CHAPTER 49……………………………………………….
A few days had passed.
Since the demon hunt, Ibellina had been living a peaceful life.
As usual, she woke up early and waited for Berry.
After a while, Berry came in carrying the washwater, as usual.
While she was washing her face, she heard a soft knock.
“I’ll get it, Your Grace,” Berry said, hurrying to open the door.
Muffled voices could be heard for a moment, and then the door closed again.
But when Berry returned, she was holding a letter in her hand.
Ibellina wiped her face with a thick towel and asked,
“What is it?”
“A letter has arrived for Your Grace.”
“A letter?”
Ibellina tilted her head. She didn’t attend social events, so she didn’t know any young ladies who might send her a letter.
“Is it not for someone else?”
“No, Your Grace. Your name is on it.”
“Who is it from?”
“Uh…”
Berry glanced at her nervously. Ibellina nodded slightly, urging her to speak, and Berry hesitated before saying,
“It’s from the House of Duke Lotsfeldt.”
“…What?”
Ibellina could hardly believe her ears. It was a completely unexpected answer.
Berry didn’t say anything more and handed the letter to her.
Ibellina hesitated for a moment before taking it.
“Shall I bring paper and a quill?”
“…I’ll ask if I need them later.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Berry finished helping with the preparations and moved to leave the room.
Then Ibellina said,
“Please keep it a secret from Arsen that I received a letter.”
“Yes, understood.”
Berry was curious why she wanted it kept secret, but since Ibellina was her mistress, she bowed and didn’t ask further.
After Berry left, Ibellina stared at the letter.
No matter how many times she looked, her father’s name written as the sender did not fade.
‘Who could be playing a prank?’
But there was no gain to be had from a joke.
“Could it really be from Father…”
Ibellina murmured to herself absentmindedly.
She hesitated for a long time, unsure whether to open the letter.
Eventually, noticing it was already time for breakfast, she placed the letter on the table and went out.
Yet throughout the meal, the letter on the table distracted her, making it hard to eat.
Noticing this, Arsen asked with concern,
“Ibellina, are you troubled by something? You don’t look well.”
“Ah… um… I guess I didn’t sleep well.”
Ibellina smiled, trying to appear nonchalant while unconsciously touching her face.
Arsen could easily tell she was lying but didn’t press her further since she clearly didn’t want to talk.
“Drinking a warm tea before bed can help if you’re likely to have nightmares.”
“Thank you for the advice. I’ll try that tonight.”
After finishing breakfast, Ibellina returned to her room.
Looking toward the table, the letter remained there.
She stood frozen, staring at it, then walked over and tried to throw it into the trash.
Since she had cut ties, there was no need to read the letter.
Yet she couldn’t bring herself to throw it away easily.
‘What if… just maybe… it’s an apology letter…?’
Though she knew it was foolish, she still held onto a faint thread of hope.
Torn between doubt and curiosity, Ibellina finally opened the letter.
It was just one page.
She took a few deep breaths and carefully unfolded the paper to read.
The more she read, the more her expression stiffened.
She let out a bitter laugh and dropped the letter from her hands.
“I shouldn’t have expected anything… How foolish of me.”
Ibellina muttered to herself in a voice mixed with self-reproach.
The letter was not an apology.
If it were a typical letter, the first line would inquire about her well-being.
But the opening contained no greetings, not even the usual pleasantries.
The content was brief: he was short on business funds and wanted her to send money.
So brazen that Ibellina couldn’t help but laugh.
The letter became crumpled in her hands.
She had already thought she’d been hurt enough, yet here came another blow.
She tossed the letter into the trash, not even calling Berry, since it wasn’t worth replying to.
A couple more letters came after that, but she didn’t read them.
Since she didn’t read them, there was no chance of a reply.
She thought ignoring them would be the end, but someone unexpectedly appeared at the Grand Ducal House.
It was her older brother, Adrian Lotsfeldt.
Recently, Duke Lotsfeldt had been struggling with his business funds.
Until recently, his business had been going smoothly, but suddenly, everything hit a wall.
Even selling the mines he received from the Grand Ducal House wasn’t enough to cover his expenses.
He had no choice but to borrow money from another noble.
Though it bruised his pride, he had no choice but to put out the immediate fire.
Yet the more he borrowed, the worse the business became, and the debts piled up.
He was agonizing over what to do when a knock came, and the butler entered.
