---

[Year 257 of the Empire.]

[The great pirate Hooper of Tangmar was defeated after a combined effort by the navy and fishermen led by Boris Wolfbert.]

The Empire’s history records the Tangmar naval battle as follows.

Among the stories, let’s look at Boris Wolfbert’s…

[Boris Wolfbert terrified the pirates with a voice like thunder. He boarded the pirate ship unarmed and beat the pirate leader to death with his bare fists.]

Though slightly exaggerated, Boris was a man revered by the fishermen of Tangmar for his superior physical abilities.

The Empire tried to grant him a title for his merits in the Tangmar naval battle, but Boris refused. Having lived his entire life as a fisherman, he had no desire for power.

Ultimately, the Empire honored Boris by granting him an honorary noble title and recording his name in history.

Later, Gale Wolfbert, Helga’s father, received an official title, and a tomb for Boris and other ancestors was built on Tangmar’s island.

This marked the beginning of the Wolfbert Family’s ancestral island.

However, strictly speaking, Tangmar is not the Wolfbert Family’s territory but the Empire’s land.

Tangmar holds no value as a territory. It’s a cluster of large and small islands, infamous for pirates due to its geographical features.

Though piracy decreased after the Tangmar naval battle, occasional pirates still appear, and the land, consisting of rocks and sand, is unsuitable for farming, making it useless as a territory.

Moreover, even the Wolfbert Family, Tangmar’s heroes, live far from the territory, leaving its defense to the Empire’s navy.

For these complex reasons, the Empire has always held ownership of Tangmar.

Instead, the Empire allowed the Wolfbert Family to use nearby islands as ancestral land.

Knowing this, I proposed to Arthur.

Let’s not just buy the hotel site but the entire Tangmar region.

With the Ruelberta Family’s wealth and Arthur’s connections reaching the Imperial Family, it was entirely possible.

Arthur nodded at my proposal.

But he had one question.

– I understand, but what do you plan to do with these deserted islands?

– …I heard the hotel in Tangmar offers a view of the sea and islands.

– Hmm? That’s true.

– Wouldn’t it be better if everything in sight belonged to the Ruelberta Family?

– Hmm…

– There’s nothing more unpleasant than coveting someone else’s property.

Though the horizon wasn’t visible…

As I spoke, my ‘greed’ stirred within.

In truth, spending such a fortune on Tangmar was solely to change Helga’s future.

Today, under Gale’s orders, the Wolfbert Family’s retainers desecrate Helga’s mother’s tomb.

Later, upon learning this, Helga, consumed by rage, kills her father, Gale Wolfbert.

Helga, like Tristan, is doomed to kill her father with her own hands, cursed by fate.

Gale’s assassination causes a major uproar in the Imperial Family.

Tristan, hiding Helga’s assassination, is suspected of being behind it, worsening relations with the Imperial Family.

Thus, today marks the beginning of all misfortunes.

I prevented misfortune. With money.

“Count…”

Helga, unaware of the future awaiting her, was too stunned to continue.

Gibson shouted.

“The Count’s island? That’s absurd…! This is clearly the Empire’s land!”

“True. Until I bought it recently.”

“Frankly, it’s unbelievable! The Empire knew this was the Wolfbert Family’s ancestral land. They wouldn’t sell it, would they?”

“Hmm. They initially refused, citing that reason.”

“Y-yes! So-.”

“So I tripled the price.”

“…What?”

I slowly nodded.

“I considered going up to ten times, but it wasn’t necessary. Selling a useless scenic land for three times its value wasn’t a bad deal for the Empire. I hope my money helps the Empire’s struggling finances.”

“So you really own this place…”

At this point, Gibson realized I was telling the truth.

His face turned pale, then blue.

I decided to give him a chance.

“If you’re unhappy that this is my island, why doesn’t the Wolfbert Family buy it back from me?”

“?! Really? You’d sell it?”

“Of course. I’d gladly sell it. For ten times the market price.”

“T-ten times?!”

I tilted my head at the shocked Gibson.

“Why are you surprised? I can’t sell it for the same price I bought it.”

“That’s true, but ten times is too much. That’s an outrageous price-.”

“Outrageous?”

“…!”

I glared at Gibson with ‘wrath.’

My ‘wrath,’ capable of crushing hearts, was directed at Gibson and the Wolfbert Family’s retainers.

“Do you think I’m a charity?”

“N-no, that’s not what I meant…”

“Then do I look like Santa Claus to you?”

“Santa? Who’s that?”

“Shut up.”

“…!”

Overwhelmed by my wrath, they froze.

Only Gibson, the leader, managed to respond, but barely.

“Count, please calm down…”

Helga, who had been watching, finally spoke.

She had been consumed by rage upon seeing her mother’s tomb desecrated but had now returned to her usual self.

I heeded her words and calmed my wrath.

Then, I spoke to Gibson, who was finally catching his breath.

