They are all characters I control.

The nobles also pandered to Bishop Simon, mocking the Marquis of Rost, whose brains were no better than his daughter's.

"Your daughter from the Rost family came up with this? That's quite surprising. I remember your daughter, Marquis Rost, was engaged to my son, Alvin? I think her name was Elena, right?"

His Majesty Daryan said with a smile.

Because Prince Alvin often mentioned how outstanding Miss Elena of the Rothschild family was.

Although I remember the Rost family having two daughters, it must be Elena who came up with such an excellent solution, right?

“Uh… this…” Marquis Rost said somewhat awkwardly.

He didn't care whether his second daughter, Elena, would steal his eldest daughter, Lia, from Prince Alvin's engagement, since both daughters were members of his own Rost family.

But if I lie now, it will be troublesome if His Majesty Daryan finds out the truth later.

Marquis Rost still forced himself to explain: "Your Majesty, the one engaged to Prince Alvin is my eldest daughter, Lia, and Elena is my second daughter."

"Oh, I see." His Majesty Daryan nodded, showing no sign of embarrassment.

He still had a smile on his face and said kindly, "I'm sorry, Lord Rost, I remembered wrong. After all, the marriage alliance with the Rost family was decided by our previous generation, hehe."

"But now that the Rost family is already engaged to the royal family, I don't know how else I can reward you, Lord Rost."

"Is there anything you desire, Lord Rost?"

Hearing the seemingly polite words of the benevolent emperor, the nobles below the stage watched the show with amusement.

It was clear that His Majesty Darian and Bishop Simon did not intend to give Marquis Rost any real reward, but only some nominal gesture.

After all, the new tax proposed by the Marquis of Rost was indeed quite good, and it wouldn't be right not to reward him.

“Your Majesty, your affirmation is my greatest honor.” Marquis Rost was not so foolish as to not see this.

Their own family has already been suppressed by the third generation, how can they turn things around with just a few new tax suggestions?

However, this could be used to demonstrate loyalty to the emperor and the bishop, and to seek future promotion.

"Is that so? But Lord Rost's loyalty is commendable, which makes things a bit difficult." His Majesty Darian sat on his throne, looking down at Lord Rost below.

He turned to the nobles below the stage and asked, "Does anyone have any thoughts? Orlando, what about you?"

"How about hosting a banquet for the Marquis of Rost, Your Majesty?"

At this moment, a figure stepped out from among the nobles.

He was a blond man who looked to be no more than twenty or thirty.

Even though he looked younger than the Marquis of Rost and was only an earl, the atmosphere around him changed noticeably the moment this handsome blond man stepped out.

“Oh? Earl Orlando? Tell me more.” His Majesty Darian leaned forward slightly to hear him better.

Bishop Simon, who had been sitting silently to the side, also looked at Earl Orlando with some interest.

Under the watchful eyes of the benevolent Emperor and Bishop Simon, Count Orlando calmly stepped forward.

A contagious smile spread across his handsome face. He raised his hand to bow to His Majesty Darian on the throne and said, "Instead of having Marquis Rost convey the message, it would be better to have Miss Rost, who came up with these new tax laws, explain them to His Majesty and the Bishop herself. That way, we won't have to worry about any oversights."

"These new taxes seem perfect to us now, but they were just the idea of ​​a noble lady. We need to discuss and revise them further."

"Therefore, I suggest holding a dinner party. That way, compared to a formal occasion like this, the other party won't be as intimidated by us as the current Marquis Rost is."

Instantly, a joyful atmosphere filled the entire hall.

Earl Orlando's remarks, which seemed unintentional but sounded like a joke to others, once again drew laughter from the surrounding nobles.

His Majesty Darian and Bishop Simon looked at the Marquis Rost, who was standing below the stage looking bewildered and helpless, forcing an ugly smile despite being ridiculed. They also smiled.

It's quite rare for someone who was once a marquis to have fallen to such a state.

However, just as His Majesty Darian was about to make that decision, another man's voice interrupted the atmosphere.

