"Alright girl, don't you have something for me?" Duke Rant asked Selena after they left the Royal Court and were standing near the main gate of the Palace waiting for their carriages.

"Of Course..." Selena replied as she pulled out the Record Crystal which originally belonged to the Duke.

"How did you fix it anyway?" The Duke asked. He had tried every way to fix it but everyone simply shook their head in disappointment. So in depression, he simply handed the crystal to Marquis Booker to hold on to it for the case.

"I... I hit it a few times..." Selena replied as she avoided his gaze.

"The Hell? That works too?" The Duke was surprised by Selena's answer.

The truth was Soul can hack or change the properties of magic items as it was seen by Urak's Communication Ring's incident. So Selena borrowed the Crystal from her Father and Soul spent a whole day in the real world slowly fixing it. So basically, Soul spent months fixing it. By the time it was fixed, Soul managed to reverse engineer the whole crystal and found out how it worked. He also realized that he could imprint his own memories into the Crystal which is why Selena had the crystal's recording began from the time she entered the Drawing Room. That itself took him another day. It took him one more whole day just to edit the sliver of energy that the Baron transferred to show it more abundant to make everyone think that it was Baron Turner who sent too much energy and destroyed the Crystal.

"But..." The Duke pondered, "I don't get it. If the Crystal was damaged, how did it keep recording?" The Recording showed what happened next after the Baron broke it. To everyone else, it was Selena's crystal that recorded it, but the Duke knew it was his Crystal, so how was that possible?

"I don't know... maybe the crystal kept recording. Maybe what was truly damaged was the way to see it. Which is why probably hitting it a few times worked." Selena gave a vague answer.

"That... Whatever, I don't care. I am just glad it is working again." Duke replied with a shrug as he extended his hand to take the crystal.

But before he could, Selena pulled her hand away and asked in a demanding way.

"But before that, I wonder if you are interested in investing with the Booker Manor?"

"Eh? Investment?"

"Well, if not, I can always tell the King that your Record Crystal is actually fixed and the "compensation" is not actually necessary..." Selena replied as she played with the crystal.

"T-That..." Duke Rant tensed up. Since the Marquis title of the Johnson Manor was transferred to Grant and considering that Patricia Turner was going to be his wife, the King did not think it was proper to pull out all the wealth of both families at once as it could bankrupt them. So, he decided to have the compensation paid in installments. Of Course, because it was changed to that, a small interest was also applied to the installments to make it fair for Duke Rant. So technically, when the payment will be completed, Duke Rant would actually get more than he paid for the Record Crystal. However, it all goes away if Selena revealed that the Record Crystal was fixed now.

Duke Rant squirmed for a minute before bursting out in laughter.

"Ha Ha...!! Of Course...!! It is only right that I do so." He didn't laugh just to appease Selena. He was genuinely happy. If not for her smart methods in cornering the accused duo, Duke Rant might not have succeeded in getting compensation in the first place. He was truly impressed by the 16-year-old girl's intellect.

"Marquis Booker...!! How did a Rock like you manage to give birth like a Diamond, like her?" Duke Rant asked Marquis Booker who was standing next to Selena.

Marquis Booker simply chuckled lightly. He was in too good of a mood to care that the Duke called him a rock.

"I say, Marquis Grant was a fool to let her go..." Duke Rant continued, "What do you say, I have a son who turned 20 this year and doesn't have a fiancé yet... If you catch my drift."

"This..." Marquis Booker was pleasantly shocked at the proposal. However, he was well aware that it was not his decision anymore after what happened with Grant. He turned to look at Selena. The latter still had a formal expression on her face as she replied resolutely.

"I am sorry, Duke Rant. I am not interested in searching for a partner at the moment. I hope you understand."

"Sigh... Well, I knew it. But I hope you will consider him when you do look for one."

"I will... Thank you for understanding."

"Ha Ha... No problem at all...!! It is better to be in your graces than against it from what I have seen. So I rather not dare oppose your decision." The Duke laughed it off but his fear of Selena was indeed real. If he really wants her to be his daughter-in-law, he has to first shape up his son. After all, you can't marry a Tigress to a Duck and not expect the Tigress to eat the Duck and his entire family.

"Duke Rant, I really appreciate your offer, but..." Marquis Booker spoke with a worried tone, "But I am afraid it is not possible if she doesn't pass the Aristocrat Exam in the first place, let alone first class."

"Hmm..." Duke Rant contemplated, "I have heard about the Fraud Teacher called Claire Walker and how she was misguiding the young lady's education. In fact, I am pretty sure the whole kingdom knows about it by now."

"This..." The Marquis lowered his head. The incident's information spread faster than he had thought.

"Tell you what..." The Duke replied after thinking, "I will also write a letter on your behalf to the Aristocrat Exam Hall."

"Thank you, Duke, but..." The Marquis shook his head negatively, "You know as well as me that the Aristocrat Exam Hall does not concede to anyone."

"Maybe it is true in most cases, but probably not this one..." The Duke replied with a smile.

"Eh?"

"Think about it..." Duke Rant explained, "The Exam Hall comes under the Jurisdiction of the Royal Family, and Selena's actions today definitely caught the attention of the King, who controls everything, including the Exam Hall."

