Translator: Nox

Chapter 16

The vast chamber was a testament to excess, a sea of ivory marble and shimmering gold. Within its walls sat a desk so gargantuan it could have served as a bed, accompanied by an ebony table designed for eight that dominated the center of the room. Every inch of the hanging tapestries glittered with silver and gold embroidery, catching the light like a sky full of shifting stars with every tilt of the head. Even the furniture was adorned with sunflowers crafted from solid gold and encrusted with diamonds. Through the towering windows, the castle’s sprawling gardens stretched out like a masterpiece captured on canvas.

I stood there, jaw practically hitting the floor, completely overwhelmed by the sheer opulence of the office. While the game’s art had been impressive, the physical reality was far more breathtaking.

In the original story of The Flower of the Empire, the protagonist Coriko wins over Grand Duke Assis Frazier with just a few clever dialogue choices. That bond grants her total access to this sanctuary, a place most aristocrats wouldn’t dream of entering. For someone like Tulia, however, getting past these doors required far more grit. It was a bizarre sensation—standing in a room I had never physically visited, yet knowing every corner of it by heart.

“Father,” Lilius called out.

The Grand Duke had been staring out at the grounds, but he turned at the sound of his son’s voice. His eyes were a piercing, dark green. Seeing that shade, there was no doubt he was Tulia’s kin. My own eyes were currently a soft, budding green, but I remembered the game’s illustrations of the villainess. Whenever Tulia spiraled into her trademark madness, her eyes would darken until they matched the Grand Duke’s exactly. It occurred to me then that if this man carried that level of intensity as his baseline, his capacity for fury must be terrifying. The thought of him turning that gaze on me in anger sent a genuine shiver down my spine.

I had worried about what right I had to be here, but as Lilius had promised, he took the lead. The Grand Duke didn’t even scold my presence. He merely spared a brief, disinterested glance at the basket I carried before looking away.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Father, the envoy from my brother Nigella has arrived at the castle,” Lilius reported.

I focused intently. If he was talking about Nigella, he was referring to one of the four children born to the Grand Duke and his late wife. There was the eldest, Hyacinthia; the second son, Aster, who was my father; Nigella, the third; and then Lilius, the youngest and father to that brat Tedrick. Despite the large family, only the three sons remained. Hyacinthia had perished in some tragic incident before she reached twenty, and the Grand Duchess had followed her to the grave shortly after from the grief. Since then, Assis had never looked at another woman. Watching him now, I figured most women would be too terrified of those predatory eyes to ever consider it anyway.

“Must it be that specific plot of land?” the Grand Duke’s voice cut through the air, sharp and demanding. “Are you and Nigella so desperate to mimic the capital’s nobles that you’d turn that space into stables?”

Lilius wiped a bead of sweat from his brow, his voice pleading. “Father, I know how much you value that garden, but think of the opportunity. The Empress has made it clear she will only provide elite breeding stock to those who maintain regulation stables on their own land. Superior horses are the backbone of a house’s legacy.”

The Grand Duke let out a sharp, disgusted click of his tongue, his eyes turning cold. “The Empress is clearly trying to drain our coffers. Why should we pay a premium for horses that are likely barely fit for a carriage, let alone a battlefield? Besides, such matters fall under the Emperor’s jurisdiction. It is bold for a second wife to overstep so far.”

“Father, please…”

“She is little more than a glorified mistress,” he snapped.

I wondered then if Tulia’s venomous tongue was a direct inheritance from her grandfather.

Lilius didn’t give up, shifting his argument to the long-term commercial benefits of the Statis Plain. My interest intensified at the mention of that location. In the game, securing that land was the only way to reach the ‘True Family’ ending. It was a prime piece of geography—flat, fertile, and perfectly situated. However, the game also noted that the stable venture ended in a catastrophic failure, leaving the land a desolate wasteland.

It wasn’t my problem, of course. A shunned granddaughter had no business interfering in the estate’s investments. I knew the stable business would collapse, and they would have to live with that. But I also knew the land’s hidden potential. Once the stables failed and the price plummeted, I planned to use my savings to buy it myself. With the right crops and trade routes, it would be a gold mine.

Suddenly, Lilius changed his approach. He grabbed my hand and looked at his father. “Father, look at Tulia. The poor girl is still so young.”

I blinked, startled. Why was he dragging me into this?

“And Brother Aster needs better mounts if he’s going to keep the northern barbarians at bay,” Lilius added.

I stared at him in silent disbelief. This was the same man who had been slowly draining my inheritance, yet here he was, acting like a devoted uncle. The Grand Duke looked down at me. I quickly masked my shock, realizing that for now, Lilius’s greed actually served my own goals. Still, the man’s sheer audacity was staggering.

After a long silence, Assis finally spoke. “Put the proposal on the agenda for the weekend meeting.”

Lilius’s face lit up instantly. “Thank you, Father! A wise decision!”

Beside me, Aubrey Frazier, who had been so still I almost forgot she was there, let out a breath of relief. She flinched and looked away the moment the Grand Duke glanced at her. I realized then that while she and her husband shared the blame for my mistreatment, as the lady of the house, the responsibility for the family’s daily life fell on her. She had likely blamed my poor living conditions on lazy servants to avoid the Grand Duke’s full wrath, but she clearly wasn’t back in his good graces yet.

“Your mother would not have been happy about construction on the Statis Plain,” the Grand Duke murmured.

The mention of the late Grand Duchess drew very different reactions. Aubrey remained stone-faced and silent. Lilius looked briefly uncomfortable before a calculated, resigned smile crossed his face. As for me, I was simply confused. The game only ever mentioned that their marriage was a cold, political arrangement. I had no idea she had a connection to that land.

“I know it was Mother’s favorite place,” Lilius said, his smile feeling forced. “The land she tended herself.”

“She worked that soil despite her rank,” Assis added, his voice carrying a trace of bitterness so faint I almost missed it.

“But I’m sure she would be thrilled to see her sons’ businesses thriving from above,” Lilius countered. “Practicality and strong horses are surely more valuable than a few flowers, wouldn’t you agree?”

I felt a surge of genuine irritation at his words. If he were a starving peasant, I could understand prioritizing survival over sentiment. But this was the wealthy son of a Grand Duke, driven by nothing but pure, ugly avarice. To dismiss his mother’s legacy so casually for the sake of more gold was loathsome. I found I couldn’t forgive him for it.