The Youngest Son of the Northern Grand Duke Wants to Break Off the Engagement

Alter finally managed to get out of bed and started strolling around the mansion.
Of course, his body was still cold, but he didn't feel any particular fatigue.
It seemed that, thanks to substantial support from the ducal house, he had recovered to the state he was in before collapsing.

'...... It must have cost quite a bit.'

Summoning clergy from the cathedral, buying medicines to improve his condition, and having the butlers and maids focus on his care.
Of course, the medicines were purchased regularly, and the butlers and maids were already employed by the duke's house.
But the cost of bringing in a clergyman alone was quite high, and if it was a high-ranking cleric, the expense would have been even greater.

'Still, the profits are high enough that they wouldn't really see it as a loss.'

Duke Illenat had constantly generated profits by utilizing the duke's assets.
The family's mercantile group, lands and mines purchased at reasonable prices, networks among high-ranking officials and royalty, and so on.
Because he had formed a business structure in various fields, all the parts interlocked and maximized profit.

'It was a bit tough, but I survived. Brillie didn't get hurt either.'

If there hadn't been any problems, he wouldn't have felt the need to step in.
Brillie was strong enough, and he could predict the future thanks to the original story.
But since the pureblood vampire did something unexpected, he had no choice but to intervene, albeit reluctantly.

'Is there a reason? This was my first time meeting the pureblood vampire.'

Alter tried to infer the reason, but nothing came to mind.
From the time he left the northern region until staying in the capital, he hadn't encountered monsters even once.
He hadn't done anything to draw attention, and there hadn't been any special incidents.
Yet for some reason, the pureblood vampire caused an incident that went against the original story.

'I doubt my being alive would change things that much......'

His survival certainly diverged from the original, but as a variable it was too insignificant.
He was only engaged to Brillie, not married.
He hadn't provoked any of the male leads, so of course his presence would be faint.

'I just don't get it. Where did things start to go awry......'

"Are you having a hard time?"

"I'm all right. I think I've fully recovered."

Alter took a step forward, basking in the warmth of sunlight.
Brillie walked beside him, watching him anxiously.
He acted calm on the outside, but she couldn't feel at ease.
Had he been healthy from the beginning, it might have been different, but Alter's body had always been so frail.

"If it's hard, say so. You can bask in the sunlight even in your room, can't you?"

"I can't just stay still because I'm not well. Don't I need to move a little bit?"

"......"

Brillie thought his words were reasonable, but she couldn't bring herself to agree.
In the first place, he was so sickly that even going outside was hard for him.
Then he went and used magic, making his condition worse—it seemed only right that he should rest as much as possible.

"I don't think you did anything wrong, Brillie. I stepped up because I wanted to, I just pushed myself a little too hard."

"But you came out because I asked you to. I can't say I have no responsibility."

"I accepted your suggestion. I don't want to bring up responsibility now."

"If I had just gone out alone......"

"So it's all right for you to get hurt in my place? That's not right."

Even as he spoke of impossible outcomes, Alter continued calmly.
If Brillie had fought alone, she would have shown her true strength.
And although the number of mixed-blood vampires did increase, he figured Brillie could handle even them.

"I just did what needed to be done. Brillie could have done it, but that doesn't mean I have a reason not to."

"It's different for you and me, though, from the start. Shouldn't you think of your health first?"

"That doesn't mean my fiancé is any less important. Naturally, I should consider my fiancé as important as myself, shouldn't I?"

"I can protect myself, but you......"

Brillie hesitated for a moment, then closed her mouth.
There was a valid basis for what Alter had said and done.
But he hadn't taken care of his own body, and as a result he ended up injured.
There were ways he could have just trusted her, so why did he have to step forward first?

"Let's leave it at this. It's just a difference in how we think, not a matter of being right or wrong."

"Hoo...... Maybe you're right. I don't want to argue about something like this."

Reluctantly, Brillie accepted his suggestion and resumed walking.
Just as Alter had said, their difference was only in perspective.
She had been too complacent, while Alter had boldly pushed through.

'...... Hm?'

Alter felt a faint sensation and slowly came to a halt.
Something was running down from his nose.
He didn't have a cold, so it couldn't be mucus.

"You're bleeding! Are you all right?"

Brillie hurriedly took out her handkerchief and approached Alter.
A thin line of blood trickled down from Alter's nose.
All he had done was walk slowly, so why had bleeding started out of nowhere?

"I'm fine."

"How can you be fine? Are you sure you're not sick?"

With pity, Brillie gently wiped away the blood.
It was probably a side effect from having used magic.
Alter claimed he'd completely recovered, but perhaps his body had not kept up.

