Chapter 14

『 Chapter 14 』

⟸ ♔ ⟹

It has been several days since the project to build a solid foundation for my father was safely completed.

Although he used to solve the Coroy that always grows well except in winter, my father suddenly became busy because the stem is the strongest period right after the rainy season.

I had a lot of time alone because he left early in the morning and came back late at night.

My father was very worried about me, saying he couldn't be with me, but rather, I was very relieved to have freedom of action.

On a day like this, I can do what I have to do without having to explain it to my father.

I was waiting for Alfeo on the stairs of the quiet main building because no one was there.

"Alfeo! Over here!"

Alfeo, who was looking around my voice, found me and ran over here.

"Lady!"

Alfeo's hand, which approached with a welcoming smile, contained an object wrapped in cloth.

"This is it!"

The wooden statue I commissioned Alfeo was larger than I thought.

It was a volume that was not reduced from the logs that were first given as materials.

It means that the sculpture went smoothly without throwing away that much.

I haven't seen the completed version yet, but I already tried to laugh.

"Can I take a look?"

"Well, sure!"

In my words, Alfeo put the pieces down in the right place and carefully peeled the cloth.

Whether he used what was at home, a cloth as rough as this fabric fell with its nose and the wooden statue appeared.

"Wow…."

I couldn't take my eyes off the statue for a while.

The material was nothing but a vivo tree.

The common wood was reborn as a work of art in the hands of Alfeo.

As expected, it was good to leave it to this future genius artist!

When I looked at the wooden statue without saying anything, Alfeo was restless.

"By any chance, you don't like it?"

"Huh? No! There's no way I don't like it! The sculpture was so pretty that I forgot to say it for a second. Thank you, Alfeo!"

When I held Alfeo's right hand tightly with my hands, I said, and only then did I get a smile on his face full of freckles.

"Thank you for giving me a chance, miss. I really wanted to tell you this."

"You're thanking me? I'm the one that needs thank you."

If Alfeo hadn't taken care of the sculpture, I wouldn't have been able to give it to my grandfather.

But Alfeo shook his head at my words.

"It's hard for me to get such a high quality log. It was a very valuable experience to carve with good materials."

Alfeo's hard-headed hand stroked the statue.

As if he was recalling the joyous process of working, his mouth was smudged with a soft smile.

"And you trusted me."

Alfeo's gaze met mine.

"You know who this statue is?"

Alfeo flinched as if he had been caught in a secret when I asked him, but he nodded gently.

"My father saw me carving in my room. I got in big trouble at first. Who do you think this person is you're making a statue?"

Oh, Alfeo's father must have known my grandmother.

"Although he understood that it was you who asked me to make a wooden statue."

Alfeo covered the cloth that he had taken off again on the statue and wrapped it preciously.

It was as if he was dealing with a treasure.

"Yes, this statue is the image of my late grandmother. And I will give this wooden statue made by Alfeo as a gift to my grandfather."

Alfeo's fingertips, which were just tying the ends of the cloth, trembled.

"As expected…."

A couple of nods, Alfeo once again told me.

"Thank you, miss. For believing that I could make it."

And I could see that Alfeo's eyes had changed somewhere.

His eyes were shining with guns as if he had a firm goal.

"I used to help my father with carpentry, but now I'm really old enough to start my career. I've been thinking a lot lately."

Alfeo, scratching the back of his head, smiled awkwardly.

"My father and mother said I should put down my sculptural hobbies and start learning...…."

"And that's why you made your decision?"

I asked carefully.

Alfeo was originally recognized as a sculptor after living as a carpenter for more than a decade.

What if I ask you to do a sculpture and say, "Now that I've done enough sculpture, I'd better concentrate on my livelihood."

I was frightened.

But my worries disappeared with Alfeo's cool smile.

"I enjoy sculpting. I should be a carpenter after my father, but I will continue to carve on my day off like this. So that one day I can really become a sculptor."

Oh, this must have been how he felt for 15 years.

