Chapter 95: Master and Slave
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 95: Master and Slave
Tilda Pascal was a villainess.
According to the accounts of Stephan and Murchit, who had lived under the same roof as her, she was utterly merciless. They described her as a woman who destroyed anything and everything that offended her sight.
Such a personality inevitably breeds resentment.
Ferda, having incurred more resentment than most, knew this well. Thus, he had assumed there was an obvious mastermind behind the recent events.
The most likely candidate was Rico Dandolo, the man who had been poisoned. Next were Stephan, Murchit, or perhaps their wives. He had even suspected their father, Herman.
Yet, there was one person Ferda never once suspected.
It was the dull-looking, middle-aged man standing before him.
Henri.
"Were you the one who ordered the investigation into Tilda?"
Unable to believe it, Ferda asked him directly.
"I was," Henri replied.
"You made the request hoping for her downfall?"
"That is correct."
"You did this knowing it would lead to this specific end?"
"Of course. This was exactly what I had in mind."
Henri flashed a faint smile.
At a glance, it was a remarkably kind smile—the sort of expression belonging to someone so good-natured and dull that they couldn't possibly harbor a secret.
"Why?"
"Because I truly love Tilda. I would do anything for her."
"And this 'anything' resulted in... this?"
Ruri, who had been listening, cut in. Her face was etched with visible disgust.
"Precisely," Henri replied with a smile, as if her reaction didn't bother him in the slightest.
Upon hearing his answer, the others mirrored Ruri’s expression.
"You may condemn me; it matters not. There have been countless women who whispered words of love to me while seeing only my money and reputation. Is it so wrong for me to love someone for their shell alone?"
"I have no intention of condemning your actions," Ferda said. "But I am curious about one thing."
"Please, speak."
"Is this woman truly worth handing over your entire company to me?"
Tilda was beautiful, certainly, but she was no peerless beauty. She wasn't on the level of someone like Olivia, for whom a man once sold everything in his territory just to offer her a million roses.
Henri answered the question as if it were of no consequence.
"My father was the one who cherished the company; it never held much value to me. If anything, I wanted to be rid of it. So, I used the woman I love."
"Tilda?"
"She is truly beautiful, yet a wicked woman. Who else in this world would poison their father-in-law and plot to kill their own family?"
Henri had been waiting for Rico to die. He had watched everything and controlled everything. In a way, it was Henri who had been playing Tilda in the palm of his hand all along.
Only then did Ferda understand a question he had set aside earlier.
"They say that when the medium was destroyed, the head of the house, Rico Dandolo, suddenly lost his life."
"Yes. My father passed away."
"That wasn't Tilda's doing, was it?"
Ferda’s eyes pierced through Henri.
"But it certainly looks that way, doesn't it?" Henri replied vaguely. "My father always wanted me to be a strategist. I have simply become the son who fulfilled that wish."
"..."
Ferda found himself speechless.
As silence fell, Henri brought the conversation to a close.
"As promised, I shall hand over the Dandolo Merchant House. If you, Regent Ferda, take ownership and delegate the management rights to my brother-in-law, everything will be resolved swiftly."
"Understood."
"My company will fall entirely into your hands. So, would you grant this humble man one request?"
"What is it?"
"I would like you to return my wife's belongings that were taken."
Ferda’s gaze shifted to Ruri. She frowned, looking subtly offended.
"I didn't touch a thing."
That meant someone else had secretly pilfered them. Ferda immediately identified the next likely culprit.
"Why are you looking at me?" Penelope asked.
"Because it could only be you."
"It’s quite troubling when you say such heart-fluttering things—ack!"
"Stop talking nonsense and tell us where it is! Spit it out, now!"
"Gack! Ack! My tail! I hung it on my tail!"
Jed searched her thoroughly, and just as she said, a ring was hooked onto her tail. It was a ring made of a Blood Diamond, a gem that could not be bought with mere money.
Jed handed the ring to Ferda.
"A Blood Diamond. Is it an engagement ring?"
"It is. It’s the only thing my wife truly loves."
As soon as Henri received the ring, he approached Tilda.
"Uuuu..."
She was making a mournful sound, like a ghost wandering the living world.
"Tilda, my love. Look here. It’s the diamond ring you like so much."
Tilda, who had been drooling with a vacant expression, turned her eyes toward the ring. Her aimless gaze fixed clearly on the diamond.
"Hehe..."
At her smile, which looked as if she had gained the whole world, Henri smiled back.
* * *
Henri promised to disappear with Tilda.
