C150
Voices filled with surprise erupted throughout the glass greenhouse.
"That person is...!"
"Ethel Lucibiu?"
"Why is Viscountess Lucibiu here?"
Yes, a person who suddenly appeared and confused Redpal. That person was me.
With the help of Duchess Luciano, I had entered the greenhouse even before Redpal started.
All I could do was sit in the place she had prepared and simply pass the time, but honestly, it was mentally challenging...
While listening to the endless praises for Liena, I felt like I had returned to the time before my divorce with Leandro, and the psychological fatigue was enormous.
Well, it seems that all the members have gathered, so there's no need to wait any longer.
"How dare you come here!"
"Go away!"
The eyes of the members looking at me slowly began to shift from shock to hostility.
Like Duchess Luciano, it seemed they perceived me as an "enemy of Liena."
"One moment."
At that moment, the president of Redpal hit the armrest.
"Duchess Luciano, who brought Viscountess Lucibiu, must have something in mind. Let's hear what she has to say."
"Well, I..."
The duchess, who suddenly caught their attention, stammered and looked in my direction.
I thought to intervene if she seemed to be going through a tough time, but she hesitated but continued speaking.
"Viscountess Lucibiu... She's a better person than we thought. I apologized belatedly for my mistake in misinterpreting the viscountess and responding, and she generously forgave me."
It seemed that it wasn't necessary for me to step forward.
"I also thought it necessary to clarify any misunderstanding involving her. That's why I invited her here."
When the duchess finished speaking, the hesitation or shyness that had been visible a moment ago had disappeared.
It was the image of a woman loved by Duke Luciano, who was bold and wise in admitting her mistakes.
"So what the duchess said..."
The president looked at the duchess and spoke.
"Means that Viscountess Lucibiu was not invited as a member."
"...Yes."
"Did Viscountess Lucibiu not change her mind and fall in love with Miss Liena?"
I answered that question.
"No."
The president looked at me closely through the rabbit mask and smiled.
"Alright. Then there's no need to hear more. Leave here now, Viscountess Lucibiu."
"President, the viscountess...!"
"Sylviana, what is the most important basic principle of Redpal? This is a place where only people who love Miss Liena can enter."
Despite Duchess Luciano's dissuasion, the president's attitude was extremely firm.
"But Viscountess Lucibiu doesn't even meet that basic principle. She doesn't deserve to be here."
The cold gaze of Redpal members, including the president, turned toward me.
"Leave now, Viscountess. If you refuse, we'll have no choice but to expel you."
Redpal members approached me slowly, as if they were really planning to force me out.
Do they think I'll back down easily?
"That's strange."
I said as I looked directly at the president.
"Isn't this the glass greenhouse that Duke Luciano gave to his wife, inside the residence of Duke Luciano before it became the meeting place for Redpal?"
"So what?"
"What right do you have to kick me out, someone who was formally invited by Duchess Luciano? Isn't that right, Margaret?"
At that moment, the expression on the president's face, or rather Margaret's face, hardened so clearly that it could be seen even behind the mask.
"...You knew who I was. I believe this is my first encounter with Viscountess Lucibiu. Did Duchess Luciano tell you?"
Duchess Luciano violently shook her head.
As it was true, I helped her too.
"I was just guessing based on some facts."
"Can you tell me what you mean?"
I stretched out my fingers and counted them one by one.
"First, she's an elderly woman who cares a lot about Miss Liena. Secondly, although she is the president, she sits at the head of the table even more than Duchess Luciano, who is a member of the royal family. Thirdly, she immediately called the duchess by her first name, Sylviana."
When we combine all this information.
"President, I've come to the conclusion that this is Margaret of Asteroth, the aunt of His Majesty the current Emperor and the Duchess."
"That is..."
"It was quite a while ago, and many people have forgotten, but isn't Margaret's unusual public appearance during Miss Liena's debut quite famous?"
After an incident, she stayed at home and did not leave the house, attracting public attention simply by appearing during her debutante.
"No matter how much I thought about it, among the elderly who cared for Liena, Margaret was the only one who could treat Duchess Luciano without hesitation.
In reality, I learned this information through <Return and Walk on a Flower Path>.
