Chapter 149
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Though all sorts of commotions and incidents had occurred, House of Negro quickly regained its composure.
It was thanks to all the employees, led by Liam, who had managed the ducal house’s affairs for many long years, carrying out their duties as diligently and quietly as ever.
So Ivan, too, lived no differently than usual. The task of guarding and torturing the captured Serpent Tribe he’d left to his own ducal knights.
With winter setting in in earnest, he had a great deal of work as the lord, and in his warmly heated office he waged a paperwork battle with his aides.
Even amid the busyness, he didn’t forget to summon Count Weaver and Count Morado separately and sternly reprimand them.
Weighing the severity of the matter, for Count Weaver he settled it by raising the taxes collected from the county by an additional twenty percent.
And for Count Morado, he issued a one-year ban on Isabelle’s social activities. Along with an order barring her from entering the ducal house.
Count Morado wore a grim expression, but he accepted the punishment obediently. In his own view, too, it would be the harshest penalty for Isabelle.
Having dealt with the two matters swiftly and smoothly, Ivan looked rather refreshed. It was something that had been bothering him the whole time.
Reviewing the documents with a calm mind, Ivan, struck by a sudden curiosity, asked his aides:
“Has the jealousy of females always been so terrifying?”
He hadn’t anticipated Isabelle’s feelings, but in truth Ivan knew the way Leslie and the other maids looked at him.
Still, it was only their stares that were persistent; since they showed no particular behavior, he hadn’t paid it much mind.
Had he known that the result of that complacent attitude would cause Ruby hardship, he’d have conducted himself properly long ago.
To Ivan, who was reminiscing with a grave expression, Mael said in a voice tinged with laughter:
“You’re only realizing that now?”
“Hngh.”
“Down beneath the surface, the fights have been fierce all this while.”
“By whom?”
“By whom else. Every unmarried woman in the ducal house.”
“…So I was the only one who didn’t know.”
“Haha.”
Watching Ivan wear a grim expression, the aides each burst into laughter.
“Ah, snow’s falling. Judging by how thick the flakes are, it looks like it’ll keep coming down for a while.”
At Mael’s words, Ivan turned his head to look out the window. It was the snow announcing the true start of winter in the Negro territory.
* * *
“This can’t be, Father!”
Isabelle violently refused the Count’s words that they go back together.
“This is exactly why I warned you! How dare you run your mouth so carelessly in a place like that!”
“But…”
“Did I raise you to be a child so lacking in patience! When the wave rolls in, you step back! What were you thinking, throwing yourself right into it!”
A headache flaring up for a moment, Count Morado kneaded his temples as he continued. Having handled too many matters in a short span, he was thoroughly worn out.
“No one knows what will become of things once Chief Rosa rescues her tribe. Had you stayed quiet and held your breath until then, perhaps another chance might have come to you.”
“…That’s not true!”
Her father had clearly given up on pushing for an engagement with Ivan. That was exactly why Isabelle grew all the more desperate and could only tremble with anxiety.
“I will never leave. If I leave here now, I’ll lose the chance forever!”
“Isabelle.”
“No, Father.”
Just as the Count was silently watching his fiercely resisting daughter, a knock sounded. He gestured to Isabelle to be quiet, then said:
“Come in.”
Only after his permission was given did the door open and the head maid enter.
“It seems you won’t be able to depart today after all.”
“Why is that?”
The Count, who asked with a puzzled air, followed the head maid’s glance and turned to look out the window. The silently falling snow had already piled up enough to bury one’s knees.
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