C151
"I never thought something like this would happen."
The last time we met, I remembered Isaac, who was confident that he would send Liena to prison.
He also hinted at that method.
"Did his subordinates commit all of Iver's corruption? It's nonsense that no one who knows his personality would believe. Just wait and see. Those who reach the top will fall."
I could have predicted that he would use the Bunny group because of that, but I didn't know he would mention the warp portals business, which had stopped due to Kais' departure.
Should I say it's cruel? Isaac Cassius was a man I would never want to have as an enemy.
To be honest, I was a little worried about the impact Isaac's actions would have on the future.
It's not clear when the warp portal technology, which has created so much excitement in the world, will actually be completed.
Warp portals were only commercialized in the derivative story set a few years after the end of the main story in <Return and Walk on a Flower Path> due to various problems.
"Still, there was a clear statement that there were still significant issues, big and small."
First of all, it's too early to publicly discuss a technology at this moment.
If things had gone as the novel, Liena would have given Kais time to study quietly, but it seemed she got anxious after Iver's collapse.
Liena would have wanted to regain her old reputation as soon as possible with a new business, but that ended up being like whipping Kais, and their relationship only drifted apart.
"Oh, how can this be? Not only did she arbitrarily announce the warp portal technology without consulting me, but she also boasted that it would soon be commercialized!"
Kais must have read the newspaper, as he sent his alter ego to complain.
"I'm increasingly disappointed with Princess Cassius! She's a bad person!"
... Indeed, it wasn't Liena's doing, but I felt that revealing the truth would only complicate the situation, so I decided to remain silent.
Kais's situation was unfortunate, but there was nothing I could do to stop Isaac.
He only cooperated with me because he held a grudge against Liena, but he wasn't my subordinate.
"I'm sorry, Kais. I'm a little afraid of him too...."
Anyway, what I have to do now is focus on removing Liena's blessings from people.
This is something that came to mind today on the way to Duke Luciano's residence, and perhaps Isaac's actions will be of great help to me.
Firstly, it begins by paying attention to the extremely positive perception they have of Liena.
"Miss Liena is, of course, the best!"
"Oh, when will she appear at an official event? I can't wait to see our adorable miss!"
"Is there anyone who wants to invest with me in the Bunny Group? They say they are still looking for investors."
"Let's all go together! Once the warp portals are official, your profits will multiply, even dozens of times!"
I looked with sad eyes at the people trying to jump into the pit where Liena would fall, and I cleared my throat with a hmm.
"Hello, everyone."
Only then did their eyes refocus on me.
"In reality, I have something to tell you about this warp portals matter."
The member who had just recruited people to invest with him opened his eyes in a triangle shape.
"Do you plan to say something bad on purpose? I won't believe it!"
Several members agreed with that statement and stepped forward.
"Yes, yes! You made a fortune quickly thanks to mining, so you think you can talk about business!"
"Why do you keep trying to disturb our Miss Liena?"
I really apologize. You can say whatever you want.
"Investing or not is the freedom of each individual. But you have a duty."
"What duty?"
"It is your duty to listen to the person who created the technology you are investing in."
It was then. A parrot flew in and perched on my shoulder.
"Let me introduce you. He is the person who invented various artifacts released by the Iver group. He is Mr. Kais, a mage known as the eccentric inventor."
"H-Hi-hello. I-I'm the e-eccentric inventor... Kais, this is Kais."
Kais, who said it had been almost ten years since he appeared in front of many people, stammered severely and introduced himself.
"W-What? The eccentric inventor?"
Redpal members were agitated by the sudden appearance of the eccentric inventor.
"Now that I think about it, I heard the rumor that he appears in the form of an animal."
"I don't believe it! There's no way the eccentric inventor, who is Miss Liena's closest associate, is with that woman!"
"No, that parrot is definitely the eccentric inventor."
"How do you know that?"
"... I once went there for business, and that parrot rejected me."
Redpal members are all members of prominent families.
Naturally, there were probably one or two people who tried to recruit Kais.
"This newspaper article clearly states that the Warp Portal technology belongs to the eccentric inventor, right? Now, should we listen to what he has to say?"
The parrot took a deep breath and began to speak.
"Oh, the news about the commercialization of Warp Portal technology in today's newspaper is something I was not consulted about at all. This is obviously... Yes, this is a scam!"
