That massive counterweight wasn’t Ragon.
“Ugh, ughk...”
It wasn’t a dangerous situation, but still, I felt relieved.
Breathing out in relief, I looked ahead and saw the adults running toward us.
The person at the very front was my grandfather.
His face, which was never gentle to begin with, had now become so fierce that his expression alone could easily kill someone.
“Take those filthy hands away.”
Crack.
“Ah! Ugh, ughk!”
There was a sound of breaking as the servant’s arm was twisted.
Because he was being crushed, he couldn’t even scream properly.
‘Serves him right.’
“Erilot!”
“Abino!”
My father and Prince Belen, who were with my grandfather, hurriedly ran toward us.
Prince Belen pulled the limp Abino into his arms.
My father didn’t even glance at Abino; he was too busy checking on me.
His large hands carefully examined my body.
With a worried expression, my father asked,
“What happened?”
“That servant gave Hypnotics to Lord Abino. When I caught them, they tried to kidnap Lord Abino and escape!”
Prince Belen’s face stiffened at my words.
‘Wow.’
Though his features were sharp, I take back saying he looked kind.
Turns out, he had an incredibly terrifying face.
I stood before the conference table.
The second generation of the Astras, retainers, and people from Aligiosa were all lined up along the long table.
Countless eyes were all fixed on me.
I calmly explained the situation.
“What felt strange was since we were playing together in the garden during the day.”
Wait, since then?
I felt the astonished gazes.
The second generation probably only heard their children whining that Abino didn’t pay them any attention, so they seemed even more surprised.
“What exactly felt strange?”
“My steel raven monster, Ragon, was seen by Lord Abino. He said he also raised an eagle, but it disappeared. He liked it very much because it was cool, but he was sad that it disappeared.”
Prince Belen’s face hardened at my words.
It was certain.
The eagle disappeared during the civil war.
“So when I asked in detail, he said he didn’t remember. Then he held his head and sat down. His headache looked very severe.”
“If it’s Lord Abino’s eagle, it’s the one that disappeared during the civil war...”
Sure enough, someone from Aligiosa mentioned the civil war.
“Just as I thought. At first, I thought the trauma from the civil war was causing the headaches. That’s what I read in a book! But—”
I frowned and continued.
“The servant’s eyes glittered strangely when I was talking about the eagle and the prince. Even though Lord Abino was in pain, the servant didn’t look worried at all and was just rushing to take him to his room. Somehow, I had a bad feeling.”
“Hmm.”
“But luckily, Lord Abino’s condition improved at dinner, so I thought it was a relief, but after the dinner, the servant urged Lord Abino to take medicine. But his reaction was strange.”
“Strange?”
“Usually, if the medicine cures the pain, there’s no need to avoid it, right?”
“That’s right.”
“If someone avoids it, it’s because the medicine is bitter or unpleasant.”
“Correct.”
Everyone nodded at my logical explanation.
“But Lord Abino said if he took it, his head would feel foggy and dazed, so he didn’t like it.”
“Really strange.”
The adults nodded.
They were almost like an audience enjoying my talk show.
“So I thought more about the headache from earlier, and I recalled something I read before in a book. It said that if hypnotics are taken for a long time, such symptoms can occur.”
“Oh, such a difficult book for a young child to read.”
Someone’s admiration made my father twitch the corner of his mouth.
‘Oh dear.’
Dad, please restrain yourself.
When I looked at him like that, he immediately put on a serious expression again.
“So I went to the room just in case...”
I trailed off, pretending to worry like a child while glancing at my grandfather.
“That’s right. If you have any questions, ask.”
The adults clicked their tongues.
“A truly clever young lady.”
“She’s only ten years old, right? So thoughtful and quick in judging the situation. Amazing.”
All the adults only said compliments.
Well, it was hard to say anything bad here.
Even if I said, “I just went to see Lord Abino because I missed him!” without any basis, they would still praise me.
But since I gave perfectly fitting evidence, it was as if I laid out the perfect stage for praise.
“A child so considerate.”
“It’s not easy to guess all that, is it? And it’s admirable that she acted right away.”
Everyone praised me while cautiously glancing at Prince Belen’s face.
Since Prince Belen was famously very fond of Prince Abino, the shock he must have felt was huge.
Belen sighed and covered his mouth with both hands.
His otherwise handsome bronze skin had turned pale.
He looked extremely shocked.
‘That makes sense.’
If someone had been a longtime servant by the son’s side, they must have passed Prince Belen’s strict scrutiny.
To think that the person he trusted with his precious son was actually feeding him hypnotics, a villain.
If this had not been revealed this time, no one could say when it would have come to light.
How long can hypnotics be taken at maximum for a child?
If the servant had been giving it since recovering Abino, it would mean nearly a year of hypnotics.
‘How much burden it must have been on that child’s body.’
People quietly looked away as Prince Belen’s eyes grew moist.
‘Still, it’s a relief. Such a beloved only son, at least it was revealed before it got any worse.’
I’m weak against a father worrying about his child.
Because it reminded me of my dad.
I sighed inwardly.
Prince Belen got up from his seat and came over to me.
He met my eyes and thanked me.
“Truly... thank you.”
“I’m so glad Lord Abino is safe!”
“You must have been scared, too. How could you, so small, help Lord Abino?”
Prince Belen looked at me with eyes full of admiration and gratitude.
I giggled and looked at my father.
“Dad, um, my father says that my being healthy is the happiest thing in the world.”
“......”
“Lord Abino must be healthy for Prince Belen to be happy. «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» I learned from Marquis Debussy that the role of a host is to make their precious guest happy.”
