C131
After hearing the story about the eccentric inventor, Terence gladly accepted my offer.
"Excellent. Fortunately, I can dedicate two or three days starting the day after tomorrow."
"Great!"
"It was worth putting in a lot of effort to be able to take a complete vacation."
"That's why you were so busy."
"Isn't it the same for Ethel?"
He gently took my hand.
"Would you like to go on our first date also?"
"D-date?"
"Yes, a date."
Now that I think about it, according to Terence's expression, we were now in a relationship where I was being courted.
There was nothing strange about interpreting the act of two people going out together as a date.
"Oh no."
I was so preoccupied with appeasing the eccentric inventor that my thoughts didn't go that far.
Besides, I had done things with Terence several times in the past, so this time, without much thought, I invited him to go with me.
"For Terence, meeting the eccentric inventor is someone who will be useful to him in many ways."
But a date. Suddenly, tension spread throughout my body, and my shoulders seemed to become heavy.
At that moment.
"...I pushed you too hard."
Terence's eyebrows slightly arched as his voice sounded somewhat husky.
"I'm sorry. You don't have to worry about what I said a moment ago."
The moment I saw Terence's hand leaving me, my body moved faster than my head.
I shouted loudly while holding Terence's hand tightly.
"Let's do it! A date!"
Terence widened his eyes and soon showed a smile like a blooming flower.
"I'm looking forward to it."
I belatedly thought, "Is it okay?" but Terence liked it so much that I thought, "What's the problem?"
With a pleasant sense of suspense, I invited Terence to dinner.
The next day, as I would be away for a while, I left the imperial palace to prepare accordingly.
The carriage that transported me stopped in front of an elegant building located in a central area of the capital.
Lucibiu Mining Company.
A clearly new sign greeted me.
When I entered the building with my heart racing for some reason, someone recognized me.
"You're here. Is something wrong?"
It was a familiar face. Kayden.
Cassius's former butler, who testified in my favor in the divorce trial and is now the manager of Lucibiu Mining Company.
Lucibiu Mining Company was recently founded by me and was in charge of issues related to the development and management of mines and the sale of magic stones.
It was challenging for someone like me to handle Lucibiu Mine alone, which has been recently in the spotlight.
Therefore, from the moment I returned to the capital from the mining village, I had been planning the establishment of a mining company.
It has long been said that the most crucial factor in any job is trustworthy talent.
While struggling because I couldn't trust anyone with the management of the company, the thought of Mr. Kayden suddenly came to my mind.
"A mining company... I've only worked for the Cassius family all my life, so I'm not fit for that job."
"That's why I can trust you. You've been taking care of the large Cassius family for a long time. I'm sure you can manage the company well."
At first, he was reluctant, but when I asked again, he seemed hesitant.
Then, his son Joshua provided the decisive opportunity to change his mind.
With the words, "It's fantastic to see my father working again," Mr. Kayden accepted my offer and became the manager of "Lucibiu Mining Company."
Since it was recently established, we need to hire more employees and there are many things to worry about...
"Well, the owner of the company has come, so understand that I can only serve you a cup of tea."
Just as Joshua said, his appearance at work seemed lively and calm.
"No. It's very delicious. Thank you."
When I waved my arms and responded, the person sitting across from me looked at me.
"Ethel, could you come to visit and see my son sometime?"
"Yes? Does that mean..."
"This is the first time he has said he wants to meet someone other than me."
"Congratulations!"
Joshua, who had closed his heart due to past events, has been reluctant to contact people.
Is the treatment received in the capital effective?
"Joshua loves to hear Ethel's stories. He always pesters me to tell him something new."
"My story?"
"That's because you proudly faced Cassius, who had instilled fear in that child."
"No, it wasn't a big deal..."
"Also, isn't it thanks to Ethel that the duke regretted his mistakes and changed his mind about wanting to apologize to Joshua?"
I had nothing to say in response to the flood of praise that followed, so I simply smiled shyly.
"For that child, Ethel is nothing less than a heroine."
It really was an undeserved title for me.
After conveying some things to Mr. Kayden about the company's operations, I didn't immediately return to the imperial palace but headed to Ambassador Leok's residence.
