TSMMT Ch 34

The Gryphine Merchant Guild

Dianna climbed the stairs of the building alongside her personal guards. The headquarters stood remarkably small compared to the premier merchant guilds she knew. The gatekeeper instructed her to leave her knights outside, and she complied with the command.

The knights protested the order, but when Dianna accepted the procedure as a necessary security measure, the guards agreed to wait downstairs. In truth, she harbored no desire to expose her plan to educate Guiscard. Hiring a professional tutor to instruct a slave in swordsmanship counted as an excessive action.

Dianna knew that as she grew older, more people would question her relationship with Guiscard. Furthermore, an exposure of her grand strategy would ruin everything.

Entering the room, the gatekeeper closed the door and listened intently for any outside sounds, checking for eavesdroppers.

Terrifying thoughts arose that this might be a nest of assassins. Dianna evaluated her danger. The complete lack of people inside this guild highlighted a suspicious atmosphere. Surely no one would launch an attack in the center of the capital—yet a kidnapping remained possible. Her thoughts spiraled into dark anticipation.

[Gatekeeper] "My Lady."

The gatekeeper's voice echoed with a low tone. As the man advanced with large strides, Dianna retreated in alarm. She gripped the necklace inside her pocket tightly, ready to summon Sylph.

[Dianna] "Stop right there. Take another step, and I will scream—"

[Gatekeeper] "Waaaah! My own eyes betrayed me! I should gouge them out completely!"

[Dianna] "……."

[Gatekeeper] "You resemble Lady Rudina so perfectly! How could I fail to recognize you!"

The man wept bitterly and pulled Dianna into a sudden hug. She refrained from screaming, because the familiar name caught her attention.

Mother?

Rudina was her mother's name. Why did a guild gatekeeper utter that name? Right then, the door burst open with a loud crash.

[Member 1] "What is all this noise? Why stands the carriage of Duke Brienne outside this establishment?"

[Member 2] "……."

[Member 3] "And who spoke of Rudina?!"

A hidden room existed behind the wall after all. The chamber looked exceptionally narrow for a proper guild office.

Rushing through a secret door concealed as a wall, a group of men emerged. The armed men immediately locked their gazes onto the smallest figure in the room: Dianna.

[Member 1] "Good heavens. Oh, my goodness."

[Member 2] "Lady Rudina's daughter stands right before us."

[Member 3] "Ah, My Lady!"

Dianna blinked in confusion. Who were these people? Why did they treat her like a display at a festival? She loathed becoming a public spectacle. The memory mirrored the utter nightmares of the Lodbrog Kingdom. Her expression stiffened into an icy mask.

[Dianna] "Where are your manners? Explain this situation immediately."

The men quickly covered their mouths at her sharp command.

[Member 1] "She inherits Lady Rudina's exact fiery temper."

[Member 2] "Goodness me……"

[Member 3] "Master Anders will rejoice when he hears of this!"

Anders?

Dianna recognized the name. Anders…… she strove to analyze the bizarre circumstances.

[Dianna] "It seems this establishment belonged to my maternal grandfather."

[Member 1] "Indeed! You possess Lady Rudina's brilliant intellect."

Her grandfather's guild. Dianna surveyed the office with cold eyes.

[Member 1] "Master Anders currently resides in the Lodbrog Kingdom, My Lady. If we send word, he will travel here immediately."

[Dianna] "No. There is no need for that."

She rose from her seat. She had wasted precious time. Had she known the truth, she would never have set foot in this place.

As she marched toward the exit, the gatekeeper blocked her path.

[Gatekeeper] "My Lady! Oh, please, why must you leave?"

[Dianna] "……."

[Gatekeeper] "Since fate brought you here, ask your grandfather for whatever you intended to purchase!"

[Dianna] "I require absolutely nothing provided by him."

She scowled with unusual venom, her cold tone striking the guild members with intense shock.

[Dianna] "He is no real grandfather to me. Speaking of him as family sounds entirely ridiculous."

At her cold words, a man named Ezio shrieked.

[Ezio] "Come now! Even if your grandfather is a mere merchant, your words exceed all bounds!"

Dianna paused. The guild members stared at her back. Her attitude felt heartless to them. How could a girl speak so cruelly of a relative she had never met since birth?

Their error lay in knowing the character of their guild master while remaining completely ignorant of Dianna’s true nature.

Only the gatekeeper standing by the exit could view Dianna's face. Her eyes widened, and a heavy sigh escaped her lips.

[Gatekeeper] "Silence, Ezio! You dare speak insolently to the Young Lady?"

[Ezio] "But she treats Master Anders like a stranger, refusing to even acknowledge him—"

[Dianna] "Was it not your guild master who first refused to treat me as a granddaughter?"

She turned around to face them. Ezio, who had been mocking her with a rebellious tone, froze upon beholding her face.

