Edith didn’t even realize that she had dropped the herbal oil bottle she was holding and continued to stare.
“Why aren’t you avoiding me?”
“…”
It was only when she heard him whisper softly that she realized she hadn’t avoided him.
Although it seemed like anyone would think Walter was about to kiss her.
The man in front of her had a face that could enchant any woman with just three seconds of eye contact, and with oil applied to his body, he appeared even more sensual.
It seemed like the beast within her had regained its appetite and had temporarily blocked her reason, making it impossible for her to avoid him.
She might even say that she would apply herbal oil to uninjured areas if she stayed with him any longer.
“I’ll be leaving now.”
Edith quickly got up and straightened her disheveled clothes.
“Regarding the herbal oil… it hasn’t been three minutes since I applied it, so make sure to take it and apply it to your body. Understand?”
Even as she forced her stiffened legs to move while running away in nervousness, she didn’t forget her medical advice.
Walter was unable to get up for a while even after Edith left the cabin.
If, as Edith said, the reason the Viscount wanted to imprison her in his manor was so that she could have his child.
“…This is driving me crazy.”
It occurred to him that, if she were the opponent, he might not have been able to suppress his impulses and could have gone along with the Viscount’s plan.
──────────✿◦•
“Even though the pregnancy celebration party was held, I still can’t believe that Edith is pregnant.”
Isabelle, who was leisurely drinking tea, said.
And Elizabeth, who was eating a piece of cake across from her, nodded in agreement.
“If it’s her, she really might have had the Viscount’s child.”
It was a fact that most of the people on the territory, including them, knew that the Viscount, who was only interested in voyeurism, did not embrace a single woman.
However, there was one exception: the woman he had been searching for a long time, and that was Edith.
『 Well, it has nothing to do with me.』
Elizabeth thought indifferently.
In any case, she had no desire to give birth to the Viscount’s heir and was content to take the minimum inheritance.
Isabelle, the only one among Nicholas’s wives who truly cared about Fortrion’s future, breathed a sigh of relief.
“I’m really relieved… At least we have someone who can carry on the family line.”
Elizabeth felt once again that Isabelle had a neat personality, devoid of any scheming or cunning.
“Isabelle, a wife with a successor gains the most power. Now, it’s not Sophia but Edith who will be aiming for our share.”
Maybe the two of them could join forces.
As Elizabeth was about to say more, Isabelle shook her head.
“Well, I may not know about other things, but I probably have an eye for people as good as you. Edith doesn’t seem like that type.”
“Yeah, yeah. I hope you’re right.”
Just as Isabelle was about to make a pouty expression, telling her not to treat her like a baby, something sudden occurred.
“Bring me last week’s medical records!”
“What on earth is going on…?”
A conversation filled with urgency could be heard.
Turning their gaze beyond the glass window, they saw the manor’s resident doctors, who had been staying in the western part of the mansion, hastily moving toward the central area of the manor.
While it was common to see doctors on the move due to the Viscount’s critical condition, today, their footsteps seemed different from the usual.
Elizabeth, wondering what was happening, continued to enjoy her strawberry cake, but Isabelle was not.
“Did something happen to the Viscount?”
“The cake is delicious.”
“Elizabeth, let’s go to the Viscount’s bedroom.”
“…”
Elizabeth wanted to savor the cake a little longer, but Isabelle practically dragged her away.
And then, a familiar man’s voice, which they shouldn’t have been hearing, reached their ears.
“I… I’m underground… Ugh! Here…!”
It was the voice of Nicholas Fortrion.
The doctors and apprentices were at a loss, not knowing what to do with the Viscount, who had suddenly awakened and begun to have seizures.
No one would have thought that an old viscount, who had never taken care of his health, could regain consciousness after such a massive accident.
“M’lord, first, we need to examine you…”
Whack―!
The Viscount slapped the doctor who was trying to stop him from getting up from bed.
With bloodshot eyes and a trembling body, his movements resembled those of a demonic creature.
The Viscount finally rose from the bed with a gleam in his eye.
“Edith… Where is Edith…?”
As soon as he returned from the brink of death, he searched for his fourth wife. It was evident to anyone that the Viscount’s eyes had the gleam of a sexual pervert, and the doctor tried to calm him down, even though he was growing frustrated.
If this voyeuristic patient continued and something happened, it was clear that the Viscount would go crazy.
“The Fourth Lady…? M… M’lord!”
Thud―!
The Viscount, who appeared ready to rush out of the room at any moment, suddenly slumped forward.
The doctors turned pale as they examined the Viscount’s condition, but only the whites of his eyes were visible.
Edith and Sophia, who rushed over after hearing the news that the Viscount had woken up, were watching what was happening, but Eugene spoke in a serious tone on behalf of the other doctors.
