He looked at Artizea several times as if he had something else to say, then coughed and just left the room.
Artizea bowed behind him and rubbed her hand on her cheek. She was worried that she might have had a strange attitude.
—–
The maid, Loa, breathed in a deep and tense breath in front of Artizea's study.
"Lady Heiress, This is Loa."
Artizea rarely called in her employees directly for work.
What would it be?
Artizea was a generous master.
Routine chores, such as washing or cleaning, may not have been touched because they are not yet married.
However, she seldom interfered with the things she was holding in the bedroom.
There were no attempts to win over the mansion's maid. She was not directly involved in hiring a new maid, and she did not even try to pick someone she liked.
"Do you need to test again?"
"Why do you think it's a test?" Artizea asked with a smile.
"You're going to see what she's going to do after receiving undeserved authority."
"She didn't put any in her pocket, so you need to know better. What kind of values does she have?"
"She could be just an honest woman."
"Then, it's rather good because I can leave all of the work. I don't have time to manage a maid or a servant. It's easier to give them a lot of authority and correct it quickly if something went wrong."
"But yes. How hard it must be for you to return to the Rosan Estate. It's such a waste." Alice grumbled.
Artizea could not help but smile.
"Don't worry. Money is just used as tools. It's also a small amount of money anyway."
"Yes."
"If there's any talk between the maids, let me know."
"Yes, don't worry! That's my role." Alice said cheerfully. She had already bribed nearly half of the Grand Duke's maids.
That was what Artizea told Alice to do first.
It was also necessary to collect rumors among the employees of the Grand Duke.
However, rather than that, it was because she had to find out how far the Duke worked.
"I have to prepare to go out."
"Oh, yes! I'll talk to Sophie soon!"
Alice jumped up and went outside.
Artizea spent a leisurely time sipping tea for a while.
Now it was time to greet the second guest.
Knock, knock
The person who she had been waiting for had finally arrived.
"Come in."
Artizea replied calmly.
It was Freil who opened the door and entered.
He politely bowed to Artizea and spoke in a firm voice.
"This is Freil, the lieutenant of Grand Duke Evron."
"It's been a long time, Sir Freil. This is the first time we've met since I saw you at the mansion of Marquis Rosan, right?"
"You remember it even though it was a bad time."
As a sign of gratitude, Freil bowed down a little.
"Of course. I saw you at the temple as well."
"Yes, I saw you back then too."
And Artizea knew him much better than he imagined.
It was Artizea who assassinated Freil in a previous life.
Freil didn't have an outstanding talent in terms of strategy or conspiracy. However, his vision was wide and he was alert.
When Artizea plots something against Cedric, the first person to notice was Freil.
It was one of the reasons why the people of the Grand Duke of Evron cursed and hated her so badly.
Conversely, he was a man who could be a very powerful ally.
In addition to Cedric's support, Artizea needed another comrade who could move with her to support the Grand Duke of Evron.
A person who keeps a secret and can risk his life together for Cedric regardless of profit.
And if it was Freil, he was the one who could do that.
Artizea felt a little excitement.
But she couldn't tell Freil that she was happy to be able to talk to him alive.
As she closed her eyes, Freil's observant gaze came.
"I heard that you appointed me as an attendant while you went out today."
"Yes."
"I can't do anything that I can confidently say for myself, but my skills are inferior to the other knights of the Grand Duke of Evron. Of course I can't compare to Alphonse."
"I'm not asking you to accompany me in case there's a danger in the capital. It's a bit inappropriate to be accompanied by Sir Alphonse."
Artizea raised her eyes.
"You may want to know what kind of person I am. That's why you responded to the request right away."
"The Lady has made the choice. I do not dare to judge."
As she made eye contact, this time Freil lowered it down. And he said as if he had read inside Artizea's mind.
"What I know is exactly what the Grand Duke knows."
Freil euphemistically expressed that she shouldn't tell him what to hide from Cedric, but Artizea smiled.
"Make that decision after we finish our work."
Freil bowed his head silently.