Chapter 248 – Change
#248.
The next morning. After briefly washing, Gaon came to the front of Isabella’s room.
Smart.
When he knocked softly, the door opened right away, as if he was fortunately in the shower.
Isabella asked, brushing her still wet hair behind her with a disapproving look on her face.
“What’s going on in the morning? Weren’t we supposed to meet at the entrance?”
“I have something to say about what happened yesterday.”
“Yesterday? Are you talking about the bullshit she did?”
She couldn’t believe it, but she had nothing to do other than that, so Isabella’s face was full of absurdity.
Seeing that the emotion of bewilderment touched more clearly than anger, Gaon replied with a little relief.
“Yes. I’m deeply reflecting on myself, so I hope you don’t look at it too negatively.”
“Ha… Doesn’t she seem to have fallen for her quite a bit? That’s enough for her to come to see you in the morning.”
“…”
Isabella said that, as if she meant to provoke her, and smiled, but when she saw Gaon not responding, she let out a short sigh as if steam had leaked.
“Is that the end?”
“Yes. If she intervenes further, she will only live a backlash. This ideal is far-fetched. If you say it’s okay, I’ll go down and wait for you.”
“Okay. And I say it again Be sure to call ahead the next time you come.”
Thud!
She left a warning and slammed the door without hearing her answer. Judging by her reaction, she doubted that she wasn’t angry was just an empty comment.
Gaon scratched the back of her head for a while, then thought that there was no point in staying here, so he got on her elevator and headed for the lobby shelter.
As she burried herself deeply into the luxurious sofa, her eyes caught her eyes on people who had been busy since morning.
It was a very peaceful sight to think that there was a monster wave yesterday. This is all because they minimized damage as much as possible. If not, it would have taken a long time just to recover from the post-war damages.
The death toll is in the single digits and there are no injuries. Except for a little damage, the castle walls have not collapsed, and there is not a single place, so this is no different from a miracle.
Of course, it’s ambiguous, but strictly speaking, it’s a possible result because there was Gaon, a 10-star state, and Isabella and Hirencia, a 9-star state.
‘Now I’ll be able to afford it for a while.’
When this job is over, the next time to move is spring. There will be about 3 months of time, so you will be able to handle many things during that time.
Since Isabella joined, things have been going smoothly. If we continue like this, we will be able to complete all preparations until the time of destruction.
Time passed quickly as I was reviewing the future while calculating variables that I did not know about.
After a while, the group came down by elevator.
“Gaon-san, did you wait a long time?”
“Sorry. Master!”
“… Just in case, we met by chance in the elevator.”
I laughed for no reason as I was listening to each person’s unique words. Gaon left the hotel with them, thinking that no matter how much he chatted here, he would only get annoyed attention.
As expected, when they went to the entrance, a splendid quadruped carriage was waiting for them. It was a carriage sent for them by Lord Northmond.
One thing that puzzled me was that there was also Hirencia in street clothes in front of him.
As soon as she found her warm companions, she approached them smiling brightly.
“Good morning everyone.”
“Herencia? What’s going on here…”
“That’s it. When I thought about it belatedly, I didn’t tell the lord about the hotel I was staying at. I guess I thought we were living in the same place.”
“… Okay.”
“Which… , I want to apologize…”
Her gaze turned to Isabella. She couldn’t even meet her eyes properly as if she had no face, and it was to the point of feeling sorry for her extended glance.
Isabella raised an eyebrow as if frustrated by the action, then she passed Hirencia and climbed into her carriage, she said.
“I don’t care about that bullshit from yesterday, so stop looking at me like a dog in the rain. It just makes me feel uncomfortable.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“Shouldn’t you stop apologizing for him? Just pretend that yesterday’s work didn’t exist.”
“Yes. Thank you…”
“I wish I knew.”
In a short time, Isabella noticed that Hirencia had a rather foolish temperament, contrary to her rumors, quickly resolved her problem and turned her head to her window.
Hirencia finally saw her warming up as she seemed to be begging her attention away from herself.
“I also apologize to Mr. Gaon. I misunderstood because of the rumors.”
“A rumor? What are the rumors?”
“Yes? That is…”
“If you’re in trouble, you don’t have to answer. I was just curious.”
“Then I will tell you. It’s just a rumor, so I hope you don’t get too offended.”
Hirencia, who had checked her safety devices several times, spoke about her rumors.
“Once there were rumors that Mr. Gaon was a prostitute. She says she somehow gets her hands on it, especially if she’s a capable and pretty woman. They say that all the women in the guild, except for children and men, put their hands on it.”
“Whoa…”
“Well, I don’t think so at all. I know that Mr. Gaon is not that kind of person!”
It’s such an outrageous rumor. But what’s more troubling is the fact that the rumors aren’t completely wrong.
In particular, the fact that all the women in the guild, except children and men, put their hands on it was a perfect fit if you looked only at the results, excluding the process.
Except for Hazel, who was still young, all the women in the guild were his lovers.
I don’t know where the rumor came from, but it was an ambiguous story that could neither be completely denied nor confirmed.
Gaon said to Hirencia, who was trying to somehow prove her innocence while burying her body deeply in the carriage seat.
