I Became The Villain's Secretary

Chapter 19

Flowers. Such simple yet elegant existences, but in this world they were much rarer.

Furthermore, none of the flowers from Renar's previous life were present here. Of course, there were flowers that resembled each other-roses and virethas, for example-but overall, their characteristics were far more diverse. There were many shapes, sizes, and colors, which gave them a high value from the start.

There wasn't a noble house that didn't want flowers.

'In the Borgia mansion, there were many nimlora; they were quite unique. I discovered and studied many things that were different here, but I never focused on the flowers.'

Renar walked with Lady Stuyvesant, crossing the various flowers. "My Lady, this is probably your umpteenth time admiring these Imperial gardens." Renar looked at her. "Would you be pleased to present some of them to this humble man?"

She nodded, sighing lightly. "Of course, follow me, Lord Renar."

'Lady Stuyvesant is very direct and has already understood that I want to make a connection...but I would prefer to establish a calmer and less tense atmosphere.'

Obviously, these were Renar's preferences. Even in his previous life, he was unable to discuss business without first establishing some form of rapport.

"Lord Renar, behold the zythera, the most colorful flower in the world, you've surely heard of it." The star-shaped flower stands about a meter tall, adorned with five hues: terracotta, sage green, cream, brown, and light pink. "Many empires covet it, but the Imperial family has always refused to export it."

Renar, fascinated, looked at the flowers. "Yes Lady Stuyvesant, I have heard of it, why does the Imperial family refuse to export it?" He asked, not taking his eyes off them.

She glanced at Renar, the reason wasn't exactly common knowledge, but it wasn't a secret either. "The zythera is tied to the Empire of Diell. Legend says first Empress Aferdita discovered its seeds, planted them, and named the flower before gifting it to first Emperor Endrit. After that, he prohibited selling them. It wasn't a law, but no one dared to disobey the wishes of the first Emperor, even now, after hundreds of years."

'Ah...all these stories are so cliché...' Still, despite his thoughts, Renar smiled and nodded. "I understand, thank you for the explanation, Lady Stuyvesant."

"It was a pleasure." She nodded, walking towards other flowers, more amiable than before. "Lord Renar, is there any flower you enjoy admiring?"

'Would you look at that? To melt the Countess' heart I didn't need to do so much after all.'

Still, he had to think about it, it's not like he knew something about this world's flowers, unfortunately he has perfect knowledge only of the ones that existed in his past life, thanks to his sister Estelle.

But lying wasn't Renar's strongest point in this kind of circumstances, he can't lie about something he likes, his mood is way too noticeable, especially in his eyes.

"Well, I'd say there is no flower in particular that I enjoy admiring more than others, Lady Stuyvesant. They're all equals." He replies honestly, staring at the flowers.

He suddenly felt sad, actually, empty might be a better answer. Nonetheless, he looked at the Lady with the same expression. "What about Lady Stuyvesant? Your refined taste is a popular topic."

She looked at Renar like he was a fool, since when do young men act so cordially and yet so freely around an elderly woman like her. Besides everyone knew that getting to know a woman's taste is like discovering a mine.

Yet she didn't mind, she would've been seduced by someone like him if she were 30 years younger, but in her 60 year old eyes he could never look like that. "I must say that lynoria is a flower I particularly enjoy admiring, their beauty is breathtaking, my Lord. Lady Embell, my younger sister, also shares the same opinion."

His smile dropped.

That was a confirmation, the only thing she couldn't confidently say was that Renat looked like any other Lord. 'At first, I thought he was just like the other three sleep-deprived fools, but it turns out he's the best of them all. I've never seen such composed behavior from His Grace.'

However, there was one thing that almost gave her chills. 'But I must say, from his current gaze it doesn't even look like he belongs here.'

"Lady Stuyvesant, how about we get some rest on that bench over there." Renar interrupted her thoughts, his expression changing yet another time.

She nodded and made her way onto the bench, sitting down, breaking arm in arm with Renar. He sat down after her, not too close and not too far away.

It was time to be more direct. "Lady Stuyvesant, today I am of the opinion that we should now talk about this in a general manner, and then meet in private."

The Lady nodded. "I agree, Lord Renar. Enlighten me as to why you approached me."

"Of course. As Lady Stuyvesant already knows, His Grace has a weakness."

She looked at him surprised. 'How fearless. To speak of His Grace in this manner...'

"And that would be his lack of communication with other nobles. His Grace is a very distrustful person." He states, sighing. "So, as his personal secretary, I decided to take matters into my own hands."

Well, not everyone could speak with this level of confidence, Lady Stuyvesant, who has been Countess for more than thirty years, would have never said that Renar has been living in his first work experience for barely a year.

"I see, so I was the least suspicious choice."

'Shoot...that makes it seem a bit offensive though.'

Renar didn't want to agree outright, so he shifted the conversation. "Lady Stuyvesant, you own several eryndel mines located in the mountains near the Empire's borders. Through my research I discovered that these mines are frequently attacked by bandits."

Lady Stuyvesant sighed. "Correct, my Lord. The bandits are specifically allied with various criminal organizations. They attack, steal, and then receive money when they deliver the eryndels to them."

The reason this happens is that Lady Stuyvesant has few guards, so defending the eryndel mines, a very precious and sought-after gem, is too challenging.

"Well, the proposal is this," Renar started, clearing his throat, "if Lady Stuyvesant agrees, then it will be decided to send the soldiers of the First Fleet to safeguard the mines."

Lady Stuyvesant opened her eyes wide, losing composure for a few seconds. "The soldiers of the First Fleet? Do you mean it, Lord Renar?"

He smiled. "We are not fools, Lady Stuyvesant."

"I understand, but what does His Grace want in return?" Truthfully, she had already knew, but she asked anyway.

"Nothing too much, at least fifteen kilos of eryndel every month, Lady Stuyvesant."

"Fifteen kilos?" She pondered for a moment, frowing. Fifteen kilos amounted to about four million Verus, a significant amount, especially given the gem's exceptional quality. However, nothing was more valuable than the Grand Duke's protection. If they truly sent soldiers from the First Fleet, no one would dare to approach.

Lady Stuyvesant turned to Renar. "Good. When can we meet for the contract, Lord Renar?"

"Tomorrow I will proceed to send a letter of invitation to the residence, Lady Stuyvesant, do not worry."

She stood up, and Renar did the same. "All right, Lord Renar. Thank you."

"Don't you want me to escort you into the ceremony hall, Lady Stuyvesant?"

"No, there's no need, I'll come back through another entrance."

Renar stood and bowed. "I understand, have a good evening, Lady Stuyvesant."

She smiled slightly and nodded. "Have a good evening, Lord Renar."

As she walked away, Renar straightened up, smirking.

'First ally captured.'