The Isolated Marchioness Just Wants to Make a Living - Chapter 246

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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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Part 2, Episode 51
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The warehouse was indeed packed with stored goods, just as Silvia had said. I found a sack of dried corn among them.
I’d suspected as much when she mentioned livestock feed. On the continent, corn was a crop consumed far more by beasts than by people. Unless truly starving, folks made wheat or rice their staple.
“Thank goodness.”
I checked the corn variety and let out a sigh of relief. I’d verified it just to be safe—the kernels were hard and sturdy, perfect for the food I’d be preparing.
“Alpheus, help me move this, will you?”
“Sure thing!”
The yellow, firm kernels had lost nearly all their surface moisture. That was only natural—corn wasn’t a winter crop.
That’s how we brought the dried corn to the kitchen.
The kitchen staff were already bustling about following my instructions.
“Put a little butter or lard in the pot, and heat it until it’s hot. Not too high a flame.”
Next, I dumped in the corn kernels and told them to stir it a few times with a wooden spoon.
“Drape cloth loosely over the opening. We need to contain what pops out.”
“Pardon?”
The staff, who’d been following my orders without question, looked startled.
“What, what’s popping out?”
“Just wait.”
At first, indeed, nothing happened.
But as the pot heated up and the temperature rose, I heard a dry crackling sound from inside. Then came tick-tick, tack-tack, pop—a series of cracks echoing through the pot.
“Shake the pot. Don’t let it burn. Keep it mixed evenly. Temperature control is crucial.”
I gave the orders quickly, and soon white fluffy bits began pushing through the cloth and bursting into the air.
The old kitchen maid’s eyes went wide.
“Oh! This is—this is a snack poor families used to make when food was scarce…….”
“What?”
Silvia’s eyes went round.
“What is this?”
I pulled back the cloth from the pot and picked out a single kernel—perfectly popped, white as snow—as I answered.
“Popcorn.”
Corn yielded abundant harvests and grew well even on poor soil, and it kept excellently in storage.
So it had spread quite rapidly. But in people’s minds, it carried a strong image as livestock feed—often dismissed as cheap peasant food.
Especially in the Western Region, where bread culture flourished, corn didn’t rise as well as wheat, so it never truly integrated into local cuisine.
“This much has novelty and appeal.”
I spoke matter-of-factly.
“It goes well with beer as a snack. A handful of corn can fill an entire pot, so supplying it all night will be easy.”
Silvia, having tasted a piece, tilted her head.
Alpheus just tossed a handful into his mouth, and his expression showed equal bewilderment.
“Hmm…… Brisa, it’s just…… plain?”
Then the old maid stepped in carefully.
“We used to sprinkle salt on it. Like this…….”
When she sprinkled salt on the popcorn, Alpheus’s face brightened as he tried another handful.
“Oh, this is good! I think it’ll go great with beer!”
“We can make it even more delicious.”
I gave quick instructions to the kitchen maids.
Popcorn had many variations.
“Heat butter, sugar, and molasses in a pot. When it reaches a nice caramel color, add baking soda and toss it with the popcorn. That makes caramel popcorn.”
Popcorn was quite versatile in its applications.
“Do we have cheddar cheese powder? Brush the popcorn lightly with melted butter, then coat it with the cheese powder. That’s cheese popcorn.”
Fortunately, Baron Forman’s Estate had plenty of ingredients on hand.
I made garlic herb popcorn by mixing garlic powder and herb powder, and at Silvia’s insistent request, I made chocolate popcorn as well.
“This is fun! And it tastes good!”
Silvia spoke in excitement.
I gazed at the pots brimming with popcorn and spoke with quiet satisfaction.
“Well then, this should be plenty for everyone to enjoy at the festival tonight. We can pass out the popcorn we’ve already made, and we could even put on a performance of making it fresh on the street. It’s quick and easy to make.”
The children who’d been bored surely would be enchanted by caramel popcorn tonight.
“It’s made from a winter storage crop, so it fits the festival’s purpose well enough.”
Popcorn and festivals went hand in hand—everyone would obviously enjoy it.
