LVSMLA 35

Chapter 35

The crystal glass business was going smoothly. Win Yates’ crystal chandeliers now decorated not only noble estates but even the ceilings of the imperial palace, and crystal glassware and decorative pieces were also enjoying explosive popularity.

I expanded beyond crystal glass into ordinary glass as well. Win Yates’ glass came to completely dominate the empire, to the point that imported glass products from the Eastern Continent were no longer used by anyone.

Unlike Harrington, who had exhausted its funds investing in the New Port, Win Yates was overflowing with capital. The situation was completely reversed from the original story.

Now it was time to begin investing with the wealth gathered in Win Yates.

“How is the Blast Port development progressing?”

The Ferrient family, a vassal house of Win Yates, assisted me with administrative work. Baron Ferrient was one of the few competent officials who had been purged in the original story by Etienne, who chose the Camois Viscount family. He was also one of the few who had desperately tried to save the sinking Win Yates.

The Baron replied.

“The dock has been completed, and the shipyard construction is proceeding smoothly.”

“We need to hurry the shipbuilding as well. Don’t spare any construction costs—invest whatever is needed. Report to me anytime if anything is lacking.”

“Yes, young master.”

“How is the private soldier training going?”

“Of course. Recently, Lady Beringham completed an improved iron cannon with excellent performance, so we’ve been focusing on artillery training.”

“I see. That’s good.”

At that moment, my father entered the reception room and gently suggested,

“Etienne, are you still in a meeting? You haven’t been resting at all lately. I’ll finish things up with the baron, so you should take a break.”

“Ah… shall I? Then I’ll take my leave, Baron.”

“Yes, young master.”

At times like this, I truly felt the effects of having taken an alpha-induction stimulant. Drugs that forcibly altered one’s traits had severe side effects. After receiving the injection at age 13, my body weakened significantly—I often fell ill and became easily fatigued with even minor exertion. That was why my father had strongly opposed the stimulant, but at the time, there was no choice, as Roen was on the verge of issuing an engagement order.

Fortunately, my father always took care of me at the right times. Even now, my limbs felt heavy and exhausted. I left the reception room after greeting Baron Ferrient.

Since I began attending business meetings at age 12, I had undergone full heir training. From age 15, I participated partially not only in the crystal glass business but also in estate management, and after my 18th birthday, I took full control of Win Yates’ business operations as well as military affairs. My father had stepped back and only occasionally assisted.

Thanks to that, it became much easier to take action.

Port investments and raising private forces were not matters of a year or two. In particular, the Blast Port development would take at least another three to four years to complete. Moreover, since trade from the port had not yet become active, the success rate of the investment was low. However, since my father had granted me full authority over Win Yates’ assets, I was able to proceed.

But in a few years, when the Blast Port development was completed, the entire trade landscape would change. Harrington’s downfall was also approaching.

I returned to my room to rest, but Calisto was nowhere to be seen. At 13, he still treated my bedroom as his own and followed me everywhere. He hadn’t changed much since he was seven.

Calisto still looked very childlike. He had grown a little taller, but for a 13-year-old he was still quite small, and his soft, rosy, chubby cheeks remained like a peach. At best, he looked about ten. Compared to Lawrence, who had already matured into a refined boy at 15, the contrast was stark.

‘At this rate, how am I supposed to marry him off? There’s no way Lawrence would even see Calisto as a romantic partner.’

Sighing as I looked at Calisto’s pillow placed beside mine, I wondered when he would finally grow up.

“Elcy, where’s Calisto?”

“He’s in the training yard practicing swordsmanship.”

“Again? Was there a lesson today?”

“No, it’s an off day. But he’s been unusually diligent lately.”

Since turning 15, I had stopped attending joint classes with the children. There was too large an age gap, and the purpose of those classes was to help Calisto make friends and grow closer to Lawrence, so I had no reason to participate.

The joint classes were still ongoing, though. Calisto and Lawrence still seemed to bicker constantly, but after six years of knowing each other, they often stayed together. He had also become friends with the Giloss twins and Brine. Unlike in the original story, where Calisto had remained isolated until joining the navy, he was no longer alone. At this rate, it seemed unlikely he would become the kind of emotionally broken character from the original plot.

