Chapter 177 Fluffy And Flags
The Hunting Tournament is only 10 days away, and tomorrow, the Young Marquis couple will be entering Grandchester Castle.
That night, Sedrick, who had shrunk to human size, gathered all his subordinates in Sara's bedroom to discuss the current situation. His reporting stance was so polished that he could be mistaken for a butler serving in the mansion.
"Tomorrow, the Young Marquis family will be arriving with 10 attendants."
"Are they going to occupy the east wing of the castle?"
"That's correct."
Since Sara, Robert, and Rebecca's rooms are located in the west wing of the castle, they won't have to interact with the Young Marquis family at all. The main rooms used by the young Marquis and his wife are located in the east wing.
"Well, I guess we can't avoid dinner. Father and Mother will be there too, so it won't be as painful as our previous meals."
"During the tournament, the young masters and mistresses might not even have dinner together."
"That's a relief."
It seems Sara will only have to endure the awkward atmosphere during meals a minimal number of times.
"According to the schedule, they'll be arriving tomorrow morning and will inspect the hall where the opening ceremony and ball will be held after lunch."
"They're coming to inspect 10 days in advance. If they find any defects, there's still time to fix them."
"That's His Excellency the Marquis's responsibility. Originally, it's the Marquis's wife's job."
"But since grandfather doesn't have a wife, wouldn't it be the Young Marquis's wife who should be coming to the territory and taking care of things?"
"That varies depending on the noble family."
"Oh, I see."
While Sara is in the royal capital, she didn't think the atmosphere was that bad, but Grandfather seems to be hesitant to hand over power to Uncle and Aunt.
"But, Milady Sara, are you alright?"
As Sedrick tried to bring up the topic of her cousins, a faint wrinkle appeared on Sara's forehead.
"I'm sorry, I just can't help but get annoyed when I think about them."
"I understand how you feel. However, there's an unavoidable ritual-like thing that exists."
"An insincere apology?"
"Well, yeah."
Letting out a deep sigh, Sara remembered the time she fell into the pool.
"To be honest, I'm not that angry about what happened back then. I know it was an accident, after all."
"That's surprising. I thought you wouldn't forgive them."
"Ah, I'm not angry, but I'm not forgiving them either. They're the worst, as human beings. Even if it was an accident, they didn't try to help me at all and instead tried to cover it up and escape. What's there to forgive?"
"Hmm."
"Back then, I really thought I was going to die. It's a strange story. Until Grandfather came to get me, I had resigned myself to dying just like my parents. But the moment I fell into the pool, I didn't want to die anymore."
"Isn't that a normal human reaction?"
Sedrick gazed at Sara's eyes with concern.
"It's weird to be told I'm 'normal as a human' as a fairy, you know. But back then, I was like a living corpse. After my dad died, we lost all our money, and my mom didn't even have time to grieve, she had to raise me on her own. But it's not easy for a single woman to raise a kid, you know. When I see women's villages, it reminds me of those days."
"Is that so?"
"Even when I was hungry, there was barely anything to eat, and we couldn't even afford coal, so our room was always cold. My mom and I would sleep together in the same bed, but since we didn't eat properly, our body temperature wouldn't rise, and we couldn't get warm. My mom would stroke my head every day and say, 'Sara, you're my treasure.' So when my mom finally fell asleep for the last time, I wanted to sleep right next to her."
Sedrick, with a troubled expression, suddenly transformed into a large black leopard. He jumped onto Sara's bed and wrapped his large body around her, as if to envelop her. The other familiar children also transformed into smaller black leopards, similar to Sedrick, and snuggled up around Sara.
"Hehehe. Thanks for worrying about me. Fairies also like warmth."
"We're especially warm and fluffy today."
Sara buried her face in Sedrick's chest.
"If only you could always be in this form, it would be so cute."
"Milady Sara, I can be in this form anytime you want."
"If only the inside were different, it would be even better."
"Sometimes, compromise is necessary."
Sara fondled the large paw pads on Sedrick's front legs, and her heart swelled with happiness.
"...But I realized that my past life was mine, and my life was for myself. I wasn't just born to be a treasure for my mom. Then, my world suddenly expanded. After coming to Grandchester, I met Father, Mother, Grandfather, the fairies, the maidens, and my friends... and I gained a lot of people I loved."
"That's great."
Sedrick gently rubbed his cheek against Sara's head. The gesture was so gentle that Sara couldn't help but kiss the tip of Sedrick's nose.
"Ugh, I think I might be okay with staying like this forever."
"You're just tired today, so you're being weak."
"I know I'm full of feelings, wanting to bask in the happiness, but there's still a lot to report."
A small black panther jumped onto Sara's chest.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Sed, the one who went to Roisen Palace."
"Thanks for coming all the way. I'll give you a little magic boost."
Sara stroked Sed's forehead while replenishing his magic.
"Wow~, I'm full of magic now."
Sed narrowed his eyes with a smile.
"Uh, it's about the third prince of Roisen, but he's not the king's son."
"Huh? Who's his real dad?"
"He was a knight who served as a guard. He died while on duty, though."
As Sara listened while stroking the little panther, the story seemed a bit unsettling.
"And, the reason for the royal family's trouble is that the second prince rap*d the third prince's wife, which enraged the third prince and led him to kill the second and first princes."
"What the heck. Trying to make the wife a concubine, and what a scumbag. But what about the first prince?"
"He was just observing the incident. The Third Prince's wife took her own life on the spot, and her Lady-in-Waiting also passed away."
