Chapter 10: Duke Farmason’s Designs

Livia, who had been entrusted to the church, was a child born between Duke Farmason and a commoner.

Livia’s mother was a beautiful woman, and the duke took her to his bed in secret from his wife, resulting in the birth of a child.

Unfortunately, Livia’s mother suffered complications after childbirth and passed away shortly after giving birth to her.

Duke Farmason was unable to take in his illegitimate daughter Livia and had no choice but to entrust her to the church.

And so, he continued to look after her from the shadows.

With the eyes of the duchess upon him, he could not offer open support, but…

Livia was raised in the church and learned healing magic, eventually working as a healer.

Though he wished to someday take her in as his daughter, he had also resigned himself to the belief that such a wish would never be granted.

…However.

He learned that Livia had joined the rear guard on the battlefield and was tending to the wounded.

Angered at the thought of her being sent to such a dangerous place, Duke Farmason had her situation investigated in detail.

That was when he discovered that she had fallen in love with a certain knight.

The man was merely a baron.
But as a knight, he showed promise.

Duke Farmason felt guilt over having been unable to raise Livia as a ducal daughter.

—And so.

For the sake of his daughter’s romance.
And to elevate her standing at last.

Duke Farmason decided to take action.

First, he thoroughly investigated the man his daughter had fallen for.

His name was Harid Carlson.
A mere baron.

The duke bestowed upon Harid a special sword.

A blade imbued with magical power, capable of delivering effective attacks against monsters.

It was a sword that could only be obtained with the wealth of a ducal house.

There was no way Harid, nothing more than a baron, could have acquired it on his own.

Then, he worked to raise the reputation of the pair as much as possible and arranged for Harid to be elevated in rank alongside his achievements.

Naturally, Livia was also praised and celebrated as a ‘saint.’

If many among the populace came to recognize Livia as a saint… then perhaps one day, he might be able to take her in as his daughter.

It was with such thoughts in mind that he acted.

Furthermore, by colluding with the church, he was able to promote Livia even more strongly as a ‘saint.’

The remaining problem was Harid’s wife.

Upon investigation, he learned that the two had not even held a wedding ceremony, and moreover, that theirs was known to be a white marriage.

He did not know what kind of relationship Harid had with his wife, but…

That wife was unquestionably an obstacle to Livia’s happiness.

With the church’s cooperation, Duke Farmason attempted to damage the reputation of Harid’s wife, Electra.

To the duke, a mere viscount’s daughter was not someone worth worrying about.

However, his schemes did not go as smoothly as expected.

Several plans were dealt with and ended in failure.

The woman’s family, the House of Vent, was the same.

They responded to the agents the duke had prepared and suppressed the slander against Electra.

Escalating the underhanded measures any further would have carried too much risk.

Because he did not want to bring down the house his daughter was meant to marry into, and only wished to tarnish the wife’s reputation, his actions were limited, and everything was countered.

The duke found this vexing, but…

The crucial point was that Harid himself seemed utterly infatuated with Livia.

He had heard that regardless of whether his wife’s reputation fell or not, Harid would surely divorce her and choose Livia.

“Ha… so he was a nobleman of that sort after all.”

While feeling irritation toward the baroness who had survived all his schemes.

The thought that she would ultimately lose as a woman to his daughter and be miserably divorced was enough to soothe the duke’s displeasure.