A wedding party was certainly fun whether it was real or not, although it was the first time Lucian had attended one after waking up in that world. Until it was not so different from the ordinary balls, although there is the difference of the couple being the star of the night.
Unfortunately, Lucian did not come just to celebrate his brother-in-law's wedding. The diamond eyes continued to scan the hall for the person who would help him in his plan. The wedding party began. Lucian scanned the hall under the glass of wine, looking for his prey. And then... he found it.
Quinn Pendleton, the one that would help him to achieve wealth.
"Dear, come here" Lucian pulled Magnus' elbow.
"Where are you dragging me?"
"Get an extra hand."
Magnus didn't quite understand his words, but Lucian seemed so confident that he preferred just to follow him and keep an eye out for anything.
Dragging the omega through the Grimwood ballroom, Lucian stopped near a column. Quinn was behind him, talking to Victoria. Probably his future sister-in-law was doing her part of sponsoring the woman. It was cunning of you to expose the situation of Quinn as someone who was being intimidated by high nobility, something that Victoria probably also passed before falling in love with Jesse.
Appealing to her kind and generous heart, who genuinely cares for the poor lady, was a cowardly act on Lucian's part. However, he expected to be forgiven for such a sin.
If Maverick was able to make use of it, then Lucian could and would show that he could give her much more. Being under Shang's family protection left her protected, by extension, by the Grimwood. And because of the relationship between Lucian and Magnus, Quinn could also be protected by the imperial family.
Thus, the woman who was once harassed for earning a noble title despite being born and raised among commoners, would become a precious woman with the best connections. The single most coveted.
Ah, perfect, perfect.
"You have a strange thing on your face."
"It's called a smile, Magnus, even you should try to open one" Lucian replied smiling and then he bagged "Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something."
Lucian's tone of voice sounded a little too loud, not seeming he really wanted to keep their conversation secret. Magnus stared at him without understanding much, despite being hilarious and adorable his expression full of suspicion.
"What? I need to be afraid?"
"No. I need help to solve two problems about my diamond mine."
The word "mine" caught the attention of a certain beta, who was very few meters away from them. Lucian looked through the reflection of the window if Quinn was still around, and he smiled pleased to know that yes.
"What's with your mines? Are you having trouble solving something?"
"Yes, actually I need a team to assess the mine and extract something from there."
Magnus took his hand to the chin, really pondering the alpha's request. Lucian wanted to kiss him for his innocence.
"I can hire some miners. If you give me the location of your mine, maybe the local miners know better the structure and can give a more appropriate parameter of the project."
"Oh, what a great idea!" Lucian smiled happily, making Magnus stew his chest in slight pride.
"It's not a big deal. But what's the second problem?"
Lucian put his hand in his pocket and took out a velvet box. When he opened it, he showed a diamond. It was small, but it was pure and dazzling. Magnus carefully picked up the box and examined the jewel.
"Is it from your mine?"
"Yes. When the Emperor discovered the mine, he made the first extraction. But then he gave it to me as my dowry, and apparently it was never used again."
"Interesting. Must be worth a fortune."
"Exactly!" Lucian smiled satisfied that Magnus was getting into his line of thought. He quickly pretended to be discouraged and worried, looking at the diamond as if it were his only child "Unfortunately I do not know anyone who can help me sell."
"Can I provide you- huff!" Magnus gasped when he received a elbow from Lucian. The crimson eyes turned angrily to Lucian "What?"
"I said I don't know anyone who knows how to sell."
"Ha... don't you want my help? Do you want to try and take care of it yourself?"
Now, now, your fiancé was too clever, and that saved time!
Peeking through the window again, Lucian noticed that Quinn was looking at him as if he were trying to spy on the diamond.
"Hm, I want to hire someone to do the sale of the extracted diamonds. It would be nice to have someone of trust who did not mind signing a contract and much less getting involved in political fights. We are talking about my marriage dowry, after all."
From what he managed to remember, Quinn signed a contract just to keep herself safe. Maverick was engaged to Magnus at that point in the story, and with the hunt for the rebels, Quinn felt hesitant to bring her family into trouble if she got involved with the nobles of left or right.
Therefore, Lucian mentioned the contract. He was also a figure who was considered neutral in contention for the throne. Magnus and Cadec have dueled, so the question of political support gives the impression of being in the "neutral" too. It's the perfect time for Lucian to capture his victim.
"Excuse me, Your Highness."
Bingo!!
Turning to Victoria, Lucian hid the victorious smile from seeing Quinn behind her. The two women bowed to the eighth prince, and of course Lucian acted as naturally as possible.
"Oh, the new miss Shang! Your wedding was beautiful and exciting. Congratulations!"
"Haha, thank you, Your Highness. Allow me to introduce Miss Pendleton."
The short-haired lady bowed again, looking nervous in front of the eighth prince and the Grand Duke. Lucian understood her nervousness, Magnus really was a beauty that left her legs weak. He would forgive her for it.
"It's an honor to meet you."
"The pleasure is mine" Smiled Lucian.
He felt Magnus's gaze on him, and a slight "humpf". Yeah, Magnus understood exactly what he was up to.
"I'm sorry to intrude, and the rudeness, of course, but... I couldn't help but hear that Your Highness has a diamond."
"Oh, yes."
"Can I... take a look?"
Magnus was going to say no, Lucian smelled the danger. Immediately he gave another elbow in his rib, forcing Magnus to swallow dry and keep quiet. The weight of your fiancé's deadly gaze has certainly left a subliminal message.
Ah, he was dead. He was definitely dead.
However, Lucian showed the diamond in the velvet box, watching it approach and evaluate silently. Quinn frowned and took her hand to the chin exactly as described in the original work, which made Lucian have a small outbreak by seeing something like this live. It was always a pleasure to see your favorite characters come to life.
"Wow... it's very transparent. That in itself is a very good thing" Murmured Quinn when evaluating the piece lightly "The cut seems to be good, but without the instruments it's hard to say."
"You seem to understand the subject" Magnus commented, still stroking the sore rib.
"We were just talking about the jewels that the Emperor was wearing at the engagement party of His Highnesses" Said Victoria, making Quinn blush slightly "I must admit I understand little of the subject, but Miss Pendleton says she has a fascination for jewels."
"Oh, it's just that my grandfather used to be a miner in the country. And I played near the mines, so..."
"Something familiar" Smile Lucian, making the girl blush "You studied on your own?"
"I used books that the temple in my city had. They were thick, but enough for me to learn the basics and help my grandfather when he got sick."
"What a good granddaughter you are" Victoria smiled.
"I've heard other jewelry appraisers use the same terms" Magnus said, and looked at Lucian with his eyebrow raised "Maybe you found who was looking for."
Lucian loved that man, as he had entered his plan completely?! Perhaps Magnus would forgive the two nudges now that he has guessed his intentions.
"I think so." Smiling sweetly, Lucian looked at Quinn "What do you think, Miss Pendleton?"
"Hm?"
"I was talking to my fiancé about needing someone to evaluate and help me with the sale of diamonds. Would you like to sign a contract with me?"
Her eyes shone with excitement, and Lucian wanted to do the dance of victory.
"Are you sure, Your Highness? I'm no expert and there are certainly many people qualified..."
"If it is uncertain, what do you think of a trial?" Lucian smiled sweetly, which made Magnus shudder and look away "We will do the first extraction of diamonds and leave the raw material in your hands, to extract the best and sell as you see fit."
"Could make a report and ask for a guarantor to examine and tell if she did well or not."
"Exactly, Lady Shang. So... what do you think?"
Quinn had her cheeks warmed and a smile sprang from her lips.
"I accept, Your Highness!"