Chapter 48

“Thank you for inviting me again.”

I bowed down with a smile, too.

It was a half greeting because I couldn’t use one of my arms, but it was worth looking at.

“Oh, my.”

Seeing my arm, the Empress Dowager covered her mouth with both hands.

The gesture was very girlish.

“Duke Baloa, did you hurt your arm?”

“Hahaha. Yes. There was a small accident.”

“Oh my, how could such a thing…….”

The Empress Dowager beckoned to sit down with tears in her eyes.

“Take a good rest and go.”

The Empress Dowager took good care of me by pouring the tea herself.

“It won’t be easy for a woman to handle so many responsibilities……. I’m telling you, I always respect the Duke.”

What do you mean when you are trying to assassinate the duke, run a secret slave market, and even conquer other countries with a woman’s body? I wanted to point it out but I held back my thoughts.

“Thank you.”

The empress smiled and pushed the cup toward me.

“Hurry up and drink.”

“Thank you for the drink.”

I took a teaspoon out of my jacket.

The Empress watched me with interest, but I stirred the tea a few times with a teaspoon pretending not to see.

And she frowned upon the teaspoon in the sun and pretended to be watching carefully.

In the end, the empress first asked if she couldn’t resist her curiosity.

“What’s that?”

“Ahh… … . I have been through a lot of bad things lately.”

I carefully wiped the teaspoon with a handkerchief.

“It’s kind of a prevention against that.”

The Empress Dowager’s eyebrows narrowed slightly.

“Oh, of course I’m not doubting the Empress Dowager. I don’t know if I’ve developed anxiety since the accident, but I can’t eat without it.”

The Empress Dowager covered one of her cheeks with a pitiful face.

“You must be. You’ve been through such trouble.….”

Despite worrying about me, the Empress Dowager kept staring at the teaspoon.

“I’m glad to hear that. We have all those things…….”

“Yes, it’s made of specialized metals, so I can tell the difference between lead, mercury, arsenic, and most of the poison.”

I sipped the tea.

“Well, it’s a bit unfortunate that it can’t tell the difference between poisonous insects and poisonous snakes. I’m using it to make my mind comfortable.”

I told a lie in a nonchalant manner.

As it is a silver spoon, it may be discolored if it touches arsenic, but it will have little effect on other poisons.

“Oh, no… I can’t believe there was such a rare thing. Can I take a look?”

“Of course.”

I readily held out a teaspoon.

The empress poked through the teaspoon.

I was watching her in fear that she might discover it’s just a normal teaspoon, but the empress’ hand, which was looking at it, paused.

“What is it?”

The tip of the teaspoon was stained.

The Empress Dowager’s eyes flashed with confusion for a moment, and she glanced at teaspoons and teacups one after another.

I purposely sipped the tea again.

“Duke.”

Urgentness came out of the voice of the empress who called me.

She didn’t seem to want me to die in her drawing room, no matter how much she wanted her to die.

“The teaspoon is discolored. What’s going on here?”

The real voice of the empress, not her forced voice, was thicker and more powerful than expected.

And above all, it was intense.

It’s like someone who’s used to giving orders.

“Ahh!”

I clapped my hands exaggeratingly. Then I lowered my voice to the fullest and leaned toward the Empress Dowager.

“Actually… There was another unsavory incident while I was eating today. It’s a stain from that time.”

“……Oh, my God, I don’t know that.”

“I thought I cleaned it, but there’s a little stain left.”

I took the teaspoon and wiped it with my handkerchief again.

“I see….”

The atmosphere of the Empress Dowager was somewhat subdued.

I smiled more brightly than ever.

“Haha, I didn’t mean to look unsightly. I apologize.”

I had a hunch on the expression of the Empress Dowager, who seemed to be lost in thought.

I don’t have to worry about the poison that I can’t fight against with the detoxification.

“By the way.”

I looked around the drawing room slowly.

It has the same interior as last season.

The tea set didn’t change, even the Empress Dowager’s dress was a design that seemed to have only changed from the previous one.

I couldn’t think of her as an imperial figure who is standing at the peak of luxury.

I didn’t like it, so I ended up asking openly.

“Does the Empress Dowager have a sufficient budget?”

I smoothed my cup and made up a worried face.

“Although I have to tighten my belt because the state coffers are not good these days, I’m worried that I am not taking care of the Empress Dowager enough.”

Of course, the Empress Dowager’s budget was ample.

I’m sure she’s diverting all that money elsewhere.

I smiled beautifully as I moved to the edge of my eyes.

