I Will Try to Save My Dad - Chapter 75

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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 75

Sapphire House.
“Calips, where are you going?”
Calips stopped in his tracks as he was about to step outside the entrance and turned around. Despite it being the weekend, Mariane was dressed impeccably from head to toe without a single flaw.
“To the stables. I thought I’d get some fresh air.”
“What about your studies?”
“I did them this morning.”
“If you keep running outside whenever sitting becomes difficult, how will you ever develop the habit? Go to your room and read a book. Before dinner, you’ll tell me what you’ve read.”
Calips swallowed a sigh. Studying even on weekends. It was suffocating.
“We agreed to start studying on weekends from next year….”
“What did you say?”
Mariane’s eyes were sharp. Calips had no choice but to enter his room and pick up a book.
My mother had been pressing me like this ever since the last monthly evaluation.

“An average of 80 points.”

It was the day I’d returned home with my report card, my heart soaring with excitement. My mother stared at the report card in silence before asking me.

“Didn’t you study hard for this exam?”
“Yes! That’s why—”
“You studied hard, and yet you only managed 80 points.”

Only. I couldn’t believe my ears at that word. I’d thought that with this score, my mother would surely praise me.

“From now on, don’t consider any score unless it’s 100 points.”
“…What?”
“For Diamond House to become ours, you must excel.”

After that came an suffocating environment of relentless studying under Mariane’s meticulous watch. Multiple tutors were assigned according to the number of subjects.
Yet despite this, my average score on the end-of-month evaluation was 75 points. It was because that mysterious study guide from an unknown source had captured the predicted questions better than the tutors Mariane had provided.
If I worked harder than before but my scores didn’t improve, wasn’t that the tutors’ fault?
Calips felt wronged.
‘But why should I struggle harder than the lowest-ranked student?’
He constantly skipped classes under the pretense of experiential learning, slept at his desk during breaks, and now didn’t even do his after-school assignments.
‘Diamond House isn’t something I should excel at—it’s my mother and father who need to succeed.’
For these reasons, his rebellious spirit and stress had intensified considerably lately.
Calips finished reading the last page of the book, then irritably closed it. He needed to report which book he’d read before dinner.
The door was slightly ajar.
“Edgar, did you really see it?”
Mariane’s excited voice drifted out. She was conversing with her husband, who had just returned from the Main Estate.
“I didn’t see it intentionally…. The head maid said Father’s been in a good mood lately, so I went into the Study to deliver the performance report directly, and….”
Mariane’s husband, Edgar Presto Trabel, made his excuses.
In truth, he had entered the unoccupied Study under the pretense of delivering the performance report, hoping to discover the reason for Count Trabel’s good mood.
While snooping around the Study, he brazenly opened a drawer at Laksek’s desk.
“I happened to see a letter….”
Edgar told Mariane nervously. At her husband’s words, Mariane smiled.
“Don’t worry. What matters is that you’ve brought me this information.”
This was actually fortunate.
Wasn’t that exactly why she had planted her people throughout Trabel?
“The most perfect jewel.”
Mariane’s lips curved upward.
“Father has always desired trade with the Dwarves. I must reflect this in my own achievements.”

***

The next day.
I led Theon and Jeffrey, who had finished their morning training, toward the western wall.
This was where the Red Eagle Knights Training Ground and the Hunting Grounds were located.
Since the Knight Order rested on the final day of the weekend, the area was sparsely populated.
“Theon, Jeffrey.”
Our Secret Society had gathered after a long time.
Standing at the entrance to the Hunting Grounds, I addressed them both.
“Today we’re going to—”
“Anne is making potato croquettes for us this evening!”
How delicious! Jeffrey and I cheered together.
“Berry, what are we doing?”
“Oh, right.”
I’d almost let the conversation drift elsewhere. I was grateful Theon had asked.
I quickly scanned the surroundings and asked both Theon and Jeffrey if they sensed anyone nearby. They had keener senses than I did.
“No one.”
Assured that we were alone, I revealed the true purpose of bringing them to the Hunting Grounds.
“Good. This must remain secret.”
“Secret? Is this a Secret Society matter?”
Jeffrey’s tail wagged, while Theon remained composed, clearly ready to listen.
“We’re going to search for treasure in the Hunting Grounds!”
“Treasure?”
“Yes! The pearl earrings from the Shusubia Archipelago!”
“…What’s that?”
It was natural Jeffrey didn’t know—the auction had taken place while he was at the Moonflower Inn.
Unlike the bewildered Jeffrey, Theon quickly understood.
“Isn’t that the item from the charity auction last time?”
“Exactly. But the one Aunt Mariane won was a fake. The real one is hidden in the Hunting Grounds.”
According to Serber’s butler’s journal, the real earrings had been discovered in a raven’s nest in the Hunting Grounds, causing quite a commotion.
Since things had remained quiet, it was clear no one had found it yet.
“The Twins took it from the Main Estate, but a raven stole it from them.”
Initially, I’d planned to search with Akum alone, but the Hunting Grounds were far too vast for just the two of us.
I turned to my reliable allies.
“Will you help me search for the treasure?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s do it!”

