I Inherited a Beautiful Wife and a Territory - Chapter 82

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Inheriting a Beautiful Wife and Estate Episode 082

82. Turn Their Hearts

-Your lordship’s virtue has reached 10, awakening a dormant skill

-You can now use the lord skill ‘Benevolent Ruler’

Text appearing before Cliff.

[Benevolent Ruler]

-Beloved by the people, receives loyalty from retainers, and earns praise throughout history.

-Uses mana to gain recognition from those around you.

-Discernment (Virtue 10 or higher): Distinguishes hostility or favor from specific targets

-??(Virtue 15 or higher)

-??(Virtue 20 or higher)

-??(Virtue 30 or higher)

-??(Virtue 50 or higher)

-??(Virtue 70 or higher)

-??(Virtue 100 or higher)

When you get a skill, trying it out once is the golden rule.

‘Benevolent Ruler…’

A skill structured similarly to Domain Declaration.

Just being conscious of it activated the skill. As the skill was used, Cliff saw something strange.

‘Oh. Auras.’

He could see auras around each person.

They were mostly gray, green, or blue in color. Each time he looked at those colors, he could feel the emotions they represented.

‘With this, there’s no worry about being deceived.’

Perhaps if he’d had this skill, rooting out spies would have been much easier. Of course, Voltif might still have been difficult to find.

But if he had been certain from the start that there were no more spies among the serfs, reaching this point would have been somewhat faster.

This thought was doubled when he faced Voltif again.

‘His insides are pitch black.’

A black aura flowing from him.

No need to interpret it. He could intuitively feel how the man viewed him.

“Did the Serpal Family send you?”

He asked with conviction already in his voice. Hearing his words, the man gave no particular answer.

“You bastard, answer his lordship’s words…!”

“No. It’s fine.”

Cliff stopped the interrogator who was shouting from the side.

Voltif, who had been watching them, finally opened his mouth that had been shut tight.

“Whatever you say about my origins, you’ve already decided on the answer, haven’t you?”

It was the moment he opened his mouth.

‘Oh? Is this possible too?’

Black smoke, or aura, came out like breath and then dispersed.

Cliff looked into Voltif’s eyes.

Subtle, but there was wavering in his pupils.

“Heh. Don’t get comfortable just because you caught me.”

The discernment ability he had received was truly remarkable.

Even without knowing the opponent’s exact thoughts, he could read the emotions of whoever was speaking to him.

‘Does he want to provoke me?’

A statement he made to try to provoke him.

“I’m not the only one sent to this domain. If you release me, I’ll tell you that information and their missions.”

Cliff’s eyes lit up.

He already knew there wasn’t just one spy. But Voltif probably thought he was the only one caught.

Or even if there were more, he’d think Cliff hadn’t caught them all.

‘Unless the Dark Elf had monitored each one individually, it would have been difficult to find them all.’

In fact, he had missed about half at first.

Voltif proposed to hand over information about them. He was already being cooperative even without proper interrogation (torture) yet.

Naturally, Voltif’s attitude didn’t inspire trust.

“Aren’t you being too wishy-washy?”

“Heh. Don’t you have Shadows with you? Shadows are the ultimate specialists in this field. I have no intention of being interrogated by such people.”

He had only seen Lin alone.

But Voltif seemed already convinced that he had other Dark Elves under his command, not just her.

Cliff shrugged his shoulders.

“Even in this situation, you seem curious about whether I have other Dark Elves?”

Specialist suited him better.

The way he was trying even in this situation to glean any information from him.

Hearing Cliff’s point, he flinched and trembled.

“It doesn’t work. But it would really be good to make a deal with me.”

“Speak.”

“First, swear. That you’ll send me back safely. I’ll speak after that.”

Cliff shook his head.

He had no intention of sending back an opponent who still emanated black currents. The opponent also knew information about Dark Elves being by his side.

“I’ll listen to what you say and then judge.”

At Cliff’s words, Voltif raised the corners of his mouth.

“You shouldn’t be so leisurely, should you? They have magical artifacts. And they’ve already infiltrated deep into your domain.”

Magical artifacts.

An unexpected word came out. If there really were magical artifacts, even ordinary people could commit tremendous acts.

Black words flowed smoothly from Voltif’s mouth.

“I’ll leave it to your imagination what power those magical artifacts might contain. As well as the missions they’re carrying out.”

Cliff gave up listening to more of his words.

Continuing to listen would only make him restless. Cliff looked at him and asked.

“Let me hear just one thing. How many did you infiltrate?”

“Heh. You’ve probably easily caught about five or six already. Maybe you’ve caught up to ten. But what about twenty?”

He didn’t need to hear more.

Cliff stopped conversing with him.

The black breath coming from his mouth told him that everything he was saying now was a ‘lie.’

‘Continuously using the skill is tiring… but at least I’ve definitely seen the skill’s effect.’

As he first thought, there would be no chance of being deceived.

That wasn’t all.

Voltif thought it wouldn’t be easy. But the spies mixed among the serfs in the domain.

