It was a relatively calm morning.
Baroness Pompfrey, Vanessa, and Eleanor all ate in silence, more so than usual.
Occasionally, only the clinking of dishes could be heard.
As the attendants cleared the plates, the Baroness took a sip of water and opened her mouth to speak.
“I hear wild animals have been coming down to the villages more often lately.”
With that light remark, Eleanor and Vanessa turned to look at the Baroness.
Since Oklama was close to the mountains, wild animals were a common sight. Even the people at Oklama Castle occasionally opened the back door to find a deer proudly standing there.
Eleanor had also seen many small animals like rabbits and squirrels near Lake Nifla or the Balua Plains.
But surely her aunt wasn’t talking about something so mundane. Those animals came down regularly, not just recently.
“They say it’s not just small animals you can chase away alone, but large beasts like bears and wild boars.”
The aide had been reporting this for several days now. Lately, wild animals had been coming into villages with unusual frequency, injuring people and trampling crops.
The Baroness had monitored the situation carefully even after receiving the reports.
But last night, she decided the situation could no longer be ignored.
In all her years managing the domain, nothing like this had ever happened. When incidents caused by wild animals occur every other day, it’s not a trivial matter.
The Baroness had initially planned to deal with the problem herself—but changed her mind. She had a beloved niece and a cherished girl under her care, both of whom had great potential to lead Oklama and Pompfrey in the future.
They were of age now. Perhaps it was time to entrust them with something like this. It could be dangerous, but if fear stopped them, they could never take on anything in the future.
“Would you two like to take on this matter?”
“Yes, Aunt. If such incidents are happening frequently, the people must be feeling very anxious. I’ll start investigating right away.”
Eleanor accepted the request without hesitation. Her aunt had wondered if she might decline, having grown up in Beirn where she’d never seen wild animals.
In truth, if Eleanor truly wanted to settle in Oklama, she couldn’t refuse this request.
The mountains and Oklama were inseparable—they had a symbiotic relationship.
Eleanor knew this well. She saw it as an opportunity to better understand the villagers and the geography.
“I’m relieved to hear that. Work with Vanessa on it, will you?”
The Baroness subtly encouraged the two to collaborate.
Eleanor noticed that Vanessa was about to respond with a kind smile and quickly cut in.
She was sorry, but she had no interest in collaborating. Nor did she want to compete behind the scenes, so she decided to end it at the start.
“I’d like to, but I’m afraid I might get in the way of how busy Vanessa is.”
Of course, without making herself seem like the bad one.
“Whether it was Lake Nifla or a tour of Oklama… I’ve been rejected because I failed to consider Vanessa’s busy schedule.”
She added with a shy smile, “At least Levin came with me, and it was really nice.”
She mimicked Lydia’s trademark shy smile as best she could.
Even though she hadn’t gotten close to Vanessa, just attending a tea party together seemed enough to make her look pleased.
A shocked stare came from across the table, but Eleanor kept her focus solely on her aunt.
If she was going to drop a bomb, she had to appear innocent and cheerful. She recalled Carol Duvar, whom she’d met in Levin, and it came easily.
“If I keep bothering her while she’s busy, Vanessa will be uncomfortable having to keep turning me down. I don’t want to be a burden anymore. I’m still inexperienced, and I’ve already added too much weight to her shoulders.”
Eleanor gave the most harmless and embarrassed expression she could. Vanessa was staring at her in disbelief, mouth slightly open.
Eleanor didn’t feel particularly guilty. After all, Vanessa had agreed in front of her aunt, only to later claim she was too busy.
She didn’t want to be rejected a third time, so she took the initiative.
“Oh? I didn’t realize Vanessa turned you down. Are you very busy, dear?”
“No, not at all.”
Vanessa denied it quickly. Her carefully managed expression in front of the Baroness seemed close to collapsing.
Eleanor watched her unravel with wide eyes, as though observing a stranger.
“I always welcome the chance to spend time with the young lady,” Vanessa said, barely maintaining a composed face, pretending to be meek and obedient for the Baroness.
“You don’t need to say that just to be polite, Vanessa.”
