Chapter 205 Five Days Before The Hunting Tournament
As the Hunting Tournament approached, 5 days prior, the servants of the main house began to arrive to prepare the venue, and they started making detailed adjustments, such as assigning guards and stables, among themselves.
For the Grandchester household's servants, it was an annual routine, so they responded solemnly, led by the steward, Joseph. Reports to the Marquis and Edward were relatively few.
Goods from the Sophia Merchant Guild were also being transported to Grandchester Castle one after another. With Blaze and Noir's cooperation, an additional batch of cider was brewed, which would be served at the opening ceremony. To make it suitable for a large crowd, it was fermented twice in large magnum bottles. As a result, Sophia Merchant Guild ended up buying 80% of the Elma liquor produced by Harlan Farm this year. The remaining 20% became a rare, phantom liquor that only fixed customers who had pre-ordered could obtain.
Tonia decided to expand Harlan Farm. Since Sara's interests aligned with hers, wanting to increase the harvest of Elma as soon as possible, they made a 10-year contract with Sophia Merchant Guild to cultivate the land, and they immediately began planting Elma trees that would bear fruit next year. In other words, all the Elma harvested from here on would become Elma liquor supplied to Sophia Merchant Guild.
As the demand for Elma liquor expanded, Tonia established a new department specializing in brewing and put her eldest son's wife in charge. Meanwhile, Fran, Tonia's second son, was busy building a large distillation furnace, and the fifth one was scheduled to be installed at Sophia Merchant Guild's distillery soon.
As Sophia Merchant Guild, they were doing their best to secure as much cider and Elma brandy as possible. However, they still couldn't meet Edward's desired quantity. Moreover, they had to solve the problem of not having enough glass bottles for the cider.
So, Sara prohibited Marquis, Edward, and Robert from drinking cider and Elma brandy until they could accurately determine the demand after the hunting tournament. But, to their surprise, the supplied liquor started to decrease. Enraged, Sara secretly placed a small golem in the warehouse within Grandchester Castle.
As a result, Richard and Henry, Marquis's attendants, were caught and tied up with ropes, surrounded by the golems who were dancing joyfully around them. Although they were rescued the next morning, it took them 3 days to recover from the shock. In other words, 2 of Marquis's close aides became unusable during a very busy period. Needless to say, the one who instructed the theft was obvious, so Sara scolded Marquis thoroughly and demanded a ransom for Richard and Henry's release. Incidentally, this ransom became part of the operating funds for a new educational facility.
Edward and Robert, who had also been considering sneaking a drink, were intimidated by Sara's strictness and decided to behave themselves and drink wine instead. It seemed that the warning was quite effective.
Meanwhile, the kids were diligently studying as usual. Christopher was attending classes at Maiden's Tower with Scott and Blaze, while Chloe was receiving ladylike education from Jane at Maiden's Tower, as well as taking accounting classes with the boys.
Surprisingly, Adam had been commuting to Cordelia the female educator's village every day on horseback ever since. Sara had assigned one of Sedrick's subordinates to keep an eye on Adam because Cordelia and the commoner children were worried, but Adam was seriously devoted to his studies. His classmates thought he was from a wealthy family, and his noble status remained a secret.
'Hmm, I thought he'd either put on an arrogant attitude or make a weak excuse, but this is unexpected.'
Sara was genuinely surprised by Adam's transformation, but it seemed that Cordelia the female educator was skillfully controlling the situation.
When Elizabeth heard that Adam was receiving education from a commoner woman and would remain in Grandchester, she showed disapproval. However, she was surprised when Adam himself said he wanted to study, and agreed to let him do so for half a year. Of course, Rebecca's persuasion likely had an influence as well.
Mostly, Elizabeth didn't have much time to spare for Adam either. With Marquis Grandchester's wife absent, Elizabeth was the mistress of the house. There was a mountain of tasks to be done. Of course, Rebecca was supporting Elizabeth as well.
Elizabeth and Rebecca were selecting guests for their respective tea parties, deciding on the seating arrangements, and making final decisions on gifts as well. Moreover, although it was a minor detail, they had also planned out the dresses to wear so that Rebecca, Elizabeth, Sara, and Chloe wouldn't wear the same outfits.
Jeffrey, Edward, and Baron Walt were inspecting the hunting tournament venue with the knights, deciding on the knight's formations. It wasn't unusual for royalty to participate in the Grandchester hunting tournament. However, this time, with the prince from another country participating, coordination was necessary not only with the Grandchester knights but also with the Royal Guard Knights, the kingdom's knights, and Roisen's bodyguards, who were protecting Prince Gerhart. A temporary lodging for the knights was being set up at the Grandchester knights' headquarters.
The hunting tournament would be held over 3 days, with an opening ceremony and ball scheduled for the day before, an awards ceremony and closing ceremony on the final day, and a royal-sponsored dinner party and ball the day after. In other words, the official events would span 5 days, and many noble families would stay in Grandchester for several days after it ended.
In reality, Prince Andrew and Prince Gerhart were also scheduled to enter Grandchester on the day before the opening ceremony and return to the capital 2 days after the dinner party.
As the Hunting Festival draws near, nobles have been visiting Grandchester territory one after another. Every time a new noble family arrives, someone from the Grandchester household has to greet them. Only high-ranking nobles get to receive a personal visit from the Marquis himself, but Edward, Robert, and Elizabeth were nevertheless extremely busy.
And finally, the day arrived when Prince Andrew and Crown Prince Gerhart would be arriving at Grandchester Castle.
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