Mess 178
by Cristae178.
Rising from her seat, Seraphie fetched an old notebook.
Inside were the names of the four noble families whose daughters had maligned her that day.
Seraphie had refused their investment in the Divine Treasure mining project, and had also instructed the Kia Company to avoid any collaboration with their families.
“Countess Tifeon.”
As she opened the notebook, she saw a name written with barely suppressed anger.
“Viscountess Gramene, Countess Baglosa, Baroness Rodo.”
“Wait, Baglosa—”
“That’s the family that monopolized the tea trade after your uncle’s family passed away.”
For a moment, silence hung between them.
‘Such wretched luck.’
Seraphie stifled a sigh of frustration.
“…In any case, we’ve identified them.”
She chose to see it in a positive light—they’d uncovered underlings who might have slipped through unnoticed. It was a tremendous discovery, well worth more than a sigh. If not for Pura, it would have taken far longer to find.
“How did you figure all this out, anyway?”
“I told you—X, uh, the Third Prince gave me the files.”
Pura shrugged.
“There was a lot to go through, but it was pretty well organized. Once I read enough, things just started to make sense…”
“……”
Seraphie stared at Pura, jaw slack, at the casualness in her tone.
‘She’s really…’
Incredibly talented.
Pura was already a perfect bodyguard. Even the superhuman senses unique to Glake were admitted by masters such as Orchis and Kal.
‘The Third Prince is hardly the idle sort.’
He was carving out what little time he could in his battle against the Crown Prince, busier than ever. However thoroughly he might organize the material, there had to be limits.
‘And it was three years’ worth of records.’
The fact that Pura had gone through such a volume, extracted the necessary information, and produced these results all in a matter of days—
‘Maybe I should see what Pura’s capable of academically…’
Seraphie’s desire to nurture her grew. Pura had shown potential far beyond her expectations; there was no doubt she would one day be remembered by history.
“You’re going to succeed at whatever you do.”
At Seraphie’s heartfelt compliment, Pura grinned sheepishly.
“You really do have an eye for people.”
A few days later.
Attorney Gran visited the estate.
“I hope you enjoyed your holiday…”
“……”
Seraphie couldn’t quite bring herself to say yes.
Gran, head counsel for Validus and the Kia Company, looked even older and wearier than the last time they’d met—no doubt from his taxing schedule.
“…Are you all right?”
Seraphie could not help but be genuinely concerned for Gran’s health.
Instead of replying, Gran only offered a wan smile. Seraphie felt genuinely sorry—his grueling workload was largely thanks to the affair with Baglosa.
“I think we’ll need more staff…”
“Hire as many as you need, at any price.”
“Thank you.”
After draining the fruit juice brought by a maid, Gran got to the point.
“The court contacted us not long ago.”
Baglosa had filed for debt restructuring.
“The Imperial ban on business, due to their double-books and tax fraud, dealt them a heavy blow. In the end, Baglosa publicly declared bankruptcy—they cannot pay their creditors.”
“……”
“Soon, you’ll hear the news that the Baglosa Company has gone under.”
“So that means…”
“We’ve won.”
Seraphie leapt to her feet and clapped a hand over her mouth, tears welling in her eyes as she gave a silent cheer.
“Gran!”
She seized Gran’s hand tightly.
“Countess.”
Tears gathered in Gran’s own eyes as he spoke, voice thick with emotion.
“The Baglosa Company has fallen.”
The first hunt was finally complete.
Just as Gran had said, that very afternoon Baglosa declared bankruptcy.
The following morning’s papers not only reported their insolvency but speculated on the timing of their final collapse.
Seraphie sent news of the victory to her grandmother at the resort, enclosing a copy of the newspaper.
A reply arrived that evening.
[Be careful.]
A single brusque line, but the letter was thick with both gratitude and concern for her granddaughter.
Seraphie took the old woman’s warning deeply to heart.
For Baglosa, the Company was their greatest source of revenue; for the Crown Prince, it was a pillar of his economic power.
By taking it down, Seraphie had dealt a critical blow. It was unclear where retaliation might come from, so she and those around her needed to be vigilant and cautious.
‘I’d better not go anywhere alone for a while.’
She read the last line of her grandmother’s letter.
[I’ll be coming up soon.]
After only a moment’s thought—
“Butler.”
Seraphie summoned the house manager.
“You called, my lady?”
“We’ll need to prepare rooms for both my mother and grandmother to stay in.”
“I will inform the Kia estate at once.”
“No, have the rooms prepared at the Kia mansion, not here. I’m planning to stay there myself for the time being, so get a study ready as well.”
“Understood.”
After the butler departed, Seraphie called for Pura.
“Would it be possible to bring a few Glake here to the estate?”