“......”
“Because I’m my grandfather’s granddaughter, I worked hard!”
Beyond my dad, I glanced at Marquis Debussy, and finally at my grandfather.
‘A nice relay of flattery.’
I chuckled silently.
The retainers’ expressions looked familiar.
‘That expression is like when our domain managers look at me.’
In their moist, wide eyes was full of emotion and affection.
I glanced at my grandfather.
The smiling grandfather flinched at my gaze and forced a slight smile again.
‘He seems to be in a good mood.’
And my dad...
When I looked at him, I flinched.
‘There’s nothing to be so moved about.’
His clenched fists were trembling.
If no one was around, he looked like he’d smash something from the intensity of his feelings.
The gazes of the Aligiosa people never left me.
“A truly remarkable young lady...”
The people of Aligiosa, who were already moved by my words, looked even more touched.
Their eyebrows drooped so much they seemed like they’d burst into tears if poked.
‘Wait, someone’s already dabbing tears with a handkerchief?’
That person would definitely cry rivers if shown a melodramatic movie.
They praised me for a long while, then expanded their praise to the Astras.
“We were only swayed by rumors about the Astras and failed to see their beautiful essence.”
“I understand why Prince Belen insisted on dealing with the Astras.”
“How can we ever repay such a favor...”
I shyly stroked my cheek thinking.
How to repay?
There are many ways.
‘Give me some white jade for a cheap price!’
And preferably negotiate with my dad.
Don’t forget today’s contribution.
Thump.
Thump, thump.
It sounded like a heavy noise from somewhere.
The sound of new hospitals being built soon in our domain.
Erilot finally left the conference hall to try to sleep.
Prince Belen looked down at his son in his arms.
He should have sent him back to the room to sleep, but he couldn’t let go.
He covered Abino with his jacket and watched him sleep peacefully.
Seeing his still baby-faced features, tears welled up uncontrollably.
He was already a son he failed to protect once.
‘Because of this incompetent Abino, you...’
This time too, he almost lost him.
If Erilot hadn’t caught the kidnapper, where would Abino have ended up?
If Erilot hadn’t noticed Abino taking hypnotics, would Abino have grown up healthy?
Recalling Abino collapsed on the floor in Erilot’s arms made his heart drop as if it fell to the ground.
Nothing could hurt more than this, not even a stopped heart.
“...Abino.”
Belen called his son’s name in a wet voice.
Everyone silently sympathized with the grief of a father who almost lost his son.
But even in such situations, there is always one clueless guy.
That was Balderic.
Joffrey’s father.
While everyone was quietly waiting, Balderic spoke up.
“Heh heh. I’m glad it ended well. Now, shall we discuss the white jade?”
Snap!
People gasped and glared at Balderic, but Belen swallowed his sadness and nodded.
“Very well.”
When the prince leading the group said so, the Aligiosa people could hardly say anything.
The conference hall transformed into a place for negotiation.
“Well, then...”
Balderic’s eyes were bloodshot, eager to close the deal.
It had been years since Erilot caused the loss of half the domain, a prime territory, and serious financial damage.
Since then, Daymond expanded the domain vigorously, so Balderic’s position was shrinking.
So he had to make this deal successfully to gain credit.
Greed gleamed slickly in Balderic’s eyes.
“Well, we’re not asking for too much.”
Pretending to be skilled and fluent in negotiation, Balderic began a long preamble before getting to the point.
“If you guarantee 700 white jades over 10 carats each annually, we can offer a price higher than market value!”
“Seven hundred?”
The Aligiosa man showed reluctance.
“I believe I mentioned it’s hard even to supply 500...”
At the earlier drinking party, the Aligiosa people frankly said that supplying 500 white jades was difficult.
But 700?
‘Can this happen?’
‘If we push too hard, the deal might collapse...’
The other second generation didn’t dare to criticize Balderic, who was on their side, but looked worriedly at Duke Astra.
Duke Astra held back his anger and stayed silent.
It was pathetic to see them always coming to him first when there was trouble.
Prince Belen, who had been silent, spoke up.
“I will make a better offer than that.”
“A better offer? Maybe 800 white jades?”
Balderic eagerly responded, making a fuss.
But Prince Belen didn’t look at Balderic and spoke instead.
His gaze was fixed on Duke Astra.
And then.
“Astra will become the continent’s distribution center for white jade.”
Everyone—from Aligiosa people to Astras—gasped.
“...!”
“...!”
“...!”
What?!
Silent shouts filled the conference hall.
Aligiosa is a powerful nation responsible for 90% of the world’s white jade supply, controlling the global volume.
And they asked Astra to be the distribution hub on the continent?
That meant Astra would monopolize all white jade transactions on this continent.
“Wow, Your Highness! That is...!”
“Let’s discuss a little more first...!”
“We haven’t even gone to the capital yet!”
The most panicked were the Aligiosa people.
The Astras almost fell over at the dazzling offer but couldn’t refuse since it was all profit.
Bang!
Balderic slammed his fist on the table and stood up abruptly.
Greed dripped from his face, and joy filled his eyes.
“Of course─!”
For that brief moment, Balderic dreamed a blissful dream.
The most active person in this white jade negotiation was Balderic Astra himself.
‘So naturally, the credit must go to me─!’
At that moment, Prince Belen’s firm voice cut through Balderic’s imagination.
“However.”
Belen looked at Duke Astra and then turned his gaze to Daymond.
Duke Astra already seemed to anticipate it, smirking.
“The overall person responsible for this deal must be Daymond Astra.”