Chapter 718 – 718. The Land of Pleasure (6)
Eira and Cha Han-seong, who decided to act separately from Erin and Lily after coming out of the hotel they had chosen as lodgings, headed to the mansion where the lord who manages this territory, Count Ephrate, lived.
“Welcome.”
After revealing his identity as a knight belonging to the Artia Knights, Count Ephrate sent the two into the mansion.
Count Ephrate, who responded to the two in the office, was a much younger lord than expected.
He is quite handsome with the appearance of being in his late 20s.
“Thank you for your welcome.”
Aira politely bowed her head and said her goodbyes.
While conveying her greetings with Cha Han-sung, Eira thought to herself.
‘This man… Count Ephrate.’
It was five years ago that he inherited the title and became the lord of Eprate.
In other words, he inherited the authority and responsibility of an aristocrat in his early twenties, not long after he became an adult.
The more you think about it, the more you question it.
Originally, he would have had no capital or personal connections, but from the point of view of a young man who had just become an adult, what could be the factor that enabled this territory to grow into a county territory?
Indeed, there was a possibility that he was a genius who showed outstanding talent and business skills in managing the estate, but Eira knew better than anyone that this reality was not easy enough to be possible only with his personal ability.
‘I don’t know if it’s him… No, he didn’t develop Armitas territory that way on his own.’
Eira instantly thought of Eunhyun.
Thanks to his help, the Armitas territory has achieved a level of development that easily surpasses Pernine, the capital of the current Pernias kingdom.
However, it is absolutely not that Eun-hyeon has grown the Armitas spirit with her individual strength and ability.
It was possible because he was the Duchy of Armitas, which had the status of a nobleman who could trust him and carry out his plan and had the capital.
It may not be possible, but even if Count Ephrate had a level of ability comparable to Eunhyun, it would be impossible to achieve this level of development in a short period of time.
‘Still… The palace has concluded that there are no suspicious circumstances in the county of Ephrate right now.’
It would not have been the case if it was the royal palace where the corrupt aristocrats of the past occupied most of the seats, but there is no doubt if it was the judgment made by the current court aristocrats who are working tirelessly under Queen Yuria’s control.
For the time being, Eira kept a calm expression as much as possible and hid her true intentions.
After bowing their heads politely, the two maintained their posture and met eyes with Count Ephrate.
“Sit down.”
“Yes.”
Eira and Cha Han-seong silently sat on the sofa at Count Eprate’s recommendation.
Count Ephrate gave a small gesture to the butler.
The butler set two cups of pre-brewed tea on the table in front of the two of them.
“…”
Eira hesitated for a moment, but that time was a very short moment.
How likely is it that some kind of poison or medicine is in this car?
As long as the intentions of this side were not precisely known, Count Ephrate could not attempt such a reckless act.
Although the possibility was very low, there is a possibility that there is a possibility of overturning expectations and doing things in a reckless way.
However, Eira and Cha Han-seong have an antidote with fraudulent specs close to all-around that Eun-hyeon made in advance.
Even if the poison quickly spreads throughout the body, it is only necessary to take the medicine before death, so it is perfect for unexpected situations.
“I will drink well.”
“Thank you.”
Carefully grabbing a teacup and drinking tea, Cha Hanseong also drank tea.
Fully trusting Eira’s judgment, he did not hesitate.
“It is a very fragrant tea.”
“I’m glad you liked it.”
To the plain compliment, Count Ephrate responded with a kind smile.
The impression itself has a strong feeling that it is a very good impression.
However, it is difficult to tell whether it is goodwill from the heart or whether it is wearing a mask wrapped in goodwill.
‘If it’s Erin… I could have known.’
If it was Erin, who had the special ability to read other people’s emotions, she would have been able to see Count Ephrate’s face now and figure out whether it was really goodness or hypocrisy.
Eira doesn’t have those special abilities like Erin, but she could tell that his laugh was fake.
She was also a person who had experienced a lot in the female social circle where many pretense came and went, and there was a lot of slander and slander during her young school life.
It’s not even a matter of noticing a fake smile.
It’s just that you can’t figure out the exact emotion, such as whether it’s vigilant, irritated, or angry.
“To think that the knights of Artia are looking for our territory… Did something happen?”
As expected, Count Ephrate immediately asked about the business that came to his estate as expected by Eira.
Eira, like him, deliberately responded with a smile on her face.
“No. I just came to see you.”
“… Tourism. Okay.”
Arming her face with her pretentious grin, Eira heard her own words and caught the corner of her mouth in her moment.
The county of Ephrate is not a territory that puts the tourism industry at the forefront.
Eira knew very well that she had visited such a manor for the purpose of sightseeing, so it was an excuse that she would not be able to eat at all.
It was clear from Count Ephrathe’s expression that she was thinking of the purpose of the visit, which was not even funny.
Moreover, it made more sense that she was not here alone, and that she had visited her mansion with a group of knights from the same affiliation.
“… Sorry. Count. In fact, the reason we came to Ephrate is because of a secret investigation of a certain case.”
“Are you an investigation?”
Hearing the exact reason belatedly, Count Ephrathe hardened his complexion and pondered.
“May I ask what incident you are referring to?”
“We have received a report that an unidentified, unidentified drug is flowing from this estate.”
“… Drug.”
“I visited the mansion like this to get permission in advance from the count, the lord, before proceeding with the investigation to arrest and arrest the organization involved in this drug. May I ask you a favor?”
Count Ephrathe didn’t answer right away and was lost in her thoughts.