“Hyung!”

Calisto, who had been striking a training dummy with his sword, immediately dropped it and ran toward me. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist, strong enough that even I, much larger than him, nearly staggered. Like a puppy wagging its tail after half a day apart, he clung to me so cutely that I pinched his cheek. His soft, rice-cake-like cheeks stretched pleasantly.

“Did your meeting end? Are you hurt anywhere? Are you going to rest now? Then will you play with me? Shall we go eat dinner at the new restaurant in town?”

“I’ll make a reservation,” Lawrence’s voice came from behind me instead of me answering.

I turned around to see Lawrence holding a sword, looking down at Calisto with a tired expression. It seemed he had been sparring with Calisto. I had thought they only fought all the time, but apparently they were getting along better than expected.

No sooner had that thought crossed my mind than Calisto exploded.

“You fox! Why are you sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong?”

“It’s not that I don’t know where to stick it—I just choose not to, kid.”

“No! Absolutely not! Why are you tagging along on my date with hyung?”

“Etienne, do you think so too? Who said it was a date?”

“Hey, don’t fight…” I tried to intervene.

Lately, I was starting to think the ‘gentle top’ trope from the original story might have been marketing fraud by the author H. Lawrence, who was supposed to be calm and kind, acted like a childish bully whenever he was with Calisto.

But when he turned to me, he was different.

Lawrence’s eyes curved gently as he smiled at me. Even though he was three years younger, I still couldn’t help but flinch at moments like this. His smile, which I had always thought was kind, had recently begun to feel strangely cold. There had always been hints of it since childhood.

“You’ll come with us too, right, Etienne? It’s been a while since we saw you, so I really want to eat together.”

“Uh…”

Lawrence had been staying at the count’s estate even yesterday. I wasn’t sure how often we needed to meet before it stopped being called “a while.”

Meanwhile, Calisto was still clinging to me like a cicada on a tree, bouncing up and down.

“If an alpha and omega go out alone, that’s a date!”

“I’m an alpha, but you’re not an omega. Just because you insist you are doesn’t make it true.”

“But I’m pretty, so everyone said I could become an omega!”

“That’s not how it works. Etienne is pretty too, but he awakened as an alpha.”

“Ugh… well…”

Calisto lost that round. Honestly, he seemed to lose most of them. I couldn’t understand why Lawrence, usually so mature, turned so mean whenever Calisto was involved. Seeing Calisto always getting beaten made me feel a bit sorry for him, so I stepped in.

“What are you talking about? Calisto is way prettier. How could you compare him to someone as ordinary as me?”

“…What? I don’t think that’s true, Etienne.”

Lawrence objected, looking dumbfounded, and Calisto quickly became flustered. The two of them began whispering among themselves. At least I had succeeded in quieting them down, but I wondered how I was supposed to get these kids to actually like each other.

I took their hands and headed back to the mansion.

“So are you really coming to the restaurant with me? Just the two of us?”

Calisto, holding my right hand, whispered while glancing at Lawrence. Of course, Lawrence heard it too. His neat brows furrowed immediately.

“Calisto, you shouldn’t say things like that to friends.”

“Yeah, don’t say things like that.”

Lawrence jumped in to tease him, and Calisto turned away in anger.

“Who’s friends with that fox? We’re not friends.”

Yet they still spent far too much time together. I couldn’t help but smile.

The children continued bickering while walking on either side of me. They definitely seemed closer than before.

Still, I was too tired to go out for dinner. I considered just eating at the mansion and letting them visit the new restaurant in town another time. Lawrence, however, was still not seeing Calisto as anything romantic, which worried me. Maybe it was because he was still young and hadn’t awakened yet…

Come to think of it, in the original story, Calisto was said to awaken shortly after turning 13. Maybe that time was approaching.

That night, after a shower, Calisto clung to me again, all warm and soft, as I held him and asked,

“Cal, remember when you said you dreamt about seeing the future?”

“Mm-hm.”

Calisto nodded quietly.

His clear, innocent face made him look like a doll. He was still such a child that the idea of awakening seemed strange—but since the main storyline still followed the original plot, the timing was likely near.

I carefully asked again.

“In that dream… did you see your awakening too?”