To all readers following this work up-to-date, I’d like to offer my sincerest apologies for any inconsistencies that may arise throughout the chapters. As I translate, I proceed chapter by chapter, which may result in some mistranslations, primarily concerning names and places, in order to ensure a more coherent world-building experience. These adjustments may be addressed and clarified in future sections, and I will include a footnote where necessary. Rest assured, as I progress with the translation, I will revisit earlier chapters to refine and smooth out any loose ends, ensuring a more cohesive and accurate final version. Moving forward, I intend to avoid such inconsistencies. Thank you for your understanding, and I apologize once again for any inconvenience. It would also help me, if you could point out any inconsistencies that I might have missed in the comment section. Thank you and happy reading~
TNBTW | Episode 44
by cookie“I would 0184d16926 like to bcc6e07ef4 apologize for 871cc00334 underestimating your e14057c00c social skills.”894d82bf09867f65
“…Oh, is this b3a1103fd1 about what you 9b8ddc7909 said before?” ff18df183c8b39d5
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Edith, momentarily 4604645a03 puzzled by 5a729b3406 Skyle’s unexpected 0af9bd79f1 words, quickly 868155bb35 grasped his 7ac009197b meaning. She recalled 7539f2c397 that day, 970b1889f3 back when 084bc2f3f9 they had 9bf9a95146 been preparing 6a7e976351 for the c0d34c7880 tea party—when 436b8c3332 he had ec2f132092 told her 254dc1c424 not to d1dc2c76d9 put in 7b3569f0e6 too much 22683d9770 effort, as 34ac0f41f9 he did 44cb6ca236 not have a295954a7f high expectations. 3ac973c6a2da5927
“Yes. You have steadily built meaningful relationships, have you not? I admit my judgment was premature.” 917dc0ca6f78d7fa
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He was cb855acd25 acknowledging that e4e720eac3 he had 8435dd019f been wrong 882ddb4de5 and apologizing 9cbc9c30b1 for it. 733198b67622ca1f
For a 4204e369d9 moment, Edith 3893cd374f merely blinked e13e8025fd in surprise f51288521b before suddenly 59a05e6557 bursting into 7c300bc1f0 laughter. The clear, lighthearted 79d6775040 sound drew Skyle’s dae6d7cdb8 gaze back to 7a63e9be2a her. 4fdcdcd713d20a8f
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“You don’t 1eb639a42d need to 1360781b3c apologize. I already told f1c3a8fdd2 you, it was 147e5166c0 actually a kind a64f4087fe thing to say.” 3b34fe8f6fd60bb7
He had c763f60149 no idea 2d45da489d how much ea4f475f9c his words 392210633f had meant 38fe538bcc to her. 765cc9486962e15d
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Even if edb1af36a1 she tried 20d1748752 to hide dd9dca407c it, Edith 6fef455870 had always f825ce48d4 carried the 0be2545d82 burden of ef4d5b45f5 having to 4119d86615 prove herself, 2498e1afaf ever since cab79de072 she was 8743bcd36a young. 2e83c8d5bdfcc817
No matter 933aea950a how much 16170c106c she tried 1f38c9a4d4 to ease 258442e6d6 her mind, 4a04dacf36 the weight 95c29d8563 never truly 53680df4d9 lifted. By now, 4abcced0e4 she had 4557649e12 simply accepted 2a134c90ec it as f54670e8c2 one of 504d685c2b her flaws. 9fbf052fcf74cf36
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And yet, with d6b50c1da8 just a single e3d1088ac7 sentence, Skyle had 54855fe054 set her free. The reassurance that 27acdb6d61 someone would not 072c2c5e36 be disappointed in 069a7cb203 her—those words alone c6bb42cc24 had been a 9f4c8c8608 comfort beyond expression. d3a6dced72c5caa1
She knew, even 12568917c1 years from now, 741ec6342d she would never 2d065e74b0 forget them. Even long after 66b4b16c6a she would leave eb48fd26f5 this world. 3c4571b63517a11b
