My Stepmom is Too Pretty, and It’s Troubling Me – Chapter 132

At first, I had some worries about the midterm exam, but in the end, everything went well.

Grace didn’t bother to ask for my exact score thanks to the candy gifts she gave me, so I could just tell.

And of course, Ella and Nordal probably did well, while I simply performed to my own ability.

I hadn’t studied any harder than usual, and there was really no need to, so that was to be expected.

“Did you do well on the exam, babe?”

“I only did as well as my ability allows. How else would you know that I took the exam?”

“Well, that’s information too, isn’t it?”

“…Well, I suppose that’s true.”

Anyway, after finishing all the exams, I decided to visit the Information Guild alone that weekend.

I hadn’t had time to visit the Information Guild for a while due to exams and didn’t feel the need to, but I had to visit regularly.

And as always, in the consultation room of the Information Guild, a nameless woman who was in charge of me greeted me.

“And by the way, you scored the highest on the class assignment exam among the new students of the Academy; how could I not be curious?”

“Really?”

“Yeah!”

Um… honestly, I had no idea about my class assignment exam.

I hadn’t cared at all, and besides, an upgrade in room rank wasn’t possible through a class assignment exam.

I was just letting it slide, not really concerned.

It was more surprising that this woman knew more about it than I did.

“But if you know my score, does that mean information about other students’ scores comes in too?”

“Huh? Of course! If you look, there should be details for each one.”

“Whoa.”

That’s kind of interesting.

After all, that was the kind of work the Information Guild did, and while the exam scores from the Academy weren’t ridiculous, obtaining each detail was sort of impressive.

Not just some students, but all of them one by one… yeah.

“Hehe, why? Is there someone you’re curious about?”

“Not really. It’s just interesting.”

“If only our sweet would be a bit nicer to me… I might share some more information secretly?”

This woman said that while slyly trying to place her hand over mine.

I couldn’t quite understand why she always behaved like this whenever I visited the Information Guild.

“I’m fine.”

“Hmph.”

“Anyway, you already bring me the information I request diligently, so there’s really no need to receive new information secretly.”

“Ah, so there’s that good method!”

“……..”

It’s like she really couldn’t read minds.

She was the type of person who couldn’t read thoughts, unlike Nordal.

Nordal was just quiet, so I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but this woman had a lot to say, yet I just couldn’t understand her.

I didn’t know her name, and all I could say is… she always dressed to completely cover herself?

“Hmm.”

“Why? Were you feeling really bad?”

“No, that’s not it.”

I really didn’t get it.

“By the way, what happened to the requests I asked about last time?”

“Everything you asked about has been prepared. Starting with those related to the eldest daughter of the Rose Family… and here’s the one regarding the eldest daughter of the Nordal Family.”

“Oh.”

I was always thinking how, despite her words, she really did her job well, right?

That’s why I wasn’t dissatisfied with her being in charge of the Information Guild until now.

If she had been incompetent… I would have requested a change of staff long ago, but since it seemed like she was doing really well.

That was why I kept this strange woman around.

“I checked on your request, and Christina Rose is quite a peculiar person, you know?”

“Isn’t she?”

“She’s connected to at least four or five noble families.”

“Um… I guess I’ll have to read through it at least once.”

I’ve known about that for quite a while already.

I had heard that Alexandra helped Christina elevate the Rose Family to some extent through that method and also increased her own fortune.

It wasn’t surprising enough to raise my eyebrows.

Of course, I was surprised to find that the number of families associated with her was five.

“That’s pretty good info.”

“But why? Aren’t they supposed to be half-sisters?”

“That’s right?”

Since Rozalyn is also from the Rose Family?

Though now Rozalyn doesn’t carry the Rose surname anymore, the fact that they’re sisters hasn’t changed.

“But why would you need this info? Is there something going on?”

“Um… it’s nothing much.”

“What’s nothing much?”

The woman was curious, but I thought it would be quite problematic to reveal all the reasons.

After all, the fact that Rozalyn was the illegitimate child of the Rose Family wasn’t common knowledge.

No, perhaps everyone except for the Rose Family and me didn’t know?

“Hmm…”

That being said, I wasn’t going to casually spill everything either.

After all, she was part of the Information Guild?

