The two had initially avoided any particular conversation. Then the baron, unable to bear the boredom, went into the forest wanting to hunt and got lost.

The baroness raised hell for her husband to be found, and the servants and steward scoured the forest to find the baron who had been going around in circles in the same spot.

Since then, the baron often summoned the steward to the annex, calling him a lifesaver.

Feeling sorry for confining him to such a boring forest, the duke was quite generous with food and drink. As a result, the annex had a good stock of wine.

The baron and the steward drank back and forth, which led to a discussion about marriage.

〈Even though I’m aging, I’m still a junior baron. I can’t marry a commoner woman. So, I plan to go to the capital this fall season to find a bride.〉

〈You’ll have to prepare a fair amount of dowry then.〉

〈Of course. I’ve saved up quite a bit for that. Look at this gold ring and these necklaces. When I go to the capital, I’ll exchange them all for fine women’s jewelry. I have also saved up quite a sum. 5,000 gilders should be enough to take a decent household’s daughter as a wife, shouldn’t it?〉

5,000 gilders?

The baron’s eyes sparkled upon hearing the sum.

‘I was thinking of selling it all for around 1,000 gilders.’

He thought of the useless one left in the capital. Not only did they ruin Elize’s reputation, they also sent a foolish letter asking what to do when a fire broke out in the house they were in charge of during their absence.

He had already vowed to send them far away so that they would no longer obstruct Elize’s future when he returned to the capital with his wife…

〈You’ve saved up well, 5,000 gilders. Preparing all that in cash before the fall season will be hard work, won’t it?〉

〈I’ve already prepared it all in cash. As soon as a suitable woman is found, I’ll hand it over to her parents and take her back to my hometown. As you see, I am aging and need a child urgently. I’ll get her pregnant as soon as I take her home.〉

The baron gulped down his drink, looking at the steward talking about having offspring as if he were acquiring an animal.

And the next day, the baron asked the steward, “Then how about my daughter?”

He added a small lie, of course. She is not bad-looking and is extremely obedient, knowing how to serve her husband.

Due to her age, she too is urgently in need of marriage and prays every day to meet her future husband.

The steward was greatly pleased to hear the baron’s words, saying that such a woman was exactly the one he was looking for.
He had already referred to the viscount, not much older than himself, as his father-in-law and handed over some money and jewels, promising an early dowry.

Of course, this was accompanied by a request to marry Aelfrie as soon as I arrived in the capital.

The viscount and his wife immediately agreed upon seeing the 3,000 gilder and goods placed before them.

“Don’t worry too much about it. We’ll clean things up before your marriage anyway.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter then.”

“Speaking of which, I heard from the steward. Do you know about the Oltbea mansion?”

“The Oltbea mansion? Sounds familiar, but where is it?”

“Well, it’s the large mansion northeast of the capital.”

“Ah.”

“Ash Corporation acquired it and completely refurbished the interior. They’ve decorated it with all sorts of exotic items and plan to hold a banquet there in the fall.”

“A banquet? There has to be a host, right? Isn’t the steward a woman? That would make it impossible.”

“That’s the thing. Calon Ash, the owner of Ash Corporation, is coming. In fact, he’s already in Denertum. The steward eavesdropped on a conversation between the duke and the valet. Don’t go spreading this.”

“Who would I tell even if I did speak of it here? No one comes here except the servants.”

“True, but still… The duke seems eager to meet this Calon Ash. If he turns out to be an unmarried man, it will cause quite a stir.”

“He’s probably very old anyway.”

“What does age matter to a wealthy gentleman?”

“True.”

At her mother’s words, Elize pondered about Calon Ash.

Elize wasn’t particularly concerned about business or anything complex, but she knew well that Ash Corporation was immensely wealthy.

‘I heard rumors that with his wealth, he could buy a kingdom like Denertum several times over.’

She had also heard that if he so decided, he could easily bring ruin to any country.

Elize let her imagination run wild for a moment. What chaos would ensue if that Calon Ash were young and also handsome?

At that moment, Elize remembered the man from Ash Corporation who had brought Aelfrie.

She had only seen him briefly, but his face was clearly imprinted in her mind.

Unlike the frail men of Denertum, his tall stature and solid build made women swallow their saliva in tension.

Above all, his handsome face had an enigmatic allure.
In fleeting glimpses of roughness that seemed courteous, he had caught her eye several times.