Chapter 20 – The Shivering Ball (2)
A special room in a detached building.
The candles burning on the chandelier brightly lit the room, but they couldn’t even light up the shadow cast over Essilly’s face.
“Brother.”
Seeing Esily glaring at her, Fred let out a low cough.
“Why?”
“Why not? She doesn’t look like someone who would enjoy a ball in that outfit, by any means.”
“What’s wrong with my outfit?”
Fred, who was seated on the other side of the table, shrugged her shoulders casually. But only her sigh escaped from Essilie’s mouth her.
That’s right, now Fred was wearing a thick buff coat and a longsword at her waist. She even had a crossbow strapped to her back, so she could n’t tell whether the man in front of her was a hunter or an aristocrat.
She seemed to have a vague idea of what that outfit meant, but from Sili’s point of view, she could n’t erase her regret her.
“You’re going to another strange place, aren’t you?”
“Is this a strange place? I’m just having fun at the ball, getting drunk and going out hunting in my youthful spirits.”
“Who would believe such a lie?”
“I trust my sister. She will take good care of you this time too.”
Say something like that for granted. Seely poured her lips as she stared at her fred her.
“Instead, making excuses is now the limit. Not only his vassals his, but also his servants his began to doubt him. Do I have to watch her gossip about not knowing where she is or what she is doing?”
“Sorry. But it can’t be helped.”
“What can’t be helped?”
“That…”
Fred flicks her tail and looks at her. It’s always like this. Esily, thinking that there was nothing special about it, she reacted indifferently.
“To be honest, there are many ways to find out what my brother is doing. It’s not like there aren’t people in the county who are my eyes and ears. But I won’t.”
A thin smile crept across Fred’s lips her.
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to dig into the secret my brother is trying to keep.”
“Five. That’s a bit exciting Seriously.”
“It’s too early to be impressed. Even if I don’t dig out secrets, I can roughly predict what my brother is doing in the middle of the night.”
“Okay? Then, shall we listen to our cute Esily’s guess?”
“The death of the first brother. And Your Majesty the Emperor.”
When the two clues are listed, the smile on Fred’s lips disappears. Thanks to that, Esily’s suspicions were confirmed.
“Your brother still hates His Majesty the Emperor. He doesn’t consider the unfortunate event that occurred during the Orc Conquest War as an accident. Yes?”
“Esley.”
“I understand. Because I hate His Majesty the Emperor too. It is incomprehensible that we continue to engage in small-scale local wars in the name of territorial defense, or that we do not follow the trend of the times and pursue self-righteous foreign policies. But it must not lead to hatred for the Emperor.”
“I got it wrong.”
“No. I got it right. My brother shakes his little finger every time he tells a lie. It still is.”
The conversation that started lightly gradually becomes heavy. He certainly didn’t mean anything to say when he came to enjoy the martial arts. But Ashley did not back down.
“I don’t know what you’re plotting, but if it’s for your family’s sake, stop.”
“I don’t work for my family. It doesn’t matter what happens to Count Pelgarin.”
“Then, continue the legacy of Pelgarin for the sake of me and my father.”
It’s hard to get out of it because it pushes so confidently. Fred sighed and leaned against the back of his chair.
“Are you telling me to become the next head of Pelgarin?”
“Since my first brother ascended to heaven, he is at the top of the succession line. It’s not like there’s no other talented person to lead Pelgaroin other than my older brother.”
“You have Maldon.”
“Is that a pig?”
Calling my brother a pig Fred laughed involuntarily.
“Okay. Because that pig is also my little brother. Are there any problems?”
“What kind of nonsense……. Maldon is not the vessel to lead the family. How does a person who spends all day hanging around with slaves and being obscene to servants leads a family? Maldon is a maniac who believes that women’s pilgrimage is his ability.”
“Well. He’s definitely not the kind of person to lead a family. Then your sister……. No, you can become the head of household.”
Emily’s face turned red at the sound of her mischievous words.
“No, don’t even joke about it! As a woman, how can I lead the family?”
“Is it possible. You are the only one among us who seriously cares about the family.”
“It is impossible. The retainers said they would make a fuss over the family tradition. Even if it isn’t-“
“You’re smart, but you’re young.”
Fred interrupted him and stroked his chin solemnly. After staring at her for a while, Esily puffs out her cheeks curtly.
“…… Stop imitating your father.”
“Haha. Sorry. Still, I wanted to tell you that it’s not impossible at all. The vassals care more about the existence of the family rather than the tradition of the family. That way, the rice cake dumplings will fall on them too. “
“What do you mean?”
“Someday you will find out. So that’s what I’m saying, hold tight to Theorard. I did n’t agree to marry you because I liked her only for his kind side of her.”
Essilly blinks her eyes blankly as if she still doesn’t understand. Fred then leaned over to Seely and tapped her on the table.
