This Three-Year-Old Is A Villainess - Chapter 167
I subtly asked the gardener.
“By the way, have the roses changed at all? They seem prettier.”
“Oh, miss. How did you know?”
The gardener was surprised and took off his hat, explaining politely.
“It was on Viscount Debussy’s orders.”
‘Viscount Debussy?’
I had a hunch when I heard it was on Viscount Debussy’s orders.
Conrad, the Duke’s aide, didn’t know, but Viscount Debussy did?
‘It’s definitely related to the test.’
Why would they suddenly change the roses?
And why do it in a way that others wouldn’t notice?
‘There’s only one reason to do that at this time.’
I was convinced and said,
“You changed the rose variety, didn’t you?”
“Wow, how did you know, Miss? It’s hard to recognize the variety without specialized knowledge.”
“They just seemed a bit prettier than before. What’s the new variety?”
“The previous roses were Brown Velvet, and the current ones are Teresa variety.”
“Got it. Thanks.”
Brown Velvet and Teresa.
What’s the difference?
* * *
Daymond’s Jurisdiction—
After returning from the castle to the territory, the first thing I did was look for a botanical encyclopedia.
The thin ones didn’t have the specific varieties, so I struggled to pull out the very thick one placed high up.
Thud!
The heavy book was like a hammer by itself.
I opened the thick botanical encyclopedia and searched for the variety.
‘Teresa… Teresa…’
Ah, found it!
Rosaceae Family
A horticultural variety native to the southern hemisphere of the Kingdom of Aligiosa.
Blooms in early summer and fades at the start of autumn. It darkens to nearly black over time.
It is noted to be toxic in early summer…
‘The Kingdom of Aligiosa?’
The name of the origin, the Kingdom of Aligiosa, caught my eye more than anything else.
‘The Kingdom of Aligiosa!’
I ran straight to my father.
“Dad.”
Dad stopped what he was doing to greet me.
“Yes.”
I immediately asked what I was curious about.
“Does Astra have any interactions with the Kingdom of Aligiosa?”
“Well, no. But we could start.”
“Why?”
“Aligiosa is the largest producer of white quartz.”
‘Oh, white quartz!’
My eyes lit up.
White quartz, that’s it.
‘The raw material for blessing stones.’
There are two ways to make blessing stones.
1- When someone with a blessing dies, a blessing crystal forms. This crystal, refined with white quartz, becomes a blessing stone.
2- Using a blessing extraction ability, a blessing can be infused into white quartz to create a blessing stone.
‘In any case, both methods require white quartz.’
Without white quartz, it’s impossible to make a blessing stone.
That’s why they are astronomically expensive.
‘But there’s something bothering me.’
I pondered deeply and asked,
“If a guest from a vast kingdom like Aligiosa were coming, Astra wouldn’t be this quiet, right?”
“Right. They wouldn’t be coming to Astra anyway.”
Dad was correct.
‘Yeah. If a distinguished guest from Aligiosa were coming, they’d go to the capital, not Astra.’
However,
“The roses in the west garden.”
“They’re a bit different from before.”
Blitzen’s words and the change in the rose variety nagged at me.
‘It doesn’t make sense, but these roses bother me.’
While I was contemplating, Dad took my hand and placed it in his own.
Even though I had grown a lot since I was three, my hand still looked small in his big hand.
“Still so small.”
“I’ll grow more.”
At that moment, I heard a whimper from behind.
“Lady Erylotte…”
The aides, who couldn’t get any work done because of Dad, were looking at me with tearful eyes.
‘These poor balding uncles.’
Seeing the stressed-out, balding men, I offered a moment of silent sympathy.
Then I glanced at Dad.
“Dad, I think you look really cool when you work hard.”
“…Really?”
“Yep. So, I want to be someone who works as hard as you!”
I didn’t forget to look at the aides.
“Right? My Dad works very hard, doesn’t he?”
Flinch.
Dad’s gaze wavered.
Then he glanced at the pile of documents stacked like a mountain.
“…Bring the most urgent one first.”
“Yes, sir! From the Kingdom of Florando, currently─!”
“There’s been a battle at the border, and our citizens─”
“They’ve requested a tax reduction due to a poor harvest─”
The aides rushed to Dad all at once.
Dad made a very exasperated face, but when he met my eyes, his expression turned into that of a workaholic.
After seven years of training my dad, this was nothing.
I waved cheerfully at the aides and returned to my room.
While Dad was working, I sank into the sofa.
Thud!
Balzac flopped down next to me.
‘What the…’
