Chapter 5 of 100
Chapter 5
13 min read3,239 words
Thank you for reading! (*- -)(*_ _) *bows*
Time has passed, and I have grown steadily. Recently, I've been successful with my horseback riding diet, and the sagging in my lower body and abdomen has completely disappeared. Similarly, my mother has also polished her beauty even more through the horseback riding diet. The ladies' fashion brand, Under the Rose, seems to be quite a hit. I say "seems" because I haven't appeared in society at all and only hear about it from Lady Latine. Many women, tired of the overly romantic and sweet fashion that dominated the market, were so fed up that they were spitting sand and even getting sick. While such fashion might be kind to young girls, it's not gentle on adult women who have reached marriage age. Moreover, it suits cute, proper beauties, but not others, who might raise an eyebrow. Princess lines are still popular among young women, but recently, mermaid dresses and empire dresses have become the cutting edge of fashion. Dresses are expensive and hard to buy, and even making a reservation is difficult with the Rose brand. Recently, they've started expanding into accessories like brooches, corsages, rosettes, bags, and shoes. To be honest, I don't like the current mainstream pointed, sharp high heels. I prefer a round, adorable line, like the one on my face. That's why I'm having them made. I want to wear them! Dora thinks it's improper for a lady to run a business, but she remains silent when it comes to the prototypes of brooches and earrings, her eyes gleaming.
Why is such a person in a duke's household, and why does my father allow it? Because Dora is my biological mother's foster sister. My real mother, shocked by my kidnapping and already weak, fell ill and passed away. By the way, I look exactly like my mother. I'm a spitting image of her. My father, who is terrifying to everyone except me, fell deeply in love with my real mother and married her. He fell in love at first sight, but my mother was already engaged. He didn't give up and fought a duel to win her over—a true warrior. Therefore, his love for me is understandable. And his hatred for the royal family is also strong.
Dora is the only person who knew my mother well. However, since my mother's passing, she has been acting strangely, trying to control me. This has put me in a constant cold war with my servant Julius, my maid Anna, my stepbrother Kishtria, and my stepmother Lady Latine. I think Dora's influence is one of the reasons why Albertina's character in the game became twisted. Dora's strategy is to create situations where I feel scared, like dark or confined spaces, and then dramatically come to my rescue. Recently, Julius and Anna have been countering this pattern. It's hard to sneak around since I spend a lot of time with Lady Latine and Kishtria. Especially Kishtria, who sticks to me like glue.
"Ah... dorayaki is delicious~"
"Princess Albertina, there are also white bean paste, chestnut, cream, and chocolate cream. Try not to eat too much."
"What! Is this a tasting session, not a snack?"
"Tomorrow, we have daifuku and yokan. To avoid gaining weight, we'll have a thorough horseback riding session in the afternoon—so, please fill out the evaluation form quickly. We rely on your taste."
"Ugh, I want to savor it more slowly~"
"You can eat as much as you want after it's produced."
Isn't it strange? Isn't it strange? I'm a duke's daughter, right? Why am I being rushed to eat? Even if I wanted to complain to Julius, the presence of the chef and patissier, who look like they're waiting for my evaluation as if they're prisoners awaiting a verdict, stops me.
"By the way, Princess."
"What is it?"
"We received an invitation to a tea party and birthday celebration hosted by the Crown Prince. I'll decline it."
I answered immediately, almost interrupting him. I pushed Kishtria forward to hide myself. Not that I could hide much since I was sitting. It's fine if Kishtria, the next duke, goes.
Apparently, I'm known as a "woman so ugly that it's embarrassing to look at" because I never appear in society. There are rumors that my face is scarred or that I have severe burns. In reality, I only have a faint scar on my back—so Anna says.
"No, I don't want to," I declared with all my might, and Julius smiled wryly while Kishtria shrugged.
"Ah, but I'm curious about the royal palace's tea snacks. Kishtria, do you know? Since it's hosted by the prince, they'll probably serve traditional dishes and the latest gourmet treats, right?"
"The traditional dishes are like dry bread coated in sugar, and the latest tea snacks are probably the choux pastries and cakes developed by the guild six months ago."
