15 Chapter 15

『 Chapter 15 』

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The Lombardy's four brothers and sisters gathered in the Head's office.

It was an old tradition that they would sit around like this on the third day of every week, rain or snow.

Gallahan, who is out of his mind these days due to the Coroy textile business, said he was in a hurry, but unintentionally he was late for the meeting that Rulac had set in advance.

When he rushed into the office door, sweating beads, three people looked back at the same time, resembling his face.

"You're late, Gallahan."

Vieze didn't hide his displeased expression and gave him a lecture.

"I'm sorry,.…brother, father..."Gallahan asked when he saw the still-empty chair of Head.

"The meeting with Lombardy's bank manager is not over yet."

"Oh, is that so?"

It was Rulac who thought it was very important not to be late for the appointment.

If the meeting had already begun, he would have been scolded like a child regardless of age.

Gallahan sighed softly as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

"Lucky guy."

Vieze quizzed at the sight.

"Ha ha. Long time no see, sister."

Gallahan smiled back at Vieze's meanness and greeted Shanannet, who was quietly drinking tea on one side.

Shanannet, who is the oldest of four siblings and is quite different in age from Gallahan, was quiet.

"...yes, father will be here any minute. Sit down and get some rest."

Shanannet, who has a long neck like a swan, said in a quiet voice.

After just saying that, she sips a cup of tea again and looks at the distant scenery outside the window.

Gallahan sat on an empty chair thinking that such a sister was very pretty.

"I can't see your face these days? Why are you so busy?"

Laurels, sitting next to Vieze, kicked Gallahan's foot and asked.

Laurels, the third of the four siblings, had the smallest age difference from Gallahan, but he was so opposite of him that he believed he was a stranger.

Laurels, who hated complexity and was simple, felt frustrated with Gallahan, and Gallahan felt very uncomfortable with him.

"I've been doing some work for father lately. Well, even if it's a job, I'm just going to give a word or two of advice."

Gallahan said humbly.

If it was really a word or two, he wouldn't have been so busy that he couldn't even see his daughter's face these days.

However, Gallahan glanced at Vieze's attitude.

It was because he happened to be in charge of the project that Vieze was trying to proceed.

Of course.

Vieze's face twitched, looking only at the front with his arms folded.

However, Laurels, who was tactless, did not notice any discomfort and continued jokingly.

"Oh! I heard about it. You stole brother's business...…."

And eventually Vieze's anger exploded.

Vieze, who sprang up from his seat and hit the Head's office desk with his hand, stared at Laurels with his eyes glaring.

"Are you making fun of me?"

"Oh, no, it's not like that. I wouldn't do that, would I, brother?"

Surprised, Laurels expressed his injustice with his whole body.

Laurels was so afraid of Vieze that it sometimes looked more like a relationship between superior and subordinate than a brother.

"And you, Gallahan. I think you're very proud that you took on a big job once. It's a fluke that will never happen again, so enjoy it as much as you want now. Do you understand?"

Gallahan felt the same way.

He never thought he'd take on a project that Lombardy and Angenas are promoting at the same time.

It was just that he went for a walk with his daughter and things went wrong.

Such a heavy and breathtaking responsibility was a rat poison for Gallahan, who wanted to read his favorite books while enjoying the warm sun and spend time with Firentia.

"I'm sorry, brother. But I didn't mean to either."

"What?"

"If you want to take this job again at least now...…."

"You punk!"

Although he was in his mid-thirties, the habit of raising hands easily from childhood has not been corrected.

It was the moment when a fight was about to break out between brothers who grown up and even have children.

Click.

Shanannet lowered the teacup with a small sound.

"Stop."

In a single word, Vieze's movement stopped.

"You're running like a foal on the butt, Vieze."

Despite the tired sighs, Vieze's shoulders flinched.

And it was the same with Laurels and Gallahan.

She was always quiet and calm, but once she was angry, she was such a scary Shanannet that no one could stop her.

Vieze, who seemed to beat Gallahan to the ground at any moment, still huffed, but flopped into his seat.

"Thank you, sister."

Gallahan also said in a small voice, "Should I touch Vieze's anger?"

