Chapter 74

It was a familiar voice.

But instead of the hearty and slightly rough tone I remembered, it was thick with tension.

“I sincerely apologize for committing an offense so grave it wouldn’t be enough even if you wiped out my entire extended family! If my head alone can repay this sin, I’ll gladly offer it!”

“My head? What head all of a sudden.”

At Gibson’s sudden shout, I looked back at Gareth, who was firmly guarding the carriage window.

“Sir, didn’t you say you explained things properly?”

“…”

“Hey. Don’t avoid my eyes.”

We had already discussed this in advance because I was worried something like this might happen. Gareth said he happened to run into someone from their hideout and explained everything clearly, so I let it go without much concern.

I shouldn’t have expected more from that dense man.

Meanwhile, Gibson and the townspeople kneeling in front of the carriage continued desperately.

“We only beg one thing! We don’t want a new governor!”

“We heard rumors that Your Grace intends to make Bellamare your direct domain. If you do, we’ll never forget your grace!”

“Please free us from the governor!”

When did that ridiculous rumor spread that far?!

I tried to kick open the carriage door but remembered my ankle and held back…

I didn’t hold back at all and kicked it anyway.

Of course, a bandaged ankle couldn’t possibly break a carriage door. Gareth simply heard the tapping noise, opened the door normally, and politely lifted me out.

A group of townspeople were blocking the carriage, bowing low.

When they spotted me, they pressed their foreheads even closer to the ground.

“Don’t treat me like someone untouchable. I was the one who hid my identity. You did nothing wrong.”

“B-but…”

“You didn’t kidnap me intentionally, did you. You thought an ordinary woman got caught up in trouble and tried to help in your own way, and things went wrong.”

At the word kidnap, the people flinched.

I quickly added to reassure them.

“Anyway, I have no intention of punishing you, so relax. And Bellamare won’t become a duchess’s direct domain either, so stop dreaming.”

“But we want someone like you to rule Bellamare, Duchess.”

Ahhh, I hear nothing.

“We’re carefully considering Bellamare’s future. His Grace knows about the former governor’s tyranny and your hardships, and he’s looking for a suitable successor to Count Dorva.”

“That’s you though…”

I gestured toward the carriage, signaling we should leave.

The moment Gareth turned, the people clung to us desperately.

“Please look after Bellamare! The officials are incompetent and we don’t have the strength to survive another harsh winter!”

“…That’s true.”

Gibson’s desperate cry struck a chord.

Especially the part about the officials being incompetent.

He used to be head of the merchant association, so he seemed to know quite well how Bellamare operated.

To properly hear them out, I ordered the knights to prepare a place. I was a duchess after all. It wouldn’t look proper to listen while being carried.

To my surprise, the knights brought out something resembling a proper sofa from the carriage.

I had only meant a simple chair.

“D-Duchess!”

“Call me Madam.”

When I showed I intended to listen, relief spread across their faces.

But they had no idea.

The duchess who looked like a savior was actually searching for capable administrative laborers to grind day and night.

“Now speak.”

“Th-then, if I may…”

Our conversation lasted five full hours.

At some point the kneeling townspeople began looking numb in the legs, so those without anything to say were allowed to stand and leave.

The discussion soon turned into a heated debate.

As the sun began to set, Gareth and the knights urged us to move elsewhere, but I ignored them.

By the time we parted with promises to continue tomorrow, the sun had already disappeared and darkness surrounded us.

“I need to tell Ed I’ve come up with a good plan.”

Today, a brand new administrative thresher rolled straight into my hands.

* * *

When I returned to the estate, Gilbert lamented that he was surrounded by patients who refused to listen.

My ears stung, but I knew it was concern, so I let him examine my injuries while I organized today’s discussion in my head.

The conversation with Gibson and the merchant association gave me plenty of inspiration.

Ways to transform Bellamare into more than just a trade port branched through my thoughts.

“You look pleased, Eli.”

“Was it obvious?”

Edwin returned to the estate just then, apparently finished with his duties.

He glanced at Gilbert, who was grumbling while disinfecting my wounds, as if he were looking at a strange person, then naturally sat beside me on the sofa.

“How is your headache?”

“My headache isn’t the issue. Do you know who I met today? I spoke with former executives of the Bellamare Merchant Association.”

Bellamare was an autonomous territory.

Officials from the main castle couldn’t interfere in its administration, and Bellamare’s officials were flattened under my authority out of fear.

There had never been a better chance to realize ideals I had long dreamed of.

I excitedly explained my grand vision for transforming Bellamare.

Even after the physician finished and withdrew, and even after the knights and attendants guarding the reception room disappeared one by one at Edwin’s subtle signal, I kept going.

Only when my throat grew sore and I reached for warm tea did I realize I’d been carried away on my own.

My face flushed in embarrassment.

“I-I talked too much, didn’t I? You must be tired from work, and I kept you too long.”

“No. I enjoyed it.”

Edwin brought the kettle from the hearth and poured tea into my cup before continuing.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that expression on your face, Eli.”

“Don’t tease me…”

“I’m serious. I could feel how much you care for Bellamare. Enough to make its people jealous.”

“I just thought it was my duty as duchess.”

Judging from the smile on his lips, he was definitely teasing.

I grumbled while avoiding his gaze, then suddenly noticed that nothing was on his right hand.

Truthfully, this was the first time I’d looked at his hands closely in this life.

We hadn’t been close enough before.

“Ed, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“Why aren’t you wearing your signet ring?”

Heads of great noble houses never removed their rings.

They weren’t simple ornaments but symbols of absolute authority over the family.

Edwin had always understood the weight of the ring he inherited and valued it deeply.

“Oh, it’s nothing.”

As if my careful question was trivial, Edwin looked down at his left hand casually.

“I’m the sole master of Lombard. That’s not something proven by a small ring.”

“So you don’t wear it regularly either?”

“Would you like to check for yourself?”

He extended his hand easily, as if inviting me to touch it.

His fingers, calloused from holding a sword for years, looked unusually long and neat today.

I stared at his hand as if enchanted, then shifted my gaze to his left little finger.

“There’s no mark…”

“Right?”

In the past, there had been a clear indentation on Edwin’s left little finger.

He had to remove the ring briefly to stamp documents, and because he wore it constantly, that area of skin had been discolored.

But now it was clean.

As if nothing had ever been there.

“So where is the ring now?”

“I stored it in the main castle treasury.”

“What if someone steals it and impersonates you?”

“That won’t happen. Everyone knows I don’t wear it.”

The firelight flared briefly, casting a deep shadow across his face.

Maybe it was the strange silence.

For a moment, his eyes seemed to flicker darkly.

“Lombard obeys only the orders I give directly. Even so, in case something happens, I’ve arranged for Berthold to command the administration and Gareth to command the army.”