Chapter 65
“Welcome, Your Highness Leandro. What brings you here at this hour?”
The person being addressed as “Your Highness Leandro” was a young man who appeared to be in his late twenties. He had black hair, brown eyes, and a face that bore some resemblance to the late emperor.
With a displeased expression, the man spoke gruffly.
“I have no choice but to come at this hour since the Marquis is never at home.”
“Haha! My apologies. When I’m plotting with allies, the days just seem too short.”
“What exactly are you preparing? When will I finally become emperor?”
At this, Isaac smiled faintly.
“What we’re currently working on is precisely that—restoring your rightful position. It won’t be much longer now.”
“I feel like I’ve been hearing that ‘not much longer’ for years. I’ve already spent 15 years here. I want to become emperor before I turn thirty.”
“Of course, Your Highness. It shall be so.”
Leandro’s previously dissatisfied expression softened at Isaac’s confident reply.
Isaac turned to the attendant who had followed behind Leandro and asked,
“How has His Highness been recently?”
“As always, he has been fully dedicated to his studies. He consistently earns high marks in his courses on statecraft and diplomacy.”
Hearing this, Isaac nodded with a satisfied expression.
“As expected of the future emperor. Your Highness will be a wise and intelligent ruler, unlike Dimarcus Tuberin, who learned little other than how to fight on battlefields.”
“Naturally. And don’t worry—I won’t forget the Marquis’ kindness in finding and raising me, an orphaned child.”
“All I desire is for Your Highness to become a great emperor.”
“So modest. But rest assured, I don’t forget grudges or kindnesses.”
“I am honored, Your Highness.”
Isaac bowed deeply to Leandro. Watching Isaac with a proud expression, Leandro apologized for taking up his time and returned to his room with his attendant.
Isaac continued to bow until the door closed. Once it did, he raised his head, a sly smile playing on his lips.
A loyal subordinate who had bowed alongside him glanced at the closed door and murmured,
“He wasn’t like this as a child, but he’s becoming more like the late emperor as he ages.”
“Of course, he should. Otherwise, who would believe he’s the late emperor’s child?”
Isaac sat in a comfortable chair by the window and lit a cigar. As he exhaled white smoke, the room took on an oddly ominous atmosphere.
“The Duke of Lancaster really made a foolish move. If you don’t like the emperor, just replace him. Why bother with the hassle of pursuing independence?”
The subordinate who had lit the cigar for him replied,
“He didn’t have a viable replacement to support as the new emperor.”
“True, that’s the most critical issue.”
Isaac chuckled darkly.
The Duke of Lancaster had tried to crown himself as king, but Isaac had no interest in such a cumbersome endeavor.
Instead, Isaac found it much easier and quicker to control the emperor and become the true ruler of the vast empire from behind the scenes. He already held a card in his hand to replace Dimarcus.
Neither the Duke of Barrington nor the Marquis of Tolrain—both allies of the Marquisate of Winblair—were aware of this fact.
“The final victor must be the Marquisate of Winblair, not the three great houses.”
A wicked grin spread across Isaac’s lips.
The day after Barbara met with Idel and left, the servants of the Crissus Count’s estate found themselves busier than ever.
They had to remove the decorations and paintings that filled the mansion and move them into the annex. At the same time, the now seemingly barren mansion underwent a thorough cleaning.
Despite the sweltering July heat and the monumental task of cleaning the entire estate, the servants did not complain much, thanks to Idel’s attentiveness in monitoring their energy levels and well-being.
“Phew, you’ve all worked hard. Starting tomorrow, you’ll have a bit of a break for a week. Rest well tonight,” Idel said.
“Thank you, ma’am!”
“Well done, everyone!”
The sweat-drenched servants scattered to wash up or grab a quick meal. However, Idel couldn’t afford to rest just yet.
Lasslona and Rinia had already handed over full authority for refurbishing the estate to Idel, and she was pouring her heart into the project.
“Sister—oh, I mean, Housekeeper, you should take a break too,” Daisy said, approaching Idel with a glass of cool water after seemingly heading toward the kitchen with the other maids.
“Thank you, Daisy. I needed this,” Idel said with a bright smile, drinking the refreshing water gratefully.
Daisy, smiling back at Idel, glanced around at the house, now completely stripped of Marsha’s touch, and remarked,
“I never realized how spacious and beautiful this house really was.”