"There's nothing to thank. I just didn't like the noise."

Shanannet's calm but cold gaze reached Vieze and looked at Gallahan.

"Squirrel."

"...Yes?"

"I felt it when I first saw you in your mother's arms, but you're like a squirrel, Gallahan."

It may sound like a compliment at first glance, but Shanannet's cold expression was saying otherwise.

"Even the little things frightened it away from the trees. They hide in their little cave and never try to fight."

"Sister…."

"All you're interested in is chasing around like a squirrel and collecting books. Don't you think so?"

There was a light sneer on Shanannet's beautiful lips.

"I heard that your daughter is quite intelligent."

Gallahan, who had a bitter look on his face, looked at Shanannet, surprised by the story of Firentia.

"The lion cannot come out of the squirrel father. I shouldn't even look forward to it."

She murmured to himself, but every word was stuck like a sore thorn.

"It's a shame. You're a squirrel, aren't you ruining her?"

Shanannet sipped the tea again.

"What do you think, Gallahan?"

Gallahan couldn't say anything.

He's just biting his lower lip and thinking deeply about something.

I didn't know that Shanannet's eyes would fall from the birds.

" Empress, Croiten Angenas, is here."

"Tell him to come in."

Lavigne, the Empress of the Lamburgh Empire, said, cutting the stem of the flower she had just picked up with a pair of scissors.

After a while, Croiten, her confidant in charge of the Dulac company, cautiously stepped in.

He still greeted her with his eyes on the fresh rose.

"My Empress, I'm here."

Croiten took off his hat and put it on his chest, pretending to be quite friendly.

"What I've been waiting for is not you, but good news about the company. Don't you know that, Croiten?"

"Oh, no. I couldn't have come empty-handed, Empress."

Sweat flowed behind his back at the words of the empress, but Croiten managed to say it with a smile.

"Please read this."

Croiten's hand-over was a brief progress report.

The white hand of the empress, who took off the flower arrangement gloves, received it.

Croiten smiled with relief, reading that the empress' quick reading of the report was not bad.

"As written, the Coroy textile will be ready for sale next week. First of all, the aristocracy's clothing stores are concentrated.We're going to start selling around Quna Shopping Street...."

"How did you deal with the supply and demand of textiles, Croiten?"

Last time, Croiten visited the Imperial Palace and reported that there was a problem with the supply of fabric from the eastern part of the country, and he can't forget the slow look of the empress at that time.

After a time when it felt like eternity, the Empress ordered him to ask Lombardy for help.

When I recalled that time, I sweated and eventually Croiten took a handkerchief out of his arms.

It was a handkerchief made with embroidery on the coroy fabric.

"We've received Lombardy's support as you ordered. Fortunately, Gallahan Lombardy is well versed in textiles and doubles.

"Gallahan?"

The Empress, who was wearing flower arrangement gloves again, looked at Croiten for the first time.

"Not Vieze?"

What else did I make a mistake?

Frightened, Croiten crouched his shoulders.

"Well, yes. Originally, I was going to do it with Vieze, but he, he doesn't know much...…."

"Gallahan, do you mean Head's youngest?"

The empress, who recalled the name Gallahan in the corner of Lombardy's family tree, raised one eyebrow.

"Yes! He's a very knowledgeable man!

Honestly, it's not comparable to Vieze just by looking at the head. And since Vieze was absent, Clarivan, a close confidant of the Head, actively cooperated to make things much easier...…."

"Do I have to know such a trifle, Croiten?"

The voice of the Empress, who cut off the back of her words, was faintly irritated.

"Oh, no! Of course, leave this to me, Empress."

Croiten quickly bowed, and the empress picked up the next flower.

"It's not Vieze, it's Gallahan...….

It's quite interesting."

The empress smiled a strange smile as she recalled Rulac's face, which was completely unknown.

It was the law for the eldest son to succeed the family, but no one kept it.

Not only the imperial family, but also in fairly large noble families, there was a bloody war over the succession structure.

Lavigne didn't like it very much.

Cut.

Somehow, with a creepy sound, the petals of the rose Lavigne was holding were cut in half and scattered one by one.

