Chapter 66
Chapter 66
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Unwelcome at the Rose Mansion
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I’m not wearing a wristwatch, so I don’t know for sure, but it felt like about thirty minutes had passed.
Yeah, thirty minutes.
It was only after thirty minutes that people from the Rose Family finally came out to greet us.
“Welcome back to the Rose Mansion, Rozalin.”
“Sister, it’s been a while.”
“You haven’t visited once in four years, so of course it has.”
The person who appeared at the front gate looked a bit older than Rozalin... a woman in her mid-twenties.
She was probably one of Rozalin’s two older sisters.
The unusual thing was that there were no other maids or servants behind her.
...Normally, when guests arrive, you bring servants along to help with the luggage.
“Anyway, what brings you here so obediently this time? If you were coming, why not come a little earlier?”
“It just happened that way.”
“Hmm... Well, it’s nice to see you after so long. And...”
“...?”
The woman talking to Rozalin glanced slightly in my direction.
If I hadn’t been paying attention, I might not have noticed at all—it was that subtle.
But the look wasn’t ordinary... it felt kind of unpleasant.
“........”
“........”
For just a brief moment, our eyes met, but the woman turned back to Rozalin and continued speaking.
What was that about?
Well, since it’s the Rose Family, maybe she just doesn’t like me.
I already had a rough idea of what she was thinking, so I could guess the gist.
“Shall we go inside? It’s rude to keep standing out here like this.”
If you knew that, why did you leave us waiting out here for nearly thirty minutes?
Common sense says the servants must have seen us while going about their duties, but... the first impression was terrible.
In any case, we got back into the carriage and passed through the gate into the grounds.
As Rozalin had described, there was one largest central building, flanked by smaller ones on either side—a mansion that could almost be called a palace if you exaggerated a little.
But I couldn’t shake the feeling that the buildings somehow looked a bit empty.
“You can stay here. Unpack your luggage first, and we’ll talk later?”
“Yes, sounds good, Sister.”
“Alright, I’ll send a servant over in a bit, so rest up for now.”
With that, the woman headed straight toward the main building they used, without so much as a single word to me or even a glance back.
“Hmm... Shall we head in?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, that was my second sister, just so you know.”
“I knew she was Mother’s sister, but I didn’t know that part.”
I only learned she was the second sister after Rozalin mentioned it.
I knew she had an older sister from what she’d said, but nothing more.
“Hehe, that makes sense. Let’s go inside, unpack, and let the servants rest too. They must be tired from the trip.”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
Anyway, we opened the door to the guest building with the servants carrying our luggage from the carriage.
-Creak...
The door made a weird noise when it opened, but that was to be expected with its size.
I thought... it would be fine.
Yeah, but reality differed from my expectations.
“....…”
“Huh...?”
When we opened the door and saw the interior, Rozalin reacted as if it didn’t match what she’d expected.
I didn’t have anything to say either.
“...Why is it like this...?”
“...It hasn’t been cleaned.”
“What...? I’m sure it was well-maintained...”
“........”
Right away, we saw an interior that hadn’t been cleaned or maintained at all—not even a little.
Spiderwebs and dust, of course, but also broken glass and fallen picture frames.
Even the laziest shut-in wouldn’t let it get this bad.
I don’t usually get angry easily, but I couldn’t help being furious in this situation.
“Ha.”
“Uh... Camellia? Wait a moment... I’ll go talk to my sister...”
“No, Mother.”
“Hm?”
Rozalin seemed ready to go confront her, but I stopped her.
Common sense told me there was no reason for nobles to neglect a guest building like this.
It must be because we showed up—no, specifically because I did.
I thought reacting by complaining to the Rose Family here would be a poor decision.
“Everyone?”
I turned not toward the building’s interior, but to the servants and knights behind us.
Honestly, this might end up helping the Rose Family, but it was better than getting dragged into pointless arguments.
“Please clean this building by the end of the day.”
“...Camellia?”
Rozalin looked at me with eyes asking what I was doing, but there was no issue.
“When we get back to the mansion, bonuses.”
I said it with a smile and clapped twice.
“Alright, let’s get started.”
“.......?”