Because there was another piece of good news.
Congratulations Diana!
"Thank you! Ethel!"
Diana ran towards me and hugged me.
When she saw me, her eyes moistened as if the emotion invaded her again.
"It's finally over!"
Diana finally managed to get divorced after a long process that lasted several months.
I heard she won the divorce trial against her ex-husband, and last night she received approval from the temple.
We embraced and shared joy as comrades who had gone through the same struggle for a while.
Since my divorce ended up being negotiated, I was even more satisfied with her success in winning the trial.
With this, I hope many people in this country who have a glimmer of hope in divorce gather courage.
Well, actually, according to Sharon, since the news of my divorce started appearing in the newspapers, the number of people seeking her advice has increased significantly.
From now on, I hope Sharon's office has a cloud of clients.
"Miss Ethel, let me thank you once again."
"I won't have enough of my life to thank you for finding my daughter."
In the reception room of the ambassador's residence, the ambassador and his wife bowed to me and spoke.
"It's not necessary to do that! I just did what anyone would do!"
When I seemed embarrassed, the ambassador laughed.
"On behalf of my home country, I would like to thank you for selling the highest quality magic stones to the Kingdom of Leok."
"I'm truly more grateful."
"Oh, and thanks to Miss Ethel, I also had the chance to punish that bastard."
Needless to say, the man the ambassador spoke of with a shadowy smile was Diana's ex-husband.
Now that the trial was over, there was no reason for the ambassador and his wife to tolerate the trash that had even hit their precious daughter.
I had no idea how it would turn out, but I felt no sympathy.
Everyone was on their own.
After receiving a warm reception at the ambassador's residence, I returned to the villa.
The sun set and then rose again, illuminating the day we set out to meet the eccentric inventor.
"I won't last long, so come back soon..."
Laura said as she helped me prepare to leave.
I had to make it seem like I would stay in the villa from now on.
Yes. I would go in secret.
The eccentric inventor had greatly contributed to Liena's immense wealth, and her new business couldn't function without him.
So, it was obvious that if Liena found out I was meeting with the eccentric inventor, she would try to interfere in some way.
When I had a lot of work to do, I often locked myself in my room and didn't come out, so it wouldn't seem like a big deal if I didn't appear for the next two or three days.
Still, I gave Laura a pink wig just in case.
I decided not to remember what kind of expression Laura made when she received the wig.
"Thank you. Take care, Laura!"
After saying that to Laura, I left the villa with Vinetta.
As Vinetta had already worked with the Imperial Knights' security system, I could escape through the back door of the annex.
We took a carriage and headed to the central train station of the capital.
Terence was waiting for us at the train station.
He said he also secretly escaped from the imperial palace using a method similar to mine.
When the time comes, Jack will mimic Terence.
Considering Laura and Jack's situation, I couldn't help but laugh. I never thought they would look so similar.
"I'm sorry for both of you. I'll help you with the money I earn."
Terence, who had already finished issuing the tickets, reached out to me as I muttered this in my heart.
"Now, shall we go?"
It was the beginning of a new journey.
--------------------------
Mikhail's Palace.
"The job is easy."
Liena, holding a tray with a cup of tea, entered Mikhail's office.
Mikhail, who was looking at documents on his desk, looked at his lover.
"What tea is this?"
"The medicinal tea I've been developing these days!"
"What medicinal tea?"
"There is such a thing. It's all for you."
"Thanks. I'll drink it well."
Liena, happily imagining the moved expression on Mikhail's face that she would see later, looked at the documents she was holding.
"What are you working on?"
"Oh, I was investigating that business plan you mentioned earlier."
"Isn't it amazing?"
"This is a project that, if realized, will change the Asteroth Empire and indeed the world. However..."
Mikhail's expression darkened.
"This wizard named Kais, wouldn't it be better to bring him to the imperial palace? Since interest is a fundamental part of our business, we must ensure to protect him."
"I know what you mean. But don't worry."
"Why?"
"Kais is an excellent wizard. No one can easily harm him."
"But if he's so good, others will notice too."
"It's okay. There's no way they can get away with it."
Liena said confidently.
"Because even after working hard for more than ten years, I still haven't completely won Kais's heart."
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