You’ll Regret Stealing Him from Me — My Sister Who Took My Fiancé and Celebrated Was a Fool - Chapter 24

After finishing lunch, I was guided by Lord Maximilian to his study.

What we were about to discuss would determine the future of the Liebenfeld family. I was going to present the plan I had prepared to him. If he didn’t approve, this plan would never come to fruition.

Lord Maximilian opened the study door for me. The heavy wooden door swung open with a quiet creak.

Once inside, he took his seat and gestured for me to sit in the chair opposite him. Just the two of us, separated by a large desk. The air was tense with the formality of an official meeting.

I sat quietly, straightened my posture, and took a deep breath. Steeling myself, I began to speak.

“Lord Maximilian. I would like to discuss this matter not as your fiancée, but as the person entrusted with the practical arrangements for the Liebenfeld family’s parties.”

At my words, his eyebrows rose slightly; a flicker of surprise. But he quickly composed himself, his deep blue-gray eyes locking onto mine with unwavering focus. There was no hesitation left in them, only a resolute determination to engage seriously.

“Understood. Then I will listen as the head of this family.”

He straightened his back, fully shifting into business mode. His sincerity made me sit up even straighter.

This was going to be a serious discussion.

I began spreading out the materials I had prepared across the desk.

Notes, charts, sketches of decorations, venue layouts, budget proposals. Everything I had compiled while holed up in the study since morning. I arranged them neatly so they could be reviewed one by one.

Lord Maximilian seemed slightly taken aback by the sheer volume. His eyes widened as he scanned the documents covering the desk.

“This is…”

“I’ve organized what I learned from last night’s party into concrete ideas. It’s still just the framework of the plan, but…”

“There’s this much?”

His voice carried a note of admiration.

“So, this is what you were working on in the study this morning?”

“Yes. The more I thought about it, the more ideas came to me. Before I knew it, I had all this.”

“I see.”

When I answered honestly, he gave a small, soft smile.

I opened the notebook on top, which contained the basic concept of the plan. A passage I had rewritten countless times for the sake of the Liebenfeld family.

“These are the fundamental principles for the parties hosted by the Liebenfeld family. Would you mind reading them first?”

“Very well. Let me take a look.”

Lord Maximilian picked up the notebook. His expression was serious as he read carefully, taking in each line with deliberate focus. I watched his profile in silence as I waited.

“…I see.”

He set the notebook down and met my gaze directly.

“So, the idea is to subtly incorporate elements favored by civil officials while keeping the military aristocracy’s values as the foundation?”

“Yes.”

I nodded.

“I concluded that there’s no need to change what already exists. The pride and traditions the Liebenfeld family has upheld as military nobility should remain intact. We just need to refine the presentation.”

As I spoke, I pulled out the sketches of decorations and explained further. Rather than completely overhauling things, we would make subtle adjustments. Crafting an image that seamlessly blended the essence of both military and civil aristocracy.

Lord Maximilian listened in silence, his eyes scanning the documents.

When I finished, a long silence followed. The quiet stretched on, making me uneasy. Was my plan off the mark? Did he think I didn’t understand the culture of military nobility?

Finally, he spoke.

“Seraphina.”

His voice was low and solemn.

“To be honest, we’ve tried mimicking the ways of civil officials before.”

“You have?”

So, they had attempted this in the past. And the results must not have been favorable.

“Yes.”

A bitter expression crossed his face, as if recalling past failures. The weight of those struggles was evident in his distant gaze.

“We tried incorporating lavish decorations, refined cuisine. Anything to improve our standing in high society. We even hired musicians favored by civil officials. We experimented with many things. But all of it failed.”

The gravity of his words struck me. They must have put in tremendous effort, made countless preparations, only to be met with disappointment. They had likely repeated this cycle more than once.

“Trying to force extravagance only made everyone uncomfortable. Military nobles aren’t accustomed to that kind of atmosphere. It just made them tense, unable to enjoy themselves. Even our subordinates said, ‘We preferred how things were before.'”

A self-deprecating smile touched his lips before he looked at me squarely.

“Your plan suggests keeping things the same? And you believe that will change our current situation?”

His question carried no skepticism, only a genuine desire to understand. He was weighing his judgment carefully, mindful of past failures. He didn’t want to repeat them. That sentiment lingered in every word.

I nodded firmly.

“Yes. To reiterate, the core principle of my plan is ‘keeping the foundation unchanged.’ I have no intention of rejecting the culture of military nobility or the values of the Liebenfeld family. The pride passed down through generations, the loyalty to comrades, the emphasis on substance; these must never be altered.”

He listened intently, nodding along, as if determined not to miss a single word.

“I believe past failures happened because the attempts were made to ‘change the foundation itself.’ Abandoning the culture of military nobility to adopt that of civil officials. But that could never work because the Liebenfeld family and your peers are military nobles. Trying to force yourselves into something else only creates dissonance.”

I picked up the documents again.

“My plan is different. The foundation remains untouched. The essence of military nobility is preserved. Only the presentation is refined.”

I met his gaze directly.

“Lord Maximilian. The Liebenfeld family’s culture is truly magnificent. Proud, sincere, and warm. There is no need to deny any of it. I simply want more people to recognize its brilliance. That’s why I propose making the right adjustments. That is my suggestion.”