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Chapter 23
“That stupid girl is going to be awarded the direct lineage necklace?!”
After being sentenced to house arrest, Tedric had moved to a small, shabby dwelling, but he still shouted at the top of his lungs.
His personal servant flinched, bowing his head in surprise.
“What kind of nonsense is that?!”
Tedric tried to rush out immediately, but…
“You may not leave, Young Master.”
The soldiers of the Prezier household blocked him. They were soldiers who only obeyed the Grand Duke’s orders.
If it weren’t for that, his sympathetic mother and father would probably have eased things for him, carefully checking in with Archduke Asis Prezier.
Tedric Prezier, muttering to himself, glared at his personal servant who was still standing there with a worried expression.
“What now? What else is left?!”
“W-Well, Young Master Tedric…”
Hearing his servant lower his voice, Tedric felt his blood boil and his face turn red.
“What did you say? That brainless girl got a perfect score?!”
It was as unbelievable as stones suddenly raining from the sky instead of raindrops.
At first, thoughts of cheating, or perhaps those irritating twin brothers secretly passing her the answers, flashed through his mind—but they quickly vanished.
Cheating?
Schuls Schmidt, the Pneuma of the White Tower, was like an ancient manuscript frozen for a thousand years. He never bowed to anyone, not even to Tedric, who had lived his life as if he were a prince of a small kingdom.
“Our son goes to class and comes back completely deflated. That Pneuma fellow is just unlucky, isn’t he!”
Even Lilius had once shouted that in frustration.
As for the twin brothers of the marquis family—Tullia’s twin brothers currently at the academy were undeniably talented.
‘Them helping Tullia?’
Impossible.
Tedric, her cousin, knew all too well how strained Tullia’s relationship with her family really was.
‘Father said it long ago.’
“Tedric, whenever you see Tullia, tell her this: Compared to other ladies, you are as low and vulgar as dirt.”
Teasing Tullia was Tedric’s way of relieving his inferiority complex, and he carried out his father’s orders with delight.
His father, though the youngest son of the Grand Duke, was ambitious and had a keen eye for seeing the essence of people. In his eyes, Tullia was a dangerous element.
The reason was simple: Tullia Prezier was the Grand Duke’s only granddaughter.
If Tullia became even slightly competent, the Grand Duke, who doted on his “daughter,” would immediately shower her with countless privileges.
Therefore, Tullia must never grow up properly or intelligently.
The place she would occupy—the one that would otherwise go to Tedric—was rightfully hers.
So his father had encouraged Tullia’s luxurious tendencies, keeping her away from academic study, and had her focus solely on vanity and adornment.
But there was one mistake.
“Is it because you have no parents? You’re so pathetic and vulgar compared to other ladies with parents.”
Tedric’s careless remark had touched Tullia’s nerve.
It also marked the beginning of the failure of his father’s original plan—to raise Tullia as a shallow, vain fool who didn’t understand etiquette.
‘No parents… That’s why she’s vulgar…’
Tullia Prezier had spent countless nights in the library studying etiquette—obsessively, almost insanely. Even her father couldn’t stop her from learning.
Otherwise, things went as her father intended. Tullia would summon jewelers and dress designers to the castle from time to time. Her obsession with luxury ensured she did everything she could to look extravagant.
“That insignificant girl… a perfect score?”
Tedric ground his teeth.
Thanks to his parents hiring the best tutors, Tedric had always maintained top marks. Even as a direct Prezier descendant, his high scores justified his entitlement to titles, privileges, and superiority over other nobles.
“And now, tomorrow she’s getting the direct lineage necklace. Grandpa’s always like this—strictly merit-based, with a terrifying gaze and no mercy.”
Tedric began plotting.
How could he make Tullia suffer? How could he teach her her proper place?
‘Ah!’
“The Prezier direct lineage exams are always surprise tests, right? Cheating is absolutely forbidden?”
“Yes, Young Master Tedric.”
“And my exam papers… you’re keeping them safe?”
“Of course.”
Lilius knew that Tedric, his son, needed to score high to shine. Plus, he was already wealthy thanks to crumbs from the Grand Duke’s household finances. Hiring eight renowned, expensive tutors for his son was easy.
Tedric’s perfect scores were their pride.
With a sly smile, Tedric said, “Bring them to me secretly, as discreetly as possible.”
“Miss Tullia.”
As usual, Adel quietly took something from her pocket.
“Rilda was hiding this deep in your wardrobe, Miss.”
I took the bundle of papers she handed me and immediately made a shocked expression.
“Is this… Tedric’s new—”
I almost said “brat” but quickly cleared my throat.
“His exam papers?”
Tedric was not much older than me, and it had been less than half a year since he received the direct lineage necklace.
The papers from his exam were pristine, as if he had just received them yesterday. Naturally, my attention was drawn to the content.
“Looking at this, some question types overlap, but there isn’t a single identical question.”
Schuls Schmidt’s diligence impressed me once again.
‘Or maybe it’s not Schmidt—it’s just that I was so obsessed with <Gmilpan>?’
After all, these were direct lineage exams that came from <Gmilpan>. I knew them all.
I recalled all the time I had spent working part-time, tutoring, and preparing for employment—it made me shake my head.
“Thank you for finding this, Adel.”
“Not at all, Miss. Rilda was acting suspicious, so I just kept an eye on things.”
Tedric was currently under house arrest, living in a small, shabby tower far from his usual luxurious room.
‘This brat is doomed.’
Not only would he not reflect on his actions, he was probably trying to pin some weird crime on me.
“Adel, burn these immediately.”
“Yes, Miss Tullia.”
“And Adel… can you prepare several more sheets like this?”
I whispered softly.
“It has to be done secretly, if possible. Can you do that?”
Adel rolled her eyes once, then nodded and whispered back.
“There’s a suitable place to get them from. I’ll prepare them right away, Miss.”
“Thank you.”
Tedric wants to make me pay?
I’ll make him pay twice over.