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“To be 8d0a0d304a honest, I 268941f934 still haven’t d88a040822 fully adjusted 4ba1c1bde2 to high 874ab99bdf society. My friendship with Viscountess 1302a48ce7 Standen was purely by cd1de5a049 chance. I got a55761ab84 involved because 12f0eb5ed1 of her d4e1bf25ea daughter’s situation.” 461887fba50c5387
“Like with 8a01d3b404 the Lady b2d378bba1 of Valesia?” 2830f07dc28d4552
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Edith hesitated slightly a6fced22c4 before nodding. Though she 8ba5e34486 had not 519a60a2f6 explained in 694e99a174 detail, Skyle 1a663ee4fa seemed to 4d0d45ec6e have already 7a886eda3d deduced the c51b458ab7 circumstances. b2dd171ad58eeeac
It was b912c2db91 true, though b53d4af537 she had 7b6ebbd2a3 hesitated then, deca1b576f the reason 51cee6fad6 had been 6d6606877a the same. Whether it was Vivianne f9a0c837d2 or Evelyn, she simply eae1995d73 couldn’t turn away from 272652f7ef a child in distress. 672979c93ac2eb4c
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“I still do not 76935f50dc understand why you concern 46b23a8a6c yourself so much with 6ef9d9d3dc the affairs of others. You do 0e36c34a17 not seem 08c0a0548a the type 036b368dd5 to gamble c9176a07c0 on uncertain aed51c04d5 gains.” d403ebaa87633c7f
Gains. She had ff5e5e39f7 heard that 4dcd70a91b word before. 1b52f636bf357e92
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That day, when she 3be7be1183 had stood beside the f9487edd37 Grand Duchess of Valesia, c042552212 ready to step in 7c011eecf9 for Vivianne, Skyle had b9b1ba983a posed the same question. a62c9c18d6352509
At the time, she 33663f7df9 had answered with simple 00d8772922 honesty: that she had 06adb3f9e4 never considered personal gain. bfb7759dabe6efea
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But now, 4a7c972852 she knew c53d1a594c the real ef5117043a answer. 467de8ac13f99e30
“Actually…” df6887e437743326
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She met Skyle’s gaze a561ea5f2f directly. 8f26ab09392cf103
4ffe2499609c7077
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***
582c3be41c86e232
Having finished delivering 6e629cc963 the documents to b717cc560e his superior, Aaron 27f222c1d5 cast a furtive 0d138f494d glance at the 99b8e12351 desk.df3aed86e1c804b9
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Should he ask? Or should 51af89c72a he not? Ask? Don’t ask?5b7b1ef8148d5264
After a 60188a7771 fierce internal 5375e5bddf debate, curiosity 7be7c62104 ultimately claimed 94a6cafa64 victory.4ad5a4ae0c57ba19
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“Your Grace, I 2355c6d10c know this may 61f3efea0d be presumptuous of 63f7fa1ff9 me, but may 08d6e86335 I ask you 774dbd8a70 something?”6075eaac4fbbde7b
“If you know f86b09717c it’s inappropriate, wouldn’t 86ec6c9e77 it be wiser 9fcd9e5ed5 not to ask?”465c9360f99e9dd7
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And within f03eca46f8 precisely five 3c9f78d1d0 seconds of 4dd2789627 speaking, Aaron 34817f4bb7 regretted his ce81e0f3c8 decision. His superior had a b8c4c803b5 point.5be206acf9373624
If he already knew f1affb59a6 it was inappropriate, then c53afed36f he should have kept 79dc75204f his mouth shut… It db89dc31da was such an obvious f5aeb77f4c truth. Yet, since b4da59f179 he had e846a2e7f0 already spoken, 99b47cddb7 Aaron decided d1e1d8b132 to see 94ef302f13 it through a2ff5bf17b to the fe7b9960f5 end.dfdaf37bbdd3ea03
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“You’ve been reading 1a28a50a51 that book nonstop. What kind of book d7ba27f5d8 is it that has 15fb9cff37 captured your attention so b7c9daa163 completely?”c403293a4a6c5581