It wouldn't have been easy.

He works as a hard carpenter and holds a carving knife without a break on his day offs.

It was impossible without really loving sculpture.

For such a long time, silently waiting for the day when his work will shine.

This tall man in front of me now, the boy and the young man rise splendidly after all that hard time.

He was granted a castle called "Jan," which means beauty, by the emperor, and finally became Alfeo John.

"You know, Alfeo."

"Yes, miss."

"You don't really want to carve on holidays, do you?"

"...Yes?"

"You'd like it if it's possible every day, right?

Because you probably won't have the time to learn carpentry from your father.

He couldn't understand what I said, so I smiled at Alfeo, who put a big question mark on his head, saying, "It's nothing."

⟸ ♔ ⟹

That day at sunset.

Grandfather took a walk in the garden by himself.

And it was the small evergreen forest that he spent the longest time in the meantime.

Why do you care so much about the place where there is nothing special except that the first emperor's gift of evergreen trees began a long time ago.

While spending the last few years of my grandfather's life right next to me, I heard the reason.

It was because of my grandmother.

The grandmother, who hated falling leaves, always enjoyed taking a walk with her grandfather on the way through this evergreen forest.

And the grandfather who is left alone is repeating the routine by himself.

Until the day before his death, his grandfather walked among evergreen trees.

I stood in front of the office and waited around the time my grandfather came back from a walk.

Shortly after waiting, I saw my grandfather over there.

"Grandpa!"

I ran away calling my grandfather in a loud voice on purpose.

"Oh, my God, you shouldn't run."

"Hehe. I've been waiting to give something for you!"

"Do you have something for me?"

I grabbed my grandfather's hand and pulled him into the office.

The grandfather seemed surprised, but he opened the office door as I led him on.

"What is that...…."

Grandfather couldn't finish talking and stopped.

The statue, which was well polished without a grain of dust, was placed on the table, which was most visible when the office door was opened.

It was a request to Alfeo.

"Natalia?"

Grandfather called grandmother's name blankly.

It was a wooden bust made of uncolored wood, but it looked like it was really warm under the thick sunset that colored the sky.

"It's my gift to my grandfather!"

"Firentia, you prepared that statue?"

Grandfather looked at me once and hurried close to the wooden table.

"This is so...It looks exactly like Natalia when she was young."

My grandfather's words were not exaggerations.

Alfeo's sculpture skills were already enormous, so he perfectly reproduced the painting his father had painted.

"Dad drew a picture of grandmother. So I took it and asked my friend to make it into a statue!"

"It's a painting by Gallahan...…."

Grandfather reached out carefully and swept the carved grandmother's eyes.

The touch seemed to shake at any moment, but a bitter smile caught my grandfather's mouth with a cold touch of his fingertip.

But for a moment, the face that looked back at me was the same as usual.

"But is this my gift?"

"Yes! Do you like it?"

"I like it, but...…."

Grandfather smiled a little mischievous.

"This gift is a gift without a price?"

You know about my homework.

Well, I had some expectations.

If it were her personality, she would have reported the progress of the class right away without delay.

Thanks to the thought ahead, I fortunately didn't panic and said.

"Did that statue make you happy?"

"Happy. Happy. There are many happy memories of that time with Natalia, and every time I see that statue, this grandfather will be happy."

"Then it's okay! If you're happy, I'm happy!"

I'm not lying at all.

After the illness, my grandfather was very upset that he couldn't see grandmother's portrait properly because he couldn't see well.

That was why I moved my grandmother's figure into a sculpture.

Even if you lose sight of your eyes due to old age, you will still be able to feel grandmother with your fingertips.

"Teacher Clarivan's homework, I will do better later!"

This is also true.

Even if it's not this time, you can stand out at any time in Clarivan's class.

In addition, if I could score directly from my grandfather, it's the best.

The purpose of the succession class itself was a series of evaluations to select the next leader.

"Firentia."

Grandpa stared at me as if he was trying to read my mind.