Nope. Only I get to pretend. Not you.
Eleanor interrupted smoothly, showing a sweet and considerate smile.
“Aunt, I’ve had a look around Oklama and saw how much work Vanessa has on her plate. I think it’s been tough for her alone. Even going to Levin was only possible because she barely managed to squeeze in the time. I don’t want to burden her any further.”
“I see. Vanessa, I didn’t realize how hard you were working. That’s my fault.”
The Baroness grew serious, unaware of the tension between the two.
Since bringing Vanessa to Oklama Castle, she had delegated several roles to her. Vanessa had handled them well, so the Baroness had assumed all was fine. She recalled the days when she trusted Vanessa and only checked the results.
But in the gaps she’d overlooked, Vanessa had apparently been struggling.
As the Baroness was swept up in misunderstanding, Vanessa’s face turned pale.
She tried to explain, but Eleanor was too quick, stealing every chance to speak.
Eleanor was simply giving Vanessa a taste of her own medicine.
“I’ll reduce your workload. With Eleanor here now, you don’t have to push yourself anymore.”
“That’s right, Vanessa. I’m here for you now. Don’t feel like you have to handle everything alone. It’s fine to say no if it’s too much. I can handle this issue myself, so don’t worry.”
The Baroness patted Vanessa’s shoulder encouragingly, and Eleanor added with a gentle voice and smile.
It was a situation where all Vanessa could say was:
“…Yes.”
Now completely pale, Vanessa answered weakly.
Eleanor took a cheerful sip of water.
One way or another, she needed to weaken Vanessa’s position, so this confrontation had been close to a success.
“What was that?”
As expected, Vanessa approached her after the meal. They were alone on the central staircase.
Standing on the landing, Eleanor looked down at Vanessa.
Come to think of it, when Vanessa refused to go to Lake Nifla with her, they’d stood like this too.
“What do you mean?”
Eleanor feigned ignorance. Vanessa’s expression twisted openly now that the Baroness wasn’t present.
“Are you trying to drive a wedge between me and the Baroness?”
“I wasn’t trying to do that.”
To be precise, it wasn’t division—it was strategy. A way to prevent Vanessa from saying yes in front of others and no behind their backs.
“Then why are you doing this?”
“It’s honestly strange that you’re even asking.”
Vanessa frowned, silently demanding an explanation.
“Come on, Vanessa. Whether it was the lake or showing me around Oklama, you always said yes to Aunt, but told me no when I asked you alone.”
“That was…”
“So how am I supposed to trust you? I knew you’d just turn me down again, so I left you out from the beginning.”
Vanessa bit her lip, unable to refute that.
“And you really are overworked.”
Eleanor hadn’t excluded Vanessa purely out of spite.
After reviewing some administrative documents, she found Vanessa truly burdened with too much work—whether by choice or not.
“So just take a break for once…”
“Please stop pretending to know everything!”
Her small body trembled visibly. When Eleanor noticed tears forming in Vanessa’s eyes, she was a little startled.
Crying? Why?
“You don’t know anything…”
Eleanor frowned at the words filled with resentment.
How am I supposed to know what I don’t know?
“What is it I supposedly don’t know?”
“…”
“I didn’t do this for no reason. I told you—it was because of your usual behavior and your excessive workload. So what exactly don’t I know?”
“…”
“Tell me—”
“You wouldn’t understand anyway.”
Vanessa lowered her head, trying to hide her tears. But Eleanor had already seen the teardrops clinging to her lashes.
“If you’re going to be like that, then fine. If you won’t explain, I’ll just do what I think is best.”
If Vanessa wouldn’t say anything, how could Eleanor know what to avoid?
She had no choice but to keep acting on her own judgment.
Vanessa clenched her fists and turned away without saying goodbye.
Feeling oddly uneasy, Eleanor looked in the direction Vanessa disappeared.
But she quickly shook her head and refocused.
They were rivals over the barony, after all.
“I need the barony.”
To assist Eleanor in handling the wild animal incidents, Baron Pompfrey’s aide, Kennith, joined her.
Aside from greetings in passing, this was their first proper conversation.