"We can't keep doing this. Let's go back to your room."

"Really, it's fine. It was just a little bleeding."

"How is this fine? What if you collapse again?"

"...... Brillie, you're right here beside me, aren't you?"

"......?"

Brillie, momentarily flustered, stared blankly at Alter.
After confirming that his nosebleed had stopped, Alter continued.

"I used magic because I trusted you. Because you wouldn't leave me behind."

Alter knew what sort of person Brillie was.
She certainly had a bold personality, but she would never do anything unjust.
Her unbending pride came with a sense of honor, and she'd worked tirelessly to achieve her goals.
Having risen to the status of a true knight, not just a female protagonist, she inspired unconditional trust.

"How about trusting me this time? I really am fine."

"...... There's nowhere you're still hurting?"

"No. I can still walk."

"Then if you feel even a bit worse, let's go back to your room, okay?"

"Yes. I'll do as you say then."

"......"

Brillie couldn't bring herself to insist and gave in.
The frail nobleman, who looked as if he might collapse at any moment, was leaning on her.
He was so fragile that she couldn't touch him carelessly, and it didn't feel right to act harshly.
So it was only natural that she couldn't turn away from Alter, even with her worries.

'Why does he talk like that? If he does, I can't do anything at all.'

Brillie couldn't understand how she had ended up being persuaded by Alter.
Normally, she would have just slung him over her shoulder and returned to the mansion at once.

But with that wistful voice, she had gotten swept up before she realized it.

'Am I being too lenient just because he's a grand duke's son? Should I just drag him away by force......?'

Brillie glanced furtively at Alter, then eventually sighed.
She couldn't bring herself to treat her heartbroken fiancé roughly.
Maybe gently talking to him and leading him back to his room was the answer.

'I can't even hate him, no matter how much I want to. Ah, how did it end up like this?'

* * *

While taking a break for a while, Alter acted as usual.
Through books, he at least tried to learn the theory of magic, and steadily increased the time spent on walks.
Only after he fully regained his daily routine did the worries of those around him subside.

'If something like that happens, you can't do anything.'

Alter decided to wait patiently until the time came.
One of the male leads had died, but it didn't seem to be a big problem.
The timing of the broken engagement would be delayed, but the conclusion would come soon enough.

'For now, I should check on that first.'

Previously, Alter had asked Hilise to purchase certain goods.
He had invested all his funds and was told that the goods were stored in the family's vault.
If things went as expected, there would be quite a profit.

'It's going to be a while before anyone finds a new mine......'

At the sound of a knock, the door opened and Hilise appeared.
He swiftly approached and spoke in a much smaller voice.

"Alter, the price of gold is soaring."

"...... Hm? Why is that happening all of a sudden?"

"They say the gold in the eastern mines has been depleted. There are still a few mines left, but production is dropping little by little in those as well."

Alter nodded coolly, as if he had already expected this.
The Agnes Empire's gold could only be obtained from a certain region's mines.
Until now, gold had mainly been mined from the eastern and southeastern mines, but one of them was slowly drying up.
In other words, from now on, gold would only be extracted in the southeast, making it rarer and thus driving up its price.

"You've kept the gold bars safe, right?"

"Yes. I reported to the head butler and stored them in secret."

"So aside from you and the head butler, no one else knows about them?"

"Duke Illenat is aware. Since it's a lot of money, I had no choice but to tell him."

"Hmm...... Then he probably knows the price is going up, too."

"Yes. I'm sure he noticed even before I did."

"Check every morning how much the price has gone up."

"Understood."

If he sold the gold bars now, he would still make a good profit after commission.
But since the price would keep rising, it seemed better to wait a bit longer.
He didn't need cash immediately anyway, and the gold bars were as good as money themselves.

'I could sell them to Duke Illenat. Since he runs the merchant company, it wouldn't be hard for him to handle the sale.'

Gold bars were always in high demand.
Raw material for coins, making jewelry, unchanging value, unique sheen, limited quantity.
With all these factors together, they became the exclusive property of the aristocracy and royalty.
Despite their hefty price, nobles bought them in excess simply to avoid being looked down upon in social circles.

'Once I sell the gold bars and get the money...... I should use it to heal my body.'

It hadn't been greed for money that had motivated him to invest in the first place.
He simply judged that he needed a large sum to cure his sickly body.
So, to prepare for the future, he had to keep securing funds.

'I'll do what I can as long as possible. If I keep poking around, something's bound to turn up, right?'

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Brillie and Alter's conversations sounds more and more like lovers caring for each other....
Alter's pity rizz is working wonders...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】