The Baby Villain Dreams of Conquering the World

Chapter 69

Episode 69

Benio was left alone in the room again, scratching his cheek with a bewildered expression.

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Whether Isaac had decided to be more careful after his big slip of the tongue or had simply become busier, he visited Flora less frequently.

Time passed quickly, and thanks to that, Flora was spending leisurely days as if she had never been kidnapped.

"Young Lady, I've brought snacks for the sparrow."

"Ung, here."

When Daphne placed the finely crushed peanut pieces on her palm, Janet, who had been sitting on her shoulder, fluttered down and began eating the snack.

'Actually, since Janet is a demon, she doesn't need to eat anything, but she needs to show something to people.'

The process of bringing Janet into the ducal mansion wasn't particularly difficult.

Basilian had left, all the family members were busy, and suddenly a friend who appeared from nature for Flora, who was left alone...

Moreover, she was cute and adorable, and was even gentle specifically toward Flora, so she was immediately recognized as her pet.

Thanks to that, Janet, who could now proudly stay by her side, seemed quite happy.

Under the sunlight that had warmed considerably as the weather improved, a shadow fell over her head as she sat quietly.

"Now it's time for the Young Lady to have her snack too, right?"

It was Elena, who had gotten up and returned to Flora's side.

"The Head Chef baked raspberry muffins for you. He made them small so they're easy to eat."

As she said that, Elena placed a small muffin in Flora's hand. When Flora accepted it without suspicion and ate it, her happy smile looked truly joyful.

'It's a good thing Dad forgave her.'

Considering what Elena had originally done, her crime was so great that she should be grateful just for not being immediately expelled from the castle.

Although she made the wrong choice, Athanas highly valued that she had protected Flora at the cost of her life at the final moment and gave her another chance.

The fact that Flora wanted leniency for Elena also contributed significantly, making it possible.

Elena swore to God that she would dedicate her entire life to Flora and the Lucifer Ducal House.

True to a country with deep religious faith, this was considered the most meaningful oath, and thanks to that, she was receiving training from Zamira to become the next Head Maid.

Flora had felt bad about making someone who wasn't fully recovered work hard, but fortunately, she seemed happy.

'Right, it's probably better for her to stay busy anyway.'

Even after her training ends and she becomes the real Head Maid, she won't leave her side but will stay to protect her, so there shouldn't be a problem.

Flora took a bite of the muffin at once, drawn by the sweet smell that made her mouth water.

'In the past, berries just tasted sour to me. But now they taste quite sweet.'

As the sweet and refreshing flavor spread throughout her mouth, her mood automatically improved.

"More than that, I'm worried."

Brushing the muffin crumbs from the corner of Flora's mouth, Elena muttered in a serious voice.

"You should have escort knights assigned to you soon."

"Ung?"

Knights all of a sudden?

If she had something like that, it would only make moving around inconvenient.

She was about to say she didn't want them, but Daphne added her opinion in a serious voice.

"I heard the Duke is seriously considering it. Because of that, the atmosphere in the knight order is stricter than usual, I heard?"

"I heard they're conducting the screening very strictly... If the knight order's atmosphere is like that, it must be really soon then. That's good, isn't it, Young Lady?"

She had no idea what was supposed to be good about it.

When Flora looked at her with a puzzled expression, Elena laughed softly.

"If you have knights, our Young Lady will be able to go out freely now. You should broaden your horizons by exploring the village, not just inside the castle."

Although it might seem that way outwardly, from Flora's perspective, not having escorts might actually make it easier to move around outside.

"Even just in case guests come and go from the castle, it would be good to have them by your side soon."

'Hmm, there aren't any guests coming to the castle anyway, so what major incident could happen?'

It didn't take long for Flora to understand what Elena meant.

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"What are all those?"

As Flora headed to the dining hall to enjoy a late breakfast as usual, her eyes caught the sight of a long line of carriages stretched out outside the castle.

The carriages of various gorgeous colors were a sight she hadn't seen in the several months since she arrived in the ducal territory.

"Are we holding a ball?"

Flora, who had been walking along humming, shook her head at Daphne, who was following closely behind.

'Then what is that crowd?'

Having never seen guests come to the castle before, there was no way she could immediately figure it out.

She knew there was no one to hold a ball, so that couldn't be it, but no matter how much she thought about it, the only thing that would bring that many guests was a ball...

'Could it be!'

Flora's eyes widened with realization.

Her footsteps, which had been heading toward the dining hall, turned in the opposite direction, and she began running vigorously toward the office.

"Young Lady!"

At the sudden change of route, Daphne hurriedly chased after her, but Flora didn't stop.

The scenery of the ducal castle was captured in the child's rapidly passing eyes.

Unlike when she first arrived, the perfectly repaired interior of the castle without a single stone fragment, the corridors sparkling like new without a speck of dust thanks to the increased manpower, the antique decorations and curtains!

