episode_0434

“Not only the Marquis, but also his wife are involved in this matter, that’s why I came.”

“Involved with me? I have never seen you before, how could I be involved with you?”

“I am not the direct party involved in this matter. I am a representative. Suhan Jajak.”

“She was a noble?”

“Yes.”

The reason for mentioning the Marquis’s wife was because he thought it would have an effect.

And revealing his identity did seem to have an impact, as the Marquis’s wife’s voice softened slightly.

“Do you know how many people ask me for time like this every day? If you need time to talk, make a formal request.”

“It’s about something related to the past, are you really okay with it?”

At the mention of the past, the Marquis’s wife, who seemed slightly startled, furrowed her brow.

“The past? Do you think I would be fooled by vague hints without stating the exact purpose?”

“I may have been too vague with my hints. I need to provide more information. It’s about a woman who had a relationship with your husband and died.”

“…”

For the first time, the Marquis’s wife’s expression changed at the mention of the deceased woman.

After a moment of hesitation, she spoke.

“Will it take long?”

“Well, what I have to say is brief, but the time for conversation will be at your discretion.”

“If you didn’t come when I was at home, it must be a conversation that needs to be held in a place where there are no others, right?”

“Yes. You will not regret listening to what I have to say.”

Whatever.

If they didn’t have this conversation now, they would regret it later.

“Follow me.”

As she followed, they soon arrived at a quiet tea shop.

When she entered the shop, the staff recognized the Marquis’s wife and silently led us to a secluded area.

Quietly following the staff, they arrived at a small room.

A table and chairs were set up, and the space seemed suitable for hiding people’s attention with its enclosed surroundings.

“Tea is ready.”

“Yes, madam.”

At the Marquis’s wife’s words, the staff closed the door and disappeared, and I was able to sit facing her at the table.

“Go ahead and speak. A dead woman, you say. It’s quite intriguing since I’ve never heard of it before.”

Before starting the conversation, the Marquis’s wife seemed to want to draw a clear line from the beginning, pretending not to know about it.

Since Nae-gi was perfectly fine and alive, I ignored her absurd excuses and said, “I came to see you for a deal.”

“A deal? Didn’t you say it was about a woman related to my husband? Why the change in topic?”

Thinking about where to start, I realized that I needed to get rid of her bored expression first.

To have a conversation, there must be a willingness to listen to the other person.

“The woman who supposedly died is actually alive and well. And the child she bore as well.”

“…She’s alive?”

Just a few seconds ago, the Marquis’s wife, who claimed not to know anything, was easily caught lying.

“Be careful with your words. If you insult her, the deal is off and I will leave.”

“…Is the woman you sent me to the one who is alive?”

The Marquis’s wife seemed to think it was necessary to know who I was representing, so I told her the truth since there was no reason to hide it.

“More precisely, it’s her daughter.”

Since Nae-gi was a commoner, it seemed unreasonable to say she was the one who sent her, so I had to mention Fran.

“Indeed, impressive. Or should I say, here should I refer to her as the mother and daughter? She was the woman who ran away as soon as she found out she was pregnant. I found it strange that she supposedly died so suddenly, but as expected, she didn’t die. It would have been better if she had come in person to have a conversation face to face since things have turned out this way, why did she send a representative? Was she afraid to appear before me?”

Fran said she sent it, but the Countess’s cold anger was directed at Negi.

“It was said that it was not sent by the lady, but by the daughter. And I had to come because I was enlisted and didn’t have time.”

“Oh~ Enlisted. Have you lived that long already? Amazing. How did you manage to hide and survive? Did that person keep helping you secretly?”

The thought that if she had known Fran was alive earlier, she wouldn’t have crossed twenty came to mind.

A sense of discomfort surged at the Countess’s sinister muttering.

“I had been monitoring all the money she used, so how did she manage to fill her back pocket.”

I had heard through investigations that the Countess tightly controlled the family’s finances and was squeezing the Count, but there seemed to be another reason.

According to the Count’s words, he made sure the Countess knew that Negi was dead, but it seems she didn’t let her guard down until the end.

She must have had a tremendous secret to hide.

“I would like to correct one unpleasant misunderstanding. I did not receive any help from the Count. In fact, that person was a nuisance to my client.”

