Episode 21

Chapter 2. Do you want to do □□ with me?

When I returned to the mansion, I left the letter and novel that had been sent to me today on the table in the living room.

After changing clothes, I planned to organize them in my personal study.

“Anna. Bring me the things I received from the tea party.”

“Yes, ma’am!”

I was so busy dealing with the accompanying letter that I momentarily forgot that I had left the novel in the living room.

Anna went down and ordered the novel she had brought to be roughly placed in the study.

“Oh, right. Mr. Ollie was in the reception room earlier. He was looking for your wife.”

“Ah. I’ve been talking to Olly a lot lately because I’m paying for the special glass for the show windows that I’m airlifting from the rooftop.”

“I see. When I tried to take the book back, they asked me who had brought it in.”

“I told you I brought it, didn’t I?”

Anna nodded.

Well, it would have been okay since it was a modest cover that other people would have seen anyway.

Even if you just glance at the first episode, you’ll probably lose interest if you think it’s a law book just by looking at the subtitles.

That’s how the day ended, with Anna’s hint that Ollie had been looking closely at the book cover.

***

Today’s destination is a newly opened tea house that Valentina sent us an invitation to.

Other people from the upper class were also scheduled to come, but I decided to go early and talk to Valentina separately.

Since Valentina’s family and I have a strategic alliance, we should take the time to introduce ourselves separately.

But when I finally arrived, the tea house was quiet. Valentina wasn’t even in sight.

“Excuse me? Where is everyone?”

There was no one inside, no one outside. Anna looked around, then shook her head. Valentina had vanished, as if evaporating.

I sent Anna to the other side to look for her, and I walked around the tea house.

Soon, a canal-side street littered with fishing nets and scrap appeared. Even during the day, the inner part of the street was pitch-black.

At the same time, a commotion emanated from the area. It was strangely odd for a fisherman’s chatter.

“Get out of here! Why are you doing this!”

“If you really don’t like me, you should have just let me go. Why did you have to hit me?”

It was the voices of a young woman and a man. They were leaning against the wall, looking into the street.

‘It’s Valentina, right?’

I couldn’t have recognized her distinctive, vibrant crimson hair. A man stood in her way, grabbing her arm violently.

“Did I say something wrong? You and I are both merchants from commoner backgrounds. What difference does it make if we get married?”

“I hate you not for your status, but for your wicked character. Philip Justis! You are truly the worst!”

I hastily covered my mouth. Sir Philip, whom I thought had been expelled, was still in the estate, clinging to Valentina.

“The worst? Me? That’s what I’m going to say to you guys! Do you know how many times I’ve lost money in business because of those people?”

“If you feel wronged, don’t lose out in the bidding competition!”

“How arrogant. You said you’d turn a blind eye to any harm if I were your son-in-law! Are you saying you won’t accept this resourceful man as your husband?”

“Let go of this!”

“What? Let go of this? How dare a commoner’s daughter yell at a noble! This body is a wonder!”

It was difficult to just sit back and watch any longer.

After making my decision, I took off my heeled shoes, held them in my hand, and strode into the alley, hitting him on the head.

“evil!”

Valentina, who did not miss the moment when Philip was staggering, took off her shoes and started a counterattack.

“Who, who is it! Who am I— Eek! Viola Vetta?”

“How dare you speak the noble’s name so carelessly? You deserve to be beaten more for speaking out loud.”

“Eww! Aww! Ouch!”

You can make up excuses as you see fit.

We grabbed Philip’s shoes and hit him with our hands until his cheeks were swollen. Was this a kick or a slap?

Then, they grabbed him from both sides and handed him over to the patrolling police officers. The charges were attempted sexual harassment of a woman and retaliatory crimes.

“Thank you. I would have had a hard time if I had been alone, but thanks to you, I was able to get out safely.”

Valentina kept bowing to me and thanking me.

“On my way here, that guy suddenly appeared and dragged me away, right? I was having a hard time dealing with that angry man’s evil power alone.”

“Oh my. You should bring an escort or a maid with you!”

“I’m not even a noble, so what could I possibly do? Still, thank you very much.”

Valentina seemed ready to offer me her loyalty. She even muttered repeatedly that I was her lifesaver.

“I’ll tell Father about today’s events. Our group has benefited from Dogaresa’s grace, so we’ll definitely be there for you if anything needs to be done!”

Valentina was a quick-witted person. As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately called her father.

Even Valentina’s parents, who had come running out to the tea house despite their busy schedules, bowed their heads deeply when they saw me.

“That rascal is out of his mind and is after our precious daughter again. What would have happened if it weren’t for Dogaresa?”

“Oh my. Really… Oh my. Thank you for your concern.”

I somehow managed to win the hearts of the family of the highest ranking official in Yeongji.

They wielded considerable power throughout Vetra, or rather the entire Empire, and their influence rivaled that of any high-ranking noble.

Even just a short while ago, when I was just an ordinary writer, Young-ae, it was difficult to speak carelessly about this person.

‘They had more influence than the debt-ridden, troublesome lower-class nobles like the Starace family.’

“If there is anything in the future that you need our help with, please let us know.”

My ears perked up at the words that followed. The merchant’s uncalculated help was quite precious.

Anyway, there’s nothing wrong with becoming close with these people. With a sense of pride, I successfully attended Valentina’s original invitation to the tea house.

Thanks to that, I also heard people thanking me for taking care of everything until the end so that I wouldn’t ruin today’s schedule.

“Madam, by the way, what happened to Philip Justis?”

“Yeah. Since I’m locked up in the detention center, I’ll probably be permanently expelled from the territory soon.”

I chatted with Anna, who was sitting across from me in the carriage.

I wonder what the Emperor’s face will look like when he hears this news.

Maybe they won’t be able to bother us for a while.

I returned to the duke’s residence satisfied.

I was going up to my room to change my clothes when I ran into Ollie in the hallway.

Ollie, who had been startled by the sight of me, quickly erased his surprised expression.

“Why is that?”

“I wasn’t expecting to run into you so suddenly, so I’m surprised. Haha. Excuse me. Where… have you been?”

“I went to Miss Valentina’s tea house.”

I was just going to leave but added it.

“To the Metropolitan Police Department and the courts too.”

“Why, why are you in court?”

“That happened.”

I was just going to say something, but I decided against it because I thought it would be rude to go around harping on about Valentina’s bad behavior.

for a moment.

I have a question for you, Ollie.

“Yes, is there anything wrong with Ezekiel’s tongue?”

“Tongue… huh?”

“Have you been feeling unwell lately?”

“Uh. Uh. That’s not the case.”

“Or is there something else that’s been bothering you recently?”

“That’s… ha.”

It was a sigh filled with so much. When I narrowed my eyes, Ollie broke out in a cold sweat.

That was when.

“You’re really going too far!”

A loud male voice came from the front door. It wasn’t Ezekiel.

I quickly ran over to them, wondering if something had happened. Anna and Ollie followed suit.

Even in the midst of all this, the man’s pitiful voice continued to ring out.

“How could you do this to me, Ezekiel!”

Because of the desperate voice, I guessed that he was a person with a sad story.

With that in mind, we finally arrived at the main gate and were frozen by the sight before us.

“……husband?”

Ezekiel was aiming his sword at a man with bloodshot eyes.

A man who was about to have a knife put to his neck swore.

“Why are you pointing a knife at my family! You ungrateful brat!”

family?

Come to think of it, my husband and the man had the same black hair.

But the hatred in Ezekiel’s eyes as he looked at him was so overwhelming that even I, watching, broke out in a cold sweat.

‘What, what’s going on here?’