The Villainess is a Millionaire Solver - Chapter 60

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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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Chapter 60

“Young Lady challenged the heir qualification verification at age 17, three years ago, but failed.”

Along with Eunice’s words, scenes from memory unfolded clearly like a movie.

The first merchant ship of the founding family head, the Habarion.

The precious ship usually displayed in the treasure vault was tied with ropes, floating in the port. In front of it stood 17-year-old Aristina, her side hair braided thinly and styled in an antique fashion.

With Duke Carnel, the family head, and various relatives observing, Aristina stepped onto the platform. The ‘Heart of the Rose,’ the founding family head’s necklace. That evidence she had worn around her neck since that morning, receiving qualification assessment from ancestral spirits, she raised high with both hands and shouted.

“I, Aristina Bianca Rosen, seek recognition as heir to the Rosen Family before the ancestral spirits!”

Celebratory cannons burst loudly. The family’s knights waiting in front of the ship simultaneously raised their swords and struck down the rope knots.

Everyone thought Aristina would at least pass this. Though she was indeed a troublemaker, she was still the Duke’s only direct child. Unless the family intended to end its own lineage, they had no choice but to select her.

Everyone thought so.

But…

The result was unexpected.

“Huh? Wait! Isn’t it sinking?”

“Why is this sinking!”

“Grab it! Damn it! Grab it!”

As if rejecting the only direct child, the ship sank with a gurgling sound.

Duke Carnel’s face turned bright red, then his whole body stiffened and he fell backward.

“Duke!”

Chaos erupted.

Shake, shake.

I shook my head.

It’s a memory that makes even me feel like my trauma is being triggered.

“Although Young Lady was not recognized as heir at that time, seeing how unrecognizably you’ve changed gives me hope that this time will be different.”

Eunice said respectfully.

“So how about attempting the challenge once more? Wouldn’t this be the first step to being recognized as a true heir?”

“Hmm…”

Duke Carnel’s red eyes narrowed.

“Since you, who have always been skeptical of Aristina’s abilities, are saying this, it suddenly feels persuasive.”

“Then please trust Young Lady just once, Duke. She’s your daughter, not some stranger.”

“Hmm, I’d rather trust a stranger. That’s true, but…”

The Duke’s cold eyes glanced slightly toward me.

“Just thinking about that incident makes my chest feel tight. I do need to decide on an heir soon. Since it’s true that Aristina has achieved several accomplishments recently, unlike back then, attempting the challenge once more might not be bad.”

If I said I couldn’t do it here, I’d lose all those 20,000 points from earlier. Of course, I had no intention of saying that anyway.

‘Was this the important matter Eunice was preparing? What is she planning to do?’

Making the ship sink again would be simplest, but that ship moves according to its own will, and even Duke Carnel, the Rosen Family head, can’t control it as he pleases. What method could Eunice use to move it?

‘It’s probably not that, but some other scheme…’

I focused on changes in Eunice’s expression and spoke.

“Good. If Father gives me the opportunity, I’ll gladly attempt the challenge again. I was bored anyway, so this works out well.”

“Right. Then shall we set a date first? Or should we look into locations first?”

“I have several places in mind.”

At Eunice’s words, interest sparked in the Duke’s eyes.

“You always handle everything efficiently. Excellent. Coming up with this issue that no one else thought of, too. Do you think of nothing but our family day and night?”

Then he extended his hand.

“Work is good, but take it easy.”

His pale hand made a gesture of patting her shoulder in the air.

Though there was no actual contact, considering Duke Carnel’s personality, it was an extraordinarily intimate gesture.

“Yes, Duke.”

At that moment, Eunice’s voice sounded strange. Her shoulders seemed to stiffen awkwardly too. I, who had been sharply observing her while pretending not to, didn’t miss that moment.

Was it my imagination?

‘She seems to be overly conscious of it?’

Usually in such cases, there would be two possibilities. Either she found her superior’s ‘friendly act’ so disgusting that she couldn’t help but show it.

Or the opposite.

“Chief Aide always visits Duke’s bedroom first thing in the morning, no matter how busy she is. Even handing over a towel – she doesn’t seem satisfied unless she does it herself rather than letting others do it.”

“Last time too, when Chief Aide wasn’t satisfied with the formal wear the ceremonial maids chose for Duke, she selected everything again and had him change completely.”

“Such devoted care. She even watches Duke’s sleeping face for a long time, as if checking whether he’s breathing.”

The employees’ conversations came to mind. I had dismissed them as merely showing Eunice’s meticulous perfectionist personality, but now everything felt strangely significant.

‘Was all of this foreshadowing too?’

Others seemed completely oblivious to Eunice’s subtle attitude.

“I’m not particularly tired today. Since we’re going out anyway, shall we tour the locations Chief Aide has in mind?”

The Duke said this and glanced at me.

“What will you do now? If you have nothing to do…”

“I have work! I need to organize things here, and since we achieved record sales today, we’re having an employee party too… I’ll probably be late today.”

“‘Today too.'”

The Duke coldly corrected my words and turned away. Eunice and the advisors also followed him out in a crowd.

“Farewell, customers!”

As soon as they disappeared, the employees began chattering.

“Are we really having an employee party today?”

“Yes. But everyone’s doing it separately at home. Here, performance bonuses.”

After giving generous rewards to employees and security guards, I left that place like the wind.

It’s very rare for the Duke, Eunice, and all the advisors to go out together. Today the ducal mansion would become a tiger’s den without the tiger. If I was going to search rooms, it was now or never.

I hurried home and summoned all the maids who had become my confidants.

“I have work for all of you.”

A moment later.

The door opened and Perdel, the mail-handling maid, came out carrying an armful of letters. Following her, another maid emerged carrying more mail.

A maid with ordinary brown hair hanging to her shoulders and a darkened face bowed low.

That was me. The maids had disguised me perfectly according to my orders.

“Follow me.”

Perdel whispered quietly and went downstairs. As usual, pretending to go to the chamberlain’s office to get stamps on the mail, we naturally changed direction.

“This way.”

Perdel guided me to the chief aide’s private room at the end of the corridor.

“Let me know immediately if anyone approaches.”

“Yes, Young Lady.”

Several maids who had been forced to care about my safety came down with us and began keeping watch.

Leaving the rear to them, I carefully picked the lock using the master key borrowed from Ruellian and entered.

Eunice’s private room.

Befitting the highest rank among the Duke’s advisors, all the furniture and decorations were luxurious. As I looked around, my eyes stopped at a lidded desk.

‘That’s it.’

I temporarily set down the mail and took out the master key, inserting it into the desk lid.

Click.

The lock mechanism released.

When I lifted the lid, the desk was revealed. Books, writing instruments, appreciation plaques, small mementos. My gaze, scanning the items like a searchlight hunting for criminals, stopped at one spot.

A small plate.

White ash powder was partially stuck to it. Traces of burned paper.

Suddenly Ruellian’s words came to mind.

“My feeling is that Eunice Gillian is receiving orders from someone.”

Then could this be traces of a burned secret letter?

‘Who sent it?’

I gently lifted the plate to examine it. But I couldn’t learn anything from that small amount of ash.

As I carefully set the plate back in its original position, I discovered something in the inner corner of the desk.

It was a small picture frame placed face down.

‘Hm?’

When I pulled it out to look, it was just an ordinary flower painting. But the back of the frame felt somewhat thick and raised.

‘What’s this?’

I moved the fasteners and separated the back panel.

Beneath the flower painting visible from the front, there were a couple more pictures inside. I pulled them out. Then I flipped over the first one.

At that moment.

…Gasp!

I sucked in a breath from shock.

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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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