"Well, Sylviana is not the type of young lady who would casually reveal my personal information to others. I also asked Miss Liena not to talk about me with the people around me."
Margaret removed her rabbit mask.
"Viscountess Lucibiu, you seem much smarter than I thought."
There was a faint but friendly gleam in her eyes.
"There were more than one lady who appeared at the debutante at that time."
"Indeed, while I was at Cassius Mansion, I saw several portraits with the initials 'M.D.A' engraved on the back of the frame."
"Well. I became somewhat interested. I want to hear what you have to say."
"Pre-president!"
"But the basic principle...!"
"What did you say?"
"N-Nothing."
Several members tried to protest, but they made eye contact with Margaret and were silenced.
It wasn't just an intimidating feeling that arose from being part of the royal family.
Margaret was a notable figure who always competed for the first or second place in surveys of the most admired people in the empire among the living.
The ultimate authority on monster ecology. An honorable scholar who dedicated her life to monster research.
As a result of her research, human understanding of monsters has greatly improved, and monster control technology has also advanced.
Some have expressed skepticism that, because she is a member of the royal family, she is better evaluated than other scholars with similar achievements...
"As a member of the royal family, it is possible to live a rich and comfortable life for the rest of your life, but she clearly is not an ordinary person if she decides to venture into such dangerous research."
Moreover, Margaret did not abandon her research despite suffering an unfortunate personal accident.
Few would doubt that she is a person worthy of respect.
She gave me an opportunity.
"Viscountess, please tell me your story."
I looked around at the dissatisfied members.
"The story I will tell is about Miss Liena, the main protagonist of this meeting."
Then a male member near me shouted loudly.
"Are you trying to defame Miss Liena? It's useless. What a strong bond we have with her!"
Another member intervened.
"That's right, that's right! It doesn't work against true faith!"
These people say such striking things with such casual faces.
"What do you mean by that? I just want to talk about today's newspaper article, as all of you wanted to do."
I quickly approached the member who had been talking about his strong bond with a smile and snatched the newspaper he was holding.
"I'm sure you've all read this article containing news about the bunny, haven't you?"
When I opened the newspaper, each member said something.
"Of course! How is it possible that a Redpal member hasn't seen something like this!"
"Ah, what an innovative business. Solo lo he visto por escrito, pero estoy deseando que llegue!"
"As expected of Miss Liena! She will do more than just sell products; she will create a new era!"
"As expected, it was a good idea to invest a lot of money in the Bunny merchant group!"
"Isn't the name cool too? A warp portal business!"
Warp portals. The new business that the Bunny group would launch from now on prominently appeared in the newspaper.
According to the article's explanation, devices called warp portals are planned to be installed in every major area of the continent, and by using the warp portals, one can instantly travel to other places where they are installed.
In summary, it can be said to be a fixed-location teleportation device.
However, compared to existing teleportation devices that had short travel distances, the warp portals, which could travel between the northern and southern ends of the continent in an instant, were an innovative invention.
Moreover, unlike the teleportation device, which can only move inanimate objects due to its low security, the warp portals can move living beings without any problems.
If this is achieved, there will be no need to travel between the areas where the warp portals will be installed for several days or months by train or horse.
It is truly a revolution in transportation and a great leap forward for humanity.
This article, published in today's morning newspaper, plunged the Asteroth Empire into a cauldron of excitement.
If someone else had told them, it was so incredible that they would have dismissed it as nonsense from a madman, but the source of this information was none other than the Bunny Group.
And Liena Cassius, the owner of the Bunny Merchant Group, had led the Iver group and presented various miraculous artifacts to the world.
If the warp portal project succeeds, Liena will not only regain her lost reputation but also become the greatest person on the continent.
"As long as it succeeds."
The article says that the journalist interviewed Liena directly, but I know very well that she is not in a condition to meet the journalist at the moment.
Yesterday, a letter arrived from Isaac Cassius saying not to worry.
In that case, the person who published this article was clearly Isaac, who was in charge of the actual operation of the Bunny Group.
Why him? There was only one answer.
Isaac plans to take Liena to the top first before letting her fall into the abyss.