The Female Lead Takes Care of Everything - Chapter 41

Of course, Rima was slightly tempted.

There was a hidden letter left behind by the late Duchess in the De Gladius estate.

She considered finding it quickly to gain favor—but in the end, she chose not to.

Now wasn’t the time.

Visiting the estate could wait until everything she had to accomplish was done and over with.

‘…This is the world inside the novel I wrote.’

Rima repeated those words to herself again and again.

A world built from the story she had created.

A world where only she knew what was coming.

A world where she was the main character.

“…So, I have to set it right.”

Rima realized there were “errors” in this world—things that shouldn’t be here, things she never allowed.

As the author, it was her responsibility to fix them.

Sitting at her desk, Rima began writing a letter to her informant.

The informant’s employer, Delrac, had kindly arranged for one of his people to be placed in the Duke’s household as a maid, understanding that Rima couldn’t easily go out.

“Rima, it’s time for lunch.”

Right then, the maid entered the room.

The previous maid who used to care for Rima had been transferred after the outing incident.

Even if Rima was just a child, the way she pushed the blame onto someone else had deeply hurt her former maid.

After finishing the letter, Rima handed it to the new maid.

The maid tucked it into her chest pocket and smiled warmly, as if nothing had happened, reaching out her hand.

“Shall we go to the dining room?”

“Yes!”

Rima smiled brightly and took her hand.

News spread through the newspaper that Count Petra’s condition had become critical.

At the same time, an article detailed the growing rivalry between the Petra siblings over control of Petra Bank.

“Hm…”

Nivellia nodded as she read the paper.

“The world’s really tough, huh.”

“Is the world hard?”

Aref, sitting beside her, asked with a serious face.

Nivellia scrunched the newspaper in her hands as she replied.

Honestly, “scrunched” was a more accurate word than “folded.”

“Yeah… kind of.”

“You little rascals.”

“Waaah!”

Suddenly, Nivellia was lifted up into the air.

Startled, she looked back with wide eyes.

Caleo, who had stepped out briefly, was now standing there with a wide grin.

Nivellia waved her arms at him, the newspaper in her hand making a crinkling sound.

“Daddy! Nini read the newspaper!”

“Really? From the way it’s crumpled, it looks more like you were playing with it.”

“Nooo! I really read it! Right, Aref?”

“We were practicing how to read the letters in the paper,” Aref said, trying to explain sincerely.

And they were telling the truth.

After learning the alphabet properly in kindergarten, Nivellia and Aref had become obsessed with a new game—seeing who could read faster.

Technically, Aref, who was four years older, was faster.

But he would purposely answer slowly so Nivellia could win.

He liked seeing her beam proudly, insisting she was first.

“Nini’s winning!”

And so far, Nivellia was winning by a landslide.

“Wow, that’s amazing.”

Caleo, catching on to what was happening, praised Nivellia while gently patting Aref on the head.

Aref blushed and pressed his hands over his head where he’d been patted, smiling shyly.

Smiling had become natural for him now.

“But Daddy, where did you go?”

Nivellia, now sitting on Caleo’s lap, asked curiously.

Caleo was straightening out the newspaper as he answered,

“I went to write a letter to your mom.”

“Mom? Why?”

“Well… it’s about the bank.”

“This one?”

Aref pointed to the newspaper.

It was the article about the Petra family’s inheritance dispute.

Even though it had a lot of difficult words, thanks to a recent conversation with Al and Rubens from House De Gladius, they could understand what it was about.

“The man from the bank… Mr. Petra, right?”

“The man with the mustache! The one fighting over the bank!”

Nivellia remembered the story too.

“You guys understood all that?”

Caleo blinked in surprise, then nodded.

“That’s right. The article says that Count Petra’s condition has worsened, and the fight over who inherits the bank is getting more intense.”

“Then why did you write to Mom?”

“Because your mom’s name was mentioned in the article.”

Caleo held out the newspaper toward the children.
“Go on—see if you can find it.”

Nivellia and Aref leaned in, faces nearly touching the page as they scanned for the name, slowly sounding out each word.

“Mom’s name is Celletina, right?”

“Yeah. Celletina Deiamor.”

Aref, watching Nivellia struggle to find the right spot, gently pointed to a section of the article.

“Found it!” Nivellia shouted, excited.

Aref began reading slowly, carefully enunciating each word:

“Celletina Deiamor, the head of the Rubeo Group, has also become involved in the Petra succession dispute…”

“I’m seriously speechless right now…!”

Celletina Deiamor came home from work in a rare state of visible frustration.

