The Peaceful Life Of A Maid Who Hides Her Power And Enjoys It - Chapter 154

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 154

Count Rosebel and I denied it almost simultaneously.

“That’s not it.”

“That’s the opposite.”

Duke Kalpenweber looked like he was pondering which side to argue with. Then he soon turned to look at Count Rosebel instead of me.

“Why do you oppose it? You know well that there’s no groom as suitable as Duke Raphael in the Empire, no, on the entire continent.”

“It has nothing to do with whether he’s the best groom or not. Don’t you find it strange, Count? The fact that a man and woman would be joined and form a family based solely on the fact that she’s his sibling’s sister.”

Who’s being joined with whom? Isn’t this going too far?

“But there’s nothing wrong with His Grace the Duke’s attitude toward the Weatherwax Baroness, is there?”

“If it were the Duke of old, I would have viewed it favorably too.”

“You mean it’s different now?”

“Yes, he’s changed a lot now. He’s learned to discard unnecessary things. I’m not saying that’s wrong. He’s naturally in a position where he has no choice but to do so.”

Duke Kalpenweber nodded with a face that showed some agreement.

But I was more surprised by the fact that these gentlemen were utterly serious about other people’s love affairs than by the fact that Raphael had learned to discard unnecessary things.

“To be honest, I was quite surprised by what His Grace the Duke has shown recently. I thought he had completely abandoned his lingering feelings for Count Andert, no, Count Vladiev… but to think he’d be so obsessed with the Weatherwax Baroness.”

“Count Vladiev and His Grace had a relationship worthy of such feelings.”

“But he doesn’t have such a relationship with the Weatherwax Baroness. I don’t think it’s particularly problematic that His Grace equates the Baroness with Count Vladiev. But if the day comes when His Grace abandons his lingering feelings for Count Vladiev, his interest in the Baroness won’t be the same as now. He might even regard her as a thorn in his side. That’s what I’m concerned about.”

Only then did I understand why Count Rosebel had shown such detailed interest in romantic affairs, unlike usual.

‘He was worried about me.’

Come to think of it, he gave similar advice at the hunting festival banquet. I stepped forward to ease Count Rosebel’s concerns.

“It’s an unnecessary worry. I have absolutely no intention of being involved with Raphael beyond friendship.”

“…Hmm. Well, it’s fortunate that you say so.”

Count Raghwirten, who had been quietly watching, snorted and said.

“You’ve barely known each other for long, yet anyone would think Count Rosebel was the Weatherwax Baroness’s godfather.”

Count Rosebel snorted back at Count Raghwirten’s snort.

“Even if not a godfather, I’m at least her younger brother’s teacher. That’s quite a close relationship.”

“What? Who’s whose teacher?”

“Hmm. Have you gone deaf at such a young age? This old man said he’s the teacher of Andert Pager, no, Count Andert Vladiev.”

“A hero’s teacher, you say. You’re getting more presumptuous by the day. It’s a pity Count Vladiev left first – he would have seriously refuted that.”

While the debate was evenly matched, only I, who was actually at the center of the conversation, felt mild regret.

‘If I had known he’d be so happy about being called teacher, I would have called him that plenty before dying.’

It’s not even that big a deal.

But it wasn’t that my past self didn’t consider Count Rosebel and the Swordmaster as teachers. It was closer to not ‘daring’ to call them teacher. I thought they would be displeased if I called myself their disciple based on the few favors they had shown me.

Even when Count Rosebel himself joked, “Shouldn’t you and I share a drink as master and disciple at this point?” I thought it was just adult courtesy, not sincere.

But it was sincere, not courtesy.

Was I able to face this past misjudgment so belatedly simply because a lot of time had passed? Or because I’m no longer Andert?

‘If the latter is the answer, that would be a bit sad.’

Because it would mean Andert never knew this in his lifetime.

While the three heroes seriously discussed the criteria for being a teacher, I quietly stepped back and slipped away from them. The Swordmaster, who had been standing idly across the crossroads, greeted me.

“Did you chat well with your old comrades? Let’s go now.”

He naturally took my umbrella from me again.

Unlike Count Rosebel, who had gained more gray hair and deeper wrinkles over the past four years, I looked up at the man who still maintained an appearance similar in age to Andert.

Every time I see him, I realize anew how much influence eyes have on a person’s atmosphere. When I stared intently into the Swordmaster’s eyes, I felt like I was facing a battle-hardened veteran, not a thirty-year-old young man.

“If you have something to say, say it.”

The Swordmaster said.

I could see the castle gradually getting closer. Perhaps because I had just had various conversations with Count Rosebel, my heart felt restless. Count Rosebel was certainly an excellent teacher, but in truth, I had learned more from the Swordmaster.

‘So if Count Rosebel is my benefactor, the Swordmaster has to be the benefactor among benefactors.’

