Ch.272272. Haa…. Is This Supposed to Be a Compliment?

“Selden Alphonse… isn’t he the hero who first stopped the monster wave in the Eastern Continent?”

It was truly fascinating.

In the past, when people mentioned Selden Alphonse, I first thought of the ruffian from the edge of the Eastern Continent, but now he’s a hero…

It really made me feel that the saying “you never know how life will turn out” wasn’t just empty words.

“Yes, that’s correct. I attended the gathering with my identity concealed due to personal circumstances. That’s how I came to meet Lady Isabel Montero.”

“Ah… then what about Elina Parseche?”

“Lady Elina Parseche naturally knows that I am Selden Alphonse.”

“I see… Since you say you have your reasons, I won’t pry further. After all, the fact that you saved my life remains unchanged.”

I adjusted my posture and smiled leisurely.

“I’m grateful for your understanding.”

“By the way, to think the person who saved me is the hero currently most famous throughout the Eastern Continent—it’s an honor.”

“You flatter me. I merely stopped the monster wave due to good fortune.”

Daniel Montero, who had been laughing heartily, spoke with a rather serious expression.

“If you’ve revealed your identity, I assume there’s a good reason for it?”

“Yes, I intend to conduct business with Lady Isabel Montero.”

“Business?”

“I’m already doing business with Lady Elina Parseche, but I’d like to expand.”

Daniel Montero smiled gently as if it were nothing significant.

“I understand. Proceed.”

“…Pardon? Aren’t you curious about what kind of business it is?”

“I think it would be impolite to question and scrutinize someone who saved my life. I’ll give Isabel a heads-up, so you can discuss the details with her. Of course, don’t worry about any financial matters.”

Is he thinking of it simply as an investment toward someone who saved his life?

I also smiled and continued speaking.

“I’ll tell you anyway. It’s a treatment that makes hair grow.”

“…A treatment that makes hair grow?”

“Yes, you know how some men suddenly stop growing hair as they age?”

At my words, Daniel Montero carefully touched his own hair once and cleared his throat.

“Ahem! That’s true.”

“When you take this medicine, hair grows even in areas where it had stopped growing. Of course, the effectiveness has already been confirmed.”

Daniel Montero’s eyes gradually widened as he realized the significance of the hair loss remedy.

Then, he laughed heartily again.

“Haha! So you wanted to say it’s not a one-sided investment?”

“Well, yes. Additionally, since it’s produced in limited quantities, we plan to sell it secretly at a high price.”

Daniel Montero, who had been stroking his chin, flashed his eyes.

“So that’s why you created the gathering? I assume this gathering was hosted by Elina Parseche… and now you’re thinking of creating a second one centered around my daughter?”

Daniel Montero.

Although he wasn’t a character that appeared in the original work, his ability to read situations was extraordinary.

I had only dropped hints, yet he caught on to everything…

He gave off the same vibe as Emperor Malius.

“That’s correct.”

“Then the key to this business lies in keeping the source of the hair loss remedy and your identity completely secret. Otherwise, there would be no need to put Elina Parseche and my daughter at the forefront.”

“…That’s also correct.”

“I’ll briefly explain what I’ve heard to Isabel Montero, and you can explain the rest directly.”

“Understood.”

Having achieved my purpose, I was about to get up, but suddenly Daniel Montero stared at me with an intense gaze.

Then, he tilted his chin.

“I heard you broke off your engagement with Elina Parseche?”

“That’s because I knew Lady Elina Parseche was only trying to marry me out of necessity due to her declining family at the time.”

“…Looking at it now, I suppose the Pale Fruit tree also came from you.”

He seems more like a fortune teller.

I wondered how someone so perceptive could have been deceived by Butler Hayden.

“…I won’t deny it.”

“Ha! No wonder the Parseche family has been developing so rapidly… It seems I haven’t just met someone who saved my life, but perhaps someone who saved an entire family.”

“That’s thanks to Lady Elina Parseche’s cooperation.”

Daniel Montero tapped the table with his fingernail as if thinking about something again.

About five minutes passed while I wondered what he was contemplating.

Then, having finished his thoughts, he smiled faintly and curled up the corners of his mouth.

“So, do you have a fiancée?”

