“How come the two of you are together?”
“Well, that’s…”
“We met earlier and made a flower crown together.”
At Rose’s words, Ian looked at the top of Fred’s head.
At first, he thought there might be a bruised flower from falling in the flower field, but upon closer inspection, it was a flower crown.
“This one is for you, Uncle.”
Rose held out the flower crown she had in her hand.
Though it was not much different from the one Fred was wearing, Ian, who smiled brightly as if he had received a treasure, bowed his head.
“Will you put it on for me, Rose?”
“Yes!”
Rose carefully placed the flower crown on Ian’s head. Ian thanked her and looked at Fred.
“Do you have something to say?”
“Yes, I do.”
Fred, with a determined expression, bowed toward Rose.
“Thank you for coming with me.”
“It’s nothing. Don’t be scared, my uncle is kind.”
Unlike Ian, who slightly raised his eyebrows at Rose’s words, Fred kissed the back of her hand and stood up.
“Sebastian.”
Sebastian, who had been standing as if he wasn’t there, grabbed Rose’s hand.
“Shall we go, lady?”
“Goodbye, mister.”
Fred, who was following Rose and waving his hand, stopped at Ian’s gaze.
“Come in.”
“My lord, I will take my leave now.”
When Logan got up to leave, Ian nodded.
Finally, only the two of them were left in the room.
To break the silence, Ian pointed to the teapot on the tea table.
“Tea?”
“No, thank you.”
Ian, watching Fred sit tensely on the sofa, asked.
“Have you made your decision?”
“Before that, I have a question.”
Ian crossed his legs and asked.
“What is it?”
“What is it about me that you trust?”
When Ian raised one eyebrow, Fred licked his dry lips and continued.
“Even though I have learned from the sage, I am still inexperienced as an aide. I could make mistakes and wrong choices.”
“How is that a problem?”
“Pardon?”
At Fred’s puzzled response, Ian stood up and pulled the bell cord.
“I didn’t ask you to find the correct answers.”
Fred’s eyes widened in surprise.
At that moment, the door opened with a knock, the cold tea was removed, and new teacups were placed in front of them.
“Is there anyone who has experience from the beginning? What I want from you is not experience but your wise thoughts. It’s up to me to decide what to ask you and what choices to make. All decisions are mine, so even if something goes wrong, it’s my responsibility alone.”
“That’s…”
Fred, who seemed to have never thought about it that way, reacted as if he had received enlightenment. Ian sat back on the sofa.
Ian raised his teacup and chuckled.
“It seems you’ve been worrying unnecessarily.”
Fred hurriedly covered his face but could not hide his reddened ears.
“Is your concern resolved now?”
“Yes, yes.”
Nodding with a flushed face, Fred suddenly lowered his hands and spoke.
“May I answer you now?”
“Go ahead.”
“I want to stay and work with the Duke.”
Ian put down the teacup he was holding and extended his hand.
It was a gesture for a handshake, but Fred kissed the back of Ian’s hand and said,
“This lowly Fred makes an eternal vow to the Loenbaum fruit.”
Ian was momentarily surprised but soon smiled broadly.
“You’re more impatient than I thought.”
“The sage said that no fool misses the opportunity to serve their rightful master.”
Fred, who had hesitated and blushed a moment ago, now appeared composed.
Ian nodded in satisfaction and asked Fred.
“What is it that you want?”
“What I want has already been achieved.”
What Fred wanted his whole life was neither a title nor honor.
It was simply to utilize what he had learned and to showcase his abilities.
This was Fred’s sole wish, and Ian was about to make it come true.
“Then, I’ll first grant you the title of Viscount.”
“No, I can’t accept it yet.”
Fred shook his head. He couldn’t accept a title when he hadn’t done anything yet.
“No, you must accept it.”
“What?”
“You are my aide. How can the duke’s aide be a commoner and handle affairs properly?”
“But…”
“In the future, you will frequently enter the imperial castle on my behalf. A commoner cannot enter the imperial castle, so you must accept the title.”
Fred’s eyes widened. The imperial castle, of all places?
Although he had learned a lot from the sage, he had never been taught etiquette.
The imperial castle was the most sensitive place regarding etiquette. He couldn’t go there without knowing it.
“Duke, I don’t know etiquette.”
