Angela looked Neumann up and down expressionlessly without even sitting down.
Neumann accepted her gaze calmly and remained silent.
After a while, Angela burst into laughter.
“So, why did you co here, Lord Neumann?”
“I’m sure you’re not asking because you don’t know. You’re trying to get involved in a new business that young people are starting. Your na as a rchant is wasted in this.”
At Neumann’s words, which were said in a tone suggesting there was no hurry, Angela raised an eyebrow.
“…That’s quite explicit, Neumann. But where are young people in the business world? Everyone is just a competitor.”
“From what I hear you say, it seems like you have no intention of hiding it any further.”
“Hiding? What am I hiding?”
Angela raised the corners of her mouth.
Neumann lowered his voice slightly.
“Didn’t you secretly make a contract with Count Eckhart?”
“Why bother spreading rumors about who I’m signing a contract with? It doesn’t look good for you to be ddling in other people’s business.”
It was an overtly sarcastic remark about information.
“Isn’t it equally uncool to ss with young people who are fearlessly jumping into business or to sell information gathered by spying like a rat?”
Angela burst into laughter as she locked eyes with Neumann.
“Or is it quite rewarding to volunteer to be a child’s servant? I don’t know.”
Angela’s eyes sank coldly.
In contrast, Neumann still had a friendly smile on his face and answered leisurely.
“It’s quite fun. If you have a young person nearby, you can witness all sorts of unimaginable things right up close. What do you think, Sister? Would you like to join?”
“I’m sorry, but I have to decline. I think it would be more adult-like to send a runaway kid back ho.”
“It is arrogant to say that adults are always right. It is not the job of adults to block the path of young people, but to push them forward.”
Neumann’s crescent-shaped eyes gave off a subtle light.
It wasn’t like Angela couldn’t see the bone in his words, but she just snorted.
“If you’re going to keep talking like that, then go back. Your little rat business is a business, and my petty bullying of a child is also a business.”
“…Are you really going to continue?”
Neumann’s tone changed in an instant.
Angela, sensing the change, furrowed her brows.
“Rather, what I want to say is, Neumann. Why on earth are you doing this? Did you get a favor from the second son of the Eckhart family?”
“Heh…”
Neumann let out a cold laugh.
Even if it were the leader of the East rchant Group, it seed that was the only guess that could be made right away.
“Do you see it that way?”
“What else would it be? I know that Lord Arendt had a great influence on your independence. I heard he interfered in your business affairs after that.”
Neumann was silent for a mont at Angela’s sharp question.
And after a while, he naturally started speaking again.
“Yes, isn’t that a great thing? The results are proven by the current Neumann rchant Group.”
His job today wasn’t to stop Angela.
Rather, he wondered if it would be better if she was encouraged.
“So, it’s not that difficult to look after a newly-started union. Isn’t business a give-and-take affair? Since I gained sothing from it, I should give sothing back as well.”
Lying was Arendt’s specialty, but Neumann also had a long career as a rchant.
Neumann was also quite confident in creating facial expressions.
“So you were taking care of those kids?”
“I didn’t say I would take care of them. But since my only older sister, the head of the household, said that she would interfere with them, I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed.”
Neumann frowned.
Angela studied Neumann closely for a while, as if trying to determine if his words were true.
Neumann accepted the gaze blandly.
An uncomfortable silence fell in the living room for a while.
After so ti had passed, Angela spoke first.
“So, did you co here to tell to cancel the deal with Count Eckhart? To make yourself look good in front of that rookie knight?”
“Yes.”
“That’s not funny.”
Angela glared at him with sunken eyes.
“Speak sense, little brother. I don’t think you’re that naive.”
“…”
“You and I are businessn. There’s no way you would reveal your true feelings so easily. You have another purpose, don’t you?”
As expected, her instincts that led the East rchant Group to this point were not sothing to be ignored.
Although it was a sharp shot, Neumann was completely unfazed and looked at her calmly.
“Well, maybe, maybe not. One thing is for sure, what you’re about to do isn’t a very good idea.”
Angela frowned when she heard the calm reply.
“Speak clearly.”
“I will give you this sincere advice because we share blood and the kindness you’ve shown ..”
Neumann stared at her quietly and spoke bluntly.
“There are so people in this world that you should never ss with.”
“…What?”
Angela frowned slightly at the unexpected remark.
“I know you are aware of Lord Arendt. You also have so idea of Lord Arendt’s abilities and skills. That is why you are doing this to keep him in check.”
“So… you an that the person you’re talking about who shouldn’t be touched is Lord Arendt?”
“Yes.”
He nodded to Angela, who asked again as if confirming.
“Lord Arendt is a monster. Even the difficult guardians around him have a hard ti dealing with him .”
Neumann smiled broadly.
“I wonder if you can achieve what you want. I am skeptical.”
“…”
Angela, who had been staring at Neumann for a while with her arms crossed, raised the corners of her lips.
