Chapter 79
Chapter 79
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Unpleasant Family Dinner
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"Rozalin? Could you draw the back curtains for me? The sunlight is shining too much on my seat."
"...Yes, Sister."
We were eating together.
Not just Rozalin and me, but the people from the Rose Family as well.
The atmosphere during meals with these people was always unpleasant no matter how many times I experienced it, but there was nothing I could do.
There wasn't any good reason to refuse.
Alexandra had sided with us for now, but she couldn't do much right away.
"Oh, right. Rozalin? The Tenedis Marquis Family sent a gift this time. Want to come see it with me?"
"...No. It's a gift for you, Sister, right? It'd be better if you looked at it alone."
"Hehe, is that so?"
Even so, Christina was truly disagreeable.
She kept picking on Rozalin in all sorts of ways.
"You know, they're sending so many gifts that it's actually becoming a hassle."
"Haha, I'm jealous."
"Rozalin has the Leonhardt Viscount, doesn't she? From what I've seen, he seems to give pretty decent jewelry and precious metals."
"Haha..."
Rozalin kept responding to Christina's words with a self-deprecating laugh, and I quietly observed those around us.
Alexandra had a face that showed zero interest in Rozalin as she continued eating.
But unlike her, the Family Head and his wife were clearly just laughing while Rozalin was being tormented.
They acted as if it wasn't their business, like they were watching a play.
-Slice...
Watching that, I stayed quiet.
Rozalin was obviously uncomfortable, but I couldn't step in here.
I felt like blasting Christina with magic, but... I had to hold back.
"Father, the Orient Marquis Family is holding an auction next month. Want to go together?"
"An auction, huh. They haven't had one recently. It might be nice to go together and buy some good jewelry this time."
"Dear, how about buying a nice carriage instead of jewelry? The one we bought last time was too cramped, which was a shame."
"Hehe..."
"........"
Hmm.
Something felt off.
It really felt completely backwards.
Their own territory's roads to the estate were in ruins, yet here they were having this conversation.
In so many ways, I thought these people weren't quite right.
Instead of going to auctions hosted by other noble families, they should manage their territory better.
Even William, who at least handled his work properly—though it was all money-related—was better in that regard.
"Mother, would you like some cool juice?"
"...Shall I?"
"Yes, we didn't even have tea after finishing the meal. It'll help with digestion too. Here you go."
After the meal ended like that, Rozalin and I returned to the guest building.
As soon as we got back, Rozalin looked exhausted, so I offered her the juice.
She had to be tired because of Christina.
Really... what the hell is wrong with that woman.
Even if she's the illegitimate child, does she have to bully Rozalin like that and keep saying weird things?
"Ugh... I'm exhausted..."
"...Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Christina's always been like that."
"........"
Doesn't that mean you're not fine?
No matter how I thought about it, listening to that crap for over ten years during meals had to be exhausting.
Yet Rozalin acted like it was no big deal, which was baffling.
Even I felt bad just watching and listening from the side.
"...Mother."
"Yes?"
"Shouldn't we head back soon?"
"Huh?"
"We've already spent about a week here, and we didn't come for any other purpose."
I didn't, but Rozalin did.
She had come back to her hometown after a long time just to see her family.
I strongly felt it would be better for her to just leave.
At first, I definitely planned to give the Rose Family a piece of my mind... but Rozalin looked so worn out.
She said she was fine, but it clearly wasn't a good experience no matter how you looked at it.
"How about we just head back now?"
"........"
"There's no real need to stay here longer... right?"
Honestly, there was no need to keep observing and evaluating the Rose Family anymore.
Really.
"...Is that so?"
Even though Christina had given orders, they had properly renovated the building they had deliberately left in disrepair.
They had cleaned everything from top to bottom and replaced all the furniture and interior decorations.
"Honestly, seeing you treated like this doesn't sit well with me, Mother."
"...I see."
"Yes."
"Yeah..."
Rozalin probably already knew.
There was no need to spend more time here.
She must have thought the same four years ago.
Now, there was really no reason to stay in a place like this and feel uncomfortable.
I hadn't expected it, but we had gained something at least.
"I thought maybe things had changed a bit from before, but in the end, it seems no different."
"Is that so."
"...Let's go back."
More calmly than I expected.
