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nChapter 40

nProofreader: xoxomonami

nArtizea cut him off.

n“I’m already being generous at the level of a philanthropist, Sir Lexen. What I’m asking for is a marriage certificate that will give me the name of Mrs. Lexen, and to make sure this transaction is unknown, you hand over all your assets and move to the East to stay quiet. For that, I decided to rent a small manor for free.”

n“Madam……”

n“After relocating to the East, you don’t have to declare that you are legally divorced from your wife. If you don’t want to enter the social world, there is no problem.That’s it,“ Artizea said.

nIn general, the transaction of title is made through a successor.

nThose who want to buy titles marry their successors. Then, as a spouse of the successor, they will inherit it, and the family’s surname is changed.

nAnd it ends when the child takes over the position as a successor. It is a transaction spanning three generations.

nIn some cases, the successor of the family who sold the title, but it was okay if not.

nThis is because if the spouse’s approval is given, inheritance is possible even if the child is out of marriage. So, it was common to divorce after granting inheritance rights.

nArtizea did not demand that far.

nLexen knew Artizea as a rich businesswoman who wanted to establish herself in the Crates Empire.

nTherefore, instead of buying the title as it is, she is only trying to obtain the name of Mrs. Lexen.

nBy marrying a successor, inheriting an inheritance, and divorcing them, you can obtain the title, but you cannot obtain an imperial lineage.

nEven in the social world, a noble woman with an imperial husband is better than a foreigner who bought the title in many ways. Eventually, the words came up to Lexen’s throat, asking if it was because of her own interests.

nBut Artizea wasn’t wrong.

nIn the end, the eldest son of Lexen will inherit the Lexen family.

nThe only thing lost is honor and wealth. The title remains intact. His descendants will have a chance to come back as nobles.

nHowever, his wife is in a different position. If Artizea was active in the capital’s social circle under the name of Mrs. Lexen, relatives and acquaintances could not be unaware of the circumstances.

nIt would be better if the divorce was real. However, if he signs another marriage certificate, then if he still lives with his current wife, she becomes a mistress in an instant.

nA disgrace, but his wife will not be able to easily reach the temple.

nLexen bowed his head deeply.

n“I can’t abandon my wife.”

n“Then, you’ll go bankrupt together. There will be a lot of hardships for the two of you until you die.”

nArtizea pointed at the door with her hand. It was an order to get out.

nLexen’s complexion turned pale.

nShe has said many things, but the one who was at a disadvantage was Lexen.

nArtizea chose him as the best trading partner for several reasons.

nAs a low-ranking aristocrat in the western region, it is difficult enough to sell his title. At the same time, he had no strength, no fame, and he was an unobtrusive opponent even if he disappeared.

nHowever, Lexen is not the only poor noble of similar circumstances.

nIt was more so considering that what Artizea needed was not the title of inheritance itself, but the marriage certificate.

nWhile Lexen sighed for a moment, a new guest arrived.

nThe second guest was a priest.

n“Oh. Madam, no matter how simple it is, it’s a wedding, and you wore a black veil.”

nThe priest looked at Artizea and said so with a laugh.

nHowever, he was already a man who had already received a large bribe from Artizea. He knew well that this marriage was not a normal marriage. He didn’t say anything else.

nLexen sat silently.

nThe secretary, who followed the priest, laid down several documents in front of Lexen.

nAmong them were divorce papers. The divorce papers already had Mrs. Lexen’s signature.

nArtizea had already worked on it separately. Lexen realized it and trembled a little. But in the end all the papers were signed. The secretary handed out the divorce papers to the priest.

nThe priest brought out the marriage vows. The secretary first brought it to Lexen.

nWhen Lexen signed, this time the papers came to Artizea.

nFreil glanced over the papers.

nTerry Ford

nIt was already signed that way.

nAfter Artizea checked it, the secretary brought it to the priest.

nThere was no formal exchange of gifts. The priest smiled with a big smile and acted as a witness that made it all true.

n“I hereby inform you that this marriage was formally established before God. Congratulations Sir Lexen, Mrs. Lexen.”

nLexen’s face turned gray.

n“I want to give a gift to the priest as a sign of gratitude,” Artizea said.

nThe secretary gave the box prepared in advance to the priest. The priest laughed as if embarrassed.

nArtizea said softly.

n“In commemoration of this marriage, please use it for good things instead of us.”

n“If so…”

nThe priest stood up with the box. Artizea instructed the secretary to see him off.

nAnd looked at Lexen.

n“You can go back now.”

n“Is this… the end?”

n“Yes, that’s it. All your debts are cleared. Go back now. Your estate manager will clean up the rest of your financial ties and tell you where to go. I want you to spend your life quietly, happily with your wife, without much socializing.”

nLexen wandered for a while while standing up.

nBut in the end, he couldn’t talk to Artizea again. He turned around and went out.

