Maiana sent her a stern look. Bridget covered her lips with chubby fingers, giggling.

“Take care. And tell me how magnificent the capital is! I’ve never been there, you know.” Only then did Maiana, who smiled warmly, nod her head.

“Yeah, got it. Take good care of Master Swan while the Duke is away.”

Ariante, who got on the carriage, was initially restless, bouncing her bottom about ten times, but as they approached the vicinity of the Duke’s estate, she managed to settle down.

However, it was short-lived. Once the unfamiliar scenery began to unfold beyond the window, she seemed as if she would jump out through the glass.

“Maiana! Maiana! Look at that! People are among the grass!”

Maiana gently touched the remaining red mark on Ariante’s forehead, smiling.

“They’re sowing autumn wheat, Your Grace.”

“What’s sowing?”

“Scattering seeds.”

“Then, will sprouts grow?”

“That’s right. So when the wheat ripens, they take it to the windmill to make flour. With that flour, you can make delicious bread.”

Ariante furrowed her forehead, deeply immersed in thought. Sediloy, who was sitting opposite, watched Ariante and Maiana with a seemingly meaningful smile, leaning his arms on the window.

“But you shouldn’t sow seeds now.”

When Maiana chuckled, Ariante, as if frustrated, patted her back of the hand, continuing.

“If you sow seeds now, sprouts will grow in winter. But it’s too cold in winter, so the sprouts will die. Why sow seeds now?”

That’s right. Maiana was suddenly lost in thought. Although she knew there were separate sowings for spring and autumn, she had never thought about how the sprouts from autumn sowing would survive the winter.

Sediloy said, “If you sow seeds now, the sprouts will grow before winter. They slowly grow during the winter. Ariante’s eyes widened.

“Even though it’s cold?”

“They endure the cold and grow. It’s still a young wheat, but strong enough to endure the winter. It grows little by little. And when spring comes and the weather warms up, it becomes robust wheat.”

Sediloy, who took a deep breath, continued with a gentle smile.

“Like our Ariante.”

Reaching out, he lightly tickled Ariante’s small nose. The child giggled, blushing her cheeks, and snuggled into Maiana’s arms as if she would fall asleep. As her small body slid down, Maiana quickly embraced Ariante, allowing her to lie down.

“Seeing you here, Maiana looks different.”

Lying down with her legs spread, Ariante said. Her small fingers went up straight, and she lightly touched Maiana’s chin and cheeks.

“It doesn’t mean you look ugly, Your Grace?”

As Maiana joked, Ariante rolled her eyes playfully. She playfully nudged Maiana’s cheek with her hand.

“No! Maiana isn’t ugly. Very beautiful.”

With closed eyes, Ariante hugged Maiana tightly.

“In the world, Maiana is the most beautiful.”

The journey to the capital was long, but Ariante endured it without getting motion sick even once.
Perhaps due to tension, Maiana suffered from motion sickness more severely than Ariante. Throughout the journey, her head throbbed, and whenever the carriage briefly stopped and she got off, it felt dizzy as if her feet were floating above the ground.

However, all of that washed away like water the moment the carriage passed through the splendid gates of El Rautica. Maiana, glancing at the capital’s scenery through the window, felt that things looked a bit different from before.

“Why is that?”

Sediloy, who was holding the sleeping Ariante, asked. Maiana, leaning her forehead against the window like Ariante did, blinked her eyes. Even on her turned forehead, there was a round, red mark left.

“The scenery looks a bit different. I suppose nothing has changed during that time.”

Maiana thought Sediloy would laugh off her words. However, to her surprise, he nodded in agreement.

“It looks that way to me too. It must be because the situation has changed.”

“Is the Duke the same?”

Sediloy’s gaze scrutinized Maiana with a slightly reserved expression.

“I’ve spent more time in the capital than I did in the Duke’s estate. But here…”

Turning his head in the opposite direction, Sediloy looked outside as if lost in thought.

“It’s the first time it looks so good here. Every time I came here before, my heart felt heavy.”

“Because of the Duchess?”

Sediloy chuckled.

“No, that was sympathy for me. You know, I was a terrible father to Ariante for a long time. If I were Ariante, she would never have forgiven me.”

Supporting Ariante in his arms, Sediloy looked down at the peacefully sleeping child with affectionate eyes. Gently pushing the child’s head, who was sleeping more deeply, he sighed.

Maiana said, “It’s fortunate that you’re reflecting now, though.”

Sediloy raised an eyebrow playfully.

“I didn’t expect you to comfort me, though.”

“I told you, didn’t I? When the Duke turns seven, I’ll take care of him. You, as an adult, spent so much time self-pitying that you forgot about your seven-year-old daughter. What comfort can I offer?”

Maiana pretended to sniffle and added with a small laugh, “But it’s fortunate. The Duchess is only seven years old now. The Duke has plenty of opportunities to make amends.”