Sedrick hadn’t expected to hear that, and his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“You brewed this tea yourself?”

“Why not?” Lilienne said, trying to act as if it were the most mundane thing in the world, but her fingers still trembled nervously.

Sedrick’s gaze was drawn to the white bandages wrapped around one of her delicate hands. “Did you... get hurt?”

“Er, well, it happened while I was learning... But it doesn’t hurt now,” Lilienne said quickly.

It wasn’t calculated—she hadn’t been trying to get hurt on purpose to try to arouse sympathy. It had simply been a lot more difficult to hold the heavy pot than she’d expected, forgetting how frail her childish body was. Her unsteadiness had gotten her burned several times in the process of brewing the tea.

It hadn’t been hot enough to cause blisters, but of course, her serving girls had raised a big fuss over the rosy welts on her skin. She’d only just come back from the brink of death, after all. Lilienne privately thought that it had been unnecessary to plaster her hand with bandages, making it so visibly obvious that she’d been hurt, but she’d wanted to make the maids happy...

“A cup will suffice,” Sedrick finally said. Lilienne’s heart leapt. She had been hoping to hear those exact words.

Lilienne began brewing the tea as best she could, feeling grateful that her brother was making some time for her. The method of brewing tea was simple enough, but, with her hurt fingers and the general lack of strength in her arms, Lilienne struggled to carry out even the basic motions.

Well... I suppose that’s a good enough excuse if he gets impatient and asks why I’m being so slow.

Lilienne surreptitiously glanced at her brother, ready to say her excuse, but fortunately, he didn’t say anything. The room was filled with the quiet sounds of pouring water and then the clinking of spoons and teacups. Sedrick, visibly exhausted from all his work, had leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, which had been Lilienne’s real goal. He wasn’t asleep, but the whole pouring and brewing process was just enough time for him to get a moment’s break from his duties.

“The tea is ready now, brother.”

“Mm.”

He picked up his cup to sip it leisurely and found that it tasted… extremely bitter. Lilienne had brewed the tea for way too long because she had been allowing Sedrick the extra time to rest his eyes. At the same time, it was also sickeningly sweet, as Lilienne had added a dollop of jam to try to mask the bitterness.

Eurgh. Having never tried this so-called tea drink before, Sedrick wondered if this was how it was supposed to taste. If so, he didn’t care for it in the slightest.

How should I react to this? He started to feel slightly panicked, thinking he might have to drink the rest of the tea and pretend he loved it, but then Lilienne sipped some from her own cup.

“Oh no, that’s not good at all,” she said with a frown.

She knows! thought Sedrick, feeling much more relieved. He decided to say some mollifying words, thinking she must have felt upset. “It’s not that bad.”

“You’re being too kind, brother,” she said honestly.

Another young lady might have been greatly upset at his truthful admission, but Lilienne didn’t blink an eye.

“It’s certainly not my best work, so please see this as an effort of sincere gratitude,” she said, knowing he was going to drink the awful-tasting tea anyway.

Sedrick cracked a smile.

Despite the taste, the sugar and caffeine were still beneficial to Sedrick’s tired mind, and they rapidly coursed through his body, helping revive his spirits a bit. Thanks to just a few brief minutes he’d closed his eyes, he also felt a lot more alert and clear-headed.

While it was too short to be a true respite, it was still enough to make a positive difference, helping even his frazzled nerves to calm slightly. Sedrick felt like perhaps he was being influenced by Lilienne’s calm and stately manner of presenting herself right now.

Could that actually be the reason?

“May I brew tea for you again tomorrow?” she asked.

Sedrick stayed silent, taken aback by her request.

Lilienne read his silence incorrectly and quickly waved off her question, saying, “If you’re too busy, I completely understand and there’s no nee—”

“Sure,” he said.

“Oh... Really?”

Lilienne hadn’t expected her brother to actually grant her another tea time. She smiled and said, “I’m grateful, brother.”

Her face shone with earnest gratitude and relief. She’d completely expected her brother to turn her away at the door—even today.

“I’ll make sure to practice so I can serve a superior tea tomorrow,” she said, grinning.

Something began to prick at Sedrick’s heart. All he’d done was allow his sister to come and make him tea today, and to let her do it again tomorrow, but she looked so joyful at the prospect. This warm feeling of kinship inside him was new and weird, but... he didn’t dislike it.