nFreil was confused.

nHe was caught in a subtle and strange feeling.

nThe signature on the marriage vows was Terry Ford. Of course, Artizea is not going to use her name directly.

nMaking Lexen feel as if he was married to Artizea herself was an intentional illusion. This is to prevent him from knowing who his real opponent is.

n‘Whoever it is, it’s the Heiress’ henchman.’

nFreil thought so.

n‘A grain dealer…’

nSomething caught his mind.

nArtizea’s words were absolutely right. There was little value in western farmland.

nThere are grain vendors in the west as well, but it meant nothing to big figures like the Marquisate of Rosan. It’s probably cheaper to buy than the building in this capital where they sit now.

n‘Lending a manor in the east would actually be for surveillance. ‘

nAnd no matter where or how Mrs. Lexen appears, no doubts will arise.

nThere was no gap at all.

nArtizea has natural intelligence, wisdom, determination, prudence and observation.

nShe had a trusted figure named Marcus Hanson. Thanks to that, there were also trusted servants who asked Hanson for work.

nBut Freil knew a little about Marcus. He and his children are far from conspiring.

nAs soon as she acquired a huge wealth, she established a safe house, separated the assets that could be hidden, and invested in other places under a new name.

nFreil knew about testing the employees of the Grand Duke’s Residence.

nIt looked like an attack but on the contrary, it seemed to be engaging in counterintelligence.

nBased on that behavior, she is probably forming an information network. Freil was able to bet about 100 gold in the fact that she would have started working on other mansions at the same time.

nIs all this really possible? For an 18-year-old girl who had just barely gone out of reach from her abusive mother’s hands?

nFreil didn’t take her lightly just because she was young.

nIt was at that age that Emperor Gregor became the adopted son of the previous Empress and was engaged to the present empress who was from the Duchy of Riagan. Already by then he was a politician.

nEven now. He would not have been surprised if Lord Lawrence and Roygar had shown such insight at the age of 18. At the age of 18, they were already in the midst of a political struggle.

nBut Artizea was different. Not long ago, she was in a situation where she had to wear a shortened dress with a layer of cloth. She wouldn’t know how to deal with money.

nMiraila herself, was the emperor’s favorite mistress and social star, but her daughter was seldom seen out.

nIt caught his mind. However, the reason was unclear.

nArtizea smiled and looked at Freil.

nUnlike Freil, she had all the information, so Artizea could read all the confused thoughts in his head.

nKnock, knock.

nFreil’s thoughts stopped.

nIt was because the third guest had arrived.

n“This is Terry Ford, my Lady.”

nA woman in plain brown clothes knelt on both knees as soon as the door opened. It was the symbol of complete obedience.

nTerry Ford was not a name Artizea had known since her previous life. It means that her existence had not played such an important role back then. Also, it never showed any kind of talent.

nBut she reached out to Artizea herself. Terry was a senior maid of the Weave’s own family.

nViscount Weave was a relative of the family of the Marquis of Luden, the father of Grand Duke Roygar and Marchioness Camellia.

nAfter being sent on errands, several trips to and from the Viscounty, she realized something.

nThe cleaning maid was collecting small rumors from the master’s family.

nIt wasn’t important information. That Marchioness Camellia has come to like light purple velvet these days, or the Marquis made a bet that took 1,000 gold to determine whether this year’s vintage barque Wine would join the ranks of luxury goods at the gentleman’s club.

nPerhaps such information is also useful somewhere.

nHowever, it was a waste of time to stop it.

nThe maid whispered to her that the person giving her money was a reporter for a newspaper. He seems to be planning to dig up a scandal involving Marchioness Camellia.

nHowever, after watching the process closely for two months, Terry was convinced that it was a lie. The employer couldn’t be a newspaper reporter.

nTerry wanted to meet the real master. The one holding the laces of the money bag, the superior to serve, the precious noble who can’t even tie their own shoelaces, and the kind of person who controls a person’s life or death with a few fingers.

nTerry was smart.

nAnd she wanted to gamble.

nBig bets were needed for big rewards. She had a wish, and she was ready to risk her life for that wish.

nTerry backtracked the maid to reach the person who sent the gift directly from Alice.

nAnd she said she has important information that cannot be traded with something like silver coins.

nArtizea was interested in her. It’s not because she thought Terry’s information was great. This is because she was able to come to know Artizea’s existence by herself.

nOf course, her intelligence organization was still poor.

nHowever, from the top, Alice was still clumsy. That’s why she was asked to deal with small things like rumors or attires, not real information.

nBut that didn’t mean that a maid could find and dig up by herself alone.

nSo Artizea met her.

n“I heard that the lady is buying information.”

nTerry said so. Her complexion was pale, but she was full of determination.

nArtizea asked slowly.

n“What kind of great information did you come to me to sell?”

n“I want to sell my life.”

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