Chapter 225
Chapter 225
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 225
Chapter Title: Harvest Festival
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So.
I'd barely managed to calm things down after nearly getting an earful from Elnor.
But a second storm was waiting in the wings.
Unlike with Elnor, this one was from someone I couldn't even dream of arguing back against, which made it all the worse.
"So, Dawood."
"..."
"Got any excuses?"
Thinking back, I'd rarely ever gotten scolded by my father, even as a kid.
With the mind of a grown adult crammed into a child's body, that was only natural—but apparently, I was known around the territory as a particularly precocious kid.
That's probably why both my father and the territory folk had all liked me so much.
Which made this situation—kneeling before him with my head bowed—pretty damn unfamiliar, even for me.
He was always so mild-mannered, never able to say a harsh word to anyone, but as everyone knew, that just made him all the scarier when he did get mad.
He'd barged straight into my room, forced me to my knees, crossed his arms, and now the stern lecture had been going on for what felt like forever.
The main reason?
"Why am I being treated like an honored guest in the Tristan Duchy right now?"
"..."
"Why the hell am I getting fancier treatment than any of the other counts or marquises?"
I went dead silent under the weight of his stern voice.
From his perspective, he'd been peacefully managing the territory when he suddenly got dragged here and showered with treatment so overwhelming it felt like his soul might flee his body. No way I couldn't understand that.
"..."
"And weren't you the one who promised, back when you entered the academy, that you wouldn't cause any trouble and would behave yourself?"
"...I'm sorry."
It wasn't exactly by choice, but now that things had come this far, I had nothing to say.
I'd failed spectacularly at keeping that promise, after all. Truly, horrifyingly so.
"Of course, even I never expected you'd actually keep your word."
"..."
"With who knows how many girls crying over you back in the territory, there was no way you'd stay out of trouble at the academy."
Father.
That hurts.
Your rock-solid faith in that weird side of me hurts so much...
"But I need to know why the ducal house is pulling this stunt on me."
He let out a deep sigh and continued.
Hearing that, I scratched my head awkwardly and replied.
"...Probably something close to what you're imagining, Father."
They'd probably called him ahead of time, planning some engagement ceremony or whatever, and wanted to plant a good impression in advance—
"You got the Tristan Duchess pregnant, didn't you?"
"..."
"I knew it. I knew you'd pull something like this someday...!"
"...What the hell do you take your son-in-law for?"
Even in the middle of getting chewed out, some things had to be said.
Once I'd calmed him down a bit with that, he sighed wearily, looking dazed.
"I heard His Imperial Majesty the Emperor is attending this harvest festival, so please, I'm begging you—just get through it without any incidents. You get what I mean?"
"Don't worry about that—"
I started to reply, looking utterly unconcerned.
Sure, Elnor's talk of revenge at the festival nagged at me a little, but no way she'd cause a scene at an event crawling with the emperor and a ton of other big shots—
!! Emergency Alert !!
[ A 'Main Quest' related event has been generated! ] [ Prepare in advance! ]
"..."
"..."
Before I could even finish, a window popped up in front of me out of nowhere, and I clamped my mouth shut.
Then I read through the lines scrolling down after it, my expression turning incredulous.
"...Why aren't you answering?"
"..."
Sorry, Father.
But I can't lie about this.
Staring down the window in front of me, I called out.
"...Father."
"..."
The moment he saw my face, he squeezed his eyes shut.
He took several deep breaths. Whoosh—in, out.
"...You're about to cause trouble again, aren't you."
"..."
"You've had that look since you were little. Like when you were seven and said you'd go hunt that bear prowling the back hills alone..."
"..."
Family really is family.
The others had taken months to figure out my quirks, but he knew them without me saying a word.
"...Looks like you might have a rough time at this harvest festival, Father."
"What the hell does that mean? What are you scheming?"
"It's not me scheming."
I sighed and ran a hand through my hair.
[System Message]
[ Main Quest ]〖 Chapter 5 – Empire Great Turmoil 〗 [ A related event will occur soon! ] [ The quest progression will change depending on your choices in this event! ] [ To make things smoother, here's a hint based on the clear difficulty! ]
[ Tip ]
[ Here are the key figures to watch out for in advance! ]
[ 1. Yuria Grayhauncher 2. Cecilia 11th 3. Armin Campbell ]
"...Something's coming."
