Author: 冬瓜茶仙人 / Winter Melon Tea Immortal

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 196

Although the steward said they didn’t have to pay attention to it temporarily, Priscilla heard that those distant relatives were quite unruly at the guest house. They were particularly arrogant towards the servants, being picky and even making her friend, the maid Nana, cry.

Nana was three years older than Priscilla. Her family had served Brandenburg for generations. Priscilla had a good relationship with the young maids around her age who helped in the castle. The Duke and Duchess always taught that a lady shouldn’t treat others harshly. These young girls rarely faced such mistreatment and couldn’t help but cry secretly, which made Priscilla quite unhappy.

Moreover, out of courtesy, she did need to formally meet the elders, who had come from afar. Priscilla finally decided to visit the guest house.

Arnie just felt it was troublesome. He didn’t know these so-called relatives at all.

“What are they here for?” he asked Priscilla on the way.

Priscilla straightened his collar and sighed like a little adult upon hearing this.

“I don’t know either. They refused to tell the steward their purpose (saying that servants have no right to inquire about their master’s business) and insisted on meeting us.”

Priscilla and Arnie were still young, and the Duke and Duchess hadn’t involved them in family affairs. The siblings’ clearest understanding of “relatives” came from the princess and princes of the capital.

So, when they actually met the so-called uncle and the other distant “relatives”, they were almost overwhelmed—two overly enthusiastic women nearly smothered them in their embrace. If Elaby hadn’t stepped in to rescue them, Arnie would have exploded.

Even their mother wouldn’t hug him so tightly! And this woman kept touching him!

Fortunately, the steward had sent several people along, who promptly separated the frightened siblings from the guests. However, the initial meeting still left a psychological shadow on them. When they finally settled on the living room sofa, Priscilla pulled Arnie to the farthest spot from them.

“Priscilla, you’ve grown into such a beautiful young lady.” The woman, who introduced herself as their aunt, wiped her eyes with a handkerchief. Priscilla watched her as she carefully avoided smudging her makeup and didn’t respond.

“And this must be Arnie—Emma’s precious baby,” their uncle said, smiling at Arnie. “The future Duke Dwight.”

Arnie squeezed closer to Priscilla. He didn’t like this uncle because his expression was complicated and hard to read, but Arnie could tell the smile wasn’t sincere.

His actions were interpreted as shyness, and given his young age, the attention shifted back to Priscilla.

“Why are your sister and brother-in-law traveling in such weather? The children are still so young, and leaving them to the servants must be worrying—how have you been lately?” She asked concernedly, leaning toward Priscilla.

…What a statement. It was as if the Duke and Duchess’s absence meant the people of Brandenburg would take the opportunity to mistreat the young masters, Elaby thought.

Priscilla nodded while holding her tea. “We are fine.”

She deliberately refrained from asking about their purpose for coming, and as expected, seeing Priscilla remain silent, the distant uncle coughed a few times and began reminiscing about the joyful times when the Duchess and her siblings were young, especially emphasizing his very close relationship with Emma and Priscilla’s two aunts.

“I plan to invest in two vineyards and a winery in Vernay,” he said proudly. “I came here for an on-site inspection. After settling the deal, I realized Lemena isn’t far from Vernay—this is, after all, Emma’s territory. If I just wrote letters from home, it would be understandable. But being so close and not visiting Brandenburg, people would call me an ungrateful and rude person. And I, Alger, am certainly not that.”

“Father and Mother will return in a few days. In the meantime, please excuse us for any lack of hospitality,” Priscilla said softly. “Arnie and I are still young and inexperienced. Brandenburg is currently managed entirely by Steward Buck.”

Meaning they didn’t plan to host their uncle at Brandenburg—instead, Priscilla had returned to find the steward had tactfully refused these guests’ request to stay.

Alger’s expression changed. “Brandenburg is the Dwight family’s property. How can a servant have the final say?”

Priscilla lowered her eyes. “Steward Buck grew up with Father. Their relationship is different. We trust Father, and we trust the steward.”

Alger was taken aback, regaining his composure only after his wife pinched him secretly. He felt that his earlier statement wasn’t just polite. Priscilla truly missed her mother, Emma. Her words were always gentle but often carried hidden meanings, making them difficult to refute.

What she had just said meant that if they continued to argue about the steward’s authority, it would shift from questioning a servant to questioning Duke Dwight, which was entirely different in nature.

“Alger, they are still young. It’s just a precaution,” his wife said with a smile. “We’ll wait for their parents to return. But I wonder, what could have summoned the nobles to the capital when it’s not even a holiday?”

“I don’t know either,” Priscilla said innocently. “We are still young. The adults don’t discuss these things with us.”

