Chapter 63

Adelia smiled quietly. Her sudden smile made Serajin’s eyes wide open.

“…Why are you laughing?”

“Oh, I apologize if it was rude. You knew me, too.”

Serajin’s eyes narrowed. She definitely thought she had the upper hand, but Adelia’s smile quickly changed the mood.

“…I’ve heard countless stories about you in the society of the Empire Capital.”

“Yes, I was a little famous in the Empire.”

Adelia calmly lifted the teacup in front of her and moistened her mouth. Her eyes were on the letter that had already been ripped off.

“Rodriza’s Cold season.”

Serajin, who was rather nervous about Adelia’s relaxed atmosphere, spoke.

“How do you know this? How did you get information about disasters that have not yet been published by the temple? No, is this even true in the first place?”

Questions poured out of her mouth. Adelia smiled calmly and pretended to listen to Serajin and briefly examined the movements of the Grand Duke.

You haven’t talked to the Grand Duke about the disaster.

Having grasped the situation roughly, Adelia decided to get down to business.

“I’ll answer slowly. The cold season is real. Perhaps if we don’t prepare for the Cold season right now, the economic base of Rodriza will inevitably falter.”

“…yes, if the real cold season is coming.”

Serajin’s eyes were filled with distrust. Perhaps she wanted to deny Adelia’s information.

The whole region of Rodriza, with vast farmland as the center, will suffer from the cold season. Serajin don’t even want to imagine it.

“Believe it or not. Whether the Madam believes me or not, there is no harm to me. But if it’s true…”

Adelia blurred the end of her speech with a strange smile. Serajin’s mouth shut tight. Her face was full of confusion.

Of course. Adelia Yurpheon who warned her of the disaster in her hometown, foretold that the disaster of Zephyros would be brought forward

Seeing his wife’s confused eyes, Count Tegris gently put his hand over and gently wrapped his wife’s hand. Contrary to his very warm and gentle attitude, the way he looked at Adelia was cold.

“Viscount Yurpheon. Stop playing with words. We want a precise basis.”

Adelia noticed at a glance that he truly cared for his wife. It didn’t seem to be just a social rumor that Count Tegris and his wife have such a good relationship.

“By the way…”

Adelia glanced at the Grand Duke. He was watching the situation in silence. She was relieved that he seemed to trust her.

“Count Tegris. Would you believe me if I say I could interpret the new language perfectly?”

There was a moment of silence. The faces of Count Tegris and Serajin were simultaneously colored with shock and astonishment.

“What do you mean, the new language! You can interpret it perfectly?”

“What the temple has not been able to do for centuries?”

The two couples looked at Adelia with a look of incredulity. Adelia shrugged and answered the questions of those two.

“Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you what I know about the temple.”

“It doesn’t make any sense….”

Serajin murmured, still unable to escape from the shock.

“I showed you my bottom line. Would that be a satisfactory answer?”

“…Where did you get the oracle?”

When asked by the Count, Adelia did not express herself, but she felt perplexed.

Most of the information about the oracle was not disclosed to the public and under strict security.

God’s love and right that only the temple can enjoy.

The only time the oracle is released is when disaster is near and preparation must begin. Even the Pope could not disclose the treasures of the temple to the outside world. Adelia was able to receive the Bible with the contents of the oracle from Eustaf because she is a “saint.”

As she was thinking of various ways on how to explain it, she heard the Grand Duke’s low voice.

“I’ll answer that. I handed over the oracle.”

Countess Tegris and Adelia’s eyes all turned to the Grand Duke.

“Your Highness…?”

Count Tegris looked at the Grand Duke with suspicious eyes. The Grand Duke opened his mouth with a nonchalant look.

“It is unknown to the nobility, but the emperor can share the oracle from the temple. Of course, I can’t understand what it’s about because it’s not interpreted.”

The count pondered. Surely the emperor of the empire might be able to get his hands on the oracle that the temple considers a treasure. The empire was the greatest aid to the founding of the Holy Land.

And it is highly likely that the emperor who cares and trusts his brother would have shared the oracle with the Grand Duke.

“This is a secret agreement, so keep it quiet.”

The Grand Duke’s sharp gaze tightened the count’s throat. When he said this, the count had no choice but to bow his head.

Because he was, after all, a servant of the Grand Duke.