But the Swordmaster has many suspicious aspects. I can’t accurately grasp what he wants, and such mysterious aspects can sometimes be more dangerous than enemies who clearly show their desires.

Therefore, I didn’t want to become sentimental and softhearted when dealing with the Swordmaster. To reinforce that resolve, I decided to test the Swordmaster a bit more boldly than I had originally thought.

“I heard that Your Grace possesses Dian Ket’s hand mirror.”

Interest bloomed on the Swordmaster’s face, which had been frozen cold and hard like a marble statue.

“Yes, I own it. Just as you owned the eyeball and diary. Come to think of it, the diary was even stolen from you.”

“I don’t remember well. I think a maid from Weatherwax obtained something similar from somewhere.”

“How shameless. You must know that the crime of coveting imperial treasures is by no means light.”

“I just learned that for the first time. I’ll keep it in mind from now on. Of course, I’m someone who has no connection to that treasure.”

The Swordmaster chuckled and asked me.

“So. Are you telling me to hand it over?”

“Yes, I need Dian Ket’s hand mirror. I’ll pay whatever price you want, so please give me that item.”

After actually saying it out loud, I felt regret in an unnecessary area.

‘Count Rosebel’s inheritance… should I have just accepted the wealth?’

I boldly declared I’d pay the price, but what if the Swordmaster calls out a very difficult amount? What if he demands an impossible price? Then there’s no choice. Teacher, benefactor, whatever – I’ll steal it first.

But the Swordmaster’s reaction was much more rational than I expected.

“Why do you need that item?”

But that rational answer drew my mind into an even more complex maze.

‘Should I answer honestly?’

No, maybe not Raphael, but not the Swordmaster. It could become a weakness. Above all, the Swordmaster wasn’t the type to obediently hand over items out of sympathy alone.

“I can’t tell you that part.”

“If you can’t tell me, then it’s difficult on this end too. It’s being used in important experiments.”

“…Experiments?”

The Swordmaster looked straight ahead with contemplative eyes and answered very slowly.

“Dian Ket is a renowned healer. Dian Ket’s legacy has indecipherable ancient magic carved into it. If we can just extract it, we should be able to activate it without gathering all five.”

Extracting ancient magic through the legacy? It was a creative idea I had never thought of. So creative that I wondered if there was a problem with the Swordmaster’s logic.

“It’s magic carved by a demigod. How do you plan to activate it with just one legacy?”

“Your distrust is natural, Baroness. I too once thought there was no way to awaken the dead again. Until I saw the demon directly.”

The Swordmaster scrutinized my face closely with snake-like eyes. Then he soon showed a quite surprised expression.

“You’re not surprised. Was this something you already knew? To think you had approached it so deeply. Indeed, that Alpen Sereniye was no ordinary person.”

“So, where do you intend to use the extracted magic? Are you planning to revive some corpse?”

The Swordmaster skillfully responded to my sarcasm too.

“Mental treatment.”

“Mental treatment?”

“If it’s divine healing arts, it should be able to treat not just the body but also the mind. If ‘that’ can be defined as an illness.”

Mental treatment.

Jigharke Berkleighton, and mental treatment.

“The Berkleighton Family once led biomantic procedures.”

“I understand they received mental treatment through similar techniques. It was treatment for Mage War aftereffects.”

Are you talking about Mage War aftereffects?

‘But the sequence doesn’t match.’

Didn’t they say the war veterans received mental treatment long ago? That meant the treatment the Swordmaster mentioned was for someone else, not them.

Using the power of the demigod Dian Ket, no less.

“Who is it?”

Just who is it that would make the Swordmaster, called the Emperor’s Sword, sneak into the Royal Treasury and steal from it?

It’s definitely not the Emperor. If the Emperor had a mental illness, he would have just taken the diary instead of stealing it. Directly from the Emperor, the owner.

‘…Is that really so?’

What if the Emperor didn’t acknowledge his own mental illness? And thus the Swordmaster was independently seeking a solution?

“Who knows.”

“You’re old enough to be mature, so why do you have so many secrets? Would it hurt to just tell me?”

“It might hurt.”

The Swordmaster stared down at my face silently for a while. Soon he slowly straightened his back and let out a dry laugh.

“I already told you once. That I can’t be certain whether letting you meet would be beneficial or detrimental.”

At that moment. The brief conversation we had at the Ragal National Peace Garden came to mind.

“Do you trust Princess Natasha?”

“Speak honestly. I’m still not certain whether arranging a meeting between you and Princess Natasha would be beneficial or detrimental.”

After he brushed past me. I swallowed dryly and clenched my fists.

‘It wasn’t the Emperor, it was Natasha.’

What on earth had happened to Natasha?

The two servants standing side by side pulled open the tightly closed doors on both sides.

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