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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Rachel's Scheme (3)
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Cyrus's eyes turned glacial.
"Who said such a thing?"
"Lord Isaac said that a Princess Consort would soon be joining us... Ow! What was that for, Louis!"
Noah, elbowed in the side by Louis, snapped in annoyance, then, feeling Cyrus's gaze, lowered his voice.
A cold chill ran down his neck, and Noah swallowed hard, kneeling on one knee.
"I spoke out of turn. Punish me with death, My Lord."
"Very well."
Cyrus drew his sword without hesitation. Noah closed his eyes tightly, and Louis, who had been silent until now, spoke.
"There's no need to stain My Lord's sword with the blood of a wretch like him."
"You're defending your subordinate, I see."
Thud! Thump!
Louis silently kicked Noah several times. Noah endured the barrage of kicks without a single groan.
Louis stopped kicking, stood ramrod straight, and spoke.
"He's a fool, but his skills are exceptional. It would take too much effort to pick another man and train him to this level, so please relent, My Lord. I will teach him well."
Cyrus gazed silently at Noah, then sheathed his sword.
Louis asked,
"Do you have any further plans?"
Cyrus turned his head to gaze at the Duke of Bronte's mansion.
"We've come a long way; we can't return without gaining anything. I'll wait one more week. If there's still nothing to gain by then, we'll return."
+++
Isaac, who had been drinking in a small mansion rented under the name of a fictitious trading company, widened his eyes when he saw Noah return, covered in blood.
"What happened to you? Did you run into bandits?"
"Do you think I'm the kind of person who'd get hurt by a band of bandits? Louis hit me."
Isaac looked at Louis, who was standing nonchalantly beside Noah.
"Why did you hit him? Did he run his mouth again?"
"Yes."
"Surely... he didn't go on about the Princess Consort in front of His Highness, did he?"
"That 'surely' is exactly it."
"Ha!"
Isaac shook his head in disbelief.
"You're something else, Noah. It's not the first or second time you've almost died for blabbering in front of His Highness. Why can't you fix that?"
"But aren't you curious? Who is the woman who captured our Lord's heart?"
"She's a bold and intelligent woman. She doesn't hesitate to ruin herself for her plans. She doesn't seem to care about her reputation either."
"I'm genuinely curious. When we return to the Northern Territory this time, will we be bringing the Princess Consort with us?"
"Well, judging by His Highness's actions, it's highly likely."
Isaac recalled Cyrus's behavior when dealing with Arianna.
Cyrus claims he's being kind to Arianna because she has 'utility value,' but is Cyrus really the type to do that?
Cyrus even used ice magic, which he rarely ever employs, to save Arianna from being beaten by Rachel.
And in front of Arianna, who asked what had happened, he showed off his ice magic as if boasting, saying things like, "It's a simple spell."
Whatever Cyrus's intentions, to Isaac, he just looked like a boy showing off his skills to a girl he liked and feeling proud.
"The problem is the Second Lady's feelings. It seems the Second Lady isn't particularly fond of His Highness."
"No way. Where in the world is there a man as magnificent as our Lord? Even women who claim a man's appearance isn't important crumble helplessly when faced with our Lord. Right, Louis?"
Louis sighed softly and said,
"Lord Isaac, don't say unnecessary things to Noah. He's like a child; he'll just blabber again."
+++
The spacious and luxurious drawing-room. Warm sunlight streamed in through the large windows. Helena was playing the piano in one corner of the room, and Victoria was sitting on the sofa, embroidering.
Rachel stood at the entrance of the drawing-room for a moment, watching her beloved daughters. Arianna, who had been confined for four days in a narrow, cold underground dungeon, devoid of sunlight and without a drop of water, was not even a thought in her mind.
Helena and Victoria, who had quarreled over the incident at the party, were in the same room but wouldn't even look at each other.
Rachel swallowed a sigh and called out to her two daughters in a bright voice.
"Victoria, Helena. Come here and sit down."
Helena trudged over to the sofa and sat far away from Victoria.
Victoria smiled sweetly at Helena, but Helena huffed and turned her head away. Victoria gave a wry smile, as if resigned.
Judging by their actions alone, Victoria looked several years older than Helena.
Rachel also knew that Victoria was more intelligent and mature than Helena.
She had doted on Helena out of pity, as Helena was destined to live as a baroness's daughter, but objectively speaking, Victoria was the one who would truly strengthen the family.
Of course, she had no intention of using her two daughters for the family's gain. However, she had faith that Victoria would, on her own, marry into a good family.
"We need to start preparing for this year's social season now. It will be very busy. Especially you, Helena, you have your debutante ball, so you'll need more preparations."
"How can I have my debutante ball now? Everyone will be whispering because of Arianna... I'll only be humiliated if I go! Everyone will just pity Arianna and won't even look at me."
"That won't happen, Helena. Your mother will make sure of it."
Victoria asked cautiously,
"Mother, do you have a plan?"