"That's a shame. Choux pastries and macarons. The royal family has placed an order."
"Ah, those. I've already tasted the prototypes and am tired of them. I don't want to eat them for three years. The choux part of the choux pastries was difficult to get right. Selecting the flavors for the macarons was a nightmare—I don't even want to think about it. I was even considering cookie choux and eclairs, but I've lost my appetite for whipped cream and Western pastries for a while."
Having faded the Crown Prince, who was set to condemn Albertina, out of my life and successfully tamed my stepbrother Kishtria to take care of me, I have no blind spots. My father, the guardian deity of the Latitzche family, is generally fine as long as I look happy. I reject all tea parties and parties from even the most noble people and stay at home, enjoying delicious meals and desserts. Just as I was living like this, the third assassin arrived.
The name of this assassin is Michaelis von Dometrias, the heir of the Dometrias Count family.
In this route, I have almost no interaction with him, but as one of the main characters, it would be unwise to ignore him. I'll fully charm him! Mainly using Julius and Kishtria!
Michaelis is a beautiful young boy with fiery red hair and red eyes. Despite his passionate appearance, he is calm and very serious. More accurately, he has a poker face. He has a younger sister named Ghibli, whom he loves, but his cool demeanor has made their relationship somewhat strained—more accurately, Ghibli is too considerate and feels inferior, so she keeps her distance from him.
Ha ha ha ha! Too bad! Not only am I not his biological brother, but I've already charmed my stepbrother, who was taken in from a distant relative. I win this battle! It's a victory of power!
I had a sense of superiority, but it vanished the moment I saw Michaelis and the others.
What, why do these kids look so pale?
"Count Gaiaus of the Dometrias family is my friend, but he's ill. During his absence from official duties, his younger brother and sister-in-law have caused trouble."
There stood a kind and gentle countess and the young siblings. The younger brother and sister-in-law, who were arrogant and lacked common sense, had taken over the main house of the count and acted as they pleased while the count was ill.
Their behavior was so outrageous that the countess finally couldn't bear it and, in shame, turned to the great Lord Grail von Latitzche, my father, for help.
The Latitzche Duke family and the Dometrias Count family, though of different ranks, have neighboring territories, so they have had interactions. If the neighboring territory falls into chaos, it will affect the Latitzche family. Therefore, it was decided that I, as the next head, would become Michaelis's guardian and train him until he can handle official duties.
However, this favor will have a significant impact on both families in the future—at the very least, the Dometrias family will never be able to oppose the Latitzche family.
"Albertina, the Dometrias family's territory has very fertile land—didn't you say you wanted a new farm?"
Is that what you're thinking, Father? To take over the count's territory because of my whims!?
No, are you planning to make a contract to get the harvest for a pittance, without actually taking the land? That's not fair to the peasants and farmers!
Indeed, I've recently started making beauty products like toners, lotions, and soaps. Extracting oil is essential for soap-making. Various ingredients are mixed, but this is the main one.
Hearing my father's voice, Michaelis's shoulders trembled for a moment.
"There are indeed plants I want to cultivate. I also want to train craftsmen.
I hope to have a good relationship with the Latitzche Duke family as good neighbors."
"Cultivating plants is one thing, but can't we find craftsmen in Latitzche?"
"Hmm, we have more than enough play areas. When all the energy is focused on one point, it disrupts the balance, doesn't it? Besides, I've been receiving so many invitations from the royal family recently, it's really annoying."
"…That's not good."
It would be a lie to say I don't want it, but I don't want to incur Michaelis's resentment.
The Latitzche family is quite wealthy, and I don't think we need to be so greedy.
More importantly, my father's interest was piqued by my complaint about the royal family's invitations.
My father, who smiled to reassure me, patted my head lightly and left, saying he had some work to do.
Glancing at Michaelis, he immediately shielded his sister as if to protect her.
Ghibli, his sister, looked at me with a mix of anxiety and admiration.
"Beautiful princess..."
She had red pigtails and a neatly cut fringe. Her coloring was the same as her brother's. But she was looking at me—Albertina—with a dreamy, dazed expression.
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