Cardinal de Mare looked at his second daughter incredulously.
“I didn’t know you were thinking such ridiculous things.”
He shook his head. Maybe it was because she was young, but her thoughts were short, too short.
“Won’t that be the end for you once you get married? Ultimately, it’s your son who will carry on the family line. My son’s son, that son’s son.”
Cardinal de Mare looked out the window. The lush leaves of the zelkova tree covered the garden.
The family was like that tree.
“Only when there are strong roots that protect the house can the branches and leaves that extend from there flourish!”
Ariadne smiled wryly. Ippolito sprinkled it, and I took it. No, was it a leaf?
She questioned.
“What if the roots are not proper roots?”
"What?"
“Father, you want the tree to grow big, don’t you? What if the roots rot?”
Cardinal de Mare frowned. He thought Ariadne was talking about Ippolito's qualities.
“Are you saying that Ippolito doesn’t look like a good guy? It may look that way to you. I admit it.”
It was a clear acceptance.
“Ippolito has nothing to show for himself yet. He just graduated from school and came back, and he doesn’t have any position or a marriage partner. He’s objectively worse than you, who are making a name for yourself.”
He continued with cold green eyes.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s proven or not. In my opinion, Ippolito is lacking in judgment and understanding. Strictly speaking, Isabella is better than Ippolito.”
It was a cool-headed assessment from a father who Ippolito believed favored him.
It was a story that would have hurt Ippolito's feelings and sent him to his room.
“But even if it’s a little rotten, the root is still the root. Only the root can do its job! A tree can’t survive by sticking leaves into the soil.”
Ariadne scoffed.
“It’s more rotten than you think, Father.”
This wasn't a story about Ippolito being a little incompetent.
It was a story about a person without a conscience, who is not picky about the means and methods, and who should never be given power.
“Our dear brother Ippolito said he was a Bachelor of Military Science from the University of Padua?”
Cardinal de Mare raised one eyebrow.
"However?"
“My brother said he was going to give a congratulatory speech as a representative of the graduating class.”
"Yes."
“So, did Brother Ippolito eventually return to Padua?”
“Are you trying to find fault with me for not reciting the congratulatory address?”
Ariadne shouted firmly, not giving the Cardinal a chance to add his remarks.
“Is anyone there?”
Butler Nicolo opened the study door and appeared.
“Yes, Miss Ariadne.”
“Bring brother Ippolito. Right now.”
Butler Nicolo nodded at the ominous expression.
“I will bring him over right away.”
Silence fell in the room. The Cardinal wanted to reprimand his daughter for doing such a thing, but reason stopped him.
Just because Ippolito didn't graduate doesn't mean that he's going to change the child who will receive the title right away. But he needed to verify the facts.
He didn't bother to tell his daughter not to waste her time and just looked straight ahead.
Ariadne, on the other hand, was glaring at her father with an expression sharp as a knife.
After an eternity of tension, there was a knock on the study door.
Knock knock.
“I’m going in, father.”
It was a proud voice. It was Ippolito, greeting brightly, not even dreaming of what was about to happen to him.
Ippolito, who came in without asking permission, was quite surprised to see Ariadne sitting on the chair in the study.
“Ariadne, you were here too.”
Ariadne simply nodded with a cold face.
“Ippolito.”
Cardinal de Mare waited for his son to sit down before opening his mouth.
“Last time I told you, you said you hadn’t received your diploma yet.”
When the topic of diplomas came up, Ippolito was startled. Why, why is that topic being brought up now?!
“Oh, yes, yes. That’s right.”
“Have yours arrived yet?”
Ippolito rolled his eyes.
“No, not yet...”
Cardinal de Mare's expression was completely unmoving.
Ariadne and Ippolito each anxiously flicked their abacus beads to read their father's mind.
The Cardinal, his mouth firmly shut, thrust a piece of parchment forward. It was Raphael de Baldessar's diploma.
“I heard that all your classmates have already received their diplomas.”
Ippolito picked up the parchment and read its contents. He gritted his teeth when he saw the name written on the first line.
'Raphael de Baldessar...!'
That damn parasitic bastard...!
Ippolito, sensing why this was in his father's hands, turned his head and glared at Ariadne.
Ariadne stared straight ahead without moving an inch.
Ippolito was not very intelligent, but he had an instinctive sense, like the dead Lucrezia.
