I Will Abandon My Family! - v3 Chapter 16, Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19 (Patreon)

v3, Chapter 16

Ingenious Idea
At first, I was just a conversation partner, receiving special treatment as the Duchess's friend.

Sometimes I would visit the Duchess together with Cyril.

We talked about childcare, discussing the upbringing of Lady Eliana’s child, and even seeking advice on new baby clothes.

"Lady Marie, how about this design?"

"Oh my, that’s a lovely hat. You indeed have a great artistic talent, Lady Eliana."

Lady Eliana, who enjoyed embroidery as a hobby, had splendid ideas and an exquisite sense of aesthetics.

"Using Margaret as a motif would be nice."

"Lilies would be lovely too."

It was enjoyable to discuss and brainstorm ideas for our sons’ clothing.
Lately, Lady Eliana’s health had improved, and under the condition of having escorts, she had started going out to town for shopping trips.

She had been quite sheltered until now.

"Mau!"

"Cyril, that's enough."

"Yaa~!"

Currently, my child has transitioned to eating solid foods, but Cyril eats a lot, which presents a bit of a challenge.
However, I'm careful not to let him overeat.

On the other hand, Young Master Alysion has a small appetite and disliked vegetables.

"Young Master Alysion, please have some vegetables."

"Ya!"

"This is troubling."

Cyril didn't have strong likes or dislikes when it came to food, but Young Master Alysion had a significant aversion to vegetables.
Conversely, he had a strong fondness for sweet fruits.

"Madam, it didn't work."

"This is troublesome. He won't eat any vegetables at all."

Recently, his preferences had become quite strong, and if forced to eat something he disliked, he would throw a tantrum.

However, if his picky eating continued, it could become quite problematic.

"Maau!"

"Let's finish with the pudding."

"Aah~!"

Since he had eaten too much, I decided that the pudding would be the last thing Cyril eats this time, when Young Master Alysion stretched out his hands.

"Aah!"

"Alysion?"

He reached out towards Cyril, who was eating the pudding.

"Could it be that you want pudding?"

"Madam Marie, may I have a little?"

"Huh?"

This pudding was made from pumpkin, so I wondered if it would suit Young Master Alysion’s taste.

"Ah~!"

"This is pumpkin pudding."

"I don't mind."

In the end, I gave in and offered Young Master Alysion the untouched pumpkin pudding.

"Maa~!"

"Madam, it seems to be well-received."

"Oh my, that seems to be the case, doesn't it, Alysion?"

Young Master Alysion, who disliked vegetables, seemed to want more pudding.

Could it be that he disliked the bitterness of vegetables?

"Perhaps he might eat this?"

I handed him a baby biscuit.

"It seems he’s enjoying it."

“My, oh my!”

If he disliked vegetables, then turning them into sweets might make him eat them.

I think I've come up with a good idea.

"Lady Eliana, I've thought of a good idea."

Perhaps, if my idea is correct, we might be able to cure Young Master Alysion's aversion to vegetables.

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v3, Chapter 17

Flag
Oh, God.
Have I done something wrong?

"Sigh~"

I sighed on my way back from the town doctor.

"Neurotic gastritis, huh..."

I looked at the bag of medication and held my head.
Lately, I’ve been experiencing frequent stomachaches, so I went to get checked.

"They say to eliminate the source of stress, but..."

The sources of stress seem to keep increasing instead of decreasing.

"I'm back... Wait, what is this?"

Upon returning to the estate, I found rows of baby clothes lined up.

"What, as you can see. We're launching a new brand."

"A brand..."

The children's clothing she mentioned before.

"It's a joint venture between Marie and Lady Eliana."

"Huh?"

Lady Eliana too?

"Mom..."

"Design by Lady Eliana, tailoring by Marie, and sales by Henry."

Not Henry.
Why is it turning into this kind of conversation?

"The models will be Young Master Alysion and Cyril."

"So why..."

"Because they are the most suitable for advertising. And we're also planning to open a restaurant exclusively for families with children."

She keeps progressing with the conversation, ignoring me.
"As a matter of fact, I've been wanting to assemble multiple restaurants and clothing shops into one building."

"What?"

"Well, isn't it troublesome to keep moving around? You go shopping and then want to have tea afterward. So, I discussed it with Marie."

"What are you making her do!?"

"And then Marie suggested that if we have a spacious property and gather guilds and specialty shops, it would be more efficient. She also said that if we hire women in the borderlands who don't have much work, it would reduce expenses."

"However..."

Marie, please don't waste your wisdom at a time like this.
Your creativity was remarkable due to studying business and consulting during your student days.

You must be good at this, having advised and set up shops during group projects.
Even at the Ranford estate, where you weren't paid well and were exploited by your family, you managed to navigate well thanks to your intelligence.

So why did you tell Mom!

"We were able to get a grand estate in the noble district that wasn't being used for a bargain. This freed up the budget."

"Huh..."

"And there's a guild of carpenters who were unjustly dismissed, so we've given them work. We've also reached out to other seamstresses who are looking for jobs."

Looking at the estimate presented like this...

"Why is it so cheap?"

"We managed to keep labor costs lower than anticipated. If we have multiple workshops for fabric production in the southern regions..."

Having a workshop in the Capital comes with costs and risks.
There's a danger of disputes arising and interference from other trading companies if you have a workshop in the Capital.

