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nDuke Omerta finally opened his mouth. With a complex look trying not to lose his dignity and claiming to be stunned my father-in-law said, “It won’t be long before he dies.”

nHe was hinting that if he did something people didn’t like, he’d die.

nWhat a nice way to speak about one’s son.

n“Ellen, did you join in?”

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n“No, I’m just as stunned as you.”

nThe father and daughter, who exchanged gazes, now looked at me.

nAh, no, why are you looking at me? I have no idea what this is at all! I’ve never even dreamed of this!

n“A greenhouse in the courtyard is clearly a Southern-styled garden.”

nMy father-in-law was right. Though glass greenhouses could also be built with the northern climate.

nBut I’d never meant for Izek to make one here! I just explained it to him because he asked!

nWhether or not they looked at it my way, the diligent workers who were instructed by the Strongest Northern Personality Destroyer only focused on their work with mysterious equipment.

nEvery time the land was divided, the gnomes that jumped out screaming and squeaking were thrown straight into a bucket of holy water.

nThis was just like treatment of moles.

n“Well, this change is not bad because it used to be completely desolate before.”

nThank you, Ellen. As expected of you…

n“She won’t run away from home with something familiar nearby.”

n“It makes sense, but all of this was once…” Her father looked bitter for some reason.

nElenia soon pursed her mouth, but did not reply. Were they talking about her late mother?

n“…If you don’t like it that much, you can just tell him to stop.”

n“When did he ever listen to me? He’ll get angry and grab his own father by the collar.”

nMy tongue-tied father-in-law turned to me again. It seemed that he didn’t like it. He probably thought I was starting to manipulate his son.

nWell, he’d be in trouble if Izek fell in love with me from the duke’s point of view.

nHe had the plan to make Izek divorce me one day and arrange a more fruitful marriage…

n“How are you feeling?”

n“I’m fine, I’m sorry to have troubled you. I won’t let this happen again.”

nWhen I smiled with an oblivious face, he stared at me for a moment, and soon, coughed in vain.

n“I don’t think the most important issue has been resolved yet, but I’ll look into it sooner or later.”

n“Yes, yes, don’t worry.”

nYou don’t have to remind me of everything that happened on the first night. I’m in a hurry too. I need to get moving quickly, but don’t you need to see the sky to catch sight of the stars?

nBesides, I was worried that this mysterious husband would become more reluctant to do such a thing with me because he doubted my identity.

n* * *

n“Hello, ma’am. My name is Ronja.”

nThe maid with her brown hair tied in pigtails looked down politely. I guessed she was about sixteen years old?

n“This child was recommended by a relative. She’s still young, but good with her hands, so she’ll be of help.”

nI see. If that was true, then Freya wouldn’t have recognized her like before. I felt relieved.

n“Oh… Thank you very much, Ellen.”

n“It’s something I should have done earlier. I’m rather ashamed of myself for being late. I tried to find someone more experienced, but my brother and I agreed that a younger child would be better. It’s hard to move on right now, but we’re going to increase the trust level, step by step.”

nWhether she was an experienced maid or a young maid, I liked her.

nFinally, I had an exclusive maid who could make me feel safe and comfortable!

nNow, I didn’t have to bribe Lucille anymore! There would be no trouble with the mean servants!

nSeemed like the sun was going to rise from the west.

nA glass greenhouse was being made too. Why such unexpected good news, all of a sudden? It was nice, but a bit hard to adjust.

n“Nice to meet you. I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

n“I will serve you with all my heart. I’ll work hard on anything.”

nAs she greeted with a smile, Ronja blushed slightly and repeatedly bowed her head.

nHer big friendly brown eyes were clear.

nA shy but brave child. She was just the kind of kid I wanted. I hoped her first impression stayed the same.

n“You’ll be busy as soon as you get here. That would make it easier for you to adjust.”

n“Yes, miss.”

nHuh? Busy as soon as you get here?

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nEllenia calmly explained to me, who looked curious.

n“I’m going to hold a banquet. Before I get busier preparing for the festival.”

n“Yes, but what kind of banquet..”

n“It’s just a feast. Ruby is the guest of honor, so you have to work extra hard on your decorations.”

nA moment of silence lingered. I probably just misheard something.

n“I’m the guest of honor?”

n“Yes.”

n“What kind…”

n“You’re the guest of honor because this is a feast for Ruby,” Ellenia said with no change in her expressionless face.

nI was even more confused.

nA banquet for me? My birthday was still far away and I didn’t do anything special. Was this a birthday party for the wife who ran away from home?

nEllenia, who had no idea how my mind was in chaos, finally wedged in, “But you don’t have to feel pressured. The host is my brother anyway, so if something goes wrong, he will be criticized.”

nI’m sure it’ll still be the same.

nWhy was he suddenly making up such situations? What the hell was he up to? What kind of conspiracy was he plotting this time?

nSo far, I’d only attended three social gatherings in Elendale.

nA wedding banquet for the king and his wife, a riding party, and a birthday banquet for Izek.

nI was only attending them as a guest, and only one of them could be counted as ‘fine’ among all three tough times.

nAnd now, there’s a banquet where I become the main character.

nOf course, it would be nice if it was an introduction party to strengthen my position as a benefactor of the Omerta family and ask the northern natives to take good care of me in the future, but Izek was not the type to do that.

nBesides, we hadn’t even had our first night yet. There would still be a lot of people who would blame me for Freya’s situation.

nI was sure he was bothering me because of the running away incident, but at this point, just what the hell was he up to?

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nDon’t tell me it was like I thought.

nTo do as he said in exchange for my future.

nWhat if he’d ask me to act as a secret weapon to fight, as a promise to take care of my safety?

nNo, it didn’t really look like that back then. He told me that I shouldn’t come back into contact with the monsters.….

nAgh, it’s hard. Too tough. I never thought I’d meet a more difficult man in my life than Cesare.

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