But I'm not the one who's going to collapse to that extent.

I looked at my grandfather with a more innocent face.

"But I can't just get such a nice present. Tell me if you want anything, Firentia."

"What do I want? Mm-hmm."

Of course.

Because of my grandfather's character, no matter how young his granddaughter is, she is not the one to receive it without any reward.

But asking for money for homework right here is the worst choice.

There is one more thing I want besides the price of selling the statue.

"Then, Grandpa."

I pretended to think for a moment and brought it up.

"I have a friend who made that statue for me. His name is Alfeo. But…."

Every time I brought up a word or a word about Alfeo, my grandfather's mouth twitched.

And eventually.

"Hahaha! I can't believe such a talented man was living inside this Lombardy wall!"

The grandfather, who burst into laughter, looked really happy.

As expected, the serious talent collection wall is no different from this time or that time.

I was standing leisurely and enjoying my grandfather's laughter like music.

Because the better my grandfather feels, the bigger the amount of money he will give me.

I am a commendable granddaughter who made a statue of my grandmother and gave it to my grandfather, and one more commendable granddaughter who gave him a genius who carved such a perfect wooden statue without proper education.

There's no way my grandfather would let me go empty-handed.

And one said that one does not refuse the money that adults give you.

⟸ ♔ ⟹

The day of class has come back to know the results of the task.

Arriving in the classroom early, I looked at the faces of the children one by one.

The twins entered with the same usual sulky expression until they ran to me, and Belelzac looked very nervous somehow.

What was surprising was Larane.

The face with a small pocket of coins was full of anticipated flush.

"Hi, Lara."

"Hi Firentia. Your brooch on today's clothes is pretty."

Larane pointed to the green brooch on my clothes and said.

"Yes, I like it, too. Thank you."

While we were greeting like that, Clarivan came in and the class started.

"Now, shall we take a look at the results of the task?"

Bellezac did not carry out the task as he said.

He always does what he says in such a useless place like that.

The twins said they sold the logs to servants as firewood as expected.

They were really in need of firewood, and they declared several times that they had never been forced to buy it.

And Larane.

"You made it to be charcoal and sold it to the mansion blacksmith?"

"Yes, so I had to give some money to the servants who helped me. That's how much I have left."

Larane had 15 coppers in her pocket.

Originally, considering that one Vivo log was worth about 20 coppers, it was surprising that Larane, who was timid in everything, moved this much actively.

It was the same with Clarivan, nodding his head and praising Larane.

"Lastly, Lady Firentia."

"Yes, sir."

"How much did you make by selling logs?"

I shrugged my shoulders once.

"Don't tell me, you didn't do your assignments?"

Clarivan's words made Bellezac, who had been squashed in the corner of the sofa, jump up.

"No, I did my best, sir."

"Then where's the money?"

"It's here."

"What? Where..."."

I said to Clarivan, pointing to a brooch on my chest.

"I made a statue out of a log and gave it to my grandfather, and I got this brooch instead. It's emerald!"

That's a big, expensive egg!

For this time, Clarivan's face was dumbfounded.

I leaned against the back of the chair, enjoying the composure of the winner for a while.

Of course, I'm not the only one who received good things.

Grandfather gave Alfeo, who made the statue, ten silvers for his hard work, and at the same time gave him the family scholarship and a chance to study under a famous sculptor.

I was enjoying the scene of the classroom staring blankly at me, suppressing my desire to twist my legs with a smile, and I could see Bellezac, who was huffing and broadening his nose.

I purposely lifted one corner of my mouth so that it could only be seen by Bellezac.

As a half-blood, he said I was humble and inferior to my cousins.

I couldn't live a noble life because I couldn't even learn properly, and he laughed at me, saying that I had to move around and work like a commoner.

He mocked me for living and dying like a lowly mother.

So keep on feeling it, what it's like to be pushed out by that half-blood.

How does it feel to lose things that you thought were yours?

It's just the beginning.