Chapter 260 No Mercy When Angry
"Hey, if you could meet Paracelsus, would you want to meet him, Alicia?"
The answer to this question came back immediately.
"Of course, I'd love to meet him. I have so many questions! Paracelsus is a source of pride for my family."
"So, he's a great ancestor?"
"Well, it's not just because he's an ancestor. I'm just happy to have a great alchemist in the family, you know? I've never even met him."
Since there's a distance from others, Alicia's tone has become more casual than before.
"But, he left his wife and kids and disappeared, right? Doesn't that make your family feel complicated?"
"Ah, I see what you mean. No one blames him for that, not even Sylvia."
"Really?"
"It might be better to ask Sylvia directly. She loves to talk, so she'll probably tell you too, Sara. It's supposed to be a family secret, but she talks about it with a lot of people."
"That sounds like a scary secret..."
"Ahahaha. I guess you might think women are scary."
'W-What? What kind of secret is there?!'
"I'll give you one easy piece of information that anyone can understand."
"Wait, suddenly?!"
"My dad is 45 years old, and he's Paracelsus's great-grandson."
"Yeah, I know that."
"He doesn't like to talk about it much, but Sylvia is 82 years old this year."
"Wait a minute. When Mr. Theofrastos was born, Sylvia was 37, right? So, how is she a great-grandmother? Does that mean Sylvia and Mr. Theofrastos aren't actually related by blood?"
"Since it's a simple math problem, you'll understand it quickly. Including that, you should take your time to listen to her talk."
It seems that Paracelsus has some deep issues that can't be understood just from the documents. It might be better to hear from the person involved.
"Alicia, I'm sorry, but could you set up an appointment with Sylvia?"
"Okay. I should get a response soon. But if Sara is asking about this, does that mean you found out about Paracelsus?"
"I'll just say it since there's no point in hiding it. That's right. He seems to be sleeping soundly."
"What? Is he taking a nap like an old man?"
"It's quite a long nap, though."
"Is it okay to wake him up?"
"I think it should be fine since it says how to wake him up."
"Will he be surprised and have a heart attack or something?"
"Should we go together when we wake him up? If you call out 'Grandpa!' it could be pretty funny."
The two exchanged glances and started giggling.
"But since Paracelsus has the blessings of fairies, he probably looks ageless like you, Sara. He might not look like an old man at all."
"With that way of saying it, it sounds like I'm hiding my age!"
"It sounds like you're not hiding it at all. I want to tell all the guys who are infatuated with Sophia."
"Everyone is too fooled by appearances. Plus, I'm not revealing Sophia's age."
"See, you admitted it!"
However, it's true that she can't deny it. It is a fact that her age is unclear.
"Oh, and I heard that Paracelsus was quite handsome."
"That makes sense when I look you, Alicia."
"I think I'm being complimented, but when a super beautiful girl like Sara says it, I can't help but feel a bit weird."
Alicia, who said this, is also a cute girl, but in a different way than Sara.
'I guess she feels like an idol? She seems like she would be popular, but it doesn't look like she has a boyfriend.'
Unlike Teresa and Amelia, there are no signs of a specific guy around Alicia.
"Hey, Alicia, don't you have a boyfriend?"
"I've never dated anyone before."
"But there are a lot of young guys in the alchemist guild, right?"
"Ah, almost all the young alchemists are out of the picture. Maybe it's because I'm the Guild Manager's daughter, but when new alchemists come to Grandchester, many of them come to show off their papers or achievements to me. Some even know I was Ms. Aristo."
"That sounds about right. Mr. Theofrastos probably remembers you easily."
"But when I read their papers or materials and ask questions, most of them get really nervous. Eventually, they say things like, 'Since you're a girl, you should focus more on cooking than alchemy.' They came to talk to me as an alchemist, but don't you think that's a bit much?"
"Ah, I see what you mean."
"What do you mean?"
"It means Alicia is too smart, and their pride gets crushed."
"But Sophia is smart and super popular, right?"
"I think about 90% of that is because of looks and money."
"Even if that's true, why do they say it's better to be good at cooking?"
"Well, food is essential for living. If someone can make delicious food, then you can eat tasty meals every day if they become your wife."
Alicia tilted her head.
"Then, if that's the goal, it seems like anyone who is good at cooking would be fine."
"Isn't it true that there's more than one reason why people like each other?"
"Being good at cooking is just a skill, right?"
"If you say that, then liking someone just for their looks is also a shallow reason. It might be a starting point, but I wouldn't choose my partner based only on that."
