Obviously, It’s My Child - Chapter 81

Chapter 81

Translator: Effe

Editor: Yonnee

—

“These are the legal team’s copies, to make it easier for you to review.”

The first document contained the consent to freeze all material assets of the Belf Marquisate and hand them over to the Delford Barony.

Without even looking at the second one, Marquis Belf jumped up incredulously.

“How dare you demand such crazy nonsense…!”

“To be sure.”

Claire cut off Marquis Belf’s outburst with a loud voice.

“It would be the simplest matter to render the Belf Marquisate bankrupt. It is possible just by writing a few letters here—with the very signature that you forged, Marquis.”

“What?!”

“A debt of that magnitude is too large to be written off from your assets, not to mention the compensation for your staff at Prach Guild. If you refuse, I’ll just bankrupt you, so understand that before you decide. I will leave enough for you to continue living.”

“Nonsense! Even if you’ve won Duke Erich’s heart, have you forgotten that you’re a mere Baron at the core?!”

“That’s a good thing. You seem to know that money is the key to maintaining a household.”

Claire said in a relaxed manner.

Marquis Belf didn’t understand the meaning of those words, but instinctively he realized that he was on the short end of the stick here. He drew in a breath.

Josias intervened.

“Baron, you’ve gone too far.”

“Have I?”

“I apologize for the mistake. It was completely wrong to try and harm a lady’s honor, or try to meddle in the succession of House Klausener. I will apologize until you feel relieved.”

Josias’s face was haggard with a hangover, but his eyes were clear. It’s been like this for a very long time.

“But even House Klausener can’t treat House Belf, a vassal, like this. Are you truly going to confiscate our property? Only His Majesty’s court has such authority.”

Having a trial was better than having a territorial dispute. As the Emperor had been living in seclusion for a long time and had not been seen in public for a long time, he would not do anything. That aside, other nobles who valued social order would not want a marquis to be trounced by a baron.

And the House of Representatives and the Cabinet would not want the ruling family to wield even greater power than they had now.

So, appropriate compromises and negotiations would have to come and go. Although the Belf Marquisate was no match to the Klausener Duchy, Josias surmised that his family at least had enough connections to lead things down that direction.

But Claire’s lips faintly curled upward. It looked like a sneer.

“I don’t have any intention of escalating things into something as serious as a territorial dispute. Getting what you deserve will be enough.”

Receiving a glance from Claire, Grey took out a bundle of papers and put them down in front of Marquis Belf.

“Bonds and post-dated cheques issued in the names of Belf Marquisate and Prach Guild, totaling to twenty million gold.”

Marquis Belf widened his eyes.

Impossible.

Of course, it is true that if he were to spread himself incredibly thin and ask here and there, it might be possible. However, most of what he’d be able to come up with would have to be borrowed from reliable debtors and old clients.

In other words, they shouldn’t hand the property over to the Weaving Guild like this. Such a thing was beyond belief.

He reflexively reached for the bonds. He was going to tear them all apart, but before that, Maximilian grabbed him by the wrist.

Grey set down another bundle of bonds.

“These are the bonds that are due within one month.”

Marquis Belf’s complexion gradually turned blue. Claire said with a cold face.

“You didn’t know that this would come back, did you? Unfortunately, it is only in fairytales where people give up the money they lend for the debtor’s honor.”

Many of the people who once owned these bonds once gave up on the idea of getting their money back. Either that, or they extended the deadline indefinitely because they couldn’t ask for repayment. However, they all didn’t hesitate to sell the bonds to the Weaving Guild once told that they would buy them.

It’s been quite some time since Claire had secured these bonds. If she wanted to render the Marquisate bankrupt and dismantle the household from inside out, she could do so at any time.

The reason she left them alone was solely for the reason that the Belf Marquisate was an in-law on Klausener’s side of the family.

For the past five years, it wasn’t just Erich who knew of the existence of the Weaving Guild but turned a blind eye. She, too, had turned a blind eye to the place associated with Klausener’s name.

She didn’t want to go overboard. In the past, she didn’t want to stand out, and after her marriage was decided, she thought of Erich’s position.

Erich loved his father, and Louisa was one of the important duties Erich’s father had passed on to him.

So she didn’t want him to give that side of his family up.

Claire knew that she was an unorthodox woman to the eyes of many. Even if Louisa and her side of the family couldn’t accept it easily, she was determined to exercise patience.

But now, things were different.

Forgiveness was something that was up to Erich, as he was the one who had downed the drug. As for negotiations and compromises, those were all left to the lawyers.

And Claire’s job was to retaliate.

“If you need to conform to formalities, then I will give you a day. If you repay twenty million gold by sunset today, I’ll hold off on seizing your family name.”

Of course, they would still have to pay off the rest of the debts that were due after that.

It’s not possible. The cash remaining in Belf’s name wouldn’t even amount to one million gold. Even if they sold all the precious porcelain in their mansion, they wouldn’t be able to repay half of it.

And there were still plenty of bills left due.

Marquis Belf leaned back with a heavily distorted face, as though he’d been strangled.

Grey handed him the second document. It was a pledge not to invest in commerce in any way in the future.

Further, the pledge detailed that the immediate family of the Belf Marquisate would not set foot in the capital or anywhere near it and Delford estate for the next twenty years.

“B-By what right…”

This was the same thing as telling him to give up his family.

In this world right now, noble dignity could not be maintained with bloodline alone. Neither force nor lineage guaranteed power.

Just as it was in the past, it was enough for the nobles to command the estate and rule with absolute power. But in current times, they would have to accumulate wealth, hire people with money, and seize power with that money.

There were not just one or two households that went through financial struggle, thereby falling to ruin and going as far as even selling their titles.

This is what a territorial dispute with the Delford Barony is like. The words stabbed through his brain like daggers.

Instead of weapons and soldiers, it was money that moved.

“I will leave you with a manor with a ranch. You’re the Elder Madam’s family, so I don’t intend to kick you off to the streets.”

Marquis Belf let out a few rough breaths. He was in complete disbelief.

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