C96
"I'm serious."
I smiled and signaled him to pay attention. Terence, with a perplexed expression on his face, obediently brought his ear closer to me.
I was talking about kidnapping and all that, but I really had no intention of forcibly taking Terence out of this place. It might be genuinely impossible.
"I have a magical stone mine that I brought from my parents' family when I got married. It was closed a long time ago due to lack of profitability, but today, a person living nearby delivered the news..."
I didn't have any local acquaintances who could give me news about the mine, but as I couldn't say I saw it in a novel, I gave an approximate account.
"Is that really possible?"
Terence's eyes widened as he heard what I said.
"For me, too, it was difficult to believe it completely."
I handed him a brochure. He read the title written on the cover.
"Correlation between the meteorite that fell in the Majer region and the nearby magical stone mine. It's a document that seems quite old."
"It was written about 80 years ago. At that time, the fall of a meteorite in the Majer region was observed, and a few years later, magical stones began to emerge from the nearby ground."
Terence quickly scanned the summary of the article.
"The author of this article proposed the hypothesis that meteorites may have created magical stones. This is the first time I've heard this theory."
"It was a hypothesis that was buried and dismissed as nonsense at the time. It's still a hard story to believe."
"Honestly, yes. New magical stones are created, and that's because of a meteorite."
Terence's words didn't stop there.
"But," he said, with shining eyes, "Ethel thinks it's plausible, doesn't she?"
It wasn't plausible; it was a fact in the novel.
Liena, who guessed the secret of the mine from the novel, seeks related information and discovers this document.
So, deliberately, I brought back the thesis that had been buried in a deep storage room of the Imperial Central Library, full of dust.
"It was good to read to pass the time."
As I had nothing else to do after finalizing the divorce, I decided to expand my knowledge about mines.
It didn't take long before I became busy again because I had to deal with Elliot.
"Yes, I think it's a promising story. It's a very remote possibility, but unless it's completely impossible, it's worth checking."
I looked at Terence and chose my words carefully.
"Of course, given Terence's position, these are important moments, and I know he's extremely busy, but..."
"You can just say that."
He closed the pages of his thesis and smiled.
"I would like to accompany you on this journey. Could you accept me, please?"
"Are you okay with that?"
In fact, I had planned to suggest it first, but I wasn't sure if he would willingly accept it, so I used the extreme expression of kidnapping.
However, contrary to my concerns, Terence nodded easily.
"Any work that needs to be done can be finished while I'm away."
He opened the window and gave some instructions to Jack, who was waiting outside the carriage. Jack's face quickly turned blue.
"Your, Your Highness! I'm sorry, but it's difficult to suddenly postpone your entire schedule. And if His Majesty the Emperor finds out about this..."
"I can't tell His Majesty the details of the situation yet, but please tell him it's a decision I made as a prince. If you say that, he may get a little angry, but he'll trust me and wait for me."
Jack hesitated, but as always, he set out to fulfill his master's orders. Terence turned to me and opened his mouth.
"All right, shall we go now? Jack will take care of the rest."
"Now?"
It was an astonishing action. I asked, looking at Jack, who was struggling away in the distance.
"Will it be okay?"
"It's okay. He's a capable friend."
Poor Jack. However, it would be very beneficial for Terence to accompany me and see the Andala Mine with his own eyes.
"Then, shall we have a quiet conversation on the way?"
Terence smiled meaningfully.
"If your assumption about the mine is correct, you and I... In other words, what kind of relationship will form between the Asteroth imperial family."
As expected, Terence figured out my plan without any special explanation.
I didn't offer him companionship simply because I needed an escort or a companion.
This was a whole business proposition.
"But before that, don't you have extra luggage to pack like me?"
"You can get most things on the go."
"Excellent. Let's start talking in detail then."
We had a pleasant conversation as the carriage headed to the train station.
---------------------
Cassius Residence.
The former Duke Cassius, Roland Cassius, looked at his son without even mentioning the tea brought by his employees.
Edman was not intimidated by those stern looks.
"What brings you here?"
"I didn't come because I wanted to see your face, so don't worry!"
