Chapter 25

Chapter 25
Starting tomorrow, I need to move much faster. I should hurry up and look into other territories, too. And look for work.

I pulled the blanket all the way up to my chin. Instead of acacia, the sweet yet bitter scent of lilac lingered persistently at the tip of my nose.

Outside the window, the boisterous laughter of mercenaries echoed noisily. Inside the room, where even the slightest rustle sounded unnaturally loud, all was quiet.

Holding my breath slowly, I lightly traced my soft lips with my thumb.

It felt as if the scent of potion still remained on the lips the man had carefully tended to, pouring an entire bottle down my throat before sending me back to the village.

When I pushed my finger a little deeper inside, my thumb tip touched my moist tongue.

Hahaha!

Rough laughter burst out through the night air, piercing into my burning ears.

I buried my face in the pillow. Hot breath spilled out like steam onto the crisp pillowcase.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Did you pay your respects to His Grace the Duke? Since he stays only at the villa, this old man can hardly see his face at all…”

“It’s just on the mountain right behind us, so why fuss about seeing his face? If you miss my father that much, go see him yourself.”

“I do not particularly miss him.”

The old butler lowered his thin eyebrows. Carlos clicked his tongue and unbuckled his sword.

“Father said he needs one more maid at the villa.”

“Yes. I was actually in the middle of interviewing candidates. I am selecting someone tight-lipped.”

“Good. Also, look into a house in the central district of Schweiz. A house to use temporarily.”

“Are you referring to a residence for Lady Aquitaine?”

The butler carefully set down the hot teapot.

“What sort of house should I look for?”

“That is up to you.”

Without waiting for assistance, Carlos removed his tunic and walked through the spacious room, which was sparsely furnished with dark black oak pieces.

“Understood. Then I shall prepare something around District 4.”

“Make it District 12.”

At his low voice, the butler paused in his tracks.

Carlos tied the cord of his robe and sank into a wingback chair.

“…Very well. There is a vacant house in District 12. I shall make arrangements accordingly.”

“I would prefer it if it had a garden.”

The butler stopped walking once more. He stared intently at the face of his young master, whom he had served for twenty-six years.

Carlos held a teacup in hand as he turned the pages of a document.

“……Then I shall look for a newly built, two-story house with a garden in the safest central area of District 12.”

“Well, do as you like.”

Carlos set down the monster report he had been casually browsing. As he took another sip of tea, he tilted his head.

“What is that?”

The butler followed his gaze.

“It is a flower brought back by you, Young Master. I instructed the maid to put it in a vase…”

A single stalk of white lilac stood in a white porcelain vase on top of the bed table. Standing all alone among the stark black oak furniture, its pure white form looked strikingly out of place.

“Did I bring that?”

“Yes. You took care to bring it with you when unloading the luggage from the carriage.”

Carlos stroked his chin.

Thanks to Elio’s purification, the petals had not lost their vitality, remaining fresh and porcelain-soft.

Gazing quietly at the pure white petals, he stood up. Stepping toward the terrace, he leaned against the window frame and looked down at the central district of Schweiz in a single glance.

His eyes landed on the inn street—the only place that shone brightly even in the dead of night. One corner of his lips curled up in a lopsided smile.

Even if evil dragons were completely gone, monsters still swarmed during this season. Rough travelers from the North, wandering mercenaries, and all kinds of men would be pouring down alcohol in the inns all night long.

❖ ❖ ❖

“If you require anything further, please do not come to the Ducal Castle directly. Simply send a letter, and we will assist you right away.”

“Thank you!”

Elio bowed her waist alongside the old butler. Holding the pouch of money in her arms, she bowed a bit lower to the somewhat cold and icy old butler.

Once the sound of horse hooves echoing through the chilly dawn air faded away, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

She hadn’t expected him to find a house for her this quickly.

Quickly slipping the cluster of keys handed over by the butler into her front pocket, she stuffed the money bag deep inside her bag.

Gently stroking the blue front door, she peered into the front yard. Though it was filled with nothing but wild, overgrown flowers, she couldn’t be more satisfied.

Suppressing a smile that threatened to spread across her lips, she walked ten light steps before suddenly spinning back around.

Her composure crumbled, and a bright smile burst forth.

Look at this! It’s huge…!

I walked ten whole steps, and I’m still in front of the house…!

It was much smaller than the Count’s mansion, but far larger than her sister’s cabin.

Elio smiled brightly, then turned to her left. Far in the distance, the grand facade of the Ducal Castle came into view.

She stared quietly at the castle for a long moment, then wrapped her arms around herself and turned away. As if shaking off unwanted feelings, she ran off quickly. Trying her best to erase the man who had completely cut off contact after returning to the Ducal Castle from her mind, she headed toward the central square along the path she had memorized yesterday.

It was August, a month when rain became increasingly frequent. During the rainy season, merchants were busy preparing for the rapid breeding of monsters. To prevent epidemics caused by monsters whose reproduction rates multiplied several times over in humid weather, they even offered extra pay to healers, but purified manpower was drastically lacking.