When she asked if there were Glake she was already in contact with, Pura shifted her gaze for a moment, then slowly nodded.
“There are a few, secretly…”
“I’m not blaming you—far from it. Please don’t feel uneasy. Just bring them here.”
“All of them?”
“No.”
Immediately, Seraphie set conditions.
“I need ones with senses as sharp as yours, and who are strong, too. If they’re skilled at moving covertly—even better.”
“In that case, I suppose I’ll have to bring everyone. That’s our specialty, after all!”
Pura grinned. The bitter past of Glakes hiding across the empire for survival was now their strength.
“How many do you want?”
“At least five, at most ten.”
“What’s this for?”
“To find the missing Glake, of course.”
There was no hesitation in Seraphie’s response; Pura stared at her, as though she couldn’t even breathe.
“You promised you’d help me look.”
It was finally time to keep that promise.
The Crown Prince’s walking route Pura had found, and the three companies using it—
If they tracked that path, they might find the missing Glake. Hope had never been higher.
“How soon can you bring them?”
“Damn it, you—!”
Pura scoured her misting eyes with her sleeve.
“I’ll need three days—no more!”
Two days after Pura’s departure.
Seraphie remained at the estate, keeping herself busy. She didn’t go out alone, placing her trust in the Divine Treasure and exercising even greater caution.
“A wise decision.”
Orchis was genuinely pleased at Seraphie’s prudence.
“The Divine Treasure has its flaws. It’s still too dangerous to move about without protection.”
“I think so, too…”
Seraphie, arms crossed, lowered her gaze. Around Orchis, who had just arrived, servants scurried about in a blur of activity.
The only trouble was—these were all from House Phelikia.
“What’s all this?”
“My luggage.”
Orchis replied as he removed his coat, handing it off to a Validus servant as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
He made it look as if he’d always lived here.
“You gave permission already, didn’t you? Why do you act so surprised?”
“You’re moving an awful lot of stuff…”
After a night spent together beneath the moonlight, they’d decided to start living together.
The arrangement was that Orchis would move in with Validus and commute daily to Phelikia.
“I’d prepared everything already.”
Seraphie gave Orchis’s hand, which had settled around her shoulders, a gentle pinch.
“What is it?”
His voice was filled with delight.
“All sorts of things…”
Her lips jutted into a childish pout.
“I even ordered good furniture, and bought you clothes, shoes, accessories, and the book you wanted…”
“……”
As he gazed at her small, complaining mouth, Orchis leaned in closer.
Meeting his gaze, Seraphie squeezed her eyes shut, only to feel his soft laughter by her ear and then her lower lip being gently sucked between his.
“Seraphie.”
At her name, she cracked open one eye.
“I already know how irresistibly cute and lovable you are.”
“…Huh?”
What is this handsome man even talking about?
Seraphie wore a face of baffled confusion. Orchis, straightened again, was all smiles.
“So you don’t need to be cute anymore.”
“Ugh, you’re hopeless!”
Now realizing the joke, Seraphie’s cheeks bloomed red.
She tried to deliver a slap to Orchis’s forearm—but her hand instead slid around to embrace it, even as her lips curled helplessly in a smile.
Nonchalantly, Orchis pressed a kiss to her hair.
While the luggage was moved in, they waited a moment in the parlor.
“Has Pura returned?”
“She should be back tomorrow.”
“You’ll be busy once she does.”
“That’s when things really begin.”
Seraphie almost laughed at herself. After all they’d gone through to get this far, it felt as if things were only now truly beginning. Her life had never seemed so poignant.
But for all the hardship, they were thoroughly prepared. That meant she had taken every step with care and diligence.
“…This came from Marquess Castine.”
After the funeral, Seraphie had sent him some wild strawberry jam she and Batisa had made at the resort—along with notice of their plans.
Marquess Castine sent back a bottle of fine wine, and not just that—
“……”
Orchis’s gaze narrowed.
Enclosed with the gift was a list of members for the upcoming Council of Elders.
“Count Loria will attend?”
“There are currently three vacant seats.”
Of those in the Imperial party, Marquess Kia had stepped down, citing his age.
On the Crown Prince’s side, two seats had become vacant due to scandal: both Marquess Iris and Count Baglosa had been removed.
In the rush, the Crown Prince’s party had added one more to their ranks: Count Loria.
Orchis frowned upon seeing the name, but said nothing. Brooding would do no good—better to trust in Seraphie’s capabilities instead.
After all, she had always managed brilliantly.
‘At this rate, it’s me who should be learning from her.’
Caught off-guard by such a thought, Orchis returned to reading. Among the topics to be discussed at the Council, one in particular drew his eye.
The matter of Baglosa’s fate.
They would deliberate on how to treat the Baglosa family.
‘It’s really over for them.’
Orchis checked himself before feeling any sympathy.