- Tilia, you become more beautiful every day. You have turned into a real young lady.
Hearing Reiner's words, Judy narrowed her eyes as she spooned some of the side dish onto her plate.
“Brother, if you’re trying to play tricks on my friend, you’ll regret it!”
- Tricks? I speak from the bottom of my heart.
Tilia chuckled at Reiner's mocking words and met his gaze.
- How do you like it in Ontario?
- Well, that was good.
Grace watched her third son as he spoke, taking a sip of the aperitif.
Although his gentle manners could deceive others, he could not deceive his mother's eyes.
It may have started out as a joke, but the moment Tilia met his gaze, it stopped being a joke to Reiner.
It was obvious that he was stunned by Tilia's beauty, which had only increased during their separation. There was a subtle tension in the way he fiddled with the fork.
- I'm glad to hear that you are doing well. Judy might pretend she wasn't, but she was really worried.
Tilia's voice, on the contrary, was calm and measured.
In a calm tone, she asked Reiner:
- What do you think about Ontario?
- It's great there. Even though it's just next door, it's nothing like Acansis. It was fun there.
Grace sighed quietly as she watched her son finally relax while discussing a familiar topic.
Who does he look like to be like that?
Unlike his older brothers, who followed in their father's footsteps and became knights, Reiner decided not to become a military man.
“Trading business, seriously!?”
Grace could hardly contain her sighs at the dinner table in the presence of her guest.
But it wasn't easy, especially with a son who pretended to go to Knight Academy and then ran away to Ontario and enrolled in business school there.
- Ontario is a land of art and freedom. She's so much more open than Acansis that it was a bit of a shock at first, but once I adjusted it was fun. Oh, come to think of it, there was one time...
Completely oblivious to his worried mother's feelings, Reiner began to tell funny stories about his experiences in Ontario - such as the time he was almost suspected of flirting with a married woman because of a misunderstood phrase.
Seeing Judy and Tilia listening intently, their innocent faces full of curiosity, Grace suddenly felt a surge of irritation.
“Reiner, do you really think it’s funny to talk about how a woman hit you?”
- Well, I can’t cry over this, can I, mom?
Grace looked at Reiner, who casually joked, annoyance showed on her face, and she couldn't help but tighten her grip on the knife.
Seeing this, Reiner made an exaggerated movement, as if he was pulling away in fear.
- Mom, even if I die, I wanted to at least get my diploma first.
- I would prefer that you be buried without an education.
Judy and Tilia laughed like children their age during the heated exchange.
But even as she joked, Grace's heart burned with worry.
As if noticing the subtle change in Grace's expression, Tilia quickly changed the subject.
- Is the Ontario language really that difficult to learn? Its grammatical structure is similar to that of Akansis.
- Hmm, at first it's easy, but over time it becomes more and more difficult. Speaking naturally is the real challenge.
Grace watched Tilia with gratitude as she patiently listened to Reiner's useless chatter.
And then she suddenly realized that there was a real sparkle in Tilia's eyes.
Tilia's face now showed curiosity and interest that was not there at the beginning.
Grace looked from her son, who was enthusiastically explaining how to learn Ontario, to Tilia, who was listening intently, her expression hard.
Could it be?
Grace already felt uncomfortable, but a new worry arose in her mind.
Could an unfortunate event happen and they end up together?
Grace watched Tilia with concern.
In fact, Tilia herself was fine. She was such an outstanding child that it is unlikely that anyone could find her equal anywhere in the world.
But...
But the problem was not with Tilia herself, but with her family.
The thought of the abandoned mine, the real reason she had called Tilia today, made her head pound.
Grace liked Tilia, but she wanted at all costs to avoid the fate of being related to that rude Baron Ambrose.
If they were related as a family, how much could this person exploit and torture the Count's family? Just the thought of it was suffocating.
- Tilia, you seem to be very interested in Ontario.
