Chapter 149

Chapter 149:  The Black Lion War (1)

I got into the elevator side by side with Freya.

Behind us, her secretary and Yuria, who were our respective aides, followed together.

When we descended back to the first floor, the familiar, antique staircase came into view.

Descending it, I found three beautiful women arriving in the lobby.

They were the Empire’s most powerful ladies, each with a distinct and commanding presence.

“Roger, were you upstairs?”

“I came all the way here, and you didn’t even come out to greet me? I’m a little hurt.”

“Truly. Is this how you treat the next bishop?”

The Grand Duke’s daughter of the North, Echina Luton.

The Western Grand Duke’s daughter, Helena Yekaterina.

The Saint, Istina.

“Oh…”

They greeted me with the composed smiles unique to those of high rank.

But soon, they froze when they saw the beautiful silver-haired eldest daughter standing beside me.

“Freya, why are you coming out from there…?”

Among them, Echina in particular stared coldly at her own older sister.

“…”

The eldest daughter swept her gaze over the three women waiting for me with a frosty expression.

Then, after glancing at me, she spoke with the same careful eyes that resembled the Grand Duke of the North’s.

“I thought you were just a hot-headed twenty-year-old, trying to face Eric on your own… but your connections are quite impressive, aren’t they?”

A northern saint was already something to expect, but to have drawn in the Western Grand Duke’s daughter as well…

Though she showed no outward reaction, the eldest daughter let out a faint, incredulous laugh.

“I’ve always been blessed with good people around me.”

Scratching the back of my head awkwardly, I laughed it off humbly.

Then, descending with easy grace like I did during my days as a secretary, I greeted her politely.

“I was merely having a brief discussion in her office to offer the eldest daughter a business proposal.”

“Business?”

Freya focused on her younger sister, who frowned in displeasure.

Had this girl ever shown such visible emotion before?

Unlike before, the second daughter now seemed to have gained a trace of humanity, which piqued my curiosity.

“Yes, a very important ‘business.’ Isn’t that right, Roger?”

“That’s right.”

Under the grand elephant statue stood the three women.

They stared coldly at the eldest daughter on the stairs, as if she were someone to be wary of.

“Haha… don’t worry. She’s on the same boat with us now.”

“Such sailors usually end up devouring even the captain.”

Echina muttered with a sulky expression.

Then she crossed her arms and turned her head toward the empty revolving door in the lobby.

“Anyway, have you all eaten yet? If not, shall we have lunch together?”

I slipped between the awkward four and guided them naturally toward the restaurant.

Behind us, Yuria and the secretary watched.

Perhaps sharing the same thought, they exchanged a glance.

Like a father and daughter.

“Director Roger surely has a bold spirit.”

“Right? If I were stuck between them, I don’t think I could even breathe.”

Yuria tightly shut her eyes under the sharp gazes of the fierce young ladies, each radiating a chilling air.

Like a squirrel hiding from predators, she quickly shook her pale face from side to side.

“Chief Secretary, you should come too. Our hotel is especially famous for its food.”

At last, even the two representatives’ aides entered the restaurant.

In a separate private room, one man and four women sat around a long table.

A feast of luxurious dishes was laid out before them, but not a single person lifted a fork.

The reason they had gathered today was to learn about my next course of action.

And, as if to answer that, I revealed the plan I had prepared in advance.

“Since everyone is here, I suppose I should explain.”

On the outer wall of the private room hung a massive painting—

the former Emperor, a young Grand Duke of the North, and a child Grand Duke of the West enjoying a banquet together.

This was a space reserved for historical meetings.

“I called you all today to discuss the fate of Nord.”

The Empire’s second-largest city after the capital—

No, once upon a time, it had been a city far greater than the capital itself.

At those words, the young ladies, already known for their composure, grew even more solemn.

If there had been a royal war council held during the time of the old wars, this was likely what it would have felt like.

“Currently, Nord appears to be in its golden age on the surface, but in truth, it’s burdened with immense debt from its growth.”

“That debt is owed to the Imperial Palace, isn’t it?”

It was the Western Grand Duke’s daughter, Helena, who spoke first.

The fact that she knew about this despite not being from Nord meant that the debt situation was indeed grave.

“That’s correct. The Grand Duke of the North’s two sons have joined hands with external forces to overthrow their father.”

