Chapter 26

“That’s….”

When Casius looked at Briseyes with surprise, she responded with a cold expression.

“You have big dreams, Cal.”

“I should have big dreams. I’m going to be Emperor.”

“Such a big dream that it lacks realism.”

“The ability to turn unrealistic things into reality is what makes someone capable. I am a capable person.”

Briseyes looked out the window again as if ending the conversation.

Casius found it fascinating how she treated his lord with such disrespect while seemingly training him like an animal.

The Callisten he had seen on the battlefield was the Battlefield Demon incarnate.

Anyone who had encountered him even once on the battlefield would find it awkward to see him in the capital, especially in front of Briseyes, appearing careless and engaging in wordplay.

Casius could still vividly picture the terrifying image of the man even with his eyes closed.

The image of him slaughtering Biaten’s knights and cutting off the Emperor’s head.

He was a remarkable person, as if his nobility couldn’t be tainted even by armor covered in blood. It was understandable why the former Emperor hated him out of jealousy.

Callisten was a great man who couldn’t be tainted by anything.

Wars he participated in always ended in victory, his mysterious tactics could never be predicted or blocked, and he was the protagonist of an undefeated myth writing unprecedented history.

It was also surprising that he was only twenty years old.

“When I marry you, I’ll have about twenty children.”

“Who said they would give birth for you? And childbirth is entirely a woman’s sacrifice. Why are you, a man, deciding this?”

What was even more surprising was how he immediately agreed with Briseyes’s words, smiling as if he were harmless.

“You’re right. I’d be happy if you just married me. Should we adopt twenty children instead?”

“Who said they would marry you?”

“You just said you would.”

“That was hypothetical.”

“I’d like to create a happy family.”

“I’m not talking to you anymore.”

He kept smiling with crescent-moon eyes every time she spoke.

On the battlefield, he only smiled when beheading enemy generals.

“Bri, I’m in pain again.”

“Keep being in pain. I hope you’ll be in pain forever.”

“Really? Can I keep doing this forever?”

The strange sound of metal friction coming from Callisten and the sound of horse hooves as the carriage moved were making Casius’s head spin.

“Bri? Won’t you answer me?”

Briseyes looked out the window without responding to his words, as if she were fed up.

“I know you’re listening even if you don’t answer. Your profile is so beautiful too.”

“Please stop.”

“I can’t stop.”

“I like quiet men.”

“I’ll be quiet from now on.”

Casius suddenly looked at Briseyes.

“Bri really resembles Gael a lot.”

Her expression softened at his words.

“Why suddenly bring that up?”

“It just came to mind. That’s why this time feels so precious to me.”

He changed the subject as if telling them not to fight, and Briseyes found his gentle nature quite appealing.

“Gael and I had similar personalities too.”

“Then you and I would become the best of friends.”

“I think so. I feel comfortable with you too, Kaz.”

Callisten was about to join their conversation but decided against it. What Gael meant to Briseyes was something that carried great weight for him as well.

Casius was the first to arrive at his mansion and get off the carriage.

“It’s an honor to be escorted by you, Your Highness.”

“See you tomorrow.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“See you tomorrow, Kaz.”

“Yes, Bri.”

After Casius got off, Callisten moved closer to Briseyes and pressed his shoulder against hers. She remained still, knowing that even if she moved away, he would just lean in.

When the carriage started moving again, he spoke.

“Let’s go to the dance party together.”

“I’m going with Demian.”

It was a lie. Briseyes had left Demian to Delilah and was planning not to attend. Otherwise, she had been thinking of asking Casius to go with her.

She hadn’t realized having a private conversation with Casius would be this difficult.

She sighed as she looked at Callisten, who was rubbing his hair against her shoulder.

“This will be my first dance party. So come with me. You’ve been to many with the Grand Duke.”

“You’ve been to many balls.”

“Each time without a partner.”

Briseyes knew how annoying he would be if she rejected him outright.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Really?”

“Yes. But if you pressure me, I’ll reject you immediately. Give me time to think.”

“Yes, I will. I’ll never pressure you.”

When Callisten smiled and said that, Briseyes felt her tension release. Then she unconsciously said:

“Cal.”

“Yes?”

“Go sit over there.”

“Okay.”

He moved to sit across from her as if he would obey her words well. When he changed seats, she thought she had made a mistake. He continued to stare at her intensely.

She realized that having him stare at her from across was much more disturbing than from beside her.