The bastard was lingering around his half-sister, reeking of feces, and he must have been trying to impress her by offering her this.
But Ippolito replied cheerfully, smiling broadly because he had to get through this predicament.
“Raphael returned to the capital later than I did! Perhaps he received it locally and received it earlier? The mail between Padua and San Carlo takes time, so it might take some time!”
Ariadne's calm voice broke the tension that Ippolito had worked so hard to build up.
“Even if Padua is far away, does it take more than ten months for a single letter to arrive?”
The date written on Raphael's diploma was January of this year.
It was now early November, the season was turning around and starting to move into winter again.
Ippolito couldn't stand it any longer and shouted.
“You, watch your mouth...!”
He had been wanting to punch her for a while. The threat just came out naturally. However, Ariadne was not intimidated at all and answered right away.
“Did I say something I couldn’t say?”
Ippolito clenched his fists. He could barely keep himself from lifting them onto the desk, conscious of his father's gaze.
“How can you be so arrogant towards your elder brother!”
If you can't attack the message, attack the messenger. Ippolito lived up to that maxim and stumbled upon Ariadne's attitude.
“Where did you come from and dare to look at me with those straight eyes?!”
“Ippolito!”
Ippolito's remarks drew a stern warning from Cardinal de Mare. But he was undeterred and persisted in his protest.
“Father! She’s acting so unlucky!”
But the Cardinal did not deviate from the point.
“So, the diploma was a delivery accident?”
Since it had come to this, Ippolito decided to fight it out.
“That must be it! Common sense tells me that it would be impossible for them to give it to Raphael and not to me.”
Ariadne snorted. The word common sense is suffering in a harsh place.
“Ippolito. Send a messenger to Padua as soon as possible to find out what happened to your diploma and report back to me.”
At Cardinal de Mare's words, Ippolito and Ariadne's expressions simultaneously darkened.
"Yes?"
“It’s been ten months since Raphael de Baldessar received his diploma, so there must have been a problem, but I’m a bit disappointed that they haven’t confirmed it yet.”
Ippolito lowered his head at the Cardinal's sharp green gaze.
“Ah...”
“How can you be a good head of a household if you are this lazy?”
Ariadne bit her lip.
Cardinal de Mare thoughtlessly left the diploma verification to the person in question, Ippolito.
His honest feelings were, 'Do I have to personally clean up the mess in my diploma delivery at this age?'
But from Ariadne's point of view, that was an unacceptable proposal.
It seemed like he was criticizing Ippolito with his mouth, but if you look inside, there are too many loopholes.
If it was the Ippolito she knew, he would have forged one of his diplomas right away.
Besides, this was the time when the Black Death was rampant.
Even if Ippolito had decided not to engage in illegal activities and to follow common-sense procedures, it would have taken at least two to three months, and up to six months at most, to send a messenger to Padua, find the dean, inquire about the diploma, and so on.
The fate of the title the King will bestow will be decided within two months at the latest.
This was a game that Ippolito could win by just stalling. She couldn't lose.
"Father."
At Ariadne's words, Cardinal de Mare and Ippolito simultaneously turned to look at her.
“I have a story you should hear.”
"What?"
“Hear it directly from the person who was there.”
Ariadne smiled.
“I don’t think you’d believe it even if you heard it from my own mouth.”
Ouch!
She clapped her hands. The study door, noticing the noise, opened again.
It was the butler Nicolo. He looked at Ariadne and asked.
“Miss Ariadne. Did you call?”
“Bring the guests to the reception room.”
“Which person...”
Her smile deepened.
“Please tell little Marquis Baldessar that I am asking for him upstairs.”
“Yes, I’ll bring him over right away.”
The butler closed the door and left. Ippolito's face turned pale.
“Why that bastard?”
“Brother.”
Ariadne called Ippolito in a calm voice.
“Brother, you didn’t graduate.”
Cardinal de Mare's eyebrows rose as if they were almost touching the crown of his head.
“They said that since you didn’t have a final exam score, you couldn’t complete your major coursework and didn’t pass the exam, so you’re obviously not eligible to receive a diploma.”
Ippolito took a deep breath as if he was going to suffocate. He barely managed to catch his breath and then screamed.
“Is that a little bit of a scammer?!"
He screamed like a madman.