“Now, go tell the witnesses.”
I patted Silvia’s shoulder as I spoke.
“Say that Leopold used Air Strike. Tell them he got drunk on his first taste of spirits at his fiancée’s coming-of-age ceremony, and got overly excited when he heard about this new snack she wanted to try. Of course, he’ll compensate for twice the damage caused.”
At my words, Silvia jumped up.
“Wait, is today your birthday? So you came of age today?”
“Yes. And I thought I’d try some beer for the first time today because of it.”
I continued calmly with my instructions.
“Say that Leopold has sworn he’ll never make excessive displays of affection after overindulging again. Everyone’s drunk anyway, so they’ll sweep this up as a fun little episode.”
Silvia mumbled in confusion.
“Is that really damage control? I mean, I’m quite delighted that Leo’s image is ruined, but…….”
“We can’t help it. By ordinary standards, this is our first attack. Right now, we have no information, so revealing the truth would only compound the confusion.”
Everyone could see it was Air Strike, so if we denied it was Air Strike, we’d only breed distrust. We had to mix truth and falsehood carefully and spread both.
“Leopold will think the same way. He’ll anticipate where the second attack might occur based on this one, identify the pattern, and plan his response. He might eventually make a public announcement if pressed, but he’ll want to finish everything quickly before it comes to that.”
“Eh? Um…….”
Silvia hesitated, her eyes darting about.
Alpheus offered her comfort.
“You don’t have to understand everything, Young Lady. Just do as you’re told—that’s always been enough for me.”
“Now then, we’ll finish up here, so you go find out Leopold’s whereabouts.”
I spoke, eyes glinting.
“He’ll likely be heading straight to the second attack location we’re predicting.”
My fiancé, who had gifted his bride-to-be the finest coming-of-age ceremony and then rushed off to rebury his father in a coffin where he’d risen from the grave.
Leaving him alone tonight would be far too cruel.
* * *
Leopold rode hard and arrived at the plains of Baron Forman’s territory, where the attack had occurred.
“Leo!”
Baron Forman and a handful of knights he’d brought hurried to meet him.
The meadow, now cordoned off from outside entry, lay desolate.
“Ah…….”
Leopold’s maternal grandfather grasped his hand but couldn’t bring himself to speak.
The report that Baron Forman had caught a terrible flu was a lie.
He was a retired intelligence agent, but he did his utmost to keep secrets and track the mysterious assailant’s movements.
“Thank goodness there were no casualties.”
Leopold exhaled heavily and looked around.
The fields bore the unmistakable marks of Air Strike, with crops devastated everywhere. The defensive magic circles and garlic hung around the farm perimeter had been completely swept away.
“……I should probably examine the livestock first.”
Leopold spoke quietly to Baron Forman and entered the farm. Cattle, pigs, and horses struck by Air Strike lay collapsed.
As Leopold examined the dead livestock, he let out a groan.
“As I thought.”
Clear fang marks were visible.
He’d heard that in the Northern Region, vampires had drained livestock blood this way. It seemed almost certainly the work of vampires.
The assailant had used Air Strike to slaughter the livestock, and while a few people evacuated hastily, vampires had slipped into the now-empty farm and fed on blood to their heart’s content.
Since the supply of honey with a blood-like composition through vampire bait flowers had failed, they’d apparently devised this strategy instead.
In the end, everything was being done because of vampire food supply.
Leopold drew his dagger and slit open the pig’s belly. As expected, not a drop of blood came out.
“Ah…….”
Baron Forman let out a groan.
In other regions, unlike the Northern Region where livestock grazed freely, cattle were typically stolen at night. Vampires didn’t have enough time to feed openly in one spot.
Moreover, defensive scrolls should normally have been affixed to the pens to make them inaccessible.
But the situation had changed. Air Strike could kill massive numbers of livestock quickly, and it had stripped away all the defensive scrolls from a distance.
Baron Forman asked Leopold carefully as he stood in silence.
“But isn’t something odd? Vampires want human blood, so wouldn’t it be better to harm people? Why attack only beasts? And specifically at times and places where there’d be few people…….”

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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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