I turned to Freya, seeking her agreement.

The silver-haired woman calmly nodded, acknowledging that I was right—

but soon, she frowned slightly, as if something had occurred to her.

“That’s true. But is it really a topic suitable to discuss in front of these ladies?”

As the head of Luton Maiden, a company she had led entirely without outside support,

the eldest daughter seemed uncomfortable having the Saint of the national church, who had little to do with this family feud, and the rival Western Grand Duke’s daughter involved.

“This is our family’s internal matter. I don’t like the idea of exposing our weaknesses to outsiders.”

Indeed, it was understandable.

In the past, the Western Grand Duke’s daughter had once threatened the North’s arms market with the Leonil Sword,

and the Saint could easily pressure the northern ducal family through her enormous wealth and popularity.

“They might even be eyeing our family, after all.”

However—

The reactions of the two ladies, fully aware of Freya’s cold, mountain-like gaze, remained utterly composed.

“Me?”

“You mean me?”

As if the very thought had never even crossed their minds.

“Well, I have absolutely no interest in your people—”

Helena rose from her seat and personally reached for the wine.

Then, with an indifferent expression, Helena shrugged as she poured the red wine.

“Lord Eric may be handsome, but he doesn’t feel human, you know?”

“That’s true. There are all kinds of handsome, after all.”

The Saint joined in, lifting her glass and checking for any dust on it.

Reflected in her glass was my face, sitting in the center seat.

“In the past, cold men used to be my type, but now, the sly ones don’t seem so bad either.”

“...?”

Freya blinked, slightly thrown off by the two ladies’ offbeat reactions.

Her eyes seemed to say, ‘What on earth are these people talking about…?’

“Anyway, we don’t have any particular interest in the Northern Ducal family.”

“We already have plenty, and greed would only lead to ruin, wouldn’t it?”

The Saint smiled serenely, as if agreeing with the statement.

Then, only her blue eyes moved slightly to glance my way.

“Though there’s still one thing I haven’t managed to obtain yet.”

One thing?

Even these women—soon to become a bishop and a Western Grand Duchess—still had something left to covet?

Truly, the world of the highborn was as relentless as ever.

“Well… I see.”

Freya, the eldest daughter of the ducal family, nodded with a reluctant expression.

Perhaps because of that feminine intuition, she had already figured out exactly what Istina and Helena’s true intentions were.

“Echina, it must be hard for you.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing, my cute little sister.”

Freya let out a faint laugh as she looked at her sulky younger sister.

Then she straightened her expression and returned to the main topic.

“It’s true that Eric and Edward have formed rather close relations with the Imperial Family.”

The eldest daughter skillfully swirled her wine, letting it breathe.

The wine gleamed beautifully, like crimson blood dancing in her glass.

“When Deyan’s painting was stolen recently, it was the Third Prince who tipped us off—thanks to him, their pursuit was the fastest.”

“No wonder they tracked me down like ghosts the moment I acquired the painting.”

Freya tilted her head at my casual remark.

“Really? Then how did you escape?”

“I just took a rickshaw. They ignored me completely since they were only chasing carriages. I was lucky.”

I took a slow sip of wine as I spoke leisurely.

At that, Echina let out a quiet laugh, recalling that moment.

“See? I told you he’s an extraordinary one.”

She spoke as though reminiscing about a shared memory, almost as if she were showing me off to the two ladies.

“He even switched to a bicycle halfway. Tied up paintings worth hundreds of billions like a pizza stack.”

Echina also took a sip of wine.

Then, narrowing her eyes slightly, she looked at my youthful, pale face.

“The sight of you handing over that pizza box was quite unforgettable.”

“…”

Freya silently watched her younger sister.

Perhaps because the conversation was drifting too close to the Nord mountain range, she slowly shook her head.

“In any case, it’s certain they’ve been in contact with the princes. I even heard there’s a marriage talk involving the daughter of the Daily Time.”

“The Daily Time—that’s the newspaper ranked second in the financial world, isn’t it?”

This time, the Saint showed genuine interest.

As a high-ranking member of the national church, who placed particular importance on the media, the Saint’s voice grew cautious.

“That makes sense. The Imperial newspaper is already tightly controlled through the princes, so all they need now is to eliminate their second-place rival.”

