River, the victim, leaned back comfortably in her chair, not taking her eyes off the documents, and asked Caleb.

“Are you willing to accept any punishment?”

Caleb, with his head bowed to the floor, replied.

“Yes, I will.”

Brody hastily intervened.

“Madam, the Chief of Staff…”

River cut off Brody’s words.

“Madam seemed to pay special attention to this woman. It seems that there is abundant camaraderie among Empire people.”

He still looked disdainful while not taking his eyes off the documents. The way he raised his eyebrows and scratched his forehead with a created palm looked quite annoying.

‘Ugh, that guy.’

But Brody suppressed her emotions and responded. After all, they needed to save Caleb for now. She spoke in a soft tone.

“But Caleb is from the North before being an Empire person, and before that, she is a woman. Can’t you consider that?”

“Even considering that, a crime is a crime, and punishment is punishment.”

Brody’s face stiffened. River’s decision seemed too firm. She stood between River and Caleb, enduring, and spoke.

“But it wasn’t an intentional crime.”

“Whether it was intentional or not, it’s still a crime. If you don’t remember, how can you be sure it wasn’t intentional?”

“She had no reason to target you. Why would she aim for the Chief of Staff of the North for the Empire?”

“Who knows? Maybe she planned to bring the Chief of Staff’s head and get reinstated as the Duchess’s maid, or there might have been some deal like that.”

Caleb’s fingertips, lying on the floor, turned pale.

He must be enduring the insult with force. Brody, unlike others, knew it. Whatever Caleb went through was not Brody’s ‘plot’ but ‘harsh suffering,’ as she thought.

With pity, Brody’s voice trembled slightly.

“Chief of Staff. She lost her daughter because of the Empire. She came to the North after enduring harsh suffering. Can you return to work for the Empire if it were you?”

River scratched her chin and replied.

“I don’t know. People prioritize different values, you know. Some people abandon their families for work.”

At that moment, Caleb intervened solemnly. His face was pale, and his emotions seemed strained, but his expression was resolute.

“Madam, please don’t. I will just accept the punishment.”

River looked down at her, kneeling, and said.

“Good posture. A person who sincerely reflects on their mistakes is prepared for punishment.”

Brody bit her lip. In the end, River seemed determined to impose punishment. She sat next to Caleb, hugging her shoulders, and looked up at River with hopeful eyes. Then, she firmly said,

“Chief of Staff! If you want to punish the lady, I…,”

“Brody!”

She was about to suggest voluntarily sharing the punishment, but suddenly, Idan, who had been silently observing, called her name.

Brody looked at Idan in surprise. In response, he slowly raised his head. It meant not to say anything.
“Why? Why shouldn’t I?”

Brody was confused but stopped talking as Idan wished. She believed that Idan wouldn’t stop her without reason.

Then, River sighed deeply.

“Well, that’s a shame. We might have gained one or two things if you continued a bit longer.”

“!”

With those words, Brody’s mind cleared. She turned her head in astonishment and looked at River with a bewildered expression.

Doesn’t that mean! Has she been so harsh and adamant because she was trying to protect Caleb and negotiate? River spoke with a sly smile.

“You’re quite impressive. Without asking for help from me and never backing down until the end.”

Idan scratched the back of his neck. He didn’t expect Brody not to use her authority. Is it because there’s still something between them? But she didn’t exploit her position as the Duchess either.

Looking at Brody with a mocking gaze, River said,

“Impressive, indeed. You don’t seem to recognize yourself as the Duchess yet.”

“Are you testing me?”

“I test anyone I deal with every moment. Isn’t acquiring everything you can a virtue of a strategist?”

“…….”

While Brody couldn’t say anything, Idan chimed in.

“When this guy talks a lot, he’s probably scheming something silently. If he was going to give a punishment, he would have done it straightforwardly from the beginning.”

River shrugged with a mischievous smile.

This time, Brody took a hit. She had to admit it. When River called Lady Murphy, she noticed that he had no intention of giving a severe punishment to Caleb. She forgot about it in the urgency of the current situation.

Not being familiar with the hierarchical system, she didn’t know how to use the position of the Duchess.

Brody tightly held Caleb’s hand.

Then, standing up, she helped Caleb up.

“Testing might be good, but it felt like you were playing recklessly with the lady’s life. Let’s go, madam.”

“M-Madam.”

Caleb, looking at Brody dragging her away, glanced around with bewildered eyes.

River said,

“I didn’t say I won’t give a punishment.”

Hearing that, Brody stopped, and she looked at River.

The look in Brody’s eyes, gazing at River now, was completely different from just a moment ago.