Bowing his head, the butler approached.
“Master, a letter has arrived from the House of Ruffel, Marquis.”
“Hand it over.”
The Duke snatched the letter from the butler with an annoyed motion.
Too impatient to carefully open it, he tore it roughly.
The butler sighed, concerned by the Duke’s change in demeanor.
The Duke read the letter quickly.
“Ha…”
A sigh escaped him naturally.
The letter politely reminded him that the repayment deadline for the borrowed money was approaching and he shouldn’t miss it.
The Duke bit his lips hard.
If things continued this way, the House of Lotsfeldt could face bankruptcy.
A prestigious house like theirs could not collapse over something so trivial.
The butler, cautious, spoke up.
“Master… may I say something?”
“What is it?”
“Perhaps you could send a letter asking the Grand Duchess for help?”
The Duke’s eyes instantly sharpened.
“You mean I should grovel to that girl and ask for money?”
“Eh? No, that’s not what I mean!”
“I can handle this myself, so stop with the nonsense and leave.”
The butler flinched at the harsh words but bowed and left the office.
The Duke slumped back in his chair, muttering,
“Damn…”
He knew there was no other solution.
Although their last encounter had ended poorly, Ibellina wouldn’t have abandoned family ties.
“She said we’re not family, but that was surely said in anger,” he muttered with a scoff.
He wasted no time and wrote a letter to Ibellina.
Skipping pleasantries, he went straight to the point and called the butler.
“Send this to the Grand Ducal House.”
“Yes, Master.”
The butler took the letter and left.
Though it would take some time for the letter to reach the north, it was worth waiting if it meant solving all the debts.
Weeks passed after the courier returned, but no one came to the Grand Ducal House with a reply.
The Duke began pressing the butler.
“Are you sure the letter was delivered properly?”
“Yes, Duke. The courier confirmed it was delivered without issue.”
The Duke tapped his fingers irritably on the desk.
“Apparently, the Grand Duke opposes it. He doesn’t like me, after all.”
“That may be the case, sir.”
“I’ll send another letter. If I show urgency, she’ll just push back.”
“Yes, Master.”
The Duke wrote another letter quickly.
As the repayment deadline approached, he also included a warning that he would come to the north personally if no reply was sent.
Still, no reply came.
The Duke trembled with anger and slammed his fist on the desk.
“It’s no use. I’ll have to go myself.”
The deadline was about a week away—a tight schedule—but using Warp at the Imperial Palace would give him enough time.
“I’ll go to the Imperial Palace immediately.”
“I will prepare the carriage.”
The butler bowed and hurried out.
It wasn’t rude since it had been mentioned in the letter that he would go himself.
The Duke put on his coat and went outside, coincidentally meeting Adrian.
“Father, where are you going?”
“Just… to the north for a while.”
“To the north?”
“Yes.”
The Duke nodded with a grim expression.
After thinking for a moment, Adrian said,
“Father, I will go instead.”
“What?”
“I will go to the north in your place.”
“It’s too dangerous.”
The Duke refused firmly.
But Adrian was persistent.
“You are busy with important matters, Father. It’s only right that I go for something so trivial.”
“Adrian…”
“Leave it to me.”
Adrian’s green eyes were resolute.
Indeed, the Duke was currently extremely busy.
“I will be careful and return safely.”
“…Very well.”
Ultimately, the Duke nodded.
If Adrian went to the north instead, it would reduce his workload considerably.
Since a Warp required the Emperor’s permit, the Duke and Adrian went together to the Imperial Palace.
After requesting an audience, the Duke said to Adrian,
“I’ll be quick. Wait outside the audience chamber.”
“Yes, Father.”
Soon, the Chamberlain informed him that the audience was approved, and the Duke followed him inside.
A short while later, the Duke emerged, handing a piece of paper to Adrian.
It was the Warp permit.
“Take this. Be careful.”
“Yes. I’ll return shortly.”
Adrian hurried toward the Warp location.
He showed the permit to the knight at the entrance and stepped inside, seeing a large magic circle.
As he stood on it, the circle hummed and began to glow.
He squeezed his eyes shut as the light grew brighter.
He felt weightless and nauseous as the world spun.
Adrian groaned, slowly opening his eyes.
The scenery around him had completely changed.
He was standing in a northern temple, surrounded by a cool, chilling air.