With that, servants and knights alike began entering the building, regardless of rank.
They all had determined looks in their eyes, full of resolve.
Money really is the best.
“Mm... Now we have some time on our hands.”
“...Looks like it.”
Everyone except the two of us had gone inside to start cleaning in earnest.
Lize had gone in to supervise as well.
“...Camellia. Since this happened, want to take a stroll through the garden together?”
“Is that okay?”
“Of course. It’s not a big deal.”
“If it’s possible, sure.”
There wasn’t much else to do anyway, and we had time.
I immediately accepted Rozalin’s suggestion.
She’d talked a lot about the Rose Family’s garden before, and even without that, I was pretty angry and hadn’t told her.
“This is the garden... It doesn’t feel much different from before.”
“It’s pretty.”
“Right?”
The rose garden we arrived at truly felt pretty, as the name suggested.
I’d seen Melnik’s lakeside garden before, which was nice too, but what was it?
It was impressive for its vast lake and sunlight, but it didn’t give off this sense of beauty and prettiness.
“The bright red roses, and the ones in other colors... they’re pretty.”
It truly lived up to the name Rose Garden and Rose Family, a garden where the roses were stunning.
From the entrance onward, everything was adorned with roses—no other flowers in sight.
“It really feels nice coming back after so long.”
Maybe because Rozalin next to me was enjoying looking around the garden.
My anger from earlier had subsided a bit.
Honestly, I hadn’t expected this kind of treatment right upon arrival.
No one with a functioning brain would treat guests like this, let alone expect it from sane nobles.
And the guests weren’t just anyone—they were their youngest sister Rozalin and her daughter, me.
This level of neglect... no, “neglect” might be too kind a word—I hadn’t imagined it.
“Camellia, want to have some tea together? There don’t seem to be any servants around, but the garden has tools prepared anyway.”
“Shall we?”
Of course, kind Rozalin seemed to think it was just... a mistake.
My mood wasn’t great, though.
“I’ve loved rose tea since I was little because it’s so delicious.”
“We’ve never had it at the mansion, right?”
“Hm? Yeah, we don’t have rose tea there, and there are so many other great teas anyway. I never felt the urge to have it that badly.”
“Oh... Should we prepare some rose tea at the mansion next time...?”
I said that watching her put dried rose petals already prepared nearby into hot water.
Rose petals aren’t expensive, and we could just grow more in the garden.
It wasn’t difficult or costly, so I suggested it.
“Hm? No need to go that far.”
“Why? You seem to like it.”
“I do like rose tea, but I’ve had it so often since childhood. Having it too much might make me tired of it?”
“Ah.”
True... Unlike our family, she must have had it frequently here.
The Leonhardts tended to buy expensive teas and drink whatever was on hand, but things were different here.
As Rozalin said, constantly drinking something from childhood could definitely get boring.
“Here, it’s hot, so blow on it before drinking.”
“Thank you.”
“No need to thank me. If anything, I feel sorry toward you right now.”
“........”
I should have said it was fine and reassured her, but honestly, I agreed.
I felt bad, but given the situation...
Objectively, the Rose Family was very much at fault.
I wasn’t saying more, but I really wanted to vent my complaints.
...I stayed quiet for now, though.
“Haha... I didn’t expect the guest building to be in such a state either.”
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault, Mother.”
“...True, but still.”
“Staying inside to rest comfortably would be nice, but spending time drinking tea with you like this is good too, right?”
I didn’t like seeing Rozalin so apologetic and watching my mood, so I said that.
And it was true—spending time alone with Rozalin was definitely... nice.
Of course, saying it out loud felt a bit embarrassing, but she surely would have said the same in my position.
“...Yeah, I like it too.”
“Good to hear...”
Actually, since checking the building—or even during the thirty minutes waiting at the gate—Rozalin had seemed more subdued than usual.
But because I said that?
Compared to earlier, her expression was a bit brighter, her lips curved up more as she replied to me. It was a relief.
“The cleaning should be done within an hour, so... shall we head back in a bit?”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
The Rose Family’s first impression was truly awful, but spending time in this rose garden with Rozalin was... passable, at least.
Honestly, it was just because of Rozalin that it was okay.