It was because she remembered the humble look with the red eyes like this rose, so she didn't want to see the flower.

The Empress, who put the flower arrangement scissors down on the table, asked Croiten.

"Gallahan has children?"

"Yes, I have a daughter named Firentia. Gallahan once said she was about to turn eight."

Croiten, who couldn't understand the Queen's feelings, was simply reticent.

"Today, Astana went to Lombardy to meet Vieze's son.

I'll ask him when he gets back."

When I recalled my beloved son, the empress said with a blooming flower-like face.

"Don't he need a girlfriend?"

The smiling lips were redder than the badly cut rose.

⟸ ♔ ⟹

"Ouch, it's a hide-and-seek game. I'll be your tagger this time, so you guys hide."

"Wow! It's my first time! Sounds fun!"

"Excited, exciting!"

I smiled with remorse as I saw the twins stamping their feet with their fists clenched.

Whoops, they don't know anything either.

"If you don't get out of the main building, you can hide anywhere. Instead, it's against the rules if there's a dangerous place like the last well, a room without people, or a place where the lid is closed and you can't see it at all. Okay?

"Yeah!"

"Now you count to 100?"

I put my face on the pillar and said.

"Okay, one! Two! Three! Yes!"

I heard two footsteps moving away in the same direction.

As expected, twins hide together.

Thinking it would be easier to find later, I kept counting.

"Fever! Eleven! …...oh, my legs.

It's comfortable now."

It's gone far anyway, so you won't even be able to hear it.

She came to the scene from the morning breeze and was dragged outside because of the twins who were begging to play.

When I said that you two should play together, the twins said it's no longer fun.

They said it's fun when I play with them. They kept saying things like a parrot.

So what I came up with was the game, hide-and-seek, where children are genetically bound to be enthusiastic.

"Sigh, it's nice to be quiet."

There is no voice to chat with, so it can't be so peaceful.

I lay down somewhere for a while and walked to find a sunny spot to catch the twins.

On the way to the quiet annex from the main building where so many people were attending, I saw a little boy standing alone.

He was a boy with dark blond hair that was close to brown and fair skin.

"Who is it?"

It was a strange face that looked like Bellezac's age.

Furthermore, the behavior of looking around and the clothes they were wearing did not look like children of their employees.

Wondering if he was lost, I was approaching the child with the intention of helping him.

Maybe the little boy is annoyed, but he took off his hat and threw it on the ground, and stepped on it with his shoes.

He looked used to it as if he hadn't done it once or twice.

I stopped walking a little distance from him now.

I don't want to get too close.

The bells were ringing for the instincts to go back.

I'm just gonna go find the twins.

Thinking so, I was about to turn around.

A big wind blew in from somewhere, and the little boy's excitedly stepped hat flew away to the lawn.

The one who seemed to be embarrassed for a while looked around and found me.

And said,

"You there. Pick up that hat."

"...what?"

"Are you a deaf girl? I told you to pick up my hat."

"Sigh, what's this...…."

I forced myself to purify the anger that was about to burst out in a boiling snap.

"You pick it up, you velesac."

That's the worst curse I've ever known for not using a nutmeg, man.

However, he frowned and spoke in a mean voice.

"Go pick it up now and you'll live."

"This Bellezac look alike, what are you talking about?"

I said with my arms crossed.

"Would you like to get a few hits with a book? That's how it works."

"An ugly girl can't even talk."

Is that insolence and arrogance that are unknown to the core of the aristocratic boys?

Bellezac uses that kind of tone.

I didn't just say it, but a real Bellezac...….

Wait a minute.

I stared at the face of an unidentified little boy, and a tremendously sinister foreboding hit the back of my head.

"Come on, don't...."

"Prince! Where are you, Prince!"

I heard a voice anxiously looking for someone from afar.

"Haah, if you're a prince."

There are many concubines in the empire, but there are only two princes.

And I knew the more mature version of that half-faced face for years.

"No way, First Prince...…?"

As if to answer what I said, the one who raised one corner of his mouth and laughed unlucky said.

"Pick it up."

It was true.

Bellesac's soul twin. The one thing that ruined my family.

It was the first prince, Astana Nerempe Durelli.