"Children, come down from the carriage," Mother called out. "Micah, please stay with them."

We descended from the carriage and stood amid a serene apple orchard. The sun bathed the surroundings in a warm glow, casting a dappled pattern of light and shadow on the ground beneath our feet. The sweet scent of apples filled the air, mingling with the gentle breeze rustling through the leaves.

As in the previous round, we remained before the cave's entrance while Mother and Ben disappeared into the hidden cave with our grandmother's casket.

Elda leaned closer to me and whispered, her voice barely audible above the peaceful ambiance, "Where are they going?"

"Peep!"

Leona posed the same question into my mind.

I shrugged. "I'm not sure."

I was also curious about where they were going, but that was an answer I planned to figure out at another time. Right now, I had a slightly different question.

"Micah, what were those scrolls you and Mother received?" I asked my older brother. "Are they anything like the scroll you had on your during the ball?"

It was a complete guess. I couldn't be sure, but during the funeral procession on this round, I noticed that the scrolls handed to Micah and Mother had a similar appearance to the one from the time of the ball.

And while the scroll wasn't the sole reason Micah and Evelyn were targeted, Detective Gavin Graves expressed an interest in it. He even attempted to trick me into helping him unseal it. Clearly, it was important.

Micah, standing tall beside us, turned his attention toward me, his green eyes locked with mine. The sunlight played upon his features, illuminating the subtle highlights in his hair and casting a warm glow around him. He appeared to contemplate something before replying.

"I never shared with you what that scroll from the ball contained," he said. However, it almost sounded like he was confirming with me.

"That's right, you didn't," I acknowledged.

"How much of what Grandma Ruth was involved in do you know already?" he asked.

"Next to nothing," I answered honestly.

"Hmm." Micah nodded slowly. "But you have some understanding of the history of the Arankagul family, at least from the formal history's standpoint?"

"Not really."

Micah raised a brow at this. "Professor Whistle would have at least covered that with you."

"I've always skipped out on the lessons," I replied.

It was a little embarrassing to admit this to the highly studious Micah, but there was no use in lying. Also, even if Professor Whistle had covered it while I was present, it was a good seven years ago in my mind, and I likely was asleep through the lesson.

Micah sighed and looked away toward the cave. A breeze moved through the apple orchard and lifted his golden blonde hair.

"Well, I suppose that's my fault," Micah said. "I knew you engaged in other activities and didn't want to force you into something you did not want to do."

I frowned at this.

I didn't see how it could have been Micah's fault. He had practically raised me, but that was because Mother and Father were always away. Not that our parents' attempts to get me to study did much good either.

"And I figured when you'd be interested to learn, you'd study properly." He looked back at me and smiled.

Damn it. I bet Micah didn't anticipate my interest wouldn't kick in until after I'd died a few times.

"The answer to your question would require too much explaining without the proper understanding of the past, so I suggest going to one of Professor Whistle's lessons and inquiring him to teach you about the history of our family's involvement in Adovoria's politics," Micah said.

"Understood," I said.

Micah was busy, as it were, so having him provide me with a history lesson just because I didn't bother sitting through one of my private tutors' lessons really was a poor use of his time.

"Once you understand the basics, I can discuss other unofficial specifics. Such as what these scrolls contain." Micah tapped the carrier on his horse that held all the scrolls he was given. "But in essence, they are symbols of various agreements made between our family and these individual factions."

I nodded.

In the previous round, Micah had also given me some insight when I asked who Mirela Southwell was–one of the many individuals to have handed Micah a scroll. Back then, he had indicated her group of traveling companions was helping our family in return for us providing help with what sounded like a potential revolution.

"Micah, on a completely unrelated note, I don't suppose the Frey Merchant Guild has any perishable product we're having trouble moving at the moment?" I asked.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"There's always product like that," Micah replied. "Changing regulations and instability cause disruptions in supply flows. What's your interest?"

I expected as much. I recalled from my original life the mess of having a hundred crates of one product sitting in storage and unable to be moved due to the client disappearing and no other buyer being available. In the end, it went bad and had to be tossed out. It was a painful financial loss.

"If there's no buyer, would there be any problem if I made it disappear?" I asked. "I'll be able to compensate for it."

"You know of an alternative market? Or a use?" Micah raised a brow.

I nodded.

It was most certainly an alternative market.

My right hand grasped the Wobbly Pebble in my pocket, playing with the strange object I had purchased from the Game Store.

While going through the various items sold within the Game Store, I noticed that beyond armor, weapons, and artifacts, there were also health potions being sold.

I found that to be of interest. Health potions were one of those objects that had a specific shelf life and were ultimately perishable. It was longer than a piece of fruit, but there was a limit to how long a potion could remain unused before it became unusable.

However, the potions in the store didn't indicate their expiration.

<< How long ago were these placed here? >> I had asked the System last night. << How do I know they haven't already expired? >>

[ Time works differently for each Game. Thus items placed into the Game Store remain available and suspended in time to remain unchanging. Also, items that have spoiled or damaged before being put into the store will have an indicator to inform players. ]

As I swiped through the Game Store further last night, I had noted that there were few eatable items, apart from bread, reminiscent of the provisions The Order provided its soldiers.

