Baron Ariel and Alex were drinking tea in Ellie’s room, with John pacing awkwardly nearby. It was his first time being invited to Ellie’s parlor, so he felt uncomfortable and overly cautious.

In the presence of Helen, Mr. and Mrs. Finega, and everyone else gathered, Sophia placed the mysterious stone on the table.

Everyone stared at it, and John examined the stone before commenting.

“It’s not high-quality. This one has too many impurities. You’d need to be careful with it if trading; even if it’s cheap, it’s not edible. At most, it could keep a few bugs away.”

Sophia took a deep breath before responding.

“I brought this from the temple. It was lying there before I even entered the inner cave of the temple. I took it as a keepsake.”

Baron Ariel and Alex, both surprised, reached for the stone. Alex let the baron examine it first.

Alex spoke.

“I went with you to the cave you call a temple, but I didn’t see any rock salt.”

“As I mentioned, there’s a long passage that extends underground. It was that day when I came back late after going all the way down.”

Alex nodded, and Baron Ariel handed the stone to John, commenting.

“Weren’t you disappointed to find nothing down there?”

Sophia felt a bit embarrassed, realizing he’d noticed her disappointment. She replied.

“Yes… I was. Despite the humidity, there were no insects, no moss, and even though there was pooled water, nothing seemed to survive there. I even thought there might be poison or harmful air.”

“A salt mine…” Mr. Finega muttered, prompting everyone to consider what a salt mine could mean. With a salt mine, Ariel would no longer be poor.

Sophia spoke up.

“I assumed it was a temple since it’s a place to give thanks to the goddess Titania. There wasn’t a proper altar, but that could be due to its ancient nature—or perhaps because of poverty, I thought. But if there is a salt mine there and it was seen as a gift from the goddess, it’s certainly a place to be thankful for—a truly worthy site of gratitude.”

John handed the stone to Mr. Finega, who examined it again before passing it on. John kept his gaze fixed on the stone and said,

“We’ll need to be cautious. If this is revealed, I’m not sure we could protect it…”

“That’s why I called everyone here,” Sophia said. “I don’t think it’s time to make it known yet, but you all should be aware. First, we should restrict access to the temple.”

John replied, “I’ve already handled that. From what Jack said, it seems you may have found harmful mold in the cave, so I’ve restricted entry. We should be able to keep it closed off under that pretense.”

Everyone nodded in relief, though their expressions betrayed excitement mixed with concern.

Baron Ariel spoke.

“At some point, we’ll have to investigate, so we should send down an expert or two under the pretense of studying the mold. They could assess the quantity to see if it’s worth opening a mine.”

Mr. Finega added, “I’ll find someone discreetly from the capital.”

Sophia remarked, “Gunther is the issue.”

Helen raised her hand quietly and said, “I’ll keep him preoccupied for a while.”

Ellie rolled her eyes and remarked, “You like him, don’t you? I figured he was your type.”

Helen laughed. “It’s good for Ariel and the Finega family, too. He’s an elite from the academy and a trusted auditor of the Emperor. Getting closer to him is only beneficial.”

Sophia added, “Helen, use the excuse of helping with school matters while you’re in Ariel and keep him busy. I have more than one request for Gunther. He’ll never be bored.”

Baron Ariel and Mr. Finega exchanged glances and both shook their heads. Alex, with a sympathetic expression, said, “Poor Gunther.”

Everyone agreed to keep silent about the discovery of the salt mine. They needed to act quietly and with caution.

If anyone found out about the salt mine in Ariel, it could be taken from them, as Ariel was still vulnerable.

With the stakes raised, the baron, Alex, and John focused on expediting the formation of the knighthood. They needed to prepare for any situation.

The baron remarked, “There may be interest from both inside and outside our borders. We still don’t know the extent of it, but it’s something to consider.”

“I understand. I’ll reorganize the training and duty of the border guard,” John replied.

As they left the room, each of them discussed their tasks to resolve various concerns, but all were energized with new purpose.

Mr. and Mrs. Finega had once regretted sending their daughter to impoverished Ariel, but this regret now seemed on the verge of vanishing in an instant. If a salt mine were indeed established, it would only be a matter of time before they became one of the wealthiest families in the empire.

Ellie and Alex, both resting their hands on their bellies, wore wide smiles as well.

Linking her arm through Baron Ariel’s, Sophia said, “We’ve finally found our treasure.”

The baron brushed his eyes in response instead of answering.

* * *

Upon returning from the party, Isabelle had to face the Duchess of Wiscombe, as usual. After each party, she was expected to report what had transpired, including Prince Frederick’s reactions.

The Duchess of Wiscombe had refrained from attending the party Isabelle had joined, as her romantic history was infamous, leading people to believe she was adept at seduction.

Removing Isabelle’s hair ornament and letting her hair down, the duchess spoke, “You did well again. Just keep doing what you’ve been doing.”