“Background. The fame of Viscount Deharm will give you tremendous power. The moment the support of the territories exceeds that of the vassals, the Countess of Pelgaroin will fall into your hands.”
Seeley’s eyebrows were naturally furrowed at her coy and sticky tone of her.
“I didn’t get engaged to Theorard with that in mind. Sincerely love… No, I got engaged because I liked it. Don’t look at me as a snob.”
“It’s rough. Would you please stop treating her brother who is advising her dear sister that way?”
“Under. That’s Okay. Saying more would only hurt your mouth, so let’s go.”
“It should be. Looking at your outfit, I think you’d better get out of here.”
“What!”
Esily was hot, but Fred laughed and got up from her seat her.
Looking at her wearing a dress that was close to her skin and expressing her body her sensually, and even wearing expensive accessories that she did n’t normally wear, it was evident that she was conscious of Theorad.
She went down to the mansion a few days ago and thought she had a big fight with Theorard, but it seemed like it was overdue.
‘Well, there’s no way a relationship that was so affectionate would collapse overnight.’
Her sister’s love business seemed to be going well, so she didn’t seem to have much to worry about.
Fred waved her hand her, wishing her a good day, and left her room.
“Your brother doesn’t know anything…….”
She is embarrassed for nothing, so she talks to herself.
This is what she wore to keep her dignity at the ball, not to impress Theorard. She had no desire to look good, at least not to ‘bad Theo Rad’, whom she had seen at her mansion her a few days before.
Smart-
In the midst of clearing my troubled heart, I hear a knocking sound.
“Come in.”
After Esily gave permission, the door opened and a servant with a young face entered.
“Noble Eh, Lady Ashley…… !”
It was unfortunate in many ways to see him bowing unnaturally with such a high level of honor. She seemed to be a servant she had hired before moving, but she was quite uncomfortable with this excessive formality in the magazine.
“I am not a noble person, so there is no need to say that I am noble. Please feel free to call me lady, Fariel.”
Fariel’s eyes widened.
“Young lady, no. How did you say my name…….”
“It is natural to remember the faces and names of the family members you will be living with. Rather, could you tell me what brought you here?”
“Ah, yes. Actually, Viscount Theorad Deharm arrived at the annex just a while ago, and that’s why, he visited here on business to inform you.”
Theorard already? Seeley nodded his head as he hardened his expression.
“Thank you for letting me know. I will go down a little later, so Fariel, please wait on the guests.”
“Yep. All right, lady!”
Fariel gave a strong answer and closed the door.
‘I’m sure that elven slave will come too. Then…….’
After staring at the place Fariel had left, Seeley got up from her seat and rummaged through the drawers near her.
It was because he suddenly came up with a way to find out Theorard’s true feelings of his.
*
Among the words of our ancestors, there are these verses.
To choose something, you have to give up something else.
So I made a bold decision. Even if my life was in danger, I couldn’t hide my sincerity about Esili.
I’m not sure if this is the right choice, but it’s not a choice I’ll regret.
Rattle-
The carriage shakes once and then comes to a slow stop.
After waiting for a while, the driver opened the door.
“Bless the regent. We have arrived.”
“Thank you.”
Expressing my gratitude with a light glance, I got off the carriage and took a few steps forward.
Then, a man dressed smartly in a tailcoat rushes towards me. She seemed to be a servant of Pelgarin, who served as a helper at the party in the annex.
The servant came up to me and politely bowed her head.
“Your Excellency Regent. Are you here?”
“Okay. I’m afraid I’ve come too early.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. A lot of people are already gathering in the hall of the annex. When I saw the Regent’s carriage entering the front gate, I also told Lady Essili that she should come down soon.”
“Thank you for your hard work in the middle of your busy work.”
“No. Because I just did what I was supposed to do. If you have more than that, please give it to me. I will guide you to the annex.”
I brought a separate coat, but it was nothing to call it luggage.
“It’s okay. I’ll take this one myself. The distance from the outbuilding isn’t that far, so I don’t want to offend you.”
“Ah. From what I’ve heard, you’re proud. Then I’ll be presumptuous, but I’ll be your companion even to the annex. Also, if you have any questions about the annex, feel free to ask. “
“It is. Let’s go.”
As I move my steps, a servant follows me to the side. As you walk along the road, you can hear the quiet singing of grass insects.
‘This is freedom.’
For just one day, I could get away from the elves and live a happy life. I was about to start humming, but the attendant looked at me suspiciously.
“By the way, Your Excellency Regent.”
“Yes? Speak.”
“Do you know why he sent the slaves in the first place?”
“Are you a slave? You seem to be misunderstanding something. I’ve never sent a slave to an outbuilding. Could my slave be in the annex…….”
There was.
“Yes.”
I bit my tongue in embarrassment and hurriedly covered my mouth.
For some reason, at the entrance of the annex, an elf with black tea and dust on her apron was staring at me with cold eyes…….