Rozalin spoke as if just voicing what she'd always thought.
It seemed I wasn't the only one thinking that.
*
"Lize, gather the servants."
"Yes, Young Lady."
I said that to Lize while sitting on one of the chairs in the first-floor lobby.
Rozalin was resting in her room on the third floor anyway, so I figured I'd handle some tasks in the meantime.
After giving the order to Lize, the servants began gathering in the first-floor lobby one by one.
They all lined up neatly in front of me as I sat in the chair.
"Hmm..."
"Young Lady, everyone is here."
"Wow, you really brought quite a few people."
There seemed to be more people than I thought.
Looking at the servants gathered in the lobby... if we added the knights, the lobby would probably be packed.
"We'll probably be heading back to the mansion in the next few days."
I hadn't set an exact date yet, but Rozalin felt there was no need to stay here anymore.
We had to pack anyway, and there were other things to do, so I notified them first.
The servants probably had more work here than usual, so they might prefer heading back.
"I haven't finalized the date yet, but everyone should organize the luggage in your rooms."
"Young Lady...? May I ask a question?"
"Of course."
One of the servants raised a hand after hearing me.
"What should we do with the furniture you ordered and the famous paintings on the walls?"
"Hmm..."
"There's too much furniture to fit in the carriages..."
"Just leave the furniture and interior decorations. They're not even as good quality as what we have at the mansion. No need to haul that heavy stuff."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Just pack what you brought when you came here. No need to clean when we leave either."
Normally, it was polite to clean up after borrowing a building like this.
But I had no intention of upholding that courtesy to the end.
They thought of us as a rootless family anyway—might as well live up to it?
"Hmm..."
"Young Lady, is something wrong?"
"It's nothing."
Truth be told, I had briefly considered ordering the servants to dirty up the interior and damage the furniture.
But I didn't actually give that order.
Because... it felt like I'd be becoming the same kind of person?
I decided to just leave cleanly.
"And the servants handling the carriages—buy some extra wheels when we get back to the territory. Thinking about the road here, we might have issues on the way back."
I gave other instructions as well.
I told them to relay to the knights to polish their armor until it sparkled before we left.
I also instructed the servants to avoid running into Rose Family members as much as possible before departure... and then dismissed them.
"Young Lady."
"Yes."
"Has something made you angry, by any chance?"
After the servants dispersed, as I headed up to the second-floor study with Lize following behind, she asked that.
"Hmm... quite a bit, yeah."
"........"
"Why?"
"Your expression looks worse than usual..."
"Did it?"
I'm not sure.
I don't look in the mirror every time, so I wouldn't know if my face looked bad.
Of course, my mood was actually worse than usual.
"I was worried, so I asked."
"No need to worry that much. These things won't matter much soon anyway."
"Is that so...? If that's the case, then I'm relieved..."
"More importantly, Lize."
Lize and I entered the study.
There was no one else in the study besides us, and no one else would come in.
"Sit in the chair."
"...Pardon?"
"Just sit down."
Honestly, I'd been a bit tired lately because of those Rose jerks.
My mood wasn't great either.
"Why...? I'm fine standing."
"Huh? No, I just wanted you to be comfortable."
I had Lize sit on the somewhat spacious sofa in the study.
I checked the bookshelves for something interesting but found nothing worthwhile, then sat next to Lize on the sofa.
"Young Lady...?"
"Lize, raise your hand up a bit."
"...Yes?"
Lize looked a little flustered but followed my instruction, lifting the hand she'd placed on her thigh upward.
Then I laid my head on her thigh and reclined.
"Young Lady...?"
"I'm tired. I'll just stay like this for a bit."
"........"
"It's not too cramped, right?"
The sofa wasn't huge, but since I'm small.
Lying down didn't make it cramped, and I wasn't heavy, so it shouldn't bother Lize.
"If it's uncomfortable, tell me."
"...It's not."
"Then I'll stay like this a little longer."
Since she said she was okay.
I just rested comfortably with my head on Lize's thigh.
Maybe because my head had been dealing with so much lately, using Lize's soft thigh as a pillow felt incredibly relaxing.
I ended up taking a nap without realizing it.
Of course, when I woke up afterward, Lize's face was a bit flushed, looking slightly strained.