Please Support My Revenge - Chapter 47

“The mine was originally mine. I’m trying to buy it back after selling it for a low price by mistake, but interfering like this…”

Marlon spoke with determination.

“Number 9 belongs to Evelentia,” Jade calmly responded to Marlon’s words.

“But that part seems a bit strange.”

“What do you find strange about it?” Jade inquired.

“You intend to buy the mine again. Shouldn’t Catherine express her intention to sell the mine if you want to buy it back?”

Jade raised an eyebrow in puzzlement.

“If you were a sane businessman, you wouldn’t give up Number 9 mine, which will bring in enormous profits in the future, right?”

Marlon was momentarily at a loss for words.

“I tried to keep this as discreet as possible, fearing that something like this might happen!”

Regret shone in Marlon’s eyes, but it was too late. He had never expected Jade Ferrado, someone of this caliber, to suddenly intrude and uncover the whole story.

Jade observed Marlon, who had stiffened, with a relaxed gaze and turned to Catherine.

“Catherine, why are you trying to sell the mine again?”

“That’s…” as she had prepared in advance, Lobelia meekly nodded.

Nobles seemed to be paying attention to this side. Lobelia spoke with a somber voice, but loudly enough for everyone to hear.

“Bandits attacked me.”

Lobelia shivered, not needing to feign anger when she recalled the audacious faces that had visited her that day.

“And they threatened that if I didn’t give up the mine for the people of Merdaneon, I’d face dire consequences.”

There was no need for further explanation. The nobles had started to murmur among themselves, understanding the situation.

Marlon’s face turned ashen.

“Bandits attacked her? That’s strange.”

Jade furrowed his brow.

This time, it was not an act either. Upon hearing Lobelia’s story of the bandit attack, the discomfort that had been tucked away in Marlon’s heart resurfaced, and he wanted to strike Marlon.

“For the people of Merdanion, you say? Investing in the mine and producing gold is what would benefit the people of Merdaneon the most.”

Jade glanced around the audience and concluded with a serious tone.

“Someone is pulling the strings behind this.”

A few observant nobles exchanged skeptical glances and turned their eyes to Marlon, as if saying, “Could it really be you?”

“Are you trying to lay an absurd accusation on me?”

Marlon’s face turned crimson.

“Evelentia Viscount, are you absolutely sure this isn’t your doing?”

“Absolutely not!”

Marlon stated it firmly.

While he believed that you couldn’t make a clean living in business, he didn’t want his true self to be exposed at a gathering of nobles.

The notion that rumors were circulating about someone engaging in shady activities for the sake of business was quite different from openly confessing to such deeds in front of people.

If the latter were to happen, Marlon would be in a severe crisis, risking his hard-earned reputation.

“I absolutely did not engage in such actions.”

So he had to vehemently deny it now. After all, the evidence had been entirely fabricated, and even if someone tried to uncover the truth, there was only one culprit to point to – himself.

“Can you guarantee that?”

Jade persistently asked, as if waiting for a specific answer from Marlon’s lips.

“Of course!”

“Then… can you swear?”

Finally, Jade brought up “the word.”

Marlon hesitated for a moment.

“Is there anything that could incriminate me?”

Once again, he reflected on the things he had done. But again, there was nothing. He had even delegated the task of bribing the miners to his subordinate, Rohan Viscount.

“I swear.”

Overconfident in his thoroughness, Marlon spoke loudly.

“If I’ve committed any shameful deeds during the process of regaining mine, I will unconditionally abandon all of this!”

A hush fell over the party hall. The nobles now stared at Marlon, Jade, and Lobelia alternately, their expressions filled with confusion.

“You’re speaking so decisively, but what if you’re not really innocent?”

“Bandits attacked Catherine Hayard. It’s unlikely that people from Merdaneon would do that, so there must be someone behind it.”

“But he took an oath…”

Breaking the silence, the murmurs among the nobles began to spread like ripples.

“It might be wise to remember this.”

Jade spoke with a meaningful smile.

“Lord Rohan Viscount is here!”

The usher standing at the door announced

Everyone had entered the hall, including the Duke of Ferrado, but why would Viscount Rohan show up so suddenly? The out-of-order entrance order left everyone momentarily flustered, and all eyes turned toward the door.

“…Oops.”

Rohan Viscount, who had slyly opened the door and was stepping inside, felt the weight of dozens of eyes and froze in his tracks. Everyone knew that Rohan Viscount was Marlon’s confidant, and they were curious about why he had arrived so late.

He hunched his shoulders as if he wanted to avoid the gazes of the nobles, but it was in vain.

“Why have you come? You made it clear that you couldn’t attend the party today.” Lady Evion, like the other nobles, had been watching the confrontation between Jade and Marlon, and she stepped forward to ask.

“Well, I have news that I must deliver to Viscount,” Rohan Viscount replied, dabbing his forehead with a handkerchief and wiping off a cold sweat.

The curiosity of the nobles intensified even further. They were now buzzing with anticipation, wondering what message Rohan Viscount, who had appeared at such a remarkable moment, had to deliver to Marlon.

“Viscount.”

Rohan Viscount cautiously approached Marlon, who seemed ready to pounce on him as if to devour him. He leaned in close and whispered something in Marlon’s ear.

