Chapter 74: Going to Grandfather’s Birthday Party (First Part)

Translator: mii

Editors: sleepchaser, ASplashofMusic, Katie_WanderingFujoshi

My eyes rove over the great sweep of scenery passing by through the carriage window, a sigh escaping my lips.

At this moment, I’m in a carriage with Lian’s father, mother, and brother, heading to a neighboring town.

We are traveling there to attend a birthday celebration for Lian’s eighty-year-old grandfather.

When I say grandfather, I’m referring to the father of Lian’s mother.

Lian’s mother is the fifth youngest daughter of Lian’s grandfather, the former head of the Violette family. After handing down the title of family head to his son, Lian’s grandfather moved from the royal capital to a mansion in the suburbs, far removed from the hustle and bustle of the capital. Nowadays, he spends his retirement enjoying his life to the hilt.

The Violette family, of Count rank, is one of the five largest noble families in the capital city. Many Violette family members married people with connections to the royal family. One can find a multitude of Violette family members working in the royal castle. As a result of that, the Violette family became extremely wealthy.

Lian’s grandfather is not only a relative of the Owen family, but also their strongest sponsor and backer. Their path of retreat, so to speak.

Therefore, we have to leave aside any and all matters on hand, no matter how urgent, whenever he calls for us to gather. And make it our top priority to boot!

Of course, I’m not an exception to this.

Well, fine.

In my previous life, I felt uncomfortable in crowded places. This aversion to crowds has followed me to this world. For this reason, however I think about it, the upcoming party is only going to be a pain. But if I were to attend, I’ll surely receive some pocket money.

Because without fail, Lian’s grandfather would reward his relatives that attend his parties.

Seems like it’s one of his life’s pleasures.

Though I refer to it as “pocket money,” it shouldn’t be underestimated.

Rich people’s concept of pocket money is so scary that a commoner like me can’t fathom it even if I tried.

This is especially true in the case of Lian’s grandfather, as he is in possession of great wealth. The amount of pocket money that he lavishly offers is so immense that my eyes pop out of my head every time I see it.

No matter what, defending the village still costs money.

So having an adequate reserve of funds is essential.

Since village defense is under territorial management, I regularly receive funds. Enough to cover most of the equipment and labor costs. But I still want to have my own personal savings for the things I wish to do.

I can’t use those funds to cover the costs of my research and development.

Otherwise, I’d have to provide detailed reports of my inventions to Lowendal. However, the production process contains too many secrets and can only be kept confidential.

Therefore, I can’t miss this opportunity.

Whenever I think about the future raid of the demons, these next few days of torture seem like nothing. I will endure it.

Another thing is that I have a fellow traveller with me, so my stomach isn’t hurting as much as usual.

I peer through the carriage window. Two escorts garbed in black coats ride alongside the carriage on horses of the same color.

Although I refer to it as a carriage, it’s not the small four-seater that I always ride. It’s a larger version.

We mainly use this carriage when the whole family or a large number of people are going out together.

The carriage roof is adorned with metal ornaments, with two large horses as the centerpiece.

The velvet seating in the interior is built in a U-shape, allowing around twelve people to be seated comfortably.

Meanwhile, the escorts are keeping their pace adjacent to the carriage. One in each corner, and another two in the front and two in the back.

The escort riding a horse diagonally behind my seat is blond. An unusual hair color in this area.

I hired him to be my personal escort, with the privilege to follow me for the entire two days of my trip.

Fortunately, I have already received approval from Cheddar-san to do this…

He urged me to bring back souvenirs, but sadly, we’re not going there to play. This is purely a work engagement.

Moreover, our destination is akin to a battlefield. A terrible place that stretches my nerves taut and doesn’t allow even a single moment of respite.

I shudder simply imagining it.

Thinking about this tires me out. So I should probably bypass this issue entirely. I have to preserve my physical strength for the battles to come.

As I open my window to distract myself, I am greeted with a slightly cool breeze. Along with a rather fragrant scent intermingling with it too.

Looking at the expansive scenery, I can see the trees replete with blooming red flowers on the gentle hills, dotted here and there.

The escort diagonally behind me seems to have noticed my action. He moves his horse forward until he is right beside me.

The color of the escort’s eyes is azure like the clear, blue sky. Also uncommon in this area.

I poke my face out the window. Raise my head to look at him.

Ontop the horse, he is located at a higher position than me. He’s tall to begin with so this only raises his height further. Damn it! This brat is hurting my neck.

