Chapter 226 Differences In Values
From the moment Victoria saw Sophia at the opening ceremony, she was sure that Sophia was connected to Grandchester. After all, she looked too much like Sara, whom she had met the day before.
It would be understandable if they were sisters, but since Victoria knew Arthur, Sophia's father, well, she dismissed that possibility right away. She must be a relative on her mother's side. However, even if that were the case, it was hard to accept that they had similar eye colors like Arthur.
'Sir Arthur must have eloped with a common merchant's daughter. It's hard to believe that a relative on her mother's side would have similar traits to the Grandchester family. If that girl's mother had Grandchester blood, I don't think there would have been any opposition to the marriage.'
It was hard to say to her husband, but once, Victoria had thought about welcoming Arthur as her son-in-law and had even approached the Grandchester family about it. However, before she received a response, Arthur had eloped, and the matter was quickly forgotten.
There wasn't a strong romantic feeling, but she had a youthful admiration for the handsome older nobleman. At the same time, she recognized Arthur's intelligence as the heir of the Duke family, which she also highly valued.
'I think it's too much of a coincidence. If Ms. Sara starts attending social events as a noble lady, more noblewomen will likely have the same questions. I would like to know about their relationship in advance if possible...'
Thinking won't bring any answers, so for now, Victoria sent an invitation to Sophia. As the Lady of the Duke, it's not easy to just drop by the Sophia Merchant Guild, and she had no choice but to call her out, which was frustrating.
'I think it would be better to visit suddenly and see how she is.'
However, this invitation could upset Sara and give the Duke Arbal family a bad reputation.
Sophia had already received a flood of meeting requests from Edward and Elizabeth since last night, and she had to adjust her schedule. There were so many requests that she could no longer allocate time to each noble family individually, so Edward and Elizabeth decided to invite Sophia to their salon instead.
This was the reason Sophia had to go to work early, but the first hour was spent dealing with the third son of the Marquis Celcius family. After sending Lysander away, Sophia checked the list of nobles attending the salon and started picking products that would appeal to them. She knew the nobles were mainly interested in liquor, but she planned to promote other products from the merchant guild as well.
At that moment, she received a request from Lysander's older brother, the head of their noble family, saying he wanted to meet "as soon as possible." Moreover, the messenger was waiting for Sophia's reply in the reception room.
Sophia hurriedly told Elizabeth that she had been summoned by the Duke Arbal family and asked if it was possible to change the date of the salon. However, the response was that there were too many noble families planning to attend, making it difficult to adjust the schedule. If the talked-about Sophia were to miss this salon, it would ruin Edward and Elizabeth's reputation as well.
Reluctantly, Sophia replied to the Duke Arbal's messenger, saying, "I can manage it tomorrow morning." However, the messenger clicked his tongue and said, "I believe I said 'as soon as possible.' A mere merchant like you is not allowed to defy the Duke's authority. Hurry up and get ready."
"As I mentioned earlier, I have a prior engagement. I'm saying to please schedule it for after tomorrow since I can't see when I'll be done."
"The only thing that takes priority over the Duke Arbal family is the royal family. You really have no common sense, do you? This is why common merchants are so frustrating."
The messenger spat out, gesturing toward the door with his chin. It seemed he wanted to say, "Get ready quickly."
Sophia checked the time. It was just before 10 AM, and the salon was scheduled to start at 4 PM. It would take a full mobilization of golems and employees just to load the goods in time.
"Then please wait about an hour; I will arrange the products and reassign the staff."
"You should have responded like that from the start."
'What is wrong with this guy? I'm about to lose it.'
Sophia thought as she handed the product list to Number 28, instructing him to load the items according to the list. Then she gathered the employees to decide who would go to the salon and instructed them to ensure the products were delivered on time if she didn't return by then.
The remaining employees in the store were told to close up and go home when the time came, and instructions were given to the golem for locking up and security.
"If any customers come looking for me today, please let them know I won't be back. If they ask why, just say, 'I was forcefully summoned by the Duke Arbal family.' You can even say, 'I was taken away as if I were being kidnapped,' if you want."
Right next to her, a messenger shouted, "Hey! Kidnapping is rude!"
"If it's not kidnapping to be taken away forcefully under the pretense of the Duke Arbal family's authority, then what is it?"
"What a cheeky girl. This kind of merchant guild won't stand a chance if the Duke Arbal family sets their sights on them!"
"Then feel free to apply as much pressure as you like. If you have that much authority as just a messenger."
'Seriously, I'm so fed up. Maybe I should just say I don't want to be adopted. Nobles are really the worst!'