"What a tragic..."
Sara mourned for the victims.
"The King had been suspicious of the nobles who supported the Second Prince, and as soon as he heard about the Third Prince's atrocity, he purged them all at once, including the concubines. It was well-known that the Second Prince was planning to invade another country, so the King used that fact as a shield and pretended to have 'punished a national traitor'."
"That means they were purged without warning. Roisen must have been in chaos, right?"
"Of course. The damage to their domestic industries was huge, and even now, 10 years later, their national power hasn't fully recovered. Still, right after the incident, Crown Prince Gerhart visited Avalon in person to apologize for the Second Prince's outrageous proposal and worked to normalize relations between our countries."
"It's crucial to maintain good relations with neighboring countries, especially when their own country is in shambles."
As Sara held Sed close to her chest, her ears started twitching right in front of her.
'So cute... it's healing...'
"That's right. Crown Prince Gerhart is trying to form an alliance with the coastal union, a group of small countries located on the southern continent, by marrying the princess of Saldina, one of the member countries. The Crown Princess passed away about 3 years ago, when she was around 15 years old..."
"Does that mean Crown Prince Gerhart really came to Avalon to look for a bride?"
"It seems so. He still doesn't have an heir, after all..."
"How about the coastal union?"
"It seems they're having trouble deciding on the next queen candidate among the member countries, and he's considering taking multiple princesses as concubines..."
"But doesn't the royal family of Avalon have any single princesses?"
"Yes. The oldest unmarried woman in the royal family is the king's 51-year-old sister, but it's hopeless to expect her to produce an heir. The next in line is the 5-year-old daughter of the second prince."
"That's impossible either way."
"So, he's considering adopting a powerful noble's daughter as a foster child and marrying her into the royal family. The candidates will all gather at this hunting tournament."
"Ugh, what a hassle! Is the alliance with Avalon really that important to Roisen?"
"Roisen is poorer in land and has a lower wheat harvest compared to Avalon."
"So, it seems like the trip to Grandchester is not just about finding a bride, but also has a reconnaissance mission."
"That's correct. His Excellency the Marquis has already been invited to inspect the wheat farms."
"Are they not going to show us their storage?"
"The location of the storage is a strategic secret, so that's okay."
'For now, let's be relieved. If the outside world finds out that our storage is dwindling, it would be bad. We can't even tell the citizens, so it's unsettling.'
Rick, who was getting restless, started rubbing his head against Sara's chest.
"What's wrong, Rick?"
"His Excellency the Young Marquis has put up his own coal mine as collateral and borrowed 10,000 Dallas."
"What? Why?"
"The funds to cash in the promissory notes of the lady and the young masters are insufficient."
"How much is lacking? Did he discuss this with grandfather?"
"As it stands, he'sshort 2,000 Dallas, but before the next budget is allocated, they need to prepare for the social season. His Excellency the Marquis hasn't noticed this yet."
"I see. So he secretly borrowed money, huh?"
"That's right."
"Why is he hiding it from grandfather?"
"Maybe, he is afraid of being doubted as the next Marquis?"
"I'd doubt it too. A household that can't control its spending, with a leader who can't manage the territory... it's hard to believe."
"The Young Marquis told his wife and children to cut back on expenses, but..."
"What happened?"
Lady Chloe said, 'If Father becomes Marquis sooner, we'll have more budget to use...' and made a suspicious comment..."
"What?!"
"And the wife didn't even scold her for it..."
'Do they think the Marquis can use money as they please? ...Even if women are taught not to worry about money, it's too much...'
"Rick, do you know who the Young Marquis borrowed money from?"
"Yes, I do. It's the Silt Merchant Guild. They're a multinational merchant guild with their headquarters in Lombart, one of the coastal unions."
"The Silt Merchant Guild...? Could it be that they're buying up the Young Marquis's family's promissory notes?"
"We can't know for sure without investigating."
"I have a bad feeling about this. Can you investigate?"
"I'll take care of it."
Rick curled up contentedly around Sara's waist, so Sara replenished her magic by gently stroking his forehead with her finger.
Then, the other cub, which had been watching from a distance, stared fixedly at Sara.
"Are you the child hiding in the palace?"
"Yes, that's correct. Milady Sara."
"Come here."
Sara, who had hesitantly reached out her hand to the cub that was slowly approaching, ended up hugging it. With the cub's ears perched on top of her head, she lightly nuzzled and kissed them, making soft humming noises.
"Hmm, hmm, hmm. Milady Sara, that's not allowed. It's really, really bad!"
"Aww, you're so cute~! From today on, I'll call you Dori~. You're the fluffiest, most adorable thing ever~!"
"My name might be nice, but that's really not allowed. I have a report to give from today, you know."
"Oh, I see, I will listen to it."
Sara stopped kissing the cub and turned to face it.
"This time, the Crown Prince of Roisen and the royal family are visiting, and Prince Andrew, the eldest son of the Crown Prince, is coming with them."
"Hmm, I learned about the royal family members in Miss Rebecca's class. Isn't he 17 years old? He's supposed to graduate from the Academy next year."
"That's correct."
"I suppose his partner will be the Young Marquis or Grandfather. It's unlikely that the prince or the crown prince from a neighboring country would attend Mother's tea party."
"Is that how it is?"
"That's how it is."
Sara would later come to realize that this was what they called a "flag". But for now, she was content to indulge in the fluffy heaven and drift off to sleep.
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