Chapter 46: Let the Lesson Begin
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 46: Let the Lesson Begin
“That is the gist of the conversation between Lady Narupa and her father.”
“I see. Good work, Aslet.”
Royal Milk Tea.
A tea with a rich flavor, made by steeping tea leaves directly in milk.
The Countess had always made it a point to drink this tea whenever she made a major decision or needed to steel her resolve before embarking on a difficult task.
“My Lady.”
“Yes, Aslet?”
“Are you truly alright with Lady Narupa entering into a marriage contract with Lord Alto first?”
“If that is what Lord Alto desires, then there is little we can do.”
Narupa’s proposal had been perfectly reasonable by common standards.
Though, the rambling she’d done before that was filled with delusions so heavy they practically proved she was indeed Bisharen’s daughter.
The Countess took a sip of the milk tea, which contained not a single grain of sugar.
The Count and Countess Dakuus had already designated Airune Dakuren as Alto’s first wife.
Beyond the judgment that they were the best match, there was also a utilitarian aspect based on the greatest happiness for the greatest number.
Airune knew how to care for others and look at the big picture. This was because she was acutely aware of the weight of the position she held—and must hold.
Narupa, on the other hand, knew how to pay attention to those beside her and exploit any opening. While she hated conflict, she worked hard to create an environment where conflict did not exist.
However, that environment only included her own people.
She didn’t care about anyone else in the slightest.
Both Airune and Narupa suffered from loneliness and a lack of affection.
But in Airune’s case, the loneliness was more profound, while for Narupa, it was the craving for affection that ran deeper.
Consequently, if Airune were to be with Alto, she would strive alongside him to protect Hus and the world.
If Narupa were to be with Alto, she would strive to protect a world that consisted only of the two of them.
Count Dakuus did not want to see the world that men had sacrificed themselves to protect crumble away into nothingness.
That was why, even though she knew her judgment was calculating and despite her fondness for Narupa, she had designated Airune as the primary wife.
Faced with the Countess’s firm words, Aslet did not dare to comment further.
However, the Countess’s underlying feelings were actually in perfect alignment with Aslet’s.
“However, the Young Lady must also become fully aware of her own heart and who it is directed toward.”
“My Lady…!”
Realizing the Countess’s true intent, Aslet’s face lit up with emotion.
Ignoring this, the Countess maintained a calm expression as she quickly scribbled a list of necessary items onto high-quality paper.
“Aslet!”
“Yes, My Lady!”
“Go at once and purchase the items written here as quickly as possible.”
Aslet accepted the list with a joyful heart, but her expression froze the moment she saw the contents.
She had thought she and the Countess were on the same page until just a second ago.
“My Lady, this is…?”
“Now, hurry.”
“Are you serious?”
“Aslet, there is a saying in a certain book passed down from long ago, a book filled with hot-blooded romance.”
“What is it?”
“Love is a hurricane.”
“…!!”
Clink.
The Royal Milk Tea hit the bottom of the cup.
The Countess reached into a shelf and pulled out a bottle of blended whiskey she had kept hidden.
“Love is like a hurricane; you never know when it will strike or how far it will carry you. You must simply surrender yourself to it and give your all to the flow!”
The Countess poured just enough whiskey to cover the bottom of her glass and offered another glass to Aslet.
“Then, the guidance…?”
“I shall handle it. I ask for your assistance.”
“…For the sake of Hus.”
The two women clinked their glasses and downed the spirits with grim determination.
* * *
Airune’s room.
Knock, knock.
“Young Lady, it is I.”
“……”
“I am coming in.”
When the Countess opened the door and entered, the room was shrouded in darkness.
Even though she hadn’t been home long, Airune had washed up perfunctorily and was already lying in bed.
Only a few tufts of silver hair poked out from above the duvet.
“Young Lady, I have something to say to you. Please get up.”
“……”
“It is no use pretending to be asleep.”
“……”
The Countess sighed, walked to the window, and pulled back the curtains.
Swish!
Startled by the sudden sunlight, Airune flinched and retreated entirely under the covers.
Unable to stand the sight, the Countess yanked the duvet away.
“Don’t do that, Mother!”
“Young Lady, I have something to tell you.”
“You can just say it like this!”
“When speaking to someone, one must look them in the eye. Did I not teach you that?”
“As long as we can hear each other, it’s fine!”
“Am I to take that to mean it is also ‘fine’ as long as you and Lord Alto can hear each other?”
Only then did Airune messily toss aside the covers and reveal herself.
She was wearing a thin, simple nightgown and was hugging a large teddy bear, hiding behind it.
“Won’t you show me your face?”
After several moments of hesitation, Airune peeked out. When the Countess saw the state of her eyes, she was shocked.
“Young Lady, were you crying?”
“Mo… Mother… hic… Waaaaah!”
Now that her confidante had appeared, the tears Airune had barely managed to stop began to flow again.
Before Airune could bury her distorted, wailing face back into the teddy bear, the Countess rushed over, cupped Airune’s cheeks, and wiped away the tears with her thumbs.
“My child.”
At the use of the endearment from her childhood, Airune finally lunged into the Countess’s arms.
The Countess patted the back of her foster daughter, who was sobbing and soaking the front of her dress.
“Mother… hic…!”