She had kept her usual calm and kind demeanor in front of the children, but the moment they went to bed, she let her emotions spill out.

“What in the world made them think it was okay to drag my name into this mess?”

“Petra’s heir got greedy,” Caleo replied, clearly annoyed as well.

“I’m sorry, Sillec. I keep thinking maybe this happened because of me…”

“How could this possibly be your fault?”

Celletina took a deep breath and ran her fingers through her hair, trying to calm the anger that still burned inside her.

“It’s not your fault. You know that, right?”

“I know… but I still feel bad.”

It all seemed to have started with that chance encounter at Petra Bank, when they’d taken the kids there recently.

The conversation between Caleo and Petra’s heir had barely qualified as small talk—just a few polite words.

But Petra’s heir had twisted that brief meeting into something much bigger and began spreading it around to his advantage.

“I had the pleasure of greeting Marchioness Deiamor at the bank. I even opened an account for her charming daughter myself.”

That part, while annoying, was still passable.

“I’ve recently met with the head of Rubeo as well. We share promising investment opportunities. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship…”

Those comments, once printed in the newspaper, created a major misunderstanding—making it seem like the Deiamor and Rubeo families were backing Petra’s heir in the succession fight.

“Mutual benefit, my foot!”

Celletina’s voice rose again, unable to hold it back.

“It’s obvious he’s just clinging to us like a leech, hoping for a free ride!”

“By the way, what did he mean by ‘shared investment opportunities’? Was that the thing you mentioned earlier? The Kingdom of Phroc?”

“Yes, exactly. The magic stone mining project in Phroc.”

Celletina sank into the sofa, her body heavy with exhaustion.

Lately, there had been quiet rumors about a newly discovered mine in the Kingdom of Phroc.

Apparently, an herbalist had stumbled across a hidden mine in the mountains—where bluish stones, believed to be magic stones, had been found.

But Phroc’s economy was in poor shape. They were trying to raise funds for mining by reaching out to wealthy foreign investors.

In exchange, those investors would receive a portion of the mined magic stones later on.

“…If they really are magic stones, it might be a worthwhile investment,” Caleo said, gently massaging her hands.

“It’s been over ten years since any have been found.”

“But no one knows how much is really there—or whether the stones are even high-quality,” Celletina replied.

“Has the Mage Tower said anything? You’d think the Tower Master would be all over this.”

“That’s what makes it suspicious.”

The idea of investing in a magic stone mine would tempt anyone.

Especially the Mage Tower—since magic stones are essential to a mage’s research—they should’ve been the first to react.

But their response had been strangely muted.

“They showed a bit of interest at first, but all they said in the end was that they’d appraise the stones if any were mined.”

“Maybe it’s because they’re focused on synthetic magic stones now?”

“Even if they are, something feels off.”

Caleo paused the massage and gently laced his fingers between hers.

“So what about you? Are you going to invest?”

“I can’t.”

Celletina’s shoulders trembled slightly as she answered.

It was a shiver that felt like a warm thrill—like being touched by a soft, living flame.

“Rubeo is already swamped. There’s the pharmaceutical company issue, and on top of that, the new bank project I’ve been working on with Viscount Preto is finally about to launch…”

“Hah. Petra’s heir would lose his mind if he heard that.”

Still holding her hand, Caleo softly stroked her fingers and leaned in to whisper at her ear.

“If he keeps bothering you, just let me know.”

“You’re going to kill Petra’s heir for me?”

“If that’s what it takes.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. If you reek of blood, the kids will be terrified.”

“…That would be a problem.”

Caleo sighed, sounding genuinely disappointed.

He wanted to be a father the children could be proud of—just like Ardores had been to him.

“Oh, by the way. Today, Nini found your name in the newspaper and read it out loud.”

“Really?”

Celletina’s face lit up immediately, her anger replaced by a radiant smile.

Caleo’s expression also softened, warmed by her joy.

The two of them—once a pair of stormy hearts always clashing—had become parents who now drew strength from their children’s small milestones.

“Aref helped her find it, but they’re both reading pretty well now. Ask them about it tomorrow.”

“I wish I’d seen it. How was Soles today?”

“He’s been doing great. Honestly, I feel lucky he’s, my son. And I think having Aref around has made him more active than before.”

“I’m really glad Aref’s adjusting so well to our home.”

Celletina’s eyes softened with emotion as she thought of Aref.

“…That child.”

Her green eyes dimmed with quiet sorrow.

“Will he ever truly understand how much he’s given us? What a gift he’s been?”

“My love…”

“Every time I look at him, I feel so thankful… and so sorry.”

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