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“Alfred, are you oka—uhm, I mean… is there a problem?”

The neighboring town is considerably far from Leis village, located between Leis village and the capital city. Furthermore, this carriage is moving slowly. It’ll take more than half a day to reach our destination.

I’ve been seated comfortably the whole time, but Alfred is stuck on horseback. Shouldn’t he be getting tired soon?

Alfred shakes his head in refusal, his face nonchalant. “Problem? Hmm… Not really.”

“Really? But you’ve been riding the horse for quite some time since we left the mansion… Aren’t you tired?”

“No, not at all.”

“N-not at all?”

“Yeah.”

…I see.

Well, now that I think about it, he mounts horses frequently on the Cheddar Ranch. Maybe he is used to riding a horse for long periods of time. Of course, it’s different for me, whose butt feels sore after only riding for an hour.

The small, red flowers dance in the wind, a rain of scarlet petals.

“Ah.”

I attempt to capture some, but they are too small for me to grasp properly and harder to catch than I expected. It drives me mad being so close, yet ultimately failing.

This small flower, named “Rose Blossom,” has the same shape as a cherry blossom, but smells of roses. Not to mention, it’s red instead of pink.

Like I’ve said previously, there’s no need to force yourself to be original, okay?

For a long time, countless players complained about this issue to the game developers as well.

Basically, they wanted cherry blossoms to remain as they are.

Of course, I have the same opinion. Because of this, I’m unable to enjoy sakura mochi anymore. The scent of roses in sakura mochi is just too strange. How blasphemous! Apologize to the cherry blossoms!

Quick as lightning, Alfred thrusts an arm out. “I got it.”

“Huh, seriously?!”

I couldn’t even catch a single one!

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“Here.”

Sure enough, that’s a scarlet cherry blossom lying in his open palm.

“…You really got it,” I mutter. Alfred responds with a light chuckle, his face relaxing in amusement.

A smile lingering on his lips, he holds the flower with his fingers and sniffs it briefly. He slips it into my chest pocket.

The sweet scent of the flower drifts softly to my nostrils.

“Here you go, Lian… sama? We can see the town now. You should be growing tired from riding the carriage, but please be patient,” says Alfred, adding the “sama” unnaturally, his polite speech contrived.

Strangely, he looks more handsome now. Irritation flares in my chest. Still, I say, “T-thank you! Ah, you’re right!”

He waves his hand lightly as a chuckle leaves his lips, and returns to his fixed position at the rear corner of the carriage.

I return my gaze back to the carriage’s interior.

My eyes brush across Lian’s mother, who sits opposite me. A magenta fan covering her mouth, her expression is unfathomable to me. The two maids next to her stare in my direction, cheeks scarlet.

Lian’s father sits in the seat of honor at the center, arms folded with a complicated expression.

Meanwhile, Lian’s brother sits next to me, eyes and mouth wide as he looks my way, surprise etched into every corner of his face.

Huh? What happened?

The two maids tilt their bright, red faces down. They turn to face one another, still holding their cheeks.

Why are they doing that?

One of them whispers,”…Ahhh… I-I feel like my heart is pounding…”

Voice trembling just as much, the other replies, “…M-me too…”

Huh? Why?

The maids just saw two beautiful men flirting with each other, a very blinding scene~ That’s why~ I bet Lian’s brother will freak out soon!

Here’s Lian’s fanart by reiu and 伝承[0000]! Everyone is so talented!!

Since I have a lot of free time now, I’ve been reading some JP BL novels and translating NHAD consistently these days (((praise me, praise me)))! One of the novels is pretty interesting, it’s about MC who aspires to be “Japanese painting-style” painter. The story starts with him commiting suicide by drowning himself in the lake. He then wakes up to find himself alive, but the scenery around him is… different. He finds out that he has been transmigrated to another world! =D Ah, all of the inhabitants in that world have interesting names! For example, ML’s name is Ohnyo. I can’t take him seriously at all because of that name… There’s also a character named Rururulf, he’s the cutest! But the reason why he commited suicide is kind of unexpected… >.> Sadly, it’s not translated yet (and it’s still ongoing too). I’m currently thinking of making summary or lists of what raws I’ve been reading in my blog (so other people can translate it and I can read it in English muahahaha), but we’ll see.

If you enjoy my translations, please consider checking out my Patreon if you’re interested in reading more chapters ahead of schedule. Thank you for the supporters who have donated in my ko-fi too! You guys are angels!

Also, please stay safe, everyone!

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