Chapter 495: Duchess
Michael opened his eyes and also saw the woman lounging and sipping tea in the veranda. Even if he didn’t know her face, he could tell that she was the Duchess just from her posture and the overall aura of grandeur that she was giving off.
She didn’t look young, but she didn’t look old. Despite the wrinkles, her face was still glowing like a spry 50 year old.
Just then, he felt a tug in his feet. He looked down at his shadows and saw Fudge giving him a wink and a thumbs-up, signalling a successful mission. He smiled, knowing that Uncle Jack would soon be brought to justice for his crimes.
"Duchess! I didn’t think you would go back home so soon," Uncle Jack said hurriedly, trying to fix his hair and uniform. "I take it that the business with the tourists has gone well."
The Duchess, with her white hair balled up in a nice little bow, didn’t acknowledge Uncle Jack’s words and just calmly finished her tea. It was only once she had her fill did she finally stand up and approach them.
"First of all, it is none of your business whether my deal was a success or not. And second of all, it would have gone better, if I wasn’t called back here to deal with a certain individual," she said, her words clear and authoritative. Everyone listened to her when she spoke.
"Also...what were you saying about Angela and our new guests here?"
Uncle Jack laughed off the awkwardness. "Oh, hahaha. It’s a small matter Duchess. No need to concern yourself with it."
The Duchess glared at him. "You used my name. Clearly, I need to concern myself with it."
"Alright...it’s just that I have just finished a duel with this young man over here. Things didn’t go well, as he started accusing me of crimes that I didn’t commit! Not only that, but he tried to kill me as well."
Uncle Jack twisted the story perfectly, trying to get the Duchess sympathy.
But before Uncle Jack could spin his lie again, the Duchess threw a bunch of scrolls in his direction.
"And what is this?" she asked.
Uncle Jack couldn’t hide the shock in his eyes well enough. Those were his ledgers, his secret ledgers that were only found in his vault! How could it have seen the light of day?!
"It’s very interesting about the records on these parchments. Embezzlement, fraud...and most importantly, attempted murder," the Duchess accused.
He tried to maintain his composure, but he ended up becoming a bumbling idiot by the end of it.
"Oh these...oh...it’s—it’s—it’s just...nothing like..."
Seeing the triumphant smiles on Prince Harry and Princess Elizabeth’s face, Uncle Jack knew that he was backed into a corner. He didn’t know how they were able to get their hands on his vault, but if he were able to destroy it right then and there, they wouldn’t be able to prove anything!
Of course, his logic didn’t make sense as the Duchess already saw it with her own eyes, but Uncle Jack was so desperate that he ended up just doing it anyway.
He lunged forward into the scrolls, using a simple 1-star [Ember] spell to incinerate the ledgers into pieces.
However, his clear ineptitude in the Mystic Arts showed its ugly head as he took more than four seconds to even materialize the magic circle in his hands.
"Dammit!" he cursed, his magic circle shimmering. Eventually, he eventually released the magic spell.
But as just the ball of fire was about to reach the paper, Uncle Jack felt his control over the spell terminate. With the spell out of his control, the fire ball shot towards his face and incinerated part of his wavy hair.
"AHHH! AHHH!"
The Duchess confronted her assassin. "I always suspected you had something to do with it. But It let my fondness for your brother get in the way of me accepting the truth. You are a criminal who deserves to forfeit their life in prison. Guards. Seize him."
Ten of her Secret Service guards appeared in an instant and immediately cuffed Uncle Jack’s legs and arms, leaving him no chance to escape.
"Let go of me!" he thrashed. "I don’t want to die! Forgive me!"
But all of his voices were ignored until he faded out into nothingness as the guards took him into a secure place that not even light could escape.
"Ha....vindication. That feels good," Prince Harry said, sipping his tea with a serene smile.
"Mother, you knew that he was the one that poisoned you?" Elizabeth asked, surprised. "Why didn’t you arrest him sooner?"
The Duchess sighed. "He is the last link to your father, and I thought that he would change. I was wrong."
The royal twins hugged their mother after finally getting justice after all these years.
"But let us not talk about family business. We have guests to entertain," she said as she looked at Michael and his family.
"Vanderbilts...I must say, I’m surprised."
Max kneeled to the Duchess. "It’s been a long while, Duchess."
"Yes, it has been a while. The last time I saw you, your father had just handed you the reins to the Vanderbilt branch here in Metropolis."
The pain of failure bore heavy in Max’s heart. But now, it turned lighter now that he knew that the person responsible for the downfall of the Vanderbilts had been taken to justice.
"Duchess, I would like for you to meet my nephew, Michael Vanderbilt."
The Duchess walked over to Michael and observed him, looking him up and down. "You look just like him," she chuckled.
"Me? Who?"
"Your grandfather," she said. "You have the same eyes. I think that he would be extremely pleased to know that there was someone in his family to continue the legacy."
And without missing a beat, Michael said this:
"I’m not continuing his legacy. I’m building my own."
The confidence in those words stunned the Duchess for a second. Most people would feel incredibly honored to be compared to the most successful businessman in the entire history of the world. Yze was a legend, now, in the past, and in the future.
But it looked like Michael wasn’t planning on living under the shadows of his grandfather. He had grander plans than that.
"hahaha...Hahahaha...HAHAHAHA!"
The Duchess tried to keep her composure and tried to cover up her amusement, but she ended up letting go of all pretenses and showing her true feelings.
"My mistake," she said, wiping a tear. "You’re nothing like your grandfather. You’re much better!"
She then bent down and held out her hand. "Then let us introduce ourselves. I am Duchess Regina of Metropolis. And you are?"
Michael took her hand firmly. "I am Michael from the Reborn company."
The two shook hands. It was only later in the future where historians would record this as a monumental piece of history.
Michael immediately liked the Duchess. Even though she held a high position, he didn’t feel any pompousness or arrogance from her. She was even humble enough to greet him with a handshake, even though he was only a child. Duchesses weren’t even supposed to bow or bend their knees to anyone.