"However, Miss Leah of the Rost family was attacked some time ago, so we need to think carefully before letting her attend the banquet this time."

Captain Karl, dressed in knight's attire, slowly stepped out of the ranks. He was neither an earl nor a marquis.

But the fact that he is standing here at this moment is enough to prove that his status is no less than that of the other nobles present.

Captain Karl's stern face and cold gaze fell on Earl Orlando, who spoke frivolously, his expression filled with scrutiny and rejection. It was clear that Captain Karl disliked Earl Orlando.

“But isn’t protecting the safety of the capital your duty as knights?” Earl Orlando maintained his gentlemanly smile, meeting Captain Karl’s gaze without any politeness.

"That is of course our duty as knights, but that does not mean we can do foolish things knowing there is danger."

“Foolish behavior? We are discussing the new taxes for the Empire and the Church, which is a very important matter.”

"..."

It's started again. The nobles are already used to seeing Earl Orlando and Captain Karl locked in a fierce confrontation.

The Earl of Orlando's family is also an old noble family with a long history and family honor. What's rare is that they were not involved in the war between the evil god emperor and the church.

Therefore, Earl Orlando was highly regarded by His Majesty Darian, and the nobles of the new empire all gathered around Earl Orlando.

As for Captain Karl, although he did not have such pure old noble blood, he was brought by Bishop Simon and was responsible for protecting the safety of the capital and the church, and guarding against the remnants of the evil god emperor Claire.

Bishop Simon always carried Karl with him, and the Grand Master of the Knights protecting the capital was always at Karl's beck and call.

Earl Orlando and Captain Carl, at similar ages, have climbed to similar positions.

Unfortunately, these two have completely opposite personalities; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they're irreconcilable.

They always seem to dislike each other, and they can disagree on everything.

"Well, that is indeed a bit of a dilemma." His Majesty Darian turned to Bishop Simon beside him again: "What do you think, Your Excellency?"

"No problem, I'd also like to learn more about those interesting new taxes. Let's have the banquet tonight."

Bishop Simon spoke.

Captain Karl lowered his head upon hearing this, while Earl Orlando raised his chin smugly.

The Marquis of Rost, who was standing to the side with his head down, was desperately trying to suppress the urge to jump up and cheer. The opportunity had come!

Chapter 27 My Family of Origin

The Rost family mansion.

The cold, cramped storage room was filled with a mixture of dust and moldy smells.

Leah and Anna sat on the cold floor, leaning against a pile of old furniture covered with dust cloths.

"Anna, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault. Marquise Mara found us. If I hadn't gone with her, we probably wouldn't have been discovered."

Liya's eyes were red, and she felt very guilty.

If Anna hadn't been with him, and Anna had been alone, she might not have attracted the attention of the Marquise Marla.

With one less person, there is less risk of exposure.

He hadn't helped at all, and had even caused Anna to be captured as well.

“It’s alright. You weren’t completely unhelpful. At least I’m still here going through the procedures because of you, Lia.” Anna shook her head.

Faced with Lia's current self-blame, she gently comforted her: "If it weren't for you being here, Miss, I would have been stuffed into a sack, had my limbs broken, and thrown into the slums by now."

“But I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t followed.” Seeing that Anna didn’t blame her, Leah felt even more guilty.

Anna had always been annoyed by Lia's excessive kindness.

She didn't want to continue the topic, but considering that Leah also had "two people" with her.

Although it was a bit troublesome, Anna still chose to patiently explain: "Miss, you didn't know that I wanted to steal something from the study, did you? Marquis Marla didn't actually wrong me."

"Even if Anna stole something, she must have done it for something important."

Lia blinked and looked at Anna with a trusting expression.

“…That’s certainly true.” Anna sighed.

I went to the study because I wanted to help the evil 'Lia' find the three tokens that would open the treasure chest.

However, what he didn't expect was that he failed to steal the ring and was instead caught.

