novelraw Chapter 298: Beggar Siblings - Observer
Chapter 298: Beggar Siblings - Observer
297. Beggar Siblings - Observer
Lean pulled Jenia's waist closer, embracing her tightly. As Edlin Peter stormed out of the theater, she let out an exasperated "Huh!"
Indeed, a commoner with not a trace of etiquette. — she thought, looking him up and down disdainfully.
How could she like such a guy?
He was short and so skinny that it made one doubt whether he could even perform as a man. His clothes were shabby; it seemed true that he used to be a beggar. But his appearance...
‘...he’s handsome.’
There was nothing to criticize.
The high bridge of his nose added depth to his gleaming golden eyes. His chiseled jawline was masculine, yet the dimples on his slightly rosy, pretty lips balanced what could have been an overly smooth look, and his eyebrows neatly framed his well-defined forehead under his fine hair. His ears, neither too big nor too small, were cute... Ahem!
Edlin understood why her daughter was so infatuated with this beggar boy. With a face like that, one could live off just their looks without ever going hungry.
But that couldn’t happen.Her daughter was such a tomboy that she could overlook his status, but his intentions were impure. He probably planned to use that handsome face of his to squeeze money out of them, but Edlin had her own methods.
She threw a bundle of money, as if she didn’t even need to talk to someone like him.
“I’ll give you ten times this amount. Even a hundred times if you want. Just get away from my daughter.”
“...Nice to meet you. I’m...”
“Don’t speak until I ask you to. This is your only chance.”
“...”
[ Achievement: Met Cleo de Frederick - Gained mild favor with all nobles serving the Frederick Royal Family. Gained mild favor with Cleo de Frederick. ]
Edlin and Lean locked eyes in a silent battle.
The favor gained from the ‘Met Cleo de Frederick’ achievement didn’t seem to have much effect.
After all, what good was that favor when some beggar boy was about to steal her only daughter away?
Being forbidden to speak, Lean decided to show his intent through action. He had a plan, at least until that point.
- Clink.
“You, you insolent...?”
But ping! The gold coins scattered and bounced away.
On top of the bundle that Edlin had thrown, Jenia’s contribution spilled out, gold coins rolling everywhere.
A bright voice echoed.
- “It’s money I earned. It’s enough to buy a really nice house!”
Gulp.
Lean, in an action neither grand nor particularly proud, even dropped the empty pouch.
With a hesitant hand, he pulled Jenia even closer, a move that, though unintended, struck Edlin as quite genuine.
It didn’t seem like a scheme to raise the price.
His almost tearful expression and his lips, clamped shut as instructed, held sincerity.
Edlin, her heart slightly softened, spoke, pointing her finger.
“Pick it up. Right now.”
“I...”
“Pick it up. Only then we can talk.”
Her index finger followed by her thumb. Lean realized there was no need to reveal his identity.
He obediently picked up the scattered gold coins.
When was it that I threw them away? Bowing down like this would make him look utterly ridiculous... But it didn’t matter. Lean picked up the gold coins that his sister had earned, reminding him of past mistakes he had made.
That was how it felt.
“Lean...”
Jenia knelt down to help him, and Edlin sighed deeply.
Even Gilbert Forte and Toton Tatian, the most eligible bachelors in this country, had been haughtily rejected by her daughter.
Does she like him that much?
Midsummer. As the citizens who had come to see the exhibition buzzed around them, Edlin watched, feeling complicated, as the two picked up the scattered gold coins. The proud head that she always held high bowed a little.
*
Lean and Jenia received permission to date. Back at Jenia's mansion, after sharing tea with them, Edlin said,
“Well, since you two are so head over heels for each other, what can I do? But be careful. If your father finds out, he won’t let it slide.”
With that, she left the room.
Lean and Jenia breathed a sigh of relief.
But soon, clink. Jenia began to drink the empty tea cup repeatedly. She sat quietly, looking sorrowful.
