NO_NAME
patreon
Chapter 251: Green Manor
🕑 Added 2024-09-27 04:34:20 +0000 UTC"Oh, Sveta, you're sweating. Let me help you wipe it off," Maru said, wearing a bright red dress with a wide skirt that spread out like a blooming rose, more vivid than the flowers around her.
Sveta had just finished trimming the leaves of a nearby rose bush when he glanced at Maru. A flash of surprise crossed his eyes as the sunlight fell on Maru's face, making her look almost angelic, as if she were a celestial being sent from above.
The words of refusal that had instinctively formed on his lips couldn't be spoken, and instead, he found himself nodding involuntarily.
"Um, thank you, Maru." Sveta forced a smile.
Maru's eyes twinkled with a deeper amusement as she gently wiped Sveta's face with a towel, her slightly plump hands moving with care.
The two of them exchanged a silent glance, a new emotion blossoming in their hearts.
"Big news! Great news, amazing news!"
A voice filled with joy suddenly echoed from the entrance, breaking the afternoon tranquility of Green Manor.
A lively figure ran quickly across the manor grounds—it was Elly, Vanessa's younger sister. As she ran, her excited voice echoed through every corner of the manor.
"Elly, are you crazy? What kind of news could make you lose your composure like this?" Vanessa, who was holding a stack of broken training stakes in one hand and a finely crafted envelope in the other, scolded her sister from the fourth-floor window.
"Oh, Vanessa, you know how lively Elly is. You shouldn't stifle her; letting her express herself will help her grow," Klina said from her room, where she and Vanessa had planned to spend the afternoon knitting. Watching Vanessa, dressed in a purple gown, leaning out the window, Klina covered her mouth and chuckled.
Vanessa turned back and smiled helplessly, shaking her head. "Klina, your advice is great, but she still shouldn't be causing such a commotion in the manor. At least not with her current position."
She then turned back to the window and called down, "Elly, what are you holding?"
With her sharp eyes, Vanessa could tell that the envelope in Elly's hand wasn't something an ordinary person could obtain—it was made of an exquisite material.
"It's a royal commendation, congratulating our lord on being promoted to Marquis!"
Elly looked up, her voice ringing with excitement and energy.
At that moment, the entire manor fell silent, as if the world itself had paused.
"What? Are you sure you're not joking? My God, if you're lying about something like this, I won't forgive you," Vanessa exclaimed, covering her slightly open mouth in disbelief. Their father had only been gone a few months; how could he have become a Marquis so quickly?
Klina, who had been holding her knitting, dropped it and walked barefoot on the light blue carpet to stand beside Vanessa, staring out the window with the same disbelief. "Vanessa, look, the thing she's holding doesn't seem fake. Why don't we go down and take a closer look?"
"Yes, you're right. Let's go quickly—if it's real, we can't let clumsy Elly damage it." Vanessa turned around and grabbed Klina's hand, ready to leave the room.
"Wait, I haven't changed my shoes," Klina said with a hint of exasperation, then looked down at Vanessa's bare feet under her skirt. "You're the same—are you planning to go down like this?"
"Oh, it's my fault," Vanessa said, pausing as she brushed a strand of hair behind her ear in frustration. "I'm just so worried that Elly might mess up, and I really hope the news she's bringing is true. My mind's a bit scattered."
Klina, with her pregnant belly, stepped forward and patted Vanessa's back, smiling warmly. "Relax, it's okay."
Vanessa took a deep breath. "Thank you, Klina."
"Oh, I think I just heard... Did that little girl Elly say that the master has been promoted to Marquis?" Maru asked, looking suspiciously toward the castle before turning to Sveta. "She wouldn't joke about something like that, would she?"
The sweat on Sveta's face had been wiped away, and his eyes now held a mixture of anticipation and joy. His voice trembled with excitement as he said, "I believe in Elly—she wouldn't joke about something like this. I've watched her grow over the past two years; what she's saying must be true!"
