Am I, hunting for a husband?

I was momentarily stunned by the Duke’s terrifying words, but quickly shook my head vigorously.

“No. I’m not really thinking about marriage right now…….”

The corner of the Duke’s mouth then slightly rose.

“That’s a pleasant thing to hear.”

“Eh?”

I thought I misheard, but Duke Ferdia had already turned his gaze to his documents.

“You may go now.”

“Yes.”

Unable to ask more because of his busy appearance, I had no choice but to leave the office.

(This is a time separator.)

The divorce procedure went smoothly.

Since Duke Ferdia handled it all, I had almost nothing to do with meeting the 1st Prince.

Still, I felt like I needed two bodies for what I had to do.

“It’s hard to make, having not done it in a while.”

I promptly made an antidote with the scent of the Emperor’s bedroom that the 1st Prince sent, and the Emperor’s medicine, and sent it as discreetly as possible.

I was nervous about being caught by the Duchess, but fortunately, I was able to send it safely.

‘To have to do this until the 1st Prince finds evidence…….’

But there was a dying person before my eyes, and I couldn’t just watch, so there was no choice.

I could only hope that the 1st Prince would find evidence soon.

The next thing I did was visit the headquarters of the Skyhawk Mercenary Corps and meet Deputy Commander Mario.

I entered the Deputy Commander’s office and sat opposite Mario, who greeted me with a pleasant smile.

“Welcome, Miss Liri.”

“I got your letter, kind Mario.”

“Haha. Isn’t it tasteful? No one will know it’s related to the request.”

They wouldn’t. Unless the recipient was none other than me, Elodie Ferdia.

I smiled faintly and called Mario’s name.

“But Mario.”

“Yes?”

“If you send it like that one more time, there will be trouble.”

“Excuse me?”

“I have no friends.”

Mario seemed to not understand, frowning.

“But you have at least one, don’t you?”

“No, I don’t.”

“You’re Duke Ferdia’s daughter, didn’t you have one?”

“No.”

“You had, right?”

“No, I didn’t. Just.”

“Oh…….”

Mario’s face darkened rapidly. He seemed to be looking for something to say, but he couldn’t find the words.

Since I didn’t intend to make the atmosphere solemn, I added some casual advice with a light smile.

“You don’t have to make that face. Just like that. Rather, it would be better to say it’s from a clothing store or jewelry shop.”

“I’ll keep that in mind…….”

“Okay.”

After briefly asking about his wellbeing, it was time to get to the main point.

I placed the letter Mario sent me on the table.

“So, the investigation results?”

“Here they are.”

Mario handed me a thick file. As expected, the contents of the investigation were about the mage employed by the Anglos Duke’s family.

“Name, Gabe Zenaid. Residing in the Anglos Duke’s house…….”

“The important part is on the last page.”

Following Mario’s words, I opened the last page.

There it was written.

[Gabe Zenaid. South Matop Province.]

“My goodness.”
Unusual as it was, a magician?!

(This is a time delimiter.)

Rodrigo Angelos, the lord of Angelos, looked at the guest who had abruptly burst into his office.

He abruptly spoke to Duke Angelos, tossing his words at him.

“We lack materials and funds.”

Naturally, the Duke asked with a maintained smile.

“Will 500,000 Lariets suffice?”

“Not even close. 2 million Lariets.”

“2 million Lariets, you say?”

2 million Lariets was an enormous amount, exceeding the revenue collected from a single territory in a year.

It was enough to build several largescale buildings and still have some left over.

Even Rodrigo Angelos, who had a natural talent for handling money, couldn’t readily come up with that amount.

The person before him was demanding such an outrageous sum without hesitation.

“The funds I gave you last time…”

“All spent.”

“You’ve used it all…”

Although he was smiling, Duke Angelos’s insides were burning.

Pouring endless money into it, it felt like raising another Dorothea…

‘I have no choice but to need his ability.’

He had to meet the demand unconditionally. Even if the demands were overbearing, even if what was asked was absurdly much.

He needed Gabe Zenaid’s ability to achieve his grand purpose.

“Could you give me some time? Even I would find it hard to come up with that much money right away.”

“One week.”

“…….”

“Two weeks. No more.”

“Understood. I’ll prepare what you’ve asked for by then.”

Having achieved his purpose of visiting, Gabe nodded his head slightly and headed towards the door. But just before leaving, he stopped at Duke Angelos’s call.

“Ah, how is Dorothea?”

“Your daughter?”

“Yes.”

While casting welcoming magic on the jewelry, Gabe had become Dorothea’s teacher. Mostly teaching magic, but he also taught her various other things.

Duke Angelos had entrusted his daughter to him, but he didn’t exactly know what was being taught.

After briefly pondering Duke Angelos’s question, Gabe answered with an impassive expression.

“She’ll cry or sleep.”

It wasn’t an earnest response considering his pondering.

After being humiliated in front of the four great family members at a gathering, Dorothea had spent some time crying.

Someone had intentionally published the incident as a news article, and for a while, she screamed whenever she saw a newspaper or magazine.

Concerned about his unstable daughter, Duke Angelos had even banned newspapers and magazines to ensure Dorothea’s stability.

But then.

“Then would you deliver this newspaper to her?”

Gabe asked at Duke Angelos’s words.

“A newspaper? She’ll probably burn it as soon as she sees it.”

“Just show it to her.”

Gabe, who chuckled as he took the offered newspaper, immediately understood why he was asked to show it to Dorothea.

It was indeed a news article that Dorothea Angelos would welcome.

.

.

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[Exclusive scoop. Prince Adenmir and Elodie Ferdia’s divorce imminent… Royal insider: “An official announcement will be made soon”]