Time Healer Ceres

“Again...”

Del, the loyal aide to the Grand Duke of Persia, let out a long sigh.

Until not long ago, Kainel had at least been eating properly thanks to his frequent visits to the stew shop. But lately, he once again stopped putting anything in his mouth.

What does he mean the taste changed?

Del had wondered why the Grand Duke suddenly stopped visiting the stew shop he used to frequent almost every day, only to hear that the taste was different now.

He secretly tried the stew himself, but he couldn’t tell any difference at all.

Just to be certain, he even had the chef taste it, but the man said the same thing. According to him, it was no different from the stew the shop had served before.

So the problem is that the person cooking changed?

It was when Del learned that the woman who had been cooking there for some time had temporarily left the shop. Hearing that she was now working as the Tower Master’s temporary secretary shocked him even further.

The Tower Master’s secretary...

There was no way to know what kind of conversations had passed between them, but he had heard that the Tower Master visited the shop often. Perhaps the two of them had become acquainted that way.

In any case, Del had spotted her during the last Imperial Council meeting and carefully approached her to ask about it, only to fall into despair.

When she said she had no intention of returning to work at the shop, his vision nearly went dark.

Then where is the Grand Duke supposed to eat now?

He barely managed to swallow the question before it escaped his lips.

“Sir Del, Lord Oselt Ellesia has arrived.”

“Ah, I’ll go greet him.”

At that moment, a servant approached to announce the arrival of their expected guest.

Del quickly headed toward the entrance of the estate, where he saw an elderly man stepping out of a carriage.

“Welcome, Lord Oselt.”

“Hm. Is the Grand Duke inside?”

“He has been expecting you.”

Del escorted him to the office where Kainel was waiting.

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

A second later, the two stepped into the office and found Kainel surrounded by towering piles of paperwork.

Even with a guest present, Kainel didn’t lift his eyes from the documents until Del coughed.

“Sit.”

Oselt took the offered seat and studied Kainel with an unreadable gaze.

He had heard countless rumors about the man, but this was his first time seeing him up close. Though Kainel looked no older than a man in his twenties, Oselt knew that he had already lived for more than three hundred years.

Still, being spoken to so casually by someone with such a youthful appearance felt awkward.

“Do you want Ethel?”

“Yes.”

Oselt flinched slightly at Kainel’s bluntness in diving straight into business without so much as a greeting. However, a pleased smile soon spread across his face.

He, too, disliked wasting time on empty formalities.

Ethel was a mineral found only in the northern Principality of Persia. Since it burned far hotter than coal, it was one of the most highly sought-after resources on the continent.

The issue was that the Principality had closed itself off for years, cutting off the supply entirely. Now that the Grand Duke had finally returned to the capital, Oselt saw an opportunity to reopen trade with the North.

Though Oselt was already so wealthy and had more than enough heirs to succeed him now that he was past sixty, he still personally stepped in whenever a profitable opportunity presented itself.

Kainel studied him in silence for a moment. Even at his age, Oselt carried himself with the vigor of a man in his prime.

Then Kainel tapped his finger lightly against the desk.

“If you grant me exclusive rights to Esolin, I’ll give you exclusive rights to Ethel.”

“Esolin...”

Esolin was a type of grain. Though less sticky than wheat, it served as a staple food in several countries. One of them was the Kingdom of Katusha, a nation closely tied to the Principality of Persia.

While the two countries were currently allies, they had spent years at war with each other. Their relationship was unstable enough that either side could turn on the other at any time.

So he intends to pressure them with Esolin.

Two-thirds of the Esolin distributed across the continent came from the Devrica Empire. And the person who held exclusive distribution rights over it was none other than Oselt Ellesia, the very man now sitting across from Kainel.

“Very well.”

After deciding it was a deal that would bring him no losses, Oselt nodded.

“We can discuss the terms when the contracts are drafted.”

“Fine.”