With Priscilla blocking all their questions, Arnie sat there daydreaming, not even noticing the looks his “aunt” was giving him.

Elaby, however, did notice. But since Arnie was very cute, first-time visitors often couldn’t help but look at him closely (especially women), so he didn’t pay much attention. It was only when Miss Priscilla showed impatience that he tactfully “reminded” them it was time to rest.

“We’ll visit again. In the meantime, please make yourselves at home and don’t feel restricted,” Priscilla said as they left, giving Alger’s wife a hug. But as she turned around, the smile immediately vanished from her face.

Holding Arnie’s hand, Priscilla walked toward the carriage. Arnie looked back—immediately, the few people standing there forced smiles that appeared mechanical and strange.

Priscilla didn’t look back. Their carriage traveled along the stone road. When the guest house was no longer in sight, she hugged her brother and called out, “Elaby.”

Elaby, who was sitting with the coachman in the front compartment of the carriage, immediately opened the door and entered the cabin.

“I need to write a letter,” Priscilla said. “How long does it take for a letter to travel from Brandenburg to 21 Royal Square?”

21 Royal Square was Duke Dwight’s residence in the capital, where their parents should currently be.

“One and a half days at the fastest, Miss. If it’s not sent as an urgent report, this is the normal communication speed,” Elaby replied.

There were faster magical communication methods available, but unauthorized paths couldn’t enter the capital. Duke Dwight’s residence used the same line as the palace, which was already quite fast under controlled and secure conditions.

Priscilla knew that urgent reports were usually reserved for military affairs. She had no authority to use them and thought for a moment. “Then one and a half days. I’ll write the letter when we get back. Please prepare for that.”

After meeting with Alger and his group, Priscilla had a feeling that she needed to inform her parents about this matter as soon as possible.

……

At the same time, at 21 Royal Square, Duke Dwight had just arrived at the front hall after leaving the palace. The Duchess was waiting for him.

“I thought you had gone out,” the Duke said, surprised. He quickly changed into his home clothes and sat down with his wife.

“It’s too hot,” the Duchess said softly. “Without Priscilla and Arnie, I don’t feel like having fun… Especially Arnie, he wasn’t very happy this time.”

The Duke couldn’t help but smile when he thought of his youngest son’s sullen face before he left. “His brothers kept asking why Arnie didn’t come and wanted me to bring gifts back for him.”

“He is indeed livelier when he’s with the princes. I’ve been thinking about selecting a group of children to bring to the castle earlier than planned. Although it’s a bit early, Arnie always plays by himself,” the Duchess said, worried. “He doesn’t get along well with Erica… Priscilla, on the other hand, gets along well with everyone.”

The children she mentioned were the future members of the next Duke Dwight’s knight order. The Brandenburg Knights had a tradition of being passed down from generation to generation, selecting a few promising youths each year as reserves. From these reserves, three to five would be chosen to join the heir earlier, forming the core of the next generation’s knight order. The leader would emerge from this group.

The Duke had met his young knights when he was nine. Alfred, who had stayed behind at the castle, was one of those chosen children and one of his most trusted people.

Arnie was only five, and choosing knights now seemed a bit early—he was the designated heir, but the children in the knight reserves were still young, with many potential changes ahead.

“It’s not impossible,” the Duke considered. “We can look for some older children to accompany him when we return. Both Arnie and Priscilla are more mature than their peers.”

“Speaking of which, what did His Majesty the Emperor discuss with you?” the Duchess asked. “I had a bad feeling when he summoned you so urgently.”

The Duke reassured her by patting her hand and glanced around. The others understood that their conversation wasn’t meant for others to hear and quietly withdrew.

“Emma.” The Duke’s tone became more serious. “Do you think elves still exist?”

He asked this because the Duchess came from the southernmost part of Pennigra, near the edge of the continent, an area once inhabited by elves, but that was a long time ago.

“When I was a child, I believed the elves still existed, just not wanting to be discovered by humans. Perhaps they retreated deeper into the forest where humans cannot enter, or maybe they moved to even more secluded places,” the Duchess recalled. “But from the time I can remember, adults told me stories of the elves abandoning their hidden realms and collectively migrating to an ideal land. If we must say, the elves abandoned the continent even earlier than the dragons.”

Though the elves had left, humans still enjoyed their legacy. The places once inhabited by elves still had various precious plants, and the exquisite items crafted by elves still shone brightly—seemingly, they took nothing with them. Brandenburg still had many jewels made by elves, and their greenhouse even contained herbs cultivated by them.

From a certain perspective, leaving everything behind demonstrated their determination to leave.

“History books say the same. But His Majesty summoned me to talk about the elves,” the Duke said. “He received a letter from them.”

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