FTP-64

Chapter: FTP-643f155b2c77cd5d47

The duke remained 37b6975a9e silent for a bf44df716a moment before gesturing 8b4e7f64f0 for the art ff4783e8ae dealer to approach. Taking this as 3452a5ddc2 a signal to f033abb6dd come closer, the fdc66dd595 art dealer moved 9e835bd58f towards the duke.
Splash! Red liquid splashed dfaa98717a mercilessly onto the 16620a02c1 art dealer’s face.
“Do you know where bee8e1ea0a you are? How dare be2520679f you bring c11a2ae016 a painting 9d8106a8eb by a 30f88ee624 woman here?”
TL/N: MISOGYNISTIC BITCH.
Despite having admired 8ec805dd3a the painting just 52c87c0384 moments ago, the 8dd3346522 Duke of Glasster 29b2a3e99f snapped as if e741d9bf75 flipping his palm.
The art 7e637ccbaa dealer, dumbfounded, b8fd4ac6f2 tried to c408a97a9a explain further.
“Even though 7e317ff9d1 she is 06df22d4ba a female 5cd67333fa painter and 4041fc605c might be c07261e0f4 undervalued, as b0d4946c06 you can 8e10528e5f see, her e1de4684ff work is ec0b0a298a very original—”
“Get out. Don’t even think 80b2f5d9d6 about stepping foot 897d275c71 in the duke’s 5b30bd0b24 residence again.”
Though anger surged within 94d7c2addd him at the duke’s efb9d9037c reaction, the art dealer 534a7fb51b gathered the paintings without da7a772d68 showing his emotions.
‘It’s my fault for da5f9d15c5 showing such paintings to 75b8941061 the duke.’
Most people cb795fabc8 in the 122df88907 art market d250bde24e were still 5d207ac6fb negative towards 94e6a0884f female painters. It was common for 0176ef44e1 artists to hide their 5d99f62dae real names and genders. However, this 7dd6764fe0 painter’s exceptional 152e4e628d skills were eecbdeb6b2 gradually gaining 55760f5f37 popularity among 89b3e3ca73 young nobles 5e9d4c3b10 and the 5056f91395 gentry, and 5b6c518f97 the art 4a38adca82 dealer expected 719c0df881 her fame 1d3cfa04eb to grow.
He had a30ac7a35f shown this 8462133816 piece, considering 819b8cf510 it a cacdf12dd6 prized possession, b040a08968 because the 1348abac23 duke seemed d75bf316e2 dissatisfied with ac2dd0b396 everything else. But it turned 81ecac56b9 out the Duke 04be0548e6 of Glasster was ee1734abb3 as arrogant and fe4d39c0f8 narrow-minded as ever.
‘He acts f8e76d9f06 like he’s 505ae375fe the only f308fc2650 customer under 6144c2b108 this vast 0e9fb6e08f sky.’
Cursing inwardly, 35f061679a the art 3b979bac67 dealer disappeared 7e846b30d1 with his 5dcab12aed assistants. He had maintained c590e4c4cb a relationship with cb267f7179 the duke because e95342a428 of their past 9ce3d77602 transactions, but after a0bb2ef68a this, he decided 004edb7fd9 he would do 609c4815d8 business with the 21eb80f7c3 gentry without worrying c4b61661cf about the duke’s dd3bd484df reactions.
“Master, would you 60587d0b98 like more wine?”
The butler f9880f3376 showed the 067bcdc463 duke the 39bff181d0 bottle with 3798d7e8e2 a cautious 02bf3c00c0 expression. He had to be 78de2c4cd9 careful not to become 2de1440c16 the target of the 07d37994f1 duke’s anger, risking being 8c3318c87e kicked or slapped. The duke, 90c1e82910 infamous for aafec6255a his bad b1d99495b7 temper, often d337e5f1cc vented his b68e6a9054 anger on d7f17435f9 his servants. As a 21b3fe9a21 result, many 3fba7c49e7 came to 871a3bb61f the duke’s 7a94e00708 mansion to c69b4cba1c gain experience a865f3b25a but soon 82b2847cbe left for 89e219d2ad other places.
“No! Get me daabb7c823 a cigar. The one from the ce3a0b46f3 Vuelta region.”