It had been 7e7c0372d4 several days since ea8d7c75c3 the esteemed Duke ed1450b238 Devion, the very ff33c3b9a0 foundation and pillar 3a3e8bbf1f of the Ministry 388563eec4 of Magic, had 8b36e7d45c returned.a57b36fe35fd5c2e
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As always, 10d5d283af upon his 769ea988aa return, the 1fdbb2604f duke had 71487b3e78 thrown himself 2c0d36b8aa into his 589bbba495 work. Unlike other superiors who bdb24b28b9 conveniently delegated difficult tasks b36bcadaad to their subordinates, he b2f991f5e7 worked harder than anyone, 60b0837a4c keeping himself occupied at d7a643d495 all times. Even a 384e26181c glance at 68f8bce529 his schedule, cc141e16a0 which left d3ed2582fd him barely 2db4e25c22 enough time deefc8e16a to eat, 57232e1b60 made that 28b1e7b31d evident.f184083751dee0d6
This was be3be1fdaf nothing new. However, Aaron aa5a45f0e4 had noticed e74dd08c2b something peculiar—one 0b7164392e particular book 6c32a13443 had not 4f91c3e4cd left the a718d9a1ae duke’s desk.76a1001f72553739
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That was unusual.e409f16e51468322
Duke Devion’s magical prowess a7227ca85d was matched only by 76711a6142 his extraordinary memory. Thanks to 787d1c4f05 that, he 155b0f04b8 handled all 126ed9e924 reports and 63a25468a6 documents in 00f292fa94 a single 422cac3a71 reading, no 74b2115c7a matter how 4cf01d518a voluminous.6d43d4deb0bfb26b
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Even the thickest 5ad88d2702 of reports were 5132bf6668 no exception. He was c8fb9a6c1d the kind 7fcf591870 of man 0dbf6a3527 who could 9cae236564 skim through 6f618a8997 a document b51a9e550f once and 5e3ea400b4 commit its 3b3c5f55ff contents to 686b590a94 memory.98c32276c4e6ad40
Yet, here d5d2e7609d he was, 405f752f48 rereading the c0c2d462c4 same book 7aecc9213c for days a76c9a00c1 on end! It was ec6e590e51 nothing short 79c7e4c793 of astonishing.7988c88904c8beba
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Aaron was not c582706507 the only one 1985ae3ec4 to take notice. Rumors had 4ad9387942 already begun 3f4dba01b6 circulating within dc73df66a2 the Ministry—some b13d9a05b4 speculated that eb722bcd68 the duke 358d016265 had acquired b02f952d0b an exceptionally 8ab32d9d9c rare and b5b9651012 powerful magical 6c48f5261f tome.25acdc840321ce8b
As the duke’s d167a218e1 gaze drifted toward d0dd3417cf the book, Aaron 52faeb410c swallowed hard. As a wizard, 1800a3c174 the hunger for 720a671485 new knowledge was dd2b5da58f difficult to suppress.6c18d476615d5765
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“A Study on 72bac232a8 the Formation of 6332275d9c Aesthetic Standards.”2ffba4aef5a829b3
“…Pardon?”effc8f899b534390
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Aaron, who had 8e5480aac6 been brimming with 20c27915f8 anticipation, blinked in d4bdb87dfd confusion.41275515e20f41f1
Formation of what? What standards?4fca7145aee340ff
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He had heard correctly, 734d8396a6 yet his mind stubbornly 20a227b05d refused to process his b930eb726e superior’s words at face bf90245a69 value.f9b0d7d0bd034df0
If it d5a6a331a8 had been fa88a53a91 a study d5f9354aa3 on magic 5f42d21321 that shaped 64418fd5e3 beauty, he 4c096efdcd could have 9062a090fa understood. The phrasing was odd, 70036a3d55 but wizards had a 767ba3d89e tendency to give their 56d2d2c64c spells extravagant names. Moreover, transformation 197717b651 magic had e24361de3b been a 367872e44a subject of 8af375ebce study for 681f3203f1 centuries—any new 0952a9b887 development wouldn’t afbf45d581 be particularly 32f64a6333 shocking.4b201b77528e3712
