Why did I want to say no at that time?

I quietly stared at the communication device where the light had disappeared.

Ilion’s image had long since vanished, but the answer to why I hesitated at the last moment still hadn’t come to me.

It was true that I was tipsy from the high-proof alcohol, but I hadn’t forgotten for a moment about my position of needing to be broken up with.

I was planning to use this incident to be perfectly abandoned by Ilion. Even if he were to demand compensation from me, I now had land that could substitute for it.

I’m willing to give up as much land as necessary if it means I can save my life.

But why did I hesitate at the last moment? I don’t know how to explain this frog-like heart that sometimes pops up unexpectedly.

Let’s stop this useless worrying. Anyway, in a few hours, Ilion and I will become less than strangers.

Rather than that, I needed to worry about my immediate future, which I couldn’t predict even a step ahead.

From what I heard, it seemed Ilion had already arrived at the casino.

I looked at the door with a bit of tension.

‘When he ended the call, Ilion looked extremely angry, didn’t he?’

I was already worried about how to endure that anger. But if I wanted to break off the engagement, I had to face it at some point.

‘Right, surely he wouldn’t kill me… No, I’m still nervous, so let’s have one more sip.’

Believing in the great power of alcohol, I downed the remaining whiskey.

***

When Ilion entered the room, it felt as if this spacious room was suddenly filled with his presence, making it hard to breathe.

As I quietly rolled my eyes to look at Ilion sitting next to me, his red eyes seemed to be quietly burning with anger.

“Well, since the lady has also said she would return all the chips she acquired, we’ll keep this matter confidential for now.”

Cutting off what seemed like an endless introduction, Gardner said he would keep it ‘confidential for now.’ This meant that depending on how Ilion handled it, he might reveal it externally if necessary.

“By the way, I heard that the Celestine family has been focusing on developing the Eucalyptus Forest lately. How is that progressing?”

“Are you interested?”

“Well, that forest was something we also tried very hard to obtain development rights for. Since we’ve met like this, I was wondering if you might consider handing it over to us even now.”

After beating around the bush, the point was to give them the forest development rights in exchange for keeping this incident secret.

I didn’t know what that forest was, but judging by Ilion’s twitching eyebrow, it seemed like quite a big deal.

From the beginning, this meeting was not for conversation but for blackmail, and Gardner probably thought he held the reins.

To be honest, I felt like cheering him on to push even harder. The more unreasonable the conditions, the quicker Ilion’s decision would be. He might even declare the engagement broken off right now.

Just need to get through this hurdle. I clenched my frozen fingers tightly and waited for Ilion’s answer.

“Let’s do that.”

“What?”

“What?”

Gardner and I asked back in surprise simultaneously. I can understand myself, but why you? You’re the one who proposed it first.

As I looked at Gardner with a strange expression for a moment, he also looked at me with incomprehension. Hey, are you going to be like this on the same team?

“I-I didn’t expect you to agree so readily. You must really care for the lady. Then, for the detailed discussion, we should draft a contract…”

“Before that, there’s one thing I’d like to confirm.”

Ilion cut off Gardner’s words and asked.

“I’d like to check if that artifact really has magic on it.”

“Pardon?”

“Since you were so certain, there shouldn’t be any problem, right?”

Gardner looked a bit flustered for a moment, then readily agreed and headed to the casino with the artifact.

As we appeared, murmurs could be heard from the people in the casino.

It wasn’t an illegal place, but a legally established gambling house, so there was no reason we couldn’t come, but it was probably due to Ilion’s image being far from gambling.

“Oh, Miss? You’re back? We were surprised when you suddenly disappeared after winning so much earlier. Oh? Now that I look at you, Miss, you seem familiar. And over there is Duke Celestine…”

It was the man who had played the game with me earlier. The man who had been excitedly chattering alone for a while lost all color in his face when he spotted Ilion.

“…C-could it be that you’re Duke Celestine’s fiancée?”

The man who had given me the invitation to the illegal auction looked back and forth between me and Ilion, then leaned in to whisper to me.

“Ah, you know that invitation from earlier is a secret, right? You absolutely can’t say I gave it to you, okay?”

Leaving just those words, he disappeared with hurried steps. Well, if Ilion found out about that, it would be a big problem.

“Seems you had quite an enjoyable time. You even made a close friend.”

Ilion was uncharacteristically sarcastic about me exchanging just a few words with the man. Well, given what I’ve done, what’s a little sarcasm? I’d have nothing to say even if he dragged me away right now.

I smiled awkwardly as I received the bracelet from Gardner.

“Then, Miss Rischefeld, please proceed as you did earlier.”

The surrounding gazes fixed on me once again.

Just a few hours ago, the lady who had hit the jackpot twice in a row had returned, and not only that, but she had Duke Celestine and Count Gardner in tow. It was understandable that they found it strange.

Trying hard to ignore the piercing gazes, I quickly placed my chips.

