Chapter 179 The Turbulent Dinner Party I
The turbulent dinner party began with the first voice of the Marquis.
"Robert and Lady Rebecca are engaged. We'll announce it at this hunting tournament."
"What?!"
Edward let out a shocked cry, and Elizabeth froze on the spot. It seemed the Marquis hadn't told Edward and the others about Robert's engagement.
"If you had told us, we would've brought a congratulatory gift. Congratulations, Rob, Revi!"
"Congratulations. You two have been close for a long time, haven't you?"
The young Marquis couple smiled and offered their blessings.
"Thank you!"
"Thank you very much."
Robert beamed with a bright smile, and Rebecca responded with a gentle smile to the congratulatory words.
"I'm not thinking of having a grand wedding. I want to keep it simple, just with close friends and family at Grandchester Castle."
"Ms. Sara, would you be our ring bearer?"
"And if so, wouldn't it be cute to have Blaze as the ring boy too?"
"That's a lovely idea."
Robert, Rebecca, and Sara were brainstorming wedding ideas in perfect harmony.
"Ms. Sara has become close with Rob and Revi, hasn't she?"
"Yes. The two of them have been very kind to me. I'm really glad I came here!"
This was a risky statement that could be misinterpreted, but it was undoubtedly Sara's genuine sentiment.
"If you ever get homesick, feel free to come back anytime."
"Thank you very much."
Elizabeth suddenly looked up and spoke to Marquis.
"Father-in-law, how about we make Ms. Sara our adopted daughter? That way, we can also form an alliance with the nobles."
"Wait, Mother! What are you saying? I'm against it!"
Before dinner, Elizabeth had proposed to Edward, "Ms. Sara seems to be Father-in-law's favorite. Wouldn't it be better if we made her our adopted daughter?" and Edward had agreed. But their daughter Chloe was opposed to the idea.
Robert immediately rejected Elizabeth's suggestion.
"Don't worry about it, Chloe. It's already been decided that Sara will become my adopted daughter. The paperwork has already been submitted to the royal court, and we've received permission from the royal family."
"Don't you feel sorry for Revi? Having a daughter before even getting married!"
Elizabeth's words, which seemed to worry Rebecca, prompted Rebecca to retort.
"Thank you for worrying about me, Liz. But this is what we both want. We want Ms. Sara to become our daughter."
"But, Rob is a knight, right? If he becomes a marquis in the future, Ms. Sara's social status will be like a noble's."
Since the man Rebecca was going to marry was already guaranteed to be ennobled, in reality, Sara would become a legitimate noblewoman regardless of whose adopted daughter she became. However, Sara didn't feel attracted to becoming a noblewoman. She just didn't want to lower her living standards, and as long as she had enough money to support a comfortable life, she was fine. Rather, she felt that becoming a noblewoman would only bring more trouble and responsibilities, which she didn't want.
"Aunt, thank you for worrying about me. But I never thought about becoming the Marquis's daughter. As you've pointed out, Aunt, I'm just a commoner. Even if I were adopted, my birth wouldn't change."
This time, the criticism was harsh and piercing.
"T-therefore..."
"Shut up, Liz!"
"But, Father-in-law, Ms. Sara has shown magical abilities, and at the very least, she has half of Grandchester's blood in her. Many noble families would want that rare talent, wouldn't they?"
"I told you to stop!"
The Marquis slammed his hand on the table. The wine and juice in the glasses shook violently from the impact. Then, he dismissed all the servants in the dining room and spoke in a low, grumbling tone.
"Sara didn't want it. She even refused my proposal to become my adopted daughter."
"What?!"
Everyone in the Young Marquis's family was shocked, and Edward asked Sara again.
"Sara, did you really refuse to become the Marquis's daughter?"
"That's right."
"Why?"
"Because I don't think it would make me happy."
When Edward heard this, he kicked his chair and stood up, scolding Sara.
"What's going on?! You're spitting on Father's kindness? You're talking about becoming the Marquis's daughter, a noble position in the esteemed Grandchester family, and you say 'I don't think it would make me happy'? That's an outrageous statement! Stop talking nonsense!"
'Uncle Edward, could you please stop spitting while you talk? It's kinda gross...'
As Sara gazed at Edward, who was getting excited, she was unexpectedly thinking about something trivial.
