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Chapter 6
Lynette was used to spending time outside, so she didn’t think much of staying out overnight. But Katrin, at least, had to scold her.
“Miss, if you’re an adult, you should act like one. Even if you ran away from home, how could you stay out all night?”
“I’ve stayed out plenty before.”
“That was only until you turned fifteen. After that, you stayed quietly at home. Besides, you just woke up not long ago after fainting.”
Lynette had hated this house so much that before she turned fifteen, she hardly ever came here. She spent all her time outside. Only after being badly injured had she been forced to stay here, waiting endlessly for Fernando.
“My heart felt so heavy, so I drank.”
Knowing why she was feeling down, Katrin couldn’t scold her any further. Instead, she made honey water and held Lynette gently.
“You didn’t, in your drunken anger, end up with another man, did you? A night of passion can sometimes turn into a shackle that cuts your lifespan short, so you must always be careful.”
“Huh? Uh… y-yeah…”
Of course, she couldn’t admit that when she woke up, there had been a strange man lying beside her, both of them tangled in a scene of bare skin. She’d been so dazed she hadn’t even gotten a proper look at his face. Lynette simply kept the small secret to herself.
“I’ve got a hangover, so just make me some tomato soup. Nothing else.”
Her mouth felt dry and rough from the alcohol, and she had no appetite.
“Honestly… Miss, no matter how upset you are, don’t drown it in alcohol. You’re already hurting—why add more pain with drink?”
Watching Katrin grumble even as she left, Lynette closed her eyes. While waiting for her to return, the faint warmth she felt against her forehead was oddly comforting.
“Mm, warm… But right now, something cool would be better…”
She chuckled to herself, and then something cold touched her skin. The heat rising from the alcohol subsided pleasantly under the chill.
She didn’t know how long she had drifted off before Katrin woke her. Lynette reluctantly opened her eyes.
“You mustn’t sleep on an empty stomach. At least eat this to settle yourself.”
After finishing a bowl of bright red tomato soup, Lynette lay right back down, unwilling to stay awake.
It wasn’t until evening, past lunchtime, that she finally rose with a sigh. She worried that the man she’d slept beside last night might come looking for her.
The house was already in chaos because of Esther and Fernando—she couldn’t afford to add to the turmoil. If she did, Esther and Fernando’s scandal would be overshadowed, and her own problem would rise to the surface. Worse, people might twist it into thinking that Esther and Fernando’s affair happened because she herself had slept with another man.
“Sigh, this is why drinking carelessly is a mistake. I can only hope I didn’t blurt out my name last night. But still, my memory of yesterday is such a blur… What do I do?”
She remembered sitting at a table with a man because there were no empty seats. At first, it had just been idle chatter. But halfway through, her memory went blank. She couldn’t recall his name, his face, or how she ended up in bed with him.
As she clutched her aching head and tried to sit up, her family physician walked in uninvited.
“Miss, this medicine will help with the hangover.”
He set down a small bottle, and Lynette let out a dry laugh.
“Since when did you care so much about me? You were always at my sister’s side.”
“I-I apologize. Back then, I was ignorant of the circumstances…”
Whenever Esther claimed to be ill, he practically lived in her chambers. But when Lynette asked for medicine, he would simply hand it to a maid.
“Even if you were ignorant, doctor, that doesn’t erase what you’ve done.”
Since she didn’t really need the medicine, she slipped it back into his pocket and headed down to the dining hall. Strangely, Alice—who was usually glued to Esther—wasn’t standing guard at the door. Inside, Esther’s seat was empty.
“Where’s my sister? Did you strike her from the family registry?”
“Sit first.”
Lynette avoided Esther’s usual seat and sat farther away. Servants quickly set the table and served her food.
“Hey! Eat properly. You look like you’re about to drop dead over a bowl of soup.”
“What’s it to you if I eat or not, brother?”
When Edgar grumbled at her nibbling, Lynette scowled. This was just how the Fruina siblings spoke. Only Esther had always acted aloof and refined, as though she were someone else entirely.
“Ugh, listen to yourself. Don’t go around telling people you’re my sister—I’d die of embarrassment.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve never once admitted you were my brother. How could I introduce you as such to the ladies, when you look like an old man?”
“Hey! What about me looks like an old man?!”
“See? This is exactly why. You flare up like you’re going through menopause, with your mood all over the place.”
Hit squarely, Edgar clammed up, grumbling under his breath.
After sparring verbally with Edgar, Lynette finished her meal almost without realizing it. As she sipped her tea, she turned to Kennys.
“Esther… has been sent to the villa, as planned.”
The words were hard for Kennys to force out. Meeting Lynette’s eyes—eyes that mirrored his own, yet filled with distrust—he sighed softly. No matter what Esther had done, she was still his daughter. He couldn’t cast her out completely.
“As the saying goes, all fingers hurt when bitten, but Father, you always seem to bite only me. Sometimes I wonder if I’m even your child.”
