From last night to this morning, and even now, Kaella has not felt cold once. It’s partly because the weather has started to warm up, but also because nothing fills an empty heart like the warmth of someone close.

As soon as Kaella realized this fact, her feelings became even more complicated.

She looked at the diamond ring that heavily occupied her finger.

She reluctantly wore it along with the empress’s ring she had received as an engagement ring because Peon had insisted so much, but honestly, she wanted to take off the rings now.

‘What do I care if war breaks out in Lucenford or not? If I die before then, that’s the end of it!’

She snapped at herself, but her brain, which worked cleverly at times like this, immediately found a proper excuse.

‘As the Grand Duchess, there’s no choice. If the Emperor declares the Grand Duke of Lucenford a traitor, Ostain, the Grand Duchess’s family, will also become traitors.’

Convenient words. Ridiculous words. After abandoning her father and just trying to die.

Then how is she any different from Peon, who helped murder her father? At least Peon was a stranger without a drop of blood relation, but she is his own daughter. So why would she want such a man not to die?

‘He’s different from that man before he died. This time, he saved Dad! He did it at great sacrifice on his part. Are you going to blame your current husband for crimes he didn’t commit?’

It’s confusing. Having died once, the unclear future is terribly frightening, and yet she was flustered by desires she didn’t even know she had.

‘Above all, do you believe what Beatrice said when she came before she died?’

All sorts of thoughts came to mind because of the rational judgment that Beatrice’s words should not be believed.

Is it okay to wish for things? Is it alright?

Is it okay for someone like Kaella de Chasser to do what she wants?

“Your Highness, Lady Lavalle has arrived. Shall I send her in?”

Kaella nodded while fiddling with her neck, feeling stifled by the dress that came up to her throat.

She would rather have worn something around her neck than have the clothing come up to it, as she didn’t particularly like that. She had to wear it because Lucenford was so cold, but it was still unfamiliar and uncomfortable.

As she did so, her eyes met with Beatrice, who had entered the Grand Duchess’s office.

‘She’s irritated again.’

No, she seems to be feeling a bit unwell too. Spending a night in the Grand Duchess’s bedroom without any curtains must have been dreadful.

Even with two or three layers of blankets and the fireplace lit, the cold draft coming through the stone walls would certainly have taken its toll.

“Welcome.”

By law, Beatrice should have greeted first, but once again Kaella kindly initiated. Having never harmed anyone in her life, she could at least greet first since she had put Beatrice in a freezing bedroom.

Moral sensibilities become quite dulled after experiencing harsh events.

Kaella, who could never have imagined harming someone, could now nonchalantly make Beatrice spend a night in a cold room after experiencing a miserable death.

Beatrice had done many wicked things to Kaella even in this new life, so there was no hesitation at all.

She had learned and become that way.

“A doctor…”

Kaella looked up from the documents she was reviewing. Beatrice’s voice, once said to be like a nightingale’s, was terribly cracked and sounded like scraping metal. She must have caught a bad cold.

“I need to see a doctor…”

“Alright. I hear a new room has been prepared.”

Kaella nodded and finally unfastened the collar pin that was fixing her dress neckline. It was too stuffy to bear, and the Grand Duchess’s office was warm enough that she didn’t need to keep the neckline tightly fastened.

Her hands and feet, usually pitifully cold at the extremities, weren’t cold at all, perhaps because Peon had firmly grasped and caressed her feet with his large hands last night.

“I’ll have a doctor sent to that room.”

Will Darinka be available? I heard she’s finished treating the most urgent cases among the children in the castle. She should have time to prescribe some cold medicine for Beatrice, having already established herself as the Grand Duchess’s personal physician.

Honestly, Kaella cared more about the castle children than Beatrice. Sometimes that’s how relationships can be, even with people you’ve known since childhood.

When no response was heard, Kaella looked up. Surprisingly, Beatrice was staring at her very intently.

“Is there another problem?”

Problem? There were many problems. So many. Beatrice had thoroughly realized, shivering all night, why Kaella had given up the Grand Duchess’s bedroom without a word. It was intentional. That was intentional.

If she was going to give such a hideous place as a bedroom, she shouldn’t have given it at all! And then Kaella, sitting pretty in Peon’s bedroom, was showing shock after shock.