Once Kais was speechless, he said what he wanted to express with relative fluency.
He broke up with Liena a long time ago, no longer has any intention of cooperating with her, and accepts investors under the pretext that the warp portals are a scam.
When I saw that, I thought it was a good idea to bring Kais here spontaneously.
As Kais continued to speak, the expressions of the Redpal members became increasingly somber.
"No way! He's lying!"
"Miss Liena would never scam anyone!"
Now it was my turn to step forward.
As I had practiced beforehand, I unleashed all the divine power that had been carefully stored within my body.
"Miss Liena committed various illegal acts while leading the Iver guild. Is there any law that prevents someone who did it once from doing it again?"
"B-But that's just what the manager did..."
"Those of you who have closely observed Miss Liena will know very well that she herself led the Iver Merchant Guild, right?"
Meanwhile, the people who praised Liena's business skills to the point of being speechless were Redpal members.
I convinced myself as I saw how the voices of the members weakened the more they exchanged questions and answers with me.
It wasn't as if they didn't think about it at all. Until now, due to the influence of the blessing, they had tried to ignore the bad parts of Liena.
After seeing their eyes gradually clearing up, I bid farewell.
"I guess I'll have to leave. I apologize for interrupting the meeting. Please continue with the next step."
However, given the atmosphere that seemed as if cold water had been poured, the chances of the meeting becoming lively seemed slim.
"Oh, by the way, if you want to discuss this further or if you want to apologize for gossiping about me like Duchess Luciano, please schedule an appointment and come to visit me."
The plan was to release blessings more clearly one by one only for those people.
I'm so busy right now that I don't have time to force a conversation with people I don't like, but I wanted as few victims as possible to lose their money after investing incorrectly.
I quietly exited the silent glass greenhouse and headed to the next meeting place.
"Viscountess Lucibiu, why are you arriving just now?"
Roland Cassius, the person I was meeting, rushed to greet me.
"I had work to do. More than that, did you bring what I asked for?"
"Of course. But why did I have to prepare something like this?"
"To dispel black magic, you need stimulation to move the person's emotions. For that, information is essential."
For that reason, I had previously asked Roland to share information that only the family would know, such as anecdotes from the childhood of his children.
Now we were on our way to meet the brothers and sisters of Duke Cassius whom Liena had summoned.
"Unraveling black magic is also a very troublesome task. Please make good use of this information."
I looked at the documents Roland handed me and then tossed them aside.
"What? Why throw it in the trash?"
"It's almost a blank page. Where's the information?"
Roland smiled shyly.
"I did my best. Honestly, what do I know about what they like and what values they have?"
"That's fine. I'll do it alone, okay?"
At least, the content of <Return and Walk on a Flower Path> was a hundred times more useful than the previous documents.
I strengthened my resolve and headed to the room where they had gathered at Isaac's summons.
There isn't much time left until the end.
-------------------------
That afternoon, the official statement issued by Kais was simultaneously published in various evening newspapers.
In his statement, Kais clearly stated that he was the developer of the warp portal technology and that the morning announcement by Conejito was something he had not heard of at all.
The world was plunged into confusion by the conflicting positions of the two parties.
After a while, the Conejito group expressed their position that there was simply a communication error with the developer, and the warp portal construction plan would proceed smoothly.
Public opinion was largely divided into two branches.
Half of them trusted the Conejito Group's position, but the other half gradually began to question the situation where they were receiving investments on warp portal technology and new businesses.
And in the Cassius house, there were people deeply distressed to see how the situation was unfolding.
Leandro opened his mouth heavily, looking at his father sitting at the desk in anguish.
"I know very well that you think this is irresponsible. But now a decision has to be made."
"......"
"You know. This is no longer just a problem for our family. Currently, most people who believe in Conejito's position do so because of the Cassius name."
Leheim also stood still and listened to his brother.
"That's right. And that doesn't mean we'll never see Liena again."
"Father, if we wait until the family knights find Liena and Uncle Isaac's whereabouts, it might be too late."
"If the warp portal plan is really a fraud, the longer the decision is delayed, the more victims there will be."
Duke Cassius closed his eyes.
After a time that was neither long nor short, he opened his eyes and spoke with a gloomy but determined voice.
"I will disown Liena. From now on, Liena is no longer a Cassius."