There was not a shred of falsehood in Lea’s conjecture. Knowing this, Baiern’s face turned deathly pale.

“I, I was threatened by the butler. I had a sick sibling and I committed an unforgivable sin……”

Jane began to kneel and hit her head on the ground. Baiern hastily knelt before the Count.

“Count! This is unjust!”

Though Baiern pleaded with a desperate look, the Count was cold. He pushed away Baiern’s hand as if it wasn’t worth listening to anymore.

“Bro, Brother! Listen to my story!! The Count can speak!! He has been deceiving the royal family……”

Driven into a corner, Baiern began to say things he shouldn’t. Yet no one believed him. They all just clicked their tongues, thinking he was talking nonsense.

“Ugh, he’s lost his mind.”

“It seems there’s nothing more to hear. Count.”

Frustrated that things didn’t go his way, Baiern clenched his lips. A deep sense of defeat spread across his face.

As if foreseeing the upcoming future, Baiern closed his eyes.

Count Heidern, who had been quietly observing the situation, began to write something down. Lea spoke on his behalf.

“I never lost consciousness. I didn’t eat the food containing the medicine in the first place.”

People in the royal household gasped at Lea’s words. That the Count, who had been lying motionless, was pretending all along.

“Send Butler Baiern to the capital for the crime of attempted royal assassination.”

Lea confirmed the last phrase and smirked slightly.

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do, huh?”

“All of this is by the order of the master of this territory, Count Heidern.”

For the first time in five years, the Count, who had been laying low, showed his claws.

The royal party checked the Count’s condition and returned to the capital.

Even as he left, the Count could not take his eyes off Baiern, perhaps because of what Baiern said last.

With the butler’s position now vacant, silence spread through the mansion. No one dared to belittle or look down on Count Heidern.

And what happened later was that Baiern was found as a corpse after being sent to the capital.

(This is a time separator.)

“Ah, this is good!”

The warm sunlight streaming through the window tickled Lea’s hair. It was a refreshing feeling she had not felt in a long time.

As the wind gently blew, Lea fixed her hair and stretched.

That day. Two days after the incident with Baiern, it felt like she had just slept continuously. She must have been more tense than she realized.

“Count Heidern also said that I could take a break for a while.”
Originally, she had planned to focus solely on the halted development of the antidote.

She was about to discuss the clinical trial with Count Heidern, as it was on the verge of beginning.

“[Count Heidern, I was thinking of resuming research at the annex starting tomorrow.]”

“[No. Do not come to the annex tomorrow.]”

“[Why?]”

“[I have reasons.]”

However, the Count dissuaded her from coming to the annex. Remembering the enigmatic Count at that time, Lea scratched her head.

“Why is he acting so suddenly? I thought he would be pushing for the antidote’s development instead.”

Could it mean that she should take more rest because she had been working hard? Forced into a day off due to Akia’s untimely consideration, Lea thought,

‘Then should I go over the data on the antidote once more?’

And also consider how to conduct the clinical trial.

As she was heading to the pharmacy to take care of her piledup tasks, a maid approached her from a distance.

“Mistress of the Pharmacy, someone is looking for you outside. He says his name is Berun.”

“Berun?”

Why is he looking for me from atop Magnolia? Could it be something related to supplements?

Walking toward where Berun was, Lea found him standing at the entrance of the mansion, waiting for her.

“It’s been a while, Miss Lea.”

“It has. But what brings you here?”

“I have something to convey to Miss Lea.”

He even took off his hat and spoke with a polite demeanor.

“Our chief wishes to meet you, Miss Lea.”

“The chief, you say…”

‘The chief of Magnolia Trading?!’

Lea’s eyes widened in disbelief. No one had ever claimed to have seen the chief of Magnolia, such a veiled figure.

And now, such a person wanted to meet her? Lea, who had been snubbed after casually mentioning the chief before, could not hide her excitement.

“If it’s alright with you, let’s go to the chief. He’s waiting for you.”

.

.

.

Upon entering Magnolia’s chief office, Lea took deep breaths to calm her trembling heart.

She had visited the chief office several times before, so why did it make her more nervous than the first time?

Berun paused his steps, clenched and unclenched his fists, standing behind Lea. Then he opened the door to the reception room on the third floor.

“Please wait here. The chief will be coming.”

“Alright.”

Lea sat on the sofa arranged in the reception room, her body stiff.

‘Who could this person be? This chief.’

Not even their age or gender was known.

‘Surely the person must be old, considering they run such a massive trading office.’

At least middleaged. After all, running such a large trading office was no easy feat.

While she was imagining the chief’s face during her wait, footsteps approached, and someone opened the door.

And the person who revealed himself to her was…

“…Count Heidern?”

It was Akia.