With a skeptical look, Isabelle asked, “But how can you be sure Prince Frederick will keep attending these parties? Won’t the Empress try to stop him?”

“Of course, he’ll attend. If you’re there, he’ll find some excuse to be there as well. Plus, with Prince Robert suddenly taking an interest in social gatherings, the Empress can’t just send Frederick off to Cressida’s domain. Finally, Robert is proving helpful to us.”

“And I should continue ignoring Frederick’s gaze?”

“Yes. For now, focus on gaining experience in society. You don’t need everyone’s approval—just take note of how society operates and be friendly. And if any clingy types approach, don’t worry; Philip will be there.”

“For how long?”

“Not much longer. That depends on Parma’s patience.”

“With her temperament, I doubt Parma will last two months before picking a fight with me. And is Countess Creole really going to continue cooperating?”

“Your grandmother has taken this on personally. She doesn’t do anything without reason.”

Isabelle trusted her grandmother’s skills. Pushing the duchess’s hand away, Isabelle said, “I’m tired. If you have anything else to say, I’ll hear it tomorrow.”

“Alright.”

The duchess let her go without complaint, satisfied that Isabelle was following the plan. The occasional pushback didn’t bother her.

“Such little defiance…” She glanced at Isabelle’s door before going to speak with the Duke of Wiscombe. Entering his study, she remarked,

“Mother has no comment on the fact that we could have handled the Creole Countess this easily all along?”

The Duke responded, “Mother did have a message for you: Isabelle and you are different. Your affairs are for you to handle. I’m sorry.”

The duchess laughed sarcastically. “It seems she’ll never fully accept me as family.”

Looking at her with sympathy, the Duke replied, “Mother said that since you’ve claimed your position yourself, you must also establish your standing alone. I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.”

“Even if it’s true… What did you use to coerce Countess Creole? Can you at least tell me that? It seems we could even drive her from society altogether.”

The Duke sighed. “That’s also one of Countess Creole’s conditions—not to tell you. She suspected that if you knew, you’d attempt to remove her entirely after she’d served her purpose. So Mother accepted this condition. The Countess is confident that Mother would never aid you, nor intends to, and Mother is determined to honor that promise.”

The duchess realized she wouldn’t be able to use the former duchess to remove Countess Creole completely—at least for now.

“But still…” she muttered.

“The widow is practically an extension of the Empress, and to lessen Cressida’s influence, it would be best to remove Countess Creole,” she continued.

“Do you think I didn’t try suggesting that? Mother said that much is up to us—to sever Countess Creole from the Empress ourselves.”

“Mother really is too harsh, especially with me.”

The Duke embraced her, saying, “Try it yourself first, and if it fails, I’ll speak with Mother again. Women like Countess Creole don’t deserve a place here. And if she becomes an obstacle for Wiscombe, I doubt Mother will remain indifferent, now that Isabelle is out in society.”

“But we can’t just sit and wait for that time. Fine, I’ll give it a try.”

The duchess knew that as long as Countess Creole remained, the Empress wouldn’t suspect anything between Frederick and Isabelle. But once Frederick was captivated by Isabelle, they would no longer need Countess Creole’s cooperation.

“Personal vengeance will be a bonus,” she thought.

Hope was emerging. Frederick would soon be firmly in Isabelle’s grasp. The novel the duchess had orchestrated was already a sensation.

She’d confirmed it had reached Frederick, and according to Philip, he’d read it. Lately, Frederick’s gaze lingered on Isabelle just a bit longer each time. His feelings were slowly taking root.

“The engagement will soon be broken.”

The Duchess of Wiscombe was confident in Wiscombe’s success.

* * *

Sophia realized that writing a novel was not as easy as she had imagined. She thought she could just piece together events as they happened, like the countless romance novels she had read. But the story was not interesting at all, and the novel was just a list of events.

Nevertheless, Sophia kept going, refusing to give up.

After the treasure hunt, she continued working on her romance novel. The ancient documents and maps were neatly organized and stored.

Baron Ariel smiled as he watched Sophia scribble, discard, and rewrite several times.

Around Sophia were stacks of romance novels she had enjoyed reading, along with the most popular ones.

Before starting her romance novel, Sophia handed a book on the mythology of Titania to Gunther. Gunther had been suspicious that Sophia’s fixation on myths and temples might have an ulterior motive, so he began reading the book as soon as he received it.

Surprisingly, he found it to be quite good, enough to make him take another look at Sophia. When Gunther praised the book, Sophia revealed her true intentions.

Looking directly into Gunther’s eyes, Sophia said,

“Out of loyalty to the Emperor and the Empire, I made sure to include not only the Titania myth but also the myth of Uranos to balance the content.”

Gunther nodded as Sophia continued, without taking her eyes off him.

“The Emperor will be pleased, won’t he?”

Gunther certainly saw Sophia Ariel in a new light.

“Skipping the officials and going straight to flattering the Emperor…”