Selena shook her head at that, "The King is a fair but calculating person, Duke Rant. I doubt he will favor me and create unbalance among the Aristocracy. Besides, if people find out that buttering up to the King works, then they will swarm over him like Locusts."

"I am not saying that the King will delay your exams or even let you retake it, but were you aware that even if you fail the exam, you can become an aristocrat?"

"What?" Selena and her Father were surprised.

"It is a confirmed fact. Do you know of Duke Martin's son, Calvin?"

"Calvin Martin? The playboy son of Duke Martin and the younger brother of Chris, who is second in command of the First Prince?" Marquis asked.

"Yes, as you know, because of his nature, he abhorred studies and could only get Third Class in the Aristocrat Exam." The Duke replied and continued with an eyebrow raised.

"But did you know, despite only being a Third Class Aristocrat, The King has himself asked to make Calvin the future head of the manor?"

"What?!" Marquis Booker was shocked, "But why...? Didn't Chris get First Class, he should be the one inheriting the manor. Besides, if Calvin inherits it, doesn't that mean the Duke Title will be downgraded to a Baron?"

"Heh heh..." Duke Rant chuckled and explained, "Maybe so, but who says you can't upgrade your title after you become a Baron?"

"That's..." The Marquis was deep in thought. The Aristocrat Exam was held to have proper inheritors for existing Titles. But what about new and ones that could be promoted?

A Title can be upgraded on Downgraded, or even taken away by the Royal family if they see fit as it was just shown in the case of Johnson and Turner. Even if someone is a Baron, by gaining major accomplishments, one can be promoted to a higher title. Similarly, if a common person does a great service to the Kingdom, they can be bestowed upon a title too.

"Are you saying..." Selena had a thought, "...that Calvin Martin is capable of being promoted to a higher title?"

"Heh heh... Yes. According to rumors, Calvin Martin is actually very smart, so much so that if he had tried, he could have passed with a Royal Class Grade. He got a lower grade on purpose so he could dump all the manor's responsibilities on his elder brother and live a carefree life."

"This..." Marquis Booker was surprised. To think that the playboy son of the Martin Manor was actually a prodigy.

"So, this got many of us thinking that even though the exam rules are fixed, the King did have some leeway for people who catch his eye."

"To further confirm this theory, I think that the Royal Family keeps tabs on the Aristocrat Children. Do you remember the incident where a Duke's son failed the exam because he couldn't reach the Exam Hall in time?"

There was a Duke whose son failed the exam because he didn't attend it on time. The Duke had become furious and tried to pressure the Exam Hall, but he only ended up incurring the wrath of the Royal Family and was reduced to a Marquis. Since then, no one has tried to oppose the Exam Hall.

"Did you know, the same son is currently under suspicion for colluding with our Country's enemies?"

"What?" Marquis Booker was shocked. Selena also frowned. This cannot be a simple coincidence.

"There are rumors that say the Duke Son's was late was because the wheel of the Brand new carriage he was riding in broke down suddenly. Don't you find it weird?"

Selena suddenly realized what Duke Rant was hinting at. The Royal Family knew about the Duke's Son betrayal way before the exam. So they themselves stopped him from taking it.

'This is... maliciously clever.' Selena thought. The King definitely keeps a close eye on the Children to make sure that only the good ones pass the exam, and for those who fail the exam on purpose or have other talents, he gets them to join his side with alternate methods. If all of this is true, then it wouldn't be surprising if the King finds a way to bring her to his side. After all, the King indeed took a shine to her. It was obvious from the way he interacted and even gave her... a coin with the Royal emblem on it...!!

What does the coin with a Royal Emblem do? It is a symbol that means the Royal Family will ignore one crime the coin holder commits as long as it is not a betrayal to the Royal family. So what does it mean? Basically, Selena can literally kill anyone up to Duke and walk away without any repercussions, making her one of the handfuls of people who have the same coin as her. The King gave it to her as an apology because he felt that he could not do more for Selena since he had to go easy on her enemies for his country's societal pressure, or at least, that was the cover story.

But in truth, He knew that cases this bitter won't be solved that easily. Johnson and Turner may send assassins after her out of revenge. The only way to protect her without taking her side was to give her this coin. With it, even a Duke won't dare touch a strand on Selena's hair, let alone an ex-Marquis and ex-Baron. Besides, how could he let such a precious gem perish this early? He always had a soft spot for talented individuals.

***

"Well, Well, Well... Look who's finally decided to release me." Soul said indignantly after Selena removed the ring from the Church which sealed him after she reached home.

"I did it for your own good..." Selena replied.

She was not sure of the skills of the people around the King and whether or not they could detect Soul, so she decided to play it safe and wear the ring, which turned out to be a good idea since the Bishop was present. The Bishop knew that Selena used to hear a voice back when she was a kid. He was the one who gave her that ring back then.

"Well, forget it...!! Tell me..!! Did it work out...?!" Soul asked.

"Why don't you see for yourself...?" Selena replied as she transferred the memory of the case to him.

"Wah ha ha...!! This is great...!! I lo----"

"..."

"..."

"Soul...?"

"Okay... I need you to stay calm and act like normal." Soul replied after a few seconds of silence.

"What's going on?" Selena asked as she tensed up but did not reveal it.

"I think... there is an assassin in your closet."

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