episode_0042

I laughed at the promise that I would be given the North if I broke off the engagement.

At the same time, it became apparent that Elicia was cornered and unable to properly assess the situation.

It’s funny because there’s not a single proper word in that short sentence.

‘They are offering the North as a condition of trade while they are unable to solve the problems that are right in front of them.’

Besides, it’s a bit ridiculous that he’s talking as if I want the North.

I was looking at Elicia with a pitiful expression, trying to hold back my laughter, when Elicia started telling me the reason.

“Damian, you are nothing more than the youngest son of the Karsaril family. In other words, you will soon lose your position within the family.”

In general, that is correct.

Since there is usually fierce competition for the position of successor, the eldest son or the successor often excludes all competitors.

First of all, I had no interest in the position and Damian’s brother didn’t seem like a person who would do that, so in my case, it was wrong.

“Therefore, there is a high possibility that you will be kicked out of the territory at some point. Rather, it would be an ideal choice to operate with the influence of the North at your back. ”

At those words, I laughed and said.

“Northern influence? Even if there is, it probably won’t be much.”

“The North may be barren, but if you think about the speed of development when the warmth returns, there are endless possibilities. Furthermore, unlike the South, it has abundant magic stone resources. I don’t think it’s all bad.”

He was saying something, but he didn’t really get it, so he just nodded his head with an indifferent expression.

Even if I were to be kicked out, I would still receive support from the Karsaril family, so it was a completely meaningless proposal.

First of all, I thought that in order to develop the North, I would have to first develop myself, so I thought it was worth it.

So, just when I was thinking that this was a proposal that didn’t interest me at all, a strange sense of foreboding suddenly spread through my head.

There’s this strange feeling that Elysia isn’t really saying this to make a deal?

Feeling that way, I decided to tell the story to find out what this feeling was all about.

“Okay, that’s right. Then how are you going to hand over the North to me? Last time I saw it, it seemed like the Wintraven family didn’t consider you as their successor.”

“It’s simple. You can do it by breaking the engagement and calling in the warmth. ”

As I nodded silently to hear more of the story, Elicia continued speaking a little hastily.

“The key figures in the southern region will strongly oppose, but if you use the benefits of warmth to negotiate and bring in others, you will be able to suppress them to some extent. If you just bring warmth, after I take the position of the head of the family, it will be possible for me to hand over the North to you. ”

… a strange sense of foreboding still lingers.

I had that feeling stuck in my head.

To resolve this, I brought up the thing that Elysia would hate the most.

“Yeah, that’s true. But isn’t the biggest problem after you prove that you didn’t create the crack? ”

From Elicia’s perspective, it must have been quite an unfair thing to happen, so she froze for a moment and glared at me.

He speaks to me while pretending to be calm.

“It’s okay since I didn’t tell you. Do you have any reason to believe that I created the crack? ”

The moment I heard those words, I could tell why Elicia had pushed for this deal.

‘You were deliberately offering ridiculous terms of trade in order to get information about the crack from me.’

After making an absurd suggestion.

I let out a hollow laugh, thinking that perhaps it was a means to bring out one’s true feelings by intensifying emotions in some way.

When I reached that conclusion, I decided to give Elicia only a bizarre answer so as not to give her what she wanted, and I answered her calmly.

“That’s fun.”

“… … Yes?”

Elicia looked at me in bewilderment, as if she hadn’t expected such an answer.

I looked at her like that and spoke calmly.

“So you have nothing more to say?”

“… Are you sure I made a crack just because you find it funny? ”

“Yeah.”

I kept yelling at him to deliberately annoy him, so he eventually shut his mouth tightly and shut his eyes tightly.

Looking at that expression, he smiled faintly and slowly reached out his hand to tap the documents while talking.

“Then, should I sign now?”

“… Please wait a moment. I have one last question. How did you get rid of Dale? ”

At those words, I spoke as if I knew nothing.

“Me? Dale is on your side, so you didn’t steal him, right? ”

“… … ”

At my shameless answer, Elysia seemed to have noticed my plan and turned her gaze away, finishing signing.

It seemed like he decided that continuing the conversation would only be a waste of time and that there was nothing to be gained.

‘Is this the end?’

Thinking that it was a somewhat strange feeling, I carefully put the hammer I had placed back into my arms when I heard a voice from in front of me.

“You will regret blowing all the opportunities I gave you.”

At those words, I took out the hammer again without saying a word.

When Elicia saw this, she kept her mouth shut and avoided eye contact.

He laughed bitterly, saying it was just a joke, and then calmly walked out of the building.

*

As I go outside, I see an unexpected person waiting for me.

‘…Saint?’

A woman wearing a pure white robe and with a body that is suspiciously curvy is calmly waiting for me. I pause for a moment to sketch her.

As soon as Saint Lewen spots me, she gently lifts her robe and greets me.

“Damian, I’m sorry for coming to you so suddenly. Would it be okay if we talked for a moment?”

“Okay.”

