The Young Supporter of Darkness

Kael was shaking his head while looking at the two smiling, hiding their feelings from each other, and opened his mouth first.

“It’s urgent, so let’s get straight to the point.”

“Of course, of course.”

Count Brighton immediately responded.

‘Why are you talking informally?’

He wanted to say that, but right now the count was in no position to.

“As your daughter wrote in her letter, we, the Bertrand Grand Duchy, are willing to help Count Brighton.”

“We will help you pay off your urgent debt.”

Daphne grinned beside him.

“I am just grateful.”

Count Brighton bowed his head.

“We’d like to receive collateral in return.”

“Of course! You lend me a lot of money, but I’m ashamed to just accept it.”

As he said that, Count Brighton took out a few things from the box next to him.

It was several certificates of rights and contracts. There was even a residence document.

He brought things that could be used as collateral.

‘If Count Brighton can’t put out the urgent fire, it’ll sell for a third of the price.’

They were all quite expensive, so it was hard to find a buyer who could pay cash right away.

In addition, if you wait a little bit, it will come out at a third of the price, so it was not sold even more because everyone was aiming for that time.

So it was right to be held as collateral and extinguish the urgent fire.

Daphne reached out and examined the documents on the table.

‘You’ve brought some pretty good stuff.’

However, there was no real target Daphne was aiming for.

“It’s very insufficient.”

Daphne sighed heavily as she set the papers on the table. The words made Count Brighton’s eyes widen.

“What kind of regrettable thing are you saying? All of them are carefully selected with only good things.”

“The wheatfields of the Mainten wasteland.”

The count froze at Daphne’s words. His eyes widened, as if asking how she knew.

“Count, I want that.”

Mainten wasteland.

It was a seemingly ordinary wasteland, but it wasn’t.

After a long period of clearing and clearing, it became a great wheatfield.

However, Count Brighton thoroughly hid this fact.

Even his family didn’t know that.

Because of taxes.

The difference between taxes on wasteland and taxes on wheatfields was enormous.

Of course, it was reduced a lot because he was an aristocrat, but he had to pay.

Count Brighton disliked that. He didn’t know when he’ll be able to deduct the land clearing fees if the taxes were paid properly.

That’s why he secretly hid the fact of cultivation and continued to register it as a wasteland.

In other words, he deceived the emperor.

“That… how did you know that? Even my daughter doesn’t know.”

“It isn’t important how I knew.”

Daphne smiled brightly.

“It’s more important that the count deceived His Majesty the Emperor, and that he sold wheat to other countries even during a famine.”

“…!!!”

The count jumped up in surprise.

It was to the extent that he floated in the air before sitting down with a slight mix of lies.

“Ah, what kind of punishment will it be? It is a great sin to deceive His Majesty the Emperor, but you violated it even during the ban of exporting wheat.”

All the while, he confidently sent Edia to the imperial palace as a lady-in-waiting.

What audacity is this?

‘Did you think that if you caught the eye of a high-ranking member of the imperial family or a high-ranking aristocrat, they would cover it up for you the next time you were found out?’

“That was a long time ago!!”

Count Brighton replied at once.

“At least five, no, six years ago!”

Daphne’s golden eyes curved with a smile at Count Brighton’s reply.

“Aha, you mean you did it for real?”

He was speechless and choked up.

They were trying to figure him out!

His body trembled with anger. However, when he saw Kael next to her, the shaking immediately subsided.

Count Brighton quietly put his hands together.

“Count.”

Kael, who had been staring at the count for a while, opened his mouth.

“If you give me the Mainten wasteland, I will bury this.”

“But!”

The count, who was about to protest, shut his mouth. He vehemently shook his head.

‘Maybe it’s a benefit!’

Count Brighton closed his eyes tightly.

‘All you have to do is skip the rest and pass the wasteland. It could be a benefit.’

Not by any stretch of course. The count had no choice but to console himself like that.

Otherwise, he thought he would fall backwards.

He came because they said they would help, but they were robbers.

“Oh, Count. I’ll take this, too.”

Daphne took out another certificate of rights when she saw the count almost crying.

It was a sugarcane farm certificate.

‘It wasn’t in the plan, but I want it.’

Bree seemed to have fun making desserts these days.

However, sugar was an expensive product, so it seemed difficult to try this and that.

‘If I have this, I can eat a lot of delicious and interesting things in the future.’

“I think our chef would like it.”

“…!!”

Thump! He went backwards this time. Foam bubbled from the count’s mouth.

“No, this is too much!”

The count shouted, standing up while holding the back of his neck.

“What can I live on after giving everything up to you!”

