Orland spent a full twenty years chasing the real culprit after Charles was murdered.

Even amidst the pain and sorrow of losing his beloved wife, he gritted his teeth and strengthened the Brellof family’s power solely to punish whoever was responsible.

It was no exaggeration to say that all the Brellof family’s authority, wealth, and connections existed for the sake of revenge.

Yet the culprit remained as elusive as a ghost.

As time passed, Orland could no longer lift his head. Every year, on the anniversary of Charles’s death, he could barely endure the crushing despair unless he drank himself into oblivion.

‘Who on earth could it be?’

He thought about it every single day without fail.

What depth of hatred must someone harbor to steal away the person most precious to him?

At first, he investigated everyone who held grudges against the Brellof family—their whereabouts, alibis, families, everything else.

But no one could be linked to Charles’s death.

He refused to give up. The mere thought that the murderer who killed Charles was living freely in this world made his blood boil.

Perhaps there were those who benefited from Charles’s death?

He meticulously investigated anyone who might have even the slightest connection—even knowing the exact number of spoons in their mansions.

Still, no specific suspect emerged.

Though Orland tasted immense frustration, he never once considered stopping.

‘I will repay them ten million times over for the pain my wife endured.’

When Charles died, Orland’s world ended. Not only that—Charles had to close her eyes leaving behind two young daughters; Tanashia and Noxia lost their mother.

If he did not exact revenge on the one who turned the rest of his life into agony, he knew he could never close his eyes, even in death.

He vowed—again and again—that even if he became a ghost, he would absolutely achieve his revenge.

Twenty years had passed in this manner.

Orland believed that even if more time passed than this, as long as he drew breath, he would never cease pursuing the true culprit.

Then one day, completely unexpected evidence surfaced.

—Master, do you remember that one of the poison components was Phometalin?

—Of course I remember.

Charles’s cause of death was excessive bleeding from multiple stab wounds inflicted by a dagger.

The mystery was that poison had been discovered at the villa on the day Charles was murdered. Although the cause of death was not poisoning, no one could determine who had brought it.

Hoping it might aid in catching the culprit, he never neglected investigating the poison.

He could recite from memory every component found in the poison discovered that day.

—Phometalin is a compound extracted from Saphien flowers. We’ve discovered a family in the Arwen Empire capable of cultivating Saphien flowers.

—…What?

Until now, Saphien flowers were believed impossible to cultivate within the Arwen Empire, so it was naturally assumed they had been imported from another empire.

Thus, he had traced every import route of Saphien flowers, but all had clear, documented usage—no anomalies were found.

Yet now, there was a family capable of cultivating them directly?

Anger flashed across Orland’s eyes. Calming himself, he asked composedly:

—Which family is it?

—The Pelmyra family.

—Pelmyra?

—Yes. Recently, the Pelmyra family’s fortunes have declined. They took in a son-in-law who is squandering their wealth. Because of this, they recently liquidated some land—and traces of Saphien flower cultivation were found there.

The Pelmyra family was a count’s house governing a region within the Arwen Empire.

That Orland could know such intimate details about the distant Pelmyra family was only possible due to the Brellof family’s exceptional intelligence network.

Moreover, because he had relentlessly investigated the poison, not even the smallest clue was overlooked.

Though the Pelmyra family was famously powerful—known by name alone—something else flickered first in Orland’s memory.

Long ago, it was Orland who first loved Charles.

As soon as he realized his feelings, he dealt with every man Charles showed interest in—but being of marriageable age then, many marriage proposals came his way.

Among them, the one his parents actively recommended, nearly leading to a political marriage, was none other than the Pelmyra family.

—Frankly, the Brellof family is not quite worthy of my daughter. But since the girl insists, we, as parents, have made this concession.

These were the words spoken then by Simon, head of the Pelmyra family.

Simon’s face—long forgotten—naturally resurfaced in Orland’s mind. Though he had dignified, silver-haired features befitting his age, he was an exceedingly arrogant man.

Back then, the Brellof family was nothing like it was now. Today, they far surpassed the Pelmyra family in power, but in the past, they were incomparably weaker.

Thus, at the time, marrying into the Pelmyra family would have been seen by all as an excellent match for Orland—but since he already held Charles in his heart, he refused.

Apparently not expecting Orland’s refusal, Simon’s final words during their last meeting came rushing back, spoken through clenched teeth:

—Are you truly resolved not to marry my daughter?

—I already have someone to whom I’ve promised my future. I sincerely hope your daughter finds a better match than me.

Though Orland refused as politely as possible, Simon’s eyes were filled with rage.

He took it as a blow to his pride—being rejected by the Brellof family, whom he considered vastly inferior to the Pelmyras.