"Maru, thank you, but I need to go find Elly now. I'm sorry I can't continue our afternoon plan to finish trimming these roses," Sveta said apologetically, looking at Maru.
"You're too serious. The result isn't as important as the process. Delaying our plan isn't necessarily a bad thing," Maru replied with a smile.
"Alright, you have a point. We'll continue on the next sunny day."
"I'm looking forward to it. I should get back to the kitchen now—if the news is true, we'll need to prepare a grand feast tonight, don't you think?"
"Don't make it too extravagant. The master isn't here."
"Then what's the right standard?"
"Just make sure not to touch any of the aquatic magical beasts. Other than that, it's up to you," Sveta said after a moment of thought.
"Got it. Now, you go find Elly, and I'll hurry back to the kitchen," Maru said, urging Sveta to take care of his business before she left the rose garden, swaying her hips as she walked away.
Sveta watched Maru's retreating figure, took a deep breath, and then quickened his pace toward the castle.
"Elly, what are you holding?"
Sveta, who had hurried over, caught a glimpse of Elly and the group of maids and servants surrounding her, who had gathered from all over the manor and the castle hall.
Noticing the scene, Sveta clapped his hands and frowned as he scolded, "What are you all doing here? Have you finished your work? I don't recall assigning anyone to gossip duty."
"Rachel, Bess, Debbie, the garden is looking a bit untidy. Go and tidy it up immediately, except for the rose garden."
The three called out their names quickly left the crowd, sheepishly murmuring, "Yes," before scurrying away.
"Jenna, Janessa, Pulin, Maru is waiting for you in the kitchen with new tasks. Hurry up and get there!"
"Oh, we know, we're on our way!" Another three voices called out from the crowd as they ran toward the castle.
Soon, the whole group began to disperse, fearing Sveta's authority, and returned to their posts.
"Leo, Bella, you two stay," Sveta called out to two figures, gesturing for them to come over.
"Mr. Sveta, what can we do for you?"
"Go to the cellar and bring up a few more cases of red wine and fruit wine to the castle. I noticed yesterday that the castle's stock is running low."
"Understood, we'll get on it right away."
"Remember, don't make the same mistake as before—don't grab the wrong crates," Sveta warned with a frown.
"We've marked them this time, so there won't be any mistakes!"
Watching the crowd disperse, Sveta quickly thought if there were any other tasks to assign, but when everyone had left, he couldn't think of any. Nodding to himself, he finally focused on Elly. "Elly, where did you get that?"
"Yes, I'm curious about that too. Elly, where did this come from?"
Vanessa's voice came from the castle as she and Klina walked down the steps, following the stone path toward the group.
As Vanessa approached, bringing with her a faint scent of perfume, she scrutinized Elly closely, only to realize that her sister was now almost as tall as she was. She could no longer look down at her as she used to.
Elly, with her cheerful nature, waved the gold-tinged envelope in her hand. The high-quality material didn't bend even as she swung it around.
"Hehe, it's from someone from the royal family," Elly said with a bright smile.
"And where is this royal messenger? I didn't see anyone," Sveta asked, stepping forward with a hint of urgency in his voice. As the butler, it would be a serious dereliction of duty not to greet such an important guest.
"The royal family?" Vanessa gasped. "Elly, you met someone from the royal family?"
"Yes, I ran into them in Dark Eagle City when I was delivering supplies to the administrative office. The royal messenger was talking to Riley there," Elly replied.
Sveta breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he had narrowly avoided missing the arrival of a royal messenger because of his secret rendezvous with Maru. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he felt grateful for the hot weather as an excuse.
"Alright, it seems you weren't joking. Hand over the envelope—I want to see what it says!" Vanessa smiled as she reached out for the golden envelope.
But Elly dodged her hand, hiding the envelope behind her back.
Facing her sister's questioning gaze, Elly shook her head and said, "Riley said the first person to open the envelope must be the lord himself. He asked me to give it to Mr. Sveta for safekeeping."