Lean asked.
“What’s wrong? Are you worried that I’ll treat you differently because you’re a noble?”
Jenia smiled faintly.
“You’re half right. I know you won’t treat me differently. It’s just... I feel so pathetic.”
“Why?”
Lean held her hand tightly. Jenia began to vent, telling him things he had never heard before.
“It’s the burden of being born a noble. My father wanted to marry me off to a family of suitable status. It’s natural for a young lady to marry for the sake of her family, but I hated it.”
“...”
“At first, I thought it was because I hadn’t met the right person. So I went on a lot of arranged dates. I even met Gilbert Forte, the famous scion of the Forte family, and the son of Marquis Tatian. But they were all unsatisfactory.”
“Toton Tatian?”
“How do you know him? Yes. That young man was quite pitiful too. He carried around a female knight who served as his escort in his own carriage. He probably liked her but didn’t know how to tell his father.”
Irene?
Lean recalled the knight who had relentlessly pursued him. She had almost gone mad and killed Cassia, even murdering Katrina.
He thought Irene was just one-sidedly obsessed with Toton, but it seemed Toton liked her too.
Though it wasn’t crucial information, Lean pushed it aside. He already had the key information, and Jenia was still talking. Her venting was coming to an end.
“That’s how nobles are. It might look like they can do as they please, but that’s not the case. They’re so burdened by their duties that they can’t even move. The only ones who can act as they please are the heads of families, maybe among the great nobles. The rest struggle desperately.”
“...I see.”
“Ha ha. I wondered why I was born a noble... I only realized after I ran away. How happy it is to only take care of yourself. Of course, making ends meet is tough, but once you get past that, you can live the life you want.”
Jenia stood up.
She lifted the hem of her skirt slightly on both sides, in a refined and graceful manner, as she lowered her head toward Lean.
"It might have been rude of me to say those things to you. I wasn’t trying to get your understanding. Our lives have been too different, and you probably wouldn’t understand."
“...Yes, that’s true. Come here.”
Lean gently pulled her hand. She probably thought I wouldn’t know...
The etiquette Jenia had just shown was the kind reserved for one's husband, intentionally not covering her neckline.
Finding it incredibly endearing, Lean comforted Jenia, who was now nestled in his chest.
“It must have been very difficult for you,” he said, patting her back softly, “Don’t worry, everything will be alright.”
Jenia felt like Lean knew a lot more than he was letting on.
She laughed softly in his comforting embrace.
It seems I've fallen for him quite hard. It feels like this man, who lived as a beggar, truly understands me...
Jenia raised her lips to touch Lean’s neck.
At that moment, her hand brushed against a necklace hanging around Lean’s neck. But the blue necklace was shattered, its original shape no longer recognizable.
*
After parting with Jenia and returning, Lean resumed sweeping.
He had neglected cleaning duties for the past few days, busy with visiting her, so he would be occupied for a while.
He carried a bucket and mop, sweeping and cleaning every corner of the Rauno family mansion.
He occasionally peeked at his sister to see if she was studying well and getting along with her friends. Lerialia was in the yard with Santian, practicing a martial art called ‘Hiberuna.’
His sister, who usually disliked exercise, was actively engaged in outdoor activities like this only after joining the Rauno family.
Before long, she would probably come to challenge her brother.
It was a happiness he had experienced before, and Lean rejoiced in anticipation.
Should I let her win this time? As he pondered, his sister and Santian disappeared somewhere in a flurry, and his thoughts wandered elsewhere.
As dusk fell over the mansion, Lean lit up the hallways, recalling Marquis Benar Tatian.
So Marquis Benar Tatian wanted to take Jenia as his daughter-in-law.
It’s not that it’s wrong.
It could happen. But something felt off.
When I first met Marquis Benar Tatian, he mentioned Jenia.
The strange thing was, he brought her up at the very moment he was commissioning me to kill his own son. Back then, Minseo had subtly suggested, “What if I became your adopted son?” and the marquis had changed the subject.