Freya clicked her tongue, saying that this was one of Eric’s few admirable traits.

Among the most crucial abilities needed to survive in the world—‘connections’—was his greatest inherited talent from the Grand Duke of the North.

“Indeed, once you control the media, it becomes easy to manipulate and suppress competitors.”

The Western Grand Duke’s daughter agreed.

“If it’s Daily Time we’re talking about, our side has strong ties there as well. It seems our two houses are headed for direct competition.”

Just as Helena said.

By marrying into Daily Time, Eric had entered into an open rivalry with the Western Grand Duke’s family.

In my previous life, he had succeeded in using his imperial connections to drive the Western Grand Duke’s family out completely.

But this life will be different.

“If that’s true, then we’ll have to stop Eric from monopolizing the press first.”

“Do you have a plan?”

Echina responded to my calm reply.

At some point, she had stopped meeting my suggestions with preconceived notions.

“Well, it’s not as if Lord Eric is the only one with connections in the Imperial Family.”

I gave her a sincere smile, grateful for her trust.

“Besides, we have another reliable ally, don’t we?”

I turned my eyes toward my wristwatch.

“It should be about time for them to arrive.”

No sooner had I said it than a knock sounded on the door to the VIP room.

When I called for them to enter, the door opened.

“Roger, I’m dying of work here—what is it this time?”

A golden-haired young man, looking just like a golden retriever, walked in yawning.

It was the twenty-year-old Mansachs.

And the moment he recognized who was seated inside—

“Gasp…!”

He froze, like a puppy dropped into a den of predators.

This time, not only the three noble ladies were present, but also—

the woman most feared by the media, the eldest daughter of the Northern Ducal family, the Iron-Blooded Freya herself.

“Hey, perfect timing. Come, have a seat.”

I kindly gestured toward the empty chair next to Freya.

“Wh-what’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“N-no, it’s just…”

Freya was well-known for being strict about media interviews.

As the head of a major enterprise, she could not afford to let her public appearances negatively affect her employees.

Because of that level of thoroughness, she was ranked number one on Gold Morning’s list of the most difficult figures to approach.

And yet, despite all that, Mansachs had long admired Freya.

She was the only person who had ever granted an interview request from him when he was a teenager.

Most likely, the eldest daughter had agreed because she believed the boy’s intentions were pure.

He later told me this story one night when we were drinking together.

“I set up a meeting with someone you admire, didn’t I? Go on, have a seat.”

“Uh… okay…”

Mansachs drew his legs neatly together and sat down beside Freya.

The eldest daughter glanced briefly at the well-mannered young man, barely twenty years old.

“Oh my, you’re the second son of Gold Morning, aren’t you?”

“Y-you remember me…?”

Unlike usual, Mansachs stuttered as he spoke.

Perhaps finding his awkwardness endearing, the silver-haired woman gave him a soft smile.

“Of course. You once came to our company in your school uniform to conduct an interview, didn’t you?”

“Haha… yes, I did.”

Mansachs gazed absently at the small beauty mark near her lips for a moment,

then quickly lowered his head in embarrassment.

What’s with him?

Maybe he had been burned badly by Luton Maiden in a previous life.

Well, his bright, easygoing image and Freya’s cold, composed one couldn’t have clashed more.

“You were such a cute boy back then, but you’ve grown into quite the young man now.”

“I’m doing my best to learn…”

Echina quietly observed the two, a faint amusement glimmering in her eyes.

Then, as though a good idea struck her, her red lips curled ever so slightly.

“Come to think of it, wasn’t your type someone on the shorter side, sister?”

At the second daughter’s subtle remark, a certain memory suddenly resurfaced in my mind.

Back when I was her secretary—

While cleaning Freya’s office, I had come across a bundle of posters in one of her drawers.

They were all portraits of a handsome young singer who looked strikingly similar to Mansachs.

If this goes well… maybe Gold Morning could even help us in the Daily Time conflict.

Realizing Echina’s intent, I smiled slyly, like a fox spotting prey.

However, the Saint and Helena, watching me, both looked rather displeased.

“So he’s sharp about that kind of thing…”

“As expected, his brain only works well when it’s business-related.”

At their muttered words, I raised an eyebrow slightly.

Then, deciding to drop the subject, the Saint and the Western Grand Duke’s daughter simply downed their wine.

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