C128
Two mornings later, a letter arrived for me.
The content of the letter was not very different from the others mixed among the large number of letters wishing to buy magic stones.
However, the phrase attached as a postscript at the end of the letter was the key point.
["Soon I will enter the palace, so if I am lucky, perhaps I can visit you."]
The person who sent the letter was a man named Jan Asitar, who claimed to run a small business, but in reality, there was no person named Jan Asitar.
That's because it's a fictional character I created to communicate secretly with Tara.
Tara. The last image of her being dragged by Elliot and his gang in the Wandering Forest passed through my mind.
There is only one reason for Tara to come to the imperial palace: Liena invited her.
Regardless of whether I had doubts about Tara or not, Liena seemed to have decided to use her.
After thinking for a moment, I took a pen and wrote a response to Jan Asitar.
Of course, what I really wanted to say this time was in the postscript.
["Well, I look forward to the day when I can meet Mr. Asitar."]
Welcome, Tara. However...
["But are you sure about your purchase? As you know, since they are high-quality magic stones, it is questionable whether small-scale traders can afford the cost."]
Are you firm in your intention to betray Liena and join me?
On the surface, it was about buying magic stones, but Tara would definitely recognize the hidden meaning.
I sent a response to the address written in Jan Asitar's letter.
Perhaps because both here and there were outside the capital, Tara's response did not take long to arrive.
["Yes, I know very well that it is not a small amount. So, if you take into consideration my situation, I will do my best to repay your kindness."]
At first, it seemed like she was trying to negotiate the price of the magic stones.
I want to return the favor. That's what Tara wanted to tell me.
"Divine beast, can someone once released from Liena's blessing be caught again?"
In response to my question, the divine beast, who was sitting by the window and engaging in a staring battle with the birds on the branches, looked at me.
"In theory, it is possible. It is possible for my master who has her own blessing, but it would be difficult for others to resist."
"Mmm."
As I pondered the words of the divine beast, I thought of Tara. Whether to use her or not.
I couldn't examine her eyes closely at that moment, but Tara was probably released from Liena's blessing when she first contacted me in the Wandering Forest.
At that moment, I unintentionally reminded Tara of her main goal of revenge and made her reflect on herself.
"Judging by the fact that she sent me this letter, Tara must still be sober."
However, there was no way to know what would happen if she continued to be by Liena's side.
The divine beast saw my serious expression and opened its mouth again.
"It's difficult to fight, but that doesn't mean it's impossible."
"Is there any way?"
"If you distrust the person blessing you, the effectiveness of the blessing will be weakened."
"... I suppose that's also true."
"Did you know?"
"I wasn't aware of it, but I suspected that this time it might have been due to the use of blessings against Iver's employees."
Last time, it took me a long time to remove the blessing from an employee who was particularly rude to me.
He was the liaison person connecting the Iver guild and Liena.
In essence, except for Cecil and Elliot, he was the person who had the most contact with Liena in Iver.
"I guess it wasn't simply because Liena's power remained strong that he rebelled."
"A person's will cannot be easily ignored."
"That's right. Cecil had a heart for the people of Iver, so he could escape from Liena's blessing relatively quickly."
Looking back, they were also like that.
Elliot, who was in agony after meeting Count Miloam and Duke Cassius after reading his wife's letter, and Tara, who had been harboring a desire for revenge for a long time.
The fact that they returned to their senses after being with Liena for so many years was not only possible thanks to my blessing but also because something resonated within them.
"Well. Let's trust Tara's will."
Moreover, isn't it worth it anyway?
Even if Tara were to fall back under Liena, there wasn't much to lose.
Tara will only give me information about Liena, but she won't know my important information.
I thought I should be careful about the possibility that Tara, whose mind had been brainwashed, might give incorrect information.
After sending a letter to Jan Asitar wishing him the best for the future, I called Laura aside.
"From now on, if you receive something suspicious, send it to me."
"Something suspicious?"
"Whether it's a letter, an object, or some nonsense that someone muttered, anything is fine."
Among those working in the villa, Laura was the only girl I brought from outside.
"If Tara has something to tell me."
It would be difficult to approach me directly due to the opinions of others, so there was a high possibility that they would go through Laura.
While waiting for Tara to communicate with me, I dealt with everything I had to do one by one.
Soon, the magic stones from the Lucibiu mine began to be extracted seriously, and I delivered them to the Imperial Family Asteroth according to the terms of the contract.
Up until that moment, no one was discontented, but the problem came afterward.