His claim that he had predicted this ending was no lie. He had already secured a house in the West and prepared enough money for them to live modestly. He left the Dandolo mansion, taking only enough to spend the rest of his days in quiet seclusion.
"What a truly dreadful man," Ruri remarked. Her clenched fists were trembling with the urge to snap Henri’s neck. "Are you really just going to let someone like that go?"
Ferda nodded as if it were obvious.
"He kept his promise, so I must keep mine, shouldn't I?"
"Could such a disgusting creature not ruin our plans later? Seeing how he played a witch like a fiddle, it’s entirely possible."
Ferda looked down at Ruri. "Your desire to kill him is merely your personal feeling."
"It’s revolting. How can someone kill their family and ruin the person they love like that?"
Ruri, who usually didn't interfere in human affairs, spoke with genuine venom. He had used his wife to kill his father and then broken his wife to make her entirely his. To the Dragon Spawn, who valued family above all else, such actions were unforgivable.
"Tilda Pascal did the same. Though she failed, she was a villainess who turned brothers against each other, tried to poison her sister-in-law, and turned her father-in-law into a vegetable. If the end for such a woman is to be kept by that man, is it not a fitting fate?"
"When you put it that way... I suppose it is..."
Ruri’s voice grew softer. While the act was disgusting, she began to see it as a just punishment. Ultimately, Ruri decided to put them out of her mind. They would likely never cross paths again anyway.
Ferda stared at the spot where Henri had stood.
How unfortunate.
He was a remarkably clever man. Even Ferda hadn't been able to read his true intentions. Had Henri possessed any ambition for commerce, he surely would have surpassed even the Pascal Trading Company and brought about a golden age for the Dandolo Merchant House.
Yet, Henri acted as if such talents were useless to him. The last time Ferda saw Henri’s face, the man looked happier than anyone, despite having abandoned a fortune.
That face lingered in Ferda’s mind like an afterimage. Whether it was due to a lingering sense of unease or envy, he couldn't tell.
* * *
Pascal Trading Company Headquarters.
"Is that so? So the matter regarding my sister is finished."
Stephan seemed surprised that the work had been carried out in secret, but he didn't mind much. Regardless, he was satisfied that the matter clouding his mind had been settled.
"I understand. I will speak to my brother and explain the situation to my father to wrap things up."
After cutting off the Telepathy, Stephan felt a lingering sense of awe toward Ferda.
To think he would actually end up with the Dandolo Merchant House.
It was an unexpected windfall. Stephan had thought that, at best, the company would be destroyed if the conflict escalated. He never imagined it could be fully acquired.
The Regent is truly a remarkable man.
He felt foolish for having considered giving up on everything just a few days ago.
Now, I have to clean up the mess.
A sigh escaped Stephan’s lips. Since he and Murchit had conspired together, that part was settled, but Herman was a different story. Herman, unaware of the full truth, had genuinely tried to suppress Stephan, and Stephan had been forced to respond in kind.
"General Manager... The Chairman is..."
The secretary couldn't finish the sentence. It was clear how angry Herman was. Stephan’s instincts screamed at him to run, but he gave a calm nod.
A moment later, four bodyguards large enough to get stuck in the doorway entered, followed by a frail old man. The hulking men were threatening enough, but it was the sharp eyes shining amidst the deep wrinkles that pierced through Stephan.
"Why are you still here?"
It was a demand to know why he hadn't resigned.
"Everything is over."
"What exactly is over?"
Stephan explained everything. How Tilda had used her husband’s company to drive a wedge between him and Murchit. How she had even plotted to kill Herman in the process. He intentionally downplayed parts that might seem like exaggerations to make his argument more persuasive.
Even so, he couldn't read his father’s mind. Herman’s expression remained as unbreakable as a sword forged in a dwarven smithy deep within a mountain.
"So, such things happened."
"Yes."
"But you haven't answered my question."
"What question...?"
"I asked why you are still here."
It was as if he hadn't heard a word of the explanation.
Stephan answered, "Because I am the General Manager of the Pascal Trading Company."
"I am the Chairman. Stripping you of your position is nothing to me. I hoped you would step down on your own, yet you refuse."
"Do you still insist that my judgment was a mistake?"
"Of course. Who but a fool would abandon a conviction they are certain of?"
The Archduchy will fall. Driven by a sense of defiance, Stephan spoke.
"The Archduchy of Valdrova will prosper."
"It cannot," Herman said flatly. "You seem curious as to why. Fine, I shall answer you myself."
Herman’s eyes glared like a tiger’s.
