Chapter 140
Chapter 140: Waiting for You (3)
A robust man followed Count Raoul Joseph closely behind.
His face was hidden by a mask, and the wide robe concealed both his hair and physique.
Tap… Tap…
Raoul limped slightly as he slowly approached Marquis Branford, glancing up at him briefly before bowing his head.
“It’s been a while, Marquis Branford.”
“What brings you here? Baron Joseph.”
Marquis Branford replied casually. Raoul grinned slyly as he raised his head.
“I heard you picked up a young lion. I came to take a look at his face.”
“Not something to garner attention from the Duke’s faction.”
“A talented young man developing excellent products and receiving your support; how could I not be interested?”
Marquis Branford narrowed his eyes and clicked his tongue.
“I hope your interest doesn’t lead to trouble. Who is that masked person behind you?”
“He’s my guard knight.”
Toleo, the Knight Commander, approached the masked man and said, “Even if he’s a knight, you can’t bring an unknown person into the banquet hall. At least take off the mask for a moment.”
The man stood silently, not reacting to Toleo’s words.
“Hey! Did I not tell you to take it off at once?”
Toleo bellowed, but Marquis Branford stopped him.
“Enough. Do you think the Count would bring someone here to cause trouble? Just let it go.”
Since the host of the banquet deemed it acceptable, Toleo had no choice but to step back, biting his lip.
With that, Marquis Branford seemed to signal that their conversation was over, turning away to say no more.
He wouldn’t outright kick them out but showed they were not welcome either.
Though he wanted to throw them out immediately, he couldn’t unjustly dismiss nobles that had come to the banquet.
Raoul glanced around casually, smirking as he muttered boldly, “Hmm… Did I perhaps come to the wrong place? The atmosphere isn’t very pleasant.”
He slowly walked towards Ghislaine.
Tap… Tap… Tap…
With each tap of the cane, nobles scattered as if avoiding something dirty.
‘Getting involved wouldn’t do me any good. Don’t even make eye contact.’
‘They say he’s a cold-blooded monster. Rumor has it he’s not even human.’
Before long, the crowd naturally parted, creating a path between the count and Ghislaine.
Watching Raoul’s back, Marquis Branford tilted his head.
‘I thought he was in the South. How did he make it here on time?’
It had been hardly a week since the announcement of the banquet.
There was no way he could arrive at this hour even after hearing the news and leaving immediately.
‘He must have arrived early.’
Despite being one of the key figures in the Duke’s faction, he hadn’t received any reports about him being in the capital.
Raoul’s unexpected appearance was a far more serious issue.
‘Those bastards…’
Not only did they cover their eyes and ears, but it also meant that the Delphine faction’s influence had reached the capital.
As Marquis Branford fell into deep thought, Raoul leisurely stood before Ghislaine.
The young ladies surrounding Ghislaine had long since scrambled away in fright.
“Good to meet you. I am Count Raoul Joseph.”
Ghislaine nodded nonchalantly.
“I’m Baron Penris.”
“Upon looking into you, I found quite a few interesting stories. You’ve made quite the mark in the North, haven’t you?”
It seemed as though he was speaking from the gossip he had heard, stirring Digald up rather than from his own experience.
Ghislaine let out an open scoff at his audacity.
‘What a performance. What do you even know? You should certainly be familiar with the mess you caused.’
Raoul continued nonchalantly, “Shall we change our seats?”
“Change seats?”
“I have some close matters to discuss.”
Ghislaine contemplated for a moment before nodding. He was honestly curious about what he had to say.
The two moved to a private room nearby within the banquet hall.
Raoul smiled at Ghislaine.
He seemed to be trying to act friendly, but with his hard demeanor, it looked more like he was sneering.
“There’s no need to be so tense.”
“Do I look tense?”
Ghislaine raised one corner of his mouth slightly, staring blankly at Raoul.
Faced with that oddly creepy smile, Raoul frowned, perplexed.
“Do you know me? Your expression seems… rather happy to see me.”
“I’ve heard quite a bit about you, Count.”
Having aimed to crush the Duke’s faction in a past life, he had thoroughly investigated Raoul, his chief aide.
Despite his physical shortcomings, he had the brains to secure a place by the Duke’s side and was known for his cruelty.
‘This guy must have been behind the attack on Perdium.’
Ghislaine suppressed the boiling killing intent and exhaled deeply.
Raoul passed over this without any concern and continued speaking.
“Let’s get straight to the point. We are interested in the cosmetics you’ve created.”
“Cosmetics, you say?”
“In fact, we were also developing something similar. But upon hearing the rumors of a product with proven effects, we came to the capital to verify its efficacy. I never thought it would be effective enough to even heal diseases.”
Raoul spoke with a tone that was both admiring and slightly irritated.
In his past life, the products presented by the Delphine faction were precious, and it was only natural that he felt regretful and anxious.
“So?”
“Honestly, it was unexpected. From a territory that had nothing, the infamous rascal that is you has created something like this.”
“Well, I’ve put in a bit of study. The public’s opinion isn’t everything.”
