TFPW 72

Chapter 72

Shavia furrowed her brows. She realized that the shapeless mass before her, barely recognizable as a human, had until recently served Regis.

“How messy…”

Although Shavia, who oversaw all matters related to beast breeding, could normally handle most things with ease, the sight of this particular servant made her feel nauseated. If it weren’t for the eye patch barely hanging over what seemed to be a face, she probably wouldn’t have recognized him.

“Brother.”

When Shavia spoke softly, Regis, hunched in the corner, flinched slightly at the sound.

“Are you mocking me?”

“Of course not. Shavia is going to meet the daughters of influential noble factions. Don’t worry, I have a way to quiet the rumors.”

“How do you quiet rumors that have already spread?”

“Simple—you cover them with bigger rumors. Or you make people want to cover them up themselves. Don’t worry; I’ll handle it.”

Her gentle words softened Regis’s tone a little.

“You really are the only one I can rely on. Mother must be furious, huh?”

“Yes… For now, it’s probably better that she doesn’t act on her impulses. But you know she does it because she loves you, right?”

“I know.”

“So don’t be too upset.”

Shavia continued to soothe him gently, but Regis buried his face in his knees again.

“It’s humiliating. I remember that moment so clearly… when reason failed to suppress instinct. The feeling when my will betrayed me, when my muscles gave way… and the sudden silence around me. And then Eluana’s expression—so strange.”

“I want to erase that memory.”

Shavia smiled sweetly.

“Shake it off. Everything will be resolved, just like always. So, get rid of that hideous thing, and open the window wide.”

“Yeah… I was going to, the stench is unbearable anyway.”

At Regis’s gesture, the newly appointed servant quickly approached. His alert movements suggested he was extremely tense.

“Clear this out, and bring its parents.”

The mention of parents made the servant’s shoulders, which had seemed like a lump of meat, twitch. Shavia, impressed that he had survived until now, asked Regis.

“Your family… are they still alive? I heard rumors that they were all executed.”

“Really? Then should I have them executed?”

Watching Regis answer casually, Shavia gave a small bow.

“I’ll take my leave now. I’ll try to bring good news.”

As Shavia exited with the grace of a butterfly, maids carrying stretchers and rags rushed in. Thinking how hard they worked, she headed straight for the carriage.

After returning to the townhouse in the capital, she would spend about an hour on paperwork before going to meet the young noblewomen. Once in the carriage, Shavia closed her eyes for a brief rest. She would need to review the guild’s affairs instead of Portio tonight, so now was her only chance to rest.

“Where did Brother Portio go this time…”

She let out a small sigh and drifted off to sleep.

When she awoke to the sensation of the carriage stopping, she was at the townhouse of a marquis family. Knights escorted her as she disembarked, and a maid approached.

“What’s the matter?”

Before the maid could answer, Cindy, standing behind, exclaimed:

“Jane has gone missing. Even my other friends at the duke’s residence don’t know anything!”

“Caught, huh? Faster than I expected.”

Shavia remarked nonchalantly. Cindy’s face went pale at the word “caught.”

“Please don’t tell me something bad happened…”

“You were caught trying to extract information from their residence. Did you really think you’d get away unscathed?”

“Then my friend…”

“You probably won’t see her again.”

As Shavia passed by indifferently, Cindy slumped to the floor. This wasn’t what she had wanted. She only wanted to wear slightly nicer clothes, eat slightly better food, and live a little more comfortably.

Shavia stopped just before entering the townhouse.

“Now that I think about it…”

Turning to the sobbing Cindy, Shavia said softly:

“You’re no longer useful.”

The first date was exhausting even before it began. Rising at sunrise, Eluana soaked in fragrant water and received a head-to-toe massage. Slumped like an invertebrate, she changed into her dress.

The cream lemon-colored fabric, accented with dark green silk, suited her remarkably well.

Rosette had done it again, fulfilling the Spes Duke’s picky request: to create an outfit that emphasized Eluana’s charm without seeming overly luxurious.

“Makeup light, please.”

Eluana’s request was ignored, and a full makeover began. Ring applied various touches to Eluana’s face with an almost possessed skill.

“You’re naturally beautiful, but just a little touch-up can make you even more so. It’s satisfying to see the results.”

It was neither “a little” nor “just a touch.”

“Ring, this is practically painting my face!”

Ring giggled and added red to her lips. When the makeover was almost done, they heard that Cazar had arrived, but Eluana couldn’t move yet—her hair still needed attention.

“Should I tie it to one side? You said that’s what to do on important days, right?”

“Yes. Today is an important day.”

Eluana nodded. It was an important day, so the hair was tied to one side. Absolutely not because they wanted to save time.

Ring brought out a box of ribbons, neatly sorted by color and material. She glared at them as if preparing for battle. While Ring hesitated intensely, Eluana picked a dark green silk ribbon from the far corner.

“Use this one.”

Ring’s face flared instantly.

“That won’t match.”

“It matches the dress’s accent color perfectly. Just do it.”

Eluana insisted, but Ring hesitated—it was the ribbon she had gifted Eluana the night before.

Seeing Eluana tie her gift ribbon herself, Ring gave in and picked up the dark green silk ribbon. Once done, Eluana put on her lace gloves and stood.

Leaving the lavender room, she waved lightly at Cazar approaching.

“Have you been waiting long? You could have waited inside.”

“I just came out of the reception room.”

“What took so long?”

Cazar smiled and extended his hand.

Their official first date had begun. Riding side by side in the royal carriage, all was quiet—no noise, no jostling. Eluana curiously inspected every corner, amazed at the spaciousness, comfortable chairs, cushions, and even a fixed tea table. It felt more like a reception room than a carriage.

“This carriage is wonderful.”

She opened the windows wide, letting in a refreshing breeze, and the sound of horse hooves echoed. Finally, it felt like a carriage.

Watching her pleased expression, Cazar said:

“I plan to study imperial governance with the Spes Duke while at the duke’s residence.”

Eluana’s eyes lit up.

“So we’ll study together? I’m also learning imperial governance.”

“That would be nice.”

Cazar thought so too. At least with Eluana beside him, the Spes Duke wouldn’t act so strict.

“In the morning, grammar and theory lessons; in the afternoon, alchemy and imperial governance. I started late, so I have a lot to catch up on. My head might explode.”

“Don’t worry, it won’t.”

Cazar said calmly, but Eluana sighed and held up History of the Empire’s Emperors.

“My father wants me to memorize this.”

“Perfect, I have my own book to read.”

Cazar held up The Way of Governance, assigned as homework by the duke. Clearly, a mischievous move to make them read even on the carriage.

Filled with academic enthusiasm, the carriage left the duke’s residence and headed for the teleportation gate. After flipping through pages for a while, Eluana flung the book onto the front seat.

“Why were there so many emperors in the empire? There’s too much to memorize.”

Cazar smiled.

“But it’s better to memorize it all.”

“I’ve almost memorized it.”

Surprised, Cazar looked up from his book.

“Already? Were you a genius all along?”

“My father used to tell me stories every night—stories of these emperors, just with different names. I thought they were made up.”

Since she already knew the events, memorizing them with altered names wasn’t too hard. A few names were confusing, though.

Cazar recalled the picture books at Aden’s house.

“Were those by Ron Vita too?”

“No, that was my mother. She said nobles read picture books as children. We couldn’t afford them, so she drew them herself.”

The books were mostly fairy tales, suggesting Eluana’s parents gave her early education without her realizing it.