“Five chips on number 16.”

I put all five chips I had on number 16 and waited for the dealer to ring the betting end bell.

The people around seemed to think this wasn’t an ordinary bet, as they placed a few chips somewhat hesitantly and then stopped.

Finally, the betting ended, and the dealer threw the ball into the roulette. The ball spinning around the roulette slowly reduced its speed.

With a clattering sound, the ball stopped in a number slot.

“15, Black, Odd.”

The dealer called out the number and started clearing the chips that didn’t match the number.

Wait a minute. This is different from what was said. I glanced at Gardner, avoiding Ilion’s gaze, and he also seemed quite flustered.

“W-well, it might not work on the first try, so let’s try a few more rounds.”

But it was a futile attempt. Although I picked numbers with utmost care, trying somehow to get it right, my efforts were only commendable; the numbers consistently missed.

‘This damn artifact…’

I clenched my molars and glared at Gardner next to me. What does this make of what I said to Ilion?

Cold sweat ran down my back at this ridiculous situation where the same team was killing each other.

“At this point, I’m quite curious.”

Ilion spoke after watching me lose money for a while.

“Yes?”

“About the magic cast on that artifact.”

“W-well, I wonder what kind of magic it is. Hahaha…”

“G-give it to me. Let me try.”

Seemingly impatient, Gardner almost snatched the bracelet from me, disregarding formalities. He took it so forcefully that it left a red mark on my wrist.

I watched Gardner play the game while rubbing the reddened mark, but he too failed to guess the number even once.

Gardner’s expression crumpled as he looked at the board.

Still, being a nobleman, he quickly composed his expression to handle the situation and turned his head towards Ilion.

“It seems there was a misunderstanding on our part. The lady was simply lucky, and we judged too hastily. I sincerely apologize, Duke.”

Contrary to my expectation that he would hold out a bit longer, Gardner quickly admitted all wrongdoing and apologized.

Even though it was true that I had brought the artifact, he could have insisted a bit more. The rapid change in attitude was so drastic that it felt uncomfortable.

“Is that so? My thoughts are a bit different.”

“…Pardon?”

Gardner asked back, watching Ilion’s expression.

“You must have been certain.”

“What do you mean…”

“Not about Ravenne, but about this casino itself.”

Ilion said this while pointing at the table.

Gardner looked at Ilion, quite flustered.

“I-I don’t quite understand what you’re saying…”

“It’s exactly as I said. You never considered the possibility that Ravenne might have won chips twice due to luck. The reason you could be so certain is that from the beginning, this game was structured in a way that large amounts of chips couldn’t be won, isn’t it?”

The red eyes that had been scanning the table stopped in front of Gardner’s face.

“For example, manipulating it with magic.”

The low voice uttered indifferently seemed to pierce through the ear and into the heart.

At Ilion’s words, Gardner jumped up and denied it.

“How can you suspect such a thing? It’s a groundless accusation. This is simply a case of us misjudging…”

“Really? Then we can check it.”

When Ilion’s words fell, a man in a robe appeared from behind.

As he pulled back his robe and revealed his hidden face, a pair of rare blue hair and blue eyes were exposed.

The boy, still showing traces of youth, smiled at us.

“As it happens, I brought a mage who works in the imperial palace.”

Why on earth is a mage appearing now?

From the moment the mage appeared, things started to flow rapidly.

The blue-haired mage examined the casino table and confirmed that magic had indeed been cast on it. The heated Gardner ran to the dealer’s table and pressed the emergency button, causing security guards to rush in and surround us.

The guests who had been watching the situation hurriedly left their seats upon seeing the swords drawn by the guards, while I, standing in the middle of it all, was simply observing the situation in a state of detachment.

It felt like someone kindly catching you when you’re struggling not to fall backward, only to break your nose.

“Are you framing me, Duke?”

Gardner trembled like a cornered rat. The dozen or so soldiers surrounding us also looked at Ilion and the mage with tense faces.

“Framing, you say.”

A sardonic smile appeared on Ilion’s lips. It was a smile that contrasted with his chilling gaze.

“Count Gardner, do you know who you’re pointing your swords at?”

“T-this is…”

The Count’s face grew increasingly pale. The sound of clanking armor could be heard from afar as soldiers rushed in.

Their armor bore the eagle emblem of the Celestine family. Their numbers seemed to be at least twice that of the casino’s guards.

With this many, it seemed Gardner could no longer resist. There’s no way to win against such overwhelming numbers.

It was a moment when even my fighting spirit, which had briefly considered running away, was lost. If I thought about those soldiers chasing after me, I’d probably return on my own, begging for forgiveness.

As I was blankly staring at the soldiers, erasing the escape plan from my mind, my body suddenly staggered. And in an instant, a sharp sword was held to my neck.

“Everyone, stand back! Or this woman dies!”

Gardner shouted, holding me hostage.