***
When she arrived at the Baron’s mansion, as usual, there was no one to greet her. Eliana made her way to her room, escorted by Joseph.
Joseph almost had a heart attack from the moment he saw her in the square.
He was horrified to find her in danger. He knew he should have accompanied her all the way to Hart Street. He even resented his co-workers for not changing his work hours.
But he also felt good in the short time he was there. It was him, not Karman, who saved her. He liked his strong body, which was more solid and intimidating than that of those other guys.
But his mood fell further with the presence of the man named Duke Oliver. Every time Eliana smiled at the Duke, he (Joseph) felt as if his heart would be ripped out of his chest.
‘What’s wrong with me?’
Joseph thumped his chest for no reason. Benny , who was walking beside him, called out to Joseph.
“Did you have a stomach ache? Go and drink some water. I will be by the madam’s side.”
“No.”
“Thank you for today. If you hadn’t made it in time, madam would have been in real trouble.”
“I did what I had to do.”
But be careful next time. Don’t let madam get involved in any more useless rumors.”
Useless rumors. The words seemed to pierce Joseph’s chest like arrows. It was ridiculous to call it a scandal involving a Baroness and a mere guard.
He knew it himself. But, who wouldn’t want to covet her? Karman Hunter was a fool.
But were the other men fools, too? It had to be different. Just looking at this Duke Oliver, he was different. He certainly knew Eliana’s charms. They had a secret conversation. Joseph dared not ask, but it was clear that it was not the kind of talk he would like.
Joseph arrived at Eliana’s room, not hiding his depressed expression. Eliana, who did not care what the two had talked about, turned and looked at Joseph.
“Joseph.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Thank you for coming to pick me up. Without you today, I might have been beaten to death by some man in the square. I tried to help a man I’ve never met before.”
“That’s outrageous. Please don’t talk about dying.”
“I know it sounds awful, but I have a good sense of reality.”
“…….”
“I would like you to be my personal escort. I will double your salary from what it is now. I will say this directly to the Baron.”
“Oh, ma’am.”
“I need my people. Today I realize it more keenly than ever. And I want my people to eat well and live well beside me. With your current salary, it would have been difficult for you to endure the convenience of your family’s finances, wouldn’t it?”
“…….”
Joseph’s face turned red. Eliana knew Joseph’s situation too well without saying it. But it was not to be shown as a weakness. It was to empathize with a sadness that only those who had experienced it knew.
When Joseph’s lips quivered with inability to answer, Eliana continued.
“I need you. And I told you. How much I think of you.”
The words sounded suspicious if anyone had overheard them, but the content was extremely plain. He would become a knight of the Rose family. She intended to raise Joseph to that level.
Guardsmen and baronesses don’t suit each other, but don’t knights and ladies suit each other? Joseph’s thoughts touched on that for a moment. There could not have been a more pronounced motive for him.
“I will obey the Lady’s words…”
“In the matter of today, Joseph will not participate in defending or inflating me, but will maintain silence. It will be better for you. I will tell you why later.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Let’s go in, Benny. Too much work today, I’m exhausted.”
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The door to the room opened and the hem of her gorgeous dress disappeared. Joseph watched the door close with a bow. He pressed his chest once more. His heart, which he couldn’t get out, beat a little louder.
***
Eliana headed to the library as soon as morning came. It was because of Yul from Conter kingdom.
She had to know him. Maybe he could be more useful to her than the Tenebs, maybe he was someone she would have to pretend not to know next time.
It was all up to her to decide whether he would be an enemy or an ally.
On her way to the library, Eliana felt that the servants were more polite than usual. Perhaps the commotion in the square yesterday had already gotten the word out. The repercussions were a little worse, but it was necessary anyway.
Rumors usually gain credibility from the fact that someone saw it in person. When it was not an outrageous rumor, but an actual incident, it was somehow acceptable to add to it as if it were a condiment.
The only surprise was the fact that Karman did not call her. Perhaps he did not get the information or he had been discussing with Sharchen what punishment Eliana should receive.
‘I feel sorry for the Hunter family too. I can’t believe that such an indecisive man would be the next headmaster.’