Once it was clear the discussion was mostly over, Del stepped forward and placed tea before the two men.

“Please, have some.”

“Thank you.”

Still standing beside Kainel, Del smiled faintly. The Grand Duke’s role in the conversation had ended, which meant it was his turn to step in.

“I heard House Ellesia recently underwent quite a significant change.”

At Del’s casual remark, Oselt’s expression stiffened a bit.

“...Word travels fast.”

“A new head of the family has emerged. It’s hardly a small matter.”

Although no formal announcement was made yet, the nobles who needed to know were already aware that House Ellesia’s head had changed. Rumors were also spreading that Creel, who poisoned his master, would soon stand trial.

Ironically, despite all the effort Creel had spent building relationships within noble society, those same people were the first to distance themselves from him.

“You must have been shocked to learn the family head’s ring was fake. Even hearing about it made my stomach turn.”

“Haha. I’d heard the Grand Duchy’s information network was impressive, but to think you know that much.”

The rumors surrounding Creel’s poisoning had spread, but very few people knew anything about the family head’s ring, even within House Ellesia itself.

Oselt narrowed his eyes as he wondered where the leak had come from, but Del remained composed.

If he folded under pressure like this, he would never survive serving Lord Kainel.

In the end, Oselt sighed, exhausted by Del’s shameless confidence.

“There was someone who found the real ring and brought it back. Without that person, proving Creel’s crimes would’ve been difficult.”

Had it not been for the testimony of Jubellios, the Fire Spirit King, the former head’s death might have remained buried forever beneath lingering suspicion.

“Are they your benefactors? Someone from House Ellesia?”

“No. That’s the strange part.”

“What do you mean?”

Since Del didn’t know the full story, he listened with clear interest to Oselt’s explanation.

Kainel, on the other hand, paid the conversation no mind and quietly sipped his tea. There was no reason for him to care about House Ellesia without Grace.

“The one who found the ring was the Tower Master’s temporary secretary.”

“...The temporary secretary?”

At those words, Kainel immediately lowered the teacup in his hand.

The Tower Master’s temporary secretary...

“She found the ring?”

Oselt’s eyes widened at Kainel’s reaction. Anyone watching would think the two already knew each other.

How?

How could the Grand Duke possibly know the Tower Master’s temporary secretary? There didn’t seem to be any connection between them at all.

“Tell me everything that happened that day.”

“Pardon?”

“From the beginning to the end. Don’t leave anything out.”

“......”

For someone digging into another family’s affairs, Kainel certainly sounded confident.

Oselt stared at him in mild disbelief, his lips parting slightly, though the silence didn’t last long.

“You owe me for this, Your Excellency. And remember that everything I’m about to tell you is strictly confidential.”

Even while discussing exclusive rights to Ethel and Esolin—deals worth astronomical sums—Kainel had behaved as though none of it particularly interested him.

If Oselt could place a man like that in his debt, then this was hardly a bad trade.

“I was questioning Creel about the real ring’s whereabouts when suddenly, the Second Prince barged in...”

Oselt began recounting everything that had happened that day in detail.

.

.

.

Chapter 15: Traces of Artia

“I’m honestly curious about something.”

“What?”

“What exactly are you, Ceres?”

“...You know your tone just now was really annoying, right?”

“Ah, that’s harsh.”

Ceres sighed at the sight of Cheion pouting.

Seriously, how old is he?

“Who else would I be? I’m your temporary secretary.”

“...True.”

Still, that temporary secretary had far too many secrets. The more he uncovered, the more unbelievable things kept appearing.

Cheion shook his head as he recalled what had happened at House Ellesia.

She seemed awfully close with the Spirit King.

The others were too far away to hear, but Cheion was standing right beside them and caught every single word exchanged between Ceres and Jubellios, the Fire Spirit King.

“Shut it, featherbrain.”

[......]

Even now, remembering that exchange left him completely dumbfounded.

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