That was the end of it.

It was not an event likely to foster goodwill, but neither was it grievous enough to inspire deep malice.

‘Could he have harbored a grudge from that incident…?’

Suspicious as it was, without clear evidence, he could not jump to conclusions. The Pelmyra family might have traded Saphien flowers with someone else.

Orland’s expression darkened. He spoke in a voice lowered even further:

—Investigate the Pelmyra family thoroughly. I’ll re-examine the poison-related materials—bring me organized documents.

—Yes, Master.

From that day onward, the study in the Brellof mansion became piled high with documents concerning the poison. The same went for materials regarding the Pelmyra family.

From trivial matters to major events—every action of the Pelmyra family over the past twenty years was meticulously recorded and reported to him.

This was the hard-won clue regarding Charles’s death. He absolutely could not let it slip.

—If the Pelmyra family cultivated Saphien flowers, they must have needed a place to hide them. Investigate whether there’s a hidden warehouse.

—Yes. I’ll conduct a focused investigation.

Thus, Orland began tracking down hidden Pelmyra warehouses to secure concrete evidence.

Suspicious locations were marked on maps with red circles—this was precisely what Noxia later discovered and used to dispatch private soldiers.

The more they investigated, the clearer it became that the poison and the Pelmyra family were entangled. He could no longer remain idle.

—I will go personally to where the Pelmyra family resides.

Orland quietly traveled to the region where the Pelmyra family was located. His movements were so secretive that no one could guess his purpose.

Around that time, he received a letter from Tanashia via Zen.

It was a detailed letter explaining that Tanashia, having finally found Ascan—the page boy she had searched for so long—would be traveling to the Karua Empire.

Knowing how desperately she had sought Ascan for ten years, Orland could not stop her. And he knew that even if he tried, she wouldn’t listen.

[Since you’ve found the page boy you searched for so long, I can’t possibly stop you from going to the Karua Empire.

I’ve discovered a clue here regarding the poison, so I won’t be able to move for a while.

Always take care of yourself.]

Thus, granting reluctant permission, he continued investigating the Pelmyra family in the provinces while hearing updates from Tanashia via Zen.

With Orland personally involved, matters progressed swiftly.

—Master, we’ve found the Pelmyra family’s hidden warehouse. With this as evidence, the Pelmyra family won’t be able to deny their involvement.

Cultivating toxic Saphien flowers without permission from the Arwen Imperial Court constituted a grave crime.

If Orland revealed this publicly, the Pelmyra family could not escape punishment.

But something more important remained.

He had to determine whether the Pelmyra family was directly involved in Charles’s death—or whether they had merely transferred Saphien flowers to the culprit through some transaction.

If the former, he would make them suffer the most horrific agony imaginable; if the latter, he needed information about the culprit—meaning negotiation was necessary.

To uncover any connection to the Pelmyra family, he reinvestigated everyone who had entered or exited the villa on the day Charles was murdered twenty years prior.

It was revealed that the young man delivering groceries at the time belonged to the Pelmyra family.

This detail might have been overlooked when the poison and Pelmyra family seemed unrelated—but in the current context, its implication was clear.

The Pelmyra family was the primary party responsible for introducing the poison discovered on the day Charles was murdered.

Grrr—Orland ground his teeth at this finally revealed truth.

‘How dare you…’

With suspicion now confirmed, Orland no longer moved passively.

—Master, what shall we do? Shall we expose the Pelmyra family’s crimes to the Imperial Court and make them pay…?

—No. I didn’t chase them for twenty long years just to settle for some lenient, official punishment. I will personally deliver judgment with my own hands.

He could have officially exposed that the Pelmyra family secretly cultivated Saphien flowers and attempted to murder Charles—but Orland chose not to.

Instead, he mobilized the Brellof family’s entire intelligence network to render the Pelmyra family utterly paralyzed.

He seized everything—every territory they owned, every generational business, even the residence they currently occupied—leaving nothing behind.

Because of this, he missed news of Tanashia’s journey to the Karua Empire—but nothing mattered more to him now than revenge.

Finally, Simon, who had been head of the Pelmyra family at the time, came to see him.

Simon dropped to his knees before Orland without preamble—apparently having realized that Orland was behind the pressure on his family.

“Marquis Brellof, what on earth do you want from me? What grudge could we possibly hold that warrants this? Please, stop this at once.”

Simon looked far older than Orland remembered. Orland coldly observed his appearance—clearly, Simon had little time left to live.

The years since Charles’s murder flashed before his eyes like a reel of film.

Suspecting, tracking, and destroying the Pelmyra family had not taken long.

Perhaps that was why—he felt no satisfaction at all.

