Timid and Shy - Chapter 26

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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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26.

Ever since discovering the Temple, Sophia had been restraining herself as much as possible. And yet she spent her days buried in the Temple and its books.
By night, she pored over Ancient Documents and Ancient Maps with a yearning heart, and as soon as morning came, she bolted toward the Temple.
Jack watched her go once more and shook his head.
“She’s clearly been bewitched by something in that Temple dedicated to the goddess Titania.”
John grabbed Jack’s ear as he spoke.
“Stop talking nonsense and tell me—did you finish everything I asked you to do?”
“What do you mean? You piled on so much work. How am I supposed to know what you’re talking about?”
“You’re supposed to know. You’d better know. Why do you think I’ve been holding onto you since this morning?”
Jack’s face lit up as if he’d just remembered.
“The horses!”
“That’s right. Now you remember? So what happened?”
“I got the list and sent out plenty of letters, but no one’s answered. Even Ariel won’t come to sell us horses. It looks like we’ll have to go buy them ourselves.”
“And you’re only telling me this now?”
John reached toward Jack’s other ear.
“I’m sorry.”
Gunter passed by watching Jack get a thorough beating from John, his bright smile never wavering. Jack glared at him through his pain, but Gunter’s smile only grew wider.
“Does that man smile every single day? His face must get sore. And I doubt he even means any of it.”
“Who are you to worry about him? Gunter works hard and conducts himself so properly. Even people who were wary of him at first because the Emperor sent him now get along with him comfortably. What about you? You’re nothing but a low-ranking errand boy, and you’re already running up debts?”
“Ow! Ow! That really hurts, Father. I just remembered what Mother asked me to do, and I don’t have the money for it—”
“Ah, so your mother asked you to buy flowers?”
“What? Oh, flowers?”
“What do you mean ‘what’? You owe money at more than one place?”
Gunter, who had been watching the father and son exchange, made his way toward Baron Ariel’s office. The Baron’s office was always open. At Sophia’s usual seat, one side was stacked with Ancient Maps and books, while the other held an additional pile of volumes.
When Gunter glanced in that direction, Baron Ariel sighed.
“She seems quite absorbed in it these days.”
“Isn’t that concerning? She’s always climbing the mountain alone—well, she calls it a Temple, but it’s a cave. If the Lord’s daughter is spending time alone in the mountains—”
“Since the Temple was discovered, the Border Guard has been patrolling all the routes there. Every morning and evening, they check to ensure no one else has entered the Temple. Besides, she’s been wandering Titania Mountain since she was six years old. She knows that range better than anyone. It’s practically her own backyard.”
“Still, you’re protecting her discreetly in your own way, aren’t you?”
“I can’t very well tell her to stop when she’s so excited about it. This way, at least my mind is at ease. What else can I do?”
Gunter smiled as he spoke.
“Do you know why Miss Sophia has taken such particular interest in the goddess Titania and the Temple?”
Baron Ariel smiled as he answered.
“I do, but I don’t think it’s a story I should be telling an Inspector. Let’s just say it’s because of childhood memories.”
Gunter looked at Sophia’s desk. He couldn’t tell whether the Baron was lying or simply didn’t know.
Something about Sophia’s obsession with the Temple and her study of Mythology suggested there was another purpose behind it. She called it a hobby, but Gunter had noticed she was writing a book.
She’d called horticulture a hobby too, but unlike any greenhouse he’d seen before, Sophia’s was filled with medicinal herbs and rare, valuable plants. Most of it was meant to be sold.
Sophia called them hobbies, but every action had a purpose. To Gunter’s eye, her interest in the Temple and Mythology seemed no different.
‘She definitely has a purpose.’
Gunter’s official duty was to oversee and audit expenditure budgets. His task was to monitor and audit how the funds sent down from the capital were spent—whether on luxuries for the Lord and his family or on living expenses.
But he had unofficial duties as well. Gunter glanced at Sophia’s desk, then smiled at Baron Ariel.
Most Lords disliked Inspectors because of those unofficial duties.
Assessing the state of the Domain.
‘That’s why they mock me as the Emperor’s puppet.’
Gunter sat at one desk and began writing a report. Baron Ariel glanced at him briefly, then returned to his own work.
Baron Ariel and his family were more unpretentious than any noble family Gunter had ever met. And they didn’t boast about it or consider it anything special.
They accepted their Domain’s circumstances and lived with them as they were. But not every poor Lord behaved as Baron Ariel did.
‘There are many who squeeze their people even more harshly when times are hard.’
Gunter could name at least ten Lords off the top of his head who, when their fortunes fell short, squeezed their people all the harder. Humble living and unpretentiousness were not virtues that poverty automatically bestowed.
In Gunter’s observation, Baron Ariel was a man who loved the Titania Mountain Range and Ariel from the depths of his soul. Whenever the Baron paused in his work, he would gaze out the window at Titania Mountain or look at the people in his office.
His eyes were full of affection.
His children were the same. Gunter was well acquainted with Alex, who had earned a reputation as a handsome man in the Capital. After marrying into a wealthy merchant family, he’d been absent—but now he was working diligently in Ariel.
Alex was wary of Gunter, but he didn’t look down on him or treat him disrespectfully. The Baron’s successor would likely become a Lord much like Baron Ariel.
Since discovering the Temple, Sophia had been moving outward. The impression she gave was quite different from what the rumors had suggested.
‘They said a poor, older lady had been wounded deeply and was barely scraping by. But she looks healthy, and she seems to be getting along well, pursuing modest hobbies.’
Yet there were too many suspicious details for her to be dismissed as merely a lady of leisure pursuing small hobbies.
Gunter thought that Ariel, which Westcombe had viewed as a weak House to use and discard, seemed far more solid than expected.
Two hundred of Umbriel’s garrison patrolled the Titania Mountain Range as though it were their own home, and there were many civilians who flew about the peaks as well. Having accepted all the elite soldiers that could be called Umbriel’s finest and sent them back to Umbriel, they would come running at once if Ariel called for aid.
Moreover, even without Baron Ariel present, both Alex and Sophia were immediately capable of acting as regent. The administrator John also seemed fit for the role.
‘All of them competent, and yet cooperating without conflict…….’
Certainly, allocating funds to such a domain was no waste. The Baron and Ariel’s administrator were pushing work forward with such urgency, as though someone might snatch the budget away at any moment.
They claimed it was because they were handling work that had been postponed for lack of funds, but to Gunter’s eye, they were simply moving with haste.
Though not in perfect condition for a border territory, there was no sense of anxiety. The relationship between the lord and the domain’s people was exemplary.
Gunter had written his report as honestly as possible, yet he was anxious about what reaction the Emperor might have to it.
After submitting the report, Gunter found himself reluctant to leave Ariel, and as he toured the domain, he committed every corner to memory.
He would even laugh deliberately whenever he saw Jack, teasing the man for good measure.

