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There was no use for it in the wealthy Arlen estate, which was conveniently near the capital, but the sales value was good. It was cost-effective to grow, yielding a large quantity of produce in one harvest and the Arlen estate was also much closer to the north than the south. If they negotiated a good deal with the north, where they were suffering from a food shortage, their financial situation would blossom.

“Master, I am Cedric, your knight.”

The Viscount, who had no interest in learning the names of those who were lower in status than him, wasn’t entirely sure who Cedric was, and he pulled on the bell rope instead of replying. When he did, the office door opened slightly.

“I have investigated what you have ordered,” Cedric said.

It then dawned on the Viscount that it was the knight he’d ordered to investigate the northern market. He nodded his head in acknowledgment and replied, “You work fast.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“So, what did you find out?”

Cedric looked at the floor and hesitated for a moment as if he were gathering his thoughts. Raising his head to look at the Viscount, he finally said, “Firstly, I searched for places in the upper regions that distribute goods to the north. Some of those already had exclusive customers, which is a shame. The most likely area to get business from is the Acid region. I plan to send someone there later today.” The Viscount was satisfied with his speedy investigation and good work ethic, and he listened closely as Cedric’s briefing continued, “Other northern regions are very exclusive, so we will require more time to get in contact with them.”

Viscount Arlen smacked his lips together when he heard the knight say “exclusive.” In all honesty, the Arlen family had no way to make connections with the north until now, and he told the knight, “I have decided on my marriage.”

“With which region?”

“The north.” Suddenly, the Viscount’s expression lit up as he remembered that Ilyin had gone to the north.

***

Milo had been frequenting the north less and less of late. It was getting bitter-cold, and it was a time when traffic to the north slowed down due to the unbearable conditions. However, his destination was not the northern region but rather, Biflten.

“It is the first time I am traveling around like this in April,” Milo said as his mouth opened wide while he yawned. The heavy blizzards which occurred during April in Biflten were hard to endure. Even for those from the Winter region. And the roads were almost unusable because of the thick ice and snow.

“Me too,” the clerk replied.

Other than the cold, Milo had no complaints. The Winter region didn’t have enough people to take care of the sunny people. And they couldn’t feed the Duchess the harsh herbs of the Winter region since she hadn’t even adjusted to the region’s cold weather as yet.

For some reason, Milo recalled his conversation at the palace.

“Let us talk inside,” the Duchess had said.

“M-m-me?” He’d stuttered

“Yes.”

“Do you mean to enter the Duchess’s room in front of Delroses maids?” Someone else had asked.

The Duchess’s innocent suggestion had almost put Milo at death’s door last time. After that incident, Milo did his best to avoid going to the Winter region. Even with the food distribution this winter, he had planned to send someone else because he was aware of how his master watched him, which made him feel uncomfortable in his skin.

“We loaded our supply with herbs, so I shouldn’t have to go up there for a while,” Milo said as he spread his body across his black leather chair.

“They have contacted us again,” the clerk informed him.

Milo jumped out of his seat. “What did they say?”

The clerk replied with a calm expression, “It’s not a summons. You can relax.”

Milo wondered why he wasn’t getting straight to the point and narrowed his eyes at the clerk. He then slumped his shoulders and brushed his hand through his hair as he asked, “What is it then?”

“It’s an order to look into the Duchess’s maternal family.”

“Maternal family?” They had ordered him to investigate Viscount Arlen not so long ago. When he’d looked into the Viscount’s background for the first time, there was nothing that had stood out which was of particular importance. However, when they delved deeper into the family history, they’d uncovered a sinister secret. The workers at the estate had all been replaced by new staff members approximately twenty years ago, and when he’d tried to investigate those workers, he’d discovered that they’d all died or disappeared. He couldn’t help but find this extremely suspicious.

The events had occurred around the time when the Viscountess’s madness had begun, which was probably why his master had ordered him to continue his search now. It seemed like there was more to this story than had met the eye, and Milo’s mind raced as he tried to find a connection between the two. “Good,” he replied as he fell into thought.

The Viscount’s family didn’t have much to do with the north. If he wanted to learn about the family’s internal affairs, rather than just news from external sources, contact with them would be essential. But that meant exposing himself to the family. Up until this point, there had been little risk of Milo getting caught by the Viscount.

Because his investigation had focused on the staff who’d already left the Arlen estate he’d been under the radar. However, inspecting the family made the risk of being found out greater. No matter how weak Viscount Arlen’s sources of information were, Milo needed a way to approach the family without setting off alarm bells.

Suddenly, there was another knock at the door. “Sir Milo, someone is here to meet you for an important matter.”

The situation felt familiar, and Milo tilted his head as he asked, “Who?”

“He says he is from the Arlen estate, and he wants to suggest a deal.”

Milo thought he had many visitors today and sighed heavily. “Come in.” The person walking in this time was not from Biflten, but a clerk from the sunny lands, who knew nothing about the Winter region.

Milo looked up at the visitor and realized at that moment that the job was going to be easier than he’d thought.