The Lucifer Castle, decorated with all kinds of precious items, looked completely proper, unlike before.

What did this mean?

It meant the business had flourished enough to spend money on the castle and manpower, and as a result, it naturally attracted attention from the surroundings.

The clothes Flora was wearing now were also incomparably prettier and of better quality than when she first arrived.

Starting from such minor changes to the complete transformation of the entire castle; there was no way others wouldn't notice!

'Well, Isaac said we're raking in money, so rumors spreading are only natural.'

The magic stone mining industry was said to be growing and prospering tremendously enough to shake the existing business hierarchy, and the existing copper and construction businesses were said to be sailing smoothly since the monsters disappeared.

The gold mine didn't even need mentioning!

'The Mercenary Guild is still in the red, which is a bit concerning... But it would be strange for a business just entering the market to immediately turn a profit. This level of investment is necessary.'

As for the Shalias trees and fruits, if they properly commercialize utilization methods that don't harm the Finny Orphanage, things will improve much more.

Ultimately, it meant there was nothing to worry about.

'Wait a minute. Why am I running?'

Thinking about it, there was no reason to rush.

The Lucifers had Isaac, who was called the Money Ghost of the ducal house.

The term "Money Ghost of Lucifer" was a nickname Flora gave him, but it became quite famous through the mouths of employees, and many people called him that.

And Isaac lived up to that nickname admirably, perfectly fulfilling the role of a money ghost.

'Right, even if I can't trust our two big bears, I can trust the Money Ghost.'

It was only natural that someone worthy of that reputation would weed out those trying to blindly take money with money ghost-like prowess, so there was no need to rush.

When Flora suddenly slowed down and then turned back in the direction she had been running from, Daphne, who was following behind, tilted her head in confusion.

"Weren't you going to the office?"

"Ung, but I'm hungry."

"Gasp, that's right! Making sure you eat properly comes first! Look at me losing my mind!"

Even though Flora was the one who started running recklessly, Daphne seemed more like the guilty one.

Flora showed a benevolent smile, saying it was okay, and turned her steps back toward the dining hall.

"What are all those carriages?"

She didn't forget to satisfy her curiosity along the way.

"I overheard that they seem to be vassals of the Lucifer Ducal House. It appears they came to verify the rumors that the Northern demon has been expelled."

"Hmm."

They remained quiet, not helping during difficult times, and then appeared as if they'd been waiting as soon as news spread that the demon was gone.

'I can't see them in a positive light no matter how I look at it.'

"Since the year is ending soon, unlike last year, they might have stopped by to pay their respects before the new year arrives. Of course, this is the first time I've seen this since I started working."

When she mentioned that most simply sent congratulatory messages for the new year by letter, Flora secretly twisted the corner of her mouth into a smile.

'Should I go check it out after all?'

She trusted Isaac, but hearing such things made her a little anxious. Flora, who almost turned her steps for a moment, shook her head again.

'...No, the Lucifers aren't children.'

No matter how weak the big bears were or how soft-hearted the Lucifers were, they were still essentially the rulers of the North, so it was premature to judge them like this.

'I'll step in only if it seems really bad.'

Flora briefly turned her gaze toward the reception room direction, then turned her head away without regret.

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"I don't understand why the inspection is taking so long."

Marquis Strode, who wielded the second most influence in the North after Lucifer, didn't hide his dissatisfaction inside the motionless carriage.

It felt like just yesterday that the procedures, from the knights guarding the territory's gate to passing the drawbridge and entering the castle took less than an hour, but now that he had finally decided to visit, he couldn't even enter the territory for half a day.

'To treat vassals who never let go of Lucifer's hand even during difficult times like this!'

It was unfair enough that he had heard news through external sources not only about the Northern demon being subjugated but also about the discovery and development of gold and magic stone mines, and now seeing them suspect and guard against vassals as if they were enemies was displeasing.

Since the news that the Lucifer Young Lady was nearly kidnapped and the news that the Duke found his daughter were kept secret outside the castle, he, unaware of the circumstances that led to the ducal house's heightened security, could only feel dissatisfied with what seemed like cold treatment.

'This is why betrayers of humanity are no good.'

If Strode, not Lucifer, were the master of the North, these territories wouldn't be played with like this, and the economy wouldn't be lagging behind.

'It would have been perfect if we had destroyed the Lucifers and our house had ruled the North from the start.'

While the Lucifers were fighting monsters to prove their innocence, he had already taken control of and was manipulating the Northern nobles, yet he felt not a shred of guilt.

That was because he believed all the punishments the Lucifers were paying and all the injustices they were suffering were deserved punishments.

Of course, when minor problems or major incidents occurred, all responsibility was passed to the Lucifers, but that wasn't something he needed to consider.

After all, shouldn't the Lucifers be grateful that their vassals hadn't abandoned the ducal house?

No trust or respect toward the Lucifers as a vassal could be found in him.

Not only Marquis Strode but most Northern nobles thought the same way.