“I know that Hirencia doesn’t believe in such rumors. She just wonders why she didn’t know about it until now.”
If she was Lugie, she would have known, but why didn’t she tell me? Did she think there was no need to talk? Or not…
‘Rather, it’s better to spread rumors.’
He is the man in the rumor that a woman would never want to be close to. Maybe Rouziena just let the rumors go unnoticed so as not to increase her rivalry.
It was a little annoying, but it wasn’t that I couldn’t understand it, only Hansoo leaked out.
Even as he did this, the carriage moved quickly and arrived at Lord Northmond Manor.
Following the guidance of the waiting butler, they entered the banquet hall and were able to face the lord.
“Come on! You worked hard to get here. It’s going to be hungry, but everyone sit down!”
“Thank you for the invitation.”
After saying hello and taking a seat, the maids pushed the chairs and even wrapped napkins around them before stepping back.
At the same time, the maids set the food as if it had been prepared in advance.
“Then I will. Let’s talk about it after filling the stomach a little.”
The favor Gaon and his party bestowed on this manor is too great to end with a mere invitation to dinner. As if he had prepared something else in return, the lord raised the tableware while hinting at it.
Everyone set their own example and slowly began to eat their portion of food.
When the knife was brought to the table, the steak was tenderly cut, revealing juicy flesh. When I picked it up with a fork and brought it to my mouth, it was torn into small pieces in an instant and then melted away.
This is no better than a meal at one of the finest restaurants in the capital. Apparently, he paid special attention to Hirencia.
There was no need to think about how expensive the duke’s daughter would have.
‘Of course, Hirencia doesn’t have any particular food to cover.’
She belongs to the knights and has been dispatched to various regions. It’s about food that doesn’t taste better than this. She’s had enough experience.
When half of the steak was gone, Lord Northmond wiped his mouth with a napkin and said,
“You may be offended, but I did some research on you last night. They seem to have a cooperative relationship with Lucipheon.”
“Yes. I owe you.”
“Especially, you’re so close that rumors circulate that you’re the companion of the queen of the underworld, aren’t you? Speaking of which, I want to entrust you with the distribution of lumber. How is it?”
Gaon was a little surprised. Timber produced in the Northmond Territory is supplied throughout the empire. You can make huge profits just by taking care of the distribution.
Even so, Lucipeon is greedy for advancing into Yangjiro. So far, except for the distribution of magic stones, we have not achieved any significant results, but if this work is done, we will be able to take one step closer to our goal.
Gaon immediately nodded her head as if there was no need to worry.
“If you leave it to me, thank you. But are you okay? What about those who used to trade…”
“They don’t have to worry about it. Coincidentally, today was the day to supply lumber. But as soon as he heard the news about the monster, he abandoned the deal and ran away. You can use that as an excuse to break the contract.”
“Then I won’t decline either. As soon as we return, we will tell Lucipheon and send someone.”
“Good. The story is roughly finished, so let’s finish eating. Enjoy yourself.”
Yeongju didn’t ask Hirencia about her intentions. Because from the moment she drew the line yesterday that her duke didn’t know, she no longer had to be bound by it.
And after a while, when everyone vomited up their fullness and put down the tableware, this time dessert was on the table.
It was a dessert mixed with fruit, ice cream, and chocolate, and the cute yet sophisticated shape was the kind that women would like.
It seemed that he was considerate of the Gaon group, who had a high female ratio.
Even Isabella, who shows little emotion, moved her stretching spoon with a satisfied face.
However, such a friendly atmosphere was shattered by Lord Northmond’s remarks that came next.
“Vacation time. Can I call you like this?”
“Yes. Call me whatever you want.”
“Then do it. Vacation vibes. I know you’re very popular with the ladies. Are all the girls here your lovers? You have good skills, yes! Haha!”
The beginning was a question, but the end was already certain. Before Gaon could deny it, he slightly turned her eyes to Isabella.
And she was able to find a face that was completely distorted 180 degrees from before.
It was clear that he wanted to block the lord’s mouth, which was talking about the same topic as yesterday’s Hirencia.
Gaon shook his head before it was too late.
“No. Some have lovers, some don’t. Above all, isn’t rumor supposed to be exaggerated? It’s just that the rich talk about stimulating and interesting stories.”
“Is it? After all, there’s no way the queen of the underworld would have easily accepted another woman. I’m sorry. I made a mistake because I was excited because I was her guest after a long time.”
“It’s okay. Because people make mistakes.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
The lord, probably quite insensitive, didn’t even notice Isabella’s cold stare and drank from the cup she was holding in her hand.
She thought something was wrong, but it must have been because she was drunk. Contrary to what she looked like, she was prone to alcohol.
After that, Ga-on spent time responding appropriately to the lord’s words, and returned to the hotel in a carriage with his party.
As they climbed into her lift and headed for her room, Isabella whispered softly to him.
“Just in case, I don’t intend to have a relationship with you like that. Be mindful.”
“… That’s what I know. Do not worry.”
“I hope you understand.”
Isabella said that herself, but when she saw Gaon agreeing as if she didn’t care, she frowned and got off the elevator first.
Gaon paused for a moment to look at her back, then headed to her own room with the rest of her lovers.
The last days at the Northmond estate pass.
