What witch? The Deadly Pharmacist!

Since Viscount Arend himself said he only needed a place to retire, Leon would naturally arrange it for him—a good place to live, with plenty of food and drink, and even fine cigarettes and alcohol, though he might lose a little of his freedom. If Viscount Arend dared to resist, his place of residence might have to be changed to a prison.

He is not Adele; he cannot allow Viscount Arend to remain unchecked.

Under Father Auden's guidance, the two quickly signed most of the application documents and then set off together to the notary office to submit them.

After they came out, Viscount Arend couldn't wait to say, "This means we've settled one stage of the matter. I suggest we go back and have a drink to celebrate."

"It's far from over, Your Excellency. We haven't even begun. We've only just confirmed that the procedures are feasible," Father Auden said.

Before dealing with this matter, they naturally needed to confirm that the inheritance process would not be rejected. If it were a powerful lord, the procedures would be very strict, even requiring central review before the marriage. Fortunately, Viscount Arend's position was already marginal enough that handling these procedures was not very difficult.

"Oh? I thought that was all I needed to do after signing and submitting the paperwork," Viscount Arend said, somewhat disappointed.

“We’re only just beginning to take this step. The first step is to get your daughter married to Director Seth,” Father Auden said, looking at Leon. “In other words, we can now work on Miss Adele’s mindset.”

“This first step doesn’t sound like an easy task,” Leon said.

"Don't worry, I'll persuade her properly. After all, she should listen to her father," Viscount Arend said confidently.

“But as far as I know, Miss Adele and Your Excellency have a rather distant relationship,” Father Auden said, glancing at Leon at the same time.

He was actually referring to Leon's idea of ​​persuading her; he didn't expect the Viscount to be able to convince Adele, but he was sure Leon could "appease her with emotion and reason."

“No, she must have been held in my arms when she was little… uh…” Viscount Arend thought for a moment, “and the husband I chose for her this time is handsome, wealthy, and powerful, and even so young! What could she possibly be dissatisfied with?”

Viscount Arendt indeed spent almost no time with his daughter. After his wife left, Adele's childhood was basically taken care of by her grandfather and nanny. After growing up, Adele went to school in another city.

Viscount Arendt would only occasionally hug his daughter and pat her head when they met, then turn around and go out to play. It wasn't that their relationship was bad, but he certainly didn't fulfill any of his fatherly duties, and there was no real father-daughter affection between them.

“Alright, then I’ll trouble Your Excellency to try and persuade her first. But I suggest you don’t mention me yet; your daughter probably doesn’t have a very good impression of me,” Leon advised.

Chapter 198 Cinderella Runs Away from Home

That evening, on Arende Island, in the Viscount's study.

“What did you just say, Father? What do you mean you’ve settled things for me?” Adele stared incredulously at Viscount Arend standing before her.

Just now, Viscount Arend, who always wanders around and never comes home at night, returned to the manor. He seriously approached Adele and said he had something very important to discuss, and asked Petra and the others who were guarding the manor to leave for a moment.

To Adele's surprise, Petra and the others cooperated by withdrawing, not even standing guard at the study door, but going downstairs to give them ample space to discuss the matter, showing no intention of eavesdropping.

Then, the Viscount dropped the bombshell on his bewildered daughter by revealing that he had found her a husband willing to help pay off their family's debts, catching Adele completely off guard.

"So, I've arranged a marriage for you. The other party is willing to help my family pay off their debts, as long as I inherit the title to them later. Don't worry, I've already vetted your father. He's not some old man; he's a young man in his early twenties, handsome, wealthy, and powerful, and..."

Viscount Arend was about to say that you actually know him too, but then he remembered Leon's reminder and stopped himself.

The most important thing right now is to calm Adele down and get her to agree to sign the marriage papers. If Leon's name will intensify her resistance, it's best not to provoke her yet.

He was quite adept at using the tactic of getting the other party to accept some of the conditions first, then gradually increasing the demands, using gentle persuasion and coaxing.

"In short, I dare say that you won't find another man in the entire Southport County who is better than him. He can solve our family's financial problems and also settle your life's major event. It's a great thing to kill two birds with one stone... What's wrong, Adele?" Viscount Arendt asked instinctively when he noticed Adele raising her trembling hand to point at him.

