NOVEL WEB Chapter 191
Chapter: 191
The business discussion with Ivana also continued.
Rosalyn, Rize, and I kept enjoying our Northern retreat.
While we were just relaxing in the North, Ivana suddenly brought up a rather unexpected topic.
It wasn’t actually that sudden, as I had some background knowledge about it.
“In a few weeks, the Monster Wave is expected to start.”
“Now that you mention it, there was something like that.”
I had known about this for a while.
Every winter, stories circulated about monsters pouring into the North.
However, it was somewhat ridiculous that I had completely forgotten about it during their actual visit in winter.
Anyway, the conclusion was that Ivana had mentioned it would begin in a few weeks.
“So, what should we do? Should we head back?”
“Hmm… I’m not sure. They say the wave is severe, but there’s absolutely no way monsters could even enter the castle.”
“I guess that makes sense.”
I’d seen the knights around a lot during our stay at the castle.
It was easy to tell how hard they trained and how strong they were.
“Still, does that mean we’ll have to stay within the castle for a while? Or is there something else we should do?”
“Hmm…”
“Anyway, we are guests here. It would be best to follow whatever Miss Ivana decides. Our mother and the servants we brought along won’t have any objections either.”
“Honestly, I prefer waiting for the wave to settle down rather than heading back right away.”
“Really?”
I wasn’t sure exactly how long it would take.
After all, I had never actually encountered a monster, had I?
Most of what I knew about monsters came from textbooks in the first year of the Academy, while second or third years had the chance to see them firsthand.
Plus, the South was not a place where monsters typically appeared, so it made sense.
In the end, the judgment on this matter would rest heavily on Ivana and the Northerners.
“It’s not going to take just a day or two, but it shouldn’t take too long either. I feel sorry for Camelia and Leonhardt’s people, though…”
“We’re fine. To be honest, it’s quite comfortable staying in the castle. Returning to the South would be the same old story, after all?”
That was indeed true.
Since there was nothing much to do when I returned anyway… maintaining a good relationship with Ivana was naturally a good thing.
Anyway, we continued our conversation that way.
It seemed talking about this matter was something I should do, not Rosalyn.
From the beginning, I had been the one doing all the talking during our discussions, and there was no reason to bother Rosalyn with something tedious now.
Personally, I didn’t want Rosalyn to have to talk to Ivana either… that was a little true.
I felt a bit ridiculous being jealous of my stepmother chatting with someone else.
But it couldn’t be helped.
That thought had already crossed my mind.
“I think we’re fine until this week, but from next week onwards, we need to prepare for the wave. I probably won’t have much time.”
“Well, I’m here to help Miss Ivana. I don’t mind at all.”
Honestly, from my perspective, just building a good relationship with Ivana was enough.
I had never been particularly interested in the fact that Ivana came from a duke’s family before.
However, after hearing Rosalyn’s words a few days ago, I began to think that Ivana’s background might actually be more important than I initially thought.
She came from a duke’s family.
A family much stronger than the Count families like Count Rosaki or Count Rose.
A family that pretty much dominated the entire Northern territory.
Not just a territory or a city, but a family that governed at a regional level.
“Heh…”
Surely, this would help me in my efforts against the Rose Family and Christina Rose.
Of course, direct attacks were out of the question.
“Why are you smiling?”
“I’m just thinking about spending more time in the North, and it makes me happy.”
“Oh.”
“The Monster Wave… while it’s not entirely good news, it could be seen as a rare spectacle that we don’t often get to witness.”
In fact, I had no strong feelings about the Monster Wave, but I reassured her with those words.
From Ivana’s stance, she might feel a bit guilty about involving her business partner in something troublesome.
However, I viewed even this situation as an opportunity.
“Heh…”
To me, this was all for the sake of some future endeavor, and even though she was a duke’s young lady, she still had many naive sides.
If Ivana were on the same level as Duke Nordal, she might have been able to see right through my true thoughts.