Marlon’s face changed rapidly as he received Rohan Viscount’s report. It started by turning a reddish hue as if he were getting angry, then paled, and finally turned ashen.

“Is that… true?”

Rohan Viscount nodded apologetically.

Marlon gritted his teeth. His ashen face looked on the verge of exploding.

“You…!”

Marlon glared at Rohan Viscount with fierce eyes. His anger, the raw and unfiltered emotion, burst forth within Marlon.

That’s why he made the unexpected slip of the tongue.

“What have you been doing until the summoner arrived?”

Marlon berated Rohan Viscount, and the word ‘summoner’ in his sentence sent a ripple through the nobles.

“A summoner? Did you just say ‘summoner’?”

“Where can you send a summoner to Evelentia Viscount?”

“The palace, the temple, or the court…”

At the mention of ‘court,’ the nobles fell silent as if they had made an unspoken agreement.

“If a summons has come from the court, it means that there are suspicions against Viscount Evelentia.”

“Could it still be the work of the mastermind behind the bandits?”

“Did Miss Aina know something?”

As Marlon remained silent, the nobles suddenly shifted their attention to Aina. Aina, who had been observing the situation from outside the group surrounding Jade and Marlon, was taken aback and stepped back.

“Huh? I, I…”

Aina stuttered.

“Oh, I completely forgot about Aina’s presence.”

Lobelia belatedly remembered Aina’s presence and focused on her.

Even though Aina might lack social awareness, she seemed to understand the gravity of the situation now, clutching the hem of her dress anxiously.

Was it a mistake? Lobelia wondered if Aina’s gaze had briefly turned toward her.

However, Aina soon averted her gaze from Lobelia and approached Marlon.

“Father, what’s going on here? A summons? What does it mean?”

Aina’s trembling voice, filled with concern, snapped Marlon back to reality. He looked at his beloved daughter and sighed. He had to avoid bringing shame on himself in front of Aina.

“It’s nothing, my dear. Let’s go back. Your father will handle everything.”

For Aina’s sake, Marlon chose to make a discreet exit.

“Just a moment, Viscount Evelentia!”

“Please tell us what’s going on!”

“I don’t think I need to explain my situation to you.”

Marlon gave a cold glare to the nobles, then left the party hall with Aina. Rohan Viscount hastily pocketed his handkerchief and followed his master out.

“What on earth has happened?”

Even after Marlon had left, the nobles continued to discuss him for quite some time.

“Does Duke Ferrado know something?”

Occasionally, someone asked Jade, but he only shrugged his shoulders and offered no response.

As the night wore on, the nobles continued their discussions about Marlon until well past midnight, finally departing from the party venue.

Meanwhile, at Lady Evion’s villa, Lobelia, who had arrived at the hotel from there, looked out of the window in her room and watched the nobles’ carriages arriving at a bustling pace.

Joel stood beside her.

“Have you managed to establish contact with the newspapers?”

“Yes, I went with my father to make the report. It should be published in the morning.”

“Well done.”

Lobelia replied with satisfaction.

“We’ll have a lot to do tomorrow, so I should be on my way. You’ve done a great job escorting me today.”

Joel chuckled modestly and scratched the back of his head as if he found the situation strange.

“It’s not much at all, really. But, by the way…”

He gazed at the nobles disembarking from their carriages as if it were a curious sight.

“Even the noble lords seem just like regular folks, don’t they? They’re so interested in other people’s affairs.”

“That’s because there’s nothing as entertaining as someone else’s flaws in the world.”

Lobelia spoke with a cold tone. Having been treated as Evelentia’s blemish throughout her life, she knew well how nobles concealed their repulsive natures behind their fans and masks.

From now on, Lobelia intended to return all the humiliations she had suffered to Marlon.

“Who will dare to provoke me now?” Lobelia thought.

She wore an unpleasant expression, recalling the hoodlums who had threatened her. She clenched her fists tightly.

The more she thought about it, the more she detested Marlon. If she were just an ordinary commoner, someone with no background like “Katherine Hyerd,” then Marlon would have to obey her every command.

Marlon had the bad habit of underestimating the weak and stepping on them as he pleased.

It was about time he corrected that habit, and tomorrow would be an excellent opportunity.

The next day, a major article was published in the Merdanion daily newspaper, “Golden Time.”

Once the nobles heard that the article was about Marlon, they urgently ordered their servants to purchase the newspaper.

Those who had overslept and failed to acquire the paper came down to the hotel’s dining area and read the copies available there.

“So, what’s the story about?”

There was only one newspaper, and many wanted to read it, so not everyone had access to its contents.

“Is it about the attack by the bandits? Is it saying that Viscount Evelentia was the mastermind behind the bandits?”

People outside inquired about those inside.

But even with their eager questions, the people engrossed in reading the newspaper didn’t respond.

“Hey, if you’re going to hog the paper, at least tell us what it says!”

It was a moment when one impatient noble began to get annoyed.

“It’s not about the bandits,” the middle-aged gentleman at the front of the newspaper said.

“Not about the bandits? Then what is it?”

“Oh, this is really something.”

“Don’t keep us in suspense; just tell us!”

“Viscount Evelentia. He purchased the miners.”

The middle-aged gentleman stroked his mustache and spoke with a sigh.

“Viscount Evelentia bought the miners.”