Chapter 392 Royal Banquet III
"Hehe. Hohohoho."
Suddenly, a woman's laughter echoed. It was the queen.
"Your Majesty, you look like you've been tricked. How delightful!"
"Queen, how can you laugh when your husband is in trouble?"
"But it's funny, isn't it? You usually act so arrogantly, so it's no surprise this happened to you. Who would have thought you'd be treated like this by such young ladies? Hohohoho."
"Ugh."
It seems the queen found it hilarious. While the queen was laughing heartily, the king looked like he had just bitten into a sour lemon.
"Anyway, Your Majesty's sudden summons was quite rude to the ladies. You see, young ladies, this old man just wanted to act a bit important. Please be generous and forgive him."
"To forgive is too much to ask."
The women, unable to agree or disagree with the queen's words, bowed deeply to her.
"Ah, that's nice. Let's sit down again and enjoy our meal. Dessert should be coming soon."
Then, the Crown Princess, who was sitting next to the Crown Prince, added to the queen's words.
"Still, these young ladies are quite bold. Look at Victoria, her face is all twisted up."
"Sister!"
When Victoria protested, the Crown Princess smiled brightly.
"See, this is where you show your true colors. Victoria, shouldn't you be calling her Your Highness now?"
"I-I'm sorry."
"──Olivia, stop teasing your sister."
This time, the Crown Prince scolded the Crown Princess.
'What's with this atmosphere?'
Sara noticed a relaxed atmosphere among the royal family members and felt a bit frustrated. Suddenly, she felt a strong presence nearby. She looked over and saw Chloe, who was smiling but also giving Sara a sharp look with her eyes. Sara quickly understood Chloe's message through her expression.
'Oh, she means to stay alert. In other words, this is all a setup to keep things in order. It's much stricter here than in my past life. Hmm... Considering Chloe's gaze, it seems she's telling me not to push further to protect the queen's dignity?'
Sara found it difficult to read the social atmosphere around her, which was something she couldn't learn from books. The tension created by the arrogant king was softened by the queen and the Crown Princess. When they sat down again, beautifully arranged desserts were served. However, Sara felt too stressed to enjoy them.
On the surface, a pleasant atmosphere continued with harmless conversation, and Prince Andrew asked Alfred about his studies. It was a very safe topic. Then, Prince Andrew spoke to Alfred.
"Is Alfred studying hard?"
"I'm not very good at math."
"You have to do your best since you'll become Duke Arbal in the future."
"I don't like it, but I can do it. I just don't understand why I have to study so much. The bureaucrats can do the calculations, right? We have a housekeeper for the house matters. I think I only need to understand reports. So why do I need to learn fractions and decimals? Honestly, I'm jealous of Sara. She gets to focus on her music and sword fighting. Plus, girls don't even have to go to the academy."
The atmosphere froze again. The royal family members were giving Victoria looks that seemed to say, 'Why did you bring a child who can't even behave properly?' Victoria's attempt to connect Sara with them had completely backfired. For some reason, even the people from Grandchester were looking at her with worried eyes.
'No, no, I won't get angry just because a kid said something.'
Feeling frustrated that no one trusted her, Sara listened to the conversation between Prince Andrew and Alfred.
"Lady Sara is probably learning a lot of things too. The governess is quite capable, after all."
"Is that so?"
Alfred turned to Sara and asked.
"Of course. I'm learning a lot."
"Don't you dislike arithmetic?"
"I actually like it more than other subjects. The answers are the same no matter who solves it, so there's a sense of achievement when you get the right answer."
"I can't understand that at all."
"You'll be looking at the estate's accounts in the future, right, Alfred?"
"Yeah."
"Math is really important for looking at accounts. By the way, the bureaucrats in Grandchester have recently adopted a new accounting system."
"New ledger?"
"Yes, it's called 'double-entry bookkeeping.' The textbook is published by the Sophia Merchant Guild. It was written by Mr. Thomas Tyler, who used to work as an accountant in the royal palace."
Double-entry bookkeeping is published under Thomas's name, hiding Sara's name at his suggestion. Since Thomas graduated from the academy at the youngest age and was an excellent bureaucrat in the palace, it makes sense for him to propose a new system.
The sales of the published book are doing well, and it seems there will be a course on double-entry bookkeeping at the academy starting next year. Thomas was offered a position as a visiting professor at the academy, but he politely declined and continues to work as a tutor in the Grandchester territory.
"Wow! That Thomas Tyler!? He's in the Grandchester territory!"
For some reason, the Crown Princess exclaimed happily. It seems she is a fan of Thomas.
"Olivia, that's not appropriate next to your husband."
"But he had such a beautiful face. Well, it seems that caused him a lot of trouble too..."
The Crown Princess sighed softly and took a sip of her slightly cold tea. She has a sensitive tongue.
"Mister Thomas now keeps his bangs down in front of women and tries not to show his face as much as possible,."
Sara murmured. She truly feels sorry for him regarding the situation with Thomas.
"His looks were too beautiful to just be a bureaucrat, and he seemed too young to be mingling with noblewomen. He was called a genius since childhood, and he became the youngest bureaucrat in the royal palace, so maybe that's why he wasn't good at keeping his distance from women. He often tried to be polite, but it seemed like he ended up confusing them."
