Chapter 27

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter Title: Chapter 27

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter 27

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“...”

“If you keep avoiding me like this, won't I start thinking there's something wrong between us?”

Hayden, who had no desire to make excuses that would bruise his pride, finally asked curtly.

“What do you want?”

“I'll tell you quietly inside.”

With that, Iona pushed the door open with her palm.

The door, its lock completely detached, swung inward weakly.

“...Come in.”

Hayden permitted her entry with a look that clearly said he wanted no part of it, then stepped inside first.

Iona followed behind him, quietly taking in the surroundings.

It was a space at least twice as large as the room where Iona currently stayed.

As befitting the family head's quarters, it had excellent natural lighting and superb landscaping. Above all, it was ideally positioned for easy access anywhere in the unnecessarily sprawling mansion.

For some reason, Iona felt a pang of regret.

'This should be my room.'

Her circumstances in every aspect—what she wore, what she used—had changed completely from the days when she had lived as the head of a great family and the wife of a wealthy magnate.

She had never thought herself attached to such things, but losing what she once had felt different all the same.

She hadn't smashed the perfectly fine door just now with the intent to intimidate Hayden, either.

She had simply been irritated by the sight of him entering the room so naturally.

'I need to restrain myself a little.'

Until her goal was achieved, she needed to at least formally treat Hayden as her superior.

She couldn't afford for him to ruin things out of pointless resentment.

“So, what is it you want to say?”

Hayden spoke first, radiating an aura that screamed say your piece and get out.

His attitude was insolent, but since their views aligned for once, it strangely put her in a good mood.

Iona replied without hesitation.

“Nils sent an assassin after me.”

It hadn't happened yet, but it would soon.

Steeling herself, Iona put on a serious expression.

Thanks to that, it didn't come across as a lie—Hayden's eyes went wide.

“W-what did you say?”

Hayden's face looked utterly bewildered as he repeated the question.

It was true that springing such a weighty topic first thing in the morning felt excessive.

Iona explained slowly so he could understand easily.

“Exactly what I said. Nils is trying to kill me. The reason? Probably... my success rubbed him the wrong way. And while he's at it, eliminate the competition.”

“N-no, what kind of nonsense is this? Nils sent an assassin after you? Someone targeted you? And how do you know it was Nils?”

It was obvious he was fishing for an escape route.

Iona crushed his attempt with confident resolve.

“I caught and dealt with the assassin myself. That's how I traced it back to the culprit.”

Hayden's face drained of color.

Even in his eyes, his son was more than capable of such a deed.

Nils had plenty of ways to scrape together the funds for a hit. He often snuck into Hayden's study or the warehouses to pilfer valuables.

Hidden cash, worthless land that could be sold off without issue, unused jewelry... the methods were endless.

“I-I'm sorry, Iona. I failed to raise my children properly. For that boy to target his own sister—good grief...”

Hayden, who had been solely focused on marrying Iona off successfully to curry favor with the imperial family, immediately bowed his stiff neck.

Even as he did, his mind raced to find a way out of this mess.

He needed to quietly rein in his son to prevent even more outrageous acts—and to do that, he first had to seal Iona's mouth.

He suddenly lifted his head and said,

“R-right. Since you came to me, you must want something specific, don't you? I'll grant anything. Name it.”

His approach to salvaging the situation was efficient and straightforward, but it was missing one obvious element.

Concern for his daughter.

Even knowing she had nearly been killed, Hayden was only worried about Nils's well-being.

'Exactly as expected. Not one bit different.'

Since abandoning her family was a distant memory from beyond even her death, Iona felt no fresh sense of betrayal.

It was simply too repetitive an experience to dredge up stale emotions and pity herself.

Too annoyed even to point it out, Iona cut straight to the chase.

“I like how quickly we're getting to the point. What I want is...”

“What you want is...?”

Hayden leaned forward eagerly, awaiting her demand like a verdict.

Having fully savored his servile appearance, Iona met his eyes and said,

“You publicly announce Nils as the heir to the Modroff family. Officially.”

“...What?”

Iona couldn't help but chuckle at Hayden's dumbfounded reaction.

“It's obvious why Nils did it. He wasn't even acknowledged as heir, let alone family head, and then I get to become the duchess. Naturally, he'd harbor resentment.”

I don't want to get cut short over a misunderstanding that I'm coveting this little family of yours right before my once-in-a-lifetime marriage.

Iona added in a leisurely tone.

Yet Hayden remained frozen, at a loss.

Exercising patience, Iona provided grounds he could grasp.

“If I used this as leverage to demand something major, you'd start wondering what scheme I'm hiding, wouldn't you, Count?”

“Well, ahem...”

“I'm no schemer—I leave the brainwork to others. I don't want to get murdered out of the blue without even knowing why. If you ensure Nils never pulls something like this again, I won't make a bigger fuss.”

Hayden struggled to respond to this magnanimity he hadn't dared hope for.

By his common sense, he simply couldn't comprehend Iona's demand.

Only after a long pause did Hayden speak.

“...You're saying make Nils, who tried to kill you, the heir?”

“Of course, you'd also need to properly discipline him to ensure he behaves accordingly.”

Iona replied as if she had been waiting for the question.

Hayden thought her usually mechanical tongue sounded unusually smooth as he asked again.

“You... you really have no ambition for the family head position?”

“Would you give it to me if I asked?”

Hayden averted his gaze with a false cough at her incredulous question.

Naturally, he had no intention of handing the family over to Iona.

He hadn't officially named Nils heir yet simply to more easily manage his troublesome son.

It was also easier to hush up his mishaps if the boy remained just another retainer.

That ambiguous treatment had fueled Iona's sense of inferiority.

“Half the reason Nils tormented me was always his inferiority complex. The other half is my different bloodline—something I can't do anything about.”

Hayden turned away, pretending not to hear the uncomfortable remark.

He always called her lowly blood when disparaging her, but he couldn't entirely ignore that her birth stemmed from him.

“Last time, you scolded me harshly, and I lost my temper and said something crazy. But I'm leaving home soon anyway—what does it matter? If it's a position I can't have, better to hand it over quickly and dispel needless suspicions.”

With this plausible explanation, the doubt on Hayden's face gradually eased.

Come to think of it, there was nothing particularly strange about Iona making such a proposal.

She had been showing some cheek lately, but at heart, she was an obedient girl.

'Well, she's about to become a duchess. I've treated her too poorly up to now.'

With her position now incomparable to before, she must have finally reached her limit with the mistreatment.

It wasn't pleasant that the nose he had kept low was now pointing skyward, but it wasn't something he could block forever.

Better to readjust their relationship amicably at this point—for his own benefit, too.

Having sorted his thoughts, Hayden replied in a gentle tone.