“Then, I’ll be back tomorrow,” she said, standing up promptly and curtsying to leave.

He won’t like it if I stay too long.

Lilienne spun around and quickly walked out of the room, not imagining that Sedrick, like before, was upset to see his little sister be so quick to leave his presence.

* * *

When Lilienne left, Alan cleared his throat and said quietly, “My lord...?”

Sedrick just sat there, lost in thought as he stared at his teacup.

“My lord, are you... okay? Is there something wrong with the tea?”

“No, nothing’s wrong. Leave the tea, Alan,” he snapped, rubbing his eyes with his knuckles. “Seriously—don’t touch it.”

“Of course, my lord. But... Why do you seem so tense?”

“...grateful,” Sedrick muttered.

“Beg pardon?”

“Lilienne... She said she was grateful.”

“Yes, I heard... What about it?” asked Alan, uncertain where this was going.

“How can she be grateful when she has so little? Could she really be that selfless? Or perhaps...” he trailed off again, staring into space.

“My lord?”

Sedrick rubbed his face vigorously then looked up, asking abruptly, “How long does it take to transfer deeds to a property?”

“Er...” Alan said, unsure how to respond to this unexpected question.

“I think it would be good for her to have some property. Even though she’s young, she should have some tangible wealth for the sake of her security,” Sedrick mused.

Alan was dumbfounded. “Surely you’re jesting, my lord.”

“Do I look like I am?” Sedrick said, looking at him angrily.

“I’m even more concerned that you’re not,” said Alan drolly. “Please take a moment to think through this.”

Alan knew it was a long and complicated process to transfer deeds for land, especially in this case.

“Lady Lilienne will soon marry into another family, so transferring Islar holdings to her name now may not be the wisest move...”

Sedrick frowned.

“Marry?” he barked. “It’s too early to talk about that. Don’t mention it again.”

Alan looked at him in surprise. Although a formal betrothal hadn’t been signed and sealed yet, all the negotiations had been concluded, and now here was the marquis saying it was too early!

How very strange... Alan kept quiet, but his mind whirled with thoughts as he tried to determine what had caused this sudden change. After a moment, he concluded that his lord must have realized that he valued a relationship with his younger sister much more than he’d initially thought.

“The process to transfer deeds should be started now, but in the meantime... Perhaps some jewels...” murmured Sedrick, a calculating look now in his eyes.

“But she hasn’t even worn the jewels you’ve already given her,” Alan protested.

“And why hasn’t she?” demanded Sedrick. “Were they not to her taste?”

“Excuse me for saying so, my lord, but the lady is only twelve years old. Isn’t it a bit early for her to enjoy wearing such finery?”

“Oh, is it...?” Sedrick said, looking like he hadn’t even considered this. “Hmm, maybe it is too early for all that. And who knows—with her kind little heart, she might start handing them out to all her maids. She’s too kind for her own good.” A proud smile lit up his face.

Alan sighed. It was clear that his lord was not going to give up today until he thought of a suitable present for his little sister.

How can I redirect him...

“How about moving her room?” suggested Alan, an idea forming in his mind.

“Her room?” Sedrick frowned again. He had been thinking more along the lines of gifting her a personal summer villa or a diamond the size of her fist.

“Consider the value to her, my lord...” Alan began, ticking off a long list of reasons.

Lilienne’s current room was located in a remote corner of the palace, unfitting of her status as the lady of Turine. On top of that, her rooms were very inappropriate in size and scale—they were scandalously small and shabby. Her rooms had been purposely neglected by her mother, who’d felt that a daughter was useless and didn’t deserve her full attention. Her father had gone along with his wife’s wishes, assuming that a mother knew best for her daughter.

“And instead of just moving her to a bigger room, you could provide her with completely renovated rooms, especially for the coming winter.”

“Hmm...” Sedrick mused, his furrowed brow smoothing a bit as he considered this idea.

Alan took the opportunity to deliver his final point. “Plus, along with the newly remodeled rooms, you could also gift her with entirely new furniture for her bedroom, drawing room, and dressing room.”

“That’s... not a bad idea.”

The emergency situation caused by Lilienne’s simple thanks was now smoothly resolved, thanks to Alan’s quick thinking.