Chapter 2 - Unaware Genius Girl Is Oblivious — 2
「Welcome back… Liliane.」
「Mother… I just got back.」
As Liliane leaves the trophy from the sword competition with the chamberlain, Josephine, the Duchess of Aggett, who is looking down on her in the entrance hall, appears. There was a young, beautiful, flowery person there who didn’t look like she had six children. She is also known as a social boss, but when she was once a countess, she was also active outside the country as a diva. Her singing, which was said to be a talent that would make the gods of the garden of music jealous, has not diminished at her age; in fact, some even say it has become more lustrous and appealing.
Josephine, who could have passed for elder sister and younger sister with Liliane, greeted her youngest daughter with the dignity of a duchess, however.
She was too polite to address her mother as a perfect lady, but her perfect smile and graceful behavior were more ladylike than anyone else in her dignified attire, even though she was dressed in a knight’s outfit and not a skirt-pinching curtsy.
The servants who were greeting the guests in the hall let out a small sigh inwardly at the softly fragrant air.
「I also heard that you were in competitions with men?」
「Yes.」
「Even if Liliane is a girl, that’s must be troubling.」
「I’m sorry.」
If she were just a winner in a sword competition, she might argue with Wilfred, who gave the order, but Liliane bowed her head solemnly. She is not proud of her accomplishment that she won the championship, nor does she make excuses that it was because Wilfred, her instructor, told her to do so.
Anna, Liliane’s maid of honor, who received the trophy, gulped.
「Are you practicing the piano properly, not just being rough and tumble?」
「Yes, Mother.」
「Mhhmm, that’s no good. You were playing at the salon yesterday, but you were so distracted by the fingering that you’re faltering when you should have been putting emotion into it. You have to be exposed to music every day, right?」
「Understood… I’m going to head to the piano until then, as I’m supposed to get some pointers from you after Brother Wilfred gets home.」
「Well, do you still swing the sword…? Haah… Please don’t do anything that will leave scars.」
「Understood.」
With a languid air and a hint of melancholy on her beautiful face, Josephine left the entrance hall with leisurely steps.
It was up to Wilfred, the martial arts instructor, to decide whether the wound would remain, but even if it was true, Liliane, who didn’t tell him so, could only bow her head and let it go.
「Welcome back, Liliane.」
「…Sister Cornelia, I have just returned.」
Liliane was about to return to her room to change her knight armor once before heading to the piano when she was stopped by Cornelia, the second daughter of the Aggett family.
In her hand was the specification sheet for the grimoire that Liliane had submitted to Cornelia yesterday. This petite girl with sleepy eyes could be mistaken for Liliane’s older or younger sister, but at such a young age she’s a rare witch and a renowned alchemy genius who has made numerous inventions that have become famous even outside of the country.
「This. If you want it to work according to the specifications, the magic circuit is not well designed. You’ll only get these numbers in an ideal environment.」
「Yes, I understand.」
「You should make something a little more actually usable, Liliane.」
“For example, here,” she said, peering seriously into Cornelia’s hand as she stood and began to explain. Liliane was following Cornelia’s words, which were characteristic and difficult for ordinary people to understand because of her genius and her sensuous way of speaking, as if she was eating up the advanced content dimension that she hadn’t yet learned at the academy.
「Resubmissions are due this week.」
「Yes, Sister Cornelia.」
After receiving the written document, which was bright red from writing to specifications, Liliane put it on the desk in her room, gave up on changing her knight armor and headed for the salon. She decided that she didn’t have much time left to practice before Wilfred came home from work, but Josephine spotted her playing the piano as a knight and warned her again.
「Has Liliane gone to bed already?」
The Duke, master of the Aggett family, came to the salon on the private floor and approached Germaine, his eldest son. He knew that his son, who served as an aide in the Crown Prince’s office, had returned home just a little earlier than he had.
「By the time I got home, the lights were already down, so I’m sure she’s long asleep.」
The Duke lowers his eyebrows at Germaine’s regretful remark. The Duke was famous for being a loving husband and fatherly man who wanted to return home as much as possible to see his family, even though he had been given a room in the castle as Prime Minister.
The family head, who had not been home for two days due to the busy season, smiled wryly as he stood back by the wall in a sorry mood, as he realized that he had apparently not achieved his main goal.
「Also today, I didn’t even get to say good night to our princess.」
The family members present, including Germaine, laughed at the father’s exaggerated, slumped shoulders.