Some of these reasons include the possibility of having new ideas stolen from the workshop.

On the other hand, in the provinces, workshops can be established more affordably.

"It's cheaper in the place of origin, and we can transport the goods by ship."

Oh God.
Why do you keep testing me like this?

My mental stress keeps increasing.

Lately, Marie seems to be raising dangerous flags, but it's not my fault.

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v3, Chapter 18

Department Store Planning
In a certain Empire, there exists something called a department store.
However, their number is small, and successful examples are few, often resulting in closures.

Creating a department store can lead to many troubles, and if customers drift away, it can lead to debts.
However, by capturing the hearts of customers not through profit-driven merchant ideals but by offering genuinely high-quality goods, it should be possible to sustain the business over the long term.

"The rough sketch is finished."

"My, the exterior design is chic."

"Yes, we modeled it after a Royal villa. It's square in shape, with minimal decoration, but we want to focus on creating a beautiful garden."

"You can have tea in the garden."

"Yes, we are ensuring there is a space where children can also enjoy themselves."

Entering a store with small children can be difficult.
Even in branded stores in the Capital, they might be denied entry.

"Nobles usually have maids. But I want even non-wealthy noble ladies and merchants to be able to enjoy it."

"That's a good point."

It might be hard to imagine for Lady Eliana, as a Royalty, that having maids around is not a given.

"Additionally, we would like to provide stroller rentals so that parents can stroll around with their children."

Strollers weren't commonly used around the territory.
The reason being that it's difficult to navigate rough terrain like fields with a stroller.

Strollers available in the Capital are much older and harder to handle.

"I'm thinking of asking a skilled Carpenters' Guild for help."

"It's certainly challenging to shop while holding a child."

You would want to go shopping with your child and enter cafes together.
I also want to take Cyril to shops and have tea to create lasting memories.

And I would want to take my time selecting clothes, too.

"But there seem to be various challenges."

"We will need to hire women with childcare experience, and there are associated risks."

The Capital is lined with many branded stores.
Just doing what everyone else does won't set us apart, and we won't target only nobles.

There are commoners who have money, too.
In a way, merchants are wealthier than nobles.

"Lady Marie, this is truly wonderful."

"Huh?"

"You have such brilliant ideas."

Lady Eliana is overestimating me.
It's still in the planning stages, and other noble daughters could come up with similar ideas.

"No, it's because you always put the customers first, Lady Marie.”

"I hope I could do that."

"Please let me assist you."

I smiled as she grasped both of my hands.

Lady Eliana has become so much brighter recently, and it's truly heartening. However, I had no knowledge of things like Henry clutching his stomach somewhere unknown to me.

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v3, Chapter 19

Thoughts of the Chief Steward
My name is Samuel Hyuman.
I am the second son of a Count and graduated from the Royal Academy. Afterward, I became a bureaucratic assistant and steadily climbed the ranks to become an advisor to the King.

During my time at the Academy, the Capital fell into chaos due to petty disputes among the Royal family members.
I heard that the guardianship of the heirs led to conflicts, escalating to the point where those with claimed the throne were manipulating events.

An annoying situation, to say the least.

However, a savior appeared.
It was the prince, who had been ignored at the palace at that time.

That oppressed individual, along with his friends, rose up and quelled the turmoil.

... Or so the rumors say.
In less than a decade, he reformed the nation, revitalized trade with other countries, and was now hailed as the Hero King.

But in reality, there were behind-the-scenes contributors.

"Oh why, Dee... why won't you come to see me? Sniff."

"Your Majesty, your duties..."

"I don't feel like it. I don't want to work today."

"Your Majestyyy!"

The steward’s eyes teared up as he implored the King, who lounged lazily at his desk, to work.

This foolish King!
He's called the Hero King or the Wise King by the public, but those are just rumors.

"Excuse me."

"Count Monhan?"

"I've brought the documents for next month's budget and the matters concerning the dignitaries from the allied nations."

Lord Diaz Monhan appeared quietly.
In the social circles, hardly anyone remained unaware of him.

Of course, I was one of them.

"Diaz."

"Your Majesty, I've brought the next set of documents. I also brought some snacks... Is your work still ongoing?"

"It's nearly done, so I have some spare time."

At that moment, everyone present thought the same thing.

(Yeah, right!)

He hadn't done any work until just now!

Although he said he was almost done for the day, he hadn't even finished half of today's tasks, I thought.

"Lord Samuel..."

"Ugh, why is he suddenly motivated now of all times?"

He rapidly cleared the documents from sight, his speed invisible to the eye.
His Majesty was exceptional, but he rarely listened to us or paid attention to our conversations.

However, thanks to this, he didn't fall for the ministers' sweet whispers either.
Even if they wanted to manipulate him, they couldn't tempt him.

He could avoid wars with innovative ideas or launch them to win.

But it became problematic during official duties.

Yet, our consistent efforts were acknowledged by the heavens.
A person with a straightforward and righteous nature descended upon us.

"Count Monhan! Thank you very much."

"Huh? What's the matter, Lord Samuel?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

The one person who could reprimand that tyrant.
Among the Ministerial Council and the Generals, there was barely anyone who His Majesty would listen to.

Indeed, he was our savior!

Since his arrival in the Capital, our workload has decreased.

Thank you, God!

Next chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/87924146