Kennith had worked under the Baroness as her aide for fifteen years. He greeted Eleanor with polite formality.
“To date, there have been seven homes affected by wild animals. In one case, a child was injured—the damage was severe.”
Kennith handed over documents detailing the scope of the damages. His eyes behind silver-rimmed glasses were as meticulous and sharp as his personality.
Reading the neatly organized report, Eleanor was impressed.
The incidents had started two weeks ago. Even when driven off, the beasts returned every two or three days. Kennith said this was unusual.
Normally, once scared away, animals stayed away. But these ones kept coming—repeatedly.
“Lately, bears have been coming down more often. That’s why the damage has become more serious.”
The escalation from crop damage to human injury was mostly due to bears. The recent injury of a young boy was also caused by a bear’s surprise attack.
“First, we’ll take statements from the affected households. While we’re there, we’ll determine appropriate compensation amounts for approval.”
“Yes, my lady.”
With Kennith in front and Lisa and Gale behind her, Eleanor made her way to one of the affected homes.
Since wild animal attacks were considered similar to natural disasters, the lord’s estate provided financial compensation.
To assess damage accurately, they started with the household that had been attacked just two days ago.
It was a small orchard on the outskirts of Oklama.
Because of its location near the mountains, it was vulnerable, and one attack could quickly spread.
The youngest child of the house—a six-year-old—had suffered a head injury, sending the family into turmoil.
From a distance, the scene already looked chaotic, and Eleanor craned her neck—only for her eyes to widen.
A small child stood lingering in front of the damaged house.
Even though she’d only seen her once, she instantly recognized the bear cub-like girl…
“Yasmin?”
“Yasmin.”
Two voices spoke her name at different pitches at the same time. Eleanor flinched and turned. The other person also flinched and looked at her.
“…Kennith, do you know Yasmin?”
“Ah, yes… My lady, do you know her too?”
“Yes, well… sort of.”
Both answered vaguely, as if unsure who should speak first.
Eleanor hesitated because it was hard to explain the lake encounter. Kennith was flustered, fearing his connection to a Hightar would be exposed.
Eleanor figured it made sense Kennith knew her. Kennith, on the other hand, began sweating. He’d once visited the capital and seen Hightar people coldly reported—even while kneeling and begging.
The capital, being the imperial heart, showed no mercy to those banned under imperial law.
Since Eleanor was from the capital and niece to a baroness, he had no idea how she’d react.
He could only hope she was too rational to report it immediately.
In truth, Eleanor had no interest in reporting anyone. What concerned her was that Yasmin was wandering alone, without her brother Yahin.
Unlike Kennith, she worried the local villagers might report the Hightar siblings simply for being foreign.
“…I said no!”
A loud voice came from inside the house. It sounded like a heated argument. As shouting followed, Yasmin flinched.
“Yasmin!”
Seeing her so frightened, Eleanor called out. Yasmin turned toward her, and her expression brightened.
Eleanor gestured for her to come over. Understanding immediately, Yasmin scurried over like a squirrel.
“Fairy lady! I mean, Lady Eleanor!”
Apparently, Yahin had explained things properly—Yasmin quickly corrected her earlier nickname.
Kennith, observant as always, muttered “Fairy lady…?” but Eleanor ignored him.
“Yasmin, what are you doing here?”
Eleanor bent down to meet the girl’s eyes. Yasmin clutched the hem of her shirt and looked up with wide black eyes, glancing sadly at the house.
It was the very home where the child had been injured in the boar attack.
“Well, actually…”
“You don’t know anything, Dad! I’m going to Yasmin!”
Just as Yasmin began to explain, the front door burst open and a small, nimble boy flew out.
A boy with bandages wrapped around his head came charging forward, shouting. He ran straight into Kennith’s leg and tumbled backward.
“Urgh…!”
Though detail-oriented, Kennith unfortunately lacked fast reflexes and couldn’t catch the falling boy.
“Peter!”
“Peter!”
As Yasmin and several adults shouted the boy’s name in alarm, Eleanor remembered: the injured boy from the boar attack… was named Peter.
Baroness… I think you should have made clear distinction that Vanessa is just a vassal