Cliff hadn’t touched them yet.

It would be troublesome if he carelessly touched them and the last remaining puzzle piece ran away or hid.

‘So until now I’ve only been monitoring through Shadows… but with this level of ability, wouldn’t other plans really be possible too?’

Cliff glanced at Voltif.

This person was impossible.

He wasn’t someone who would say what he wanted just because of threats. But there was no guarantee the rest would be the same.

With appropriate threats and persuasion, appeasement might be possible.

The so-called reformation project.

He wouldn’t have executed it without the skill.

‘They say human hearts are unknowable.’

But now he could know.

Whether the opponent was lying to him, or whether they held hostility toward him, and so on.

If the opponent’s emotions completely changed to favor, he thought it might be okay to trust them. As he had such thoughts, a Quest appeared too.

【Turn Their Hearts】

Content: You have discovered the identities of all the spies who came from outside. Now you have the option to either eliminate them all or win them over.

Win their hearts and change their feelings toward you to a fresh green color

Conditions

-Convert 6 or more spies (0/6)

Rewards

-Estate experience 50

-Lord experience 100

-Virtue +1

‘Nice.’

Now he could double-check through the Quest.

Cliff returned.

On his way back, Cliff pondered his approach.

‘How should I proceed with winning them over?’

Should he capture them first?

Then afterward, reveal to them that he knew their identities. To the shocked spies, he would quietly offer them a way to live.

However.

‘This also feels like poking a hornet’s nest.’

There would be people it wouldn’t work on.

Like in novels he used to read, there might be people who would commit suicide.

‘Then in the end, I’ll have to use the sunshine policy…’

The story where it was the warm sun, not the fierce wind, that made the traveler remove his coat.

Cliff, who had returned, looked at the serfs. The spies mixed among them were emitting black auras, just as Voltif had.

It was clearly different from the rest who emitted harmless blue auras.

‘Still, their aura colors seem lighter than Voltif’s.’

He had thoughts about the method. However, this matter was difficult to decide on his own. He needed someone’s help.

And just then, that person approached Cliff.

A silver-haired woman holding a blonde boy in her arms. The moment he saw her, the corners of Cliff’s mouth rose.

“You’re back?”

“Yeah.”

She approached him with a slightly shy expression. She tried to greet Cliff with the kiss he had taught her on the day they first met.

However, this was stopped by someone unexpected.

“Wah wah!”

Apollo, who he thought was sleeping in her arms, interfered.

In the end, both Cliff and Priscilla chuckled.

“Alright. I won’t do it. But you can’t stay in your mother’s arms anymore either.”

Cliff took Apollo who had been in Priscilla’s arms.

Fortunately, he wasn’t fussy with strangers, so Apollo didn’t cry or anything.

“Where’s Temi?”

“Leticia is taking care of her right now.”

“I see.”

Hearing that his daughter was doing well, Cliff checked on Apollo.

‘He seems to have gotten much heavier…’

Would walking still be too much for him?

He could feel the weight of the chubby child throughout his body. Perhaps because of this, he could sense relief from her after handing Apollo over.

Priscilla parted her small lips and spoke to Cliff.

“About this festival.”

“Yeah. What about the festival?”

He also had something he wanted to say to her about the festival.

But he had left the festival to her. So this time, he planned to just listen to what she had to say.

“Since many new people have come recently, I’d like to hold the festival on a larger scale than before.”

Cliff’s eyes changed as he listened to her words.

Many new people had come. He could guess who these new people were.

‘The serfs sent by Serpal.’

He wasn’t sure about later, but this estate didn’t have a bad perception of slaves. Even commoners viewed slaves as equals to themselves.

The same went for serfs.

So getting along wasn’t difficult.

‘Since many strangers came at once, there would be some wariness and awkwardness.’

The means to resolve this was precisely the festival.

And those who would be most wary of strangers yet could quickly become friends were children.

“Also, this time I was thinking if there might be a way for the children to become friends first.”

When children become friends, their parents also grow closer.

He could read Priscilla’s thinking.

Cliff nodded.

“That sounds like a good idea.”

Great minds think alike.

Though there were also cases of different dreams in the same bed, with her it felt like their thoughts connected without words. Without him giving any hints, she was trying to welcome the newcomers through this festival.

Games that children could play together.

And then a way for adults to become friends with each other too.

“Um. So about that…”

“Do you have something you want to say?”

“Well…”

Priscilla hesitated, unable to speak immediately.

Actually, he already knew why she was hesitating and watching his reaction like this.

“Because of the budget?”

At his words, Priscilla flinched and then nodded.

“…Yes.”

Food was essential for festivals.

And if adults were to become friends with each other, ‘alcohol’ couldn’t be left out.

She mentioned this.

“Budget aside, this time… I’d like to try brewing alcohol.”

Drinking could lead to accidents.

But moderate drinking could bring distant people closer together.

In this land where food was always scarce, alcohol was considered sinful. But now that had become a thing of the past.

“Alcohol… that’s good too.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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