Beatrice, who dominated the most sophisticated social circles of the Crania Empire, actually knew well that the games nobles play are all the same wherever you go. In the end, it’s money.

Money is the most important, and if backed by status and fame, you can buy young lovers as much as you want. Yes, even people and love are bought with money.

In that sense, Kaella, the illegitimate but officially recognized daughter of the Duke of Ostain, showed with just a gesture what she had.

“…Thank… you.”

Her head feels heavy and her throat hurts. She’s getting increasingly irritated from the discomfort, and having to be mindful and show respect to Kaella, that girl who has everything but is foolish, is killing Beatrice.

Meanwhile, there are two rings on the hand removing the collar pin.

One of them symbolizes authority itself, being the empress’s ring personally given by the emperor, and the other is a diamond that Beatrice, who can’t resist jewels, has never seen before.

It’s so large that it covers a whole knuckle of Kaella’s particularly small finger, even turned halfway around. That symbolized wealth.

High-ranking ladies would subtly show off their heavy rings while removing gloves or fluttering fans.

How ancient their family lineage is, how much their husband loves them, or how wealthy they are – all sorts of boasts ended with just one ring.

Beatrice herself was wearing quite a large ruby ring at the moment. But of all the rings, no, all the jewels she had ever seen, none were larger or more beautiful than the ring Kaella was wearing now.

‘Is it an heirloom of the Duchess of Ostain?’

That can’t be. If it were, Beatrice would have known right away.

So she reached the final conclusion she had been trying hard to ignore and deny.

If Kaella had just not removed the collar pin, Beatrice would have denied it. But the moment she removed it, the vivid red marks visible between her collar pushed Beatrice into reality.

Kaella de Chasser had gained her husband’s love, that difficult thing, in addition to the bloodline and wealth she already possessed.

The red marks left blatantly on her fair neck, despite being from the south, were clearly more than just one or two at a glance. Only a very persistent and vigorous lover would do such a thing.

‘How?’

Even with her throat terribly swollen, Beatrice, focused on Kaella, couldn’t comprehend it.

She couldn’t understand how Peon, who used to awkwardly receive even just a kiss on the lips that Beatrice gave as if doing him a favor, had suddenly become such a mature and skilled man. Peon’s appearance as he entered the bedroom last night was enough to surprise Beatrice.

…He was a man at the peak of masculinity, enough to surprise her. All women would be flustered with desire.

What was most regrettable was that even Beatrice found herself drawn to this man who shared a bedroom with Kaella, who was far beneath her. A married couple in a political marriage sharing the same bedroom.

Beatrice kept staring at Kaella. Her gaze was so blatant that Kaella had to look up. Beatrice’s eyes were fixed not on her, but on the diamond Peon had gifted.

‘So that’s why he told her to wear the ring.’

To show off. To show off blatantly to Beatrice. Could it be that their relationship is bad and they’re trying to provoke each other? Having lived so long in the shadows of these two, all sorts of thoughts came to mind. Yes. She was foolishly thinking all sorts of things.

“The ring is very pretty.”

Her pink eyes flashed with heat.

“Yes, thank you.”

Having no intention of continuing the conversation, Kaella responded indifferently and turned her attention back to the documents. She felt much more comfortable now that her neck wasn’t constricted.

*

His body was moving mechanically without thought. His hands wielded pen and sword, his mouth gave orders, and his ears listened, but his mind was creaking.

Was it because he hadn’t slept at all, or because he had held Kaella in his arms for the first time? Even though he needed to focus all his attention on work and opposing the emperor, his brain was conveniently thinking of other things.

For example, thoughts like ‘Will we be able to sleep together again today?’, which purely meant sleep but were still low-quality thoughts, or last hopes like ‘We were supposed to finish counting the silver cutlery together, will she remember?’

This is what it means for a person to be precious. His nerves were directed towards the room at the other end of the hallway, and long-pursued goals or fruits of effort became irrelevant.

It was ridiculously useless and at the same time anxious, repeatedly becoming perfect again because of that existence. It was a truly unnecessary emotion for the Grand Duke of Lucenford responsible for border security.

And for Peon as an individual, it was an emotion that he was only now accurately feeling and becoming embarrassed about.

