The Isolated Marchioness Just Wants to Make a Living - Chapter 258

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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 63
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What I promised to bring back to Sears from the Western Region was young chestnut saplings. Since they were common enough trees, I was able to secure good specimens quickly.
“The ground hasn’t frozen yet. This is the perfect time for the roots to establish themselves over winter.”
Chestnuts were deciduous trees, so planting them now—after the leaves had fallen and they’d entered dormancy—was seasonally ideal.
“Chestnuts prefer well-drained, gently sloping ground. This hill is perfect.”
The Sears hill didn’t collect water, and it had abundant sunlight. It even faced south.
“All the same, chestnuts hate waterlogging, so when you plant them, spread the roots well and pack the soil firmly around them.”
And so the young chestnut saplings began to take their places, one by one, across the hill.
Langsi, watching from my side, offered a comment.
“So when can we eat these chestnuts? If we want to harvest them by next autumn, they’d need to grow about as much as two of our Lord Marquis’s mechanical arms in a month…”
“It’ll take five years before we can harvest any chestnuts worth eating.”
I answered with my arms crossed.
“If we’re hoping for real profit, figure on ten years. Until then, it’s nothing but expenses.”
In reality, chestnut trees required different initial investment than ordinary crops. The upfront costs were substantial.
For the next five years, there would be weeding, fertilizing, pruning, and pest control—all costs, with no income in sight.
“Getting your investment back? At minimum ten years, and if luck’s against you, maybe fifteen.”
But chestnut trees produce nuts for thirty years or more. And once established, they’re not difficult to maintain.
“Chestnuts are different from fruit trees like apples, pears, or peaches. They need less pruning, store well, and you don’t have to replace the saplings often.”
I explained while gazing at the young chestnut.
“Ten years from now, even if I can’t manage the territory as carefully as I do today, these chestnuts will be providing income to Sears for a long time.”
Suddenly, the surroundings fell silent.
Philip was the first to move.
He dropped his shovel mid-task and knelt before me.
“What are you saying, Young Lady! This land is blessed to be managed by your capable hands—how could you speak such cruel words about leaving!”
Langsi staggered backward, shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“A substitute income stream for the Young Lady? What, do these trees grow peppered chestnuts?”
Alpheus’s lips trembled, and he gasped for breath before crying out.
“You’re abandoning the territory? Why would you say something so tragic, suddenly like this? And before you set off on a dangerous journey, no less!”
I sighed deeply. They were all making far too much of a fuss.
“Couldn’t you focus on a different point? The fact that I’m thinking about ten years from now means I’m planning to stay—it means I want to try something even bigger by then.”
After the Monster Wave was brought to an end by Leopold’s hand, I’d spent considerable time wondering what to plant on the low hill that had essentially become free land.
Though we now had money in our territory, and the location seemed ideal for chestnut trees, I’d hesitated for a reason.
Chestnut trees required less hands-on care than many other fruit trees. They didn’t demand advanced techniques.
‘If I’m going to stay in Sears, I’d rather grow crops that demand more attention and are more challenging to raise.’
There had been another crop I’d considered alongside the chestnuts—one with almost the opposite characteristics—but I’d decided against it.
“You know what? I’ve started having a dream.”
I tapped Alpheus’s mechanical arm as I spoke.
“This Empress who’s good at Magical Engineering—I think I could ask her for something. Then wouldn’t productivity across the continent increase dramatically? But for that, I’d need to study more myself… I’ve come to feel like it would be a waste to spend my whole life with only the knowledge I already have.”
There had been a time when venturing out into the world frightened me. I wasn’t an ordinary girl like Reana or Silvia, and I had no confidence I could blend in among new people.
But now it seemed like I could manage.
“For that to happen, I’ll need to eliminate all the Dark Mages and make this world safer. So I can do everything I want to do.”
Then tears began falling on the back of my hand. Of course they weren’t my tears—they were Alpheus’s.
“Brisa…. You’re saying you’d go to the New Continent? My goodness….”
I hadn’t meant to say it quite that far.
I’d only been thinking of studying a few books and starting correspondence with that Empress.
“I want to go too… How could I let our Brisa go there alone….”
“Please, compose yourself.”
All because of planting some chestnut saplings, the entire estate had turned into a sea of tears.
I sighed and issued orders.
“Finish planting the chestnuts. Anyone watching would think I’m leaving tomorrow. The road is still long ahead. Are you talking like this before we’ve even defeated all the Dark Mages? Stop getting ahead of yourselves.”
