The Search for the Duchess’s Husband - Chapter 124

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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In Search of the Duke’s Husband – Episode 124

What a woman needed was to adorn herself, maintain her household, and obey her husband.
Following Father’s creed, I had learned much to become an elegant and beautiful lady. But nowhere in that education was there instruction on asset management.
It remained the same even after I became the Duchess.
I had learned to calculate accounts and maintain ledgers to manage the household, but my knowledge extended only to the most basic level.
Evangeline smiled bitterly, as though she knew it all too well.
“I was the same way.”
As a woman who had married into another house, Evangeline originally had no right to view these ledgers.
But after my divorce, my three younger brothers, who took over managing the accounts in place of the head of house, constantly complained.
That Benedict and Lloyd had squandered everything, that the finances were in utter ruin.
“Sister, please help us.”
Thanks to them presenting the ledgers so insistently, Evangeline was able to see the accounts of House of Edenberg for the first time. And she came to understand clearly.
“It was far worse than I expected.”
The situation was already grim, yet it proved even bleaker than anticipated.
I steeled myself to remain unshaken regardless of what I might discover, and turned to the first page of the ledger.
The ledger, filled with technical terms and figures, was far more difficult to comprehend than the documents that had listed information about people.
I marked sections I didn’t understand and asked Evangeline about them, or searched for specialized texts, reading through methodically.
After ten days of reading through the thick ledger, I spoke with a sorrowful expression.
“You were right, Aunt.”
The properties in prime locations had long since been sold, leaving only a handful of remote rural lands.
The condition of the businesses passed down through generations was even more dire.
Rather than developing with the times, the enterprises grew increasingly obsolete, accumulating only deficits with each passing year of operation.
“If this continues, House of Edenberg will face bankruptcy.”
“That’s right. We won’t last much longer.”
Even the assistance Evangeline provided through the backing of the Gloucester Marquessate had its limits.
The great vessel of Edenberg was riddled with holes and slowly sinking.
“That’s why I hoped you would remarry as soon as possible. Marriage is the easiest and fastest way to stabilize assets.”
Evangeline’s expression grew dark as she spoke.
She viewed aristocratic marriage as a purely business transaction.
She had married on those terms herself, and believed I should do the same.
But now her thinking had changed.
I felt ashamed for having imposed such a thing upon my niece, who followed me with such bright, sparkling eyes.
Unable to face me, Evangeline lowered her gaze, when my voice reached her ears.
“I think the same way too.”
“…!”
“I’ve already tried marriage with nothing but pure love. Those romantic notions about matrimony faded long ago. Though I do think one must use the institution strategically.”
I was willing to marry at any time if the partner could benefit my house and serve as a trustworthy companion for life.
“But not now. If I pursued marriage in this financial state, I would become a neglected spouse rather than an equal partner. So even if I were to marry, I must first stabilize my finances to some degree.”
Evangeline studied Artia intently before speaking.
“I thought you resembled me, but you don’t. You’re far more clever than I am.”
Artia offered a charming smile.
“I learned from you, Aunt.”
Evangeline laughed aloud.
With four foolish younger brothers and two taciturn sons, she finally understood why her friends with daughters doted on them so intensely.
Evangeline asked with a smile playing at her lips.
“So, do you have a method to stabilize your finances?”
“Unfortunately, not yet. I’ll have to search for one now.”
Artia’s pink eyes, usually as delicate as spring blossoms, gleamed with crystalline clarity.
Her three younger brothers had done nothing but grumble over the ledgers.
They boasted endlessly about how they would have managed better from the start, yet none of them lifted a finger to resolve the crisis.
Their only concern was how to extract even a single coin for themselves.
But Artia was different.
She faced the situation with gravity and burned with the will to overcome it.
As though it were her own burden.
Evangeline’s eyes narrowed.
Her twenty-three-year-old niece was radiant.

* * *

I read through the ledger again and again. Yet no matter how many times I examined it….
‘I couldn’t find an answer.’
The real estate holdings were manageable, at least.
Though their value was dismal, at least I wasn’t losing money on what I already possessed.
But the business ventures were dire. With such poor revenue structures, the more I operated them, the more debt accumulated.
Ugh….
Furrowing my brow in deep contemplation, I made my way to House of Golthus.
“Welcome, Tia!”
“What an infinite honor that you’ve graced our home with your presence, Artia!”
Marigold and Cecilia clung to either side of me with faces absolutely radiant with delight.
Count Golthus observed their behavior with a distinctly displeased expression before speaking.
“What is it you wish to ask me?”
I turned to the man—built like an ox, with a face so fierce it could rival any brigand’s—and spoke.
“I would like to seek your counsel on business matters, Count Golthus, the Empire’s finest entrepreneur.”
“…!”
At my unexpected words, Count Golthus’s eyes widened in surprise.
Among the nobility, there was a prevailing sentiment that openly prioritizing wealth was vulgar and beneath one’s station.
Because of this, Count Golthus—who neglected High Society activities in favor of obsessing over business—received flattery from people but never their respect.
For such a man, the phrase “the Empire’s finest entrepreneur” was enough to make those broad shoulders swell with pride.
I handed the documents to Count Golthus, whose expression had noticeably softened.
They were excerpts from the ledgers of House of Edenberg, organized and compiled.
“Do you believe there might be a way to revive this venture?”
Count Golthus examined the documents with his fierce countenance before answering.
“A limb poisoned by toxin is best amputated as quickly as possible. Before the poison spreads throughout the entire body and kills it.”
“So you’re saying it would be better to liquidate it?”
Count Golthus nodded.
“Perhaps if the business items themselves held promise, there might be some way to salvage them. But these have no future value whatsoever. Even if miraculously revived, they wouldn’t last long.”
Just as I suspected….
His assessment aligned perfectly with my own conclusions, and I exhaled a weary sigh.
I steadied my voice and posed my next question.
“If I were to start a new venture, how could I ensure its success?”
At my vague question, Count Golthus’s thick brows twitched slightly.
After a moment, he replied.
“You must sell something you know intimately. I’ve been immersed in diamonds since infancy—practically raised with a diamond-studded pacifier in my mouth. Now, I can assess the value of any stone embedded in the Diamond Mine and determine the most beautiful way to cut it simply by looking at it.”
Marigold, seated beside Count Golthus, chimed in with evident interest.
“When this man crafts diamonds into pieces, I wear every single one to the Banquet Hall. Then the women come flocking, showing interest and wanting to purchase them.”
The Golthus couple sold their diamonds to whoever offered the highest price.
I spoke with admiration evident in my expression.
“So successful business requires both the discernment to select quality goods and the ability to sell them at premium prices.”
Marigold clapped her hands together.
“Our Artia is clever indeed.”
Count Golzess nodded in agreement.
“That’s the foundation of commerce.”
After that, Artia spent several hours absorbing the Count’s business acumen and strategies.
Delighted by her earnest attention—she even took notes—Count Golzess concluded with his business philosophy.
“What matters most is never surrendering.”
Count Golzess glanced at the documents Artia had brought and continued.
“If a venture shows less promise than dog dung, you must cut it away faster than a lizard’s tail. But if you’ve conducted thorough research before beginning, then hold faith and pursue it relentlessly—like a warrior standing in the Diamond Mine with nothing but a pickaxe.”
Artia nodded.
“I shall remember your words, Master!”

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