Even if we’ve known each other for a long time, I couldn’t let someone who might spread the word about Rozalyn being an illegitimate child to others be entrusted with such information.

“I’ll just say it’s because I don’t like the Rose Family.”

“Hmm… is there someone you don’t like?”

“Well, for now, yes. It’s not like I don’t have anyone I dislike.”

“Heh~”

It was odd seeing her show such delight over something curious.

It might have felt that way partly because her face was completely covered by veils, but even so, it just confused me each time I saw her.

Honestly, if I had it my way, I’d want to use magic or some other means to tie her up and start by removing the veil that’s hiding her face… but.

I decided against creating unnecessary friction with someone from the Information Guild.

“Anyway, thanks for taking my request this time too.”

“Hehe, as expected, I’m the only one, right?”

“That might be true.”

“Ugh… isn’t that a bit disappointing?”

“If you bring better information next time, I’ll give you a better reply.”

I spent time responding like that.

The reason for my visit to the Information Guild wasn’t anything special, I just had a habit of visiting about once a month.

I had just done it like this for years, so I came by today as well.

“But why did you request information about the Nordal Duke Family? You don’t usually care about well-known noble families like that.”

“That’s true. I used to always ask for information about minor families, after all.”

The reason I requested information about the Nordal Family from the Information Guild was quite simple.

I had spent time in extracurricular activities with Nordal until the midterms were over, yet I still had no clue who he really was.

I thought that if I could find out any information at all, maybe I’d get to know a bit about him, so I tried it.

“I just had a bit of a connection with the Nordal family’s young lady recently, that’s all.”

“Huh… is that so? Interesting?”

“Yeah. I mean, how on earth did I end up being related to someone from the Nordal Duke Family.”

It was genuinely a surprise, especially since I had never expected this to happen with someone from a duke’s house or a saint.

I had tried to keep my distance from such connections, yet there I was, I’bana Nordal even joined a club…

It was all very amusing.

“But… well, it’s not much different from when I received new student materials before, right?”

“Since it was a duke family, it’s difficult for us to dig up information, you know?”

“That’s definitely true. After all, it’s not just any family, but the Nordal Duke Family.”

I had requested this information, but it seemed like it wouldn’t have been easy to uncover much.

I guess they could gather some information about it, but since they were a powerful family in the north, just like the Rose Family, they were really strong even now.

“Hmm… I’m a little disappointed.”

“……..”

“Of course, just kidding.”

“I’ll try a little harder next time, okay?”

“Well, there’s really no need to overdo it.”

Suddenly, she spoke in a much lower tone, and that caught me off guard.

It was pretty surprising to see the woman who only showed playful reactions now showing such a serious mood.

“Hmm…”

“Is there any information you might want to request? I could do it this time without charging a fee, especially for you…?”

“Oh…”

I didn’t know why, but I decided to enjoy this sudden benefit.

I had no clue why she looked so gloomy all of a sudden, or why she was willing to waive the fee for the request, but I absolutely couldn’t miss out on the opportunity and benefit given to me.

For someone like me, who had been in the business world for a long time, to ignore such chances… was simply impossible.

Though I had a ton of ideas for new requests buzzing in my head, it was difficult to choose quickly in this unexpected situation.

But…

“Hmm… do you think it would be a bit easier to get information on the Rose Family compared to the Nordal Duke Family?”

“That’s right? After all, they’re just earls, and they don’t really pay much attention to controlling information, do they?”

“Oh…”

What a delightful thing to hear at that moment.

I decided to hold back on bothering Christina as much as I could until I became an adult.

I had already made promises with Alexandra, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t prepare for anything.

“Then please gather some important information related to the Rose Family.”

I made that request.

Since I was attending the Academy, I didn’t need a ton of different information like when I was doing business.

“You said I didn’t have to pay the request fee, right? There’s no need to go all out, just provide me some good enough bits.”

“I’ll give it a shot.”

“This time, it’s just better for me. Just keep it reasonable, okay? Just reasonable.”

With that, I asked the woman for a new request.

I hadn’t brought up the topic myself; she was the one who initiated the conversation with me anyway.

I was just making the best use of the opportunity handed to me in a pleasant manner.

“Hehe.”