Now that I think about it, Marquise Mara had actually been trying to cause trouble for me and Lia since the morning, right? Otherwise, she wouldn't have just happened to see them come to the study.

"That's right! Anna, you can't possibly do anything bad! No matter what, I will definitely protect you, Anna."

Lia clenched her fist and said seriously, "I will explain to Father that I wanted to peek into the drawer. I will absolutely not let Anna be punished."

"Whatever," Anna said, not bothering to persuade Lia not to waste her time.

If Marquis Rost really cared about Leah, how could he have allowed his stepmother and stepsister to bully her for so many years?

However, Anna wasn't actually that worried.

Looking at the sunlight outside the window, she estimated that the evil 'Lia' would be out soon.

At that time, the evil 'Lia' will definitely be able to resolve the current situation of the two of them.

Although there is no basis for this thought, every trouble that the evil 'Lia' had been able to resolve efficiently and effectively after she appeared before was still there.

Ignoring Lia pacing back and forth, Anna chose to rest quietly to conserve her strength so that she could hold out until the evil 'Lia' appeared.

Just as Anna chose to conserve her energy, and Lia pondered how to defend herself to her father.

The old door to the storage room was suddenly pushed open, and blinding light flooded in, causing Leah and Anna to squint instinctively.

Backlit, a group of figures appeared at the doorway.

It was none other than Mrs. Mara and Elena, whose faces were filled with undisguised pride and arrogance.

The maids stepped forward, restrained Lia and the other woman, and pulled them into the courtyard.

Marquise Mara sat down on the chair offered by the maids, while the second young lady, Elena, stood beside her, watching Anna and Lia with a smug look on their disheveled appearance.

Once she saw Lia and her maid Anna tied to the pillar, Marquise Mara got to the point.

"Once the master returns, you will all be kicked out of the Rost family."

"Lia, why don't you hand over the engagement ring before then? That way I can put in a good word for you."

"Maybe Rost won't pursue what you did, and you can continue to live in the Rost Marquis's household."

Taking advantage of the situation is what the Marquise Marie is doing at this moment.

It's unrealistic to expect to get rid of Lia and Anna just because they barged into the study.

No matter how much the Marquis of Roth disliked his daughter Leah, she still ate and lived in the Roth household as usual, and even had pocket money, so she was at least well-off.

So it's impossible to drive them away simply because they broke into the study and were trying to pick the lock, but we can't miss this opportunity either.

At this moment, Marquise Mara deliberately acted as if she had "made a big mistake," intimidating and forcing Leah to hand over the engagement ring with the royal family.

“You promised us you would hand over the ring, but you’ve been dragging your feet these past few days and haven’t done anything. Our patience has its limits.”

Elena, the stepsister, echoed her mother's words, staring questioningly at her half-sister who was tied to a stake like a prisoner.

"What are you talking about? I didn't make any engagement ring or anything with you."

Lia had no idea what was going on.

Why were her stepmother and stepsister talking about an agreement? She didn't remember making any agreement with either of them about handing over the engagement ring.

Her words immediately made her stepmother and stepsister's faces turn very ugly.

"You want to renege on your debt?!" Elena, the stepsister, glared at Lia.

"No, no, I don't remember ever promising to give up my engagement ring. It's a precious keepsake left to me by my mother, and I won't give it to you."

Lia would never back down when it came to her mother's belongings.

“You really don’t remember? It was during breakfast this morning…” Elena was about to help Lia recount the details when Marquis Mara interrupted her.

"Don't waste your breath on her. Lia is playing dumb. She's trying to blackmail us with that engagement ring."

"Lia, you can let us go this time, but you have to hand over the engagement ring first."

"Where did you hide the ring? Tell us and we'll let you go, otherwise you'll suffer later."

Upon hearing her mother's words, Elena suddenly realized what was going on.

She really thought Leah had forgotten.

Actually, Lia was acting. Even though she was tied up, she still wanted to take the initiative and make a deal with him.

"Hmph, what an idiot! Don't you know your own situation? Still pretending to be stupid? Increase the intensity for them!"