The messenger's face turned bright red with anger. However, since she was invited by the Duke Arbal family, he couldn't harm her.
Around 11 AM, Sophia arrived at the Grandchester Castle where the Duke Arbal family was staying, with Daniel in a carriage. It was already close to noon, and if they delayed any longer, they might not have enough time to get ready for the salon.
The earlier messenger reluctantly invited Sophia inside, and once she entered, a maid from the Duke Arbal family guided her to the reception room.
While waiting on the sofa, Victoria walked in. Sophia stood up and curtsied.
"I'm sorry for calling you out of the blue."
"To be honest, I'm quite confused."
Victoria, who wasn't used to being argued with, was surprised.
"Is it that I've asked too much of you?"
"I have to go to the Grandchester Young Marquis's salon this evening. I'm supposed to meet many noble families and was in the middle of loading the items I need to bring. So when I told the messenger 'tomorrow would be fine,' I was told it had to be today."
"That is..."
"The messenger said that if the Duke Arbal family got angry, our merchant guild would be in big trouble, so I had to rush over without taking anything else."
Sophia didn't hide her displeasure.
Normally, it wasn't appropriate to act this way toward a woman who was the head's wife of the leading Duke family and effectively the head of the household. But Sophia was already on the edge of losing her temper.
"I apologize for our family's lack of consideration. I will take responsibility for this."
"I will accept your apology, but may I ask why this urgent request was made?"
In other words, she was saying, "Get to the point quickly." It was definitely not the right attitude for a commoner to have toward a woman of the leading Duke family. Because of this, Victoria's Lady-in-Waiting leaned forward and scolded Sophia.
"Stand down! How dare you be rude to the Duke's wife!"
"I see it would be better to stand down, so I will take my leave now."
Sophia was about to leave the room when the guards from the Duke Arbal family reached out to forcibly stop her. But, of course, Daniel blocked their movement.
"What are you doing to Lady Sophia!"
Just as it seemed Daniel and the guards were about to get into a scuffle, Victoria raised her voice.
"Stop it!"
"But these people are being very rude!"
"It was us who were rude first. Just let her go. And, Sophia, I'm sorry, but could you please sit down again? I want to talk briefly."
"Understood."
Sophia quietly sat back down on the sofa. But seeing her do that, Victoria was sure that Sophia had received proper lady training.
"I understand there have been various mistakes. I also heard that Lysander from the Marquis Celcius family was captured at your merchant guild this morning. I heard he was tied up."
"The main store of our merchant guild has golems patrolling at night for security. We have ordered them to capture anyone who acts against us."
"I see. But you invited Lysander inside and served him tea, right?"
"Well, it gets quite cold in the mornings and evenings during late autumn. He was dressed very nobly, so I couldn't just leave him outside."
"I heard that Lysander proposed to you."
"Yes, he did give me a proposal. By the way, the bouquet he brought was made up of orchids that were arranged in a vase at the main castle during last night's opening ceremony. I recognized it right away since we had arranged it."
Victoria held her head in frustration at Sophia's explanation. It seemed that her brother-in-law was really lacking in many ways.
"If you marry Lysander, you could become the Lady of Count, you know?"
"That's true, but I'm not interested."
Sophia cut her off sharply.
"Can I ask why? It's true that Lysander's actions are questionable, but many noble ladies wish to be his wife. Even if you were a commoner, you could become a noble through marriage, right?"
'Do I have to explain this again...?'
"Why do you think everyone wants to be a noble? Even if I become a Lady of Count, I can't hide my commoner background. The way I would be treated in social situations is proven by the Lady-in-Waiting and the knight guarding you. Oh, and the messenger from the merchant guild who visited us as well. I don't think living surrounded by people who look down on me would be happy at all."
"There may be people who talk behind your back, but no one would openly disrespect a Lady of Count, right? Besides, since I'm related to the Duke Arbal family, I can protect you."
Sophia continued her explanation with a troubled expression.
"I want to run my own merchant guild by my own skills. In this country's noble society, women's property is controlled by men like their fathers, brothers, husbands, or sons. If I were to marry a noble man, my merchant guild would end up being managed by my husband. I might not even be able to keep the books for my own merchant guild."
"That's a man's job. But our role as women is to manage the household, build relationships with other families in social settings, and raise heirs."
"That's true. I respect those noble women. However, I personally do not want to live that kind of life."
At that moment, Victoria tilted her head. It seemed like she really didn't understand.
"But you're managed by the Grandchester family too, right? It may be your merchant guild for convenience, but isn't it still the Grandchester family's merchant guild?"
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