“Where did you hear such slander and dare to insult your own brother! Whose side are you on? Do you even think of me as your older brother? You’ve been doing well lately, so you’ve become completely arrogant and just like that!”
Knock knock.
Just then, a knock rang out at the door.
The door to the study opened, and the butler Nicolo came in with a look of extreme embarrassment, followed by Raphael de Baldessar.
"Hello."
Raphael smiled, revealing his white teeth.
“Thank you for inviting me. I greet you, you filthy little swindler.”
“I didn’t know you were thinking such ridiculous things.”
He shook his head. Maybe it was because she was young, but her thoughts were short, too short.
“Won’t that be the end for you once you get married? Ultimately, it’s your son who will carry on the family line. My son’s son, that son’s son.”
Cardinal de Mare looked out the window. The lush leaves of the zelkova tree covered the garden.
The family was like that tree.
“Only when there are strong roots that protect the house can the branches and leaves that extend from there flourish!”
Ariadne smiled wryly. Ippolito sprinkled it, and I took it. No, was it a leaf?
She questioned.
“What if the roots are not proper roots?”
"What?"
“Father, you want the tree to grow big, don’t you? What if the roots rot?”
Cardinal de Mare frowned. He thought Ariadne was talking about Ippolito's qualities.
“Are you saying that Ippolito doesn’t look like a good guy? It may look that way to you. I admit it.”
It was a clear acceptance.
“Ippolito has nothing to show for himself yet. He just graduated from school and came back, and he doesn’t have any position or a marriage partner. He’s objectively worse than you, who are making a name for yourself.”
He continued with cold green eyes.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s proven or not. In my opinion, Ippolito is lacking in judgment and understanding. Strictly speaking, Isabella is better than Ippolito.”
It was a cool-headed assessment from a father who Ippolito believed favored him.
It was a story that would have hurt Ippolito's feelings and sent him to his room.
“But even if it’s a little rotten, the root is still the root. Only the root can do its job! A tree can’t survive by sticking leaves into the soil.”
Ariadne scoffed.
“It’s more rotten than you think, Father.”
This wasn't a story about Ippolito being a little incompetent.
It was a story about a person without a conscience, who is not picky about the means and methods, and who should never be given power.
“Our dear brother Ippolito said he was a Bachelor of Military Science from the University of Padua?”
Cardinal de Mare raised one eyebrow.
"However?"
“My brother said he was going to give a congratulatory speech as a representative of the graduating class.”
"Yes."
“So, did Brother Ippolito eventually return to Padua?”
“Are you trying to find fault with me for not reciting the congratulatory address?”
Cardinal de Mare thought, shaking his head.
“Ariadne, I know you have a lot of complaints about your brother, but that’s minor...”
“Have you ever seen brother’s diploma, Father?”
There wasn't any.
"...Ippolito said that the issuance of diplomas was delayed due to the boycott of the bachelor’s program in Padua.”
“Do you believe it?”
Cardinal de Mare coldly cut his daughter off.
“Ariadne.”
He didn't think his daughter's story was worth listening to anymore.
“I am very disappointed in you. It is rash to accuse someone without evidence.”
He hated unfounded claims the most, especially if they were intended to slander others.
“I thought you would be more reasonable than this.”
A true upper class does not lose his dignity even in the face of desperate gains. That is what Cardinal de Mare believed.
“Let’s end the story here.”
The Cardinal tried to issue an order to banish his daughter.
“Get out now...”
Click.
He opened his mouth almost at the same time that Ariadne took a second object from her box and placed it on the cardinal's desk: a piece of parchment.
He looked at the paper, pushing up his monocle.
"Diploma.
Raphael de Baldessar graduated with excellent grades in the military science course of the 21st Academy of Padua and passed all other required examinations, and was therefore awarded the degree of Bachelor of Military Science.
Dean of Military Science at the Padua Academy,
Jeronimo de Corazio."
Beneath the parchment was a date from earlier this year, the Dean's seal, and an elegant signature.
“This is...”
If it was the 21st, it would be the same age as Ippolito. Ariadne answered stiffly.
“The military school in Padua already awarded diplomas to all its graduates at the end of last year. The graduation ceremony was held normally. Brother Ippolito did not attend.”
Ariadne asked again.
“Didn’t Father check brother’s diploma?”
“...”
Cardinal de Mare was unable to answer.
“Let me ask him directly."
