Chapter 80

Chapter 80:  Escape (5)

I followed Tobang to the first-floor drawing room where the eldest son was staying.

Freya and Edward had already returned to their respective workplaces.

But the eldest, he had remained behind and was leisurely sipping a cup of tea.

"Come in, Echina."

"What’s going on? Calling me like this."

Even upon seeing her own brother, I showed no change in expression.

Despite it being a meeting between the eldest and the youngest, the atmosphere was bleak.

Just from this, one could tell how ruthless the Grand Duke’s house was.

"What did Father say earlier?"

"That's none of your business."

Even with a strong candidate for the next head of the house right before her eyes, she didn’t so much as blink.

I quietly went over to the seat across from Eric and picked up the tea.

I carefully channeled mana into the teacup to check for poison.

But soon, I stopped the flow of mana running through my fingertips.

"Isn’t this about the secretary you just hired?"

He had never shown the slightest interest in me until now, and suddenly he was bringing up my secretary.

Since even Father was extremely wary, and now the eldest was reacting like this…

"Why are you so surprised? There’s no one in Nord who doesn’t know about that child’s accomplishments now."

That wasn’t true.

Most people believed it was me, Echina, who had achieved all that.

So, for Eric to say this now meant he had been secretly investigating me and the foundation.

"You must’ve felt quite threatened. Seeing as you called me out like this."

"I’m not the one who should feel threatened. You should be."

The tall, silver-haired man shook his head.

His finger pointed straight at the bridge of my nose.

"He’s planning to use you to grow his own company. He’s been using you completely as a tool."

It was similar to what Father had said.

He too was wary of Roger, who had grown his company so rapidly and still remained seated as its president.

"Since you’ve spent your whole life at the Academy, he probably thought you were an easy target. Thought he could manipulate you however he pleased."

Eric lifted the teabag from his cup slightly.

The richly brewed tea dripped down powerlessly.

"Once the company stabilizes to the point it no longer needs your name, he’ll try to split it off."

Corporate split.

That, too, was exactly what Father had said.

"……."

Perhaps that was why an indescribable sense of discomfort washed over me.

‘Am I really the only one who can’t see it?’

Julius Roger.

His cunning intention to devour our family.

If what Father and even this detestable eldest son were saying was true...

Then maybe I truly wasn’t qualified to inherit the family business.

With that, I let out a deep breath.

"I’ll make my own judgment, so don’t worry about it, Eric."

In the end, I didn’t even lay a finger on the teacup.

I simply asked if that was all he had to say.

"If all you wanted was to stir up trouble, then I’ll be on my way."

"Fine. That’s all I had to say too."

With quick steps, I turned and headed out of the drawing room.

"Echina."

"……?"

The eldest son didn’t even get up. Still seated on the sofa, he called out to me again.

When I paused, he spoke in an unhurried voice.

"I am your brother and eight years older, you know. Couldn’t you at least call me Oppa once?"

I let out a quiet laugh at the eldest’s childish remark.

And responded in a cold voice, one worthy of being the Grand Duke of the North’s bloodline.

"I’ll consider it when you stop doing such petty things, Eric."

――――――!!

The drawing room door slammed shut.

I walked even faster now, as though I no longer wanted to hear anyone else's words.

There was only one place I was headed.

The office of my newly appointed secretary.

There, I just wanted to see one man.

"……."

My office was located at the end of the hallway.

I flung open the door right beside it.

And the moment I stepped inside—

"Julius Roger…!!"

I stopped in my tracks, lips slightly parted, frozen in place.

"Roger…?"

That meticulous man, who should’ve just been assigned here and should be entirely focused on the handover...

Was nowhere to be seen in the secretary’s office.

"……."

I glanced around, trying to make sense of the situation.

But the man with the sharp eyes was nowhere to be found.

In fact, the entire office looked immaculately clean, as if it had never been used at all.

As if no one had ever entered this room from the start.

"Where did he go…?"

To be honest, my father’s and the eldest’s suspicions hadn’t truly unsettled me.

