I Will Try to Save My Dad - Chapter 12

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 12

When I asked if Father would become Theon’s teacher, his eyes gleamed with anticipation.
“A teacher, you say. I’ve never taken on a disciple before.”
Father took a bite of cake and feigned contemplation. In my line of sight, I could see Theon’s anxious back of his head and Father’s serene profile.
I knew that expression of his well. A face devoid of any real deliberation. He had already decided to take Theon as his disciple.
‘Father… Theon is only ten years old….’
Marshall once told me that Father possessed a natural gift for push and pull. His unintentional actions made people pine for him, she said.
That’s why quite a few adults had approached him, hoping to take my mother’s place.
“….”
Theon, ensnared by Father’s natural talent, fidgeted anxiously as he awaited his response.
Father glanced at Theon and lifted the corners of his mouth.
“If you don’t mind having a retired Grand Master as your teacher, I’ll take you as my disciple. In exchange, you’ll need to watch over Berie from the side to make sure she doesn’t cause any major trouble. That’s my condition.”
“…Yes!”
He just openly called it surveillance….
Still, it was the moment Father became the future Crown Prince’s teacher. I offered Theon my congratulations.
“That’s wonderful!”
“Yes…!”
Ugh. It was blinding. Theon’s eyes sparkled as he turned to look at me.
Had he been looking at our Father with those eyes the whole time?
‘I…!’
I couldn’t have been more envious. I had exhausted myself today trying to befriend Theon—dangling bait to Anne, walking all the way to the West Gate, getting scolded by Grandfather, and even having to explain myself to Father!
‘Wait…?’
Then I realized something astonishing.
If I had just let Father meet Theon first and asked him to introduce me, Theon’s favor would have followed naturally, wouldn’t it?
“…Why didn’t I….”
I froze, fork still in hand, struck by the realization.
In my pocket, I still had the Stone House that I’d be scolded for losing. In the meantime, a pristine strawberry without a single fork mark was carefully placed on my plate in one hand.
Theon had given me the strawberry from his own cake.
“Hm? Theon, aren’t you going to eat it?”
“I have some here.”
Theon pointed to his plate. The two strawberries that Father and I had given him remained untouched on his plate.
Since he had no aversion to cake, he couldn’t dislike strawberries. He must be the type who savors delicious things.
I’m the type who eats them right away.
Hehe. I picked up the strawberry Theon gave me with my fork.
“Thank you for the meal!”
The strawberry, dusted with whipped cream, was tart and sweet.

***

That early evening.
I was alone in my room writing a reflection when the first floor grew noisy, so I headed down to the lobby.
Sherry had returned from the Main Estate, pushing a cart laden with groceries.
“I managed to get more ingredients allocated from the steward! Sugar, butter, and flour too!”
Sherry, who had left with her sleeves rolled up complaining about the discriminatory distribution of supplies, now wore a satisfied expression.
It must have been a victory hard-won after badgering the steward for at least four hours. I offered her a round of applause.
“Is there anything you’d like me to make for you?”
“Oh! I want cookies! Sherry, could you make some for my friend too? His name is Theon—he’ll be staying here with us from today.”
“I heard. That he’s become your father’s disciple.”
Sherry chuckled.
Sherry, the daughter of my father’s former nanny, had known him since childhood. Perhaps that’s why the fact that he’d taken on a disciple seemed quite intriguing to her.
“Of course I should make some for your friend as well. Where are your father and his friend right now?”
“Father went to the Training Grounds to meet Rex, and Theon went to the Knight Order Barracks to get his things.”
“Commander Rex? The way you call him ‘mister’ suggests that Berry’s investigative skills were on full display again.”
Sherry even hummed a tune, clearly savoring her victory over the steward.
“Sherry, didn’t you see Anne?”
“Anne?”
“Grandmother called for her, so she went to the Main Estate.”
“…Hmm, I haven’t heard anything about that. Let me look into it.”
Wasn’t there an odd silence just then? But Sherry’s expression remained unbothered as she and the other maids carried the cart’s spoils to the kitchen.
I watched the maids disappear, their excited voices discussing what to prepare, when something suddenly occurred to me.
‘Oh, the candies!’
That’s right—I had spoils of my own!
I hurried upstairs to my room, retrieved the jar of candies Grandfather had given me, and brought it back down. I intended to distribute them among the maids.
I was walking toward the kitchen on the first floor and about to knock on the closed door.
“Sherry, what do you mean? Anne is going to be punished?”
I froze.
A startled voice came from the kitchen. I stopped my hand before it could knock.
Anne is being punished?
‘Why?’
The wooden door, poor at soundproofing, let the kitchen’s voices through quite clearly. I pressed my ear against it and focused on the conversation.
Sherry spoke.
“The mistress’s pearl earrings were found in Anne’s home. You know, the place she shares with her brother.”
The place she shares with her brother.
That referred to the Servants’ Quarter, located between the outer and inner walls of the Trabel Estate.
Then the voices of the other maids followed.
“Pearl earrings? The ones that went missing a few days ago and caused such a commotion?”
“Why would those be found in Anne’s home?”
“Oh my, what’s this about? I think I know. Anne worked at the Main Estate for a bit, didn’t she? Everyone was in such a frenzy the day Young Master Leitan arrived, so at that time….”
The maidservants’ voices, carefully speculating about what had happened to Anne, grew progressively quieter. I too found myself pressing my ear closer to the door.
The day Father and I arrived….
“What are you doing here?”
Eek.
Someone spoke to me from directly behind with a calm voice. Startled, I spun around to find Theon standing there.
It seemed he had already finished organizing his personal belongings at the Knight Order Barracks.
I offered an awkward smile and mouthed words to Theon.
‘Wow, you’re here?’
Theon nodded. Then he alternated his gaze between the wooden kitchen door where the conversation was flowing out and me.
Whatever he was imagining, Theon whispered to me with a serious expression.
“Don’t cause trouble.”
“Shh. I’m not causing trouble. I was just wondering if it would be okay to join in while the adults were talking.”
“….”
Theon said nothing more, but there was no trust in the way he looked at me.
Of course, there was no denying that I was eavesdropping….
From the kitchen came continued speculation about Anne’s situation and her potential punishment. It seemed I had heard all the important details.
“Let’s go somewhere else. The sisters seem to be in the middle of an important conversation.”
I took Theon’s hand and slipped out of the Corridor where the kitchen was located.
‘The culprit behind the pearl earring incident is Anne?’
Hmm. I don’t have enough information.
Based on my experiences so far, it was impossible for my other self to know the entire future through memories.
‘I remember the personal details of the Trabel Family members because my other self conducted a thorough investigation of thirteen years’ worth of Trabel Family records around the time she turned twenty.’
There were roughly two categories of unknowable futures.

