Chapter 152: Rewards
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 152: Rewards
“Once the greenhouse is finished, we’ll need to see to the gardens as well.”
Eek.
The greenhouse alone was a massive undertaking, but the entire garden too? The gardener’s face turned ashen.
“Your Grace, if I may be so bold, the workload might be a bit much for a single gardener,” Whitley, who was standing by the door, interjected calmly.
“Is that so? Then hire a few more people.”
“I will recruit three additional staff members,” Whitley replied efficiently before stepping back.
“Find some decent seedlings to plant in the outdoor garden as well. Make sure they suit the Grand Duchess’s tastes perfectly. The rarer and more difficult they are to find, the better. It doesn't matter how long it takes.”
“And be sure to report the details to the Grand Duchess.”
“I mean, tell her enthusiastically about how much the garden is going to change.”
The gardener, unable to fathom what the Grand Duke actually wanted, simply nodded his head.
“I shall follow your commands.”
“Since you are fulfilling your role properly, I will grant you an appropriate bonus.”
“Thank you, Your Grace!”
Having finished his business, the Grand Duke waved his hand as if to dismiss him.
The aide standing beside him looked somewhat displeased for some reason, but the gardener bowed so low his body practically folded in half before leaving the room with a look of pure joy.
To think His Grace could be so generous.
‘I should take this chance to find all sorts of rare seedlings.’
The gardener, suddenly blessed with an unexpected stroke of luck, returned to the greenhouse with a light step.
“Double the budget for the servants’ dining hall.”
“And upgrade the tables and chairs by one grade.”
Perel, who had been watching the gardener leave with a giddy grin, looked bewildered at his master’s subsequent orders.
“We are already providing much better quality than before.”
“Then raise the rank of the chef by one level.”
Loik pondered for a moment longer, then let out a soft "Ah," as if something had just occurred to him.
“And send some gifts to the children at the orphanage.”
“The quarterly supplies are scheduled to go out soon anyway,” Perel said, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. “Besides, Her Highness the Consort sends gifts quite frequently herself.”
“Send them anyway. You know, toys they might need for a picnic or something…”
Perel tilted his head, momentarily forgetting his lingering resentment over the contract because of his master’s sudden bout of charity.
“Why on earth are you doing all this?”
“……Because they’re admirable.”
“Admirable?”
Of course, the little sprouts at the orphanage growing up well was admirable in its own right, but…
“Everyone is contributing quite a bit.”
Loik spoke while struggling to suppress the smile that kept threatening to tug at the corners of his mouth.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Watching Perel grumble, Loik turned his gaze out the window. He didn't know what to do with himself; smiles kept leaking out for no reason at all.
To think Annette would be the first to suggest extending the duration.
His prediction had been correct. The soft-hearted Annette would find it harder to leave the North the more things she grew attached to.
— “Instead, I will seduce you properly.”
The image of Annette’s cheeks flushing a deep red as she made that shy declaration wouldn't leave his mind. She had spoken so boldly, and yet…
‘How on earth am I supposed to woo this woman?’
— “I’ve heard there are cases where one wears nothing but a ribbon on their bare skin.”
Leon’s voice suddenly echoed in Loik’s mind as he searched for ideas.
That crazy bastard.
No matter how desperate he was, doing something so scandalous was out of the question.
‘Besides, Annette and I aren't at that stage yet…’
However, seeing as it was apparently a trend, perhaps married couples naturally did such embarrassing things without hesitation.
What if he showed up to see Annette looking like that?
Loik recalled Annette poking his chest earlier.
‘Would she… not hate it entirely?’
He rubbed the tips of his ears, which were turning beet red, only to lock eyes with Perel. The aide was staring at his superior with a stunned expression, watching him alternate between blushing and frantically rubbing his ears.
“And the Prince?”
Feeling a bit awkward, Loik cleared his throat and asked.
“I’ve checked, and it’s true that he went as far as Montelucci Port before turning back,” Perel said, retracing the route through which Prince Lucion had been denied entry. “The opera industry is actually very important in Rondoris. Princess Pelianes likely wasn't pleased to hear that the Cariso Troupe was staging an opera in Blenheim.”