Like always with my luck.
No way this would pass without a hitch.
The festival was tomorrow.
And without a doubt, something was gonna blow up there.
"..."
I closed my eyes and sank into thought for a moment.
By now, I was pretty used to these out-of-nowhere events exploding on me.
Hell, I could even whip up some 'insurance' on the spot to handle it.
For example.
"Father."
"Yeah?"
"Call Hermann for me. Got something for him to do."
"...Do? What?"
"Someone I need to summon."
At the very least, I had to set up some 'safeguards' so the people around me wouldn't get dragged in.
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Harvest festival day.
The Tristan Ducal House's main estate was buzzing with frantic activity.
Especially in the banquet hall, where the most people had gathered.
"...Carlyle, Argos, Palandier..."
Lucien murmured the names of the houses as she scanned the room.
Every last one was a heavyweight in the empire. Not the kind of people who got dismissed anywhere.
The mere fact that folks like these had gathered for a single territory's 'anniversary' said everything about the Tristan Ducal House's prestige.
'...If there's anything off...'
Maybe how there were so many tied to the Elder Council.
Lucien wasn't exactly an expert on imperial politics, but she knew full well that relations between the emperor-aligned Tristan Ducal House and the Elder Council were far from amicable.
Especially weird was the head of that council, Marquis Bogart, showing up in person.
"...They're definitely plotting something. Yuria, something might happen, so—"
But as she turned to continue, she caught sight of her sister and fell silent.
Yuria was drenched in cold sweat, glancing around like a frightened little animal.
"..."
No, not just frightened.
She was scared.
Visibly, undeniably scared.
Until recently, she'd been holed up in empty warehouses or alone with him in chapels. It was only natural she'd struggle in a place this bright and flashy.
"...Want to head back if it's too much, Yuria?"
"..."
But at Lucien's words, Yuria shook her head vigorously, even as sweat poured down her face.
"...Eliya said."
Her voice came out hoarse.
"That something might happen to Dawood here."
"..."
"This time... this time, I have to protect him."
Once she'd said that much, there was no arguing.
This girl who'd spent months tormented by guilt, endlessly mulling her regrets about Dawood. Trying to talk her out of anything involving him would be pointless.
"...If it's too much, you have to tell me, Yuria."
That was probably the most Lucien could manage.
Yuria nodded weakly with a smile.
Anyone could see she was pushing herself, and as Lucien watched her worriedly.
Suddenly, the noisy banquet hall went dead quiet.
Wondering what was up, she looked around—everyone's eyes were fixed on the entrance.
"His Imperial Majesty the Emperor arrives!"
With that announcement, Cecilia 11th appeared slowly, tapping her cane with each step.
"...The Emperor?"
Lucien narrowed her eyes and muttered.
It wasn't that strange.
The Tristan Grand Duke was a poster child for emperor loyalists, right up there with Margrave Kendrid.
Sending a proxy would be more normal, but him showing up personally once in a while wasn't exactly unheard of.
But still.
Coming here in person, to a place swarming with the Elder Council he clashed with so viciously?
"..."
Lucien had half-mentioned the possibility of trouble to Yuria out of mere worry, but now the odds had skyrocketed.
From what she'd heard, the animosity between the emperor and the Elder Council wasn't the polite avoidance between emperor and prime minister—it was outright war footing.
Especially lately, with the council's provocative power grabs blatantly overstepping the emperor's authority.
So, intending to drill a little more caution into her sister, Lucien turned.
But she froze.
"...Yuria?"
Yuria's eyes were blazing with ferocious hostility.
For her usually quiet, unassertive sister, the intensity etched on her face was downright abnormal.
Like.
She'd spotted something utterly repulsive.
"...Yuria? What's wrong?"
"Makes me sick."
It was hard to believe such clear enmity could come from her sweet, innocent little sister.
"Yuria? What do you—"
As Lucien stammered in confusion, a stiff reply came back.
"Sis."
Those eyes—what to call it.
Not on the emperor himself, but peering deeper, somehow.
"That guy's making me sick."
Like.
She was sensing something 'inside' him.
Under Yuria's eyes, 'white' demonic energy began to ripple faintly.
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