OFTPE 19

Chapter 19

Baron Patrasche had read the letter carried by the messenger bird, which arrived at dawn, several times already, but still couldn’t bring himself to put it down.

There were only a few lines, yet the contents were something he had never expected to read.

Tap, tap, tap.

His long index finger rhythmically tapped on the mahogany desk.

It was originally the desk used by his older half-brother, the former lord of Grace.

This desk had been passed down through generations of the family, and only a lord recognized by the vassals was allowed to use it.

Naturally, the desk was now his. Even when he had traded it for a few dresses, foolish Chloe had clapped her hands in delight.

His gaze remained fixed on the small letter, no bigger than his palm.

“Sold jewels to a jeweler and shared grain with the people of the territory… Chloe’s doing things she never used to,” he muttered.

“She must’ve given up on everything. To the point of even selling that keepsake from her mother that she used to treasure so much,”

Eileen, sitting on the sofa in the office and sipping tea, responded with a smug voice to the baron’s soliloquy.

Eileen was the same age as Chloe.

Compared to the foolish, lazy, and self-centered Chloe, Eileen was smart, diligent, and put her all into everything she did. She was the pride of the baron and the jewel of the family.

Her golden hair and light green eyes—reminiscent of spring buds—made her beauty even more dazzling.

Her slim waist and full bosom made the hearts of many men flutter, and her radiant intellect earned praise from noblewomen at every salon.

Although her title was minor, public opinion favored Baron Patrasche—who had amassed a vast fortune through his own efforts—as the one to succeed the Grace marquisate. Accordingly, most of the land in Grace territory was already in his grasp.

The baron, whose eyebrows had been furrowed while reading the letter, relaxed as he looked at his daughter.

Every time he saw those pale green eyes—said to appear only in those blessed by the goddess of spring—he felt reassured about the future of their family.

In the baron’s eyes, filled with fondness and affection, Eileen was far superior to Chloe—sharper, more beautiful, and far more influential in social circles. Even the whispers that once scorned her for being a bastard daughter had died down as the baron’s fortune grew. Now, everywhere they went, people were eager to curry favor with them.

“Indeed. If Chloe had even a fraction of your wit, Grace territory wouldn’t have fallen into such ruin.”

“Thanks to that, our territory grew. So I think it’s actually a good thing. Maybe it was fate all along.”

The baron’s lips curled into a broad smile at his daughter’s words.

“So, do you think Chloe has changed because she’s given up on everything?”

He looked forward to hearing another clever reply from his daughter.

“Chloe never thinks things through. She always acts on impulse. She easily trusts people, gets fooled, and never grows. She blames others for everything. Even after the territory shrank so badly, she’s still chasing after some man like a lost puppy—that says it all.”

Eileen took a sip of tea before continuing with firm conviction:

“Chloe Grace is beyond hope. Before the year’s end, the entire Grace estate will be ours—and at a bargain, too. Chloe doesn’t even think to check land values.”

The baron nodded in satisfaction at her answer.

There wasn’t a single word that wasn’t true.

They were snatching up the best lands in the estate for dirt cheap, and Chloe thought the baron was generously buying land to help her now that she was broke.

She was so easy to manipulate. Just hand her a few lacy dresses and she’d light up with joy.

The clever Eileen always accompanied those visits to match Chloe’s mood and would flatter her, telling her the gaudy dresses suited her perfectly.

“I’m thinking of sending out birthday invitations. I’m really looking forward to what kind of outfit she shows up in this time.”

Thinking about Chloe showing up in a dress covered in lace, totally unaware of how tacky it looked, made Eileen giggle.

Clueless as always, Chloe wouldn’t realize people were mocking her and would beam with joy at their fake compliments.

“I’m thinking of going to Grace next week. Want to come with me?”

“Of course. Who else would help you? Leave it to me again this time. We can hand her the invitation while we’re there—she’ll love that.”

The baron smiled warmly and patted Eileen’s shoulder.

“Then I’ll let her know we’re coming. How about you write the letter this time?”

“Sure. I’ll write something that’ll make her melt with gratitude. Oh! Let’s send an old brooch with it. If I lie and say it’s a precious keepsake, Chloe will be so touched she won’t know what to do.”

“Excellent idea. Now then, which land should we acquire next?”

At his question, Eileen’s light green eyes sparkled with intelligence.

“Hmm… I think we should buy Morta village.”

“Why?”

The baron was clearly delighted. He already knew the answer but loved seeing his daughter prove her brilliance.

“Only about a tenth of Morta village is suitable for farming.”

“Even so, you believe it’s worth buying before anywhere else?”

“Absolutely. Morta village has the Black Forest.”

“But it’s filled with monsters, isn’t it?”

“Which means there’s plenty of profit to be made. We can hunt monsters and sell the byproducts. We can cut down trees and sell lumber. It’ll be a fortune.”

“What about the villagers?”

“We give them a bit of money and push them into monster hunting. Starving people will rush into the forest for scraps—they’ll make great bait.”

The baron smiled widely as he looked at Eileen.

She resembled him—clever and tenacious, she pursued every task to completion.

She was interested in many subjects, and her swordsmanship was good enough to rival most knights.

If the monster hunt was timed right, Eileen could be put forward as a national hero.

It wouldn’t be long now until the name “Grace” belonged solely to his bloodline.

The long line in front of the temporary food station had shortened considerably, with only about half remaining now.

Despite the chilly air caused by the overcast sky and the lack of sunshine, the lord continued to oversee the station without stepping into the carriage or complaining once. The knights and butler were visibly shocked.

Could a person really change this much in just a few days?

They rubbed their eyes several times, uncertain whether they were hallucinating.

“What are you looking at so intently, my lord?”

The butler asked when he noticed the lord staring not at the people receiving food but toward the damaged fountain.

“The children.”

“Pardon? The children?”

Screws, the butler, hadn’t even noticed the children playing near the fountain until that moment.

“Did they offend you in some way…?”

His voice trailed off, concern clouding his eyes again.

He worried that the children’s behavior might have offended the temperamental lord.

Donghui understood the lack of trust, but didn’t appreciate the guilt-inducing look Screws kept giving him every time he spoke.

With a sigh, Donghui muttered without taking his eyes off the children:

“They must be freezing. Their clothes are way too thin.”

These people might’ve appeared suddenly, as if from nowhere, and could just as easily vanish someday—but even so, Donghui wasn’t heartless enough to ignore children wandering around half-dressed.

Even if they were just NPCs in a game, Donghui would’ve hoarded in-game currency just to buy clothes for them.

“Pardon?”

Once again, the words from the lord were entirely unexpected.

“Is there a tailor nearby?”

Donghui had at least heard the proper term—he didn’t ask for a clothing vendor but a tailor.

“Nobles commission tailors, but commoners usually make their own clothes or pass them down from siblings.”

“I see.”

“Even the tailors in Grace Castle have left due to the long drought.”

He recalled a news story once mentioning that during economic downturns, flower shops and clothing stores are the first to go under.

Of course. Clothes and flowers weren’t necessary for survival.

Donghui nodded in understanding and continued:

“Then find the nearest tailor. Also, send someone to the city to purchase fabric. Ask the tailors to come visit our estate. Be sure to tell them we’ll pay generous travel fees.”

“Travel fees?”

It was a good thing that the lord seemed to have regained his senses, but something still felt off.

The lord was doing things that the Chloe Grace he knew would never do—not in a million years.

And now… travel expenses?

“They’re coming from far away. Of course we have to pay. How long will it take to bring them here?”

“We’ll try our best, but it’ll take at least a month. May I ask why you’re summoning tailors?”