“Lynette, what are you saying? You’re my daughter, no matter what anyone says.”
It was true. Of his children, only Esther had taken after her mother entirely. The other three bore varying degrees of resemblance to him.
“And how long until you call my sister back from the villa?”
Lynette chuckled as she drank her tea. She was sure it wouldn’t be long.
“She’ll stay there as long as you want her to.”
“Then call her back right now. Since when have you ever cared about my opinion? This just makes me look like the villainess.”
At this rate, she wondered whether she’d die first as the wicked woman of the tale, or from sheer bitterness.
“Haah… Lynette, I truly am sorry. Tell me what I can do to appease you.”
Years of distance couldn’t be bridged easily. Even now, though he tried, Lynette’s walls were too high. Still, Kennys resolved to grant her anything she asked this time.
“Give me that.”
“…That? What do you mean?”
“My dowry. The engagement’s broken, so I won’t be marrying Fer. So give me the dowry you promised that family—instead, give it to me.”
Her sudden demand for the dowry made Kennys hesitate, but he nodded. If it would ease her resentment even a little, it was worth it.
But the moment Lynette got her hands on it, she set out.
“Find out exactly what Lynette is doing outside.”
Uneasy, Kennys secretly set people to watch her. They soon returned with shocking news.
“She’s touring teahouses?”
That alone wasn’t an issue. It was a little improper for a noblewoman to wander alone to drink tea, but if it was Lynette, it was no surprise.
“But, my lord… the young lady used her dowry to purchase a mountain. A wasteland, essentially.”
“Ugh, she must’ve been swindled by a seller desperate to unload it… haah…”
No noble daughter had any sense for money. She had surely bought a worthless mountain for an absurd price.
“And what else is she doing?”
“She’s been visiting tea merchants, asking questions, and… she also bought some buildings.”
“…Lynette, what on earth are you doing?”
Kennys buried his face in his hands. He couldn’t fathom what she was up to. She could have used the dowry to remarry elsewhere.
Of course, even if she squandered it all, he’d provide more if necessary.
“And where is she now?”
“Currently looking at more properties.”
The best part of transmigrating into a novel was knowing the story ahead of time.
Using that advantage, Lynette bought a barren mountain dirt cheap—knowing that one day, it would yield a massive treasure. For now, though, she had no money to hire guards, so development would have to wait.
“Ah! Drinking tea outdoors feels so refreshing.”
For days, she and Katrin visited teahouses, looking around as they went.
By chance, she spotted a property on the corner of a busy street. It wasn’t too crowded, but business seemed poor—likely because foot traffic was low.
Seeing the “For Sale” sign, Lynette bought it with her dowry. Then, dreaming a little bigger, she searched for property in the heart of the marketplace, where patrols would pass more often.
Thinking of safety, she found a tidy one-story building and bought that too. Now she owned one mountain and two buildings.
“Behold, from mortal to landlord. My purse may be lighter, but my heart feels so secure.”
Hugging her deeds close, Lynette smiled brightly for the first time in a long while before ducking into another teahouse.
She spent a peaceful time savoring green tea with its fresh aroma. As she sat meditating over her cup, another idea struck her, and she immediately set off.
At a tea supplier, she bought small amounts of various leaves.
“This is…”
“Ah! Those berries are used in the Sepian Empire to brew a bitter, dark beverage.”
Coffee beans.
Spotting them here, Lynette picked some up thoughtfully.
“So it hasn’t reached Iraine yet.”
“Yes, miss. It’s unfamiliar here, so no one buys it. We may have to throw them out.”
The shopkeeper sighed regretfully.
Lynette peppered him with questions about coffee and even asked him to procure the equipment used in Sepia. She left a deposit, and the shopkeeper gladly promised to have everything ready in a month.
“Strange… everything’s working out too smoothly. It almost makes me nervous.”
Still, she reminded herself to stay sharp when things went well, and returned home.
When she arrived in the late afternoon, Nixon, the butler, greeted her with a smile.
“The master wishes to see you.”
“Do you know why?”
“That I do not, miss.”
Had he set spies on her movements? Even so, she had broken no laws and had nothing to fear.
Without dawdling, she bathed, changed, and followed Nixon straight to the study. Kennys, looking busy with paperwork, set down his pen when she entered.
“Sit down.”
“Just say it. We’re not close enough to waste time with small talk, Father.”
Once, Lynette had clung to him like a child desperate for love. Now, her cold tone made Kennys sigh inwardly. He knew it was his fault—he had made that gentle, tearful child into this.
“I hear you’ve been using your dowry to buy things.”
“Yes. Real estate bought with an eye to the future, rather than the present.”
They said land was bought with decades in mind. Kennys couldn’t argue with that, so he asked another question.
“They say you’ve furnished one of the houses you bought. Is that to rent it out?”
Why furnish a rental? Curious, he asked. Lynette smiled brightly.
“No. I’ll live there myself. Until I feel ready to forgive, I want no ties with this family.”