Eventually, she got off at the Mays Grand Duke’s residence.

Callisten deliberately got off the carriage and escorted her to the main building.

As if to make the servants see and understand his warning.

As if warning the former Grand Duchess of Mays.

Then he left as well.

⁕⁕⁕

Briseyes remembered several parts of «Delilah: Mistress of the Grand Duke’s House».

Those memories were helping her greatly in running her business.

“Ferandis Trading Company has submitted a report.”

Upon returning to the mansion, Briseyes discussed business with her aide before starting her Academy studies.

“The trading company master is outside. Shall I let him in?”

“Yes, please.”

Soon, the aide went out and returned with the trading company master.

“Your Grace!”

As soon as the Ferandis trading company master entered, she looked at Briseyes with an excited face and said:

“Could Your Grace possibly be a saintess? Is that how you know everything?”

Briseyes couldn’t help but smile at the trading company master’s words.

“If I were a saintess, I would have gone to the temple instead of making money.”

“That’s right!”

The Ferandis trading company master continued with an excited face:

“Have you read the report?”

“Yes, I called you because I wanted a detailed explanation.”

“Hehe, it’s an honor.”

The aide smiled slightly as if already knowing the trading company master’s true identity.

“I told you that you could dress comfortably when coming here.”

“I came straight after finishing work!”

The Ferandis trading company master appeared to be a man on the outside. However, she was actually a woman who dressed as a man because it was more convenient for business. She was small in stature with cute freckles on her face, resembling a puppy.

“As Your Grace instructed, we found the area below Lubent Peak in the Ecantes Mountains suspicious, so I took workers there to dig!”

“Well done.”

“Actually, you told us to purchase the land first before digging, which took some time. But after digging, I’m glad we bought it in advance!”

As the Ferandis trading company master clenched her fist and waved it in the air while speaking, Briseyes’s expression softened because she really looked like a puppy.

“What kind of mine was it?”

Briseyes knew that the mine there was originally a massive sapphire mine discovered by Delilah in the original work.

“A sapphire mine!”

“My goodness, I see. Have you confirmed the deposit amount?”

“Enough not to worry for the next 30 years.”

“I see.”

Briseyes also knew that even after those 30 years, more sapphires would be discovered in the mines below.

“Well done.”

“And… I did well as you instructed!”

This time, the Ferandis trading company master lowered her voice.

“I purchased it under Your Grace’s nominee account so the Grand Duke won’t know, so don’t worry!”

“Yes.”

Briseyes was thorough in such matters. Normally, she would have transferred these shares to Demian. However, she was now preparing for divorce.

She signed the documents and then wrote something more at the bottom.

Then she handed it to the Ferandis trading company master.

“Your Grace?”

“What’s written below is an expression of gratitude for your hard work. I hope you won’t refuse it.”

The amount written was much larger than expected.

“This much, much money? For me? I’m just a commoner!”

“Whether commoner or noble, you should receive proper compensation for a difficult task. Who wouldn’t know that you worked the hardest to find that mine?”

“B-but giving me shares of the mine is too generous!”

“It’s not too generous. Right, Aide Memphis?”

“Yes, I agree with Your Grace. Considering that you spent half a year digging around, I think it’s a fair price.”

It took half a year just to find this sapphire mine. Although she knew the approximate location, finding the exact spot was due to the trading company master’s ability.

And after discovering it, the trading company master honestly reported everything to Briseyes.

“I will prioritize delegating the mining and distribution rights of sapphires to Ferandis Trading Company. Please select the workforce with my aide and submit a report by next week.”

“Yes, Your Grace! Thank you so much! Thank you, Your Grace!”

The Ferandis trading company master bowed several times before leaving.

With this, Briseyes completely eliminated her worries about the enormous legal costs she would need for her divorce.

She smiled with satisfaction and asked Aide Memphis:

“By the way, has the ruby mine in Endar reduced its production?”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

Aide Memphis was loyal only to Briseyes, not to the Philia Marquis family or the Mays Grand Duke family. Like the Ferandis trading company master, he was directly employed by Briseyes.

“Is Mother still saying she wants the Endar mine?”

“Don’t even mention it. You have no idea how much she tormented me this morning after you left for school.”

The ruby mine in Endar was about to be depleted.

“I see, that’s good information.”

That’s why Briseyes really enjoyed this situation. She thought she might be able to sell it to the Mays matriarch at an absurdly high price.