But now that he, the one who should always be by my side, had disappeared—

I placed a hand on my waist and stared gravely into the empty office.

"……!"

Then, suddenly, I noticed two documents lying on the desk.

The sharp sound of my military boots scraping against the floor echoed out.

I reached for the papers and gripped them tightly.

"What is this…?"

The eyes of the Grand Duke’s daughter—one of the most powerful in the North—began to shake uncontrollably.

The two sheets of paper on the desk were…

A letter of appointment for the position of exclusive secretary, and a resignation letter from the Erian Foundation.

"Roger… resigned both as the head of the foundation and as my secretary…?"

I immediately looked out the window.

Hot sunlight poured over the Grand Duke’s estate.

With the first half of the year now over, the golden rye fields swayed beautifully in the breeze.

The Grand Duke’s daughter stared blankly at the scene before her.

“Don’t tell me Roger even predicted he’d be suspected like this?”

I looked down at the resignation letter, now crumpled from how tightly I’d gripped it.

Written there were the following words:

“I resign from the position of president of the Erian Foundation.”

“Instead, I entrust all authority and personnel appointment rights to Lady Echina Luton.”

My father and brother had assumed that since he had no interest in wealth or women, he must crave power instead.

But their predictions had missed the mark completely.

The Grand Duke’s house secretary had abandoned all authority and walked away without hesitation.

“If only I had trusted him more…”

I dropped the papers heavily onto the desk.

Then, covering my beautiful forehead with the back of my hand, I closed my eyes.

I blamed myself for not giving proper recognition to a capable subordinate, when I had aspired to become the commander of the knights.

I had gained control of the massive Erian Foundation.

I had complete control over the Old Luton commercial district too.

But even though my once-empty arms were now full, the hunger inside me remained unfulfilled.

Like a wild beast still starving.

“Roger…”

My golden eyes, so much like my father’s, flashed sharply.

Until now, I’d thought of him as mine, even when other women hovered around him.

But now, things were different.

“After pulling off something so dazzling, you think you can just run away…?”

Thinking that this was the perfect moment to make a move, I stormed out of the office.

Tightening the buttons of my uniform jacket as I stepped forward—

To catch the fox that had fled.

“I won’t let it end like this.”

「――――――」

Meanwhile, a tense air was beginning to stir in Old Luton as well.

Back at the hotel, I was alone, packing my things.

Yuria and Mansachs, having seen that, looked stunned and quickly tried to stop me.

“Roger, you bastard. Why the hell is a successful foundation president suddenly quitting?!”

“Exactly!! President, if you leave, how are we supposed to run this place?!”

I quietly turned to the two who were making a fuss.

A wooden box in each hand.

“Why are you two acting so anxious?”

With my sharp eyes, I looked at the second son of one of the Three Major Newspapers first.

“You’re about to be called up by Gold Morning anyway.”

Starting with the exclusive on Director Robert’s arrest—

He was the first to report on Old Luton’s growth and Bennet Tolkien’s return.

“Go start working your way up from the department head. Within a few years, you’ll be a vice president.”

He was destined to become a vice president anyway, and had already started standing out.

Mansachs had a bright future ahead of him.

To the point he no longer needed to go into business with me.

“That’s more than enough, isn’t it? Don’t get greedy—just focus on preparing to take over your family business.”

“B-but…”

He was at a loss for words, stunned by how nonchalant I seemed.

Leaving my same-age friend behind, I turned to look at Yuria, who was practically shaking with anxiety.

“Our dear manager, don’t worry so much. Just because I disappear doesn’t mean anything will actually change, right?”

“That’s true… but I still feel at ease when you’re around, President…”

I patted the crown of the petite red-haired woman’s head.

“Rather than me, it’s better for someone of high standing like the Grand Duke’s daughter to be in charge. That’ll make the hotel more stable.”

Passing the two overly worried people, I opened the drawer of the president’s desk.

From inside, I took out a single sheet of paper I had treasured like gold and silver.