「I haven’t been able to talk to Lili for three days now. I only saw that gallant and pretty figure from afar at a sword fighting tournament chaperoned by the Crown Prince.」
「It would still be better than me. I can’t believe I can’t even go home every day because His Majesty rubs me the wrong way.」
As they lament not seeing their youngest daughter, Josephine turns her fawning smile, which is called the Flower Of The Society.
「I feel sorry for you two. I can’t believe I haven’t heard Lili practice yet because of the late night.」
「Mother, please don’t brag because I will be envious.」
「She has recently improved his skills again! I don’t think anyone else can play that score with such precision at that age. If you can put even more emotion into it there… Ah! I can’t wait for Thanksgiving at the end of the year.」
「I told you to stop bragging!」
「Brother, cheer up.」
「Cornelia…」
「Well, I spent some meaningful time with Lili about designing a grimoire.」
「You’re bragging, too, huh?」
Germaine shakes his head as if to say, “Oh dear.”
「I thought Lili had been monopolized by Wilfred recently, saying it was a push before the sword competition, but it looks like Cornelia is going to take it for brushing up on the magical tools she’s developing.」
「I’m not keeping her to myself for nothing. It’s necessary. I just don’t want anyone to be stingy with the magical tools that Lili is developing.」
「I’m sure you’re having a good time over a cup of tea with Lili on the pretext that it’s a development meeting.」
「I don’t do that. I’m being strict. You introduced yourself to Lili when she was opening the restaurant, when you interfered with her in management? I think Brother is the one spoiling her by saying it’s a lecture on economics.」
「I’m not spoiling her.」
Josephine, looking annoyed, interceded with the second and third who were glaring at each other and sparking off a firestorm.
「You two don’t fight each other over Lili.」
「I’m afraid you’re the one who’s spoiling Lili, Mother.」
「Oh, I’ve decided that I’m not going to be a hick when it comes to music!」
「This is coming from the person who always praises Lili because she’s the only one among the siblings who has musical talent… I’m not sure how credible this is.」
「Wilfred is the one who should stop training Lili in martial arts for goodness sake, just because you want to spend a little time with her together. If it’s self-defense, that’s enough. What if Lili gets hurt?」
「I’m careful enough when I teach her, and most importantly, it’s that talent, you know? To take it away because of gender is outdated.」
「Then, is it okay if someone else teaches them?」
「I won’t let that! …No, not because I want to teach her, but because letting a man, even a knight, near the adorable Lili…」
Wilfred makes excuses, and his siblings look at him and say,「This guy can’t help it.」
「Alphonse, your day and night are reversed, you’re out of sync with Lili’s life cycle, but you can afford it. You haven’t talked to Lili in a while, have you?」
「Nhn? Me, you know, I’m supposed to be correcting and teaching Lili’s new work tomorrow morning. I’ll be able to take plenty of Lili then, so that’s good.」
「You’re so proud of yourself, aren’t you…? I’m sure your fans would be jealous to hear that A.A., a novelist of rare caliber, is teaching you how to write by herself.」
「No, no, as a fan of Annette J., this is just a hobby of mine.」
「More importantly, can you get up in time for Lili’s wake up time?」
「Don’t worry, I actually just woke up a little while ago. I’m going to keep writing and reading Lili’s new work until morning, and I’m going to put in some proofreading too.」
「Unhealthy bastard.」
While the eldest son jealously teased his younger brother, the Duke, the most powerful mage in the country, looked forlorn as he asked,「Do you have any business that Lili might want to receive instruction in magic?」He was checking with the family order.
「Well, I’m better off than Angelica. After all, I live in the same mansion…」
「No, Angelica, as the Crown Princess, has commissioned Lili to do another portrait, so I think she’ll have Lili all to herself on a regular basis for a while.」
「What? That’s just an excuse to see Lili, no matter how you look at it! She’s abusing her authority…」
「Well, Lili is actually able to draw pictures that are on par with the royal court’s official painters at that age, so it’s amazing.」
「No, that’s part of it, but of course it’s an excuse! First of all, if she wants to draw a picture, why don’t Angelica draw it herself? Of course, Lili’s paintings are so great that they could easily stand up to Angelica’s work…」
「That’s true, but…」
As a painter, the Crown Princess is famous as a designer who launched a very popular brand that has opened stores abroad. His wife and children looked at him with smiling eyes as their father, who gave verbal compliments that he was no better than his eldest daughter and adored his youngest kid with great pomp and circumstance, said.
