Chapter 193: The Master of the Trade Route (30)

While Eric was contemplating his own path,

I had completed the plan to close in on the Saint, the Western Grand Duke’s daughter, and her encirclement.

Now, all that remained was to wait for him to enter the final battlefield.

The days had been so tense that even drinking water left my lips dry.

Even for me, a moment had come where it would be hard to manage things with just the knowledge of the past.

The final turning point that could change fate had arrived.

Until that turning point revealed itself, I tried not to raise Eric’s suspicions.

I even pretended to look for other routes to sell Anes and minimized my meetings with Echina as much as possible.

‘Of course, it’s also because her popularity has peaked ever since she became a Swordmaster…….’

Thanks to that, I was able to visit my hometown after a long time.

A small village in Nord—Cosmo.

Truthfully, I hadn’t planned to go before settling things with Eric.

But after seeing the letter from Father that arrived last night, I couldn’t help but move.

“What have you been doing lately that people keep visiting the house?”

“They’ve been sending holiday gifts nonstop.”

Holiday gifts.

They were probably from the Saint and the two Grand Duchesses.

Exchanging gifts on anniversaries was common, but the timing wasn’t.

If I didn’t want Eric to realize that I had an important relationship with those three, I needed to visit Father and warn him to keep quiet.

He had once been famous in social circles—if he started talking with any exaggeration, it would be troublesome.

――――――.

I returned with both hands full of gifts.

One was a whiskey made with clean water from the Nord Mountains, the other a pair of glasses crafted by an artisan.

Like in my secretary days, I had picked out something he liked most and something he needed.

The last time I saw him, he had squinted because he couldn’t read books well.

And he always drank a glass of whiskey before bed.

‘It has been a while. Has it been half a year?’

In the familiar atmosphere, I headed toward the mansion.

But as the old roof came into view, I suddenly had to stop walking.

“Huh……?”

In the past, it had been an old, shabby fence and a mansion perfectly fitting a fallen noble.

But what I saw now in front of me was……

Two lion statues, golden and black, glaring at each other ferociously.

And even a plaster statue of a goddess, leisurely watching over them.

Anyone would think our house was a museum.

“Hah.”

I let out a short breath and stepped into the mansion.

Then, I made eye contact with Father, who was sitting under a well-groomed garden parasol.

“You’re here.”

“Yes, I stopped by on my way back from a business trip.”

I set the gift bag down on the floor and sat across from him.

Before I realized it, an Oriental-style pond had been added to the garden, and koi fish were rippling through the water.

Father was quietly enjoying the view.

“Don’t tell me that was a gift too?”

“Yes. That’s one of the more modest ones.”

Robin Julius let out a short chuckle and gazed at me calmly.

“Who gives land deeds as a holiday gift?”

“Land deeds……?”

I opened my eyes wide at the mere sound of a gift so overwhelming it was hard to breathe.

Then the handsome middle-aged man let out a deep sigh and said,

“Yeah, it was a plot of land between the Grand Cathedral and the Northern Grand Duke’s house. A prime piece of real estate.”

Father took a sip of the coffee sitting on the table.

“And what the hell is this priority construction right? I didn’t even know something like that existed.”

“Oh, that’s a certificate of authority to commission the master builders. Usually, it’s only given to families of marquess rank or above…”

As I explained diligently, Father set down the cup with a clunk and asked,

“Then why are Istina and Helena sending you things like that? Such expensive gifts.”

“Well, the Founding Festival is coming up soon, so maybe as a holiday gift…”

The wily old fox, who was old enough to be my father, looked at me with a disgruntled gaze.

As if I was being painfully naïve.

“Even for a holiday, people don’t just send extravagant gifts like these. Did you perhaps get something on them?”

“Get something on them? Of course not. If anything, I’ve earned them tens of billions of gold worth in value.”

I waved my hand, dismissing the ridiculous notion.

Then, Robin Julius frowned deeply and began to analyze the situation.

“Is that so? Then this must be a dowry…”

Dowry.

At the rare mention of that word in my life, my brows instinctively furrowed.

“A d-dowry…? Who’s getting married…?”

“You, obviously. Gifts of this scale are only exchanged between noble families as wedding offerings.”

Yes, I had known.

That the gifts they sent me were quite excessive for someone from a mere baronet’s house.

But I had assumed it was just the grand gestures of powerful people.

Dowry, though… that was a little unsettling.

“I haven’t had any marriage talks with either of their families.”

“You brat. Even if you didn’t, women tend to view men they trust deeply as potential partners.”

The seasoned baronet spoke as if he’d encountered this kind of situation often in his younger days.

Though a few wrinkles had formed, his gaze still had that deep charm even men could recognize.

“And nobles like them, instead of saying things outright, often express their intentions this way. Especially to the parents of the man.”

Come to think of it, there was a glasses case on the table that I hadn’t seen before.

It proudly bore the signature of a famous jewel artisan from the western Empire.

“This is completely different from a simple business gift exchange.”

“……”

Though he didn’t say anything aloud, Father seemed to like the gift, subtly reaching for the glasses case.

He naturally put on the stylishly plated glasses,

as if he’d already been using them all this time.

“You didn’t… just casually smile at them, hold their hands or anything like that, did you?”

To his sharp question, I stayed silent for a moment.

Then, a few memories floated to the surface…

From doing squats while holding the Saint,

to riding in the same carriage as the Western Grand Duke’s daughter, resting my head on her thigh, even lending her my shoulder…

“Everyone has unavoidable circumstances.”

