The Isolated Marchioness Just Wants to Make a Living - Chapter 250

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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 55
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That night.
We quietly laid Leopold’s father to rest in his original grave once more. This time, with that small portrait beside him.
Xavier’s face, gazing at young Leopold with affectionate eyes, had found peace.
Isabela startled when Leopold emerged from behind a tree at some point. She’d had her suspicions since the reception, but seeing him in person made her expression grow somewhat awkward.
“Um, ah.”
Leopold, returned to human form, looked immaculate.
Because he’d been in his animal form during the saddest moment, I would never know for all my life what expression he’d worn while witnessing it all.
Leopold shed not a single tear even before the grave. As if all his emotions had already been tidied away. Though surely it couldn’t truly be so untouched.
The aloof boy had grown into a young man who pressed his sorrow inward, keeping it locked away.
He covered Xavier’s coffin himself, whispering as he did.
“Rest well, Father.”
And then, supporting Hilberry, who remained at the gravesite, he spoke quietly.
“Thank you for all your service, Grandfather.”
Among us, only Alpheus continued to weep openly.
Isabela heaved a long sigh and dragged him by the arm.
“Go over there and cry. You’re making a scene.”
“Hic, hic-hic-hic…….”
“Ah, please.”
Alpheus, drowning in his grief, was pulled along by Isabela and vanished into the corner, sobbing openly.
“Waaah, waaa-waaaa…….”
Of course, Isabela’s heart was little different, and after a single sigh, she patted Alpheus’s shoulder with a sorrowful expression.
“There. Go ahead and cry.”
Her slow words carried a tremor, though she had once made up her mind to kill her father.
“Cry your heart out…….”
Leopold, who had buried the coffin with his own hands, stepped before me.
“Thank you, Brisa.”
His eyes were visibly dimmer, yet he managed even a faint smile.
“Because of you, Father was able to find his rest. I owe thanks to Marquis Sears and Lady Isabela as well, but the moment hardly seems right.”
Alpheus and Isabela were now clinging to each other as they wept.
Leopold glanced at them and let out a hollow laugh before continuing.
“To think you’d even call her a lady. I hadn’t expected even that much. Truly, truly grateful.”
The truth was, from the moment I drove the rod through him, Xavier could no longer move. But still, I hoped he would find his peace in his original form. That’s why I called Isabela.
“……And I’m sorry.”
I looked at him steadily.
Saying “thank you” and “I’m sorry” outright was already tremendous emotional expression for him. But no matter how I studied that sculpted face, as long as he was determined to hide it, reading deeper was impossible.
“Right now, Baron Forman Territory must be in chaos. The traces of Air Strike on the civilian houses would be evidence. Anyone investigating the dead livestock would realize the bloodsucking happened after the Air Strike struck, so it won’t be easy to pass it off as hunting vampires.”
He continued in an unfazed tone, his eyes cast slightly down.
“In Feber County, the vampires’ corpses remain…… but even so, similar logic applies, and the traces are far too extensive.”
Right. That region was truly devastated. Three people capable of using Air Strike had fought there.
“The aftermath can be managed, but confusion seems unavoidable. Whether we reveal the truth or come up with another excuse, we’ll need to find a way.”
“That’s right.”
I spoke plainly.
“You’ll need to issue a public apology to the Territory Residents tomorrow. It’s somewhat shameful, but you’ll have to make a firm pledge before them that it won’t happen again.”
“……What?”
Leopold reacted with a groan. It meant ‘what nonsense is that?’
“Because Baron Forman Territory has no chaos at all. Everyone is merrily enjoying the last night of the festival.”
At those words, even Hilberry, who had been leaning against a nearby tree, worn out and unsteady, opened his eyes wide.
“What did you say, Brisa?”
He questioned in alarm.
“You can’t mean Silvia had that level of ability? That’s impossible!”
The old man insulted his in-law’s granddaughter.
“She may follow orders well enough and understand instructions perfectly, but she must have stumbled when it came to execution!”
Still, he was accurate enough in his information—fitting for a Western Grand Duke.
I hurried to explain.
