~Chapter 131~
“Of course―”
Since I couldn’t swim, Geumhwa tried to tailor her answer depending on the river’s depth.
But before I could even ask how deep the river was, Edwin’s eyes sharpened.
So, abandoning curiosity, I quickly corrected my answer.
“Of course, I’d save you first.”
“…….”
“……?”
Edwin hesitated for a moment, then muttered weakly:
“…I don’t have the courage to ask Nero myself.”
“Good thinking.”
His gaze shifted to the mountain of letters piled on the table.
These were the daily love letters I sent to Nero, meant to be read aloud to those left behind at Lombard Castle.
Lately, I hadn’t sent them because I was pretending to be ill, so the pile had already grown large.
Counting the letters, I felt it was finally time to end this blissful, stay-at-home life.
The emperor was temporarily stepping back because of Rosalind, but this peace wouldn’t last forever.
“Ugh, I don’t want to leave the bed.”
“If Elysia wants, you can stay as long as you like.”
“Still… life outside isn’t so bad. There’s satisfaction in cleaning up trash, and it relieves stress too.”
How often does one get the chance to legally (?) stomp on trash heads?
Honestly, I wasn’t even sure it was entirely legal, but no one dared protest, so I decided it wasn’t illegal.
Edwin added seriously:
“As I always say, be careful. Safety comes first in every situation.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you…”
“A simple thank you is enough.”
“I love you.”
Hearing that, Edwin smiled, genuinely happy.
At the same time, Ramon was reading intelligence reports from the empire and smiling contentedly.
According to Agent No. 4—Berry—the lord and lady had grown noticeably close.
Wherever they went, they held hands naturally, leaned on each other, and teased one another.
Most of all, their eyes when looking at each other were so sweet it made anyone watching feel happy.
“Haha, such peaceful days.”
Ramon rested his chin on his hand, smiling warmly.
Once the lord’s modesty was addressed, he had a feeling that the sound of children laughing in Lombard Castle wouldn’t be far off.
As a competent official, he had already arranged for an acupuncturist to be on standby in the castle.
’If the child resembles both of them, Lombard’s glory will continue for generations.’
Suddenly, he imagined a child with Lady’s temper and the lord’s imposing physique and shivered.
Then he reconsidered.
’Or perhaps the child inherits the lord’s calmness and the lady’s overwhelming beauty?’
Yes, that would be wonderful.
Just as he was running through these hopeful thoughts, he spotted a plump figure sneaking out of the castle hall.
It was Baron Conte.
‘Pant, pant… at this rate, I’ll work myself to death!’
Recently, he had been forced into an exhausting relay of overtime as the lady’s aide.
Ramon insisted the baron match the lady’s favor with ability, putting him through Spartan-style training.
As a result, dark circles never left the baron’s eyes.
‘Ability, shmobility… I just wanted to grab the lifeline and succeed, why this hardship?!’
To think he had to work this hard just because the lady wasn’t around!
Ramon wondered if he, her loyal aide, would be worked to death to monopolize her favor.
Yes, he decided, he needed to go to the empire with the lady. It wasn’t too late—she must be waiting for him desperately!
As Baron Conte ran frantically, a long shadow fell over him.
“Where do you think you’re running?”
“……”
His stammered excuse sounded like it might be censored if phrased differently.
A bad feeling made him glance back. Sure enough, Ramon was there, smiling cheerfully—but his eyes holding the empty file were not smiling at all.
The baron tried to explain:
“I-I urgently needed to go to the restroom, haha!”
“The restroom isn’t that way.”
“…Uh.”
Too bad!
Baron Conte tried to escape by shaking off the hand on his shoulder, but his legs were too short.
In one second, he was recaptured, thrashing desperately:
“L-Let me go! I’m going to the lady! I’ll stick right by her side!!”
“Let’s work overtime. Enjoyable overtime♡”
Truly, the path of a loyal aide is long and arduous.
The baron’s desperate cries echoed under the northern blue sky.
My ear itched.
Scratching my empty ear canal for no reason, I opened the carriage door.
After the poisoning incident, I resumed official activities that had been paused for a while.
The first place I chose was the public penance prayer held in the square by Cardinal Vincent.
“I-It’s the Duchess!”
“The Lombard Duchess is here!”
As I stepped down from the carriage, supported by Gares, the citizens waiting for the prayer flocked to me.
The square quickly filled with people.
“We were so worried after hearing you had collapsed! Duchess, are you feeling better?”
“Goodness, you look so exhausted.”
“Damn the royal fools! The Duchess was poisoned, but only the aides died, and the real culprit got sent abroad…!”
Worries and anger poured from all directions.
In truth, my worn look wasn’t from illness. I had been eating well and sleeping well, just using heavier makeup to hide my slightly plump face.
The serious expression was from having to part with Geumhwa.
I forced a polite smile and said:
“Thank you for your concern.”
The crowd, chattering all at once, fell silent like magic.
I was confident taking on a single opponent, but thousands of eyes at once triggered an unexpected stage fright.
My voice trembled at the crucial moment.
“Though I’ve endured hardships, by God’s help I’ve risen from my sickbed… Today, I wish to atone for past mistakes through this prayer.”
The square murmured.
“Goodness, how much suffering must you have endured…”
“Do not cry, Lady!”
“Indeed! The guilty should weep, not the noble lady! You bear no blame!”
No, that wasn’t it.
It was just ordinary stage fright…
Still, seeing the citizens approach comfortably made me realize just how much public opinion had shifted.
’Now, how will the royal family react?’
The tournament accident and its aftermath had spread far beyond what the imperial court could control.
The people had learned the emperor tried to cover up by killing patients.
The deep-rooted corruption in the empire’s orphanage shocked the public, and the Saint Vincent poisoning attempt and Sermon’s book cemented that shock into distrust.
No one stood with the emperor anymore.
“Lady, please proceed.”
“Indeed. You’re not well; it would be difficult to sit among the crowd.”
As I tried to move through the people, they instead tried to stop me.
Seats were arranged for nobles.
But I shook my head.
I wanted to hear the people’s voices up close, and… honestly, a little calculation too.
’The main seat is too exposed.’
A prominent seat makes one an easy target.
Among the crowd, even if someone tried something, it would be difficult.
I walked to roughly the middle of the square.
Before Gares could remove his cloak, the citizens laid coats and aprons on the ground for me.
“You must not sit on the cold ground when unwell.”
“It’s humble, but if you sit on our clothes, we’ll consider it an honor for our family.”
They must have worn their finest clothes to attend. They gave them without hesitation—I couldn’t refuse.
“How could I reject your sincerity?”
When I sat, their expressions brightened.
We all waited together for Cardinal Vincent.
Suddenly, someone sprinted onto the empty stage.
“B-Big trouble! The emperor… the emperor is moving to the parliament!”
