“It’s been a while.”
 
Marie wore a relaxed smile—the kind of smile that made her confident of victory. Eli thought it was a little overconfident.
 
Eli disembarked first and looked back and forth between Marie and Arlen.
 
“I see you two still get along.”
 
He skipped the greeting.
 
“Isn’t that a given?”
 
“Even though you get along well, we can’t just let anyone into our family meetings, Mother.”
 
Eli glanced briefly at Arlen as he got off the carriage but didn’t pay her any more attention.
 
“She won’t be attending the meeting. Should I kick out the guests who came to our estate because there’s a meeting?”
 
Marie wasn’t surprised; she had expected Eli to interfere.
 
“Well, I expected as much.”
 
It was the same for Eli.
 
“My mother always makes exceptions for people.”
 
“…….”
 
“It’s not surprising anymore.”
 
And that’s when Marie and Eli stared at each other wordlessly.
 
“Mother, I haven’t seen you in a long time.”
 
Emily, who got off the carriage late, greeted Marie. She exchanged a nod with Arlen next to her.
 
“Emily… is here too.”
 
Marie’s puzzled gaze turned to Eli. She wanted to know why Emily was here.
 
“Emily has also made her debut in society. She should know. She’s not an exception like someone else, so it doesn’t matter, right?”

With that, Eli strode into the mansion.
 
Emily and Leton also greeted her briefly and followed him. The servants who had been waiting to greet them followed him as well, except for Marie’s servant.
 
“Is everything all right?”
 
As they entered the Marquis’s mansion, Leton studied Arlen’s expression.
 
If she had followed him all the way here, she must have been expecting to marry Marquis Grit, so why did she seem so unaffected by his cold words?
 
It was really hard for him to understand her.
 
“Eli is here, so you should probably go inside; I’ll be waiting in the parlor.”
 
“Sure.”
 
Contrary to Leton’s thoughts, Marie was pleased that Arlen didn’t seem to care about such trivial matters.
 
After all, marriages between nobles are made with the head rather than the heart, so she thought it was very noble of Arlen to be so understanding in that regard and entered the mansion.
 
* * *
 
“It’s been a while.”
 
“It has been a long time, Marquis.”
 
As Eli entered the hall that had been set up as a meeting hall, the vassals who had arrived earlier rose and bowed.
 
“I see Lady Emily is with us.”
 
A curious glint flashed across the vassal’s face as they spotted Emily entering the room behind him, but they didn’t question it.
 
It wasn’t as if Emily was technically barred from the meeting.
 
Eli took the most important seat, and Emily sat next to him while Leton stood behind them.
 
Once Marie was seated, the Marquis of Grit’s official family meeting began.
 
* * *
 
“The parlor is this way.”
 
A maid, who had been instructed to guide and assist Arlen, said.
 
“It’s been a while, and I wanted to take a look around.”
 
Arlen said it as if she were already familiar with the place, which she hadn’t seen in a long time.
 
“Ah…….”
 
Before the maid could reply, Arren made the first move. Like someone who had thought ahead.
 
The maid followed, pondering how far she should stop the lady, an important guest of the madam.
 
Arlen headed straight for the second floor. As she said, it had been a while since she visited the Grit Manor, and there was no hesitation in her steps.
 
“This place is really beautiful, isn’t it?”
 
The view from the windows along the second-floor corridor was beautiful.
 
“There’s a reason it’s as famous as Devens.”
 
“I suppose in a small way,” the maid agreed, and Arlen added her compliments.
 
Then she stopped in her tracks.
 
“My lady, that room is the Marchioness’s room, and guests are not allowed in.”
 
This time, the maid moved quickly.
 
“No one is using it now anyway, is there?”
 
There was a nuance in her voice, as if she knew it was empty.
 
“But……”
 
“So it’s just an empty room with the best view, and the Dowager asked me to see it.”

Arlen explained as if there were no problem and opened the door.
 
Behind her, the maid fidgeted restlessly.
 
There was no one around to stop the noblewoman.
 
Indeed, as befitted the owners of this manor, the marquis’s and marchioness’s rooms had the most beautiful views.
 