“Tell your mother everything. What has made you so upset?”
Airune tried to speak, but every time she steeled herself, a wave of sorrow would wash over her, sending her back into fits of sobbing. It was only after her eyes were swollen and puffy that she finally managed to open her mouth.
“Alto… Alto is…”
“You mean Lord Alto.”
“I told him I didn’t care about looks… that it was fine… I even told him he was handsome… but he won’t believe me, he won’t listen… waaaaah!”
As Airune tried to bury her head again in a surge of emotion, the Countess pulled back slightly.
“Waaaah! Waaaaaaah!”
As Airune flailed about, searching for her mother’s chest, the Countess soothed her gently.
“My child, if you do nothing but cry, your mother cannot help you.”
“Uuuugh… I… Alto is always so… hic! He has no confidence because of his looks, he puts himself down, so I told him it was okay, that he looks handsome to me… but he doesn’t even pay attention…”
“Oh dear, so you’ve been constantly saying encouraging things to Lord Alto, but he hasn’t accepted them.”
Nod, nod.
“Lord Alto was in the wrong this time, wasn’t he?”
Nod, nod.
“Then we must summon the commoner Alto to the castle immediately and give him a harsh scolding.”
Shake, shake.
“Why? Didn’t you say Lord Alto was the one who did wrong?”
“No, don’t do that…! He’ll only hate me more.”
Seeing Airune hurriedly grab onto her, the Countess smiled.
The time was ripe.
The scales of the heart had already tipped, and they were being heated by the flames of longing burning from beneath.
When you put a diligent, capable man and woman together—even if they have no prior lovers—it is impossible for feelings not to bloom.
Furthermore, the counterpart was Alto, a man Narupa had fallen for at first sight, becoming instantly obsessed.
He was Alto Bertrand, the hero who had saved the world alongside their fathers.
It would have been stranger not to fall in love.
However, since neither of them knew how to proceed, it was time for Count and Countess Dakuus to step in personally.
“My dear child, before the world changed, your behavior would have been merely lovely, but you cannot be like that anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you remember how you used to say you disliked men because they only ever took what was given to them?”
“…Yes.”
“That is how women were before the Final War.”
“What?!”
“They were haughty and arrogant. They didn’t even know their own place. In truth, regardless of one’s status, it is only natural to chase after the one you desire and try to claim them, yet they simply waited for the other person to come to them.”
The attitudes and problems that women had back then had been inherited exactly as they were by the men of today.
“The world has changed. No matter how high-born a noble you are, you must be proactive with the man you like.”
“Can’t Alto be the one to approach me?”
“Lord Alto’s wounds run deep, do they not?”
“My feelings were hurt too, and I was wounded.”
“Did you ever ask about Lord Alto’s wounds?”
“……”
“We are looking into it as well, but they say he came to Hus after being deeply scarred in Lukart.”
“The Alto Bertrand was?”
The Countess had lost count of how many times she had been surprised today.
“How did you know that?”
“The night he caught the Serpent, I heard Alto talking to the Captain.”
“After hearing the name Bertrand, did he look different to you?”
“No.”
Airune shook her head.
“I was just more upset. If he’s a Bertrand, he should have the courage to approach me more boldly. He’s the hero who protected me along with Father and Brother; there’s no way I could hate him. Somehow, even before I knew, I thought he was a warm person. He’s so much older than me, he could have led me a little. My heart was already… already heading toward him anyway.”
The Countess calmly listened to all of her monologue.
What had started as a lamentation was gradually gaining vitality and conviction.
“Mother.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
“I like Alto.”
Having finally realized her own feelings, the master of Hus made her declaration.
“I want him.”
“Lady Narupa said the same thing.”
“Gasp…!”
Airune froze at the mention of her greatest rival.
“However, we are ahead. Of course, Lady Narupa may become family one day, but the one to enjoy the honeymoon period and bear Lord Alto’s first child must, of course, be you. You want that too, don’t you?”
“…I do. I want a child with him. I’m going to live healthily until our child gets married and shows me my grandchildren. Together with Alto.”
Airune even expressed the void left by her biological mother’s absence as she steeled her resolve.
The Countess’s mind was firmly made up.
Knock, knock.
“Who is it?”
“My Lady, it is Aslet. I have obtained everything.”
“Come in.”
Aslet slipped through the quietly opened door.
After Airune finished wiping away her tears, her vision cleared, only to see Aslet and the Countess laying out all sorts of scandalous items.
“Huh?”
“Oh, you’ve come to your senses, Young Lady.”
“M-Mother, what are those…?”
As Airune stammered, pointing at long rubber objects and various pieces of skimpy lingerie that looked like they couldn’t possibly function as actual clothing, the Countess picked one up without hesitation.
“Young Lady.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“From this moment on, we shall begin your bride lessons.”
“Bride lessons?!”
“As a rule, one never knows when or where a man and woman’s burning hearts and bodies might overlap. Do not worry. I shall simply be explaining the… acts.”
“I-Isn’t that a bit of a leap in logic?!”
As Airune tried to retreat in a panic, the Countess and Aslet shouted in unison:
“Love is a hurricane!”
From that hour for the next day and a half, Airune had to relentlessly undergo an intensive course on how to please Alto.