***

The Emperor received Gunter’s report from Caliburn and let out an incredulous laugh.
“It reads like a fairy tale. A lord beloved, his people revering and trusting him, following his lead—is that what this says?”
“The House of Ariel has always been modest, Your Majesty. They have long been known as lords who cherish their domain. The very purpose of maintaining strong border defenses was the protection of the people, so it is only natural.”
“Admirable. To maintain such solid family principles across generations.”
“It was likely possible because of poverty. Had there been abundance, sustaining such peace would have been difficult. Other domains would have consumed them. The border made the House of Ariel poor, but it also protects them.”
“If a man like Baron Ariel were to abandon his domain, that would indeed be a grave error on my part.”
Caliburn nodded. If a man like Baron Ariel were to relinquish his domain, one could hardly say the nation was being well governed.
The Emperor considered recalling Gunter, but hesitated. Sending Gunter to Ariel had partly been because of Umbriel.
If Robert gained even a modicum of power, Cressida would surely scheme. At worst, she could even fabricate a rebellion.
Gunter needed to remain close to Umbriel. To prevent an incident from occurring.
The Emperor set down the report and spoke to Caliburn.
“This Gunter fellow seems to be enjoying himself in Ariel. Let us leave him there a while longer.”
“Very good, Your Majesty.”

