Read Novel Full Chapter 94
Chapter 94
The Little Bro’s Oath
Hearing those words, Graziano could only gulp slowly.
“Can you do it? Graziano?”
“…….I…”
As Francesca smiled, Graziano hung his head and looked downwards as he spoke.
“Have I ever failed to obey any of your orders, young miss?”
“……..Graziano.”
Hearing his not so honest indirect answer, Francesca couldn’t help but giggle. But she almost agreed and said [That’s true] before snapping back to reality.
“……..YES YOU HAVE!? A lot actually, way too many times in fact!! If anything, Graziano, don’t you ignore my orders MOST of the time!?”
“Well, yeah, you can’t count the times any of your orders go directly against the orders from the Boss himself. Same goes for whenever you are in danger as well.”
“Nununu…….!!!”
He may be Francesca’s caretaker and attendant but in truth, he was first and foremost her father’s subordinate. It was only natural for him to prioritize the family head’s orders so she couldn’t retort back.
“Young miss.”
“Hm?”
Graziano grabbed the oars again, and began to row the boat back to the coast as he spoke.
“A couple years ago, do you remember when this talk began of [making me an officially adopted son of the boss]?”
“Yep! Of course I do.”
Recalling a nostalgic memory, Francesca nodded.
“Hearing that Graziano might go from my [little bro] to actually [step brother] was a bit shocking, but I was still very happy. Of course, I still consider you being my [little bro] to be a very special relationship as well though……..but at some point, those talks fell off and I never even knew the reason, but I thought it was unfortunate.”
This had happened approximately 5 years ago. Francesca had thrown a rare tantrum and had put her father in quite the spot.
“So you didn’t hear the reason after all. The reason why I wasn’t legally adopted in the end?”
“Graziano, so you know the actual reason?”
She had thought they didn’t tell her because she was still just a child back then. But it would seem, Graziano who was a year younger had been told the actual reason against her expectations.
“…….well I suppose that should be surprising as the matter involved your life specifically. Though I do feel a bit left out.”
“That’s not it.”
“Hm?”
Graziano, with his head still hung downwards, with his usual cool expression continued to speak.
“……….because one day, I might marry the young miss, that’s why the idea was dropped.”
“——-EH!?”
Francesca exclaimed loudly enough that it could echo all the way to the other side of the lake.
“HUH, WHA WHA What are you talking about!?!”
“Neither the family head not the members of the family expected the engagement between Aldini and you to actually last till fruition. In fact they believed that it would result in the break out of a big war between the families, Aldini will die and your engagement would get annulled, the chances of that happening were high, or so they thought.”
“Violent! Why is even the hypothetical situation so damn violent!!? Rather than prepare for war, I wish they could prepare to avoid the war instead……!?!”
This was the first time Francesca had come to hear about all these plans.
“Though, I get it, if Graziano were to be adopted, you’d become unable to marry me legally speaking. So papa and the others kept that potentiality open as well huh……..”
“Even back then, I told them multiple times that [me and the young miss getting married is an impossibility] but alas.”
Graziano raised his head, and then seemed to look far away into the distance.
“……..But when I kept saying [impossible] it actually made the family head’s mood worsen, followed by complaints over [Just what is my daughter lacking huh?] and then……….”
“Ughh, I’m so sorry Papa put you through that………!”
Just thinking of the fear and anxiety Graziano must have felt back then, Francesca covered her face with her both hands. Her father did certainly favour Graziano but he was still incredibly strict with the poor kid.
“……..If the young miss really were to get married with ALdini for real in the future…”
“?”
Graziano seemed to mumble, as Francesca raised her head back up again.
“or if you really managed to live a life on the surface world, then I really will get adopted and be made into the next family head or so is the plan.”
“………I see.”
The heads of all 5 great families are all direct descendants of their respective first family heads.
But that was really only a coincidence and in this country, you didn’t need to be a direct blood descendant to inherit the family name according to the law.
If Graziano were to take the mantle of the next family head, everyone would be more than relieved with that decision.
“If that happens, I’ll end up standing directly against Aldini as equals as well though.”
“!”
This was the first time Francesca had been told of this future that Graziano had been gazing at.
“I, really don’t want to lose to that guy no matter what.”
(Graziano,………is that why he challenged Leonardo like that I wonder?)
Realizing that, Francesca smiled again.
“fufu, if it were up to me, I’d prefer if you two could cooperate and work together on this investigation though.”
“Yeah, no. I think we are fundamentally too different from each other as human beings to ever get along.”
“Really? I personally feel like you two might get along a lot better than you think but…….”
“Not. A. Chance. Ever.”
(Ah, I wonder this is the kind of tone he had when telling Papa that he could never marry me as well.)
She ended up snickering again which she hid quickly by opening her parasol again. Soon afterwards, the boat being rowed by Graziano reached the shore again.
***
Serranova family’s next head Ricardo had been strolling through this beautiful forest.
They had plans to spend the next couple days in this forest, a place that was under Ranieri control. He knew it was an important location for their brothel business and it was his first time stepping foot in here but, he was still impressed by how well maintained each and every location inside the forest was.
“Fumu. As expected of the Ranieri’s who follow elegance as their creed.”
To live up to your family’s creed was a virtue in his book. Seeing the thoroughness and attention to detail in everything around him, Ricardo was wholeheartedly admiring it all.
On the other hand, the man walking behind him seemed utterly unimpressed by everything.
“Fuwaaa……”
The head of the Aldini family, Leonardo Valentino Aldini had both his hands in his pocket as he yawned sleepily.