"Is there anything your mother wouldn't do for you two? If you just do as I say, there won't be any problems during this year's social season, so rest assured and follow my lead. Understand?"
She couldn't reveal her plans to her two daughters.
Rachel wished for her daughters to grow up unaware of the world's darker aspects.
As clear as a lake, as blue and refreshing as a sky on a fine day.
"Don't worry about Arianna at all. Helena, has your mother ever disappointed you?"
"Even though His Highness the Northern Marquess didn't call for me."
Helena pouted and said.
Rachel swallowed a sigh inwardly.
"Helena, the Northern Marquess is a man with a bad reputation. If you marry a man like that, you'll inevitably be lonely and have a difficult life. You need to meet a warm and gentle man who looks only at you."
"I can make the Northern Marquess treat me that way. I just need to make the Northern Marquess fall in love with me, don't I?"
"Of course, that's true. But I wonder if a man who enjoys bloodshed would truly be gentle with a woman. It would be fortunate if he didn't just use her."
"Mother, I'm confident I can win the Northern Marquess's heart. I'm good at so many things. The Northern Marquess will surely take notice of me."
"Helena, the Northern Marquess isn't the problem right now. What's important is whether you can receive Her Majesty the Empress's blessing at this debutante ball."
When a royal party is held, debutante ladies first have an audience with the Empress.
The Empress observes the ladies' bearing and bestows a lily brooch, engraved with her signature, upon a lady who pleases her.
A lady who receives the Empress's blessing gains much attention, receives marriage proposals from many families, and sometimes even receives the Empress's assistance when marrying.
However, receiving the Empress's blessing is difficult; only one or two out of dozens of ladies are chosen, and some years, no one receives that honor.
"If I receive Her Majesty the Empress's blessing, the Northern Marquess will take notice of me too, won't he?"
"Yes, Helena. He will."
Rachel thought that the Northern Marquess and the Bronte family would never be intertwined, but she said with a smiling face to appease the childish Helena.
"I will definitely receive Her Majesty the Empress's blessing. Mother, get me the prettiest dress in the world."
"Of course, you should. Victoria, you won't be able to attend the royal party, but we'll go to smaller parties together, so you must make a good impression on the noblewomen then. Even for your own debutante ball later. Understand?"
"Yes, Mother."
"And about that..."
Rachel got to the point.
"I'm going to release Arianna tomorrow."
"Why are you releasing her? Just let her starve to death down there!"
Rachel frowned at Helena's shrill shout.
"Helena. That's not befitting a noble lady."
"But Mother. Have you forgotten what she did? Because of her, we were all humiliated. Even the Duchess of Lovent sided with her."
"Yes, but it's necessary. When Arianna comes out of the East Tower, treat her well. We'll also have dresses made for her, but don't torment her; just show a good image to the tailors. Understand?"
Before Helena could voice her complaints, Victoria interjected.
"Is this part of your plan, Mother?"
"Yes. It's a way to get through this social season without any problems, so do as I say. Don't ruin things by tormenting Arianna unnecessarily."
+++
When she was released from the East Tower's dungeon, Victoria was waiting at the entrance of the East Tower.
"Sister, you've been through a lot, haven't you?"
Towards Victoria, who approached with a gentle smile, Arianna also smiled.
"No, it's because of me that Mother and you two were put in a difficult situation."
"Oh, what nonsense are you saying? We weren't in any trouble. It's just... I didn't realize you were suffering so much. My heart ached for you."
Arianna looked down at Victoria's hand as it linked with her arm.
She knew she'd be released from the dungeon soon enough, but Victoria's actions were unexpected. She had expected them not to even make eye contact with her anymore, so what was the hidden agenda?
'I need to be careful.'
Because of what Arianna had done at the garden party, the future must have changed. She couldn't be sure how Rachel, Victoria, and Helena would act from now on.
"Tomorrow, a tailor will come. Since you'll also be going to the capital this time, you should have a beautiful dress made. It'll be exciting, right?"
"Yes, it will."
"The day after tomorrow, we'll go out to buy accessories. You don't have many accessories, so it would be good to buy plenty this time."
"Yes, I will."
Victoria glanced at Arianna. Her green eyes quietly scrutinized Arianna's complexion.
Every time Victoria looked at her like this, Arianna felt as if a snake was coiling around her.
"You don't seem very happy, Sister?"
"I am happy. But right now, I'm just so hungry and thirsty..."
"Oh, where are my manners? Sister, you haven't eaten well for a long time, have you? Go to your room and rest quickly. I'll have the maids send in some food and water for you."
"Yes, thank you. You're truly the only one."
Upon returning to the main house, Arianna was surprised to find that her room was not the small, cramped storage room, but the one she had stayed in due to the stomach upset incident.
She had expected them to prepare dresses and accessories for the social season, but she thought she'd have to stay in the cramped room without a bed, as before, until they went to the capital.
Entering the spacious room, Arianna frowned.
'As expected, there must be some other hidden agenda.'