Vanessa paused for a moment, then apologized, "You're right. Only father has the right to open it."
Elly grinned, not taking it to heart, and happily handed the envelope over to Sveta with both hands.
"Hehe, you did a great job, Elly," Sveta said with a beaming smile, though his hands moved carefully as he tucked the envelope into his coat.
"Thanks for the compliment!" Elly's eyes squinted into crescents as she smiled, her short purple hair looking neat and tidy. Then she added, "The dairy farm still needs me to help with the milk delivery, so I better get going!"
"Take your time," Sveta called after her.
"Okay!"
Elly said as she turned and started to leave.
"Elly!" Vanessa suddenly called out to her departing sister.
"Hmm? What's up?" Elly turned back, looking at her sister in confusion. "Is there something else?"
"No, nothing." Vanessa smiled. "You've... grown up."
Elly paused for a moment, then huffed, "Hmph, I haven't changed!" before quickening her pace as she left.
As night fell, the Dark Eagle City at the edge of the Dark Eagle Mountain Range was draped in the veil of night.
But within Green Manor, the lights were ablaze.
At this moment, a grand banquet was being held on the wide lawn.
Servants danced and sang while Tack was having a good time with the knights from the training grounds. Riley was surrounded by Tylers, Mina, Klina, and Vanessa, creating a lively and harmonious atmosphere.
Riley had spent the afternoon entertaining the royal messenger and had just returned to the manor.
Tylers handed Riley a bottle of apple juice, his eyes shining with curiosity as he eagerly asked, "Hey Riley, do you know why Father was promoted to Marquis? Did the messenger tell you this afternoon?"
Pop!
The cork popped off the apple juice bottle, and Riley used his magic to chill it, making it even more refreshing before taking a big gulp. He then looked around at his family and shook his head, saying, "Don't expect any useful information from me. The truth is, even the royal messenger and some people in the royal family don't know why Father was promoted to Marquis. They only say it's for 'outstanding contributions to national diplomacy,' but no one knows the specifics."
"Oh? 'Outstanding contributions to national diplomacy...'" Tylers muttered, deep in thought as he stared at the apple juice bottle in Riley's hand, his fingers unconsciously pulling at the grass beneath him, tearing it up piece by piece and tossing it aside.
Mina gently patted Tylers' back and whispered in his ear, "Tylers, do you think it could be related to the recent attack on the Round Tower in the Kingdom of Reims and the aid our kingdom's Sanctuary provided? I heard that since then, relations between the two countries have improved a lot."
"Hmm? That makes sense!" Tylers' eyes lit up with surprise. Though he couldn't quite understand how his father had managed it, he had always seen his father as great and omnipotent. Even if something difficult to understand happened, they all instinctively believed in him.
"Yeah... that actually seems possible," Riley glanced at Tylers and Mina. Even though they were whispering, he could clearly hear them.
Then he looked around at the group and whispered, "Shh, let's not discuss this publicly. We'll wait until Father returns and hear the real story from him."
"Hehe, no problem!" Tylers laughed.
"Vanessa, could you please remind Tack not to say anything carelessly later?" Riley glanced at the bonfire a few meters away, where the flames cast a glow on Tack's face as he laughed heartily, causing Riley to feel a bit uneasy.
Vanessa also found Tack's carefree nature troubling and nodded helplessly. "Alright, I'll make sure to emphasize it to him."
"Hey, everyone, on this joyful day, how about we all have some barbecue?"
The family had just finished their discussion when Maikov came walking across the lawn with a smile, accompanied by Vicki. The two were walking very close together.
"Sure, I've just come from Dark Eagle City, and I haven't eaten all day. I'm getting hungry," Riley said, standing up first with the apple juice still in hand. "It looks like the grills we have aren't enough. I'll go ask Sveta to set up another one."
Previous Chapter | | Next Chapter