***

Tap! Thud!
Jeffrey bounded nimbly between the trees.
“Reporting! Nothing on this side!”
Whoosh! The leaves scattered in a spray.
Theon moved cautiously, sweeping his blade through the foliage that obscured his vision.
“Nothing here either, Berry.”
Patter-patter-patter.
Akum scaled the trees with his small frame, surveying the surroundings.
[Nothing up here either!]
Jeffrey, Theon, and Akum returned to the rendezvous point and reported their findings in turn. Our target was a raven’s nest.
“On my side—”
I was heading back to the rendezvous point to report on my assigned area when something caught my eye.
A dense thicket of trees nearby drew my attention. I had a peculiar feeling something was hidden within it.
As I parted the brush, I spotted what appeared to be ancient script tangled among the branches.
‘Ancient language!’
Moreover, it protruded above the ground. It looked like it had been left undisturbed for ages.
It had remained concealed so deeply in the brush that Akum must have missed it.
‘Did I forget there was ancient script here while I was sleeping? Perfect. I should help Akum with his work too.’
Excited to play the role of partner again after so long, I restored the water vein at that very moment.
Clink.
“Huh?!”
An unexpected sound captured my attention.
That clear, bright ring—!
“It appeared!”
A gold coin! There was ancient script here that Akum hadn’t restored even once!
“What?! Why?! Did you find something, Sister Berry?!”
“Berry, what is it?”
[Oh! There was ancient script there too?]
They all had sharp ears. My companions were rushing toward me upon hearing my voice.
Before they could reach me, I reached out to pick up the gold coin that had fallen outside the brush—
Whoosh—!
“Ugh.”
A large black object shot down to the ground and vanished, snatching away my gold coin.
‘No! My coin!’
I lowered my outstretched hand in disappointment and quickly looked up. It was a raven.
“Berry! You’ll get hurt if you run—!”
“A raven?! Sister Berry, is that the raven?!”
I chased the flying raven into the Hunting Grounds. Theon and Jeffrey ran alongside me.
Before long, the raven placed my gold coin into its nest high in a tall tree, then looked down at me and brazenly spread its beak wide.
“Caw.”
Wow. Is that bird seriously messing with me?
I was exasperated, but the tree was far too tall. It must have been the height of a three-story building.
That was when it happened.
Whiiiish—! Thwack!
Something sliced sharply through the air with a whistling sound, striking both the crow and its nest in rapid succession.
The crow, knocked unconscious by the blade’s impact, and the nest, its center of gravity destabilized, plummeted to the ground.
“Damn. Two targets with one strike.”
“Did Theon just do that?”
Jeffrey and I stared at Theon in disbelief at such incredible skill. Theon spoke with an unbothered expression.
“Yeah.”
Now that I thought about it, Theon’s physique had been visibly expanding day by day. Intense training, his growth spurt, and a high-quality diet rich in proper nutrients.
‘Isn’t Theon growing even larger than Theon Phil Igselona?’
My heart fluttered slightly before Jeffrey’s words snapped my head around.
“Wow! A treasure trove!”
Treasure!?
Jeffrey was rummaging through the fallen nest. I hurried over to his side.
My gold coins, having been placed there not long ago, rolled out of the nest, while the interior was cluttered with various items tangled among feathers and dust.
“There are pearl earrings too!”
“Oh!”
“What’s this?”
With a soft clink, Theon pulled a rust-corroded key from within the nest.

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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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