* * *
This is driving me crazy. Why is his gaze so intense today?
During dinner, with the whole roasted pork barbecue in front of us, I sat in a reverent posture but couldn’t eat a bite because of the overwhelming gaze directed at me. I was very hungry now, having waited for him with my eyes open and a growling stomach. But seeing Lacius gazing at me with such tender eyes made it hard to swallow.
“Lashin, do you have something to say to me?”
The roasted pig barbecue is cooling down every second. If it gets colder, I won’t be able to taste its best flavor. As that warning flashed in my mind, I finally turned to him and spoke up about my discomfort with his gaze.
“No, there’s nothing.”
“I know I’m pretty, but aren’t you staring at me too much? Now is the time to focus on this barbecue, not me.”
Even as I said this, the meat was getting cold. So, involuntarily, a complaining sound came out of my mouth. Lacius finally averted his gaze from me.
‘Why is he acting like that all of a sudden?’
Sometimes he looks at me like that.
However, the meaning behind that gaze is too complex for me to decipher.
‘Could it be that he met Daphne?’
When I woke up, Lacius, who had said it was a day off today, was nowhere to be found.
Honestly, my heart sank so much at that moment.
I was terrified, like an idiot, because everything about meeting Lacius felt like a lie or a dream.
Of course, only for a moment.
“Shay, are you busy tomorrow?”
It was then.
Lacius suddenly asked a question, and I was so surprised that I dropped the fork I was holding.
Clang!
It fell to the marble floor with a loud clatter.
Lacius immediately raised his hand and called a maid.
“Bring new utensils.”
“Yes.”
I usually don’t make mistakes like this. I looked at the newly placed fork with a bitter expression on my face.
It was an action that greatly revealed my inner turmoil, and Lacius also noticed that I’m thinking about something else right now.
“No, I’m not busy.”
I continued to eat, pretending nothing was wrong, and responded in a casual tone.
Lacius silently nodded.
“Good, then. Do you remember the bet we made at the masquerade ball?”
“Yeah, I remember. You won.”
“Good. I want to claim that time tomorrow.”
Of all times, now? No, maybe it’s fortunate that it’s happening now.
For now, Lacius still seemed unaware of Daphne’s existence.
I carefully avoided eye contact with him, pretending to cut the meat.
“My twenty-four hours are all yours. Is that right?”
“Right. There is a place I want to go with you.”
Where could that be? My excitement and guilt intertwine. Knowing that he has positive feelings toward me, I have to hide my feelings. Spending a day together like this wouldn’t be easy.
However, looking at Lacius’ bluish-gray eyes, I couldn’t bring myself to refuse.
‘He seemed excited about it.’
I can tell because I’ve observed Lacius closely until now. The look in his eyes right now was one of anticipation. If I were to reject him, he would be immensely disappointed.
I closed my eyes tightly and asked.
“Where is it?”
“It’s a bit far. We’ll have to take a plane, and it will take about five hours.”
“That’s pretty far.”
“Yeah. But I’m sure you’ll like it. Let’s bring Cat and Siwoo along.”
Where are we going?
‘Are we going on a picnic? Maybe outside of Terran?’
I’m so curious that I can’t even eat. Eventually, I put down the fork and asked a question.
“Where are we going? Is it like a trip?”
“It wouldn’t be as fun if I told you in advance.”
“No, it’ll be really exciting!”
I liked spoilers. I liked to read the book after knowing the latter part first, and it was the same with watching movies. So, knowing where we were going wouldn’t diminish my anticipation at all.
If anything, it would stabilize it and make it better!
With that anticipation in my eyes, I looked at Lacius. Then, as if he had no other choice, he lowered the knife he was holding in his hand.
“The place we’re going is…”
His lips whispered something.
It was too tempting to refuse. I was swept off my feet.
* * *
The wealth of the Archduchy of Schweiden is inexplicable. Particularly, Schweiden was famous for possessing abundant primary resources.
The old mines still yield gold and diamonds without depletion. Fertile lands have consistently produced bountiful harvests, ensuring that no one starves.
The vast forests of Archduke Schweiden’s territory are home to an abundance of beasts of all kinds, and the wild mushrooms that grow there are very popular. And let’s not forget about the sea. The seas near the southern lands were teeming with abundant aquatic resources.
In such circumstances, it was more than sufficient to sustain oneself with primary resources alone. However, the archdukes of the previous generation took advantage of the abundance of resources to create several secondary businesses, two of which were particularly successful.
Namely, the maritime city and the ranch.
Every year, royalty and nobility from all over the world flocked to the maritime gambling city of Makarten for a vacation. The money flowing back and forth during high-stakes games there amounted to approximately 180 billion gautes.
That’s more than a year’s budget for one large estate.
As for the ranch, the vast grasslands within the Schweiden domain allowed them to independently breed and manage excellent warhorses.
They had exclusive contracts to supply warhorses to the palace and even exported them overseas.
The annual profits generated from that alone exceeded imagination.
Not to mention the basic taxes collected from other domains. Even the emoluments collected by Schweiden as the chief judge and commander of the knights were not something to be ignored.
When combined, these assets formed a list of wealth that would require hundreds of pages of documents to record.
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