“I went and presented new festival food, and explained things convincingly. The only problem is my story contains some lies, so I need your cooperation.”
I shrugged once and spoke to Leopold.
“You were so overjoyed about my Coming of Age Ceremony that you became overly excited. After your first drink, you lost control and attempted to use Air Strike while drunk. I wanted to showcase new food, and you ended up leveling the field in the process.”
Hilberry and Leopold’s jaws both dropped simultaneously.
“You know our first engagement was thirteen years ago? During all that time, everyone was far too absorbed in hearing our passionate love story for the first time to pay attention to anything else. Moreover, it was an opportunity to commemorate the ruins of your dark history, preserved forever.”
In reality, they were delighted to learn of the Grand Duke’s first mistake after twenty-two years. If I’m honest, for the drunk crowd it was far more entertaining than popcorn.
“It’s not all a lie.”
I continued, watching the two still too stunned to speak.
“It is your first time drinking alcohol.”
Both Leopold and I had only sipped a single glass of wine and nothing more.
Of course, at the time we were both pretending to enjoy the party at our leisure. But in truth, neither of us was in a state of mind to drink freely.
“Then you learned of vampires appearing and went to Feber County. Your strength got out of control, and this happened.”
A perfect scenario.
“Destroying innocent lives based on a misinterpretation of your fiancée’s words is certainly the mark of a tyrant. But if you swear never to use Air Strike while drunk again, your past accomplishments might be enough to smooth things over sufficiently.”
Nogen’s honor could suffer damage. But that was better than the story spreading that Xavier, revived from the dead, was controlled by Dark Magic and went about using Air Strike indiscriminately.
Someone—though I didn’t know who—had clearly used Xavier intending to bring Nogen to ruin. The timing was perfect too, right when Leopold had returned to the continent.
“So you.”
I spoke to Leopold, who remained speechless.
“Other than your dignity and future plans to overindulge, you have nothing to sacrifice.”
From him, speaking so casually about the crisis awaiting Nogen tomorrow, I could sufficiently infer it. That had this tragedy remained unresolved, he would have released me.
He would have asked me to keep my distance until the commotion settled, even with Father’s matter resolved. Because from childhood, he’d hated nothing more than causing me even the slightest harm.
Our eyes met quietly.
Leopold hesitated for a moment, then spoke with feigned composure.
“That’s unfair. I still have a brilliant future ahead, and you’ve unilaterally blocked one of my limitless possibilities—becoming an official drunk. How do you plan to take responsibility for this crisis?”
“Please refrain from lawsuits. If we’re to contend with Nogen, we’d have to sell our territory’s pepper jars, and I really don’t want to do that.”
“I don’t want this made public either. Let’s settle it quietly, just the two of us. I’ll arrange somewhere with tight security soon, and we can proceed from there. Understand?”
Hilberry rose unsteadily then.
“Well, I’ve recovered my strength.”
Though it hardly seemed so…….
“I should return to the Grand Duke’s Residence now.”
He blinked his eyes once and patted Leopold’s shoulder.
“Go enjoy the festival in Baron Forman Territory with Brisa here. It should still be in full swing, and you ought to verify whether what Brisa says is true.”
Hilberry had always believed me unconditionally. So this was essentially him sending us off.
Hilberry rolled his eyes for a moment, then whispered.
“I can’t manage even Marquis Sears. You’ll have to handle that yourself.”
And he smiled faintly as he looked at Leopold.
“If you go to the festival and mingle with the crowd, reality becomes like a dream and misfortune like fantasy—you can bite your teeth and forget what you want to forget, if only for a moment. Of course, it will be only a moment, but still, today is a joyful day.”
Midnight hadn’t come yet. So ‘joyful day’ referred to my Coming of Age Ceremony.
“Even your heart, wandering through hell, can be deceived by heaven for tonight. Just for tonight.”
Hilberry, weary-looking, brushed Leopold’s hair once with his hand.
“I will carry all the wounds. You young people must enjoy your youth. Your father, asleep again, would wish for that too.”
Neither Leopold nor I could say anything.
We only bowed our heads as Hilberry walked unsteadily away and disappeared on horseback.

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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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