"Is that so?"
"But if he can write a book, then he must have recovered quite a bit, right?"
"I hope so."
As Sara sighed with a fragile air, Chloe slowly smiled and spoke to the Crown Princess.
"Of course, Mister Thomas has recovered. After all, he found the woman he likes in Grandchester."
"Really? Is that true?"
'Chloe, what a surprise!'
"Yes, I heard it directly from him, so it's true. Both Sara and I are Mister Thomas's students."
"Noble ladies are being taught by a former accountant?"
"To be precise, he's the second cousin's tutor, but since the children of Grandchester are close in age, we started learning from each other's tutors and governesses in their areas of expertise."
"The children get along very well. That's wonderful."
'No, I was bullied and almost died.'
"I see, so that's why Sara is learning swordsmanship from Sir Jeffrey?"
Alfred looked satisfied with this explanation.
"Yes. Sir Jeffrey is my father's cousin."
"That's nice! I want to be taught by Sir Jeffrey in Grandchester too!"
"──Haha. So, Alfred really likes Sir Jeffrey, huh? If that's the case, why not train in swordsmanship with Sara? You might understand what Sir Jeffrey's teachings are like."
For Sara, it was just an extra hassle, but Prince Andrew happily encouraged her to train with him.
'Is he trying to support the Arbal family's engagement through the Crown Princess?'
"Sara is a girl, so I don't think she can train with me."
"With all due respect, Sir Alfred, Sara is stronger than the boys she trains with. My uncle, who will be Sara's stepfather, insists that he won't let her marry any man weaker than her."
'Huh, Chloe. Are you trying to shut down the engagement from that angle?'
Feeling the conversation was heading in an uneasy direction, Marquis Grandchester couldn't help but speak up.
"My second son is very fond of Sara and makes a fuss every day about how he won't let her go."
"But she will officially become a foster daughter only after marrying Lady Orson, right?"
"Yes. However, Lady Orson is also Sara's governess, and Robert has been doting on her since he took her in as his niece."
"She is quite loved, isn't she?"
Victoria said this with a hint of disappointment. However, it was Alfred who brought the topic back up again.
"Then, if I want to marry Sara, I have to be stronger than her, right? No problem. I'm confident in my sword skills!"
The Grandchester group couldn't help but smile wryly at this innocent remark.
"I really think we should skip the sparring. It would be terrible if someone got hurt. Let's just stick to basic training, okay?"
Chloe felt guilty for suggesting it and stepped in to prevent the Duke's son from getting hurt. However, Alfred completely misunderstood Chloe's warning.
"It's fine! I'll make sure not to hurt Sara!"
'That's not what I'm worried about!'
Chloe grimaced, but Sara thought, 'This is going to be a hassle,' yet she figured it would be possible to spar without injuring Alfred too much. A little injury could be healed with magic. She could just pretend to use a light attribute magic stone to heal him.
"Oh? So if you want to marry Lady Sara, you just have to win in a spar? Then Andrew, you should go and win!"
In the friendly atmosphere, the king suddenly dropped a huge bombshell.
"Huh? Your Majesty, what are you suddenly saying?!"
"I'm saying you need to win against Lady Sara to marry her."
This was an unreasonable demand from the king directed at Prince Andrew. Chloe's expression froze for a moment at the king's words, but she quickly put on a graceful smile. She felt a sharp pain in her chest, but she maintained her perfect smile out of pride.
Of course, Marquis Grandchester wasn't going to stay silent either.
"With all due respect, Your Majesty, that is just my foolish son's nonsense. Please disregard it. Besides, Sara is a commoner."
"However, Lady Sara is only 8 years old, yet she is very smart and beautiful. Her manners are almost royal. If she learned from Lady Rebecca, who is like a queen, it makes sense that she is so graceful. Lady Sara's mother comes from a fallen royal family, so her lineage is good. She is a young lady who should be considered for marriage into the royal family."
'What is this old man talking about?'
Sara didn't like the king's words. However, before she could speak, Prince Andrew firmly disagreed with the king.
"Your Majesty, I have no intention of proposing to Lady Sara. Besides, Lady Sara has already turned down Crown Prince Gerhart's proposal."
"It's understandable that a young girl would refuse the invitation of a concubine due to her purity. But if she is to be the future queen, that's a different story."
"If Lady Sara agrees, I would probably even arrange for her to become the official wife."
"Are Your Majesty that obsessed?"
Prince Andrew nodded.
"However, Lady Sara does not wish to marry into the royal family, nor does she want to marry into any noble family, even if they are high-ranking nobles."
"Are you saying that a noble young lady does not wish to marry into either the royal family or a noble family?"
"Your Majesty, you may have forgotten, but Lady Sara's status is that of a commoner. She will become a noble young lady through adoption, but her feelings will likely remain those of a commoner. I feel I can understand Lady Sara's feelings."
"What could a pure royal like you possibly understand about Lady Sara?"
"It might sound cliché if I put it into words, but I think 'a free way of living' is probably the closest description. It's something I admire and will never be able to obtain in my lifetime."
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