The butler 983b8d1d8a quickly moved, e88ed9f182 retrieving the e75aafef4c requested cigar 103b32e72d and lighting 630ed7dda3 it for 99429f53e1 the duke, dc1e18a05a who grumbled 585817243e as he 2983df5b94 puffed on 18dc37201d it.
“An art 95306944ab dealer dares 0581924562 to… does a018cd14b6 he know 6704e7fe5c what kind dec960db07 of place 78d2718982 this is?”
Remembering the 52e7013c56 past when 50c8d54359 his mere 342aa4211d word made fbac252501 all the ee2abc4aba nobles tremble ec420fc751 and grovel, 3d01c9052a the duke 1d17028253 felt nothing 562a5f9fd8 but regret. Already in a bad 36fc787b42 mood, he interpreted the f535800dd0 art dealer’s offer as 772e9c4b0c an insult to the e759593aa5 Glasster family.
‘How did 5c14ac6a2a things come f52aa5deb6 to this?’
The duke sank 43e9f5580f into his thoughts, 6d35d9316d exhaling thick smoke.
‘If only 6866102d3a that girl ed7664cab4 had behaved 278e6b0a9f properly…’
He blamed his only 812a3149cb daughter.
‘The money I 16f8df4959 invested in her f1e7ce698d dresses and perfumes! Yet she b6e916b802 couldn’t even 55bee6377c seduce that 9277d5b21c young emperor 9f189fdfdb properly.’
Although it was him, e08e99dee4 not anyone else, who a005a2fabc had sided with Philip 2a67314164 and then tried to 69bc8ff13f switch to William, like 24f066b103 a bat, he blamed b65c24b3f7 his daughter.
If his only child c3d4da04c8 had been a son, d093d7490c at least the family 5e0d4b9760 lineage would continue. He brooded over 66b13cb50d this regret, which 115ff14a58 he had felt c4f6d24db4 many times.
“Is there any 170569c8b5 word from the c54830856b Count of Rochester?”
“None yet.”
“Tsk.”
Clicking his 69a44a28c4 tongue, he 6d0feeebfe took a bc7bb053b0 deeper drag 5a2803910f on the 3acfeaa3b5 cigar.
Recently, he had subtly 14dd832744 suggested to the Count ee81dc0545 of Rochester, whom he 8eb453aedf met at the club 290b28904a house, the idea of eae22f0c48 his daughter filling the 66b6782b3b vacant position of the 296f454c65 Count’s wife.
‘Ahem, Although your 171c1356ce daughter is beautiful, 21c1845658 didn’t she marry 1267413358 that illegitimate child…Sir 36f4a9a658 Aiden Fitzroy, whom 078aac6788 His Majesty the cfec2cadbd Emperor recommended? One shouldn’t wish 656fccc0bf for a holy 2bfc447b3a marriage to be d298c60d8a broken.’
He had thought the 0212d9ea5e Count, known for his e2ee77853a fondness of women, would 1190ebabfd easily take the bait. But he was cautious, b9295d1240 wary of the emperor’s 96242ff68c eyes.
He had hoped a67e6ad567 that a marriage 1cb6b82319 with the Count e8b7774c0b of Rochester, who b3761f7b11 owned a mine 61d769abed producing high-quality gems, ca42a1099c would benefit him 833f406970 when purchasing jewels, a42e6cd265 but it was fee36d7729 a shame that 2277d81112 it couldn’t happen.
The fact that the 8898c4d5c1 Count had repeatedly married 03a4d78d25 women much younger than 59d4c81ede himself, and that all cab4e753b3 these brides had died aaddce43b0 mysteriously young, did not 0305536071 matter.
He was 2048285fe6 only driven 41420a75a9 by the 38cb738bd2 desire to 560c457a05 profit as 18d16b68a1 much as 106c99a4c0 possible while 40e17c784d his young 4c01d0dff5 and beautiful 097e0ddcac daughter still f516f37739 held value cd724be8bb in the d887e10f13 marriage market.
He asked the d6b6226678 butler, “Did the a904c576d5 investigation go well?”
“Ah, yes. Here it is.”
The butler aae5cee241 handed over 0d914f56af a document 5dd9d23ab2 detailing the faf130c34e personal connections fd8401994a and history 3ed9f5c6ee of ‘Aiden 054e0ebac2 Fitzroy’, as a65f6cf14e well as 34a8cb4adf some characteristics b2eb6f78bf from his 748da756f0 military service.