Rondoris was culturally prosperous but not a country rich in resources. For that reason, Princess Pelianes, who managed the arts and culture sector on behalf of the King, was extremely reluctant to let her country’s troupes or artists work abroad. The reason Rondoris troupes didn't perform in Blenheim was partly because the Princess would penalize them behind the scenes.
It was no wonder the Princess was incensed, considering Lucion—a member of the royal family, no less—had joined hands with the Grand Duchess in direct defiance of his sister’s wishes.
“And… Princess Pelianes is a woman of immense pride, is she not?” Perel said, carefully gauging Loik’s reaction. “Count Pacio likely told her about the broken marriage promise, so her anger must be significant.”
He was referring to the fact that when the delegation visited recently, Loik had made it clear he had no intention of divorcing Annette.
However, Loik felt uneasy for some reason.
‘Was the Princess really such an emotional person?’
Regardless of her dislike for Lucion, his influence on Rondoris society was not insignificant. Loik had heard rumors that Prince Lucion used his charming appearance and conduct to win the favor of the rising nobility, drawing them away from the haughty Princess’s side. Furthermore, the money Lucion earned through operas and various businesses was a precious source of funding for the Princess.
This meant that, contrary to his mask as a ‘pleasure-seeking bastard prince,’ he was a rather useful pawn. The Princess was far too ambitious to simply kick someone like Lucion out.
Lucion himself was equally suspicious. In Loik’s eyes, the only reason he was helping Blenheim was because of his ulterior motives toward Annette.
‘Annette promised she wouldn't give other men a chance, but…’
He could trust Annette, but he couldn't trust other men.
“Make sure the Grand Duchess is never alone with the Prince,” Loik commanded in a chilling voice.
“I will be present at their meetings.”
“Bring the ladies-in-waiting as well. Station knights there too.”
After speaking, Loik thought for a moment and added belatedly, “But don't make it obvious to the Grand Duchess.”
Perel nodded without a word of complaint.
*
“Cecilia, have you been crying?”
“Why is your face so swollen?”
Sitting in a private room of the Guest Castle, Cecilia’s eyelids were so swollen she could barely open her eyes. She kept her mouth tightly shut. Usually, she would have poured out a torrent of words before even being asked. Instead, the maid just pouted and turned her gaze away.
‘Is she upset with me?’
She had been acting grumpy since they met earlier, so it seemed she was sulking about something. Looking at Perel, who was standing nearby, Annette saw his eyes darting around shiftily.
‘Perel knows the reason.’
She was debating which one would be faster to crack when the door to the room opened and Prince Lucion entered.
Lucion was dressed in a pale cream shirt and form-fitting dark navy trousers. Dressed in the Imperial style that accentuated his physique, the Prince looked strikingly tall and handsome. He flashed a bright smile, only to flinch when he noticed the crowd filling the room.
“My, His Grace the Grand Duke is certainly looking after my well-being with great care,” Lucion quipped with a pointed remark.
Knights stood on either side of the door and in every corner of the room. With Cecilia and Perel also taking seats to her left, the room felt positively cramped.
“You’re quite popular, Prince,” Annette replied with a composed smile. “The knights were so eager to volunteer for escort duty that we had to filter through them.”
Lucion kissed the back of her hand, and as he looked up, he burst into a fit of laughter.
“I had no idea the knights liked me quite that much.”
At those words, the faces of the standing knights crumpled. Annette also thought this level of vigilance was a bit excessive, but she had accepted Perel’s request without a word. The security of the Grand Duke’s Castle wasn't something she should interfere with.
Instead, since Lucion was staying at the castle anyway, she intended to proceed quickly with the consultations regarding the opera.
“You already have a script?”
In response to her question about the plot of the opera, Lucion placed a script down in front of her.
“From about ten years ago? It’s an opera that was once staged in Rondoris.”
“Ten years ago?” Annette narrowed her eyes slightly. “I thought we agreed to create a new production.”
“It’s practically a new production,” Lucion said with a shrug. “I heard that when it first premiered, the reaction was so poor it was pulled immediately.”
He explained that almost no one would remember the work. At that, Annette’s brow furrowed even deeper.