“You are smart, aren’t you? You will learn etiquette quickly.”
In the novel, Fred was a genius who mastered not only noble etiquette but also imperial etiquette within three days, which is why Ian could make such a statement.
“Duke, I apologize, but no noble will teach me.”
To nobles, illegitimate children were filthy beings. Although the count’s family tried to hide him, his existence was already known.
No noble would teach Fred, who was stigmatized as an illegitimate child.
“Why wouldn’t there be? I am here.”
“Pardon? What’s it mean, Duke?”
“Yes. I taught Rose, didn’t I? Why wouldn’t I teach you?”
Fred stared at Ian in disbelief.
“What’s important right now is not the title but the tasks you need to handle.”
Fred quickly composed himself and straightened his back.
“Please tell me.”
“Read this.”
Fred read the documents Ian handed him. As he turned each page, his expression became more astonished, but Ian simply drank his tea.
“Whose plan is this?”
“Who else but me would come up with such a plan?”
“This is too…”
Ian nodded.
“Yes, it’s radical. But without this, we cannot seize control of the monetary system.”
Fred’s hands trembled slightly. The plan was indeed radical. While it wasn’t completely free of flaws, it was thorough enough to support itself.
‘How could a puppet duke come up with such an idea?’
Fred placed the documents on his lap and asked.
“You wish for independence, correct?”
“You catch on quickly.”
“It’s not just about accumulating wealth; you want to change the monetary system.”
‘He really is smart.’
Even Logan and May knew Ian desired independence.
They also knew he was gathering funds for it.
However, neither of them had realized the underlying sinister plan like Fred did.
They just thought he was saving money for independence.
“You aim for a plutocracy?”
“Yes. Nothing is better than that to establish legitimacy.”
Plutocracy, literally meaning that the wealthy hold power.
To achieve independence as a principality, the most important thing needed was legitimacy.
Ian intended to create that legitimacy through currency.
The flow of money couldn’t be ignored. If he could control it, gaining the highest power wouldn’t be difficult.
“When do you plan to implement this?”
“There’s no rush. The plan isn’t perfect yet.”
Fred flinched as he examined the documents again.
“You knew about this?”
“If I could create a perfect plan by myself, I wouldn’t have shown you these documents.”
Fred nodded.
“After thoroughly reviewing, I will let you know the parts that need modification…”
“No. The reason I showed you this is to let you know that this is our ultimate goal, not to prepare for it right away.”
“Then what should I do?”
Finally hearing the words he wanted, Ian got up from the sofa and pointed to the documents on the desk.
“Let’s start with this.”
***
Since the previous duke’s family died in a carriage accident, the once quiet ducal residence had been frequented by many carriages.
“Ahem.”
An old man with a mustache quickly approached the man who got off the next carriage.
“Count Kale. How have you been?”
“Oh, Baron Hanova. Long time no see.”
As the branches of the ducal family approached Count Kale from behind, he greeted them warmly.
With a congenial atmosphere, Count Kale entered the ducal residence with the branches of the family and spoke to the butler Sebastian, who came to greet him.
“It’s been a while.”
“Welcome to the Loenbaum Ducal Residence.”
“Haha. Even if we are branches, we come from the same root. This is like my home.”
Sebastian’s face stiffened, and Count Kale tapped his shoulder with a wrinkled hand.
“It’s a joke. A joke. I heard the Duke will attend the meeting today.”
Count Kale’s eyes gleamed slyly.
Ignoring the branches’ words, Sebastian took a step forward.
“Follow me.”
Without hesitation, Sebastian walked toward the meeting room, and Viscount Lev spoke to Count Kale.
“Do you think the real duke will attend the meeting?”
“Most likely.”
Originally, the branches couldn’t meddle in the direct line’s affairs.
However, the current duke was a powerless puppet.
Considering the debt the duke owed to the branches, he couldn’t ignore their interference.
Moreover, this was an opportunity to question that maid, May, who had been causing trouble.
Count Kale spoke to Viscount Lev.
“Is everything thoroughly prepared?”
“Yes.”
Viscount Lev nodded toward the man following behind them.
Though disguised as a servant, the man couldn’t hide his greed and bowed his head.
‘Yes, we cannot let filthy blood stain Loenbaum.’
Satisfied, Count Kale smiled and continued walking.