At that, Erwen smiled somewhat quietly and led me along while telling a story.

“Just follow me. Oh, by the way, Rihanna can’t come with you right now because she’s trying to calm Dale down. ”

“… Really?”

“Ahaha. There is something like that.”

Luwen walks down a quiet road, smiling playfully.

I was wondering why Wen, who was already busy because of Dale, came to see me in person.

After walking a while, Lewen pointed to a small house that didn’t look like anything special and spoke to me.

“Just come in here.”

I nodded and went inside. What I saw was a place with a more lively feel than I had expected.

As I was looking around, wondering what the strange sight was, I noticed a romance novel, one of Lorraine’s favorites, on the table.

‘Is that trendy these days?’

Last time I saw it, Siren was reading that too. It seems like that’s a must-have among women.

Just when I was thinking that it was somewhat strange, Rihanna’s voice was heard from behind.

“Aren’t you being too blatant in your observations? No matter what, this is the saint’s room.”

“… ?”

“To be exact, it’s a hobby room. That’s it, right? ”

So it was a little messy?

I was thinking that it was a little different from the image of Saint Ruwen shown in the original novel.

Lwen, who followed me from behind, hesitates and talks to Riana.

“Lee, Rihanna… You don’t have to say that.”

“Huh.”

Scenes different from the original continue to unfold.

In the original work, there was no description of the saint and Rihanna being close, nor was there any mention of the saint reading romance novels.

There has also never been a description of Elicia as a character who acts for the benefit of the North and to satisfy her own desire for recognition.

I thought for a moment that what I actually see and what’s behind it are very different.

Lewen looked at me like that and spoke to me while cleaning somewhat hurriedly.

“Hey, please sit here.”

Then he quickly sorts it out and tells me with an awkward smile.

“I’ve been so busy these days… ”

“Don’t worry about it. The embankment is like this too.”

“Really?”

That’s a lie. In the first place, the servants were constantly cleaning my room.

When the servants were busy, Siren would come and clean up the room, so there was nothing to worry about.

But there was no need to say it, so I just told a lie and passed it off. Lewen took a deep breath and got to the point.

“Ahem, anyway, back to the main topic… After investigating, I was able to find out that there are more warlocks in society than I thought.”

“For example?”

Erwen spoke to me with a somewhat hardened expression.

“The most representative one would be the church’s volunteer group.”

A black magician and a volunteer group of the church.

I’m confused by those two combinations that don’t seem to go together at all.

Lewen looked at me and continued speaking in a serious voice.

“The church’s service group pretends to help homeless people under the pretext of service, but then they catch the homeless people and sell them to the black magician. ”

Siren, who was nearby, nodded in agreement with Rwen’s words.

“That’s right. I was caught in a similar way.”

“… Yes?”

Luwen was taken aback by Siren’s words, but then she was about to ask him something as if something just occurred to her.

Suddenly, a loud sobbing sound was heard from next to me.

“Eeeeek. F*ck. I’m a guy… Why are you doing this? ”

I looked to the side wondering what was going on and saw Sooni lying on the table, drinking alcohol.

It looks like he’s been drinking heavily for a while, and he starts to whine and scratch the desk with his face red.

” Damian garbage.

“Oh my. Here you go again. Calm down.”

“If you do it! Huh? Are you going to calm down?”

“I don’t know because I’m a woman?”

“… That’s right! That’s right.”

What on earth are you doing? I let out a sigh, trying to arouse her attention, but then something funny came to mind and I told Riana about it.

“Take a picture of that. Show it to me later when you sober up.”

“Oh. That would be fun.”

Rihanna smiled and took out her crystal ball, as if she was quite satisfied with the offer.

I shook my head at the sight and turned my gaze back to focus on Geumrwen’s story.

*****

As soon as Elysia came out of the wedding hall, she frowned and quickly began to assess the situation.

‘What should we do now?’

Originally, there were two choices left.

The first thing to do was to catch Dale and expose the truth, or to frame him and clear his name.

After finding out information from the second Damian, it was to make sure that the key figures could not abandon him.

The first of these was a failure, and the second was a partial failure, so it was safe to say that there was virtually no choice left.

That’s why I have to find a new option or something that can shake up the situation, but no matter how hard I think about it, nothing comes to mind and my mind is in turmoil.

‘… It would be better to hide my body for now until something comes to mind.’

Since they failed to find Dale, it won’t be long before investigators move in to find him.

It would be best to walk along an alley where no one would notice, if possible.

So, as the investigator was walking forward in a place he could not go anywhere else, a letter that was in his arms suddenly came to mind.

‘… artificial sun.’

It’s a ridiculous suggestion, but if by any chance what he suggested were true, it would be a suggestion that could ‘turn the whole situation around’.

If this is created, it will be very difficult for key figures in the North to abandon themselves.

If you use warmth as a weakness to your advantage, you may be able to get the position of the head of the household.

When I reached that thought, I took out the letter in my arms and made a decision.

Let’s accept the proposal to create an artificial sun.