"Rumors are reaching my ears that this 'Ferda' fellow is using black magic."
"I have ears as well; I am aware. But he saved many people in Halim."
"Being treated as a hero is fleeting. Saving people isn't the issue. The mere fact that he uses black magic is a weakness. What will you do if the Pascal Trading Company is accused of aiding a practitioner of the dark arts?"
"That is..."
"If you continue to help Regent Ferda and then try to pull out, it will be too late. Do you intend to throw the countless families of this company onto the streets?"
Stephan couldn't answer.
"And you are investing in this 'Magitech' technology, but what will you do if that man Burnell dies?" Herman continued his onslaught. "Then the investment vanishes into thin air, and we gain nothing. And is there any guarantee this Burnell won't have a change of heart? Or his master, Ferda?"
"They would never abandon me."
Though Ferda had initially acted as if he didn't need Stephan, he had helped him with everything he had when things got difficult. Thus, Stephan could assert this strongly. But to Herman, such words were unreliable.
"Do you know why no cities are built in the Far East?"
"Because the territory is constantly shrinking."
"Exactly. Because there is no hope. Human strength couldn't stop it, and even the power of immortals failed. Do you need to be corrupted by demonic energy in that nearby place before you come to your senses?"
"..."
"Fine. Let’s be optimistic and say it prospers. What do you think that prosperity will bring us? Money? Fame? Connections? No. The Empire will scrutinize every speck of dust to keep us in check. Why? Because we are a merchant house based in the Imperial Capital. It will look as though the capital's power is leaking out."
"..."
"Even if that brat of a Regent has trust and spirit, all politics are conducted by old men. Do you know what kind of beings old men are?"
Herman’s voice grew strained.
"They are creatures who lack the strength to stand, yet they tremble while clutching their rice bowls with what little power they have left. It is easy to enjoy luxury after being frugal, but difficult to be frugal after enjoying luxury. Power is the same. The old push the young into battlefields to fight and be exploited just to protect what is theirs. Do you think mayflies like us can resist and endure against that?"
Stephan was speechless. Herman’s words contained the wisdom accumulated over a lifetime, and that wisdom was logical. From a macro perspective, nothing Herman said was wrong. The risks Stephan had to shoulder were far too many.
"Give up on the Far East. Or give up on this company. That is my will."
Herman stood up. Just as he was about to leave, Stephan spoke.
"You, Father, are just like those old men."
"What... did you say?"
Herman’s eyes widened. The words seemed to have been blurted out in the heat of the moment, but what burned in Stephan’s eyes was venom.
"Are you not also unable to accept anything new, stubbornly clinging only to your own will?"
"Are you saying I am being pigheaded?"
"Yes."
Stephan’s affirmation was short and clear. Herman erupted in anger.
"You ungrateful wretch! By what right do you spout such nonsense?"
"I have the right."
The words poured out as if a blockage in his throat had finally cleared. They were emotions and assertions that had been building up for a long time.
"I have been the one running and leading your company for the past three years. Its steady growth and stabilization were achieved by me. If you are the one who sowed the seeds of this company, I am the one who nurtured them. Just as one cannot be called a farmer simply for sowing seeds, this success cannot be called your achievement alone. Therefore, I have the right to speak."
"You have the right? You?"
"Yes!"
His voice grew louder as his emotions intensified.
"While you sat back like an old man in a back room, clicking your tongue and watching while handing your children knives to fight each other, I never looked away and dedicated everything to this company!"
Herman looked up at Stephan without saying a word. Seizing the momentum, Stephan spat out more of his pent-up thoughts.
"Did I not tell you before? When you asked what kind of man Regent Ferda was, I answered like this: He is a man to whom I can give everything."
"..."
"That wasn't a mistake. I meant it. Do you know why? Because I believed that even if I handed the company over to him, I could gain far more than what you have built."
"No matter how much you appeal to me, it sounds like nothing more than you being consumed by your emotions."
"I don't care. When I was struggling, he called it 'sabotage against the Archduchy' and responded. He didn't say the Pascal Trading Company; he said the Archduchy. He accepted me as part of the Archduchy and helped me."
Though Ferda had once cruelly tried to cast him aside, he was as merciful as he was cruel. At that moment, Stephan had made a vow. Everything depended on how he chose to set his mind.
"So, let me make this clear."
He threw down his final, irreversible choice.
"I will not step down from this position. This company is run by me, and I will take responsibility for my choices. So, if you intend to interfere with my decision!"
Bang!
"You will have to fight me with the resolve to sever our ties forever!"