“Lady Felicia!” Seraphie greeted with a bright smile. “Thank you so much for today.”
“I should be the one saying that.”
Despite being in the dust, Peonia was impeccably dressed.
“You gave me the opportunity to be part of such a historic moment.”
“Lady Felicia, you know a lot about The Land Abandoned by God, right?”
“More than most people, yes.” Peonia’s gaze shifted downward. “There’s still so much unknown about The Land Abandoned by God.”
What exactly makes up god’s treasure? What caused the strange phenomena on that land?
“There are many hypotheses because of that.”
“That’s fascinating.”
“For the record, I think the god’s treasure holds the key.”
“What about the land itself?” Seraphie, who had been listening quietly, asked. “Could there be a separate power residing in the land?”
“Hmm, it’s possible, but…” Peonia pondered for a moment and then shrugged. “Given the lack of records, it’s likely the land itself is ordinary.” Of course, Peonia added that it was something they needed to find out, pointing somewhere.
Large tents were set up, and scholars and wizards who came to study The Land Abandoned by God were busily moving around. They were excited to finally have the opportunity to research The Land Abandoned by God and the god’s treasure. Peonia was one of them.
“Thanks to you, we can make progress in our research. It would be a great help to my previously stagnant research.”
The cause of the last Magic Tower fire was, after all, due to the inability to obtain a powerful mana catalyst. But now, it has become much easier to obtain magic stones that could be used as mana catalysts. Of course, there were various regulations, such as the market economy and supply and demand. Still, it was worth looking forward to the progress in research.
“Thank you once again.”
“I’m glad to be of help to you.”
The two grew more fond of each other.
“But Lady Felicia…”
“Please, just call me Peonia.” Peonia was the one who suggested it first.
“Then, Peonia.”
Of course Seraphie did not refuse. Rather, she inwardly celebrated a small victory. One step closer! Now, Seraphie felt close enough to tell people that they were acquainted with Peonia.
“If you really think today’s success is thanks to me…” Seraphie seized the opportunity. “Would you tell me about magic sometime?” She fervently prayed that this beautiful and strong person would take the bait and bite the hook.
“Are you interested in magic?” Peonia showed interest. “That’s perfect timing.”
A tea party hosted by Peonia was scheduled to be held soon.
“Lu will be there too, I mean, Lady Mars, my friend.”
Although others would attend, Peonia reassured Seraphie that they would be together so it wouldn’t be too uncomfortable.
“I-I…” Seraphie, overwhelmed with emotion, covered her mouth with both hands. “can join too?”
“Of course. If the most famous person in the Empire these days was willing to come, it would be a great help to me.”
“Then the invitation…”
Peonia was about to say she would send it soon but then paused as she was surprised. Orkis, who had been watching with a disapproving look, also seemed surprised.
Wow! Wow! Seraphie practically bounced up and down like a puppy in front of a delicious treat. Without noticing how the Felicia siblings were looking at her, she clenched her fists and trembled with excitement.
Now, the hands that had been covering her mouth were covering her entire face. To anyone watching, it would seem like she was crying.
“What’s so good about that place?” Orkis grabbed Seraphie’s excited shoulders and gave a serious piece of advice. “You need to stay sharp. I’m sure Countess will handle it, but don’t go just to act clueless…”
“Don’t underestimate Countess.” Peonia, who had been listening quietly, gently pulled Seraphie towards her. “Besides, I’ll be there with Lu too.”
“You two are the least trustworthy ones.”
“Have you gone crazy? We’re better than you.”
“Look at how you talk to your brother.”
“And you think you talk nicely to your sister?”
In the blink of an eye, the siblings’ argument flared up, and poor Seraphie, caught in the middle, got caught in the crossfire.
What’s going on? Why are they fighting? Seraphie, who had been excited just to be close to Peonia, was at a loss for words at this sudden turn of events. Moreover, with the notoriously ill-tempered Felicia siblings, no one dared to help her, so she was stuck between them for quite a while.
* * *
During the forced succession trial, Seraphie, who revealed ownership of The Land Abandoned by God, made a promise to the emperor under the guise of a deal.
“I will offer the first god’s treasure mined from the land Duke and I mine together to Your Majesty.”
In other words, she’s making a bribe to make sure the emperor will make her win.
The emperor was perceptive. She understood the meaning hidden within the declaration of loyalty, and thanks to that, Seraphie was able to narrowly win the case.
And today, Seraphie decided to fulfill the promise made that day. Accompanied by Orkis, she descended directly into the land to personally select the god’s treasure to be offered to the emperor. She looked around the inside of the mine with sparkling eyes.
“It’s a bit narrow.”
Every time they passed, Orkis’s shoulder brushed against the wall. The inside of the mine was a maze of narrow paths barely wide enough for one person to pass through, and the complex walls that formed these paths were the god’s treasures. In other words, except for the ground they stood on, the entire mine was made of god’s treasures.