“That’s what I want to ask you. What possible grudge could you hold against me that made you try to kill my wife twenty years ago?”

“Th-that’s…!”

Simon initially tried to deny it. But seeing Orland’s calm expression, he fell silent.

He seemed to realize that denial would only worsen the situation—Orland would never make such an accusation without concrete evidence.

“Yes. You must have uncovered something, hence this drastic action. Back then, when the marriage proposal with the Brellof family was canceled, my pride was deeply wounded. Shortly after, my daughter brought home some good-for-nothing man, which made me resent it even more. Had she married the Marquis, such a thing would never have happened.”

Indeed, as Simon said, the Brellof family had risen steadily in power—thanks entirely to Orland’s cool-headed nature and exceptional business acumen.

Above all, Orland and Charles were famously a devoted couple, which only fueled Simon’s bitterness—it felt as though that place rightfully belonged to his daughter.

“So you tried to kill my wife using poison?”

At Orland’s question, Simon cried out as if wronged:

“Yes, I admit I momentarily lost control and intended to kill her! But I never carried it out! You have no reason to blame our family for…”

“Tell me—do you still think I’m some naive youth? If you believed you could deceive me with such excuses, you’re sorely mistaken.”

As Simon said, Charles had died from dagger wounds. Though poison was found, it had no direct connection to the cause of death.

But through investigating connections between the Pelmyra family and events on the day Charles was murdered, Orland learned the truth.

Originally, Orland had planned to stay with Charles at the villa. But he was forced to leave due to a sudden, unexpected incident.

The one who had orchestrated that incident from behind the scenes was none other than Simon.

“That day, you were the one who pulled me away from the villa. Did you think I wouldn’t find out? Had it not been for that, my wife might not have died.”

“B-but think about it the other way—you might have been murdered alongside her! Isn’t it possible I saved you?”

“Ha. Haha.”

Orland laughed—not from amusement, but from sheer rage. Yet his eyes were so chilling that his laughter felt even more terrifying.

“If I could have, I would have chosen to die alongside Charles.”

“D-don’t speak such nonsense. You’re just trying to shift responsibility—of course you can say that now, since it’s all in the past.”

In a sense, Simon’s argument was reasonable. Considering the Brellof family’s current power, such a thing seemed impossible.

Few men would abandon so much—wealth, status, power—let alone their lives, for a single woman.

Orland didn’t bother explaining further. People thought differently—Simon would never understand, even if Orland died trying to make him.

Instead, he drove the final nail to ensure Simon could no longer evade responsibility.

“The young man who brought the poison to the villa that day has already confessed. He went to poison Charles, but stopped because she was already dead.”

Simon’s eyes filled with despair—he instinctively knew there was no more room for excuses.

Though Simon denied direct involvement in Charles’s death, had the murderer not struck first, Charles might have been poisoned instead.

Moreover, he could not evade responsibility for luring Orland away on the day Charles was murdered.

Orland spoke in an even lower, colder voice:

“Honestly, I feel like prescribing you a health tonic. You must live a long, long time—so you can fully experience the hell I’m going to show you.”

Every day, he had agonized over how to exact revenge once he caught the one responsible for Charles’s death.

Simon was not the one who plunged the dagger—but he could not escape paying for his sins. Merely seeing how stubbornly he denied responsibility proved he would never apologize unless crushed by force.

Killing him would be far too easy. He could not allow such a simple death as payment.

Even carving away his flesh piece by piece would not satisfy him.

He would never let Simon die easily. He intended to make him endure, one by one, every possible agony a living man could suffer.

As the first step in this plan, he had already destroyed the Pelmyra family.

Just as Simon trembled in fear, one of Orland’s subordinates approached and whispered into his ear:

“Private soldiers from the Brellof family have been dispatched to the warehouse we seized. Miss Noxia is looking for you—what should we do?”

“Noxia?”

For a while, Orland had mobilized the Brellof family’s entire intelligence network toward dismantling the Pelmyra family.

Could something have happened?

In Orland’s mind, Charles’s final words echoed:

—Promise me. Even without me… raise Tanashia and Noxia so they never feel lacking…

Regaining his reason from the consuming rage, Orland looked at his subordinate.

“Go immediately.”

He was still Charles’s husband—but he had not forgotten that he was also the only father Tanashia and Noxia had.

As Orland rose from his seat, he quietly addressed Simon:

“Before I go, sign a bodily forfeiture agreement. Let me warn you—if you refuse, your entire family will have to sign it too.”

“M-Marquis! Marquis Brellof!”

Simon cried out desperately—but Orland did not stop walking.

If Simon thought this was the end of the revenge, he was sorely mistaken.

This was only the beginning.