Chapter 129
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 129
“This is—this is absurd! Absolutely not! Why on earth should I?!”
It seemed the verdict was utterly unacceptable to her.
Belladonna, who unlike Sandra had been trying her best to maintain some semblance of dignity, suddenly bolted upright.
Well, I had said it knowing full well she would react this way.
“If you think it’s so absurd, you can simply sign a memorandum stating that you will completely sever all ties with Uncle Nigella.”
“I’d rather sign a thousand memorandums! How could I ever serve as that woman’s maid…!”
“However, if I hear even a whisper of you meeting Uncle Nigella after that…”
I wasn’t finished yet.
“I will use every resource of the Grand Duchy to make your life utter hell—ah, my mistake.”
“…”
“Grandfather will personally step in to punish the crime of insulting the Frezier name. Consider yourself warned, Countess Orquichin.”
“…!”
“For your information, I’ve seen plenty of ways to ruin an ‘underling’s’ life through Aunt Aubrey, you see?”
“…”
Had Aubrey, Viscount Lilius’s wife, ever been kind to Belladonna?
‘Not a chance. Not in a million years.’
With her personality, she would have looked down on the mistress either subtly or overtly.
Furthermore, it takes one to know one. A quick-witted woman like Belladonna would already be well aware of Aubrey’s characteristic cruelty.
She knew my words weren’t just an empty threat.
After all, no one in the world of The Milk Bread could be as wicked as a ‘determined’ Tulia!
“Even bread that’s on the verge of spoiling is quite edible. I’ve had plenty of it myself. Thanks to certain people, of course.”
“…”
She was already a woman who had been stripped of all her assets.
Moreover, from yesterday until this morning, I had shown a meticulous level of ruthlessness by periodically sending people to ransack Belladonna’s belongings and quarters.
At the warning that her life would be reduced to something worse than a beggar’s, Belladonna’s expression completely crumbled.
Her legs seemed to lose their strength, and she collapsed back into her seat.
* * *
“So, Nigella sold everything he owned.”
“Yes, Your Grace. Not only his house, but his collections, personal treasures, livestock, bonds, and even the fields and ranches he held as private property—he has put them all up for sale.”
“I see.”
Grand Duke Asis Frezier continued as he gazed out the window.
“Keep a close watch to ensure he doesn’t embezzle a single penny. I will not tolerate any creative accounting or double-entry bookkeeping.”
“Understood, Your Grace.”
“I failed to educate my son properly all this time, so I must discipline him correctly now, late as it may be.”
There wasn’t even a hint of bitterness left in Asis’s voice.
He was, by nature, a man called the Tiger of the Grand Duchy. Once he deemed something wrong, he was capable of cutting it away with cold precision.
Even so, because Nigella was his son, he had given him countless chances.
But his son had not only betrayed his expectations but had committed countless atrocities.
As if shaking off these unpleasant thoughts, the Grand Duke asked another question.
“Is the preparation for the Founding Festival going well?”
“Yes. Everything is proceeding without a hitch.”
Grand Duke Asis nodded, then turned around.
“So they say. Why haven’t you left yet? Why are you still loitering around the Grand Duchy?”
The man with a stature and build as imposing as the Grand Duke’s—Marquis Aster—replied while looking over documents at the guest desk.
“Is this not the Founding Festival my daughter is preparing? Naturally, I must attend before I leave.”
“Hmph. As if you’ve ever bothered to show up for a Founding Festival before.”
“I plan to attend faithfully starting this year. Imagine how worried my daughter must be. Her father should be by her side to provide a reliable presence.”
The event had originally been prepared by Aubrey and Lilius, but now Tulia had taken charge as the host.
“This grandfather will be a much more reliable presence for Tulia, so just take a quick look and get lost.”
Grand Duke Asis added, just in case.
“And don’t even think about taking Tulia with you.”
“It’s the border front, Your Grace. How could I take a child to such a dangerous place?”
“That sounds like you’d take her if it weren’t the border.”
“She is my child, after all. If it were a safe place, I would have loved to go on a sightseeing trip with my daughter. It’s a crying shame I can’t.”
“Is Tulia only your child? She is my granddaughter as well.”
“Don’t you know that the bond between a father and daughter is closer than that of a grandfather and granddaughter?”
“Tulia will surely like me more than you, whom she’s only seen a handful of times.”
“I shouldn’t even bother talking to you.”
“I’m the one who shouldn’t bother.”
Hmph.
Hmph.
Asis and Aster turned away from each other in unison, acting in a way that would have made Tulia wonder if their combined age was ten.
“By the way, what is that empty space on the desk for?”
Grand Duke Asis’s desk was exceptionally large and wide.
However, it was piled high with all sorts of documents, so it never felt spacious.
Ever since Aster was a young boy, his father’s desk had always been like that.
But on the desk he saw this time, strangely, a spot just large enough to rest both hands had been cleared away.
An area perfectly sized to display something.
“It’s a spot I’ve cleared because Tulia said she would give me a gift for the Founding Festival.”
“My daughter did?”
“Yes. My granddaughter.”
“Why is she only giving one to Your Grace?”
“Are you the Family Head?”
“Am I not the next in line?”
“Who said I was handing the position over to you? I’m going to give it to our Tulia.”
The Grand Duke spoke words that would have sent the entire Empire into an uproar as if they were nothing. Of course, Aster, who was listening, merely furrowed his brow with equal nonchalance.
