***
“Okay. Oh, shall we leave Sir Raoul behind?”
“I’d appreciate it if you did.”
Victor smiled mischievously and led her to the door. Raoul, who was stretched out leisurely like a dog, looked at her in dismay when he was told to remain in the office.
“You are forsaking a loyal knight here, Madame!”
“I’m not your Lord, Victor is.”
The muttering Raoul gave up and walked away. Carlz, who smiled at Raoul’s retreating form, came up to her very naturally.
“Well, now you need a new escort. I’m Carlz of Denion-”
“Don’t make a fuss, Carlz.”
Leonard exhaled harshly and dragged Carlz’s back into the room. Finally, Diederick followed them with a benevolent smile.
She shook her head and headed back to her room with the apprentice knights.
***
As soon as the office door closed, a tense atmosphere formed.
Victor asked Raoul.
“Is Marion doing well?”
“Of course.”
“She doesn’t have any rats lounging around her?”
“No.”
Raoul uncomfortably affirmed.
Reporting the lady’s actions was terribly disturbing.
But the Grand Duke didn’t care.
His snake-like eyes curved with satisfaction.
“Good. There are so many rats. It’s concerning.”
“Did you find it?”
Raoul asked right away. Leonard answered on behalf of his master.
“Yes. I looked through the ledgers and found that money was being funneled to some of the vassals. It was meticulously manipulated, but they couldn’t hide it all.”
“Yes. Otherwise, the scenery wouldn’t be that bleak.”
The Grand Duke remembered the day they reached the estate.
His territory was very windy, so they spent a lot of money every winter to distribute straw and boards to cover the villagers’ roofs.
When spring came, the village looked bright, because the boards were removed and the roofs were painted.
But the roofs were faded when he arrived.
The stones paving the road were sparse, and the sewer system was broken.
It was proof that his vassals didn’t spend his money the way they were supposed to.
News that Raoul had been wandering around with Marion had leaked, so only those he could trust were allowed around him until they figured out the problem.
The corruption they discovered had deep roots.
Several vassals in important positions had their hands on the budget.
The Grand Duke raised the corners of his lips and smiled.
“Isn’t it funny? I can’t believe they did this even after seeing what happened a few years ago.”
“That’s probably why they did it.”
Carltz said quietly.
“At that time, the number of vassals decreased considerably due to work. They must have known that without them, there would be no one to look after the business of the estate. So they did this with a lot of guts.”
“It’s really funny…”
His cold gaze swept over the list of names.
He had never liked Morte’s vassals.
Morte was a large territory, rivaling that of a small country, so the vassals here naturally had a lot of greed.
They fought for power whenever they had time, and tried to shake off the eyes of their lord. But he, the owner of the estate, had no intention of leaving the rats alone.
Their punishment was clear.
But his chief of staff shook his head.
“You must not kill them. I didn’t stop you last time, but really.”
Victor frowned. Carlz continued, calmly.
“Your threat to the Welch family has frightened the Allied Houses. If you execute your vassals under such circumstances, there will definitely be backlash.”
“I know.”
The Grand Duke exhaled softly.
In many ways, it was clear that now was not the time to draw a hard line.
But he was a knight before he was a politician. Instinct told him to immediately kill the corrupt officials to set an example.
Leonard stopped his lord again.
“Your highness, they are servants who have served Morte from generation to generation. If you touch them again, the public’s opinion may deteriorate. Let’s find out who committed the crime and think about the punishment later.”
Victor nodded his head with a sigh.
He was p*ssed off.
His anger grew when he spent time with someone as noble and pure as Marion, and then with people as cruel as himself.
Still, it was comforting to think that everything would be over when this was sorted out.
Victor looked out the window at the beautiful garden.
It satisfactorily filled his darkened heart.
Now, he could be with her for the rest of their lives.
In his hometown.
Under a cold and rugged mountain, his hometown, where he was lonely when he was young. Slowly repeating the same things every day. Watching her smiling, eating, and sleeping.
‘With me.’
‘Forever.’
***
“Madame, play the third, fourth, and seventh strings with your right hand and the twelfth string with your left hand.”
Amarion looked at the harp between her knees in great confusion.
‘Third? Seventh? Twelfth?’
Mary gently put her hands on the strings.
A beautiful sound played from Mary’s movements.