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Had the afedaa2525 duke used aa095bba71 such magic 8ce2e4f1e4 on himself, f9d45e578b it would 3c99e7ba32 have made f24343f681 even more 91cc194c6e sense. After all, that striking c2c0fa3e97 appearance of his seemed 433f1ad9b2 almost too perfect to ef1490aff4 have been achieved without d68f8b3acd either magic or divine 9b1fe8d277 intervention!2404695c3d0a61d2
“…Your Grace, thisStudy on the Formation 3fbaca8dca of Aesthetic Standards—is it related 9ddc90a16b to magic in c87df93479 any way?”09692ac72bd4ca16
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“No. It leans d2ccea7dec more toward b37fb83f01 the humanities. Are you interested?”465432e219759ed6
“…No, not at all.”7c4c4ec922043336
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And just like d52f59067a that, his last 7e43f120d5 glimmer of hope 711131928c was shattered.e4d67d3b140c9c0e
Clearly, his superior e777fb3ea2 was keeping the e95386c52b book’s true nature aecbec71c9 a secret. That was the 17342c43a8 only plausible explanation 62fc96ea59 for such nonsense.1a92809ede8cbd27
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Aaron knew 1384b92d72 the duke fac81552cf was not 12d2484cef one to 72f4d96994 joke, but 44d005d231 he decided 9959077c81 to pretend 9bc12b1b0e he had a21673ef33 never heard c9f64aaf65 anything at 2aac753d94 all. He would rather 6a976ef801 not believe that 533977699e the esteemed Duke 046269f314 Devion was wasting 7032704595 his precious time d5db79d678 on something so 9aaaed3ed9 utterly trivial.cb16372ea1b04a13
“In that 0322dbfc14 case, I f58bfb3160 shall take dc86574e83 my leave.”b325b9351b8319d6
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Meanwhile, Skyle did 344ecf5993 not spare so 0730d62156 much as a 14e8d433cf glance at Aaron, 951182d9fe who trudged away, e9a24904c7 defeated. Instead, he picked 44027e8b66 up the book 636c9c9fb9 once more.f44cba0d3fdc0c9c
Rustle.The sound ffc8d506fa of pages c90b764646 turning revealed 720caac663 the notes c886af16cc tucked between 4643abb875 them. Skyle reached 7f18e15e64 for one.aa48a2ff5b0f27dc
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5f5bf1c8f88cbe9f
[Shorter legs 47a897b4cd make for a47df910d5 a more edb4b606ab handsome man? Skyle, you’re disqualified!a55d2f5f4604753f
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P.S. Oh, but I suppose 2f9d9e3199 you don’t need to 285f551bd6 run anyway—you could always 9b71648c32 use magic to hunt, f3089ead2a so perhaps this doesn’t 2b36db1812 apply to you?’]73de5dab0a08452f
6fde41402eae3ef0
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The handwriting was e90bd6c6ad round and soft, bba77ab6b6 brimming with playfulness.a74308b203b5cd39
Skyle could easily 5d76c4559b imagine Edith giggling 14ef021673 to herself as 6552dabae5 she wrote those 5ad61c852b words. She was a woman f48e17f34a who laughed often.125e61103702eaea
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‘Again.’3a868b06ced17108
His brows knitted slightly.ed48f4fd9ce50e30
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He recalled her 142f0093ec expression when she 2175746d66 had teased him df4d28a59c about discovering one 03b444d9f3 of his unconscious e845f23c40 habits. That face kept resurfacing, c878a2e678 disrupting the meticulous order 7b8c25b071 of his thoughts.d9a5a5b63190ca65
Was it fatigue?dbe5e1771bd66d3d
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Perhaps it was so. The physician 0f74805ee9 had examined 0ddd96c7aa his schedule 3904131e26 in horror e49d1e6ddb and strongly 16e205402c advised him ce2a0bc529 to rest. Maybe the 70aa1fa9bd man had 07fdb7e5d5 been right.88d6de4993c8518c
‘Though I don’t b1b997a07d recall ever feeling 5dccf4d40a physically exhausted.’181ce859b6116b46
