Thanks to the teleportation magic stones, life in the Capital was not all that different from the North.
Only the room was a bit more ornate, and the temperature a bit warmer. The staff were the same as well.
Marsha, who was helping her change, looked at Liselotte, whose hands handling the teacup had grown strangely stiff, and asked with concern,
“This mansion is a bit smaller than the ducal’s estate, isn’t it?”
“It is.”
‘Well, are not all townhouses like that?’
She had given a perfectly obvious answer to an obvious question, yet Marsha’s expression visibly fell.
“We have teleportation magic stones, so we usually did not use this residence. The head butler said this is the first time.”
“Then why go through the trouble of coming?”
“Since you are from the Capital, Princess Liselotte, we thought it might be nice for you to stay in the Capital, even if only for a few days. His Highness the Grand Duke personally gave the order.”
Ah. At that unexpected consideration, Liselotte found herself at a loss for words.
She had attended the banquet simply because she was told to attend, without placing much significance on anything beyond that.
She had only been curious about how much the mansion would sell for.
It seemed Eren still remembered the conditions he had put forward when she had asked for a divorce.
It was not something she herself had said, but for some reason, it was a little moving.
Perhaps because the temperature in the Capital was warmer than in the North, the reverberation felt stronger.
Liselotte looked down at her reflection in the teacup and murmured quietly.
“So that’s how it was.”
If he did something good, he could at least make a bit of noise about it.
He had a habit of bottling things up in strange ways.
It really did seem that she was the only one suited to fight on behalf of the North.
‘Fine. Since I am doing this anyway. I will properly express it and turn it into a place worth living in before I leave!’
Clenching both fists, she reignited her fighting spirit.
Liselotte made a request to Marsha, who was brushing her hair.
“Can you ask Ail to check the High Priest’s schedule?”
“Understood!”
The High Priest issue came first.
Not long after, Ail arrived.
For some reason, his expression was unusually bright.
“Your Highness, that one is a gem.”
“…What? The vanity?”
At her reflexive question, Ail’s smile grew even brighter.
“Hedmilton! I already thought he was no ordinary person during the joint subjugation negotiations, but his work sense is no joke!”
It seemed Hedmilton’s words about working like a dog at the banquet had not been a joke.
Until now, there had been only one aide in the Keilos household: Ail.
When she had first visited his office, the mercilessly piled stacks of documents alone had made the excessive workload obvious.
Perhaps because of that, Ail looked happier than anyone.
“From reading speed to judgment, he is incredibly fast! He is not stubborn, so he is open to accepting opinions, and he also has knowledge of joint subjugation operations.”
“I see.”
“When he was in the East, he built up quite a network, so he even put together a list that would let us get cheaper, higher-quality products from the food merchant guilds. And he did all of this overnight!”
As if he had brought it specifically to show her, Ail thrust the documents straight out in front of Liselotte.
At the mention of food, a question that came to mind escaped her.
“Did he not mention bread?”
“Ah. That part is a bit fascinating.”
With the documents tucked under his arm, Ail tilted his head.
“He only gets quick and sharp if we feed him bread or desserts.”
“That was a condition of his transfer. If there is anything made with flour, just keep feeding it to him regularly.”
“That is nothing. It does not even count as a flaw. We managed to feed and support Masid just fine, and all he did was vainly consume bread.”
As if automatically calculating in his head, the curve of Ail’s lips grew even more firmly set.
“The total number of breads that guy ate was 27,375…”
‘You kept track of that?’
Instinctively, she slid the teacup in front of her slightly away.
Ail displayed his joy with a neat smile, as if nothing had happened.
“How did you bring him over?”
At the very least, Ail clearly liked him quite a lot.
At this point, things moved quickly.
Liselotte smiled brightly and delivered the important news.
“It is temporary.”
Ail, who froze in place with that same smile, asked in a chilling tone,
“…From what I hear, it seems Hedmilton can communicate with the Magic Tower.”
“That is right. He was famous for that even in the East.”
“We also have a lot of materials for making magic devices.”
“I know. It’s not like His Highness has only gone on subjugations once or twice.”
Ail’s smile deepened.
“The thing is, just because he had contact with the Magic Tower does not mean the connection continued.”
At last, his original purpose was put into words.
With a resolute smile, he asked,
“…What should I do?”
“Start with securing a date with the High Priest.”
Realizing that this was a condition related to Hedmilton’s formal employment, he steeled himself with a smile.
“Yes. I will definitely get it.”
***
The garden of House Gloria’s residence in the Capital.
Two young ladies giggled and chatted, clearly enjoying themselves.
Diana quietly watched the picture-perfect scene through her window.
The maid standing beside her cautiously asked for her opinion.
“My Lady, if you are feeling unwell, shall we send the guests away?”
“No, it is fine. They came all this way on purpose, so I should meet them.”
Diana, a shawl draped over her shoulders, lightly brushed one shoulder with her slender hand.
A trace of pity passed over the maid’s face.
“Oh dear, I do not know what My Lady has done wrong for them to treat you so harshly.”
Knock, knock. As Duke Gloria entered with a soft knock, the maid flinched.
As if facing someone terrifying, she lowered her head and held her breath.
As soon as he entered, he abruptly asked the maid,
“The new aide.”
“Sir Jar said he would be coming up soon.”
“By carriage?”
“I did not ask that…”
When the maid hesitated, Duke Gloria’s brow instantly twisted sharply.
“You should have given clear instructions on your own! At this rate, how long would it take to reach the Capital by carriage?! Tell him to use an emergency teleportation magic stone if he has to!”
“Yes, understood…!”
The maid bowed deeply and hurried out of the room.
Diana, who had been looking out at the garden through the window, finally turned her head and soothed him.
“She was not originally someone who handled this kind of work. Do not scold her too harshly.”
“You… Never mind. What could I say to a child who is ill?”
Duke Gloria’s voice softened noticeably.
It was hard to believe he was the same person who had just been shouting.
He gauged Diana’s condition at a glance and asked cautiously,
“I did not ask yesterday because you were not well, but what exactly was the letter Hedmilton mentioned?”
“Ah…”
Diana paused for a moment.
It only came back to her after Hedmilton mentioned it at the banquet.
At the very beginning, when the joint damage recovery had just been established, Hedmilton had requested confirmation, saying he would send a letter.
Since Liselotte had even sat side by side with the Grand Duke during the negotiations, there was no reason she could not do the same.
In any case, it was a mere formality to ask for permission to send a letter, and most matters were handled by the aides anyway, so she had absentmindedly told him to go ahead, which ended up being the root of the problem.
This was something even Duke Gloria did not know.
Diana smiled weakly.
“That is how it turned out. Hedmilton did show me the letter, but I completely forgot.”
“Huh, so what the Princess claimed was true?”
“I had forgotten. If I had known, I would not have replied to the contract termination letter saying we had never sent it.”
Every movement and her manner of speech were undeniably delicate.
Her disheveled platinum hair and pale white skin shone brilliantly under the Capital’s sunlight, as if she were an angel.
Yet her tone was subtly overbearing.
An attitude that treated her mistake as something trivial seeped through her faint smile.
If anyone else had said the same thing, Duke Gloria would have flown into a rage, but instead, he clenched his fists tightly and smiled, looking almost spineless.
“…I see. If you had at least given me a heads-up, I could have made some kind of countermeasure.”
“I just told you now. Resolving it is your responsibility, Father.”
“R-right. I need some time to think…”
“No, Father.”
The two young ladies enjoying tea time in the garden waved when they saw Diana.
She smiled shyly and raised her hand to return the greeting, but her voice was cold.
“You must resolve it immediately.”