1. Events my other self never experienced
2. Events my other self experienced but naturally forgot as time passed

This case fell into the former category. I knew who the culprit was from what I’d read in Serber’s butler’s journal, but I had no idea about the circumstances surrounding it.
Moreover, my previous self had died at twenty-four. I couldn’t possibly remember the details of something that happened when I was seven years old.
‘The butler’s journal did have relevant information… but I still don’t understand how Anne got involved in this.’
Once we were far enough from the kitchen, Theon stopped me. There wasn’t a single person around us.
“What is it?”
“Does what the maids were talking about in the kitchen have something to do with a maid named Anne stealing pearl earrings?”
I hadn’t expected Theon to ask such a question, so I opened my eyes wide in surprise.
“How do you know about that?”
“I heard it while packing my things at the barracks. They said a maid who came to the Training Grounds stole the Grand Lady’s earrings.”
Indeed. News about theft seemed to spread quickly through the Knight Order Barracks. Theon’s information might actually be more accurate than what Sherry had heard from the Main Estate.
“And? Was there anything else?”
At my question, Theon’s expression grew serious.
“It seems someone ordered the maid to steal the earrings. And since they belonged to the Grand Lady, collective responsibility could be placed on your master. That’s what Miss Mariane claimed… Ah, collective responsibility means holding your master responsible for the maid’s wrongdoing—”
“Collective responsibility? They’re blaming my father for Anne’s theft?”
“Y-yes.”
I was flabbergasted by such absurdity. It was like saying someone stole from the shop next door, so we should compensate them!
“The pearl earrings went missing from the Main Estate, Anne was working at the Main Estate before she came to Stone House, and my father arrived at Trabel four days ago. How does collective responsibility even make sense? Theon?”
“….”
Theon shook his head with a bewildered expression.
See? Even Theon thinks it doesn’t make sense.
“Right? It doesn’t make sense, does it?”
What made it even more ridiculous was that the person claiming collective responsibility was Aunt Mariane. Such an unreasonable argument…
might actually work. Mariane was second in line, after all.
Sigh. I wish these eight years would pass quickly.
Being the lowest rank is truly miserable.
“Your master will be troubled by this.”
“Don’t worry, Theon.”
“You have a good solution for your master, don’t you? Since you’re a Grand Master?”
Theon’s face brightened. I responded with equal brightness.
“I don’t.”
“…What?”
“My father doesn’t care about such trivial matters!”
In fact, he’d probably think it worked out well. It’s perfect for maintaining my lowest-rank status.
‘Still…’
It’s unfair to just accept this, isn’t it?
The real culprit who stole the pearl earrings is someone else entirely.

***

Mariane, the eldest daughter of Count Trabel, frowned at the man entering her room.
Gray trousers with a stripe pattern, a vibrant handkerchief, a jacket embroidered with flowers, and voluminous ruffled sleeves spilling from beneath the jacket.
All crafted from premium fabrics, yet excessively ornate.
“What is that outfit? It hurts to look at.”
“Sister, this is the fashion trending in high society these days. We must cater to young people’s tastes if we want to sell clothes. Our atelier’s sales have already far exceeded our first-half targets. At this rate, your Separate House will be mine in four years.”
“How many years will it take to sell scraps of fabric like that?”
Mariane rolled her eyes. Yosel, Count Trabel’s third son, collapsed onto the sofa across from her, crossing his legs. He leaned his back against the cushion once, then, unable to contain his impatience, leaned his upper body toward Mariane.
“That’s faster than letting a bastard take your Separate House, at least. But have you heard? They say that bastard visited the Temple today. Can the Grand Master return so easily? Surely not, right?”
Yosel’s foot twitched anxiously as he muttered to himself.
Decades had passed since Julia, now deceased, had entered as the second wife, yet the first wife’s children still called her a concubine.
“I wouldn’t know. How could I understand the Church’s inner workings?”
“Ah—. Something smells off. Where else would Father use Raytan if not for some other purpose? It seems there’s some kind of dealings with the Church….”
“Wait and see, Yosel.”
“Why? Do you have some clever scheme in mind?”
“Not exactly clever.”
Mariane smiled faintly. She fanned herself lightly with the fan in her hand and spoke.
“Let’s see how far a penniless commoner can go.”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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