***

Having received the Emperor’s order, Gunter regretted having voiced his reluctance to leave to various people. Moreover, spurred on by Sophia, he had even sold his entire set of mountain equipment at a bargain to a man named Jason.
Baron Ariel smiled at the news that Gunter’s posting to Ariel had been extended for another year and spoke.
“Wandering about without purpose is hardly an easy thing. Which is why I should like to ask—”
“Ah……work, you mean?”
Baron Ariel continued.
“Precisely. Sophia mentioned you found our employment methods quite fascinating?”
“I……what?”
“Then I shall give you the chance to experience it firsthand.”
The administrator John entered just then and spoke.
“You’ve finally found a schoolmaster, then.”
Gunter saw Jack follow John into the office, but he could not help but smile. Jack was not glaring at Gunter as he usually did. Instead, Jack met Gunter’s gaze and smiled brightly.
And so Gunter took on the dual role of both teacher and auditor for Ariel.

***

Sophia remained devoted to the Temple.
Sophia had come to love ancient documents and Titania mythology because her mother had often told her stories of the Titania goddess when she was young.
‘Ariel’s ancestress. Sophia.’
Sophia Ariel had become a guardian protecting the tomb of the Titania goddess, and through the generations, the House of Ariel had lived at Titania’s side—or so the tale went.
The story always featured the goddess’s treasure. A gift the goddess had bestowed upon Sophia.
Young Sophia had harbored the grand dream of finding the goddess’s gift and making the domain wealthy, and from that moment she had begun her pursuit of treasures.
Baron Ariel had smiled at the child’s ambitious aspirations and supported her, providing access to the old House of Ariel texts he himself was too busy to peruse.
As long as Sophia observed a few simple rules, she could view the ancient documents and maps whenever she wished.
‘Do not remove them from the library, do not damage them, and handle them with great care.’
This was why Sophia had set up a desk in Baron Ariel’s office and established herself there. Baron Ariel regarded Sophia’s desk with eyes full of affection.
‘The goddess’s gift is probably you, after all.’
Inside the cave temple was an entrance leading to yet another cavern. Sophia stared at it.
“I hope it’s a gold mine or something like that.”
Sophia gazed at the newly discovered cave entrance with eyes gleaming with avarice.
Contrary to Sophia’s hopes for a gold mine, the cavern appeared to be a passage leading somewhere else.
There were no forks in the path, but uncertain where it might lead or turn, Sophia proceeded cautiously, unspooling twine as a safety measure. She marked her route with numbers on the walls as she went.
Strangely, even as she walked, she felt no sensation of descending, and yet she was clearly moving deeper. The growing cold confirmed it beyond doubt.
‘Next time I’ll have to bring an extra set of clothes.’
The cave seemed to slope downward, though Sophia couldn’t be certain. At first, she’d wondered if this winding passage might be a secret route crossing into Saturn’s territory, or perhaps one leading from Saturn into Ariel.
At least there was one blessing: despite descending underground, she encountered neither insects nor animals. It occurred to her that a Temple must have some method of keeping itself pristine.
‘Thank the heavens for small mercies. I can’t imagine crawling through darkness, fingers trailing along stone walls, only to feel something bite—ugh, I’m truly grateful, Titania.’
Sophia felt a surge of confidence, as though the treasure she’d promised her mother was already within reach.
She walked on, torch held in one hand and thread clasped in the other, each step measured and deliberate.
Then, at last, a new sound reached her ears—running water. The underground spring was present, yet the air remained surprisingly dry.
Finally, Sophia arrived at an underground cavern.

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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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