“Ariadne, I know you have a lot of complaints about your brother, but that’s minor...”
“Have you ever seen brother’s diploma, Father?”
There wasn't any.
"...Ippolito said that the issuance of diplomas was delayed due to the boycott of the bachelor’s program in Padua.”
“Do you believe it?”
Cardinal de Mare coldly cut his daughter off.
“Ariadne.”
He didn't think his daughter's story was worth listening to anymore.
“I am very disappointed in you. It is rash to accuse someone without evidence.”
He hated unfounded claims the most, especially if they were intended to slander others.
“I thought you would be more reasonable than this.”
A true upper class does not lose his dignity even in the face of desperate gains. That is what Cardinal de Mare believed.
“Let’s end the story here.”
The Cardinal tried to issue an order to banish his daughter.
“Get out now...”
Click.
He opened his mouth almost at the same time that Ariadne took a second object from her box and placed it on the cardinal's desk: a piece of parchment.
He looked at the paper, pushing up his monocle.
"Diploma.
Raphael de Baldessar graduated with excellent grades in the military science course of the 21st Academy of Padua and passed all other required examinations, and was therefore awarded the degree of Bachelor of Military Science.
Dean of Military Science at the Padua Academy,
Jeronimo de Corazio."
Beneath the parchment was a date from earlier this year, the Dean's seal, and an elegant signature.
“This is...”
If it was the 21st, it would be the same age as Ippolito. Ariadne answered stiffly.
“The military school in Padua already awarded diplomas to all its graduates at the end of last year. The graduation ceremony was held normally. Brother Ippolito did not attend.”
Ariadne asked again.
“Didn’t Father check brother’s diploma?”
“...”
Cardinal de Mare was unable to answer.
“Let me ask him directly."
Ariadne shouted firmly, not giving the Cardinal a chance to add his remarks.
“Is anyone there?”
Butler Nicolo opened the study door and appeared.
“Yes, Miss Ariadne.”
“Bring brother Ippolito. Right now.”
Butler Nicolo nodded at the ominous expression.
“I will bring him over right away.”
Silence fell in the room. The Cardinal wanted to reprimand his daughter for doing such a thing, but reason stopped him.
Just because Ippolito didn't graduate doesn't mean that he's going to change the child who will receive the title right away. But he needed to verify the facts.
He didn't bother to tell his daughter not to waste her time and just looked straight ahead.
Ariadne, on the other hand, was glaring at her father with an expression sharp as a knife.
After an eternity of tension, there was a knock on the study door.
Knock knock.
“I’m going in, father.”
It was a proud voice. It was Ippolito, greeting brightly, not even dreaming of what was about to happen to him.
Ippolito, who came in without asking permission, was quite surprised to see Ariadne sitting on the chair in the study.
“Ariadne, you were here too.”
Ariadne simply nodded with a cold face.
“Ippolito.”
Cardinal de Mare waited for his son to sit down before opening his mouth.
“Last time I told you, you said you hadn’t received your diploma yet.”
When the topic of diplomas came up, Ippolito was startled. Why, why is that topic being brought up now?!
“Oh, yes, yes. That’s right.”
“Have yours arrived yet?”
Ippolito rolled his eyes.
“No, not yet...”
Cardinal de Mare's expression was completely unmoving.
Ariadne and Ippolito each anxiously flicked their abacus beads to read their father's mind.
The Cardinal, his mouth firmly shut, thrust a piece of parchment forward. It was Raphael de Baldessar's diploma.
“I heard that all your classmates have already received their diplomas.”
Ippolito picked up the parchment and read its contents. He gritted his teeth when he saw the name written on the first line.
'Raphael de Baldessar...!'
That damn parasitic bastard...!
Ippolito, sensing why this was in his father's hands, turned his head and glared at Ariadne.
Ariadne stared straight ahead without moving an inch.
Ippolito was not very intelligent, but he had an instinctive sense, like the dead Lucrezia.
The bastard was lingering around his half-sister, reeking of feces, and he must have been trying to impress her by offering her this.
But Ippolito replied cheerfully, smiling broadly because he had to get through this predicament.
“Raphael returned to the capital later than I did! Perhaps he received it locally and received it earlier? The mail between Padua and San Carlo takes time, so it might take some time!”
Ariadne's calm voice broke the tension that Ippolito had worked so hard to build up.
