Chapter 49
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 49
Of course, it pained her heart to see her son return having lost so much weight.
However, Aubrey was currently treating Tedric as if he were a child of six or seven. Ever since Tedric had been sentenced to confinement, Aubrey had spent every day in a whirlwind of tears, behaving in a manner quite unbecoming of a noblewoman.
"Father will be returning before long," Lilius said, his tone firm to ward off any potential trouble. "You must not shield Tedric like that in front of him, my lady. Do you understand?"
"…How can you lecture me like that when you know exactly how much our son has suffered?"
"My lady."
Tedric, who had been busily stuffing meat into his mouth, hurriedly adopted a mature demeanor. "Mother, Father. Please don't fight. I won't fall for that wench Tulia's schemes ever again."
"…My brave boy."
In the end, even Lilius gave Tedric a reassuring pat on the back.
The reason Tedric, who had been sentenced to confinement and had his residence permanently moved to the Randelleur Warehouse, was able to come out to the Main Castle was because of the Family Law. More specifically, it was for the Grand Duke’s Birthday Banquet, which was to be held soon.
As was common in high noble families, the Grand Ducal House of Frezier had complex and ancient Family Laws, and this was one of them:
—Unless they are a felon confined to the underground prison, any member of the Frezier Direct Lineage has the right to attend the Family Head’s Birthday Banquet.
Of course, according to this law alone, Tedric should only have been allowed to attend the banquet itself, not return to the Main Castle like this.
"I'm so glad you've made so many allies among the vassals, dear," Aubrey said.
Lilius cleared his throat at her words. "It's always better to be on good terms."
Unlike his older brothers, Lilius was an ambitious man capable of seeing the big picture and drawing up grand blueprints. Unlike the second brother, Nigella Frezier, who had left the Grand Duchy for the glamorous Imperial Capital, or Aster Frezier, who had gone to the border and was achieving brilliant military feats, Lilius had remained steadfastly in the Grand Duchy.
His pretext was that he had to serve his father, Grand Duke Asis Frezier, who was all alone. However, his true goal was to gradually increase his influence within the Grand Duchy.
Thanks to those years of effort, there were quite a few vassals in the Grand Duchy who took Lilius's side. They were delighted by the rare wines Lilius treated them to in private, and seeing Lilius tear up while thinking of Tedric, they felt moved to help.
"It truly is a shame. Regardless of the circumstances, Young Lord Tedric is a member of the Frezier Direct Lineage."
"The Birthday Banquet will be attended by many outsiders. Young Lord Tedric must appear healthy and dignified."
"Indeed. In a way, the dignity of the entire Grand Ducal Direct Lineage could be at stake."
Most of the vassals were unaware that Tulia had been unable to come to the Main Castle for numerous past Birthday Banquets because she had been living in the same conditions as Tedric. This was because Tulia had no blood relatives to pity her or plead for her release.
"That is the difference between that wench and our precious son," Aubrey said, her voice still laced with lingering resentment.
Tulia Frezier had changed. It was a world-shaking transformation. That stupid girl, who used to fall for their every whisper, had become clever and cunning, as if she had sold her soul to the devil!
Since Tulia Frezier had emerged from the Randelleur Warehouse, Aubrey had never once managed to best the girl, either mentally or socially. It was frustrating, but it was the truth.
When Aubrey tried to shame her by exposing her "wicked personality" in front of the Marquis's twins, Tulia would simply parrot back phrases like "I'm sorry, I'm sorry." If Aubrey wasn't careful, she risked having Tulia's bad reputation rub off on her instead, leaving her with no way to strike.
"Tedric. Once you've finished your meal, let's go to the Commercial District and get you some new clothes."
"Really? I'd love that, Mother! Could you also buy me new gloves and shoes this time?"
"Of course. I'll buy you everything. My poor son. Just say the word if there's anything you need."
At Aubrey's offensive of generosity, Lilius found himself reflexively calculating the costs. Normally, he would never have acted so pathetically.
Damn it. All because the Statis Plains business was ruined.
Debt always comes with interest. And the larger the debt, the higher the interest. For the first time in his life, Lilius had to be conscious of "interest" and calculate his monthly pension and other income to use them rationally. Even this was a humiliation for him, having grown up in luxury as the youngest son of the Grand Ducal House.