"You...you..." Adele was so angry she could barely speak. "You squandered the family fortune that my grandfather worked so hard to build, and now you want to hand over the title to someone else, even sacrificing your own daughter...How dare you say that to me? Are you even human?!"

“Oh, what are you saying? The title is only temporarily held by them. It will be inherited sooner or later, won’t it? I only have one daughter now, and you will get married sooner or later. When that happens, won’t the title eventually return to your child? It’s rare for them to be willing to help us pay off our debts and help us revitalize our family. What a wonderful thing!” said Viscount Arend.

“With our family in such a state, how can we expect anything good to happen to us? Can’t you use your brain a little? Who would do something that’s not worth it at a time like this? They must have ulterior motives! Don’t you even consider what we’ll do if they take the title and then kill us?” Adele said bitterly.

In theory, if the previous Viscount Arend and Adele die one after the other and there are no other heirs, the person who inherits the title can retain the title. There have indeed been people in the history of the empire who have done this.

Adele knew very well that her father could be categorized as the kind of fool who would be sold out and still help count the money, otherwise he wouldn't have incurred such a huge debt.

While she was seeking investment, even though the wealthy and noble men were attracted to her looks, they never considered marrying her; instead, they wanted her as their mistress. These people weren't stupid. Adele's beauty, no matter how good, would fade with time. Adele was the only heir to the Viscount Arend, and marrying her would mean being tied to a debt of thirty million, dealing with the troublesome asset of Arend Island, and becoming the laughingstock of the local circle.

For the wealthy and powerful, the position of a wife also holds value; they often use her for marriage alliances with other powerful families. Adele, burdened by her family's negative assets, falls far short in this regard, but as a mistress, she is more than worthwhile.

At times like this, if someone were to propose marriage to her through her exceptionally gullible and easily deceived father, Adele would naturally become wary. Although she couldn't yet understand the other party's purpose, her intuition told her that the other party definitely had ulterior motives!

"Well... it can't be that bad, can it? Killing us won't make our debts disappear. Wouldn't it be a bigger loss to leave such a beautiful wife like you behind?" Viscount Arendt thought for a moment and then waved his hand. "Don't think too much about it. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our family to get out of this predicament. Once this opportunity is gone, it won't come again."

"You still dare to say that...aren't you the one who put the family in trouble?" Adele clenched her fists, so angry that tears were about to come out.

She felt extremely wronged because her father had made such a mess of the family, yet her father always acted as if he didn't care.

"That's why I've found a way, Father. I've been working tirelessly from dawn till dusk to figure out a solution, and it wasn't easy to find this approach. Otherwise, tell me, what other way is there?" Viscount Arend countered.

Adele stared intently at Viscount Arendt, without mentioning the 500,000 euro investment she had received from Leon.

She's currently managing the 500,000 very well. She's successfully used her grandfather's connections to rent a prime spot in the fish market near Castel Harbour, and has also acquired better fishing boats and equipment to rent to reliable local fishermen.

This would greatly increase the fish catch, which is the main source of income on Arende Island. Instead of having to go through the fishmongers in Castel Harbor to buy the fish at a lower price, they could sell it directly in the market. She also contacted some dried goods stores to discuss regular purchases, which could boost the income of the Viscount's family and the villagers.

Previously, when the island's mines could not be mined due to the maze disaster, the previous Viscount Arend had considered changing to a fishing model based on the island, but he fell ill halfway through the implementation.

If Adele were to mention this money to the current Viscount Arend, he might try to squander the money she had just earned, and she couldn't imagine the consequences of not being able to repay Leon.

“Sigh, don’t be stubborn. We have to find a way to handle this. Why don’t you meet with that person first? Let’s sit down and have a good talk. I guarantee you’ll be satisfied!” Viscount Arend continued to persuade, trying to at least keep Adele at the table. “The person is already waiting to see you downstairs.”

"What did you say?" Adele's eyes widened.

This was the first time I discussed this matter with her, and this bastard father brought her over without any regard for the consequences?

No, this family can't rely on this bastard anymore!

Adele felt a strong sense of crisis. Even her father was on the other side, so if she went down to see that person now, the situation would probably be out of her control.

She thought about it and realized she couldn't rely on the guards Leon sent. If the person who wanted to marry her wanted to make trouble over the debt, it was very likely connected to Father Auden and the Watchers Merchant Guild. In her memory, Leon Seth was also in league with Father Auden!