After that conversation, I returned to our room and summarized things for both of them.
Basically, this stuff happened, and so it looked like we’d have to stay at the castle for a bit.
Rize usually didn’t add much unless it was necessary, so she remained quiet, while it was, of course, Rosalyn who spoke up.
“Lady Nordal said it would be safe, but… are you really sure about that?”
“Of course. After all, the knights of the Nordal Family are prepared. I really don’t think there’s anything to worry about.”
“But still…”
“Even though it’s called a Monster Wave, in the end, this is just business for the Northerners, right? I don’t think we, as outsiders, need to meddle.”
“…That’s true.”
Rosalyn had a tendency to worry a lot.
I didn’t find her worries unfounded.
In reality, a Monster Wave was far from peaceful and quiet.
While Rosalyn might be anxious, I felt no concern.
After all, Ivana herself said it would be fine.
When someone who knows the North much better than we do says it’s okay, I didn’t think we needed to keep panicking.
“More importantly, Mother, want to drink tonight?”
I thought it was probably best to wrap up the serious talks at that point, and so I brought this up with Rosalyn.
Just a casual topic.
“Uh?”
“It’s nothing serious, but this time Ivana gave a little gift to my family while she was in the North.”
“Oh…”
“But it just so happens that it was alcohol… so it seems a bit awkward for me to drink it alone. That’s why I’m bringing it up.”
Not that it was true.
Ivana had never actually given me any alcohol.
Nor had there been any other gifts yet.
We had been continuously discussing business, so it simply wouldn’t have come up.
But I used Ivana as an excuse to suggest it to Rosalyn.
“What do you think?”
“Um… at night?”
“Yeah, it seems a bit unsatisfactory to drink it during dinner. I thought it would be nice to relax together in our room and sip while chatting.”
There was no particular reason I made this decision.
I just wanted to see Rosalyn drunk?
I had seen it last time, and Rosalyn was way cuter when tipsy than she normally was.
It was funny how she kept giving me compliments, and in many ways, it was just more fun.
However, it wasn’t just for that reason; I also wanted to get Rosalyn a little tipsy for the sake of discussing the Rose Family.
My ultimate goal was, after all, to give the Rose Family a hard time.
“Mother does enjoy her drinks to some extent, and I’m sure the alcohol we received is of good quality.”
“Um… is that so?”
I wanted to hear a little more about the Rose Family from Rosalyn.
Of course, I had a feeling it would mainly be about how the Roses harassed her, but still?
“And Rize… she will be an adult soon. Isn’t it time she tries drinking?”
“Me?”
“True, Rize probably should start learning.”
Rize was 16 years old, which was three years older than me.
But soon, with the new year coming, she would practically be almost 17.
I thought it would be beneficial for Rize to learn about drinking before becoming an adult, so I brought it up intentionally.
“Right?”
“Young Lady? I don’t really…”
“Come on, you have to try it. Honestly, you’re not going to go through life without ever drinking, right?”
“That is true, but do I have to try such high-quality alcohol…?”
“Anyway, I won’t be drinking, and Mother will only have a little bit, so it won’t be a problem if Rize has a little too, right?”
“That’s true. And in cases like Rize’s, you have to drink together with an adult.”
“Why the lady too…?”
An indignant reaction.
But I had already made my decision.
I had already resolved to get Rosalyn and Rize to drink today.
There was no way for Rize to escape this situation.
“Ivana did say it was sweet alcohol. Just try one drink. Okay? Besides, she hasn’t even brought the alcohol yet, has she?”
“…Young Lady.”
“And anyway, one drink isn’t going to get anyone drunk, right?”
“That’s true.”
Even Rosalyn, who didn’t handle alcohol well, wouldn’t be affected by just one drink.
Although the alcohol I had secretly bought while wandering with Ivana had a slight kick, it was still milder than the whiskey Rosalyn had drunk before.
There shouldn’t be any problems.
Well, if problems did arise, it would likely be quite amusing to me?