“Is that so? Well, he wasn’t that responsible, so it was strange. It would have been impossible to pick my pocket without me knowing.”

She seemed to trust in her husband’s abilities to know how innocent she was.

It was a response that showed a good understanding of the Count’s usual image.

Seeing her smile happily, I felt a bit uneasy, thinking, ‘I didn’t intend to make her feel good.’

Since the Countess’s mood hitting rock bottom would change when I set off the bomb, I decided not to worry too much.

“If you didn’t receive any help, you could have continued to hide and live, so why did you appear in front of me? I’m not a child anymore, so I don’t need to say it, right? Shouldn’t you receive recognition through our family line?”

Noble thoughts are usually the same.

I had expected the Countess to have such a misunderstanding, but it was still disappointing when it came true.

“What’s so great about your family that you have to appear and receive recognition through the family line? Let me say it again, I came to make a deal.”

“It’s not a great family?”

“I was too honest. Are you offended?”

“If you were the Count, would it be okay to say such things in front of me? I’m not the kind of person who tolerates rudeness.”

How big of a mistake is it to be rude in the future, just this much?

Since the atmosphere had heated up, I decided to bring up the main topic.

“Well, I said it with confidence because I’m willing to take responsibility for what I said, madam.”

“Your mouth is open, so go ahead.”

Judging by the Countess’s demeanor, I should be careful of being stabbed in the back late at night.

“I want to completely cut off the relationship between the Count and my client.”

“Completely cut off the relationship? Isn’t that something to discuss with the parties involved?”

“If it was something that could be settled by talking to the parties involved, we wouldn’t have had to come all the way here, would we?”

“….”

When I turned the tables and said that the Count hadn’t let us off so easily, the Countess’s expression hardened.

“What did that person say?”

“He threatened that things would get dangerous if we didn’t continue to meet. Isn’t it obvious who he’s trying to use?”

“…I won’t deny it. If it’s that person, he would have subtly let me know.”

“He showed quite a poignant maternal love, claiming that he was the only one who could protect you and showing longing and lingering feelings for his former lover.”

Seemingly hurt in her pride, the Countess gritted her teeth.

“There won’t be any more incidents like that in the future. My husband will definitely take care of it. Unless intentionally provoked from your side, that’s all there is to it.”

My husband will handle it well on his own, so the Countess’s jab at us to do better was just a passing remark.

I couldn’t just stand there and take it, so I accepted her words and replied, “Actually, whatever the Count does doesn’t matter much. What’s important is the Countess.”

“?”

“No matter what, people should be able to sleep peacefully, shouldn’t they?”

“……”

I didn’t come here to tell you to keep an eye on your husband, but to make it clear that I came to prevent the Countess from causing trouble.

Although the Countess understood the meaning of my words, she pretended not to and said, “I don’t understand why you’re telling me about sleeping.”

“Now that you know I’m alive, you probably want to get rid of me.”

“You’re too concerned about the illegitimate child issue. Is that why you came? Ha! What nonsense. I’m not a cruel person who would kill someone. Moreover, if you want to cut ties first, why bother taking on the risk?”

“Usually, that’s true. But you have a wife. There must be a reason why she must be killed.”

Since her son is not the legitimate child of the Count, it’s natural to want to remove the only bloodline.

“I don’t understand what you’re talking about. How many women does that man meet and date? It’s hard to count. Among them, you can’t be sure there isn’t a woman with an illegitimate child. In the end, an illegitimate child is just that.”

“I heard that there is a woman who used to be the lover of the Count and ended up in a brothel.”

“……”

The peculiar thing is that all these women have had experiences with abortion.

Since the women chosen by the Count were commoners, it would have been easy for him to use them.

“It’s possible that the women he meets have similar faces, so it’s possible. But blaming me for that is a bit much, isn’t it? And is it really a special thing for women in that line of work to have abortions?”

Unless presented with evidence, this woman is unlikely to confess her sins willingly.

No, even if presented with evidence, she probably wouldn’t easily admit to it.

“No matter how much you say it’s an illegitimate child, there must be a reason why you can’t just leave it alone. It’s because it’s the Count’s only bloodline.”

“……”

The Countess’s complexion paled at my words.