‘The certificate that holds my 50% share.’

Even if I stepped down as president, I was still the major shareholder of Erian.

So even if Echina ever made a wrong decision, I could still offer her advice.

Though, knowing her wisdom, that was unlikely to happen.

‘I’ll just sit on this share leisurely, and when the value skyrockets, I’ll sell it off to people I trust. That’s all I need.’

That would not only revive my family but also let me live the rest of my life in comfort.

No more being forced to take my own life again.

“……”

Remembering that time suddenly soured the good mood I’d just been in.

“She’ll do fine.”

She wouldn’t be crying anymore.

She’d secured her place in the family business, and her relationship with her father had improved too.

There was no longer any reason to think of me as family.

“Is that all your luggage?”

“Yeah. This is enough.”

I waved the envelope containing my shares with a bit of flair.

“Then at least let me drive you somewhere.”

“No need. I brought my bicycle.”

I brushed off Mansachs, who was being clingier than usual today.

Even Yuria clung to me, making it harder to stay firm.

“Oh, come on…!! It’s not like I’m going far! I’ll still come by often as a major shareholder!!”

“But we won’t get to see you every day… I even got attached to that sly, scheming smile of yours!!”

Honestly, our manager could be pretty blunt too.

“So, where are you going now?”

He’d been through a lot with me until now.

It was clear from his expression that he was curious about my next move.

But.

Both he and Yuria soon made baffled faces, like the air had just gone out of them.

“Where else? I’m going home.”

My answer was unusually modest for someone who’d just made a fortune.

“I’m going to go home and sleep.”

I smiled gently at them.

With the relaxed expression of someone who had seen all there was to see in life.

“For a good two days straight.”

――――――

In the grand hotel, nobles in lavish clothes wandered the halls.

They giggled and whispered as they passed the grand entrance—where a bicycle had been left.

But I didn’t care in the slightest.

I passed between them at ease and climbed onto my modest bicycle.

The paper envelope was strapped to the back.

No one would know.

That the man they were mocking held hundreds of billions of gold in his hands.

Along the edge of the wide avenue, a single bicycle whirred along.

After riding for quite a while and leaving behind the bustling streets of Old Luton…

A small country road came into view.

A quiet neighborhood with no women draped in luxurious velvet—

No sharp-tongued nouveau riche men either.

I was heading to the worn-down house in that town.

Once a luxurious estate, it was now wrapped in vines.

The iron gate rusted—this was the house of my father and me.

‘I won’t be getting tangled up with noble ladies anymore.’

I pushed open the rusty iron gate with force.

Though the lawn was scraggly and unkempt after years of neglect, I threw myself onto it.

To Istina, the growth of the Erian Foundation was all thanks to a single recommendation letter she had written.

It was because of that one piece of paper that I’d been able to save the hotel and participate in numerous charitable events, wielding a positive influence—so she had said in her Gold Morning interview.

‘That should’ve made a great impression on the Silver Truth Church’s headquarters.’

Thanks to that, she would now be focused on her internal ranking battles, competing for the Archbishop’s position.

That meant she wouldn’t pay attention to Nord or to me anymore.

‘With that, one problem handled…’

Next was Helena.

She had likely extorted a fair amount of gold from Freya this time.

‘If she reports this to her father, the Western Grand Duke, he’ll be thrilled.’

From long ago, he’d harbored deep inferiority toward the Grand Duke of the North.

He would be overjoyed that his eldest daughter had landed such a blow on the Luton family's eldest daughter.

That would only accelerate the transfer of the Grand Duke title.

There was no longer any reason for her to remain in Nord.

‘I won’t be crushed under the weight of high society’s battles anymore.’

That’s what I thought.

But—

I had no idea.

That stepping down from my position as secretary would unleash a massive wave.

Lying on my back, I looked up at the blue sky.

And in that blue sky, two birds took flight.

Each flying toward its own destination.

One toward the capital, where the church headquarters were.

The other, westward.

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