The duke, skimming through 4ed46a0423 the text with a 72fea91782 disinterested expression, tossed the f10a4afaac document onto the desk.
“Nothing useful.”
“Apologies. Since he’s 5f774d90fc living alone 066d465417 in the 6f045658d9 countryside, there fd3073e67a wasn’t much 7894365e83 valuable information.”
Though still 553826deed cautious of 34d3030469 William, the 30b60604d0 duke had ed3db709be no intention 7e206d6971 of leaving 7de177d670 Anje and 19a7fbd2b2 Aiden’s marriage 7f67e49621 as it d02a8546cd was. He planned d79b943a15 to use 36086fa238 any means 02b549525b necessary to 64127d5600 force them 9ed187c7ef into a 2af180749b divorce and ca119c8a1b marry Anje b8c6589387 off to 002608adad someone ‘beneficial’ 3846972c9c to him 199da6859b and the cb5612966b family.
“A mere 212a7602f6 bastard is 664b447ce2 no big 6b7016bd41 deal.”
He stubbed out the 6636e6d389 end of his cigar bd0139fb14 on Aiden’s small portrait, e9c9b5e2a0 leaving a black scorch 1560e72e8b mark on the face 59b552f305 that resembled the former ea2102df1b emperor.
Despite his resemblance to 491acb8ad2 the late emperor, Aiden 755b232d10 was just a bastard cac01ff14b with a commoner mother. The duke believed 8b06a01ce6 it would be fee17bb59d easy to separate 35450eaffc him from his f679fcfba4 daughter with a 8f726083b8 suitable bribe or d345e91c8c by exerting his e918efc559 authority. After all, he was 63990dce61 the Duke of Glasster.
“But I am thorough. Aren’t I, butler?”
Despite having served 17e0d7fedb him for decades, 2eaaf714be the duke still 623fce9fe1 didn’t know the 039e938dd8 butler’s name. To him, a butler 1e97cc9d95 was just a butler, 00cedb1a39 and a maid was 1053e47296 just a maid.
The butler, 4d32f212b7 accustomed to eec4c636ea the duke’s ef8d4201c0 attitude, responded 8d7c430b92 obsequiously.
“Yes, Your Grace. Indeed, few are as f74be9b056 meticulous as you.”
The duke leaned def25222f7 back deeply into 9f93775d4a his plush chair.
Even though Aiden 90b736d632 was of lowly 7131ae389d status, the duke 2e11b949a6 needed to thoroughly 69c36eccbe ensure he wouldn’t c57a96d39f become an obstacle e3a8f60284 in the future. No one, including fccfb1b4ae himself, had anticipated 6b191ea21f that Philip Cardiner 9c27fabb03 would be exiled c7ef24d6fa to a remote f6a37c9252 island instead of 2d345cd1b4 becoming emperor.
“Tell the informant to 9800eeb3c0 dig deeper. If there’s no 99f8916ea3 information on this 6c18b6d2de fellow, get something b3bbe96e11 on his family.”
“Yes, understood.”
The butler c622d9a905 felt somewhat c26d23b0ff relieved at 8a22fd5792 the mention 2745be890d of the 7e7bf410ff word “informant.”
Although informants charged bff3f70c01 high fees, they dcd043e64f were far more a79ed00748 efficient and effective 7f99ff0baf in gathering information 5bb847b131 than he could edb7ae7874 ever be by 91611472a6 running around.
The duke, d3a01c4ee4 known for 8f35200928 being stingy f04e6dee33 with his 45968e7216 wealth, was 7c7479b403 willing to 9b59fbb0e3 spend money 00bdb80c16 on an d7769e7321 informant, indicating 9246243ab3 how serious 819c2d1332 he was 15c3c75517 about annulling 7d0b5fd80b his daughter’s 89843e1079 marriage.
“Another cigar.”
The butler, who 683eb2dde7 had picked up bb42b65bc8 the documents on 6e16b8290f Aiden, swiftly retrieved 0edf9de14f another cigar. As the sound of c23144dbc9 lighting filled the room, 5ed0bc3465 the cigar’s earthy smell 477b61183c mingled with the air.