Drugs and criminal organizations are an agenda full of insecurity that can easily spread to nearby areas if not left alone, so it is natural that the kingdom should show a sensitive response.
Since the issue was an issue, the justification for refusal did not come to mind.
Still, the situation itself wasn’t all that bad.
‘But fortunately, only the presence of drugs was exposed.’
Although he was very concerned about how the information on the drug had entered the Knights of Artia, Count Ephrate was relieved for the time being.
“… All right. Let me write a document acknowledging the right to investigate. Instead, I would like you to refrain from causing great friction with the villagers within the territory.”
“Yes. We’ll take care of that too. Thank you for your cooperation.”
“How are you planning to eat and stay? If it’s still there, I’ll guide you to the guest rooms in the mansion.”
“It’s okay. I’ve already booked a place to stay, and I’m going to have dinner at a restaurant later. I want to know the inner atmosphere of the county a little bit, and I plan to inquire about the information necessary for the investigation.”
“Okay. All right.”
Count Ephrathe wanted to hold Ineira and Cha Hanseong, the insecure elements close by, and secretly share the progress of the investigation, but he decided that it was impossible to hear Eira’s plan, which had already been prepared in advance.
Fearing that he might arouse her suspicions if he grabbed her for nothing, he backed off cleanly.
Eira and Cha Han-seong, who received an official document with the seal of Ephrathe, acknowledging the necessary activities in the investigation of drugs in the estate, immediately left the mansion.
“Come on, old man.”
“Why?”
“That Countess… Wasn’t he suspicious of something?”
“Wonderful. Blatantly. I already knew that this territory, and the lord, were strange from the moment I entered this territory.”
“However… Was it okay to reveal that our purpose was an undercover investigation?”
“You didn’t tell me about the devil.”
Even so, she did not openly blow all the information she knew to Count Ephratte.
In the report Eunhyeon collected through Heilangdan, it wasn’t just the devil’s information that might be infiltrating the Ephrate territory.
As the basis for speculation that the devil might be hiding, various information was written tightly, and one of them was just a keyword called drugs.
“Of course, it would be the basic standard to use this information to interrogate the people of the territory, but this side may take some time to outline, and Erin and Lily are already moving.”
So, I personally went to Count Eprate and tried it.
“Perhaps they keep coming closer because they are anxious about how much we know and how much they will know?”
The result was successful.
When I saw and thought about his attitude and reaction, I was convinced that he did not legally manage and grow the territory purely on his own.
Moreover, judging from the fact that he couldn’t hide his facial expression and attitude even to himself and was agitated, he didn’t seem to be very good at dealing with people.
‘There’s someone behind you. Perhaps… Maybe the devil is really involved…’
“In the worst case, they might send someone to deal with us.”
It was a hasty conclusion, but looking at Count Ephrate, who couldn’t hide his agitation, there was no possibility of that happening at all.
“Senior… Are you really okay?”
Cha Han-seong made an expression of concern that if such a situation really happened, Eira would get hurt.
Eira smiled, as if her worries were funny.
“Oh, are you not confident?”
“Yes?”
“Me too, you are a knight. Could it be that I am weak enough to be attacked by an ambush from the other side? Are you that weak?”
“That, that…”
“And you said you would protect me.”
Cha Hanseong immediately responded to Eira’s provocation.
In order not to worry about this, he received training directly from Riod and persevered through the difficult training.
He blushed and was agitated for a moment, but soon took hold of her heart and answered her expectations with strong eyes.
“I will protect you no matter what.”
“Huh. You are dignified.”
Cha Han-seong is still unable to catch up with Eira in the field of swordsmanship.
She challenged her many times with her training and sparring, but even though she continued to fight on an equal footing, she was unable to finish her victoriously against Cha Han-seong.
It was really difficult for Eira to catch up with her inner sword in sparring, which did not presuppose her killing battle.
However, even if he is a weaker man than himself, he firmly swears an oath to protect him, and his answer was enough to make her Eira’s heart happy.
“And I went to see Count Ephrate in person for a reason other than purely to look at him.”
“… What is it?”
“Because of this.”
Ayra raised the paper document she was holding in her hand and pointed at it.
It is a document stamped with the seal of Count Ephrate, acknowledging the authorship of the investigation.
“… Is that really what you need?”
“Erin needs it more than we do?”
“Are you Erin?”
“Erin goes to the adventurer’s guild with Lily to gather information about her. Do you really think Erin will just pass by without incident?”
“…”
Cha Han-seong could not answer.
Certainly, her predictions were right.
There’s not much of a problem with Erin, but what’s really troubling her is that Erin is always easy to get caught up in.
Erin is basically a woman with a great appearance who stimulates men’s rationality, and she is easily bewitched by men because the magical power of the divine water that flows unconsciously from her body has the character of fascination.
This is not the first time she has had problems with male adventurers who can’t stand her own desires.
Especially this time, Lily, a succubus demon that exudes pheromone-like energy similar to Erin, is acting together.
A man cannot be twisted.
“This is a kind of shield that gives legitimacy to Erin, who is investigating with us.”
“…”
Cha Han-seong belatedly remembered Erinn’s nickname among adventurers.
Crazy dog.
It’s a nickname made from rumors that once he starts to get angry, he growls like a mad dog and runs rampant.
Rumors had already spread within the Adventurer’s Guild of the Duchy of Armitas about anecdotes about people who were openly sexually harassing themselves or talking behind their backs about Eun-hyeon, regardless of their rank or rank.
