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Chapter 51
Eric’s voice even reached Roze.
Despite being divorced, Eric’s attitude of calling Roze “my woman” struck her as ridiculous.
Feeling bewildered, Roze opened her mouth to say something to Eric, but the Grand Duke was quicker.
“You’re barking up the wrong tree. Your woman isn’t here. Isn’t she anxiously waiting for you back there?”
Duke Artheum firmly drew a line at Eric’s words and added one more remark:
“Leaving your bride alone on a day like this… you’re truly hopeless.”
The Duke gave Eric a couple of taps on the shoulder and let out a cold smile.
Roze glanced at Beliar, visible behind Eric. He had a stiff expression, staring piercingly at her.
For some reason, she felt guilty toward this woman, Beliar. She had only intended to tease Doana, but now it seemed she had inadvertently involved the innocent Beliar as well.
“I really need to go now.”
The ceremony was about to start, and Roze decided it was time to leave.
“That’s true. Nothing’s changed—you’ve always been bad with women.”
Roze agreed with Duke Artheum and gently tugged his hand.
“Try to make your second marriage work.”
Roze sized up Eric from head to toe and raised one corner of her mouth.
“And don’t get dumped again.”
“…What?”
Eric was stunned by Roze’s unexpected words. He had assumed she’d cling to him, crying and begging, but she was behaving so confidently.
And dumped? Me?
“Who’s calling whom dumped?!”
He shouted in protest, but Roze and the Duke had already walked ahead.
Escorted by the Duke, Roze moved gracefully.
As she passed through the bustling crowd and was about to leave the temple completely, she caught sight of a familiar dress at the corner.
It was Doana, crouched and lowering her head.
Apparently, she had fled to a secluded spot to avoid the people mocking her.
“Hmm, should I just ignore her and pass by?”
Roze, trailing slowly behind Doana, finally stopped and deliberately spoke words of greeting that didn’t need to be said.
“Oh my, Doana. So you’re here. I thought you’d leave without saying hello.”
Hearing Roze’s gentle voice, Doana flinched without realizing it.
“Just ignore her…!”
Doana pretended not to hear, saying nothing. Her face must have been a complete mess from crying. Indeed, her eyes were smudged with mascara, like panda eyes.
“Oh, don’t worry about not being a countess. Don’t be too upset—just forget it. What can you do? Blame your ill-fated life as a maid.”
Roze deliberately chose words that would irritate Doana and smiled sweetly.
“Oh, and I think you should leave the gauze on. People said your scar looks disgusting.”
“…!”
Doana, who had not responded until now, finally reacted. She widened her eyes and turned around.
“You… you…!”
Doana, pointing at Roze with a gaze full of venom, wanted to rush at her but had to lower her hand timidly.
“Damn it…!”
Beside Roze was Duke Artheum, glaring at her with a chillingly cold stare.
Doana turned her head sharply and stepped aside.
Roze watched Doana’s back before continuing on her way.
Her steps leaving the temple were light. Watching Doana suffer—just as Roze had, if not worse—gave her a thrill.
“This feels… strange.”
For someone who had never spoken harshly to others, today’s events were a huge deviation from her usual self.
Clutching her pounding heart, Roze boarded the carriage and gazed silently out the window. Her raised corner of the mouth didn’t drop.
She felt good.
The Duke, seeing Roze’s wide smile, thought:
“Good thing I came.”
He didn’t like Eric flirting with Roze, but seeing her so happy made him feel good.
“Shall we head to the bank now?”
“Yes, let’s.”
Roze answered the Duke with a bright smile.
What she had said surely left a deep wound for Doana. Yet, she felt neither regret nor guilt.
Even if people threw stones at her for being cruel, Roze’s mind remained unchanged.
The saying that forgiveness is the best revenge was nonsense. Especially for someone like Doana, who never reflected on her own faults.
Not even for a single day had Roze wished for your happiness. So, never be happy, Gyeoru.
“1, 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000, 100,000, 1,000,000…”
Roze’s hand, holding a palm-sized piece of paper, trembled visibly.
She muttered in disbelief as she looked at the amount written on it.
