Chapter 215
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 215
For a moment, I almost dropped my fork and knife right onto the floor.
Is it Corico? Already?
I couldn't tell if the food was going into my mouth or my nose.
I sat in the drawing room, my heart a bundle of nerves, and bolted upright the moment the butler escorted the guests inside.
I swallowed hard several times. With a trembling heart, I turned my head, only to doubt my own eyes the next second.
The girl standing primly behind the high-ranking priests was...
* * *
"Honestly. The Grand Temple’s tastes are so consistent. They’ve been obsessed with finding someone who looks like the Archangel in that painting ever since Brother said he liked it."
Leon Frezier grumbled, crossing his arms.
"I heard she’s a noble lady from another kingdom who was raised as a candidate for the priesthood... It’s a good thing Brother turned them down. Otherwise, we would’ve had to offer up prayers morning and night."
Ever since Empress Olivia died after giving birth to a child with the strongest divine power ever seen, the Grand Temple had placed even greater importance on its relationship with the Brillant Empire.
The Grand Temple kept a close eye on unmarried nobles in the Empire who possessed impeccable conduct and stellar reputations.
They would often play matchmaker by bringing in boys or girls they had painstakingly raised within the Temple.
Looking at it this way, it’s basically marriage diplomacy.
In any case, in the original story, The Milk Bread, this was the background for how Corico entered the Grand Ducal House as Lisian’s prospective bride.
But it’s different this time.
Surprisingly, Lisian had been firm in rejecting the marriage proposal, and Grandfather and Father had respected his wishes.
And so, the marriage talk had fizzled out.
To begin with, the girl they had brought wasn't Corico; she was just a pretty, ordinary young lady.
"Brother, do you still have no intention of getting married? Well, I guess books are everything to you..."
Leon Frezier playfully nudged Lisian in the ribs. But Lisian, as usual, only offered a gentle smile.
"I... I still have to finish... the Academy. And Tulia’s... birthday is... r-right around the corner..."
"Is her birthday some kind of national holiday? What does that have to do with anything? Gack!"
I ground my heel into Leon’s foot while piling a mountain of cookies in front of Lisian.
"You... you can stop... now, Tulia."
"No, I brought these all for you, Brother. Adel baked them with black tea and jam, and they’re all delicious, so you have to eat them all."
"Thank you."
Even though I had broken Mother’s memento, Lisian still smiled at me with such warmth.
This was truly the essence of a true male lead...!
"The favoritism from this girl is extreme. Simply extreme," Leon Frezier said in a tone of utter defeat. I gave him a bright smile and looked above his head.
[System] Leon Frezier’s Favorability: 100
Thanks to completing the quest, I could now see the male leads' favorability as clear numbers.
It would’ve been better if I could check it whenever I wanted, but that’s just how this game is.
Once I checked the favorability, a cooldown period was triggered, so I had to calculate the timing carefully. It meant I couldn't just peek whenever I felt like it.
The only saving grace was that the favorability cooldown applied to each male lead separately.
Thanks to that, I could check Leon’s favorability and then immediately look at Lisian’s.
I shifted my gaze toward the shimmering silver hair.
[System] Lisian Frezier’s Favorability: 100
As expected...
For a moment, I wanted to shove my fist in my mouth and sob.
I told him I broke Mother’s memento yesterday! I broke it! And yet, he’s still like this...
Lisian must be an archangel descended from the heavens.
While the three of us were enjoying a rare moment of leisure, there was a sudden, urgent knock at the door.
The door burst open the moment Leon gave permission.
"M-My Lady! Young Masters! You must come down to the Great Hall immediately!"
"What’s wrong? What happened?" Leon asked as he pulled me up and started dragging me along. The Assistant Butler wiped away cold sweat as he spoke.
"There is a major, major situation downstairs! The Marquis ordered that all three of you be brought down at once... Hurry!"
"What is it? Did the Temple bring a hundred new women this time? Thinking there must be at least one among them that fits Brother’s taste?"
Leon voiced a fairly plausible theory despite his confusion. Lisian didn't even respond.
Honestly, I hurried downstairs with a knot of tension in my chest, thinking that was a possibility—and that one of them might be Corico.
The Great Hall was buzzing with noise. One thing that differed from my expectations was that not a single priest was in sight.
Leon furrowed his brows and muttered, "Why are there so many vassals here?"
"I know. They’re all supposed to be at the Frezier Territory."
I, too, felt that the atmosphere was turning strange.
Normally, I would have enjoyed the thrill of being escorted down the stairs by two handsome male leads, but not now.
"Oh! Young Masters! My Lady! You’ve arrived!"
The vassals spotted us and made a fuss as they cleared a path.
Grandfather and Father were standing in the center of the Great Hall, flanked by the highest-ranking vassals.
And standing before them was...
"...Tedric?"
Leon’s eyebrows shot up instantly.
"Tedric? That’s Tedric? Ah, right. He’s changed so much I almost didn't recognize him."
Tedric.
The biological son of Lilius and Aubrey, and the crazy cousin who had been exiled to an insignificant low-ranking position at the border after he dared to fire an arrow at me.
Tedric had lost so much weight that his features had turned sharp, making him almost unrecognizable.
The moment he saw us, he flinched back like a frightened rat. Thanks to that, we were able to see the person who had been half-hidden behind him, head bowed.
Lisian asked slowly, "And... who is... that girl?"
It was Father who answered Lisian’s question as we reached the center of the hall.
"Greet her, children."
However, Father’s expression was frozen in a cold, stern mask, unlike his usual self.
"It seems the daughter of the Lady of Frezier... your late Aunt Hyacinthia... was alive."
I reflexively looked at Grandfather.
He maintained his usual dignified expression as the Family Head, but I could tell. His chin was trembling ever so slightly.
Father continued.
"Hia, greet them. Like Tedric, they are your cousins. All three are older than you, so you may call them 'Sister' and 'Brother'."
As if uncomfortable with the focused attention, the girl who had been keeping her head down slowly looked up.
When I saw her face, I blinked blankly.
"Hello. Sister, Brothers. My name is Hyacinthia..."
A timid, insecure voice.
A small, thin frame.
Soft, lustrous black hair and large, fearful brown eyes.
Though her features had taken on a strangely Western cast...
That face was definitely...
...It’s me.
It was the face of Han Ina.