ORPDRL Chapter 29

 Episode 29 

“Lilia, what are you doing over there?”

Lilia stood frozen in place, still near the carriage she had stopped, when the coachman’s question snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Something seems off.”

Redirecting a horse’s direction with a punch to its face wasn’t difficult for her—a gray bear beastfolk and former leader of her clan.

However, even her strength couldn’t have stopped a carriage that had already gained momentum.

‘That’s why I braced myself to collide with it instead…’

But the carriage had stopped short, not even hitting her, let alone Letty. It was as if someone had pulled it back from behind.

Swish!

As Lilia stepped closer to inspect the carriage, a figure darted out from behind it and disappeared into the bushes.

“…Young Master?”

Lilia narrowed her eyes, catching a fleeting glimpse of pale hair streaked with reddish hues—a sight both familiar and unfamiliar.

‘It couldn’t be, could it?’

Mireil had secluded himself deep in the forest for so long.

‘He hasn’t even set foot near the main building in ages… Why now?’

Someone as reclusive as him wouldn’t have ventured out just to see the commotion about a child bride.

Shaking her head, Lilia convinced herself she had imagined it.

✦ ✦ ✦

Carried back in Grisys arms, Letty fell asleep without even eating dinner. The strain of using her unfamiliar ability and the day’s fright had drained all her energy.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Miss, may I come in?”

The following morning, Dolores, who had been assigned as Letty’s personal maid, came to wake her.

“Mmm…”

Letty groggily blinked her eyes open, spotting the red-haired figure standing by the door.

“Dolores?”

“Oh my, you’re so cute, even now…”

The maid was overcome with adoration for the drowsy Letty, stomping her feet to resist the urge to smash the floor out of sheer affection.

‘But I mustn’t scare Miss Letty by breaking down the door like Lilia!’

Dolores, slender and graceful, was as much an outsider as the towering Lilia. However, their differing appearances reflected their contrasting personalities, and they weren’t particularly close.

‘And Miss Letty seems to like Lilia more than me.’

Though their shared love for Letty was their only similarity, Dolores resented the idea that Letty might find Lilia more endearing, grinding her teeth at the thought.

Especially after yesterday, when Lilia had saved Letty during her absence, Dolores felt she was falling behind in Letty’s favor.

“A great merchant traveling between the Eastern Continent and here is visiting today, Miss.”

Dolores, eager to share something Lilia didn’t yet know, whispered this news to Letty with a triumphant smile.

‘Kids love looking at goods, especially exotic items from faraway lands!’

Determined not to lose ground to Lilia, Dolores excitedly leaned closer to Letty.

“Really?”

“Yes! A merchant with fascinating items is coming. The journey to the Grizzly territory is so treacherous that traders usually avoid it, but for some reason, they’re coming today.”

After gently wiping a tiny speck of sleep from the corner of Letty’s eye, Dolores chuckled warmly and picked her up.

“So, shall we go see it together, Miss?”

“Yes!”

Without Lilia today! Just the two of us!

After a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, applewood-smoked bacon, and dried prunes, Letty, carried in Dolores’s arms, entered the grand hall of the Grand Duke’s mansion.

Her wide eyes sparkled at the dazzling display of goods filling the enormous room.

“Wow!”

At the center of the hall, a black pearl gleamed softly under the candlelight like a legendary treasure from a mysterious world. Beside it, a massive sapphire and ruby lay enticingly, beckoning the people of the Grizzly household.

‘It feels like festival day.’

As Letty eagerly looked around at the goods, she remembered holding her mother’s hand while wandering through the town square.

It was as if the festival scenes she had often visited had been expanded tenfold—no, dozens of times—and placed right in the middle of the mansion.

“Step right up! Opportunities like this don’t come every day! To celebrate our first visit to the Grizzly mansion, we’re offering extraordinary discounts! Start by checking out these special items my assistant brought in!”

Merchants from the trading company bustled around the stalls, explaining their goods to the onlookers.

Even Dolores, who had entered the hall intending to entertain Letty, found herself drawn to the smooth-talking merchants, eventually wandering toward the porcelain displays.

“Miss, aren’t these ceramics beautiful? Should I buy one to use as a vase for you?”

The celadon and white porcelain Dolores pointed to were intricately decorated, with patterns so vivid they seemed like they might scatter in the wind.

“You have an eye for beauty! These masterpieces are crafted by artisans from the Holy Kingdom of Stra, located at the edge of the Western Continent.”

However, Letty sniffed the pottery, finding its odor unpleasant, and shook her head.

“No. Letty doesn’t like it.”

“Oh dear, then how about we look at the toys?”

Dolores, assuming Letty’s disinterest was simply because she was a child, gestured toward the toy section.

The area displayed small wooden carriages and horses, as well as dolls in various sizes and designs. A golden carriage, decorated with pearls even on its wheels, was so stunning it caught the attention of adults, but Letty showed no interest.

‘These things are strange.’

Instead, she noticed a peculiar smell coming from the merchants' goods—a smell so strong she wanted to pinch her nose. However, it seemed Letty was the only one who could detect the scent, as the other people browsed the items without any sign of discomfort.

“I want to go to Father-in-law.”

Sliding down from Dolores’s arms, Letty toddled toward Grisys, seated on the platform in the hall’s upper section.

Grisys, the only person who knew Moriel’s true nature, might also sense that something was off about the merchants and their goods.

“Father-in-law, are you sleeping again?”

Grisys, nestled into his soft chair, was fast asleep, oblivious to the bustling hall around him.

‘Still sluggish.’

Though smaller than when she first saw it, the black mist still coiled around him like a snake, just as it always did.

As Letty reached out to touch the mist, which seemed to avoid her hand like it had a will of its own, a loud exclamation interrupted her.

“Oh my, Your Grace!”

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