“She’s at an age where she should enjoy playing. She needs to play much more. Don’t dump such burdensome work on a child.”
Still, he was curious.
“So, what did Tulia say she was giving you?”
“She said she was making something out of plum blossoms’ fruit.”
“…Plum fruit?”
Reflexively, Aster looked out the office window. The plum blossoms had long since fallen.
And Aster was one of the very few people who knew what the plum tree meant to his father, Grand Duke Asis.
Aster, picturing his late mother who had always been full of resilient energy like the summer sun, looked at the Grand Duke’s back and asked, “Will you be alright?”
“What is there to be alright or not alright about?”
Grand Duke Asis let out an involuntary chuckle as he looked at the bare branches Tulia had stripped clean.
“The living are more important than the dead.”
“If Mother were alive, she would have cherished Tulia dearly.”
“She was exceptionally close with her daughter-in-law, so I’m sure she would have.”
“Indeed.”
“Yes.”
A silence, as soft as a spring breeze, enveloped the office as they each reflected on their own memories.
* * *
A short while later.
In the square spot on the desk that the Grand Duke had kept clear for months, a beautiful crystal bottle was placed.
The crystal bottle, adorned with a pretty red velvet ribbon wishing for the recipient’s health, was filled to the brim with a shimmering liquid.
* * *
‘Hehe. He won’t eat this and throw up this time.’
The apple jam I had made with my trash-tier skill stat had always lingered in a corner of my mind as a source of guilt…
‘I felt so sorry when I heard Grandfather actually tasted it later and vomited.’
But this gift was made with a whopping 5 points in the skill stat!
In other words, it was ‘Beyond-Tulia-tier’!
I felt proud.
And so, having dealt with all the relative villains, I was in a better mood than ever at the Founding Festival commemorative banquet.
A place that had once been a frigid battlefield where I had to survive at any cost had now truly become a stable home for me.
They say a bird with a nest can fly further, don’t they?
Since I had reset the basic conditions that were holding Tulia back to some extent, I intended to focus on my true duty from now on.
The Main Quest.
I glanced at Jjapddongbyeol, who was leisurely flying around nearby, and made a vow.
‘I’ll make sure you reach A-Rank.’
“Tulia.”
It was then that Grandfather spoke to me.
“That gift you called plum extract—I received it well, but what exactly is it? It’s not wine, yet it’s quite sweet. Did you add dried plum blossoms to honey water?”
“No, no. It’s made by preserving the fruit of the plum tree in sugar. It’s very good for digestion.”
“No wonder my stomach felt so settled.”
Grandfather murmured as he toyed with the glass containing the plum juice.
“To think such a sweet and healthy result could come from those plums.”
Good. With this, the humiliation of that trash—no, no—that rotten apple jam has been sufficiently redeemed, right?
“Of course. It’s going to take care of your digestion for the rest of your life, Grandfather.”
Grandfather even placed the plum juice on the table to drink instead of wine.
‘In my life as Han Ina, I lived on this stuff since middle school.’
For someone so young, I strangely had a body that didn’t digest things well.
I used to get indigestion at the drop of a hat, so I always drank plum drinks from the convenience store or took digestive medicine.
“Grandfather.”
I whispered to him.
“But the plum juice is quite sweet, so don’t drink too much at once. Just have about one glass a day diluted with water. You can also have some whenever you feel bloated.”
Grandfather, who had been gazing at me intently, gave a small smile.
“I see. It was a happy sort of sweetness. Thank you, Tulia.”
‘What was that?’
For a moment, it felt like he was saying thank you while looking at something beyond me, but I didn’t know what it was.
Grandfather ate his meal steadily.
His back was straight.
His portions were moderate.
His voice, occasionally heard, was full of dignity.
‘He has to maintain such a robust appearance in a place like this. Being the Family Head is hard work.’
I sliced into my steak, which was served with cheese and spinach, and stole a glance downward.
At this banquet, not only the vassals of the Grand Duchy but also influential vassals sent by other Ducal and Marquissate houses were present to celebrate Frezier’s Founding Festival.
‘Even the Imperial Family sent a massive shower of gifts in the Emperor’s name to offer their congratulations.’
I could really feel the power of the Frezier name.
As the Family Head, Grandfather had to show a healthy appearance before all these people.
‘It’s a relief that he seems to be eating better, perhaps thanks to the plum extract.’
I could feel the well-dressed nobles constantly glancing our way.
Then again, I hadn’t expected Grandfather, who usually sat alone at the head of the table, to seat me beside him instead of my father or the twins.
Watching the nobles, who were clearly busy calculating in their heads, I sipped my sweet plum juice with a smile.
Was it because Grandfather looked more joyful than usual?
Somehow, I felt like my own digestion was working much better than usual today.
* * *
Late that night.
The boisterous banquet continued.
Grand Duke Asis had already left the Grand Banquet Hall early, using his age as an excuse.
After all, parties are always more fun when it’s just the young people.
“Ten bolts of light blue silk, a box of golden brooches, mahogany furniture, tapestries imported from the Summer Continent. And send this, that, and those over there to Lady Tulia as well…”
At Luc Kelposher’s words, the aides busily sorted the gifts.
Even among the mountain of presents, the most unique and finest items were all destined for Tulia.
Grand Duke Asis was enjoying the fluttering spring breeze in a rare state of peace.
The thought suddenly occurred to him that it would have been nice if plum blossoms bloomed in the spring as well.
Knock, knock.
That was when an uninvited guest arrived.