Merchants who couldn’t secure even low-level workers carried boxes with dark expressions, pulling down tents as they gossiped about monster suppression.

Tsk-tsking sounds grew louder as they noted that the situation with Cyprus’s monsters was unusual, and that all imports coming from Cyprus were a total failure. Elio hovered around the stalls with an anxious expression.

Will Schweiz be safe? Isn’t this place the most dangerous area since the Dragon Mountain Range and the border are right nearby? My magic power hasn’t increased that much yet…

Swallowing hard, Elio crouched in front of a shop and pushed back the wide brim of her straw hat.

“Excuse me, how much is this…?”

“Three for 1,000 Shillings! It’s really sweet and delicious! Shall I give you three?”

Realizing from the woman’s casual tone that her outfit made her look entirely like a commoner, Elio smiled sheepishly and pulled out a notebook.

She wrote down the prices one by one in her notebook. Now that she had to handle everything on her own, she needed to carefully gauge her living expenses.

“Three… no, two… Just give me one, please!”

Finding groceries more expensive than expected, she bought only grapes and milk. Parking her second-hand bicycle—which she had bought cheaply because one brake was broken—in front of the bookstore, she paused.

Hesitating slightly, Elio pulled her cheap straw hat down lower and entered the bookstore.

“Back again? Why not just buy it now? Are you still deliberating?”

Elio rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment and gave a nod to the clerk. Having spent all of yesterday browsing books, it seemed they remembered her.

Only after lingering around the shelves of the Monster Encyclopedia did she let out a shallow breath and lean against the shelf of red romance novels.

The Noble Knight’s First Kiss and Between His Legs — Volume 1

Clutching the knight romance novel—a small pleasure in her uncertain life—she held it close.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Stop staring at it. The Lady’s face is going to wear away.”

Grita opened her ruby-adorned portable ashtray and flicked off the ash. She smiled subtly as she watched Carlos, who couldn’t take his eyes off the portrait of Aquitaine featured prominently on the front page of the newspaper.

“Senior. At this rate, you’re going to fall right into the newspaper.”

Carlos chuckled softly, folded the newspaper, and crushed out his cigar. Grita extinguished her cigar as well and stood up.

Unlike Carlos, who wore a loose tunic, Grita was clad in a neatly ironed uniform. She adjusted her shirt buttons as she stood by his side.

Turning her eyes away from the Aquitaine portrait in the newspaper, she matched her stride to his long steps.

“…The kid is going to be very startled when she sees the newspaper.”

Despite the sunlight not being excessively hot, the man, who was unusually sensitive to heat, was dripping with sweat.

Taking out a fan she always kept in her bag, Grita fanned him and spoke in a cool, collected tone.

“I think you treat the Lady too much like a baby.”

“She is young.”

At his firm answer, Grita looked closely at the man’s face.

“What.”

“Senior. I think you’re getting wrinkles on your face.”

“…What?”

“You’re already twenty-six. Your skin has worsened. It’s time to start thinking about your age.”

Twenty-six was by no means an age to get wrinkles, but Grita spoke in a serious tone before curving her eyes into a smile.

“You’ve only got one year left yourself. Why don’t you worry about yourself first?”

Carlos said indifferently as he walked deep into the blacksmith alley.

Grita dropped her gaze to her feet for a moment before offering a faint smile.

“I was thinking of having a new sword made to celebrate turning twenty-five.”

“Good idea. I heard a fresh batch of Mithril just came in anyway.”

At Carlos’s coolly curving lips, Grita smiled along and kept adjusting the knot of her cravat. It was a smile she hadn’t seen on him in a long time.

“Did you review the prospective suitors for Lady Aquitaine that I shortlisted last time?”

“Find someone better.”

“Even her biological brother wouldn’t care as much as you do.”

At Grita’s teasing, Carlos smiled in agreement.

“I should at least take care of her that much.”

Breathing in the smell of molten iron permeating the hot afternoon air, Grita slowly clenched and unclasped her fist.

“…I also feel sorry toward Lady Aquitaine.”

Carlos slowed his steps and looked at Grita.

“Isn’t she the child who took the blame in my place for the sake of our family’s honor?”

Thinking of the child he had brought because of her, Grita met Carlos’s eyes.

While secret marriage talks were underway between Hoffmann and Schwenhardt, the Emperor suddenly ordered a marriage between the Imperial Princess and Carlos.

Grita, a daughter of a honorable Marquis family and part of the Emperor’s faction, could not stand by his side while defying the Emperor and Princess, nor could she shoulder all kinds of scandals.

That was why they brought in the Aquitaine girl, wasn’t it? She had known about the plan in advance after hearing it from His Grace the Duke and her father.

“Since this was done so that you could marry me, Senior, I believe there are parts I must take responsibility for as well. I am contemplating an appropriate compensation I can offer as a Hoffmann.”

Carlos looked silently up at the sweltering, blue-green sky. Slowly closing and opening his dry eyes, he ran a hand through his sweat-drenched hair.

Done so he could marry Grita…

A small, cynical laugh slipped out.