“Your Highness. We have word from the gatekeeper of the ‘Field of Giants’. The emperor’s investigators passed through there three days ago.”

“That’s fast.”

“Yes. It seems they are aiming to cover the distance in a short time, continuously changing horses and riding without rest.”

This meant that the emperor was taking the incident of the Grand Duchess of Lucenford collapsing very seriously.

Or, as Peon’s compliance with the marriage had reduced the hostage effect of Beatrice Lavalle, he might try to use this incident as Peon’s weakness. In any case, the emperor’s intentions would certainly not be beneficial to Peon. There was no way they could be.

“Send word to the gate guards. Tell them to let them pass, whatever they say.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Come and turn Lucenford upside down from its muddy bottom to the top of its high spires. With Beatrice here as well, it would be quite a sight to see foreigners creating chaos.

“Uh, Your Highness. Then what about the mines and other businesses?”

As a dutiful secretary, Regen had managed to hide and cover up things adequately so that the investigators wouldn’t see, but large matters like mines or gold trades couldn’t be hidden indefinitely.

Peon hadn’t given any instructions about this so far. It was unlikely for the Grand Duke, who was almost obsessively thorough, to do so.

“Have you prepared the largest gold nuggets?”

“We’ve prepared about three nuggets for now. Gold is practically pouring out of the mines.”

That would be enough for Lucenford to survive on its own without relying on support from Kraine.

Literally, the number of people starving to death in winter and spring might decrease. They might be able to buy weapons and seeds to sow with the fruits of their labor.

Regen held hope, but at the same time, he was anxious, knowing how powerless that hope would become before the emperor. Could this hope be protected?

“As if that could be hidden. Just leave it as it is.”

“Will that be alright?”

“It will be fine.”

Peon turned his head to look out the window, towards the distant border. He could hear it. The sound of approaching hoofbeats.

Was it his enhanced hearing that heard it, or the power flowing in his blood that sensed it? His senses were going wild, incomparable to before his regression.

“Leave it be.”

Let the hoofbeats trample this land, we should just let it be.

“Yes, Your Highness. I’ll do as you say.”

The castle was bustling with activity. Kaella was quite busy too. The head maid kept coming in and out of the office, rooms for guests were being diligently cleaned, and new furniture was arriving.

And Beatrice, after visiting Kaella’s office just once, had shut herself up in her new room without budging.

Peon hesitated for a moment, then got up and walked to the room at the opposite end of the hallway that he was most concerned about, and asked the maid standing guard in front:

“Ask if Her Highness has time.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The maid who had quickly entered came out a few seconds later and opened the door wide. Kaella, who had risen from her seat, was looking at him with wide eyes.

“Are you busy?”

“No. Please come in.”

He closed the door and first checked if the office temperature was appropriate. The fireplace seemed to have enough firewood.

Meanwhile, Kaella took out the ledger she had hidden in the drawer. Her eyes, staring at him intently as she slightly pulled it out, were full of wariness, but her action of actually taking it out was bold, making Peon hold back a slight smile.

“The numbers don’t add up, do they?”

Let’s see. Those eyes are saying, ‘I can’t believe you’re saying such a thing!’

“The ledgers brought by the steward have increased a bit.”

Kaella’s lips moved slightly but stopped. It was better to listen to what Peon had to say first, avoiding any potentially problematic answers.

“He’s not such a meticulous person, is he?”

The Grand Duke didn’t seem to mind at all that the Grand Duchess dared not answer. He muttered bitterly.

“Shamefully, it’s because I neglected proper management and supervision.”

The laziness and corruption of subordinates is a sign of the incompetence of their superiors. To the steward, Peon must still seem like an easy child to manipulate, or a military man who doesn’t pay attention to internal affairs. Peon had to prove himself even to his subordinates.

“I’m sorry to you for leaving such sloppy work unchecked.”

I thought his attitude was poor. However, I left it alone, wanting to give Kaella the authority to fire the steward who showed that poor attitude.

Then, seeing Kaella investigating the silver cutlery inventory, the back of my head stung. Traitors are rampant in Lucenford. Could such a foolish and pathetic man dare to be Kaella’s husband?

“Your Highness.”

Peon looked up.

“Let’s finish counting the silver cutlery today.”

The young Grand Duchess looked very resolute and strict for her age.