ITTRAETML 46

~Chapter 46~

“The herbs you brought are really good.”

At breakfast, Lovelace ate a salad topped with the herbs Madam Johan had given her. At Lovelace’s request, Madam Johan never came empty-handed, even if it was just small crops from her garden. Lovelace appreciated it and always had them placed on her table.

“Thank you for enjoying them, Countess. Have you thought about what I mentioned last time?”

As soon as she sat down, Madam Johan got straight to the point, almost as if someone were chasing her.

“I agree with what you said—that there will be opposition to making the punishment for theft the same for nobles and commoners.”

That was the issue Madam Johan had raised during their last meeting, asking how Lovelace planned to persuade the nobles.

“It feels strange… to reward people for doing what’s right.”

She trailed off. Not only was there no good method in mind, but she disliked the nobles’ attitude of only acting if they got something in return.

Madam Johan smiled faintly, like a willow leaf trembling in the wind. It was a weak smile on the surface, but Lovelace knew there was steel rooted deep inside her—and that made her tense.

“People are the same everywhere. Imagine if I told you to give up your countship right now—what would you say?”

“Surely not.”

“Then imagine if His Majesty the Emperor ordered you to give it up. How would you feel?”

“I’d be upset, of course.”

“And that’s how the nobles feel. These are things they’ve always taken for granted.”

“But I don’t have anything to give.”

“That’s your job, Countess. To create something to give.”

She didn’t look fragile at all. Lovelace raised both hands in surrender.

“You mean I should win them over.”

“A nicer word would be… negotiate.”

“What do they like? What do nobles like?”

“Hearing that from a noble yourself sounds strange. Almost like you’re not a noble. Of course, that can’t be true.”

Of course, it is true.

Lovelace gave an awkward smile.

“Nobles value honor. Losing face is as painful to them as losing their life. And also—money and power.”

All the same things Lovelace herself liked. People really were all alike.

“I’ve got an idea! If they don’t support this law, we’ll make them look uncultured.”

“If they don’t support this law, we’ll make them look uncultured.”

A battle of public opinion.

“That’s a good idea. Framing people is an old strategy, but it’s always effective. Do you have a specific method in mind?”

“I’ll need your help with that, Madam.”

Lovelace smiled. She had no intention of leaving Madam Johan hidden away in the forest, suffering Sirius’s outbursts. She planned to bring her back to high society in a brilliant way.

Even if her status—

“I’m just a commoner.”

—might drag her down, Lovelace already decided:

“There are plenty of nobles worse than commoners. Let’s show them that nobility isn’t about a piece of paper.”

“Nobility isn’t about a piece of paper.”

“But why are you working so hard on this?”

Madam Johan asked with worry. If things went well, fine—but if not, Lovelace would be marked by the nobles.

Noble society was petty. Once someone was cast out, it took ages to be accepted again. Some even took their own lives from the isolation.

What Lovelace was doing was a task where success only meant breaking even, but failure meant disgrace.

Madam Johan didn’t want to lose the one person who recognized her worth and shared deep, intellectual discussions with her.

“Good question… Why am I working so hard?”

Lovelace threw the question back at her, but in truth, she was asking herself.

At first, it was simply because she wanted to prove something. A random law passage had caught her narrow sense of justice, and she grew curious.

That’s how it started. But after declaring to Larvihan that she’d handle things on her own, she became determined to succeed. She wanted to prove Harmelda estate could stand strong without him.

For Paulo’s sake?

No—it was for herself. She wanted to confirm that she could live well even without Larvihan.

“What does the reason matter?”

Seeing Lovelace’s confusion, Madam Johan ended the conversation neatly.

“As long as you’re not heading in the wrong direction.”

Lovelace nodded in agreement.

Preparations for Madam Johan’s return to society went smoothly. Lovelace guided her to get fitted for a dress.

Since she refused to accept anything for free, Lovelace reluctantly agreed to take etiquette lessons in return. Even though she had lost her memories, her body still remembered the movements, and she followed the etiquette lessons naturally.

“The guest list?”

As Lovelace slipped her feet into shoes, she held out her hand. Nora quickly placed the list onto her palm.

“I gathered people who might take an interest in the bill.”

“Perfect. And the dress fitting?”

“Madam Johan’s dress is ready, but your dress will take a bit longer. I told you—it’s harder to alter an old gown than to make a new one.”

Judith spoke in a slightly scolding tone.

“I know. But our finances aren’t exactly overflowing.”

Because of scoundrels like Baron Necker and other corrupt retainers, the treasury had been emptied. Though their stolen wealth was reclaimed, repairing the devastated estate required a lot of money. If they didn’t save carefully, bankruptcy could come soon.

“I’ll need to review all expenses closely and cut what can be cut.”

“You’re already being frugal, Countess.”

But Lovelace disagreed.

“What about selling the shops Duke Larvihan gave you? They’re in the capital center—you’d get a very high price.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Why not? The Duke would be delighted if it helped you.”

Larvihan truly wouldn’t care how she used his gifts. But Lovelace couldn’t do it. She wasn’t shameless enough to sell off someone else’s gift just because she was short on money now.

Come to think of it, how many days had it been since Larvihan last visited? He’d said he was going somewhere, but where?

“Lots of letters today.”

Walking down the hall with her, Judith flipped through the mail. Lovelace always thought her maid looked distracted, but Judith never tripped—like she had a third eye.

“From whom?”

Could it be Larvihan?

Her lips curved in a smile. He was bold enough to try seducing her directly—maybe he also sent a letter while away on business. Love letters were the basics of romance, weren’t they?

If this were Korea, it would be SNS. Too bad there’s no SNS here… it would be so useful. Can’t someone invent one?

Her thoughts wandered until Judith sorted out just two letters to hand her.

“The Holy Father… and Garui?”

Out of the thick bundle of letters, only two were placed in her hands.

“What about Larvihan?”

“Why? Did you expect one from him?” Judith asked.

“No, nothing.”

Embarrassed for getting carried away, even imagining SNS, Lovelace ducked into her office to hide.

“Tsk. Acting like he thinks of me all day long…”

Larvihan had never once said such a thing. But Lovelace still argued with her own misunderstanding.

“His eyes said it!”

She tore open the letter. It was from Nicolai. Judith would have scolded her for not using a paper knife.

“Acts like he’s going to snatch me away any second, and then no news for days. That’s it, isn’t it?”

It wasn’t the same as last time. Then, he might have been sulking from her words. But this time was different.

Even Nicolai, who had done nothing with her, still sent regular letters.

Though the contents were always the same.

“‘Dear Countess Lovelace.’ Again, the same lines.”

She tossed Nicolai’s letter into a drawer already stacked with them. His letters came every two days, repeating the same concern: asking if her estate was well and offering help whenever needed.

She had answered once or twice, then stopped. She knew what Nicolai wanted—to help her break away from Larvihan—and she couldn’t put that in writing.

Sighing, she shut the drawer and opened Garui’s letter.

The last she heard, after she and Larvihan had dined together, Duke Hendrake had turned his household upside down. She wondered how Garui was doing.

She began reading with a smile—then her face froze.

“Judith! Judith!”

Lovelace jumped up, flung open her office door, and rang the bell wildly. Judith came running down the hall at full speed.

“What’s wrong, Countess?”

Breathing hard, Judith reached her, and Lovelace handed her the letter.

“Father set a trap. Larvihan may be in danger.”

Garui had done her job well as a spy. But there was nothing good about it—such a thing should never have happened in the first place. Lovelace’s face turned pale.