"This is tough. Maybe I just don't have a partner."
"You never know. You might fall head over heels in love!"
"I can't imagine that at all! Because, you know, even when I see Mister Thomas's face, I don't feel anything. I think he has a nice face, but I think his textbooks are even more amazing. I heard all the women in the capital are swooning over him, but I seem to be different."
Suddenly, a voice came from the side.
"I'd actually be happier if people appreciated my textbooks more than my looks."
"Whoa! Mister Thomas, you were here!?"
It seems that Sara and Alicia were so caught up in their conversation that they didn't notice Thomas had arrived.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop."
Thomas looked a bit troubled.
"It was us who brought up the topic without permission, so don't worry about it. By the way, Mister Thomas looks very noble today."
"Technically, I'm not a noble, but I had a tea party with my grandfather today."
"When will Viscount Tyler leave Grandchester?"
"I hear it's tomorrow."
"Is he feeling sad about leaving you, Mister Thomas?"
"Yes, a little. I was asked to stay a bit longer."
Thomas couldn't help but smile wryly. It was true that his grandfather had tried to keep him from leaving, but more than that, he had struggled to refuse his mother's constant suggestions for a marriage partner. However, mentioning that here felt a bit awkward.
"When I left my parents' home, my father tried to keep me there quite a bit too."
"Ms. Alicia is a woman, so Mr. Theofrastos must have been worried as well."
"In the end, it was safer than being at home. If I had stayed at my family's house, things could have gotten scary."
"I've heard about it. Professors McKellen and others from the Academy came to visit, right?"
Hearing that, Sara pointed out to Thomas in a slightly strong tone.
"That was more like they tried to force their way in rather than just visiting. They attacked the golem and even tried to take it back with them."
"Did it go that far? I heard Professors Ainz and Hill were with them."
"Yes. Including the armed knight guards, about 20 people stormed Maiden's Tower, casting magic on the golem and physically attacking it with weapons."
"How cruel. What I heard from my grandfather was that the Academy people came to Maiden's Tower but were turned away because there were only women inside."
"We decided not to sue for theft or property damage to save Prince Andrew's face, but I can't accept having the story twisted like that."
Thomas sat down on a nearby chair and began to speak in a calm tone.
"Probably, it was someone from the Academy who leaked the information to the nobles. Since we have a guarantee that we won't file a complaint, they are likely making up a story about being considerate because they are all women to avoid taking responsibility."
"Is it possible that Prince Andrew is not aware of this?"
"I don't know. However, I feel that the royal family would want to avoid any rumors that suggest they intentionally spread such information. They wouldn't want to make an enemy of Grandchester."
"Even if that's the case, I hope the royal family will act properly. We can't have them repeating such foolishness."
"A book on accounting based on double-entry bookkeeping will be published soon, so I expect a flood of inquiries to come the way. The Academy people will probably come too."
Sara sighed.
"That sounds likely. But unlike Alicia's alchemy, I want to actively promote double-entry bookkeeping. I hope other regions and merchant guilds will use it too."
"I don't know much about merchant guilds, but I think at least the bureaucrats in Grandchester understand its value correctly."
"Speaking of which, I had a chance to go drinking with some bureaucrats from Grandchester the other day, and we got excited talking about how double-entry bookkeeping should be introduced in the country's and regions' accounting, and that administrative documents should have a unified format."
"I can't believe you can drink while discussing such topics."
"That's a struggle every bureaucrat faces. Even the veteran seniors would surely enjoy sharing their old stories about it."
'It suddenly turned into a talk like at an izakaya from my past life.'
"Well, anyway, I hope the Academy people will learn properly."
"That's important, milady Sara."
That night, when Sara returned to her room, she wrote a letter to Prince Andrew. The letter protested about the rumors circulating among the nobles regarding the academy, which made Sara and the other maidens feel very uncomfortable.
After reading this letter, Prince Andrew hurried to confirm the content and source of the rumors. He found out that the one spreading the rumors was a Baron, who was a relative of Professor McKellen. Although he didn't know the full details, it turned out that Professor McKellen himself had talked about it, leading others to take it seriously and discuss it in front of other nobles.
Taking this issue seriously, Prince Andrew decided to immediately dismiss Professor McKellen and the other professors from the Alchemy Department.
"If it weren't for their unnecessary tricks, I could have let them retire more peacefully..."
It seems that Prince Andrew has a personality that shows no mercy when he gets angry.
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