In the Cassius territory, even a three-year-old knew that the relationship between Duke Cassius and the former duke was bad.
Edman Cassius managed to get most of his vassals on his side, overthrew his father, and ascended to the throne himself.
Roland rolled his eyes.
"Bastard who stabs his father in the back!"
"Someone had to do it."
Roland wielded tyranny solely for the external growth of Cassius. He drastically cut the budget for welfare policies, and the logic of jungle power prevailed, stating that the weak were weak, so it was natural for them to be left out.
Many people died as a result of his rule.
"If I could go back in time, I would make the same decision."
Roland looked at his son, who had a determined attitude, as if he were going to chew him up and spit him out.
"As expected, I don't even want to see you."
"It's mutual. Since I was young, my father constantly pitted me against my brothers. Until we killed each other."
"It's natural for a strong man who survives a dark struggle to inherit the family!"
"I overthrew my father to avoid passing on that unfortunate fate to my children."
Liena stepped in between the two, who were about to get serious.
"Dad and grandpa, stop!"
...
"Bunny, this guy started the fight first!"
Edman remained silent, and Roland protested.
"Whatever happens, if you keep saying bad things about my dad, I won't see you anymore!"
"What?!"
"I won't even give you a kiss on the cheek!"
"Even a kiss on the cheek?!"
"Are you going to keep saying bad things?"
"I won't! I won't! What pleasure would I have with this leftover money without you!"
"Well thought out."
Duke Cassius looked at the two with complicated eyes. He remembered the day when little Liena first won her grandfather's heart.
Although Roland withdrew, he remained a man with power that could not be ignored. He stayed in the northern part of Cassius territory with about 10% of his vassals who followed him to the end.
Even when Edman married and had children, there was no interaction between father and son.
"I'll do my best to persuade Grandpa!"
So, one day, Liena declared that. There was a time when Edman needed Roland's cooperation due to a territorial matter.
"Liena, thank you for your heart for this father. But you, who have never met your grandfather, don't know what kind of person he is."
"I'm sure Dad can reconcile with Grandpa. That's how families are."
But the girl was stubborn.
"Trust me and send me to Grandpa!"
In the end, Edman, unable to overcome his daughter's hunger strike, took Liena to visit Roland. But something completely unexpected happened.
"What does our Liena eat to be so cute? Why don't you spend this money and live here for the rest of your life?"
In less than a week, Roland had become completely captivated by Liena.
He adored Liena, using a strange way of speaking that not even his own son, Edman, had encountered before.
Huh? Duke Cassius, who was reflecting on past memories, furrowed his brows. Once again, he felt something strange.
Roland Cassius, of all people, finds his granddaughter, whom he doesn't even have a blood relationship with, so cute after meeting her?
The person who didn't shed a single tear even when his youngest son died after a battle with cancer?
It was a part he surprisingly hadn't had doubts about.
At that moment, he thought, "Yes, my daughter is cute, it's natural."
While Duke Cassius was immersed in a belated feeling of discomfort, the conversation between Liena and Roland steadily progressed.
Liena said.
"Dad! In that sense, I'll stay with Grandpa for a while."
"This money will be 10,000 times better than that of an incompetent father who can't even prevent his daughter from being imprisoned!"
"Grandpa! You said something bad about Dad again!"
"... Alright, I got it."
Edman suddenly regained his senses and tried to dissuade his daughter.
"No. Are you going to ask my father to help you with your business? I can't allow that."
"It's too much. Why do you oppose so much what I'm trying to do?"
"When I was a child, I found out. My father will never be a good caretaker. It's obvious he'll only have a negative impact on you."
"What? Stupid bastard!"
"Liena, I ask you this. Just this once, follow my example. I'm saying all this for your sake."
Previously, he had merely been jealous and prevented Liena and Roland from having intimacy, but this time, it was a genuine concern.
Liena looked at Edman's face for a moment and then crossed Roland's arms.
"I'm sorry. But my father will soon understand how I feel. If you become the father you used to be."
"Liena."
The Duke Cassius muttered, confused.
Liena left the mansion with Roland.
At no time did she look at her father.
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