“True enough, you have a point.”
Raoul’s gaze sharpened for a moment. He narrowed his eyes as he examined Ghislaine closely.
‘This guy has completely ruined the plans for the North.’
The preparations for Amelia’s rebellion, the plans to isolate Perdium, and the weakening of the Tower of the Bloody Flame.
Everything had been moving along smoothly.
‘Harold is meticulous and prudent. He must have mapped out most potential disruptions.’
Such a careful Harold had continuously faced failures because of this guy.
A mere prodigal son, someone he never imagined could be a nuisance on a grand scale.
Raoul hadn’t thought so either.
‘To suddenly elevate this bastard.’
Raoul clicked his tongue internally.
The Crown Prince faction was likely trying to support the Bribant territory at first.
Knowing that, Raoul weakened the Tower of the Bloody Flame and subtly swayed Bribant’s retainers to take full control of the territory.
If things proceeded as Raoul had planned, the Crown Prince faction would have been pouring water into a bottomless pit.
The plan was flawless.
That was, until this Ghislaine emerged unexpectedly.
One day, Ghislaine seemed to awaken to a sense of self-awareness, suddenly becoming prominent.
As a result, Desmond’s power was halved, and the plans for Amelia’s rebellion had to be hastily expedited.
So, upon hearing that Ghislaine was selling cosmetics, Raoul came directly to the capital.
To see for himself what kind of person he was.
Additionally, he intended to make a reasonable accounting of the previous disruptions before he could eliminate Ghislaine, but before he could do so, Ghislaine had already sided with the Crown Prince faction.
‘There’s no way he could have known it all and then joined the Crown Prince faction… He’s one lucky guy.’
For the sake of minimizing unnecessary harm, he planned to isolate the royal family and the Crown Prince faction tightly before drawing his sword.
Though the Duke’s faction wasn’t lacking in power, it was still too early for open warfare.
Even though he was the root cause of the complete ruin of their plans, he was now in a position where he couldn’t make a move against him.
No one ever expected that the ever-successful Raoul would repeatedly falter because of just one person.
‘If he were truly as much of a ruffian as they say, he wouldn’t be able to pull this off. I must have received faulty information.’
He was just clueless. Had he known such a talent existed, he would have set a different plan to absorb the North.
With Ghislaine’s existence now out in the open, he wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
‘After the situation has been laid out, it’s going to take time to rectify it. But…’
There was no way to turn back what had already been ruined. However, a talent as remarkable as this one felt too precious to just kill.
“I never expected such an excellent young man to be hiding in the North. Since we’ve met like this, I’d like to make a proposal.”
“If it’s about a cosmetics monopoly or technology sharing, I’m not interested.”
“While I am keen on cosmetics, that’s not the trivial offer I’m making now.”
“Then what is it?”
“Join the Delphine faction.”
Ghislaine laughed, covering his face with one hand at the sudden proposal.
His body itched to kill Raoul, who stood right in front of him at this very moment.
Struggling to suppress the urge, he found the ridiculousness of the proposal amusing.
Raoul, slightly narrowing his eyes at Ghislaine’s reaction, continued speaking.
“Are you feeling uneasy about the distance? We can offer you a decent territory from the South. Your father too.”
“My father as well?”
“I know Count Perdium is having a rough time fighting barbarians in a desolate area. How about moving to a good territory where you wouldn’t have to suffer like that? If you and your father became vassals of the Duke’s faction, we would provide all the support you need.”
“You’re speaking reckless words in a place filled with dangerous folks.”
Raoul smirked, raising one corner of his mouth confidently.
“Well, what’s the problem? It’s only politics. You don’t need to worry too much about other nobles’ pressuring you. I’ll take responsibility for sorting it out.”
That was quite a display of confidence. Truly, it was as if he was the chief aide of the Delphine faction.
Offering up a territory swap for one that was better was something only the Delphine faction could propose.
However, to Ghislaine, who clearly understood the value of the Forest of Monsters, it sounded like utter nonsense.
‘How elegantly you speak of wanting to take everything away and use me like a dog.’
There was no desire to seek comfort under the wing of such an unbelievable person.
Even now, he was secretly plotting throughout the kingdom.
How could one trust someone who had pulled unknown backing forces into the fray?
“I’m sorry, but I must decline. The North is a better place than you think.”
A firm rejection wrapped in soft words.
Raoul leaned back in his chair, coldly gazing at Ghislaine.
To think he dared to refuse his proposal.
Did he perhaps think the Crown Prince faction was stronger than the Delphine faction?
“You know we’re the only two here, so let’s speak frankly. The Crown Prince faction’s strength doesn’t compare to our Duke’s faction.”
“I know that.”
“…And yet, you still refuse my offer?”
“Yes. I have no interest.”
“The opportunity is only this once. If you don’t accept, you will surely regret it.”
“Well… how about you come over here instead, Count?”
With a cheeky response, Raoul let out a hollow laugh, stroking his chin a few times.
Was he clueless? Or was he just bold?
‘Tsk, to choose a death sentence despite being given an opportunity.’