When I gave them a stern look, the workers finally resumed planting the chestnut saplings.
Alpheus sniffled loudly and cried out with determination.
“That’s right! I have to give my little sister wings! When this chestnut tree bears fruit, we should use the money from selling those nuts for her study abroad! That’s what an older brother does!”
I had no intention of studying abroad, and using chestnut sales to pay for it was even more absurd, but I didn’t see fit to dampen Alpheus’s melodramatic imagination. After all, it was boosting work efficiency.
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While we planted the chestnuts and took a brief rest, Duke Dibostane’s funeral was held uneventfully in the Eastern Region.
[The funeral ceremony proceeded without incident. Only Eastern residents were permitted to attend.
The cause of death was attributed to accidental fall. The state of the body was too gruesome to display publicly.]
I read carefully through the letter I’d received from Jerdian.
After deciding to involve myself in Eastern affairs, I’d hastily hired Jerdian as my Adjutant, and he’d proven as capable as expected.
Since he’d been a trusted associate of Alpheus even in the Original Work, I could rely on him.
[Everything has proceeded exactly as you anticipated, and the orders you’ve given will be carried out according to schedule.]
The fact that Jerdian was an Eastern man proved invaluable. He could move freely without being treated as an outsider within the Eastern Region.
Moreover, the Russell Count Territory, though it had suffered temporary poverty, had strong foundations.
‘When we went to capture Marcel, we were able to immediately mobilize several loyal sailors.’
Similarly, Jerdian himself could mobilize quite a few Eastern subordinates. And he had the strength to suppress them if needed.
‘Come to think of it, I haven’t mentioned to anyone that I’ve taken Jerdian on as my Adjutant yet.’
I hadn’t intentionally kept it secret, but since everything had been conducted by letter, it simply worked out that way.
‘Well… I’ll reveal it when we meet in person in the Eastern Region.’
The Western Region was probably quite busy right now. Hilberry and Leopold would be investigating the Dark Mage who had brought Xavier back to life. Since intelligence work had never been my specialty, I’d left it to them.
Time passed, and eventually the day of the will’s unveiling arrived.
Leopold was to come to our territory at dawn and transform. The logic was that holding him during Warp would make him seem most like a companion dog.
So that morning, before dawn, Leopold came secretly to the Sears Marquis Estate.
Rain had been pouring down since the early hours. The sky was dark, thick with clouds.
“This is rather unfortunate.”
Since security was paramount, he’d slipped in wearing a hood so that even the maids and knights wouldn’t notice.
“Sneaking in and out of my fiancée’s home like this. I haven’t done anything wrong, and yet…”
Leopold grumbled while climbing the wall, and I answered with a shrug.
“My position isn’t much better—having to welcome my fiancé like he’s a secret lover.”
As I held an umbrella over him, Leopold’s brow furrowed.
“A secret lover? That’s far too cruel and dreadful a term to even speak. We should avoid using such language going forward.”
“You’re being overly sensitive. ‘Secret lover’ is a standard dictionary term. It’s not slang or profanity.”
“Habitual speech can lower psychological barriers, you know. Someone named El is probably conducting research on that very topic. He’s been churning out papers on my interests for quite some time.”
“El retired long ago. He’s old and worn out.”
“If time permits, I’ll keep him by my side and have him write papers—perhaps on nutritious foods suitable for his palate.”
He spoke earnestly.
“Anyway, if we can’t rely on the academic world, we’ll raise it as the first item on the family council meeting that will be held after the marriage. A good time for that would be during our honeymoon. You, I, and all the council members will be present.”
I let out a small laugh in response.
“So you’re completely ruling out the possibility of three? I’ve duly noted your opinion that premarital pregnancy is absolutely forbidden.”
Then Leopold started in surprise.
“Brisa…. You haven’t become too close to Silvia, have you?”
He shook his head genuinely concerned.
“Your speech has become quite unrestrained. I think it’s best to keep your distance from such a harmful influence.”
“As I keep saying, I only use words registered in the standard dictionary. There’s no question of impropriety.”
While I countered logically, he stepped through the back door into the mansion. We’d originally planned for him to transform in the garden, but with so much rain, it seemed better to come inside.
“All right then. Come here, Baekgu.”
The moment I stepped into the corridor and gave the command, Leopold instantly transformed into a small dog.
But just as I was about to pick him up along with his clothes,

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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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