Petra and the others had just gone downstairs to avoid the situation, and there had been no further activity even after her father brought them back downstairs. This indirectly confirmed Adele's suspicions.

They're all in cahoots, everyone's got their eyes on her family, and she doesn't even know her father's been sold. She's all alone here, all alone and helpless. She has to figure out what to do on her own now!

Adele took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, and then said to Viscount Arendt, "Very well, Father, since things have come to this, I'll see the person you mentioned first..."

“Oh, I’m so glad you’ve come to your senses, my dear daughter.” Viscount Arend smiled, genuinely pleased that Adele had agreed to let him get rid of the debt.

"But could you allow me to get ready and change my clothes first? I don't look presentable like this," Adele said.

“You look great right now, radiant and beautiful. You’d be the most beautiful one at any ball!” Viscount Arend laughed.

“I need to dress up a bit. My grandfather taught us to pay attention to every detail. You wouldn’t want people to feel slighted if they saw me dressed too casually, would you? You go and greet the guests first, I’ll be there shortly,” Adele insisted.

"Very well then, we'll wait for you downstairs. We shouldn't keep our guests waiting." Viscount Arendt breathed a sigh of relief when she agreed, and turned to leave the study.

Seeing that Viscount Arend had left and gone far away, Adele immediately became serious, went over and locked the door, and began to rummage through the drawers and cabinets as quickly as possible to find and pack up all the important documents.

Viscount Arendt went downstairs and explained the situation to Leon and Father Auden, who were waiting in the hall. Leon and Father Auden exchanged a glance, and then Leon smiled and said, "You just left her upstairs all by herself?"

"What's wrong?" Viscount Arend raised an eyebrow.

Leon glanced at Petra, who immediately nodded, "I'll go up and take a look."

After Petra went upstairs, Leon also got up and walked outside.

"Where are you going?" Viscount Arend asked, puzzled.

"Let's take a walk around the back of the house," Leon said with a slight smile.

At this moment, Adele in the room had already found the cash and valuables, and packed them all away.

She decided to escape from here temporarily. There were villagers she knew in the fishing village who could arrange for a fishing boat to take her to Castel Harbour. She had money now and wouldn't have to sleep on the streets.

Of course, she couldn't put aside the affairs of the viscount's territory right now, but she absolutely couldn't negotiate with the other party in this way. At the very least, she needed to hire some people to avoid being forced into a situation.

As for Leon, while the man was terrifying, his willingness to lend her money was somewhat reasonable. She was also managing the 500,000 yuan business smoothly, and since she wasn't going to report him to the church, there would be opportunities to discuss things further later. Right now, the situation was clearly more urgent, and she couldn't worry about much else.

She went to the window to look down. The second floor wasn't very high, but she figured she'd still need to find some ropes or blankets to tie herself up and climb down. She hadn't tried it before, but she could only give it a shot.

I'll sneak down from here, slip out the back door, circle back onto the mountain path in front, and escape back to the village... Okay, that's it!

Although it was a very reckless plan, she had no other choice at the moment.

Right, it's best to have some disguise; being too conspicuous won't do... Adele looked at her clothes. The colors were too bright, making it difficult to escape under the cover of night. After all, she was a noble lady, and her clothes were somewhat different from those of ordinary commoners, not to mention her outstanding appearance.

Then her gaze fell on the fireplace still covered in ashes. After thinking for a moment, she grabbed some ashes and smeared them on her clothes. After hesitating for a second, she made up her mind and smeared them on her face as well.

Just then, there was a knock on the study door, and Petra's voice rang out: "Miss Adele, are you in there?"

"Wait a minute, I'm still putting on makeup!" Adele replied nervously and opened the window.

A moment later, the curtains in the study on the second floor were drawn, and Adele, dressed in gray and carrying a cloth bag, carefully moved out of the windowsill and began to climb down.

However, she did not notice that Leon, who was hiding near the corner of the house in the backyard, was watching her every move with great interest.

Chapter 199 Cinderella's Glass Slipper

Just from Viscount Arend's description, Leon sensed that the viscount's daughter was planning to take the opportunity to escape.

He was quite familiar with the layout of the Viscount's house. With a little imagination, he could figure out that the other party could only climb from the back of the house along the window to the backyard. If they climbed to the front courtyard, they would be seen directly by the people in the hall.