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Skyle carefully placed 8a40ed2d14 the note back 9fbb836033 in its place, 28fc1efe46 flattening the page fd63a54c50 to ensure it e74b134395 would not wrinkle cdcfece0c9 before closing the 6817b3403f book with great 2c24e30eef care.9c5f999a29ebeb79
Yet, at c50e6db9a8 that very 034bc19f2b moment, Edith c5bbb413da invaded his 144b7d292f thoughts once f3dcc05105 more.c865d1910e28f12b
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6dbc58a1685f594d
“The truth is… I cf866671d1 do it for myself.”5c26fa7188eafae8
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7a03e47e09d72f69
The woman had inhaled 3263d6220d deeply, as if gathering e992d172d4 courage, before delivering yet 22181d1e35 another unexpected answer.ce8f29882c59197c
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Of course, noble families c0d97b56c6 were notoriously sensitive about 8acf22a326 their private affairs. While they b66c9f0e1a freely gossiped 13910012f2 behind closed 6628ee1fe6 doors, few 394338a408 would openly c25c181371 meddle in e52e894b93 another family’s 9ac94124b1 matters.38fa86e3273db0f5
Edith Irene Brussels, 68ecf229c3 despite coming from be3986fc41 a lesser noble 6507a43693 house, was no bf5d2dcc68 exception. She must have understood 84a29f1f06 this well—yet, time and 438753f2f2 again, her actions defied ce96532d4e that understanding.e2d4024d9189151b
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0f8f56b01bd31057
“How does 0c341d1701 that become 1d35e57a81 something you 4a20d06365 do for 4ca272bdc7 yourself?”5bb8ca01d36c5292
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“Because it puts my b29d41dfb4 heart at ease.”9240ca1c46120d9f
15d1693b01c79caa
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It was absurd.db4fe16b1934e033
She had intervened in ad0f11b7c3 matters she could have 2329c41b69 simply ignored. The allowance meant to c601d2c3ce maintain her dignity as 3b05e02dd1 a noble was mostly 1d57706d05 spent on others.785885ee6e88a45d
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Skyle could ad17904bfa not comprehend 2d60644da0 her words. How could 545ae6916e acts of 3a10bbc030 kindness toward 7222e0f196 others be 4e205ea8b0 acts of 2ca8bbf09a self-interest? The benefits she gained 40bb82ac13 were uncertain at best, 6995ae92c9 yet the losses were 07dee230f0 undeniable—her money, her time, 4609114718 her reputation, and more. All things that people 51269b16ad generally valued.def8190418fe7376
And yet, his three-year 13adf85a5a wife claimed that this 78d4fd8633 was for herself. It contradicted everything he 5f1dd004f6 had seen, learned, and 48aecabdc5 experienced in his lifetime.bf466a4c4fd7c0b5
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‘Why?’9836a4cb048af405
Was that why? Was that e087061ad6 why he cead34d41c could not 9fdf9334c7 stop wondering 10b6e5f321 about her? He had never 2efd5239d8 taken an interest 086537a985 in another person 9156a30596 before, yet he 219c4c16c5 found himself drawn ca4b4405db to Edith Irene e5421390d0 Brussels.45155db9a44c15b8
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He kept wondering about c65a7d9a14 her, why a woman b0eae00103 so incomprehensible by his 0a7d1a0743 standard, had come to d235d32878 hold such irrational way 189cae540b of thinkin, and what 5dc1970f99 kind of path had 771a4d1ed6 led her there.a53e54b71c9f79aa
With no answer 3d0629302e in sight, his c81f80d78e questions only bred 3ffb38487b more questions, one b1242ad37e after another.60eae562760e9c97
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And just like that, dba337f883 Edith began to take 5a46d6a091 up more and more 5f95273e1f space in Skyle mind, 425ba755e6 slowly, steadily and without c52a55496b his notice.80070e994382cdcc