Celia entered the Crown Prince’s office and politely bowed, maintaining proper etiquette.

Jeffrey, who had been staring at her intently, smiled warmly to welcome her.

He lowered the pen he was holding while fixing his gaze on Celia as she approached.

Jeffrey, who had remained silent until she stopped in front of him, calmly began speaking only after her steps came to a halt.

“I apologize for the sudden summons, Countess von Vyrn. I thought I should inform you in advance.”

“Not at all, Your Highness. Please speak freely.”

Jeffrey felt a smile coming on as he watched her put on airs with the face of an elegant countess.

Seeing no need to hold back, Jeffrey let his emotions show by slightly raising the corners of his mouth as he stood up, placing his palm on the desk.

“First, let me express my deepest condolences for the death of your younger brother, Marquis Erdi. He was an excellent nobleman. He worked tirelessly, even cutting back on sleep, to achieve his goals. Such passion was sometimes admirable.”

“You flatter him.”

“When I heard that such a nobleman had died due to an unfortunate incident, I was deeply saddened. The Erdi family has lost a great leader. I offer my condolences, my lady.”

Celia listened quietly to his words with her gaze lowered, wishing he would stop beating around the bush and get to the point.

The reason he called her here couldn’t be just to offer condolences.

It was clear he wanted to discuss the inheritance of the Erdi family’s estate or something hidden behind it.

Not foolish enough to be unaware of this, Celia quietly endured his rambling in silence.

“Anyway, leave the matters related to Marquis Erdi to me. I’ll handle it well.”

“Thank you.”

“So, about that…”

Is it finally over? Celia raised her head to meet the Crown Prince’s eyes.

Watching his lips curl up smoothly, Jeffrey sat on the edge of the desk.

“We need to discuss the inheritance issue. As you know, when the head of a family dies, all assets are inherited by the successor. However, if there is no successor, everything goes to the lady of the house. In this case, the legal wife, Marchioness Ludmila Perez Erdi, would be the beneficiary.”

“We’re already handling that on our end.”

Celia had been the quickest to move regarding the inheritance.

For Celia, who thought of the business rather than grief upon hearing of her brother’s death, the Crown Prince’s words were now uncomfortable.

“Even so, if the person in question doesn’t appear, it will take considerable time to process. The corporations have professional managers, so they won’t collapse immediately, but as time passes, they’ll struggle and try to become independent. We should prevent that, shouldn’t we?”

Celia silently watched his subtle smile, then let out a long sigh.

Seemingly frustrated by the conversation that kept going in circles, Celia blinked her dry eyes and calmly raised her head.

“Please tell me what you want, Your Highness.”

As if he had been waiting for those words, Jeffrey’s eyes flashed as he leisurely crossed his arms.

“Finding Ludmila Perez is difficult. Beyond the frozen lands, it’s no longer within my reach. If I try to help with the legal process, it might look like I have some strange motive in this situation. So I want to offer help excluding these options.”

His body straightened like a spring as he tilted his chin and stood up.

Celia reflexively took a step back as Jeffrey approached her, putting his hands in his pockets.

“Until the inheritance issue is resolved, the Imperial Family will temporarily manage Marquis Erdi’s businesses.”

“The Imperial Family?”

“Don’t worry. If it’s known that the Imperial Family is managing them, even the professional managers won’t act rashly. Whether it takes 3 years or 5 years, leave it to us for as long as you wish, Countess von Vyrn. Once the legal issues are resolved, you can take them back. How does that sound?”

Celia bit her lip at his intense gaze. So this was the goal after all.

He intended to swallow up everything Kedilen had built. Once the businesses were handed over, the Imperial Family wouldn’t intend to return them.

No one would willingly give up those assets worth billions. Especially not someone with power.

What Jeffrey wanted was simple. For Ludmila to never be found.

For the information she held, specifically the information given to Aden, to never exert its power.

For that, Baron Rodic Fel would have been enough, but Kedilen was deliberately killed to absorb his businesses.