In the midst of all this, Reiner slyly tried to get Tilia's opinion.
- Why don't you come later? When I'm a senior, I'm thinking about renting my own place, so there will be plenty of spare rooms.
This scoundrel. Grace glared at her son for his blatant advances.
- Thank you.
But before Grace could kick Reiner under the table, Tilia gave a completely dismissive response.
- I will go with Judy later, after graduation.
- Oh. Will you do it?
Seeing how indifferent Reiner took Tilia's refusal, Grace silently took a firm stand.
Tilia remained calm and balanced.
Seeing her balanced posture, Grace felt both relieved and a slight sense of reproach weighing down her heart.
***
Unlike the Ambrose family crew, the Wells family crew was comfortable and quiet.
Tilia leaned back on the clean seat of the carriage that Grace had lent her, looking out the window.
Thanks to the lengthening daylight hours, it wasn't even dusk outside yet.
But as she looked, Tilia's heart was heavy, overshadowed by dark clouds.
With a gloomy expression on her face, she remembered what she had heard just recently in the Wells family mansion.
“Tilia. I thought about whether I should tell you this, whether it was right, but I decided that you at least should know ... "
The story that Grace told her when she called her into the hallway under the pretext of wanting to treat her to dessert was shocking.
“The gold mining operation that Baron Ambrose is so concerned about is essentially a scam. For us, it's just an unprofitable abandoned mine, so we don't mind selling it cheaper, but I heard that among those who believed in the story of this broker, Baron Ambrose promised the highest investment...
This broker has a history of doing the same trick - taking investment money and then immediately closing it. The claim that a gold mine has been discovered in a long-abandoned mine makes no sense. I wanted to warn you before it was too late."
If you don't have talent, at least don't be greedy. Or at least don't even think about moving forward.
Tilia took a deep breath, looking out at the streets lit by the sunset.
***
Ugh. Tilia took a deep breath and looked at the office door, which was about to open.
Her father, Baron Ambrose, declined the request for a meeting, but when she said she wanted to discuss business, he immediately invited her to come up.
- Fine. Come in.
As soon as the door opened, Bradley spoke hopefully, getting straight to the point:
- You said you wanted to talk about business. Have you heard anything from the Wells family?
Tilia tried to hide the expression of contempt on her face and slowly opened her mouth to speak.
- Yes. The Count asked if you were planning to invest in a gold mine.
- Tch. Has the rumor already spread that far? This is not good - people shouldn't flock there!
Bradley clicked his tongue, his face darkening as if the news had ruined his mood.
“It was information that I bought at a high price from a famous intelligence guild. Everyone has such an uncanny nose for the smell of money!
Bradley leaned back in his large chair and looked at Tilia.
- Just wait and see. This time your father will have a big victory. Everyone thinks that an abandoned mine is just a lifeless hole, right? Heh, they don't know there's a gold mine going through there!
Tilia calmly looked at her father, who was laughing vulgarly.
- Wait. Did Earl Wells know about this? No, this can't be! Did the Count ask you about potential profits? If he realizes there is gold there and decides not to sell, that will be a huge problem!
- …No. He said the field had been deemed unprofitable, so they were willing to sell it cheap.
- Well, that's great! Yes, yes. He who does not take risks cannot become rich! This is ideal: the Count will not interfere!
Tilia looked down at Bradley, who was chuckling to himself as he calculated how much money would fall into his hands.
Should she just leave it at that and pretend she doesn't know anything?
She felt a strong desire to escape, but could not.
The family was supposed to collapse after she successfully obtained a position in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At least until she graduated and moved abroad, her family couldn't be something that would drag her down.
Suppressing her irritation and reluctance, Tilia slowly forced herself to speak.
- Father, are you sure that there really is a hidden gold mine there?
- Of course it's true! Do you know how much money I spent to get this information?
- Just because it was expensive doesn't make it true.
Bradley was still smiling, but his eyes were cold.