Chapter 10: The Doting Mother Problem

For weeks, the head of House Del Korynth had been away from his manor. In Alexion’s absence, all responsibilities were passed on to his wife, Eudoria. His trust in her was far stronger than most other nobles, who often saw their wives as nothing more than ornaments in their estates.

Moreover, Eudoria was one of the top graduates of Universitién del Palaion, a prestigious university in the capital city of Palanthein. That alone was already rare, considering it was a time when men dominated almost every field, while women were often pushed aside. When Eudoria was studying at Palaion, it was part of a trial program that allowed a limited number of women to enroll. Unfortunately, the program was shut down right after Eudoria and a few others graduated.

She did speak out about the social inequality alongside other women who felt the same injustice. But with no support behind them, the protest died out without any real result. On top of that, many of those women had to move on with their own lives. Eudoria included, especially after being called back by her father to prepare for her marriage with Alexion, who had already been arranged as her fiancé from the start.

So with all the knowledge she gained during her college years, Eudoria was at least capable of handling the administrative duties of the Del Korynth region. Moreover, she was also assisted by Aeson, who was just as experienced as Alexion himself.

“Madam Eudoria, your daughter has run away again!”

“Huh, again!?”

Amidst her busyness handling the documents piling up on her desk, Eudoria had lately also been preoccupied with another issue that truly left her confused. It all started with earlier news that her daughter had run off to the barracks just to seek entertainment. At first, Eudoria only gave her a mild scolding, as she couldn’t bring herself to be strict with her beloved daughter.

“Please stay calm, Madam! We know where Lady Seraphelle is!”

“Thank you, Lyra...”

Unfortunately, it only make her daughter’s more bold that make her kept visiting the barracks as she pleased. Her worries were not without reason, because, despite her respect for the Grenadiers there, she felt it wasn’t a safe place for Seraphelle. She didn’t even know whether her daughter had fully recovered from her illness or not, and feared she might catch some disease.

Back in college, Eudoria had also read a book about children who enter a rebellious phase at a certain age, so she wondered if her daughter was currently going through that phase. Especially considering the fact that she had been very busy lately, Eudoria thought that her daughter’s behavior might be an attempt to get her attention.

“Please focus, Madam…”

“Forgive me, Aeson! I can't think straight!”

Previously, Eudoria had also instructed Corvas not to let Seraphelle into the barracks area easily. But it seemed he, too, was confused by Seraphelle’s strong desire to be there—and he really wasn’t good at dealing with little girls.

Even he was powerless against Theressa, who was also his own daughter. Eudoria was glad that he had such a gentle nature, but in this situation, it only made things harder. At least Theressa’s presence could help manage her daughter's sudden activeness.

Besides, Seraphelle was her first and only child, so Eudoria was confused by this sudden situation.

Of course, Eudoria herself was actually aware that her daughter's energetic behavior was just like her own when she was young. Unlike her daughter, who ran off to the barracks, Eudoria used to sneak away from her maids to go outside the manor and mingle with children her age without caring about her status, even if she were just low-ranking nobles, or perhaps precisely because of that.

It is not surprising that she often gets punished from her father, although he himself was overly affectionate toward his daughters, which was very different from how he treated his sons.

"Truly, this makes me feel a bit nostalgic..."

However, from Aeson's perspective, Seraphelle actually resembled Alexion more. Who also, as a child, often visited his father's military facilities. From a young age, he had already shown an interest in the military and the art of governance, unlike his other brothers.

That was when Eudoria realized that her daughter's nature was basically a deadly combination of herself and her husband. On one hand, she was glad that her daughter was more full of life compared to how she had been before the coma, when even then she had seemed lifeless due to her body's frailty since birth.

At first, Theressa was indeed able to handle the problem with Seraphelle. But according to her reports, her daughter gradually became more and more clever in outsmarting Theressa. For example, she even disguised herself using a spare servant’s cloak so she wouldn't be recognized from a distance, or hid one of Theressa's shoes so she couldn't chase after her quickly.

Aeson also delivered a message from Alexion to Eudoria, asking her to be a little stricter and not spoil her too much, something that had actually already been said to her a few days before Alexion left for the capital.

With a heavy heart, Eudoria began to punish her daughter by reducing her milk allowance. Eudoria had known about her daughter’s excessive fondness for milk ever since she first woke up from her coma.

Forgive me...

That was what Eudoria kept repeating in her heart after seeing the expression on her daughter's face, which showed how utterly devastated she was when given that punishment.

At first, the punishment went well, with the cost being that her previously very active daughter became sluggish. Seeing this, Eudoria felt very guilty and was about to end the punishment until Aeson persuaded her not to do so.

Until something shocking happened at the manor...

“Madam, someone has broken into our milk storage…”

Upon hearing that report from her subordinate, Eudoria immediately knew who the culprit was, although it remained a mystery how she had managed to do it.

So Eudoria summoned her daughter for interrogation, and strangely enough, without much pressure, she immediately confessed and said:

“Oh, Mother. This is tormenting me. Even though I’ve eaten quite a lot, I can still feel a hunger on the other side of my stomach. Remember, Mother, hungry makes us angry, and there is no good ending in angry that cannot be contained. Besides, withdrawal is a terrible thing.”

Eudoria immediately knew it was just wordplay. However, what truly worried her was the phrase "angry that cannot be contained." Though she was still unfamiliar with the last part of what her daughter said.

What was certain was that after that incident, ignoring Aeson’s advice, Eudoria immediately canceled all the punishments she had given her daughter.

She also felt that if the issue of her daughter wanting to visit the barracks kept continuing, the situation would never be resolved. So she began to allow Seraphelle to go there on the condition that she must always be accompanied by at least a dozen maids, and the observation position had to be determined by Eudoria herself.

Without much negotiation, Seraphelle agreed, and in the end she said something like, “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

Fortunately, after that, the manor regained its peace and Eudoria was able to return to focusing on her work. Every party respected each other's conditions without much complaint. Every day, Seraphelle could watch the grenadiers’ activities with enthusiasm as well.

Although, sometimes Seraphelle asked Eudoria for permission to ride directly on a horse's back, of course it was immediately rejected. Eudoria still has bad memory about her older brother who fell off a horse when he was a child and ended up with a crippled right leg, making him limp for life. That brother became increasingly neglected by their father and now lives in Palaion as an activist or orator in the struggle for civil rights.