Chapter 26
I glanced alternately between Alec and the carriage.
The carriage he brought was massive, with four wheels and four horses, looking as grand and sturdy as the one originally used by the Duke’s family.
If it wasn’t a rental, it must have cost an enormous amount of money.
“Louise? Why are you outside?”
Startled by the sudden deep voice, I turned my gaze.
Before I knew it, Alec had approached right in front of me.
“Oh, I just wanted to get some fresh air. I was wondering when you would arrive. You’re a bit late.”
“I had some things to check, so I left late. I thought you would already be asleep.”
“How could I just sleep? But where did that carriage come from?”
I looked back at the carriage.
The relaxed and elegant horses looked like holy steeds that a paladin might drive.
Alec cleared his throat once and answered.
“I thought everyone might be uncomfortable without a vehicle, so I bought one. Walking to places where carriages travel must be tiring.”
“Oh… Did things go well in Luden?”
“Well…”
“…?”
He couldn’t continue.
He seemed troubled, as if there was something difficult to say.
Considering he bought such a grand carriage, it seemed like things went well, but why was he acting like this?
Soon, he brought a slightly clenched hand to his mouth, cleared his throat once, and then spoke.
“Could you please take a look inside the carriage?”
“What? Inside the carriage?”
“Yes.”
He nodded.
“Alright.”
As I approached the carriage curiously, he followed me.
Was there something inside the carriage?
As I stroked the horses and reached the carriage door, Alec grabbed the doorknob.
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, then the door opened.
Feeling somewhat excited, I looked inside the carriage and my eyes widened.
The interior, large enough to comfortably seat six people, was packed with wooden boxes.
Not only the seats but also the floor was filled.
“What is all this?”
Why was there so much loaded in boxes?
He reached in front of me and opened the lid of one of the boxes.
The objects revealed reflected all the moonlight that flowed between us, dazzling my eyes.
Squinting slightly, I soon realized what filled the box.
‘Gold coins…?’
The golden light shimmered over the countless round gold coins, like waves rippling.
For a moment, I blinked, entranced by the golden shine.
Why was my heart racing, and why did I feel my blood circulating through my body?
It wasn’t my first time seeing a mountain of gold coins.
Being born as Louise and living in the Duke of Brent’s house before it went bankrupt, I was never short of money.
Oh, except for the time when I didn’t have the penalty money to divorce him right after our marriage, I had always lived quite wealthily in this world.
Now I was nearly penniless, but I had lived much poorer in my previous life, right?
I thought I would gradually adapt as long as I endured.
But seeing such an overwhelming amount of gold coins, an indescribable emotion surged within me.
It felt like a wave crashing into my chest.
Clutching my trembling heart, I barely managed to ask him.
“Are all these boxes filled with gold coins?”
“Yes.”
He nodded with a low answer.
Unlike my trembling voice, his expression was calm.
Unable to continue in disbelief, he seemed to want to say something but hesitated.
Then he met my eyes directly and spoke with difficulty.
“As long as I am here, you will never have to worry about money again.”
“…”
“Please use all the gold coins here as you wish.”
* * *
I thought my heart would stop.
Was the phrase ‘use all the gold coins as you wish’ really such a heart-stopping statement?
There were so many gold coins that I couldn’t even imagine counting them all.
It was such an enormous amount that I wondered if the floor would collapse if I stacked them in the upstairs room.
As we woke the sleeping family to move the boxes inside, they couldn’t tell if it was a dream or reality.
But Alec’s gold coin flex didn’t end there.
For several days, I wondered what all this meant, feeling dizzy.
“Here, place it over here. Hohoho.”
My mother-in-law had the newly arrived piano placed in the middle of the parlor.
Every day, all sorts of luxury goods were coming into the house, filling the parlor to the point where there was barely any room to step.
“Now it finally feels like a proper home, don’t you think, Eloise?”
“Yes, Mother. Compared to the mansion we used to live in, this place is like a hut, but it has become much more livable.”
Hohoho.
Hohohoho.
The laughter of my mother-in-law and sister-in-law was unending.
When Alec brought the carriage filled with gold coins a few days ago, it was shocking, but that was just the beginning.
Alec even brought home a variety store salesman and a dress shop owner.
My mother-in-law and sister-in-law bought everything in the catalog.
Even I, who hesitated a little, ended up ordering ten new dresses.
Having been almost thrown out of our previous mansion with nothing, clothes and shoes were urgently needed, so it was a relief that he called a tailor for us.
But that wasn’t all.
Alec also opened a restaurant with a skilled chef not far from the mansion.
In truth, he could have hired the chef as a servant, but due to threats from a tyrant who said he would kill anyone working for us, that wasn’t an option.
“So instead, I did this. By running a restaurant nearby, we can order delivery or visit as customers without any problems.”
“Alec, you’re a genius…”
I shed tears of gratitude.
…How fortunate that I wouldn’t have to cook anymore.
I was relieved that my family, including myself, could now eat proper meals.
Especially since Alec could now eat meals with a balanced nutritional profile.
No more worries about his skin deteriorating or losing muscle.
“Here are your ordered grilled sirloin, consommé de volaille, haggis, and red currant jelly.”
Finally, the chef filled the dining table.
The veal shank soup that my sister-in-law had been raving about took up an entire section of the table.
“Wow, this looks delicious.”
Eloise was the first to sit at the table and pick up a fork. My mother-in-law also sat down with a look of great anticipation.
“Well then, enjoy your meal.”
The chef bowed politely and soon left our house.
“Please go ahead and eat.”
Saying that, I left the dining room.
The food had already arrived, but where was Alec?
For several days, he had been busy gathering various merchants to the mansion.
I had also been busy organizing the newly bought items.
‘How much money have we spent so far?’
I never knew how it felt to buy everything we needed without worrying about money.
Having lived without lacking anything before, I had never experienced this emotion.
Was this the thrill of being rich after being penniless…?
“Alec!”
I finally spotted Alec coming out of a room.
Smiling brightly, I approached him.
“The meal has just arrived. Let’s go down quickly.”
He nodded a bit awkwardly, but I didn’t mind and smiled warmly.
* * *
Alec looked down quietly.
Louise had been looking at him proudly for a while now.
Receiving that smile, he felt a pang of guilt, not being her real husband.
Louise had always been kind to him, but lately, she seemed more affectionate.
But it was strange.
‘Why isn’t her affection level increasing?’
When he made dinner, it increased by 1, and it increased by another 1 when they went to the wool store. This indicated that daily life could affect her affection level even without completing quests.
Given Louise’s current behavior, it wouldn’t be surprising if her affection level rose by 50.
How did she react when he brought the carriage full of gold coins a few days ago?
She was so moved that she couldn’t speak.
It wasn’t a reaction that wouldn’t increase her affection at all.
Alec checked the pink system window again.
[Affection: 2]
The affection level was still 2.
Just 2.
He had never spent so much money at once in his life.
Even now, a lot of money was still left in the mansion.
If Louise hadn’t mentioned cutting her hair to sell it, he wouldn’t have thought of buying so many gold coins…
Each time he exchanged espionage-level knowledge and large sums of money through an information dealer, other stats soared like crazy.
[Reputation: 157]
It increased so frequently that the notification sound was annoying.
But why was her affection level not budging at all?
TL NOTE: More advanced chapter of this story is already up to the site. Visit dusk blossoms for more advanced chapters and stories