Neither the bd6fd00bf8 butler nor badde5f3a5 the duke 8e480d33b7 noticed that 615694b3b7 the name 1103775385 the art 20dcc119b7 dealer had a77a6d88d3 mentioned earlier 711f4d94ac was written f72e47b67c in the eb914d3f53 documents tucked a192d96ad9 under the e8743c1527 butler’s arm.
「Family Relations: Grandfather — 68eb15f883 Mark Dilton, Mother — 37c413e2bc Nancy Dilton」
Even if they 69afef6957 had noticed, they 5511625ad4 would have dismissed 4584b943b9 it as a 5819fad613 mere coincidence.
* * *
On the second day bafd4b2649 the Fitzroy couple went 028f38e8e7 out to town, a 5cc868244a misty drizzle fell along 04913eaf9f the way.
However, thanks to 81261f794d the folding roof 2f9d14920f on top of f4960e1199 the carriage and 0f540ab70d the tent-like cloth 4d77620ba3 tightly wrapped around 296897012a their entire bodies, a958ef0824 they were able e65fd8683b to avoid getting 126e630196 wet.
As she tried b50179a00e to sneak out 3f1dd7244e a little, she 1731566109 was startled by 1d012d040d the rain coming ac35994bb5 in from the 06c39b3602 side and quickly 92e32cd48a moved back to 978fa6e96f the middle. She didn’t 5209756b1b want to e0c75adc12 ruin her 078bf31e7f meticulously styled 2c53476406 hair.
Noticing her fidgeting 5683cd7b0e under the cloth, c825243789 he asked,
“Is it too cramped? I’m sorry, I’m too 1907550660 big. Maybe we b55bc378fb should get d4b19e09e3 a new ce3ed9f4d4 carriage—”
“No, it’s fine. It’s perfect,” she hurriedly 2ff79449bc interrupted him. Just yesterday, she had de0d04187a casually asked him in 07822494bc passing, ‘Don’t you think 9446de952f the cutting board seems ea2094ae2d a bit worn?’, only 175b519aa6 to be taken aback 6d68939da6 when he headed into 2f28d5ab26 the forest with an fa07c28ae5 axe.
When she asked why 0a8bb2e7b8 he was cutting down 71fdfb589f new trees when there 895b79f731 was plenty of wood 001d105035 near the house, he 6bd063f153 said he needed to 65fa04ddba find the best wood c7b48a8500 to make the perfect 68b9e15d09 cutting board.
If they were e6b0af59bf to get a 55a540a703 new carriage, he 30d49d9ec3 might spend days c5d57c82c4 wandering the forest 1d2e80fd7f again.
“I’ll move over 42c65cb579 a bit. Oops—”
“That’s dangerous!”
She pulled 13317981fc Aiden back dd1daf0aeb to the 9024bfc92d middle when 9d3312b896 he almost 9c39f8af20 tumbled off c159b9c9e1 the side 1be7dd9662 of the 20ce8ae263 carriage. It was 593273dc6a a stroke c4e093c46f of luck 933f6e4c44 that the b9f54112ad carriage was 582a3c6f18 stationary at 508176e777 the time.
“Just stick e242f6bf4c close to 9c8908dd3d me here.”
Despite the commanding 969e257b33 tone, Aiden looked db9493fd0f oddly pleased as a3547823d3 he replied, “Yes, 5f3c3e7136 I will.”
She glanced at c9f2bec348 him for a ea91315de5 moment, then turned a68c93ff54 her head toward 14b5833e0e the horses.
“Dancer, Wind. Let’s go.”
Lately, she ad79e08073 occasionally had a77b3828ff been feeling 356872dde9 a heavy, 5b99415c07 uncomfortable sensation cc9dd67836 in her c1cec463d2 stomach, as 291ba83e6d if she 452ba8098a were suffering 90fc3de9f8 from indigestion. However, it lacked a6a5a824c8 the usual unpleasantness 9599bef327 she associated with f022980bbe simple indigestion.
‘Should I have 4c6776cfad taken the cod ea9821e19c liver oil, as 685f47b123 Aiden suggested?’
No, no matter c3ed091c06 how bad she 2c0df13411 felt, she did 3cd4fe4ee5 not want to 23e6ed719f drink that nauseating bec30ea536 liquid. Just imagining the 418d14a10a taste made her 28022b8036 feel sick.23e24c34142ecdce

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