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

Adelia was inwardly surprised at the skillfully lying Grand Duke.

Serajin looked at Adelia with complicated eyes. Then she opened his mouth cautiously.

“I believe now that my hometown is going to suffer from the cold season. But the question remains. I don’t see Viscount as someone who would share this kind of information without any purpose.”

Serajin looked Adelia in the eye. As if to dig into Adelia’s intentions.

Adelia gently raised the corners of her mouth.

“I’d like to offer you two deals. The first is for the duchy and the second is purely for me.”

“First of all, let’s hear it.”

Serajin’s mouth was stiff as if she was nervous. Adelia spoke slowly in the subdued atmosphere.

“The first proposal is only possible with the permission of the Grand Duke.”

Ivan’s eyebrow moved up and down for a moment.

“You need my permission, hmm…. I wonder what you’re going to suggest.”

“It’s not such a difficult proposal. I’d like to request a crop variety trade with Rodriza.”

Serajin’s eyes turned round.

“Crops?” 

“Yes, everyone here is living in the duchy, so I think everyone knows that there are crops that grow well in the weather and environment of the duchy. We want to share with Rodriza the crops that have been adapted to the weather of the duchy.”

When the countess heard Adelia’s words, she shook her head and spoke.

“Of course, the crops that grow in the duchy are resistant to cold weather.”

“Yes, of course, it’s less diverse and less valuable than the crops that Rodriza used to grow, but it’s still better than leaving it empty.”

Serajin nodded in agreement.

“So, what does the duchy get?” asked the duke, who was listening to Adelia’s explanation without saying a word.

Adelia replied, bending her eyes as if she had been waiting for this moment.

“I want Rodriza’s yongan in exchange for giving away the crops of the duchy.”

“If it’s yongan…”

Difficulty flashed over Serajin’s face.

Yongan was a rare crop that only a small amount can be produced in Rodriza. Yongan, which has a sweet taste and a fragrant smell that is called a heavenly fruit, was extremely high in calories. It could be said to be the best fruit for those living in cold places.

“But Yongan can’t grow up in a duchy….”

As Serajin said, Yongan had to maintain high temperatures throughout the year to bloom and bear fruits. So Serajin’s statement that it is impossible to grow in the cold duchy is right. 

Of course, if you think according to common sense, that’s what it means.

But it doesn’t matter as long as you can create an environment artificially.

Adelia planned the deal and found a way to raise Yongan in the Duchy. Several ideas immediately came to her mind, and stopping the time of a fire stone seemed the most feasible. 

She put it into practice right away. The result was successful. The fire stone, which is usually known to have a lifespan of three days, did not lose its light until a week.

“The environment is not a problem. I can create an artificial environment using mana stones.”

“Mana stone? But wouldn’t that make your belly button bigger than your belly?”

“I’ve calculated that too, so you don’t have to worry.”

Adelia was reticent. She doesn’t have to tell them how. 

Of course, I’ll have to explain it to the duke.

Adelia looked at the Grand Duke again. He was just looking at her without saying a word. She could hardly read what was on his mind. Then, the Grand Duke’s lips, which were tightly closed, moved.

“It wouldn’t be a bad deal if we could create an artificial environment.”

Fortunately, the Grand Duke believed in her. Adelia breathed a sigh of relief inside. Serajin was lost in thought. But the worry was not long.

“…alright. Yongan is a big asset of Rodriza… but I accept your offer. My father would listen to me.”

Adelia smiled satisfactorily. Serajin shook her head and sighed as if she had lost.

“Is it time to listen to the second condition?”

The second condition.

Adelia spoke after a few moments.

“Please make a rumor about me and spread it beyond the duchy and to the empire.”

Perhaps it was an unexpected offer, Serajin was confused.

“What kind of rumor are you talking about?”

“…the prophet.”

The corners of Adelia’s mouth slowly rose.

“Please create a rumor that there is a prophet.”

“A prophet…”

Serajin repeated the word prophet and tapped her mouth with a fan. An interesting smile soon came on her lips. Her face, which had been stressed for a while due to worries about her hometown, seemed to have regained its true form.

“That sounds fun. Good. I accept it.”

She had a hunch that there would be a huge stir in the society that had been calm.

Serajin had a strong conviction in her foreboding.