“Then shall we make a bet?”
“What kind of bet are you talking about?”
Angela answered Neumann’s flat question plainly.
“Whether I can achieve my goal or not.”
“Hoo.”
Neumann’s eyes sparkled at the unexpected suggestion.
“That sounds fun. What would be a good bet?”
“Well…”
She pretended to think hard and trailed off, then looked around and added playfully, yet coldly.
“If I succeed, give thirty percent of your business.”
“Oh, you are being too greedy. But it is okay. I will accept it.”
Neumann nodded with a big smile.
“If I win, you will lend a helping hand to Lord Arendt. What do you think?”
Angela frowned at the unexpected condition.
“What?”
“You will hand over so of the shares in the East rchant Group to Lord Arendt, and you will also deal formally with him.”
Angela, who was speechless for a mont, soon burst into laughter.
“This is truly absurd. Is the value of your business only thirty percent?”
“That thirty percent wouldn’t have existed if it weren’t for Arendt. And you better think about it, Sister.”
Neumann narrowed his eyes.
“I don’t make bets to lose.”
“…”
There was not an ounce of falsehood in him.
Neumann’s eyes were confident of his victory.
Eventually, Angela was the first to burst out in laughter.
“…Well, okay. I’ll accept it. Later, I’ll send soone to your office to deliver a morandum.”
“You don’t have to go that far, but fine. For sothing like this, it’s best to make sure everything is clear.”
Neumann nodded, pretending to refuse.
“From now on, I will use every trick in the book to interfere with you, sister.”
“I must prepare to send the prodigal son back to his father.”
The eyes of the two siblings t in the air.
And almost simultaneously, Neumann and Angela’s lips curved.
That evening, at an inn near the Khan Union.
Arendt, who had heard Neumann’s report in the room, let out a heartfelt question.
“…Lord Neumann, are you crazy?”
– Hehe, then please take care of it. Since both parties have already signed the morandum, I can’t turn it down, and if I’m not careful, I might end up losing the entire information network to my sister.
Arendt was left speechless by the flat answer coming from the other end of the communication tunnel.
Arthur, who was sitting on the bed listening to their conversation, blurted out a sentence.
“Your evil influence has now reached even the Lord of the rchant group.”
“No…”
The directive to stir up the East rchant Group was successfully carried out.
But wasn’t this a bit too much?
Neumann quickly added, taking advantage of Arendt’s mont of silence.
– First of all, I made it certain that the Khan Union and I were connected. Now that things have turned out this way, I’m sure she won’t suspect anything either.
“…”
Of course she wouldn’t have doubted it. You made that bet.
Arendt forced himself to suppress the words that were rising to the top of his throat.
– Now that it has co to it, please take care of . I also now have a reason to help Arendt with all my might. I am honestly happy about that.
The voice coming from the other end of the communication port certainly sounded joyful.
While Arendt was unable to respond, Neumann ended the conversation on his own.
– I heard you’re at the Union now. If you need anything, please let know. Have a good night.
“No, wait a minute, Lord Neumann!”
Beep.
Arendt stared in bewildernt at the disconnected communication port.
But the communication port that had gone dark never lit up again.
He knew that Neumann had the rchant’s spirit of a gambler, but he never thought it was to this extent.
Arendt sighed deeply and put down the communication port.
Arthur, who had been watching, said in a spiteful tone.
“I think it’s your karma. By the way, Lord Neumann is truly amazing. He made you flustered.”
“Be quiet. Tsk, I didn’t think the family feud would co to this.”
Count Eckhart would surely be in a state of shock if he found out that things had turned out this way.
But anyway, the goal was achieved, as neither the East rchant Group nor Count Eckhart could back out any further.
“Did you check with the people earlier?”
Arthur nodded slightly when Arendt changed the subject.
“Everyone was acting like they were seeing sothing rare.”
“Who was the suspicious person?”
“There were two of them. They pretended not to know each other inside the Union Store, then went outside and joined up.”
In addition to the Count’s person that Arcus had seen, there was soone else hiding.
“Did you rember their face?”
“Of course.”
“Did you follow the steps properly?”
“I asked the information centre. They should have figured out where that person went by now.”
As expected, Arthur knew what to do without being told.
As Arendt got up from his seat, Arthur threw the coat he had roughly thrown nearby at him.
“I thought that if there was no harvest today, Lord Arcus would have to suffer the sa fate tomorrow, but fortunately that wasn’t the case.”
“Why? I acted as the younger sibling he wanted so badly.”
Catch.
Arendt, who had grabbed the coat in midair, responded indifferently.
“That’s the problem, right there.”
“You’re being difficult.”
The two of them left the room together, having a pointless conversation.
In the deep, quiet night.
Clouds gathered in the sky, which had been clear during the day, and the moon was nowhere to be seen.
In other words, it was the perfect environnt for doing bad things.
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