Those damn people from the Marquis's house.
Both that wench Tulia and Marquis Aster, who must have been pulling his daughter's strings from behind the scenes, were the problem. That family was never of any help. Furthermore, seeing his wife and son excited about going on a lavish shopping spree in the Commercial District, completely oblivious to his worries, made a sigh escape his lips.
"My lady."
Because of his inner thoughts, his voice came out rather stiff.
"I'm saying this again just in case, but you must never dote only on our 'son' in front of Father." Lilius continued, a furrow forming between his brows. "We do have a daughter as well, so make sure to show that you're looking after her especially well in front of Father. He has a particular fondness for granddaughters."
Aubrey replied with a pout. "I know. Do you really think I'd only look after Tedric?"
"Sigh..."
Lilius let out a sigh and pulled the bell pull.
"Did you call, Master?"
"Yes."
Lilius poured some whiskey into a crystal glass, using slightly less ice than usual, and asked the butler, "When did they say our daughter, Sophia, would be returning to the Main Castle from the Academy?"
* * *
'I ended up staying up all night.'
I couldn't sleep properly because I was worrying about the damn Sub Quest that had suddenly manifested. Looking in the mirror, the area under my eyes was a bit dark, but something was strange.
'Why is Tulia still pretty even like this? How bizarre.'
Is this the majesty of the Beauty Stat...?
I frowned at Tulia's reflection for a moment before finishing my preparations and heading out into the hallway. I checked the Sub Quest one more time, just because.
[Sub Quest: Ruler of the Banquet]
You are trash!
You have no money, bad luck, and everyone hates you!
(Except for one person) No one loves you!
Sub-Objective: Dance with 'Lisian Frezier' and 'Leon Frezier' at the 'Banquet'.
On Success: ???
On Failure: Coins –10,000
A Status Window that doesn't tell you the success reward but gives you such a terrifying failure penalty.
They say that after anger comes resignation. I eventually concluded that I absolutely had to complete this quest, and I spent the rest of the night thinking about Leon Frezier. I tried to recall Leon Frezier from The Milk Bread.
'He was cold to Corico at first, too.'
But I suppose the female lead is the female lead, and the male lead is the male lead. After just a few choices, it was easy to tell what 'kind' of Corico was Leon Frezier's ideal type.
'An honest, bold Corico who embraces his wounds.'
That was how you romanced Leon Frezier in The Milk Bread. Be as honest as possible, don't be intimidated, and act boldly. And choose the options that embrace Leon Frezier's wounds.
Perhaps because they were twins, the strategies for the two were similar yet different. Fitting for the "fiancé" setting, Lisian's Favorability would rise even if you chose options with a bit of an act, but Leon Frezier didn't tolerate a single drop of pretense. There were even cases where his Favorability would only rise if you chose an answer that was so honest it bordered on rude.
'Maybe the reason he keeps telling me not to put on an act is because he genuinely hates people who do.'
If that was the case, I had to react as honestly as possible when dealing with Leon Frezier. As for embracing his wounds...
That was impossible. There was only one reason.
*
Corico: "Leon, I know. You... you're a person with many wounds. You..."
*
Yes. To see the ending with Leon Frezier, you had to carefully choose one of those three answers. And back then, I had no trouble picking the answer that raised Leon Frezier's Favorability the most.
That answer was number 3.
'Because Tulia Frezier's existence stains your beloved mother's honor.'
"..."
I mean, what am I supposed to do about the fact that my very existence is his wound? What if I said something like, "I'm sorry I was born, please don't think of me as Mother's daughter"?
'He's exactly the type to go ballistic and tell me to stop putting on an act.'
So, the conclusion I reached after clutching my head all night was simple.
Knock, knock.
"Yes? Oh! Lady... Tulia?"
The servant who opened the door looked surprised. I gave my most harmless-looking smile and spoke.
"Where would Brother Leon be? I came because I have something to give him."
"Ah, he's inside! I'll go and ask him, just a moment!"
"Take your time."
"Ye-yes!"
It was time for a trade.