“…Oh my.”
Was she dreaming?
Ten billion… ten billion!
She had anticipated receiving such a large sum, but seeing it with her own eyes was overwhelming.
She murmured repeatedly, almost in a daze.
“With this money, just leaving it in the bank would earn me about twenty million a month in interest.”
In Korea, working tirelessly and saving for a year wouldn’t even yield 150,000 won in interest.
“…Only 2,500 won per month.”
But now, just breathing would accumulate twenty million in interest.
This was why wealth generated more wealth.
“Having capital really does make a difference.”
The Duke quietly chuckled at Roze, staring wide-eyed at the paper.
“Now I just need to run the business well.”
Roze snapped back to reality at the Duke’s voice.
“…Ah, yes. That’s right.”
“I’m strict when it comes to money. If you even think of pocketing my money, you better stop immediately.”
Roze shivered under the Duke’s predatory gaze. She had no intention of stealing, but if the business failed and she couldn’t repay… gulp.
“I’d be dead if anything happened to the Duke.”
Swallowing dryly, she said awkwardly, “O-of course, trust me!”
The Duke found her flustered state amusing.
“Even if you try to run away, catching you wouldn’t be a problem anyway.”
The cold tone made Roze’s face darken. Watching her expressions shift constantly was fascinating. But if he pushed further, tears might fall from her big eyes.
The Duke leaned forward, resting his chin on his arms.
“I’ll be by your side while you run the business.”
Although he meant to help, Roze perceived it as surveillance.
“He’s planning to watch me closely, isn’t he?”
After all, lending her ten billion Les without collateral warranted that caution.
Roze nodded stiffly at the Duke.
“Shall we check the department store site, or select the brand first?”
“Well… I’ve been thinking,” Roze began cautiously, “I actually scouted someone to lead the department store business. So I think it’d be better to work with them on this.”
The Duke’s calm face hardened.
Working with someone else?
Although the Duke had helped Roze, it was mainly out of necessity—he was busy managing his own territory. He couldn’t let ten billion go to waste.
Hearing that she wanted to work with someone else made him feel strange.
“I truly appreciate the Duke, but I don’t want to take up your time,” Roze said politely, worried he might feel offended.
“Who is this person?” The Duke asked, hiding his discomfort. He wasn’t insulted, but felt a strange stirring inside.
“He’s an expert in accounting and management. Really impressive.” Roze smiled, thinking of her butler Gwen, praising him at length.
However, the Duke didn’t hear a word of it.
“Impressive… is this man going to be working with her?”
Suddenly, he felt his nerves tense.
“I’m quite an expert in management too,” he said, confidently referencing his rule in the northern territories. Under him, life had improved greatly for the people there.
Roze smiled awkwardly at his words.
“…But the northern region runs a deficit every year, doesn’t it?” she asked bluntly.
The Duke was momentarily lost for words, then replied defensively:
“That’s true, but the budget isn’t insufficient.”
“I understand that you cover the shortfall with your own money,” Roze said, hitting a nerve.
The northern lands were barren before Duke Artheum came to power. The poorest people in the empire lived there, having been pushed out by high living costs elsewhere.
He had transformed the northern lands into a habitable region. Self-sufficiency was still far off, but at least no one starved—thanks to the Duke buying and distributing grain at his own expense.
“If the Duke wants to be involved… but to maximize profit, working with Gwen is best.”
Roze had no idea about the Duke’s inner thoughts, only assuming he was just ambitious.
It was more stable to let Gwen take the CFO role than the Duke. Roze was not doing a charitable project. Even though the Duke helped, it didn’t justify giving him the role when a capable person existed.
She was someone who knew how to separate business from personal feelings.
“So working with him will surely reduce the chances of the department store running a deficit,” she said, drawing a clear line.
The Duke’s mind felt conflicted but he remained composed.
“He seems quite capable?” he asked.
“People say he can revive a collapsing family at once,” Roze replied.
“Then will he also handle brand selection? That won’t be easy for a man.”
The Duke tried to subtly probe the gender of the person.
“He is a man,” Roze confirmed.
As expected, it was a man.