That gave me the idea of killing two birds with one stone as my first attempt to earn Nexus Tokens.

By selling consumables that were far more enjoyable than was currently available within the Game Store's marketplace, I had identified a potentially untapped market, and at the same time, would be able to alleviate some of the financial loss that the Frey Merchant Guild experienced due to product spoiling.

It was a painless way to test the waters because even if the venture failed, there was no real loss. We would have had to toss our product anyhow. But if I succeeded, there was only upside.

"When you return to Genise, ask Louis to show you our inventory currently at risk," Micah said. "If you find a way to move it, Father will also be very thankful."

"Ah! They're coming back," Elda exclaimed. "Jarvis, get up."

She dashed over to where Jarvis had taken advantage of the brief break in the funeral procession to rest against an apple tree and doze off. She delivered a swift kick to his shoe, jolting him awake from his slumber.

Jarvis blinked his green eyes open, clearly disoriented from being abruptly roused from his sleep. A yawn escaped his lips.

"Is it time already?" he murmured.

He wobbled up, clearly still dazed from being awoken. He let out a big yawn and walked over to us.

"You'll be back at the villa soon," I offered. "You'll be able to catch up on sleep then."

Jarvis stood by our side, his disheveled red hair adorned with a stray leaf that Elda brushed away.

Mother and Ben emerged from the cave alone. The open-top carriage that had carried my grandmother was left behind within the caves, a symbol of her final journey.

"We should make our way back to town," Mother announced, her voice carrying a mix of weariness and determination. "The festivities celebrating my late mother's legacy are already underway, and it's time to honor her memory."

Behind her, Ben approached one of the cave walls, placing a rune against its rough surface. With a surge of energy, the entrance disappeared, leaving behind a natural rocky formation that blended seamlessly with the orchard's serene surroundings.

***

Like in the prior round, Elda, Jarvis, and I left the morning after the funeral toward Genise, while Micah and Mother remained to continue attending to business.

To my relief, we didn't encounter any troubles on our way back through the Humton Forest, and Leona lay asleep comfortably nuzzled atop a pillow on my lap.

"It's been a couple of years since I last came to Genise," Duncan noted, his voice tinged with nostalgia.

He sat beside me on the carriage alongside my two younger siblings. As he spoke, his blue eyes gazed out toward the capital city as we approached. The radiant sun bathed the walled city in a golden glow, accentuating its grandeur.

I eyed Duncan up and down.

Duncan indeed traveled light for someone that was a child of one of the three dukedoms of Adovoria. All he had on him was a small sack. Most of his other possessions were pocketed within the many hidden compartments of his long coat.

It starkly contrasted the lavish lifestyles I had witnessed among most nobility. He lived more like a traveling nomad than a noble.

"Do you need a place to stay?" I inquired. I wasn't sure of his situation.

Duncan laughed and turned his gaze toward me. "No, I realize how I appear, but I've never had concerns about where I would stay the next night. I haven't been cut off financially, you know. My family has an estate within the capital. I believe my sister is there now as well. I'll be staying with her."

I frowned. "If you ever need a place, the Frey Manor will accept you with open arms."

"I understand it's hard to believe, and I realize you have your own thoughts regarding my younger sister, but we really do get along quite well," Duncan replied. "But I appreciate the extended offer of help, nonetheless."

Duncan may not have had any worries about his welfare, but it dawned on me that perhaps he didn't survive long in my original life. Given his utmost care and want to save the people of his dukedom, I hardly saw how it was plausible that he didn't attempt to sway his sister's decision regarding diverting the rivers that resulted in the eventual famine of his region. Having overheard his conversation with Jarvis, he was clearly knowledgeable and would have realized the danger long before the flow of water within the Genuiver Dukedom was diverted.

Did his sister ignore him? Was he powerless to do anything? Perhaps something happened to him that made him unable to stop her?

The latter was the conclusion I had reached as being the most likely if Duncan's relationship with his sister was as good as he considered it. But just because their relationship may have been amicable didn't mean the supporters who benefited from having Anastasia take over the Genuiver Dukedom would have been as kindly toward Duncan, who was an obvious threat to their interests.

In my original life, Anastasia didn't care for work and left all the decision-making to her vassals back home while she played in the capital. This was a very lucrative arrangement for her supporters.

"Peep!"

Leona stirred.

Are we almost home?

<< Yes, we are. >> I replied. << And you'll be thrilled to know that we will be going to the Ashford Bakery. >>

Leona chirped happily at this news.

What are you planning on asking Natalia about this time?

Leona correctly understood my intention of going to the bakery.

My eyes gazed toward the tall walls of Genise. These were the same walls that Grandov, Fin, and I had stood atop in our final battle against the Kobar Empire. I had gone back seven years in time, but my memories of fighting alongside them were still fresh in mind.

<< I'm going to ask her about locating an old future friend of mine. >> I replied.