“Even if Padua is far away, does it take more than ten months for a single letter to arrive?”
The date written on Raphael's diploma was January of this year.
It was now early November, the season was turning around and starting to move into winter again.
Ippolito couldn't stand it any longer and shouted.
“You, watch your mouth...!”
He had been wanting to punch her for a while. The threat just came out naturally. However, Ariadne was not intimidated at all and answered right away.
“Did I say something I couldn’t say?”
Ippolito clenched his fists. He could barely keep himself from lifting them onto the desk, conscious of his father's gaze.
“How can you be so arrogant towards your elder brother!”
If you can't attack the message, attack the messenger. Ippolito lived up to that maxim and stumbled upon Ariadne's attitude.
“Where did you come from and dare to look at me with those straight eyes?!”
“Ippolito!”
Ippolito's remarks drew a stern warning from Cardinal de Mare. But he was undeterred and persisted in his protest.
“Father! She’s acting so unlucky!”
But the Cardinal did not deviate from the point.
“So, the diploma was a delivery accident?”
Since it had come to this, Ippolito decided to fight it out.
“That must be it! Common sense tells me that it would be impossible for them to give it to Raphael and not to me.”
Ariadne snorted. The word common sense is suffering in a harsh place.
“Ippolito. Send a messenger to Padua as soon as possible to find out what happened to your diploma and report back to me.”
At Cardinal de Mare's words, Ippolito and Ariadne's expressions simultaneously darkened.
"Yes?"
“It’s been ten months since Raphael de Baldessar received his diploma, so there must have been a problem, but I’m a bit disappointed that they haven’t confirmed it yet.”
Ippolito lowered his head at the Cardinal's sharp green gaze.
“Ah...”
“How can you be a good head of a household if you are this lazy?”
Ariadne bit her lip.
Cardinal de Mare thoughtlessly left the diploma verification to the person in question, Ippolito.
His honest feelings were, 'Do I have to personally clean up the mess in my diploma delivery at this age?'
But from Ariadne's point of view, that was an unacceptable proposal.
It seemed like he was criticizing Ippolito with his mouth, but if you look inside, there are too many loopholes.
If it was the Ippolito she knew, he would have forged one of his diplomas right away.
Besides, this was the time when the Black Death was rampant.
Even if Ippolito had decided not to engage in illegal activities and to follow common-sense procedures, it would have taken at least two to three months, and up to six months at most, to send a messenger to Padua, find the dean, inquire about the diploma, and so on.
The fate of the title the King will bestow will be decided within two months at the latest.
This was a game that Ippolito could win by just stalling. She couldn't lose.
"Father."
At Ariadne's words, Cardinal de Mare and Ippolito simultaneously turned to look at her.
“I have a story you should hear.”
"What?"
“Hear it directly from the person who was there.”
Ariadne smiled.
“I don’t think you’d believe it even if you heard it from my own mouth.”
Ouch!
She clapped her hands. The study door, noticing the noise, opened again.
It was the butler Nicolo. He looked at Ariadne and asked.
“Miss Ariadne. Did you call?”
“Bring the guests to the reception room.”
“Which person...”
Her smile deepened.
“Please tell little Marquis Baldessar that I am asking for him upstairs.”
“Yes, I’ll bring him over right away.”
The butler closed the door and left. Ippolito's face turned pale.
“Why that bastard?”
“Brother.”
Ariadne called Ippolito in a calm voice.
“Brother, you didn’t graduate.”
Cardinal de Mare's eyebrows rose as if they were almost touching the crown of his head.
“They said that since you didn’t have a final exam score, you couldn’t complete your major coursework and didn’t pass the exam, so you’re obviously not eligible to receive a diploma.”
Ippolito took a deep breath as if he was going to suffocate. He barely managed to catch his breath and then screamed.
“Is that a little bit of a scammer?!"
He screamed like a madman.
“Where did you hear such slander and dare to insult your own brother! Whose side are you on? Do you even think of me as your older brother? You’ve been doing well lately, so you’ve become completely arrogant and just like that!”
Knock knock.
Just then, a knock rang out at the door.
The door to the study opened, and the butler Nicolo came in with a look of extreme embarrassment, followed by Raphael de Baldessar.
"Hello."
Raphael smiled, revealing his white teeth.
“Thank you for inviting me. I greet you, you filthy little swindler.”
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