Clearly, Adele hadn't done much exercise besides horseback riding, and carrying her things down the curtains from the second floor was a bit strenuous for her.

Leon watched as she awkwardly moved down. Overall, it went fairly smoothly until just as Adele's feet were about to touch the ground, Petra, who was waiting outside the study, began to knock on the door forcefully.

Hearing the sound, Adele panicked, didn't land properly, and accidentally fell backward, landing hard on her bottom.

"Ouch..." Adele clutched her bottom as she got up, enduring the pain without making a sound. She then hurriedly ran towards the back door. Upstairs, Petra was already banging on the door, which startled Adele, causing her to quicken her pace.

Considering that going to the stables to fetch a horse would likely be noticed immediately and then blocked, Adele chose to go out directly through the back door of the backyard.

The back door of the mansion is a cliff and railing on a hill, but one can walk around the outer perimeter of the house to the direction of the front door and then escape along the mountain path.

Seeing this, Leon didn't rush to grab her on the spot. He quietly followed her. Adele's attention was focused on the escape route, and she didn't notice that there was someone following her in the night.

Adele tiptoed around to the front of the house, and Leon followed closely behind. This feeling was somewhat nostalgic for Leon, reminding him of the time when he first met Lena.

In his opinion, Adele's escape method was completely ineffective. In this situation, she should have taken a weapon with her when she went down, sneaked to the stables, led out a horse, and stabbed the rest of the horses.

The commotion would certainly draw everyone out of the house, but she could ride out on horseback at this time. Since others wanted to capture her and force her to marry, they wouldn't at least think of shooting her. If she managed to sneak out on foot, she would be caught up very quickly.

Adele finally made her way to the path in front of the mansion's main gate. No one rushed out looking for her yet, which made her breathe a sigh of relief.

She quickly ran along the path for a while, then subconsciously looked back to check.

Turning around didn't seem to matter, but as soon as she did, she saw a ghostly figure appear in front of the mansion's courtyard gate. Because the figure was backlit by the lights at the mansion's entrance, she could only see a black silhouette and couldn't make out the person's face.

"Ah!" Before Leon could even utter a sound, Adele let out a short, mournful cry.

She hadn't heard the door open at all; the person had just appeared out of thin air, like a ghost. How could she not be terrified?

Before Leon could make a move, Adele turned in terror and fled. As soon as she took her first steps, she lost one shoe, but she couldn't turn back to pick it up, so she continued running barefoot.

There weren't many places to hide on the mountain path, so Leon estimated Adele's speed and wasn't in a hurry to chase her. He went forward, picked up the woman's shoe that she had dropped, and examined it.

This young lady, she doesn't even know to change into a pair of shoes that are easier to move in before running away.

At this moment, Petra and the remaining two guards rushed out of the courtyard gate and saw Leon standing there, and couldn't help but show an expression of great danger.

"I'm sorry, sir, I failed to keep an eye on her in time. I'll go after her right away!" Petra quickly apologized to Leon, as letting Adele run off like that was undoubtedly a dereliction of duty on her part.

Fortunately, judging from the footsteps, Adele hadn't run too far, and they could still catch up from here.

"It's alright, get me a horse, I'll go and bring her back," Leon waved his hand and gave the order.

……

"Huff! Huff!" Adele was out of breath running on the mountain road. When she crossed the fork in the road leading to the village, she could no longer run and could only drag her foot, which had lost its shoe, to continue walking.

"Ugh, my feet hurt so much..."

Adele glanced down at her feet. The mountain path was paved, but there were still small pebbles. Running barefoot on the path was bound to cause scrapes and cuts.

Why do I have to go through all this?

Adele limped along, feeling deeply wronged.

Just then, the sound of approaching hooves finally caught up with her.

Adele gasped, realizing that if the people in the manor were to ride after her, it wouldn't take long at all!

There was still a long way to go to the village, and she had injured her foot; there was no way she could outrun them if she continued running.

As the sound of horses' hooves grew closer, she turned around and saw the light of a lantern undulating on the mountain road.

After looking around helplessly for a while, she could only hurriedly hide behind a tree by the roadside, not caring that the not-so-tall tree could not hide her at all, and could only hope that the other party would not notice her under the cover of night.

However, she was unaware that Leon, with his exceptional night vision, had already spotted her hiding place from afar.

Leon reined in his horse where Adele had turned, and Adele's heart jumped.