Chapter 69. Just Get To The Point

He had shown off how well his husband treated him, how much wealth and honor he had accumulated, while badmouthing others and protecting himself.

But Yuelina showed her bare face.

Yet she wasn’t ugly or hateful. Rather, she seemed refreshingly honest, making him envious.

“Ah… Thank you so much for inviting me today.”

“No, Your Highness, I learned a lot.”

“But you’re speaking as if you’ll never see me again?”

“What?”

“I enjoyed today. Because Emily and everyone else truly listened to my story.”

Yuelina carefully reached out and held Emily’s hand.

“Won’t you call me Yuelina, Emily?”

“But…”

“I’d like to have the next gathering at the Black Mansion. I want to learn from you about how to decorate the garden.”

Emily smiled at Yuelina.

It seemed she had properly fallen for Yuelina.

“As you say, your garden at the Black Mansion might need my help.”

“So you’ll come? Everyone else too!”

Yuelina turned to look at the other noble ladies.

They nodded their heads toward Yuelina.

“If, if you’ll invite us!”

“I also know a bit about flowers!”

“Next time, will you listen to stories about my husband too?”

Yuelina smiled brightly.

“Of course.”

Emily gazed at the radiant Yuelina.

Once this tea time ended, there would be endless calls from the noble ladies who couldn’t attend the gathering.

How was Yuelina?

What did they talk about?

They would be desperate for gossip.

Of course, before the tea time, Emily had planned to exaggerate even the smallest details to spread rumors.

But now it was different.

The contents of this gathering would be kept strictly confidential.

The noble ladies sitting there with excited expressions would likely readily agree.

For a gathering to continue long-term, solidarity was necessary.

Emily intended to maintain this gathering with Yuelina for a very long and deep time.

It was the first gathering where she could share her inner thoughts without any judgment or measuring.

It was an excitement she hadn’t felt in a long time.

Emily couldn’t hide her own elated feelings either.

* * *

The Bios villa in the Sebran region was a space available for use by the imperial family.

Since Theo was also part of the imperial family, he headed straight for the villa upon arriving in Sebran.

Sebran, which is in the south, was a region warmer compared to the north.

To Theo, the wind in Sebran was lukewarm, and the yellow fallen leaves visible everywhere seemed unfamiliar.

“Still showing off their money.”

Theo clicked his tongue while looking at the exterior of the villa.

The Bios villa in Sebran was as large and wide as a castle.

Moreover, being situated on high ground, the scenery was also artistic. It matched well with the grand and luxurious exterior of the villa, but it was excessive.

Theo put down his luggage in the largest room of the villa and stretched his stiff body.

Until arriving in the south, they had only rested for exactly one day.

They traveled non-stop, so they arrived a day earlier than expected.

The knights and Ulysse had complained about the forced march until arrival, but they completely changed their attitude after reaching the villa.

They judged it better to sleep even for a day in a soft bed.

Now, camping had become an uncomfortable thing they couldn’t adapt to.

Theo also agreed that arriving early was better.

Of course, whether it was a hard floor or a soft bed, it didn’t matter to him.

What mattered to him was finishing the schedule quickly and returning home.

And Theo had something he needed to do after arriving early at the villa.

“Your Highness, are you asleep?”

Just then, Ulysse knocked and opened the door.

His hair was messy as if he had just woken up.

“Why? Want to work?”

“Ugh. You say such horrible things without changing your expression.”

Ulysse shuddered and heaved a deep sigh.

“But something has come up. Count Wood is here.”

“Why.”

“…What do you mean why? There’s a party tomorrow evening, so he probably came to greet you beforehand.”

“We’ll see him at the party. Tell him to come later.”

“What do you mean later?! You won’t be staying here long anyway!”

Ulysse furrowed his brows at Theo’s ridiculous attitude.

“Your Highness, you are the Grand Duke. And a member of the imperial family staying at the Bios villa.”

“So what.”

Despite Ulysse’s sharp tone, Theo remained indifferent.

“You’re the only member of the imperial family attending the festival! Of course Count Wood wants to make a good impression! Isn’t that why he rushed here?”

Ulysse continued with a somewhat boastful attitude.

“This might be a bit embarrassing to say, but the north’s magic stone mines and processing capabilities are unmatched anywhere.”

“So what. We keep it quiet.”

“…Count Wood would naturally know about that.”

“Whatever.”

Ulysse thought Theo was being particularly grumpy today.

He had rushed them saying they needed to get there quickly as if they would work right away upon arriving in Sebran, but now that it was actually time to work, he didn’t want to?

Of course, the Magic Stone Festival was just a pretext for Theo, as his real purpose was meeting the elder priest, so talking with nobles or discussing matters related to the stone mines might be boring.

But Ulysse thought differently.

Since they had come to the south anyway, he was quite inclined to grab any opportunities that could benefit the principality and secure a good supply of southern magic stones.

He just hadn’t mentioned it to Theo, who found everything bothersome unless it was related to the Grand Duchess.

Ulysse put on a friendly smile, clasped his hands together, and bowed at the waist.

“Your Highness, the Wood family is a prestigious family in the Sebran region.”

“So what.”

“Haha. So you should show your face once. That way we can leave early during the party too, right?”

“Leave?”

Theo, who had been showing no interest, lifted his head to look at Ulysse for the first time.

Ulysse didn’t miss this reaction and nodded his head vigorously.

“Yes! We need to return to the principality quickly!”

“Is Count Wood in the reception room?”

“Yes! Shall we go?”

Theo was moving because he was swayed by the mention of being able to return home quickly, just as Ulysse had planned.

Whether they held the Magic Stone Festival in the Sebran region or not wasn’t important to Theo.

The only important thing was returning home quickly.

Ulysse quickly led Theo to the reception room on the second floor of the villa, worried that he might change his mind.

Count Wood was already waiting for Theo in the reception room.

He jumped up from his seat with a very tense expression.

“Hello, Your Highness! I am Wood Light.”

Theo just nodded his head with an indifferent expression and sat down.

Count Wood nervously swallowed.

“It-it’s an honor to meet you.”

“Get to the point.”

“Ah… Well, first, thank you for visiting our humble Sebran territory. I heard this is your first visit…”

Theo, who had been looking down, raised his head to look at Count Wood.

“Eek!”

Count Wood, who had been speaking, immediately shut his mouth.

His body froze at the fact that Theo’s ice-blue eyes were looking at him.

No, actually, his body had been trembling uncontrollably like an aspen tree since Theo entered.

How could a person be so enormously built?

To Count Wood’s eyes, Theo’s body was solid, as if tightly woven with muscle.

And his gaze was not just cool, but freezing. It seemed like he wouldn’t even blink if he tore someone’s body to pieces.

They said his presence was too intimidating to dare look at, with an unapproachable aura.

He had thought the rumors were exaggerated, but they were all true.

Theo tilted his head to one side as he watched Count Wood trembling slightly.

“Just get to the point.”

Count Wood quickly bowed his head.

“I-I’m sorry, Your Highness! So, so I requested this meeting to ask for some investment!”

“Rejected.”

“What? What?! No, no, you should at least hear what kind of investment…”

Theo stood up from his seat and looked down at him.

“Wood Light.”

Wood was already sweating cold sweat just from receiving Theo’s gaze.

But when Theo called his full name in a hard voice, sweat poured down like a waterfall to his crown.