“If you don’t plan to buy the island, remove all the tombs except this one.”

“Count… I’m truly sorry, but we’re just retainers of the Wolfbert Family. We can’t act without the head’s permission. Could you give us some time to report to the head and get back to you?”

“That’s not a problem.”

“Thank you…! We’ll get back to you as soon as possible.”

“Good. I won’t remove the tombs without notice like someone else.”

“W-we’ll keep that in mind.”

Gibson couldn’t look me in the eye after my sarcastic remark.

Facing Helga, the tomb owner’s daughter, must have been particularly embarrassing.

The Wolfbert Family’s retainers hurriedly carried the unconscious man to the boat.

Watching them, I spoke.

“Helga.”

“Ah! Yes?”

“Follow them and make sure they don’t cause any trouble until they leave the island.”

“Ah, okay.”

I stood there, watching Helga’s retreating figure.

While protecting her mother’s tomb was good, her emotions seemed complicated.

She must have realized her father, Gale, ordered the tomb’s removal.

Once Helga was far enough, I stood before the desecrated tomb.

[Wild May]

[Resting eternally on this island]

Was the tombstone inscription decided by Gale?

The thought of the stoic Gale choosing such an inscription gave me goosebumps.

In their haste, the Wolfbert retainers left their shovels.

As I moved to remove the shovel stuck in the ground, something touched its tip.

“……”

Scraping it with the shovel, a dirt-covered wooden coffin was revealed.

Unfortunately, the men had damaged the coffin while digging.

Though unintentional, I could see inside through the cracked coffin.

But…

“…What?”

The coffin was empty.

*

“Got hit hard…”

Patrick Wolfbert unconsciously rubbed his temples upon hearing Gibson’s report.

“That man’s thoughts are beyond comprehension. He bought all those islands? Is that something a sane person would do?”

“Exactly. He’s a complete lunatic… Only a madman would think of buying land with another family’s tombs.”

“Tsk. True. He’s definitely crazy.”

Patrick clicked his tongue quietly.

Gibson also shook his head, perhaps reminded of his encounter with Tristan.

“He was impossible to reason with. The madness emanating from him was beyond human comprehension.”

“Listening to you, I actually want to meet him. Hehe…”

“H-Hildegarde.”

The beautiful noblewoman, Hildegarde, had spoken to Gibson.

She covered her mouth with a fan and laughed.

“Count Ruelberta has been a hot topic in social circles lately. They say he’s become quite the figure after losing weight.”

“Mother… You should consider your age.”

“My, my. Patrick. Look at this smooth skin. Who would think I’m your mother? They’d surely mistake me for your sister.”

“Certainly, you look young, but not quite a sister.”

“Hmph… This is why sons are useless, no matter how well you raise them.”

“Ah… Let’s not talk about this…”

Patrick sighed and spoke to Gibson.

“For now, stop moving that woman’s tomb. If the island truly belongs to the Count, we can’t touch it.”

“Understood. Then I’ll report to Gale-”

“No. I’ll tell Father. You must be tired from the trip. Go home and rest.”

“Huh? Ah, yes… Thank you.”

Gibson bowed deeply and left.

As the door closed, Hildegarde spoke.

“This will disrupt our plans.”

“Tsk… Indeed. Damn his luck.”

How he found out is beyond me, but it’s infuriating.

Patrick’s half-sister, Helga.

The family’s disgrace, she’s started gaining favor with the Ruelberta Family and has become quite bold.

Daring to humiliate our retainers like that…

“Gale still thinks of her as his daughter.”

“Hah. That’s ridiculous. Why would that half-breed be my sister?”

Helga, the Wolfbert Family’s only blemish, an illegitimate child. Taken in, only to abandon the Wolfbert Family and become a Ruelberta Family’s bodyguard.

Patrick couldn’t understand why his father, Gale, refused to disown her.

Hildegarde felt the same.

“True. That child was never one of us. We’ve tolerated her because of Gale, but it’s time to erase her existence. But… removing the tomb without Gale’s knowledge has become difficult. Who would’ve thought the Ruelberta Family would intervene like this…”

Tristan keeps blocking my path.

Is this really a coincidence?

The timing is too perfect to be a coincidence.

“Should I meet the Count myself?”

“No. Mother, stay put. I’ll meet the Count as the acting head.”

With Gale busy, Patrick had to act as the Wolfbert Family’s head.

Moreover, there was unfinished business with the Count.

A matter to be settled man to man.

Reading Patrick’s expression, Hildegarde spoke with concern.

“…Tsk. Thinking of women again? This is why I can’t live. The men in this family are all the same…”

“Haha. Don’t worry. Unlike Father, I only have eyes for one woman.”

Patrick Wolfbert didn’t hide his ambition.

“So, just wait a little longer. You’ll have the most beautiful woman in the country as your daughter-in-law.”

 

---