- “Oh, right. There’s no one closer than blood. Once, an old friend of mine broke a dish...”
It was later that I found out the “old friend” he was talking about was Count Gustav Peter. The marquis then started talking about how his friend had a daughter who was quite a troublemaker and had gotten into trouble before marriage, which seemed like a trivial anecdote.
He didn’t mention a name, but it was clearly Jenia.
At the time, I thought the marquis was just drunkenly rambling.
But looking back now, would someone like him, a great noble, have brought up such random chatter without a reason? Especially to a lowly thug?
I can’t remember what we talked about after that.
The alcohol was too strong, and I was excited, thinking I might actually become an adopted son.
Anyway, what’s done is done.
So, why did Marquis Benar Tatian mention Jenia to me?
While he was contemplating whether to kill his son.
Maybe... the marquis needed a substitute.
He desperately wanted Jenia to marry into the marquisate, but his attempts at arranged marriages hadn’t gone well. His son was infatuated with Princess Chloe de Tatalia, and Jenia had run away?
I don’t know why the marquis wanted Jenia so much, but if that’s the case, it would explain why he mentioned her to me.
In other words, he wasn’t avoiding the topic.
When Minseo asked if he could be adopted, the marquis might have been implying, “There’s this girl Jenia. If you can bring her, I’ll consider it...” That could have been his offer.
And I (Minseo), clueless, tried to change his mind by bringing my sister along.
With that realization, Lean felt a surge of anger.
The beggar siblings scenario, really, had been one mistake after another, every step down the wrong path.
Back then, Cassia's Shackles quest hadn’t even appeared.
It was a time when I didn’t even know Jenia existed, yet there had been a chance to meet her. There was even a way to solve the problem without using my sister’s appearance...
Lean barely suppressed the urge to vomit. He took a deep breath, his face pale, and collected his thoughts.
Alright. If Marquis Benar Tatian had a particular interest in Jenia for some reason, he would have been watching her. Thinking this way, some of the marquis’s unexplained actions became clearer.
On the 15th cycle, during the fifth beggar siblings scenario, I met Marquis Tatian again after becoming a royal guard.
It was when I barged into the prince’s office, pretending to make a mistake, to unlock the ‘Meeting Cleon de Tatalia’ achievement.
The prince, Count Herman Forte, and Marquis Benar Tatian were all there. Unlike Count Forte, who was on high alert, the marquis smiled at me, as if he knew me.
It was when I was dating Jenia. Finally, the pieces fit together.
I remember thinking, “Why is he acting like this when I haven’t done anything yet?” But that wasn’t the case.
It must have been amusing to him.
To see some beggar dating Jenia, the young lady he’d been watching, then using Katrina to become a royal guard, and barging into the prince’s office.
It wasn’t long after that Marquis Tatian approached me.
At the banquet held after the prince of the Astin Kingdom arrived, he coldly scanned me up and down, appraising me, and said...
- “Please spare me a moment. I have a proposal for you.”
And when I tried to stop Princess Chloe de Tatalia and Gilbert Forte from kissing, only to end up kissing her myself, the marquis gave me a peculiar look and turned away.
He judged me to be useless.
It was right after that that I broke up with Jenia. Lean suddenly remembered Count Gustav Peter’s warning.
- “You are very brave, Your Highness, to meet with Marquis Tatian... I commend your courage, so I will give you some advice.”
- “I don’t know how you met the marquis, but it would be best not to approach him. He’s a very dangerous man. He’ll soon know you were here.”
I was playing right under the marquis’s nose the whole time. And even now, after meeting Jenia... Marquis Benar Tatian is probably watching me.
A keen observer.
Not an apostle of the deity or anything, but still, the marquis and Count Herman Forte are both part of the lock holding back Astroth.
Lean felt as if an arrogant breath was sweeping over him from somewhere.