*

“Lady Elina will focus on hosting gatherings in this region, and Lady Isabel should create gatherings with nobles from the opposite region over there.”

After finishing the business discussion with Isabel, who had taken over from Daniel Montero, I cleared the map that had been placed on the table. She stared at my face and then sighed.

“…I still can’t get used to your face. What kind of magic did you use?”

“Haha, didn’t I explain earlier? I used transformation leather.”

Isabel swept up her long hair and then gently grasped it.

“Now I understand why you were so cold to me.”

“…Pardon?”

“While Levan’s face is handsome too, Selden Alphonse is even more handsome than I had heard or imagined.”

“What does that have to do with being cold?”

Isabel pouted and avoided my gaze.

“Well, I mean you’re living up to your looks.”

“Ha… is that a compliment?”

“Yes, and besides, you were probably completely focused on business, so you probably found my attempts to talk to you annoying.”

“I-I didn’t find it annoying.”

“Come to think of it, I’m disappointed in Elina too. I thought we were close, but she didn’t even tell me about this great business opportunity…”

Wiping away the cold sweat trickling down my cheeks amid these consecutive awkward situations, I spoke.

“I asked her to keep it confidential, so she couldn’t help it.”

“…And then she invited me to a gathering with ulterior motives…”

“Either way, didn’t the people at the gathering get good information about the hair loss remedy and an opportunity to make money?”

Isabel, still pouting, reluctantly nodded.

“That’s true.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“Why thank me? You saved my father’s life and exposed the traitor, so I should be the one thanking you.”

“I’ve already received enough thanks from your father.”

Besides.

Isabel Montero had come to see me for three days and nights after Daniel Montero regained consciousness, crying and expressing her gratitude.

That seemed sufficient.

Then, Isabel Montero bowed her head once more.

“Our Montero family will never forget the debt we owe to Selden Alphonse.”

“Haha, just help make the business successful and I’ll consider it repaid.”

“I’ll try to gather as many people as possible for the meeting!”

I gave her a skeptical look as she clenched her fist with determination.

“But unlike Lady Elina Parseche, don’t you lack close relationships with other nobles, Lady Isabel Montero?”

“M-Me?”

“When I saw you at the previous gathering, you were ruthlessly rejecting all the men who tried to talk to you…”

“Come on, one must separate personal conversation from business.”

“…Pardon?”

“Don’t worry. If I set my mind to it, I can talk while wearing a mask just like Selden Alphonse.”

“I wasn’t wearing a mask, but transformation leather.”

Isabel Montero stuck out her tongue teasingly.

“Even when talking to me, Selden Alphonse wore another mask beneath the transformation leather.”

“…You’re saying I was being fake?”

“I understand since business requires avoiding mistakes.”

“But because of our connection, I was able to detoxify Daniel Montero’s poisoning, wasn’t I?”

As I shrugged my shoulders, Isabel Montero smiled brightly.

“I didn’t notice when you were wearing the transformation leather, but Selden Alphonse’s expressions are quite diverse.”

“Mine?”

“I’ve never met someone who smiled as little as Selden Alphonse.”

“Ah! So you mean you found it strange that men couldn’t stop smiling in front of your beauty?”

“…Are you going to keep teasing me?”

Isabel Montero had become much brighter than before, now that her main concern—Daniel Montero’s health—was gradually improving.

I also smiled gently.

“Do you know that you’ve changed more than I have, Lady Isabel Montero?”

“…What?”

“You were so cold when I saw you at the banquet hall… thinking about it now, I wonder if you’re even the same person.”

Isabel Montero, embarrassed, lowered her head with a reddened face and continued speaking.

“…Please forget about that day. I personally apologized to Joden Everd after the gathering ended.”

“Well done. Now, please don’t forget that smile and show it to others more often.”

As I slowly rose from the sofa, Isabel Montero lifted her head abruptly and tilted it.

“A-Are you leaving?”

“I must. I have quite a lot of work piled up in Lake Territory.”

“…I’d like to visit Lake Territory sometime. Would that be possible?”

Having been possessed as Selden Alphonse and having met so many crazy women, why would I need to refuse a normal reunion with Isabel Montero?

I straightened my back and winked one eye.

“Tourists are always welcome in Lake Territory.”