After escaping the hustle and bustle of the city, the road along the strait unfolded.
Bastian stepped on the gas pedal to increase his speed. Under the late afternoon sunlight, the whole world was sparkling with gold. The roofless cream car and Bastian in a tailcoat were also bathed in the brilliant light.
Ardennes, a coastal city near the capital, was a resort area where the summer villas of the imperial and aristocratic families were concentrated. However, in recent years, mansions of new capitalists had been built one by one, encroaching on the order of the old era. It was thanks to the purchase of the estates of fallen nobles because they could not jump on the bandwagon of capital. Klauswitz was one of them.
Just as the sky to the west began to turn rosy, Bastian drove into the estate of the Klauswitz family.
The northern land with superb views, called the Jewel of Ardennes, originally belonged to a noble family with a long history. It was a prestigious family that boasted hundreds of years of history and tradition, but the end was shabby. It was Bastian's father, Jeff Klauswitz, who was called the railroad king of Berg, who bought the land they could no longer afford.
Bastian quietly reflected on the face he would soon face. It had been two months since they had last seen each other at an award ceremony.
"Oh my God, Bastian!"
As the car stopped at the entrance of the mansion, a shrill scream rang out. It was his aunt, Maria Gross, who had gotten off the carriage that had arrived earlier.
"Don't tell me you bring that lump of iron all the way here yourself."
"As you can see."
Bastian grinned and got out of the car. As he glanced at him, the waiting attendant approached and took the car.
After leaving a short greeting, Bastian escorted his shocked aunt up the stairs. Upon entering the marble hall in the lobby of the mansion, the servants lined up on both sides of the aisle lowered their heads in unison. Bastian showed proper manners this time with a light silence and a smile.
"I don't know why you would do something your father would hate."
As she moved away from the servants, his aunt's nagging, which had been interrupted for a while, resumed.
"I don't know. Maybe he'll pity his son who can't afford a driver."
The evening sunlight that passed through the window of the landing illuminated Bastian, who was smiling brightly.
Maria Gross looked at her nephew with astonished eyes.
His hair neatly combed with pomade and a pure white bow tie accentuated Klauswitz's distinctive good-look impression. His features, as well as his impressive tall height and frame, plus the overall aura, everything except for the white blonde hair he inherited from his mother was a replica of his father's.
He was a son who was rejected by his father because he resembled his father too much. It was a funny thing.
"If there is anyone more interested in your fortune than you are, it would be Jeff Klauswitz."
Maria Gross tried to discredit Bastian with her sarcastic jokes.
There were rumors that he inherited a considerable fortune from his mother's family, the Illis family, but Bastian seldom revealed the name. He did that even to those in the same boat.
"It's not what you'd call a fortune. It's just an old house and a trust fund."
Bastian, who was watching her blankly, gave her a modest smile. It was a plausible performance that if she hadn't known Illis properly, she might have been fooled.
"If you don't want to show your hand prematurely, yes, I will respect your wishes. Hold on tight instead. You know better than anyone why your grandfather left the hilt in your hand."
Maria Gross lowered her voice to a whisper. Again, Bastian only wore a look that did not at all indicate his true intentions.
"I heard there will be an announcement of Franz's engagement at the party today."
Concluding that she wasn't getting what she wanted, Maria Gross deftly changed her subject. As if he already knew this, Bastian did not show much emotion.
"Is she the daughter of Count Klein?"
"Yes."
"Then you know very well that my father's mouth must have been caught in his ears."
Maria Gross looked at the end of the few remaining steps with her disapproving eyes.
It was a well-known fact that even the dogs of the mansion knew that Jeff Klauswitz had appointed his second son, Franz, as heir. It was natural that he favored the son of an aristocratic mother, who was obsessed with raising his status. Jeff Klauswitz's happiness must have been at its peak, as the precious son was betrothed to the daughter of a high nobleman.
"You too, hurry up and marry the bride who will become your wings. It's as easy as picking one of the girls ready to throw themselves at you."
"Yes. I'll keep that in mind."
"That's a very believable answer."
Maria Gross let out a soft sigh and put her hand on her nephew's arm.
"I'll tell you in advance, Bastian, that you should never even look at Princess Isabelle. She's the one who's going to send you to hell."
It was a serious advice, but Bastian laughed as if he had heard a bland joke. "It's not an easy thing to think about. Even if I don't have any feelings for the princess, the emperor will think differently."
Maria Gross climbed her final steps with a worried face.
Everyone in the society knew that Berg's first Princess, who followed the emperor to the Naval Academy, fell in love with Bastian Klauswitz, who was selected as the best student of the year.
Although she thought it would end like a once innocent love, the Princess was still struggling with the emotions of that time.
"Didn't the emperor's sister, who was blinded by immature love and ruined her life? It would be difficult for him to make a rational decision if he thought that his daughter might end up living a life like Princess Helene."