Daphne pointed to the other documents that were still piled up.

“There are many useful things here. I heard that the count has all good things.”

The count took his words back and frothed again.

Daphne put on a pretentious expression of heartache when she saw the count like that.

“Seeing the count do that pricks my conscience a little.”

She already didn’t have it.

“I won’t just ask for it. Count.”

“Then?”

Count Brighton asked with a bright complexion.

He looked like he would be thrilled if he could get even a small win against Daphne.

Don’t worry, I’ll give you something good.

“I’ll lend you money so that you can put out the urgent fire.”

Daphne grinned.

“Count Brighton, I will catch the swindlers who made you this way.”

***

Count Brighton eventually handed over the Mainten wasteland and sugarcane field rights certificate.

Seeing that he immediately nodded when she said that she would catch the swindlers, he must have been very upset.

He even explained the impression of the fraudster he had seen very diligently and even drew a picture.

Although she already knew everything.

‘I’m satisfied.’

Daphne grinned as she gloated at today’s results.

How happy she was, especially when she looked at the Mainten wasteland rights certificate.

‘I couldn’t get this in my previous life.’

This was a secret that didn’t come out of the original story.

By the time she noticed it, the emperor had already taken it.

How pissed off she was about that.

‘But this time I took it!’

Daphne sat down on the chair and stamped her feet.

It was a childish habit, but now she couldn’t help it.

It will definitely be of great help to Bertrand’s food procurement.

‘If the price of wheat goes down and sugar supply goes smoothly, the table for the local people will become more abundant.’

In addition, the quality of meals for knights and servants will improve.

Eating well was a step closer to loyalty.

Daphne smiled with a proud face.

“You look very happy.”

Ha, was it too obvious? Daphne put down the certificate of rights with an embarrassed face.

“It’s good, it’s good. It was what I wanted.”

Then, she drank the tea that Kael poured for her. Is it because of her mood that the tea tastes better today?

“My father is a bit upset.”

It was because of her mood. The tea was a bit bitter.

“Mister Zegman?”

Kael nodded heavily.

When meeting Count Brighton, of course Zegman insisted that he should go too.

“No! If even Mister Zegman comes out, Count Brighton will be nervous!”

Daphne blocked him. The deeper the opponent’s vigilance, the harder it was to achieve the desired result.

Actually, that was why she wanted to leave Kael behind as well, but he firmly nailed her in place, saying absolutely not.

Daphne shook her head before Zegman could protest.

“And I heard from Selma. I heard your health has gotten worse again because you’ve been overdoing it lately.”

She had forgotten, but Zegman had just opened his eyes.

Although he has been taking medicine constantly, he has not been completely cured.

In the meantime, things happened one after another, so he overdid it.

Thus, Selma grabbed Daphne and cried.

“Instead, why don’t the three of us go on a picnic when you get better? Actually, I’ve never been on a picnic before…”

At Daphne’s words, Zegman immediately raised the white flag. He went to bed quietly, lying down and muttering to himself, as if telling himself to listen.

However, he also seemed to be sulking.

“What should I do?”

Daphne became serious.

For some reason, it seemed more difficult to appease the sulky Zegman than to rip off the wheatfield from Count Brighton.

“You have to go on a picnic.”

Kael replied with a gentle smile.

“It will be very fun.”

Did he mean to go on a picnic that was fun enough for Zegman to be satisfied?

‘I think that’s going to be hard, too.’

The opponent was Zegman. What kind of picnic is it?

“By the way.”

Kael pushed the cut sandwich toward Daphne so that she could eat it in bite-sized pieces.

“Can you really catch the swindler?”

Daphne nodded, putting the sandwich in her mouth. She chewed and swallowed.

“Sure. It’s no problem.”

Because she already knew the swindler.

‘And I know who the swindler is with.’

It was the reason why the two counts, who were quite formidable in their own way, were beaten even when they opened their eyes.

‘I won’t let Alan handle this.’

In fact, this ‘Great Fraud Case’ was supposed to be closed at Alan’s hands.

As the damage grew, the emperor ordered Alan to catch the swindler.

It was a foul order he gave, thinking he couldn’t do it.

However, the male lead Alan came up with a trick to catch the swindler and quickly built a reputation among the nobles.

It became Alan’s debut case.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

Alan, who earned his fame and money saved by the swindler, quickly rises to victory.

In other words, the emperor gave him wings.

So she intended to take care of it first before Alan did and swallow it all.

‘The more money, the better.’

“Your Grace.”

As soon as she called, Kael immediately met her gaze.

Daphne smiled, staring at his pure-looking silver eyes.

“Shall we go on a fun picnic together?”