If she were Karman, she would have called her in at dawn to start her courtesy education all over again from the basics. She would torture her for days, from the level of a seven-year-old child who has to be protected to the level of a baroness. That was to prove that this was such a dangerous matter.
Eliana thought he would at least summon her, and she had thought of a suitable response. But there was no word from him. Eliana shook her head.
Eliana hated men without ambition. Unless he was going to stay on the baron’s throne forever and die, he had to get greedy, form a knighthood, go to war or enter the political center. Instead of staying low and quietly waiting for his father to die in order to care publicly for one woman whom he loved so much.
She felt disappointed. There was no such dumbness in dumbness. At first, he seemed strong like he was a pillar, but now even that seemed to be shaking.
He was an unattractive man.
Eliana Rose assessed Karman dispassionately. Even Eliana’s father who had worked hard all his life to realize his ambitions, even when he was ill.
Weak as he was, he strove to impart as much diverse knowledge as possible to his children. It was because of such efforts by her father that all the children of the Rose family, who had no tutor, had a love for learning and became wise enough to teach others.
Although her father could not avoid poverty in his generation, he hoped to leave behind even the tiniest seed from which the next generation of Roses could revive. Eliana loved the efforts of her father. She knew very well that it was such persistence that made her the person she was today.
As soon as Eliana arrived at the library, she opened the window quickly. Ambition. Eliana loved it. At first it was something she started because she was afraid of being kicked out without a penny. But something inside Eliana began to growl more and more. Climbing to higher ground, the Rose family that no one else could dare to touch. When it flickered like a dream, Eliana could not resist the thrill.
She looked out the window, taking big deep breaths. Then she found all the books about the Conter and spread them out on the desk. The Hunter family library was truly a treasure warehouse. The more she dug, the more precious gems she found.
Eliana loved this gold-like information she had found with her own hands more than the beautiful diamond pin on Sharchen’s hair. Because it would make itself into a diamond.
“Yul, yul, yul.”
Eliana looked up the name of the royalty on the hint of one word the man left. Not long after the search began, the name was identified in a document dealing with international affairs.
“Ulysses Mill.”
The fifth candidate for the throne of the Conter Kingdom, but the document did not go into depth.
It was also relatively recent, so it was not in depth. It was also because it did not focus on Ulysses as the heir to the throne. It was only a brief assessment that he was popular in social circles because he was naturally humorous and kind to everyone.
Meanwhile, the first and second Prince continued to fight their bloody battles every time. They were busy starting wars they didn’t have to start and accumulating achievements, trying to get as much as they could in the eyes of the wise king. This was because the King of Conter did not announce who was the heir to the throne yet.
Originally, the first Prince had to be appointed as his successor, but the second Prince’s military skills were superior. However, the first Prince was equally as hardworking. They were both born soldiers and war enthusiasts.
The third Prince, unlike the first and second, showed off his political side. He sat on his butt in the Ministry of Justice, which enacted new laws and enforced them. He watched, learned and expressed his opinions on practical matters and tried to get in the king’s eyes.
The fourth Prince married a Princess from the country of Contino and tried to stand out in diplomacy, but he removed himself from the royal authority because he fell in love with the princess. He made the decision in advance because he was afraid his own family would be hurt by his brothers’ bloody fight.
Because his brothers had been so tumultuous, there was very little information about Ulysses Mill. In a way, they didn’t even seem to know that he was named as a candidate for the throne.
The country of Conter could place up to five heirs to the throne, and the current king had put up five candidates out of thirteen Princes and Princesses. The remaining eight were either princesses without the right of succession or unqualified from the start.
Ulysses Mill was briefly mentioned in the report as the fifth heir to the throne because of his cleverness. However, he, like the fourth Prince, had no interest in the kingship and was outgoing, so he did not seem to attract much attention in the Conter country.
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Eliana saw a page with a portrait of Ulysses Mill. Even the mole on his nose was in the same position.
“Ulysses Mill.”
Eliana smiled as she spat out the name of a secret Prince’s name to whom nothing had been revealed.