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Chapter 46
Kiera smiled brightly, her face glittering even more with vanity.
Baron Aros had to stop himself from biting his tongue.
He knew there were already Aithes people working their schemes in the East.
Land prices were skyrocketing by the day. And this woman thought every bit of it was thanks to her own accomplishments.
She needs a good, hard fall to learn her lesson.
Still, if the eastern ventures really could bring back the money Katieron had lost, that would be a good thing in itself.
“I’m always cheering for you in my heart, Duchess.”
“So, you finally acknowledge me! Tsk, you should have been the one running the bank. How can you call it being a proxy when spending a single coin is such a struggle?”
Kiera’s grumbling poured out. If Baron Aros had been Count Zeck in that moment, he might have already died of a stress-induced ulcer.
Baron Aros forced a slightly awkward smile.
Not that Kiera, lost in her own self-importance, noticed.
A blind fool if ever there was one.
He could see now why Hider had said deceiving Kiera was no difficult task.
Even the matters that Count Zeck and Viscount Nathan were struggling so hard to push forward would probably proceed without much trouble.
And when she found out one day, she’d surely say: How could I not fall for it when they were dead set on scamming me?
The thought made Baron Aros shudder, as if he’d become some grand villain.
“You’re right, Duchess. Hahaha… Count Zeck can be a little… well, rigid, shall we say.”
“You really do know how to talk! Tsk, what a waste you are. You truly should have been the one running the bank.”
“But I don’t know the first thing about banking. If you put me in charge, I could ruin it within a month.”
“Really? Well, I suppose that’s true. They say Count Zeck’s a genius when it comes to growing money.”
The Duchess Kiera cackled. Clearly, she was already dreaming of wasting the funds Count Zeck had worked so hard to amass.
“So, about the merchant guild matter…”
“Yes, the price we discussed before—I’d be happy to hand it over. In fact, if you take it, I’m sure my late father would be pleased.”
Kiera spoke with the certainty that Tybern was dead.
Seeing that beaming face gave him a chill.
Some people prayed with all their heart for Tybern’s safe return, and some—like her—hoped for the opposite.
Her face seemed all the more grotesque for it.
“When my son inherits the duchy—no, that’s not right.”
She smiled sweetly. She was already acting as if the Katieron Duchy had fallen into Carte’s hands.
“When Herden returns, I’ll tell him how highly I think of you. Herden tends to listen to me, you know!”
No one knew better than the household retainers that this was far from true. But there was no need to risk provoking her at the moment.
“Yes, so I’ve heard. They say the Duke has deep affection for you…”
“That’s right, that’s right! In any case, thanks to you, I can prepare a lavish gift for Her Majesty the Empress!”
Kiera burst into another round of cackles. Watching her mouth gape like a cave, Baron Aros stifled a sigh.
From there, everything went smoothly. With Aros flattering her and money flowing into her hands, Kiera’s mood soared without limit.
Kiera got her money, and Baron Aros—or rather, Hider—got the merchant guild. For now, it was a win–win deal.
Kiera dressed herself up in high spirits.
In truth, selling off the Katieron Merchant Guild wasn’t an easy feat. Wealthy investors were eager to put their money into the East, but very few actually wanted to acquire a guild.
Katieron’s guild was nothing more than a small operation that dealt solely with goods produced within Katieron territory.
No one had any reason to buy such a guild—especially at the inflated price she’d demanded. But Baron Aros had paid it in full.
“Heh-heh-heh-heh… what an idiot. And Father claimed he was a good judge of people?”
Kiera chuckled as she checked over the transaction papers.
“With this much, I’ll certainly be able to please Her Majesty the Empress.”
She licked her lips. Tonight, she was to dine at the Imperial Palace—a meeting to formally discuss the betrothal between Carte and Princess Ciela.
Not only Carte but Sornia as well were to attend. The Empress inviting Sornia too meant she was in an exceptionally good mood. Very few families could claim such an honor with the notoriously difficult Empress.
If they could set a date for Carte and Princess Ciela’s engagement tonight, everything would be perfect.
“Father won’t be able to rest in his grave from sheer envy.”
He had looked down on Kiera and the children for so long.
“Herden won’t be able to ignore me anymore, either.”
Her happy fantasies only grew.
“But there’s no time to waste.”
She already had plans for how to spend the money. Everything in life, after all, was built on wealth.
For the sake of tonight’s marriage talks, she intended to present the Empress with gold bars. The emerald mine had gone to the Emperor, so she meant to soothe the Empress’s temper as well.
The diamond set I gave her for her birthday was a little underwhelming.
Kiera pouted, then rang the bell. A group of maids hurried in at once.
“Take off this face pack and hurry with the massage! I have to go out. And Sornia and Carte—are they getting ready?”
They were currently undergoing a review of imperial etiquette from an etiquette tutor Kiera had urgently brought in.
“Of course, there shouldn’t be any problems. They’ve always done well enough.”
“Well… Duchess…”
A young maid, shoved forward by the others, bowed her head, trembling.
“What is it?”
“Madam Teus became very angry and left.”
“What?”
Kiera moved so suddenly that the packs on her face tumbled to the floor. The maids caught them quickly in their hands.
“What about her pay?”
“She left all her wages behind. And she said…”
The maid squeezed her eyes shut, shivering.
“She said she’d never seen such unruly children, and she didn’t want to leave the stain on her reputation of having taught them…”
“She’s lost her mind!”
Kiera shrieked. Her face flushed red as she shot to her feet, looking as though she might rip Madam Teus to shreds if she’d been standing there.
“That crazy woman said that to my children? Husband dead and scrabbling to survive, and we lift her up in society—she gets a swelled head and dares to talk like that?”
Her voice was sharp and cutting. The children had always received the highest-quality education at the Katieron Duchy.
“What on earth happened for her to spout such nonsense?”
“Well… Young Lady Sornia threw a tomato she’d been eating at Madam Teus, saying she didn’t want to take the lesson… and Young Master Carte told her that if she wanted to teach him, she should crawl on the floor first…”
Kiera clenched her teeth. She knew her children’s temperaments well enough—they had the blood of Katieron and Aithes in them.
Their status was second only to royalty. And Kiera believed that with high birth came many rights.
Her children were to enjoy privileges second only to royals. They must never kneel to anyone—and must know how to make others kneel.
“Children will be children! And she dares call herself a teacher when she can’t even handle that?”
The maids all lowered their heads quickly, fearful of attracting her ire. Kiera fumed.
“Duchess… the massage…”
“Forget it! Where are the children now? Bring them here immediately. If they go to the Empress’s banquet in a bad mood and make a mistake, what then?”
Her voice rang out, and the maids scattered at once. No one in this place seemed able to do their jobs properly.
“Honestly… everything has to pass through my hands.”
Kiera let out a long, weary sigh.