If he could prove that the construction company created for fraud, Shared Whistle, had received massive investments and that it was all true, not a lie, then Aden’s information would lose its power.

Of course, it would be even better if he could get his hands on enormous wealth in the process.

He could just wait for Celia to handle Ludmila, and Celia wasn’t in a position to resist him.

“I… I’ll think about it.”

“Take your time to answer.”

With the right pressure, she wouldn’t be able to hold out. Eventually, everything would flow as he desired.

The resolution to the numerous external problems that had been plaguing him was now just around the corner.

Jeffrey smiled refreshingly as he waited for Celia’s answer. The only predetermined answer.

The situation was worsening day by day. By the time Aden returned to Habertz, the Kan clan had already been briefed on the situation.

In response to the summons that coincided with his return, various clan leaders and nobles had gathered at the Black Wall.

Thanks to this, they were able to start the meeting immediately without wasting time.

First, they needed to assess the situation. Aden had fallen into Jeffrey’s trap. The real culprit was the Crown Prince. And there was no way to prove this in a short time.

By the time they heard this much, most were enraged.

Some even mentioned war in extreme terms, furious that such a lowly trick had been used against their leader.

However, Kurto Benar and his group of old foxes were the same as before.

With cynical attitudes, they kept scratching at Aden by raising doubts about whether he truly wasn’t the culprit.

Because of this, the anger that should have been directed at the Imperial Family and the Crown Prince was misdirected, and no progress was made even after three days of meetings.

“Are you alright, Aden?”

When the meeting was adjourned for a short break, Aden returned to his room and was resting with his tired eyes closed.

Beressa, who entered the room at that moment, asked hurriedly, seemingly surprised by his condition.

Aden glanced at Beressa and nodded briefly.

“Just tired.”

“Haa-.”

Beressa let out a long sigh as she ran her hand through her hair, biting her lip.

She too had attended the meetings and witnessed all of Kurto’s misdeeds, so she could empathize with his feelings.

They should be preparing for war, yet here they were, just arguing.

The situation was deteriorating day by day. Beressa couldn’t imagine what solution there could be in this situation.

“I heard the Crown Prince is holding a press conference today after the Founding Day celebrations. It’s probably about Marquis Erdi. Naturally, talk about me will come up too, and the war rhetoric will resurface.”

Aden raised himself with tired eyes and cast his gaze out the window.

“I have no means to prove my innocence, but the Crown Prince has plenty of evidence to prove I’m the culprit. Soon, when the final order comes down, a summons will be issued, and if I don’t comply, investigators will barge in. If I refuse, an ultimatum. After that, a declaration of war. Public opinion is already secured, and the parliament seems to want war. By my calculations, we have about a month’s leeway.”

“Aden…”

“That’s enough time to secure supplies and mobilize troops. As for Kurto, I plan to arrest him tomorrow and confiscate all his assets. I already have evidence that he colluded with the Crown Prince. He’s ruined the atmosphere throughout the meetings, so now it’s time to reap the fruits. I intend to use that money to purchase supplies.”

Aden had already prepared to resolve the situation, even though it seemed like he was just watching the meetings without progress.

Beressa silently bit her lip as she watched Aden list the things that needed to be done.

Some clan leaders were dissatisfied with Aden getting entangled in problems, unlike past leaders, but they were just a handful.

In the end, Aden was their leader.

The leader who would lead them to glory. It was the tradition of the Kan clan to be loyal to that wolf for life.

Beressa clenched her fist and rolled her eyes. She took in the scenery of the sunlight beautifully adorning the window.

What did Aden need in this situation?

The thought that rode in on the waves offered one answer before drifting away. She didn’t know if it was the right answer.

But she knew for sure what Aden needed.

“I’ll take care of that. I can handle that much.”

Beressa quietly smiled at Aden as he lowered his gaze to look at her again.

The only person who could bring peace to this responsible and proud man.

“Aden, you should rest for a while.”

She recommended the answer she had chosen while meeting his wavering eyes.