The young girl's face remained entirely expressionless. No tears fell from her eyes, and her brows remained unknit. Yet her gaze carried a deeply sorrowful weight.

[Dianna] "Your words are correct. I am no granddaughter to Mr. Anders."

[Ezio] "……."

[Dianna] "I require neither your welcome nor your assistance."

She strode outside, her personal guards falling into step immediately behind her.

[Knight 1] "What did you purchase, My Lady?"

[Dianna] "The wares offered by that guild are utterly pathetic. I decided against buying anything."

She glared back at the building as if confronting her grandfather.

What defined a family? If shared blood dictated kinship, the master of this guild and Dianna certainly counted as family. The grandfather and her mother shared that bond as well. Yet why did he refuse to visit when her mother faced death?

In her memories, her mother wept bitterly, calling out for her own parent as death approached. Though other memories faded, that specific scene remained vibrant. Dianna herself had beaten her chest and cried for her mother while enduring captivity in the Lodbrog Kingdom.

Father, Father……!

Writhing in illness, her mother had cried out for her own father. Mother and Father. Those simple titles highlighted a massive gulf. Her mother had clutched her chest, screaming for the grandfather who never arrived.

Father, Father……

Grandfather, Grandfather, where are you? Mother is sick, please come quickly.

Young Dianna had pleaded with Duke Brienne, but he merely offered a regretful explanation.

[Duke] "Your grandfather harbors deeply rooted hatred toward your mother."

Dianna wept for her pathetic mother. Despite calling out for her parents, absolutely no one arrived. What profound sorrow, what absolute isolation.

During her healthier days, her mother used to share stories regarding the grandfather.

[Rudina] "Your grandfather was a merchant."

[Dianna] "……."

[Rudina] "I used to board ships alongside him, and we even explored vast deserts together."

[Dianna] "I want to go too."

[Rudina] "You can't, my love. You are a noble young lady."

Her mother used to stroke Dianna's hair, pausing her reading.

[Dianna] "Is grandfather dead?"

[Rudina] "No, he remains alive and healthy."

[Dianna] "……."

[Rudina] "I angered him, and his fury will never dissolve."

Even back then, a bitter expression marked her mother's face. A grandfather whose rage drove him to abandon his own daughter's deathbed.

Consequently, during the war in her past life, Dianna never sought a rescue from her merchant grandfather. A wealthy merchant possessed the influence to smuggle her out of the kingdom, yet Dianna chose to perish beneath the blades of the Lodbrog army instead.

Granted, the grandfather had never extended a hand to assist her either, making the concept of a 'choice' rather ridiculous. That proud grandfather had abandoned his own granddaughter to death.

---

Dianna boarded the carriage. The gatekeeper who followed her stood outside, watching with a helpless expression.

Speak if you have something to say.

Yet the man merely surveyed the perimeter and slunk away, thoroughly dejected. Beholding his departure, Dianna bit her lip tightly.

See? Even you, his subordinate, possess no defense.

Squeezing her fists against the turbulent emotions, a sharp burning stung her eyes.

Why weep over this? You are accustomed to such abandonment. Dianna, you have endured betrayal and even lost your own child. You are an adult who survived far more wretched atrocities. Why let a minor grievance shake you so profoundly? You behave like a foolish, childish girl.

She strove to calm her racing emotions.

Arriving at the mansion after a long ride, she attempted to head directly to her bedchamber. Strangely, however, the household buzzed with chaotic activity.

[Butler] "His Highness awaits you, My Lady."

[Dianna] "Which prince?"

[Butler] "The Second Prince has arrived."

[Dianna] "……."

[Butler] "He is currently inspecting the garden."

At that single moment, her restraint dissolved completely. The exact reason for Philip's visit mattered little now. She simply craved solace. She desperately needed comfort, longing for someone to stroke her hair gently. She yearned for someone to stand firmly by her side.

Philip stood exploring the garden. He extended his hand toward a branch, looking up to gauge the tree's height, but the action held no importance to Dianna.

He should have surrounded himself with guards after surviving an assassination attempt, yet his stubborn nature guaranteed he had dismissed his attendants. This lack of security allowed Dianna to approach him without hindrance.

[Philip] "Ann?"

Dianna threw her arms around his waist, burying herself in his embrace before she could even process the action. The frame of the youth transitioning into manhood felt remarkably solid and large.

[Philip] "Ann, did something happen?"

His tender inquiry threatened to shatter her restraint, bringing tears to her eyes.

True to Diann's silent anticipation, his hand reached down to soothe her hair. She forced back the rising tears. She could survive. This touch made her feel as though she could conquer her destiny.

[Philip] "Something must have caused you distress."

My entire life has been devoid of tenderness.

She required this warmth. She needed it with a sheer, frantic intensity. Dianna refused to let her emotions spill outward. Instead, she systematically gathered the fragile fragments of her shattered composure.

Yet she remained completely oblivious to the intense gaze tracking her movements from the shadows.

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