It's so hard being a hero!

"Eight hundred thousand gold coins?"

Sophia raised an eyebrow, but her face showed no surprise.

She knew the amount was considerable, but not outrageous.

Drummond closed the file and looked at her.

"Someone has to bear this loss, don't you think?"

Sophia paused for a moment.

Then she took out the gold-rimmed envelope Frey had given her from her bosom.

Drummond noticed the wax seal on the envelope and his brow twitched slightly.

He recognized the seal; it was the highest-ranking official seal of the empire.

Sofia placed the envelope on the table and pushed it in front of Drummond.

“This is what my teacher asked me to pass on to you. She said that what’s inside might be able to put an end to this matter.”

Drummond hesitated for a moment, then picked up the envelope and carefully examined the sealing wax.

After confirming that everything was correct, he opened the envelope.

Inside were two things: a purple-gold card and a letter.

Drummond picked up the purple-gold card, turned it over, and his pupils suddenly contracted.

His hand trembled slightly, and he almost dropped it.

The highest-level savings card from the Imperial Bank of America.

This isn't something you can do just with money.

No more than ten people in the entire empire possess this card.

Each one of them was a top-tier powerhouse in the empire, or a figure standing at the pinnacle of power.

Drummond took a deep breath, placed the purple-gold card on the table, and then unfolded the letter.

The letter read:

“My students have caused losses to the Empire, and as their teacher, I am willing to compensate them on their behalf.”

"Please have the investigator calculate the specific amount of the loss and deduct it from the savings card attached to this letter."

"As for my name, there's no need to sign it."

The letter was unsigned, only bearing a seal.

The moment Drummond saw the seal, he froze.

He stared at the seal for a full five seconds, then looked up at Sophia with an extremely complicated expression.

Samira noticed Drummond's unusual behavior, walked over, picked up the letter, and glanced at it.

Then her expression changed.

"this?"

She opened her mouth, as if to say something, but ultimately swallowed her words.

"what happened?"

Count Vlad couldn't help but ask a question.

He couldn't understand what Drummond and Samira's expressions meant at all.

Drummond ignored him, carefully put away the letter and the purple-gold card, and then looked at Sophia.

“Miss Sophia, we need to discuss this matter further.”

His tone was even more polite than before, and even carried a hint of respect.

Sophia was stunned for a moment; she hadn't expected Frey's letter to be so powerful.

"Then, shall I go back first?"

She asked tentatively.

"Okay, I'll send someone to deliver it to you."

Drummond stood up and personally escorted Sophia to the living room door.

Count Vlad sat in his chair, completely stunned.

Drummond's attitude changed way too quickly.

Just a moment ago you were acting all businesslike, how come you're suddenly acting like you're serving a big shot?

Chapter 52 Choosing to Quiet the Situation

When Sophia left the Earl's mansion, she was still replaying in her mind the expression on Drummond's face when he saw the letter.

The other party's attitude completely changed in an instant.

"Ugh! What an unlovable woman. She had already figured out how to help me settle this, so why did she have to beat around the bush like that?"

Sophia muttered to herself.

However, she also understood that Frey's willingness to step forward had nothing to do with any imperial interests; it was purely because of her.

Thinking about this, Sophia felt a mix of emotions.

He had clearly recognized her a long time ago, but he just wouldn't bring himself to confess.

I really don't know what they're waiting for, or if they're just afraid to face it.

"Alas, a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea."

Sophia shook her head, banishing all those random thoughts.

She quickened her pace and soon returned to her front door.

Bisis and Sulot were standing at the door looking around when they saw her. Their expressions relaxed a little.

"You're finally back. Are you alright?"

Bisis came up to her and looked her up and down.

"It's nothing, what could possibly be wrong with me?"

Sophia smiled, put her arm around her mother's shoulder, and walked inside.

"Mom, I'm hungry. Is lunch ready yet?"

Bissis rolled his eyes at her; he knew, of course, that Sophia was changing the subject again.

But there was nothing they could do about it.

Sophia felt unusually at ease listening to her mother's nagging.

As for the Earl's mansion, the atmosphere became a bit strange after Sophia left.

Drummond sat in his chair, his brow furrowed so deeply it could trap a fly, staring at the letter and the purple-gold card on the table.

His expression was as if he had seen two hot potatoes.

"Lord Drummond, what on earth is going on?"

Count Vlad could no longer contain himself and asked.

Drummond looked up and glanced at him, but instead of answering directly, he turned to look at Samira.

"Commander Samira, what do you think?"

Samira crossed her arms and remained deep in thought.

"The mark is real, and the card is real too."

"There are no more than ten people in the entire empire who can possess that mark, and each of them stands at the very top of the empire's pyramid."

Vlad's expression changed instantly upon hearing this.

"What, what do you mean?"

"That means that little girl's teacher is one of the most outstanding people in the empire."

Every word Samira spoke struck Vlad's heart like a hammer blow.

“A person like that, let alone an earl, even royalty wouldn’t dare to offend easily.”

Vlad opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found that his throat was blocked.

He certainly knew what the empire's top experts meant.

That was someone even the emperor had to treat with utmost respect; a powerful figure he could only look up to in his entire life.

And he almost arrested one of those big shots' students just now.

Thinking of this, Vlad broke out in a cold sweat.

"Then what do we do now?"

Drummond ignored him and instead picked up the purple-gold card on the table, examining it from all angles.

"Eight hundred thousand gold coins is an astronomical figure for ordinary people, but for someone who holds this kind of card, it's probably just pocket change."

He put down the card and tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

"The question is, should we accept this compensation or not?"

The living room fell silent.

Vlad opened his mouth, wanting to say of course he should shut up, but seeing Drummond's face that looked like it could be squeezed dry, he swallowed his words back.

"If we accept it, it's tantamount to admitting that the little girl was at fault."

Drummond seemed to be talking to himself, or perhaps analyzing something.

"But this would offend her teacher. Would a big shot at the top of the empire bother with you over 800,000 gold coins? No."

"But won't they be unhappy? Absolutely."

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping over everyone present.