Being lifted up like a piece of luggage by the Duke no longer felt strange to me.

But it seemed that was not the case for these people.

“Uh!”

“Ah!”

“Is, is this person…?”

People, who were already wideeyed, opened their eyes even wider.

I had sat on the Duke’s lap even during the last assembly. Somehow, the scene felt eerily familiar.

‘This is quite like the last full assembly…’

Could it be that the only difference between then and now was that the nobles at the assembly were all sharp and tense?

Of course, unlike the nobles at the assembly, these people were a bit more relaxed, and their expressions of surprise were more diverse.

“Your Grace, is this the young lady you were looking for?”

“Yes, you remember well.”

“May we greet the young lady briefly?”

“Go ahead.”

As I was sitting on the Duke’s lap, I couldn’t see his face. But judging by the tone of his reply, he didn’t seem displeased.

“Hello, young lady! I have heard much about you. My name is Dosres Sotora!”

“Please also accept my greetings, young lady! I am Hidal Doya.”

“I am Theophila Bazkura!”

I sensed a question arising from their greetings.

‘Why aren’t they mentioning their titles?’

Nobles always introduce themselves by adding their titles after their family names.

Perhaps my curiosity showed on my face, because the man sitting next to me spoke up.

“If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

“Why aren’t you mentioning titles?”

The man smiled broadly.

“Most of us are commoners. We each hold a position in the guild only because the Duke has granted us the opportunity.”

‘I see.’

Having commoners working in a single noble house was not uncommon.

Most of the household servants were commoners, and it wasn’t hard to find commoners among the knights either.

From the moment they are knighted, they are given the lowest rank of nobility, that of a baronet.

Moreover, many noble families didn’t particularly mind hiring commoners as knights.

However, when organizing a guild operated by the family, one couldn’t overlook the status of their partners.
The pride of those born into nobility was immense.

So much so that there were rumors they wouldn’t even sit at the same table with those who weren’t of noble birth.

It was natural for them to choose commoners as their subordinates, but nobles had no desire to work alongside commoners otherwise.

Discrimination against commoners was a given for them, and they felt no guilt about it.

However, the Duke was different. He judged people solely on their abilities.

When adopting children or choosing workers, he did so based strictly on their abilities.

This meant that those gathered here, even if they were of common birth, couldn’t be easily dismissed.

‘These are people who have been acknowledged by the Duke.’

They might even be more competent than those born into noble families.

‘The problem is, he doesn’t discriminate based on character either.’

Because he chose people based on their abilities alone, the Duke didn’t care what kind of heinous crimes they may have committed in the past.

Perhaps that was one reason why it was so easy for assassins to infiltrate the Duke’s household.

If he had been more careful in selecting people, such incidents might have been less frequent.

Suddenly, the door burst open, and a plump, older man hurriedly entered.

“Ah, my apologies for being late!”

‘Ah, that person is!’

Seeing the familiar face, I exclaimed in delight.

“It’s the Earl!”

As our eyes met, the corners of his mouth lifted as if they were about to reach his ears.

“Little one! It’s been so long!”

“Yes, hello, Earl.”

“I’m so glad I made it to the meeting, even if late!”

What does he mean by ‘even if late’? Puzzled, I stared at him, and the Earl continued speaking.

“I’ve visited the Duke’s estate several times to see you. Each time, I was told you were sleeping, eating, or playing, and I never got to see you.”

‘What, really?’

This was news to me. Surely Sophia or Delma, or even Yan, would have heard about this.

After a moment of thought, I reached an easy conclusion.

The only person who could block all information from reaching me was the Duke.

‘The Duke blocked it.’

I glanced up at the Duke, who was also staring at me.

“Why.”

The Duke asked bluntly, showing no sign of remorse for having turned away a guest who had come to see me.

“Why did you do that?”

“What.”

“Why did you make excuses to the Earl?”

“I didn’t make excuses. I told the truth.”

I frowned at his response.

‘So, he’s saying I just ate, slept, and played every day?’

I was about to object, but then I closed my mouth.

Upon reflection, I hadn’t really done much else while staying at the Duke’s estate.

Seeing my sealed lips, the Duke looked rather pleased with himself.

“I didn’t lie, did I?”

…He was right, but why did he have to be so smug about it?