“Viscount Nicholas Fortrion has passed away.”
It was an announcement that marked a new chapter in House Fortrion.
──────────✿◦•
Guests flocked to Fortrion Manor once more.
However, unlike the previous social gatherings, all those who came were dressed in black and white mourning attire.
Moreover, unlike before, many of them arrived without invitations, claiming to have been close acquaintances of Nicholas and demanding rooms to stay in for a few days.
Victor, also dressed in mourning attire, clicked his tongue as he looked at them.
『 I expected this, but he really was close to gamblers, lechers, and all sorts of trash.』
He didn’t feel bad that his daughter had been able to quickly escape the clutches of Nicholas Fortrion.
In particular, thanks to the deal they made with Edith, Isabelle was expected to be handsomely compensated for the two years she spent as a scarecrow lady.
Victor approached Edith, who was walking through the halls to welcome the guests.
“M’lady. I don’t know what to tell you after hearing good and bad news one after the other.”
He treated Edith politely, just as he had done with Nicholas’s other wives.
While he brought up the story of when his wife was pregnant with Isabelle, he and Edith naturally distanced themselves from the others.
Edith pretended to be discussing pregnancy-related matters and lightly touched her belly as she spoke.
“Victor, what about my request?”
“Well, well. As you know, the capital is currently in the midst of political turmoil, so it was a bit difficult since the number of mages accepting private requests is scarce.”
Victor didn’t forget to put on a show.
“I’ve contacted a mage in the capital and set up a visit schedule. We paid a hefty deposit and tried to expedite the schedule as much as possible, but you’ll have to wait for about three months.”
“Three months… I see.”
She had anticipated it, but the time until the mage arrived felt too long. Seeing a hint of disappointment on Edith’s face, Victor quickly added.
“If the mage can come faster than the agreed-upon schedule, we’ve agreed to pay double the negotiated amount, so it might be sooner.”
Victor knew that Edith was pregnant with House Fortrion’s heir, so he couldn’t help but become more quick-witted.
It was obvious that if the child became the head of the family, the child would treat and follow the biological mother better among the other Ladies of the Manor.
『 Of course, the main reason is that she promised not to claim a share of the inheritance.』
As a skilled merchant, it was important to spread out insurance policies to minimize risk as much as possible.
In that sense, Victor thought that Edith was handling things very cleverly.
『 She may have already known that she was pregnant when she met us and proposed a deal.』
Even if Edith was excluded from the inheritance, given that the child growing up in Edith’s womb carried the blood of House Fortrion, the child would naturally become the heir of this household.
Therefore, the best course of action for Edith was to use the inheritance she would receive in her capacity as one of Nicholas’s wives to oust Sophia, who was the most powerful person in the manor, and establish her child as the rightful heir.
How could the timing align so perfectly for such a plan to be executed?
『 If I had met her when she was not married, I would have asked her if she would consider taking a position in our trading company.』
While Victor felt regretful, he also became curious about why such a remarkable woman was seeking a mage’s assistance.
“Thank you, Victor. What about my other request?”
Victor concluded that the second request Edith made to him was an advanced strategy to gain control of Fortrion.
⋙“Help me persuade the merchants to support me. Whitman may have shouldered all the blame, but Sophia didn’t notice the accounting fraud either, did she?”⋘
⋙“That’s right.”⋘
⋙“We need to create public opinion that if Fortrion Business falls into her hands, it will result in losses for the merchants she works with.”⋘
Victor, without knowing the exact reason for her request, went along with it.
He instructed his subordinates to create public opinion portraying Sophia as disinterested in business matters and more likely to accept bribes.
Observing this extensive plan, it seemed that Edith was considering a position as the next head of Fortrion Business.
Thanks to Victor faithfully following Edith’s suggestion, the merchants greeted Edith more courteously than they greeted Sofia.
The owners of the other trading companies, with whom Victor did not mince words, didn’t miss the fact that these merchants were trying to impress Edith, who was pregnant with the heir.
“I didn’t have a chance to greet you up close during the dinner. I am a Western trader who has been doing business with Fortrion for a long time…”
As time passed, and those involved in major businesses gathered around Edith, Sophia began to experience a strange feeling.
Certainly, she knew that Edith’s child was not the offspring of the master but rather the child of a servant. However, as she observed people treating Edith as the Viscountess, she began to feel an inexplicable sense of crisis
『 … No, it can not be. Even if something minor happens, Edith comes to ask me what to do.』
Sophia dismissed her unnecessary worries and attempted to calm her mind. However, as with everything else, uneasy premonitions were often correct.
❀.°• ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ ─ •°.❀