“This is a treasure trove like no other.” Even Orkis, who usually maintained a calm demeanor, couldn’t hide his interest once they descended into the mine.
The two wandered around the mine as if they were taking a stroll. The narrow paths gradually widened as they went deeper inside. As they walked, a small plaza-like open space appeared. It was roughly in the middle of the mine. People were moving tools and supplies there and even constructing stairs to reach the surface.
“Lord Felicia.” Seraphie gestured for Orkis to come over.
When he reached the spot, a large gemstone was embedded in the wall. That god’s treasure looked like an opaque crystal. However, when it caught sunlight, it instantly became transparent and emitted a brilliant light. The sizes varied from as large as an adult to as small as a baby’s palm, but the power contained within these precious stones had nothing to do with their size.
“Isn’t this one nice?” Seraphie asked about the one she had chosen.
Orkis examined it closely. “It’s good.” As he could handle aura, he recognized it immediately. “This is top quality.” It was more than sufficient to present to the emperor
Seraphie asked the waiting miners to extract that one. Then, Seraphie wrapped the freshly mined in an expensive cloth brought along, cradling it as if swaddling a baby.
Take this one, and don’t bother me. Seraphie was already overwhelmed with her own tasks. So, she hoped she wouldn’t get involved again with the imperial family.
Seraphie caressed the god’s treasure with a desperate wish. In an instant, the god’s treasure emitted a brilliant light. However, no one noticed because it was wrapped tightly in the cloth.
“Countess Vallidus, Lord Felicia.”
As Seraphie climbed the makeshift stairs set up by the workers and emerged above ground, the imperial attendants sent by the palace approached swiftly. Despite their hurried steps, their demeanor was quite authoritative. It was clear they represented the imperial family and would not bow easily, no matter how high the status of the person they were meeting.
Seraphie glanced at Orkis. Orkis, whose expression had turned grim, nodded silently. It meant it would be easier to just hand over what they wanted and move on. She agreed.
“This is the first god’s treasure to be presented to His Majesty the Emperor.”
When Seraphie offered the god’s treasure held in her arms, the imperial attendants carefully transferred it to a golden tray they had brought.
“If you think this is insufficient, you are welcome to go down and check for yourselves.”
“How could we doubt Countess’s sincerity?”
“Just by looking at it, we can feel its power…”
The imperial attendants, who had received the god’s treasure, completely dropped their earlier authoritative demeanor. They gathered around the tray, standing in a circle.
“…It’s not a very pleasant sight.”
“Keep such thoughts to yourself.” Orkis, whose expression had softened considerably, lightly cautioned.
…Ah. As Seraphie watched the imperial attendants with disdain, a thought suddenly occurred. Could it be because of that?
The reason why the Felicia family so easily failed in their rebellion and was annihilated in the original story. It might have been because of the god’s treasure. From what had been discovered so far, the god’s treasure acted as an amplifier, making powers like mana or aura even stronger With the power of healing as well.
It’s not just about the money. It was an incredible boost in military strength.
Finally, one of the mysteries that didn’t make sense in the original story was resolved.
Then there won’t be any wars, right? Seraphie’s short hair stood on end. As one question disappeared, a new hope began to sprout.
“Countess?” Orkis, who was next to Seraphie, looked at Seraphie with a peculiar gaze.
Regardless of how Orkis looked at Seraphie, Seraphie was deeply immersed in her own reasoning.
I own The Land Abandoned by God, and I’m mining it jointly with the Felicia family! Therefore, there was no way the imperial family would get stronger. And it would be no reason to antagonize the Felicia family. The crown prince wouldn’t have to cancel his engagement with Peonia either.
Ah, Lillie.
There was still one uncertain factor left.
“Ooh, Your Majesty…!”
Even if they parted ways as in the original story, hopefully, they would do so politely and not provoke the Felicia family’s temper!
Suddenly, Seraphie clasped her hands together and prayed, praising the emperor.
Is she feeling unwell? It seemed the heat was indeed severe, making Orkis click his tongue while looking at Seraphie. He added a muttered comment about how unfortunate it was for someone so young.
“Haha, who would have thought the Countess’s loyalty ran this deep.”
“I will definitely convey the Countess’s deep feelings to Her Majesty.”
On the other hand, the palace attendants were very pleased with Seraphie. They had worried that owning The Land Abandoned by God might make Seraphie arrogant. Still, seeing Seraphie’s current behavior, those concerns were unfounded. They were delighted to see Seraphie so eager to present offerings to the emperor. Their conviction was further solidified by Orkis, who looked at Seraphie, mumbling loyalty, as if Seraphie were a strange creature.
“Then as promised.” The palace attendants held a tray containing the treasure of the gods. “We will present the first mined god’s treasure to Her Majesty.”
And not just the god’s treasure, they would also inform the crown prince that the relationship between Seraphie and Orkis wasn’t as close as the rumors suggested.
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