"Don't say rude things to my daughter, Ed."
Robert couldn't ignore the insults spewed at Sara, and an argument began between Robert and Edward.
"What are you saying? This girl is disgracing the Grandchester family!"
"Sara didn't mean that!"
She's probably just like her foolish mother, who influenced Arthur and badmouthed the Grandchester family. She thought she could get assistance from the Grandchester family if she eloped, but my father isn't that naive. She and her mother would have ended up dying in vain, holding onto their grudges!
Twitch... It felt like something inside Sara snapped.
"Edward, that's enough!"
The Marquis tried to scold Edward, but he was too worked up to listen.
"Besides, what was Revi doing? As a governess, shouldn't you have taught her morals before noble etiquette? I heard the queen herself taught you ladylike manners, but I guess that was too much for Little Prince?"
Twitch, twitch, twitch... A few more things broke.
"Shut up."
"Did you say something?"
"Shut up, I said! Close that filthy mouth of yours!"
Sara, still seated, conjured a 30-centimeter-long (� 12-inch-long) ice arrow with water magic above Edward's head, dropping it vertically onto the plate in front of him. The ice arrow would have pierced his flesh if it weren't for the plate.
"Ahh!"
"If you won't be quiet, next time I won't hold back."
"Y-you...!"
The moment Edward spoke, a small gust of wind suddenly swept past his cheek. Edward felt a sense of discomfort and touched his cheek, only to find it wet and sticky. His cheek was cut, and blood was dripping down.
"Aaaa! Ed!! You're bleeding!"
Elizabeth, who was sitting beside him, cried out.
"I told you not to go outside. If Auntie make a fuss like Uncle, I'll do the same, so please be quiet."
"Y-you! You're talking to the next head of the Grandchester family like that!"
Sara snorted at Elizabeth's remark, and with a wave of her hand, she bound the Young Marquis family to their chairs using her earth magic.
"Auntie, you're letting your true feelings slip out. As a lady, you should be ashamed of yourself. But, precisely because of that, I don't want to become a noble lady. Even if I became the adopted daughter of the Grandchester family, or even the adopted daughter of the king, my true nature wouldn't change. And those who know the truth will laugh at me behind my back."
Sara stood up and walked around to the other side of the table, standing beside Edward.
"Aaaaah! Don't come near! Don't come near!"
"Stop! Don't harm Ed!!"
Elizabeth shouted at Sara. Sara turned to face Elizabeth, smiling sweetly.
"Why can't I harm him?"
"Isn't he your uncle?"
"Yes, that's right. And he's the one who called my father a fool, insulted my mother, and even hurled abuse at Miss Rebecca, I mean, my mother."
"So does that mean you'll use violence?"
"Do you think verbal abuse is okay? Ah, yeah, my aunt would always say that to me, 'That's why commoners are...' Well, it's just a fact, but...
And then, Sara turned to face Edward again, tracing her finger along his injured cheek.
"Ow, it hurts!"
Edward cried out.
"Stop, Sara. Please. I was the one who did wrong. Punish me alone. Spare Ed and the children!"
Elizabeth wailed, tears streaming down her face.
"Is that so, Uncle Edward? You're really loved by your wife, aren't you?"
Sara used her magic to heal Edward's cheek. Once the wound was fully healed, she wiped away the blood with a napkin on the table, leaving no scars behind.
"Uh, wasn't it my aunt who was supposed to be punished?"
Sara turned to face Elizabeth with a ladylike smile--a smile that was actually terrifying to the Young Marquis family, courtesy of Rebecca's upbringing.
"Stop, Sara! Don't lay a hand on Liz!"
Edward began to shout.
"It seems you two really do love each other..."
"I'm surprised too. I thought it was just a political marriage..."
"That's too bad. I guess they're one of those mismatched couples..."
Marquis, Robert, and Rebecca didn't try to intervene in Sara's actions. Of course, if things were going to get out of hand, they would step in, but the question was whether anyone could actually stop Sara.
"I've started to think that even a political marriage can be happy, I suppose..."
"At least I'm happy because I got to marry the person I like. And the kids are cute too."
"If you love children that much, then why did you abandon them?"
Sara tilted her head and asked Elizabeth.
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