Idel merely chuckled.
The Crissus mansion was the largest residence on Patrice Street. Built 20 years ago, it had once been the home of the late emperor’s sister until her passing.
After standing vacant for a time, it was thoroughly renovated by the current emperor and gifted to Lasslo.
It’s almost impressive how they managed to ruin such an elegant and stately mansion.
The grand hall, which could have easily drawn praise even if left alone, had been cluttered with cheap paintings and artificial flowers.
Artificial flowers, Idel thought, recalling her shock when she first saw them.
On top of that, the house had been filled with all sorts of questionable statues, unnecessary furniture, chairs, clocks, frames, vases, candlesticks, and even a piano that wasn’t tuned—items of unclear origin.
The annex is overflowing because of all that junk.
Once the main mansion was properly organized, the items in the annex would be sorted. Some would be kept, while most would be sold off or discarded.
“The Crissus estate is going to change,” Idel said confidently.
“With you here, it’s bound to,” Rinia interjected, appearing unnoticed.
Startled, Daisy hastily took the empty glass from Idel and scurried off to the kitchen, still shy around Rinia.
Watching Daisy retreat, Rinia chuckled before surveying the hall, much like Daisy had done earlier.
“Leaving it as is wouldn’t be so bad, though.”
“I don’t plan to make major changes here. I’ll just add a few tasteful sculptures,” Idel explained.
“Hm… so you’re saying the previous decorations weren’t exactly ‘tasteful’?”
The question was tricky, considering Rinia had approved those decorations in the past.
But Rinia wasn’t one to take offense over such matters. In fact, she was the most excited about the mansion’s transformation under Idel’s guidance.
“To be fair, I was only 16 or 17 back then—a commoner girl with no clue how nobles lived.”
“I understand. You probably had no choice but to rely on Marsha’s advice.”
“She claimed to know everything. Her relative worked as a royal maid, and she’d been through several noble households. She insisted I leave it all to her,” Rinia admitted, shaking her head at her naivety.
Thinking back, Rinia wondered how she had fallen for Marsha’s grandiose claims. But as a young girl suddenly thrust into nobility, she had no one else to depend on.
“There were a lot of things Marsha insisted on buying that I didn’t like. But she pushed for them so aggressively…”
“She likely wanted to purchase as much as possible to skim money off the top,” Idel said knowingly.
Rinia let out a scoff. “The nerve of her—stealing from my brother, no less.”
Idel refrained from pointing out that Marsha’s actions were only possible because she had disrespected both Lasslo and Rinia.
“She probably started small, then grew bolder as she got away with it. By the end, it was likely just a habit,” Idel said.
“What an idiot. What’s the point of buying a house with stolen money when my brother ends up owning it?”
“Actually, the Count took a loss there. He had to pay off the loan Marsha used to buy the house before reclaiming it. Of course, he charged Marsha for it, but who knows when she’ll actually repay it…”
What was even more ridiculous was how Marsha had cried her eyes out when the house was taken, as if she were the victim of some unjust oppression.
“Anyway, Idel, you’ve had a hard time because of Marsha too. I’m sorry for how I treated you back then—I let myself be swayed by her words,” Rinia murmured apologetically.
Idel simply laughed. She had never held a grudge against Rinia, but seeing her express remorse made Idel feel even more warmly toward her.
I’ll help Rinia become someone no one can ever look down on. A true noblewoman.
Resolving this silently, Idel felt a renewed sense of purpose.
The next day, Idel accompanied Rinia to a renowned art gallery. Their warm reception there was thanks to a letter of introduction personally written by Barbara.
Soon, they’ll welcome us even without Barbara’s introduction, Idel thought, smiling as she recalled the weighty checkbook in her bag.
Today’s visit was to select paintings to adorn the walls of their newly transformed home.
Will the chapters be accessible to the public at some point or do it only have to be purchased? Anyways, thanks for the clean translation.
Will the chapters be accessible to the public at some point or do it only have to be purchased? Howevwe, thanks for the clean translatio, pls don’t abandon this novel.
Hey Lilopop. No the novel will not be dropped and yes the chapters do get unlocked every time I post new ones. Stay tuned, new chapters are on their way
Muchas gracias
amo esta novela siento que van a ser una pareja tan genial