Chapter Seventy-four: The Ehlertt Family’s Celebration
Sieg and Alise had been away from the mansion for about two weeks attending the hunting festival, but they returned today with the knights. Seeing Sieg and Alise with their vibrant smiles, the hunting festival seemed to be quite an enjoyable event.
Helfried had to return midway after Karen discovered the poison, and Julius couldn’t attend the hunting festival because he was watching over Karen. Of course, Karen was here on the Ehlertt family’s request, but she felt slightly apologetic, as even the knights had a bright and cheerful atmosphere.
In the adventurer district where Karen lived, adventurers dove into dungeons, gleefully slaying monsters and going wild. She used to think adventurers were just crazy, but perhaps nobles weren’t much different, Karen thought with a distant gaze.
Maybe it was a common trait among those who fight. It was a sensation difficult for Karen, who doesn’t fight, to understand.
Invited to the dinner party by Sieg, who had returned completely refreshed and energetic, Karen was now seated with Sieg, Alise, Julius, and Helfried.
“Sister Karen, I heard you healed Her Highness’ Bloodline Blessing! And also resolved her request. As expected of you, Sister!”
“Thank you for the kind words, Master Sieg. Although we still couldn’t solve the mystery of the poisonous powder…”
“You’re an alchemist, Sister. It’s enough that you saw through it as poison.”
“You truly think so?”
Karen laughed weakly.
She still didn’t know if the poisonous powder was intentionally spread, and although she had completed the Ehlertt family’s request, only she knew that the princess was not pleased.
Since revealing her healed appearance at the tea party, nobles had been crowding around Waltride daily, keeping her extremely busy. Karen hadn’t had a chance to meet with her.
Tonight, too, she was dining with some noble or guild official.
Karen had been sending Waltride detox potions via her maids to help her maintain her figure, but she still had no idea what Waltride thought of her, or what she intended to do with her. She was left waiting, kept in suspense—like being a fish on the cutting board.
“Congratulations on your E-rank promotion, Sister Karen! Can I give you a congratulatory gift?”
“Yes, what might it be? I’m looking forward to it.”
This was the main topic of the evening, with Sieg wanting to give Karen a congratulatory gift. Deciding to enjoy the moment, Karen shifted her mood.
Sara arrived carrying a box. When Karen received it, everyone nodded. Encouraged by their warm gazes, Karen opened the ribbon-decorated box to find light blue leather gloves inside.
“Kelpie leather gloves. Magic-resistant and completely waterproof. I hope you’ll use them when making magical potions, Sister.”
“Amazing… Thank you, Master Sieg.”
Kelpie was a D-rank monster.
For E-rank Karen, it was a slightly advanced tool, but not entirely disproportionate. Smooth and soft, yet sturdy as a monster material, they would protect Karen’s hands while she immerses herself in alchemy. With these, she wouldn’t accidentally touch any poison.
“I’ll treasure them, Master Sieg.”
“Yeah! I actually wanted to give you a magic item made from monsters I hunted during the hunting festival, but I only caught kocco. Well, fewer monsters isn’t a bad thing, right?”
They had gone to the forest at Ehlertt’s territory borders.
The hunting festival was an event hosted by nobles in each territory. Once a year, they would sweep out monsters that had invaded the territory. While fewer monsters in the territory should undoubtedly be good, Julius chuckled at Sieg’s ambiguous words.
“Probably because I cleared the dungeon, so hardly any monsters appeared.”
“Well, you cleared it for my sake, Uncle Julius, and the clearing itself is very appreciated for the territory…”
“There’s nothing strange about a man wanting to shine during the hunting festival, Sieg. No need to hide your frustration.”
Julius warmly smiled at Sieg’s hesitant words.
Karen stared intently at his beautiful profile. She didn’t know how Julius felt about Waltride afterward. Or rather, she was avoiding knowing. Feeling her gaze, as Julius tried to look at her, Karen deliberately averted her eyes.
“We knew there would be almost no monsters this year. We didn’t even invite external guests, and the festival itself was small-scale, so it must have been bland for you, Sieg.”
Helfried also laughed cheerfully.
“If the year I invited Alise had ended up being a lackluster hunting festival, I might’ve been quite disheartened myself. Though, of course, a grand festival isn’t always a good thing.”
“Fufu. It’s a place where gentlemen can show off to women.”
The way they talked about the hunting festival sounded almost like a sport.
If so, Princess Waltride, who feared monster extermination, was probably considered an outsider in this world. Which only made Karen more curious about how she was viewed after pushing Waltride into a difficult situation.
“The gift from my husband and me—we’ll give it to you together once we’re back in the royal capital.”
At Alise’s words, Karen was bewildered.
“Eh? But I’ve already received the wine…”
“That was just a souvenir I had Sara bring. Did you really think that would be the end of the celebration?”
“Alise is right. If you think that’s all the celebration from the Ehlertt family, it would be a matter of our honor.”
Being told it’s a matter of honor, Karen couldn’t refuse.
“By the way, what kind of gift is this?”
“I’ll give you a hint.”
Alise smiled sweetly.
“It was too big to bring to the territory.”
“Too big to bring… Even with the Ehlertt family’s carriages…?”
“It’s bigger than a carriage, Karen.”
“Bigger than a carriage…!?”
As Karen sat baffled, unable to figure it out even with the hints, Sieg chuckled and spoke:
“Make sure to keep working hard on your thesis when you return, Sister Karen.”
“I’m already pouring my heart into it, Master Sieg! Maybe it’ll even be good enough to let me skip a rank!”
Sieg smiled gently at Karen’s boastful tone.
“That would be nice, but don’t be discouraged if it doesn’t happen, Sister Karen.”
“You will surely be recognized eventually.”
“Let’s introduce you to the townspeople during the New Year Festival—as the future great alchemist and benefactor of our Ehlertt territory.”
It seemed to be the Ehlertt family’s consensus that one thesis wouldn’t be enough to skip a rank. But everyone had high hopes for Karen’s future. She felt deeply grateful for that.
“Wait, I’m being introduced at the New Year’s Festival? I was planning to just relax and enjoy myself.”
“You don’t need to do anything special, Karen. We’re just introducing you out of gratitude.”
“The townspeople already know you. You are quite popular among commoners. Your rags-to-riches story is spreading. I even get complaints asking why we don’t marry you to Julius. I’ve explained it many times…”
It seemed to be spreading like some kind of Cinderella story. Julius chuckled when he saw his brother holding his head in exasperation.
As Karen absentmindedly watched Julius smile, he turned to face her, catching her off guard. Their eyes met perfectly, and Karen lost the timing to look away.
“Karen, would you like to tour the New Year’s Festival market together?”
Was he really okay with Karen as his companion? Was he forcing himself to be with her to entrap her? Didn’t he want to be with someone else? The words “Are you sure it doesn’t have to be Waltride?” almost slipped out, but Karen somehow swallowed them.
She made up her mind and responded:
“…I would be delighted to accompany you, Master Julius.”
On the day of the New Year’s Festival—even if Julius’s heart was with Waltride—Karen vowed to make him want to spend the day with her.
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