“If you want, send me the accounts of the Empress Dowager. I’ll review it and give you an opinion so that I can provide more budget for you in the meeting.”

Sadly, the Empress shook her head shyly.

“That’s all right. I really appreciate the duke’s heart, but we already have enough money.”

I couldn’t give up like this, so I dug in a little more tenaciously.

“You can ask me comfortably. Excuse me, but…… I must have been invited by the Empress Dowager a season ago and walked in here.”

I bit my lip slightly.

“When I visited again today, I was a little surprised by the consistency this place had from before.”

I diligently reversed the word that the interior is tacky.

“Of course frugality is a virtue, but I’m worried that you’re not being treated well for your position.”

Fortunately, the Empress Dowager smiled lightly without a sign of displeasure.

“Oh, not at all. The budget is good enough.”

The Empress tasted her tea with a pitiful face.

“However, since I am very interested in the relief work of the hungry people, it seems that I did this unintentionally.”

“A relief work?”

“Yeah, I regularly sponsor several nurseries and poor homes.”

You’re not really sponsoring for the common people, are you donating in the form of money laundering?

I put aside my complicated thoughts and made an expression of great emotion.

“That deep meaning……! I’ve never imagined a donation, but after all, you are the Empress Dowager.”

The Empress Dowager burst out laughing.

“It’s like the Duke.”

I couldn’t argue with it, so I quietly put down my tea cup.

Now all my business here is done.

“I’m sorry that I always go up first, but my next schedule is waiting…….”

I said my goodbyes again nicely.

“I hope you stay healthy until the next time I see you.”

☆*: .｡.  .｡.:*☆

My next schedule was a meeting with the Marquis Treve.

“Did you find anything?”

The Marquis of Treve rattled his lips over and over again.

“I think he’s noticed something.”

“Something?”

“I thought I’d built our trust, but he’s been avoiding me lately.”

Marquis Treve rubbed the nose.

“As the duke instructed, they conduct the slave auction from time to time to avoid suspicion, but Faus is rarely on guard.”

The Marquis Treve looked at me with anxious eyes.

I was so famous for my reputation as a duke who cut off those who couldn’t produce results without mercy.

Perhaps he was worried that I was taking back the prisoners I lent him.

“Well, I’m at a loss, too. We used to be close enough for him to show his base to me.”

“That’s enough.”

I didn’t call you to listen to this nonsense.

I waved my hand as the Marquis Treve’s chat grew longer.

“Still! I found out one thing!”

Perhaps he felt a sense of crisis, Marquis Treve shouted urgently, even splashing a small spit.

“His business is growing at an alarming rate these days.”

“Really?”

I frowned.

I thought he’d be hit hard by the absence of the Marquis Treve, the big hand in the slave market.

I can’t believe his business is still growing. I didn’t understand.

“I think his orders are down and he’s got other nobles and new customers.”

This is also useless information.

What’s the point of knowing that the business has expanded. There’s no way of stopping it.

“So do you know who he was talking to?”

The marquis faltered.

“Oh, that’s…….”

As the silence lengthened, I thought coldly.

“There are many ways to find out, even if the Marquis doesn’t tell me.”

The fact that the Marquis was hesitating I could tell. If he’s satisfied with the Marquis’ surroundings, he’ll find the culprit.

“Uhum.”

The Marquis finally opened his mouth, wiping off a few drops of sweat.

“The eldest son of Count Linoa. He’s been reported to be hanging out with Faus a lot lately.”

Perhaps it was uncomfortable to point out the son of a close friend, but the Marquis’ expression was not good.

“The eldest son of Count Linoa…….”

Apparently, he was not at the dinner when I visited Count Linoa.

Only the count, the countess, the young lady and her much younger brother attended.

“Looks like it’s turning outside.”

It’s everywhere. A rich man’s bastard

The Marquis of Treve wiped the sweat off his forehead again.

“He’s not such a bad kid. After studying abroad for a long time, he only returned to the Empire last year, so I think he made a mistake because he didn’t know the situation of the Empire yet.”

I guess his parents sent him to study abroad in a hurry because of an accident.

However, I no longer questioned the Marquis of Treve.

“I see.”

Instead, I smiled softly.

“If he’s been in another country for a long time, he might not be familiar with imperial law yet.”

No matter how cooperative he is now, it’s hard to betray his close friend.

If I push more, it will backfire.

“By the way, I’m quite interested in living abroad, so that’s great. Could you arrange a table with the Young Lord Linoa sometime?”

I have no choice but to deal with it myself.