Amarion bowed her head in frustration.
“I don’t know how to play.”
“No! You are much better than the first time.”
“That’s right, Madame! Practice and you’ll get the hang of it!”
The maids encouraged her genuinely.
Amarion sighed deeply and leaned against the large harp.
They were in the concert hall.
This place, full of precious instruments, was a space where you could listen to a bard’s performance, or practice an instrument yourself.
She had been in and out of this place for a while now, dragged along by her maids.
They passionately urged her on, saying they would teach her how to play. She tried playing the violin, the flute, and now the harp.
“You seem to have a talent for the harp.”
“Yes. At least it doesn’t sound terrible…”
She said impatiently.
When she played the violin, it sounded like ghouls dying, and when she played the flute, she heard a hydra howling. It was fortunate that the harp sounded the way it was supposed to.
But Mary was infinitely positive.
“I’m sure you’ll be able to play a song soon! If you get bored, you can learn something else. Whether it’s a flute, trumpet, or organ. We have everything!”
“Oh… thank you!”
Mary’s eyes twinkled.
The maids who were gathered around also smiled broadly.
She couldn’t help but laugh.
After they got to know each other, the maids were like sisters to her.
Perhaps they were bored because there was no hostess to take care of, so they took Amarion out of her room every day to do something.
Not only did they play musical instruments, but they also embroidered, arranged flowers, and made sweets. She was bad at most of it, but it was fun just to laugh and do something together.
In addition to the concert hall, there was a room for painting, as well as for dyeing and weaving. There was so much to do that she wondered if she would be able to do it all within her lifetime.
She wanted to finish reading as well.
She played the harp for a while and then left the room.
Green flowers were growing against the window. She paused for a moment to breathe in the fresh air.
The view of the garden was beautiful.
She had only been in the castle for a week, so she hadn’t been able to go out and see it for herself.
Mary asked cautiously.
“Madame, do you want to go outside?”
“No, why?”
She tilted her head and asked.
“Is there something special outside? Like Duchess Mülze’s greenhouse?”
But Mary bit her lip and lowered her head.
“…No. The butler is coming soon, so I will prepare your meal.”
‘Oh, come to think of it, I’m supposed to have tea with Diederick today.’
She quickly cleared her doubts and hurried to the tea room.
***
It had been a long time since she had spoken with Diederick properly. He was so busy that it was hard to see his face. He took on the position of head butler, so he had to help Victor’s business. He was very busy.
However, the old gentleman looked perfectly groomed, as always.
She greeted him with a bright smile.
“Welcome, Diederick.”
“It is an honor to be here, Madame.”
Diederick bowed politely and sat across from her. She took a sip from her cup.
“Sorry for coming late. I should have visited you right away to see how you are doing.”
“Don’t say that. You were busy.”
The old butler’s eyes warmed at her words.
He noticed the knights guarding the door. He smiled kindly and asked.
“I heard you were having fun with the maids. How are the knights? Is there any inconvenience?”
“No. Everyone is friendly. They are all very loyal.”
The apprentice knights were passionate.
They were so dedicated to the command to escort her to the point where there were no gaps in security.
She felt sorry to take away their training time, but seeing their faithfulness to chivalry made her heart happy.
Diederick smiled softly.
“I’m happy. His highness’ work is almost finished, so sooner or later they will be able to return to the training ground.”
“Good. You’ve been working a lot, Diederick.”
“Thank you, Madame.”
The old butler bowed his head politely once more.
They chatted pleasantly after that.
She told him about how she had played the harp for the first time, the history of the armor on display in the hallway, and delicious snacks made by the chef.
Diederick promised to make her favorite raspberry pudding more often. She was overjoyed and thanked him.
The butler stood up after the teapot ran out of tea.
“I’m going down to prepare supper, Madame. See you later.”
“Yes, see you later.”
Diederick bowed politely.
Then he added briefly.
“If you want to leave the castle, please tell me, madame. I know the way.”
She opened her eyes wide and looked at Diederick.
The gray-eyed butler was watching her sincerely, with a look of serious concern.
‘Why is he making that face?’
If she wanted to leave the castle, she could just walk out the door…
She nodded, not giving it too much thought.
“Yes, I’ll do that.”
The old butler bowed once more and left the room.
***