Father exhaled briefly, as if to say he understood everything even without hearing it outright.

“You might not realize it, but the men in our family have always been ‘gifted’ in this regard.”

He flicked his fingers toward his own face.

Having seen that face every day growing up, I wasn’t particularly impressed.

“Back in the day, there were plenty of women who thought just brushing sleeves meant destiny. So if you can remember them, it must have gone much deeper.”

“…….”

Robin Julius waved a hand, saying that was enough about the past.

Then, returning to a more solemn expression befitting a parent, he asked,

“So, what do you plan to do?”

He was probably asking how I intended to respond to the affection being shown.

I answered with careful consideration.

“I’m not sure. My life isn’t quite settled yet.”

“Not settled?”

Father tilted his head slightly, as if he was aware of my accomplishments.

“Aren’t you already the owner of the most highly-rated hotel in Nord? And the head of a massive arts foundation?”

“Even with all the wealth and assets I’ve built up, if I end up becoming someone’s puppet, it could all be taken from me in an instant.”

I responded in a calm and steady voice.

To a man who had spent his life tormented by those in power.

“But this time, that won’t happen.”

At my serious reply, the baronet quietly stared down at his now-cold coffee.

He looked into his reflection on the surface of the cup for a moment before standing up.

“Let’s go for a walk.”

“Yes, let’s.”

We strolled through the garden together.

The once-renowned knight walked with his hands behind his back, eyes following the koi gliding in the pond.

“I’m sorry. It feels like my incompetence is what caused you and Ronie to suffer.”

Father seemed to understand how I’d grown into such a cautious man.

“But remember this—don’t be too suspicious of the affection others show you.”

I looked at the face reflected in the pond.

It wasn’t the stern expression he always wore when looking at me.

“Life may begin alone and end alone… but humans live off their memories.”

His face was filled with gentle warmth.

As though he were reminiscing about the days when he had loved my mother.

“To have a relationship you can recall in your final moment—what a blessing that is…”

“…….”

My chest tightened as I saw Father share his honest emotions for the first time.

Though he had raised us to be strong and strict on the outside, he had love inside all along.

“Father.”

Maybe it was because I wanted to confirm that love once more.

I, too, brought up one question I’d kept buried inside.

“If you could return to the past… would you still choose to meet Mother?”

My mother passed away a few months after giving birth to my younger sibling, Ronie.

It happened when I was four.

“…….”

Father took his eyes off the pond.

And silently looked up at the clear sky without a single cloud.

Up there, a magnificent hawk soared, riding the wind.

“Yes. And I’d choose to have you all over again.”

“Even knowing Mother would die again?”

For a moment, I thought he was lying for our sake, forcing himself.

In matters like this, his warmhearted and sociable nature felt so different from mine.

But that was…

Just a shallow assumption on my part.

“I’ll just do better this time.”

Robin Julius returned to the sharp black eyes of his knightly days.

He took off his glasses and slipped them into the breast pocket of his dress shirt as he said,

“I’ll make sure Rosaria doesn’t suffer, that she only enjoys the best moments. I’ll make sure she gives birth to you all in good health.”

Father had chosen to carve out his own fate.

And in that moment, I realized—I wasn’t only like my mother. I was like my father, too.

“I think I would’ve done the same.”

“Right?”

We both narrowed our eyes like sly foxes and chuckled quietly.

After that, I prepared to leave, bringing our short reunion to a close.

“You’re already going?”

“Yes, like I said before, there are still things I need to take care of.”

Father glanced briefly at the gifts I had handed him.

Instead, he looked with pity at the dark circles beneath my eyes.

“Don’t overdo it. You look more tired than before.”

“Haha… Once this is all over, I plan to sleep for a few days straight.”

The baronet nodded as if he understood.

Then he walked with me all the way to the garden’s edge to see me off.

I didn’t look back at him, quietly leaving the village behind.

Because I didn’t want to show him the face of a secretary from a past life.

All that remained was the final revenge.

“……”

I climbed into the returning carriage.

Just then, the waiting coachman handed me a letter.

“Sir, it came from the Northern Grand Duke’s house.”

“I see.”

A hawk sat on top of the carriage roof.

It was the same one Father had seen earlier—Eric of the Northern Grand Duke’s household’s message hawk.

I glanced at the bird briefly, then shifted my gaze back to the letter.

Message hawks were on a different level from carrier pigeons, which could easily have their information intercepted.

Which meant, this letter contained urgent and highly important content.

And, just as expected…

“He’s finally decided.”

Its contents were as heavy as gold.

「Roger, that method you mentioned. Let’s give it a try.」

「See you at the Luton family banquet tomorrow.」

I quietly crumpled the letter.

Then shoved it into the small brazier I used to light my cigarettes.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, sir.”

Maybe it was because the final showdown was so near—

But today, I really did feel more tired than usual, just as Father had said.

Even so, my mind was clearer than ever.

Just like Robin Julius when he strode onto the battlefield.

It seemed the blood of a knight—of a gambler—ran through my veins too.

Once all this was over, I planned to build a small house in Cosmo village.

And tend a vegetable garden.

‘Yeah, a tomato garden would be nice.’

“I’ll need to go south soon, so get the wheels checked in advance.”

“Are you referring to the one you’re currently riding, sir?”

At the coachman’s question, I shook my head calmly.

And within the carriage’s dark shadows, my jet-black eyes gleamed.

“All 100 we rented.”

All 100 carriages I had reserved would be heading south together.

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