Arlen glanced around, seemingly uninterested in the room itself, and plopped down on the bed by the window to admire the view.
 
“How long has it been since this room was cleaned, and are the things that belonged to the lady still there?”
 
“Yes……. It’s the Lord’s order.”
 
The Dowager wanted to empty it all out, but the Marquis’s words took precedence.
 
Arlen nodded in understanding and opened the inner doorway. 
 
The small space that accompanied the room was where most of the room’s owners kept their most prized possessions.
 
As she casually opened it, a surprised maid stopped her.
 
“My Lady, you mustn’t do this.”
 
Of course, none of this fell on Arlen’s ears. Her eyes scanned Ruby’s room. 
 
It was a pity for the maid who blocked her, but she had nothing in her eyes. From her point of view, all she had were things she would not have even if given for free.
 
She scoffed to herself, “What’s with the stupid handkerchiefs?”
 
And now, she thought, the current Marchioness is truly a modest woman, so out of place here.
 
With that thought in mind, Arlen closed the door behind her.
 
Then he glanced back at the window before leaving.
 
It’s not a bad place to come and live once in a while.
 
That was Arlen’s assessment of the Marchioness’s room.
* * *
 
“To be honest, where can you find a noble without a single rumor? After all, the success of the Grit family is all thanks to the Marquis.”
 
“But it was said that a woman of noble appearance stayed in the mansion for several days. Moreover, that mansion was a gift from the Marquis himself. It wasn’t just one person who saw it; there were others too.”
 
The family meeting quickly became a shouting match.
 
Ironically, Eli and Marie, the actual parties involved, merely listened to their words.
 
“After all, regardless of rumors, the Marquis has never been negligent in his duties. Moreover, he still holds the Emperor’s trust. Just recently at the party, His Majesty expressed his trust in the Marquis. Ultimately, it’s the trust in our Grit family.”
 
In truth, both sides had a point, and it was inevitable that both would hesitate as they argued their respective points.
 
“Most importantly, the only one who can produce an heir to this family is the Marquis himself. Don’t we all know that?”
 
Everyone’s jaws dropped at those words; there was no disagreement on this point.
 
One of the vassal nobles who had sided with Marie coughed in disbelief as he locked eyes with her.
 
“So…… you’re saying that the Marquis is now working on his succession?”
 
It was at this moment that Eli’s expression changed from one of curiosity to one of disbelief.
 
“It’s not just the Marquis’s issue, is it? It’s a fact that the Marchioness hasn’t been seen for a long time, isn’t it?”
 
“…….”
 
“It’s been several years since you two got married, but not having an heir is one thing, but actively seeking one is another, isn’t it?”
 
This time he looked at Eli Grit. He looked at the nobleman who had asked the question without any answer or reaction.
 
“I’m just saying, since it’s a big problem……, shouldn’t there be a…… check on the Marquis and his wife as well?”
 
From Eli’s point of view, it might have been just a stare, but the person receiving the gaze felt like it was unspoken pressure, so he avoided his gaze for no reason.
 
His voice trembled slightly as he recognized the meaning behind the cold stare.
 
“What confirmation do you mean?”
 
“The possibility of seeing an heir.”
 
He said, deliberately not looking in Eli’s direction this time.
 
“If the Marchioness can’t produce an heir,then even if you have to bring in someone else…”
 
“Interesting.”
 
The hall fell silent at Eli’s small murmur.
 
“If there’s a problem with the Marchioness, we can just replace her with someone else?”
 
“…….”
 
“And if it’s me who has a problem, will you replace me then, without all this fuss?”
 
None of the vassals were quick to answer, as they knew that there was no one else to lead the Marquisate of Grit.
 
Most of the vassals here agreed with Marie.
 
They had no intention of dethroning Eli Grit, but the desire to put some pressure on the arrogant man had brought them here.
 
This meeting was nothing more than a play they had orchestrated with Marie.
 
“My only problem is the succession…….”
 
Eli’s muttering echoed through the hall.
 
A strange tension filled the room, and everyone remained frozen, watching his every move and word.
 
“Then you’d better hear it for yourself.”
“What?”
 
“Let her in.”