown Prince, lost in thought, wiped his mouth with a trembling hand.

Staring blankly into space, he soon spoke as if something had occurred to him.

"About 15 years ago... when I was still a child. There were continuous mysterious disappearances in the Kingdom of Francis and the entire land."

"Yes, I remember."

"Over 200 people disappeared within just two years, and despite a large-scale investigation, no clues were found."

"..."

"And shortly after the disappearances stopped, a large earthquake occurred in the Akiten region."

After that earthquake, the previous earth spirit went into eternal rest.

Terra was born to take its place.

"Hundreds of people died in that earthquake. ...Not an exact number, but it's estimated to be around 700. And the number of people who disappeared in the previous mysterious disappearances was about 300..."

A thousand.

When combined, the number of people who disappeared in the large-scale disappearances and those who died in the earthquake was roughly that.

And the number of people needed to create a commander was also a thousand.

"...This is..."

The Crown Prince's eyes, fixed on the magic formula, turned cold. It was a very dark and cold expression I had never seen before.

"...This was a thoroughly planned event. The disappearances, the earthquake... all of it..."

"..."

"...All of it... to create this commander."

A heavy silence fell over the conference room.

The Crown Prince, who had been trembling with clenched fists, slammed his palm on the round table.

He then abruptly stood up and paced around the room, trying to suppress his boiling anger.

"The House of Everett is even worse than I thought."

His voice trembled with anger. He turned to me, who was silently bowing my head. His eyes were bloodshot and stormy.

"Lady Valentino said she has no ties with the House of Everett and is now a Valentino, so she will help us."

"...For now, that's what I said."

"What do you mean, 'for now, that's what I said'?"

I sighed softly. So it came to this.

I had anticipated the possibility of such a situation, but the Crown Prince had indeed started to suspect me.

That I might still be a member of the House of Everett and a spy.

...It was a reasonable suspicion.

He didn't know my circumstances.

"Your Highness, my wife is not a spy for the House of Everett. I swear on my life and the honor of the House of Valentino."

Theo defended me. His eyes were steady, and his voice was solemn, but the Crown Prince's suspicion of me didn't seem to dissipate easily.

"Lord Valentino, have you seen many people who have ruined their life's work because of a woman? For example, my father, the late king, who serves as a cautionary tale. I am not making baseless suspicions. This issue must be addressed."

"Your Highness, my wife is―"

"Enough, Theo."

I stopped Theo, who was about to defend me again, and slowly stood up. I met the Crown Prince's icy gaze without flinching. I had nothing to hide, so I had no reason to shrink back.

"I will tell you everything, Your Highness."

"Lily..."

"I'm fine. I was going to do this anyway."

I glanced at Theo, who was clearly worried about me. Zen was looking back and forth between the three of us with an anxious expression.

Turning my gaze back, the Crown Prince frowned slightly and stared at me. I met his gaze squarely and continued.

"Since I have no intention of remaining as Lady Valentino or a noble after all this is over, I will tell you everything. I am..."

I paused for a moment before continuing, looking straight into the Crown Prince's eyes, which were now filled with confusion.

"I am not the Duke of Everett's biological daughter."

"What do you mean...?"

"I have no reason to lie, Your Highness. I hate the House of Everett more than anyone in this world. I am a child adopted by the Duke of Everett from a maid."

The shock spread across the Crown Prince's eyes.