Chapter 67

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: An Offer You Can't Refuse (4)
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He said, as if spitting out the words.

“She was thrown out.”

“What?”

“She was thrown out of the Pendleton house.”

Mr. Fairfax looked at him, aghast.

“What are you talking about? Thrown out? Miss Pendleton, who served Lady Abigail for twelve years, was thrown out? Does that make any sense?”

“Of course it doesn't. But that damned head of the Pendleton family, Gerald Pendleton, did the unthinkable. Not only did he try to sell his own niece to an old man her father's age, but he stomped on her hands until they were bruised to force her to accept the proposal. On top of that, he forged the will to leave Miss Pendleton penniless and kick her out! That damn bastard!”

Ian Dalton shouted, grinding his teeth. Fairfax saw his expression twist into that of a wild beast.

“Hey, calm down first. Let's find Miss Pendleton. Does the maid know where she went?”

He shook his head. Mr. Fairfax's stomach twisted with worry for Miss Pendleton.

“Maybe she went to a friend's house…”

“She must have hidden somewhere no one knows. She's the type of principled young lady who would rather die than impose on others. She's probably just silently accepting her situation right now. Damn it. Where do I even start looking…?”

As they passed a bookstore, Ian had the carriage stop. He went inside. He came back out with a London travel guide. Seeing Ian striding down the pavement instead of getting back in the carriage, William quickly alighted.

“Are you going to start by checking the inns?”

Ian said nothing.

“Hey, let me help you. There must be over a hundred places. How are you going to find her all by yourself?”

“You have something else to do. Find Lady Abigail's will executor and her lawyer. Find out if what I heard is true.”

“Hey, at least take my carriage, will you?”

He ignored Fairfax's words, hailed a passing hackney carriage, and disappeared.

William returned home and used his various business connections to track down Lady Abigail's lawyer and the executor of her will. It wasn't an easy task, as Lady Abigail had always handled her affairs discreetly.

But he eventually found them. Mr. Richard Royden of the Royden law office. And Mr. Paul Nayes, a close friend of Lady Abigail's, who was once a baronet but had fallen from grace due to bad investments.

Mr. Fairfax learned that both men had been in dire financial straits. Mr. Royden appeared to be a respectable lawyer, but for the past year, he had been struggling with a gambling addiction. Mr. Nayes, whose family had fallen three years prior, was living with his wife and children in a commercial district, barely scraping by, selling whatever he could write—from society gossip for tawdry papers to shoddy novels.

Mr. Fairfax frequented the gentlemen's clubs, gathering information to see if there had been any recent changes in their financial situations.

Meanwhile, Ian searched all over for Miss Pendleton, from morning till night. He would leave at dawn and not return until after midnight, and sometimes, he wouldn't come back at all.

Then, one afternoon a few days later, he burst into his office and shouted without preamble.

“Where is Miss Hyde living now?”

“What?”

“I asked where she's living!”

“Uh, a ladies' boarding house near Fleet Street. But why?”

Ian thought for a moment, then asked.

“What's the name of the publishing house Miss Hyde works for?”

“Hey, why are you suddenly asking all these questions about Miss Hyde? Tell me the reason first.”

“I found Miss Pendleton. She's staying alone in an absurdly shabby inn. I'm going to ask Miss Hyde to let her stay with her. Now tell me!”

Mr. Fairfax quickly told him the name of Miss Hyde's publishing house. He then dashed out of the office like the wind.

He had heard what happened next during his walk with Miss Hyde earlier. Ian had sought her out, explained Miss Pendleton's situation, and very politely asked her to take her in at her boarding house. Miss Hyde said that's when she realized Mr. Dalton had feelings for Miss Pendleton.

And so, after finding Miss Pendleton through this series of events, Ian had finally succeeded in creating a nonexistent governess position to bring her to his sister's estate.

Mr. Fairfax asked his tenacious friend sitting across from him.

“Alright, Miss Pendleton's situation is settled for now. But what about Gerald Pendleton's affair? The lawyer and that executor?”

The circumstantial evidence was clear: both Lawyer Royden and Mr. Nayes had suddenly come into a large sum of money. Mr. Nayes had moved into a much nicer house, and Mr. Royden had recovered his carriage and home, which had been seized due to debt. But was there proof the money came from Gerald Pendleton?

“I'm going to investigate the source of their funds more closely. And if it turns out to be money they received for helping to steal what was rightfully Miss Pendleton's, I will make them pay for their sins.”

“How? Are you going to take them to court?”

“I won't act openly. Miss Pendleton wouldn't want me to get deeply involved in her affairs.”

“Then?”

“I'll make it so they can't earn a living anywhere, not in the legal world, not in publishing. Since they were swayed by a bit of money to steal a woman's rightful inheritance, they deserve to experience having their own futures blocked.”