The unfortunate princess Helen.
Memories of her, evoked by the name that had flowed from his aunt's mouth, flashed through Bastian's mind. Come to think of it, even the beggar Duke at the gambling table mentioned that name.
He said that he was the husband of Princess Helen?
The story of the princess who ran away with her lover whom she had been secretly in love with, just before her engagement to Crown Prince Robita, was standard material for cheesy novels and plays.
Thanks to this, it was also a name favored by scammers who pretended to be her secret lover.
"Bastian?"
Maria Gross, who stopped abruptly, called out his name quietly. It was then that Bastian finally realized that he had been caught up in his own mundane thoughts.
"There will be nothing to worry about."
Bastian's face was arrogantly spare as he replied with conviction. Marriage in this world was the best business opportunity of all. He had never forgotten the painful lesson that his father had proven to him through two marriages, each with different benefits.
If he had to sell himself anyway, Bastian was determined to make the most profit. For that, he could do snobbish calculations and reconsider. The immature princess had long been erased from that ledger.
Maria Gross took her steps again with a satisfied expression. Passing through a long hallway, they soon arrived in front of the parlor. The exaggerated laughter of the guests who had already arrived was conveyed along with the sweet melody of chamber music. Bastian crossed the threshold of the room with a slick smile on his face.
It seemed better to ignore the news of the engagement to be announced tonight. For the sake of Klauswitz's dignity, which his father loved.
***
"How about blocking that door with a plank?"
Tira, who was staring at her father's bedroom door, made a wild suggestion.
Odette stopped working for a moment and slowly raised her head to look at her sister. The half-finished lace veil was sophisticated and beautiful that did not go well with this shabby rented house.
"If you close the door, then what?"
"You know what. I honestly don't care what happens when father gets locked up in that room. No, I'd rather it be like that."
"Tira."
"I endured him drinking every day and gambling debts. That's okay. I'm used to it now. But I will never forgive him for what he did to you, sister."
Tira's eyes filled with tears as she shouted with indignation.
With a quiet sigh, Odette rose from her seat and approached her sister. As she held her shoulders, Tira let out a sad cry as if she had waited for her.
She wanted to keep it a secret from Tira, but her father ruined everything. He seemed to be quiet for a while, but it was because he was drunk once again.
When Odette's patience was running out, and in anger, her father recounted the nightmare night open front of Tira. It was lame excuses and sophistry stemming from his entitlement.
Still, he did eventually come back without incident.
The moment Odette faced her father who proudly uttered such shameless words, Odette gave up her last hope.
The reason Odette was able to survive was entirely thanks to the man who claimed to be the winner of that vulgar gambling bet. The officer kept his promise, and Odette was released from there only after being humiliated to the extent of pulling up the veil and showing her face. All her father did was shed irresponsible tears.
"Can we tell this to His Majesty the Emperor?"
Tira, who had stopped crying after a while, lifted her wet face and looked at Odette.
"Let's ask him to save sister before father does that again. Maybe he'll listen to that kind of request. Sister is His Majesty's niece anyway."
"That's not allowed."
Odette shook her head resolutely and hugged Tira's face.
Unusual impatience was evident in Odette's demanding voice. She knew that she was nothing more than a daughter of a bug that ruined the emperor's sister's life.
"Listen to me. No way, Tira. No way."
He also said that paying pensions for the imperial family was the last courtesy to the bloodline left by the princess. If her father's atrocities that dishonored the imperial family became known, they might lose even that.
"Come and wash your face. Let's go."
Odette made an impulsive decision as she looked at Tira's crying face again. She felt as if staying in this house would do worse than hammering nails on her father's door. Odette did not want to let her and Tira's lives fall into such an abyss.
"Let's go to town. Take a walk and have dinner."
"So suddenly?"
Tira's eyes widened in bewilderment.
"Why? You don't like it?"
"No. Not like that. We have no money…"
"There is."
Odette calmly cut off Tira's sentence. It seemed that she had no intention of adding any further explanation, just by looking at her determined gaze.
Tira, struggling between the bedroom where her drunken father was asleep and Odette's face, finally chose to hurriedly run to her bathroom. The sound of those loud footsteps diluted the despair and sorrow that were weighing down the house.
While Tira erased the traces of her tears, Odette prepared to go out as well. She had a hat and gloves on, and an emergency fund she had saved up from the sale of her lace. She also did not forget to put a small pocket knife in her purse.
"How are you, sister? Are you alright?"
Tira, who had finished her preparations, stood in front of Odette with a slightly nervous face.
Odette, carefully examining her sister's attire, straightened the pleats of her skirt and the shape of her collar. Odette, who had touched her hair a little for the last time, nodded her head, and Tira finally smiled with relief. She seemed to be rejuvenated quickly.
Odette took her sister's hand and left the old house by the river.
The soft sound of footsteps, as if dancing, continued along the path in the clear purple twilight.
*