Mr. Fairfax nodded. It was a brutal plan, but he felt a sense of relief. He was just glad his friend wasn't planning to shoot them. The two men had committed a crime that could have easily landed them in prison; this punishment was merciful by comparison.

Now, Mr. Fairfax's gaze shifted to a more serious matter.

“What about Earl Gerald Pendleton?”

Ian was silent. Mr. Fairfax could not read his friend's expression.

He grew anxious. Ian was a chronic hothead who couldn't stand things that vexed him, but when he was truly furious, his face would become expressionless like this. He was enraged.

“…You're not going to kill him, are you?”

“That would be too easy.”

“Then?”

Ian gazed out the window for a moment before speaking quietly.

“William. What do you think of this country's aristocracy?”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Don't you think they enjoy outrageous privileges compared to their duties?”

“…Well, I don't think so. The nobility all have distinguished ancestors who contributed to Britain. I admit they can be somewhat arrogant and self-indulgent… but still, if privileges weren't passed down to their descendants, who would sacrifice for the country?”

“If they want to inherit their ancestors' achievements, they should also bear their duties to society. The nobility do nothing but use their titles to continue their debauchery and evil deeds, ignoring the service expected of them as society's leaders. The British aristocracy is a garbage dump where trash that is ruining the country rolls around. Gerald Pendleton is the most foul-smelling piece of trash I have ever seen among them. For the good of this country, the Pendleton family must disappear.”

Mr. Fairfax, realizing the meaning behind his words, was stunned into a daze.

The Pendletons were an earldom with a long and storied history. And now his friend, Ian, was saying he would destroy that family. For the conservative Mr. Fairfax, who had always held the aristocracy in high esteem, this was a tremendous shock.

However, Mr. Fairfax had no intention of stopping his friend. If his own sister, Janet, had suffered the same fate as Miss Pendleton, he would have felt the same way as Ian.

He was a gentleman who was as faithful to the principle of respecting a lady as he was to his reverence for the privileged class. The atrocities Earl Gerald Pendleton had committed against Miss Pendleton were the acts of a beast that had forsaken its humanity.

Upon arriving at the townhouse, Mr. Dalton immediately packed his bags. Mr. Fairfax provided him with a carriage and a driver and saw him off. He did not utter a single word telling him not to ruin the Pendleton family.

The next afternoon, Mr. Fairfax, accompanied by his sister, went to see Miss Lance. It was to inform her that Ian, who had left her behind, had returned to Whitefield.

He had coordinated a story with his sister. They had decided to concoct an urgent reason for Ian's departure to Whitefield so as not to hurt Miss Lance's feelings. Mr. Fairfax wanted to protect his friend's reputation (though Ian himself likely wouldn't care in the slightest).

His sister, Miss Janet, willingly agreed to her brother's plan, though her desire to console the disappointed Miss Lance was far greater than her concern for Ian Dalton's reputation. As an ardent fan of Miss Lance, she was prepared to tell any lie for her goddess.

As expected, Miss Lance looked disappointed when they told her that Ian Dalton had left London. How unpleasant it must be for a gentleman she had grown close to to leave without so much as a farewell. Mr. Fairfax quickly offered the fabricated story to soothe her.

“His land agent suddenly threatened to quit, so Ian had no choice. He's a friend with a strong sense of responsibility for his estate. As he was leaving, he asked me to give you his regards. He said the time he spent with you in London was so precious he would never forget it, and that he would be counting the days until he could see you again.”

The gloom on Miss Lance's face lifted slightly.

“Really? Did he leave such a message for me?”

“Yes, of course.”

Mr. Fairfax nodded with a smile, despite feeling a slight pang of guilt. Miss Janet, who was beside him, chimed in to support her brother.

“He spoke of you several times as he was leaving. He said, 'I must see Miss Lance before I go, I must kiss her beautiful little hand and say goodbye in person.' He also said it was tearfully regrettable that the heavy duties of a family head forced him to leave London's most beautiful flower behind. And he asked me to tell you this: as soon as his estate matters are settled, he will return to London and visit the home of Baronet Lance first thing!”

Mr. Fairfax thought his sister had gone too far, but seeing Miss Lance's face instantly brighten, he couldn't bring himself to correct her. With a face blushing like a May rose, Miss Lance hosted the Fairfax siblings, and after teatime, she saw them all the way to the door.

Leaving the baronet's residence, the Fairfax siblings felt a little ashamed of their actions as they looked up at the sky, but they believed they had fulfilled their duty to their friend. It never once occurred to them that their lie had just cost Miss Lance her chance to regain her senses.

The white lie soaked into the deluded Miss Lance's heart like sweet honey.

Because of it, she wasted the golden opportunity to quell the rumors that were spreading like wildfire throughout London, lost in daydreams of a romantic reunion with Mr. Dalton and the proposal diamond he would be holding in his hand.