The travel carriage was so cozy, complete with a bed, that I wondered if we might end up camping along the way like in a novel. However, that didn’t happen at all. This world has plenty of hotels, high-end inns, and, even if not, each estate has a manor. Most of the regions within the Keppel territory were originally separate estates, so it’s only natural each area has a lord’s manor.

“Are we not going to camp at all?”

“Would you like to?”

“Not really… I’ve never done it before. It’s kind of, well, a little romantic in its own way…”

Luckily, this world has the concept of “romance,” so Ian nodded without questioning my words.

“Maybe we can try camping once the rainy season’s over? Right now, the weather’s so unpredictable; it might rain anytime.”

Since it had been raining on and off, I nodded. If it rained and we couldn’t even start a fire, it wouldn’t be me who’d suffer but our servants.

Although we didn’t go camping, if the weather and scenery were nice, we’d often stop the carriage for a picnic since I had to rest frequently due to my condition. Currently, we were by a nice lakeside, trying our hand at fishing. Surprisingly, Ian wasn’t very good at it. I was just amazed he wasn’t perfect at something.

Greta was loitering nearby as I wrote a letter.

“You’re not looking at my letter, are you?”

“I’m not. But hand it over when you’re done. I’ll go send it.”

I gave her a questioning look, and she whispered softly, “I am the youngest knight in the order, yet only Sir Leonard is always sent on errands.”

I chuckled. “That’s because Sir Leonard knows the area well and the local officials recognize him, which makes things go faster.”

Greta didn’t seem satisfied with the explanation, so I added with a smile, “Did you know? In the time of the United Kingdom, the Keppel family was royalty. So this letter is like a queen’s missive. You’re not quite qualified yet.”

“Understood, Your Majesty,” she replied playfully with a bow. I laughed and finished my letter.

Dear Mother, and Mother-in-law. I’ve suddenly gone on a trip, and I’m sorry for not saying goodbye in person. The destination is still unclear as we left spontaneously, but I’ll write occasionally. If you want to send a reply, please direct it to the Keppel estate’s main manor; that will likely be our final destination.

They’re probably surprised that I left without any notice, but I don’t think most married couples need permission from their parents to go on a trip. I handed the letter to Sir Leonard and walked over to Ian.

“Have you caught anything?”

“…Not yet.”

It looked like he hadn’t caught a single fish.

“Don’t worry, Your Grace. I’ve caught plenty,” John reassured me.

“Oh, impressive, John. With this amount, we have no worries for lunch.”

Ian looked flustered. “For lunch?”

“If we caught them, we may as well eat them, right?”

“…Just give me a moment.”

With a look of bruised pride, Ian cast his line again. I’d never get another chance to tease Ian Keppel like this, so I started enthusiastically praising John.

“John, you’re such a great fisherman! If I lived with you, I’d never worry about starving.”

“Haha, I’ll grill it to perfection for you.”

“And you’re good at hunting too, truly remarkable!”

I clapped, and John laughed heartily. Then, Ian suddenly tossed his fishing rod aside, turned around, and declared,

“I’m better at hunting. Wait here. I’ll be right back.”

As Ian went to the carriage to fetch his bow, John called after him, “Something like a rabbit would be easier to prepare!”

“I’ll take care of it,” Ian grumbled, scowling as he headed into the forest. It turns out his hunting claim wasn’t just a boast; Ian returned with a deer slung over his shoulder. I was startled.

“Who’s going to eat all this?”

I’d said it because the deer was enormous, but Ian seemed disheartened and didn’t respond. Did he sulk? Without a word, he started preparing the deer. John chuckled and said,

“We brought plenty of salt, so we can preserve what’s left.”

I watched as the two of them worked on the deer.

“Liv, maybe it’s best if you don’t watch this.”

“I’m not squeamish. I’d like to see.”

Despite John’s previous comment about the difficulties of preparing a deer, he and Ian were surprisingly quick and adept at the task.

“How are you so good at this?”

It wasn’t a compliment, just genuine curiosity. This wasn’t a task someone of his status would typically handle. Ian’s face brightened as he replied,

“We used to hunt whenever supplies were cut off.”

John added proudly, “Starving out the enemy by cutting their supply lines is a strategy, but the Duke always found a way to keep his men fed.”

“A true secret to your unbeaten record,” Greta said, nodding as she observed from the side. I watched in admiration as they finished their work. Ian wiped his blood-stained hands and asked,

“Liv, you’re quite surprising. Don’t noblewomen usually find this hard to watch?”

“I can catch rabbits, too.”

“Really?”

“Seriously?”

Both Ian and Greta asked, surprised. I didn’t expect even Greta to react like that, though Ian’s reaction was no surprise.

“Is it that shocking? When you want to eat meat, sometimes you have no other choice.”

“What kind of noblewoman goes hunting just because she wants meat? You really are something else.”

Ian looked at me seriously and asked, “Was country life that hard? So much so that you had to hunt to sustain yourself?”

I chuckled and waved my hand. “Oh, not at all. My mother had some land, and we had a house, so we were definitely better off than commoners. But in the countryside, livestock isn’t slaughtered every day, so the commoners can’t buy meat whenever they like. Usually, on slaughtering days, all the meat is delivered to the lord’s estate, and only the least desirable scraps end up in the market.”

“…Even if they have money, they can’t buy it?”

Ian still looked serious, as though hearing this for the first time.

“That’s right. Meat is cheaper than the cost of preservation, so farms only produce enough for what the lord consumes. Nobles can preserve it with rare salt, smoking, and other methods, but commoners can’t afford that. If they want to eat meat, they have to raise chickens or rabbits themselves or hunt.”

“…”

“Back then, my dream was to build a chicken coop.”

I said this with a laugh, but Ian didn’t laugh along. The practice of selling all meat to the lord wasn’t enforced; it was simply a result of the cost of preservation outweighing the value of the meat itself. Since the commoners never complained, the nobles didn’t see it as a problem. To me, it was more surprising that Ian was taking it so seriously.

“Even if there were laws regulating how much was sold, there’s no guarantee merchants would put the leftovers on the market. It would probably just lead to a policy that angers traders. So, what’s the best solution?”

Excuse me, didn’t you just resign? Why are we suddenly discussing policy solutions? Although taken aback, I answered seriously because meat is important.

“Let’s see. The state could purchase the entire stock and release it gradually into the market, but that would mean raising taxes. I’m not sure people would want to pay higher taxes just for the sake of eating meat.”

Even the better-off commoners might struggle with this, and the poorest wouldn’t have money for meat anyway. People would probably revolt, outraged at paying more taxes just to feed others who can already afford it.

“What if the lord’s estate preserved some of the surplus meat and sold that instead?”

“That would keep costs down, but… Ian, do you know that many noblewomen already distribute leftover meat to the poor?”

Ian’s expression changed, as if he hadn’t considered this. I reassured him.

“Even if there’s nothing that can be done right now, advances in technology could eventually make preservation cheaper, and that would help. I thought magic might be the solution, like creating frozen storage, but unfortunately, magic-absorbing materials are all gemstones, so it’s not cost-effective.”

“…”

“But if people like us invest in magic and technology, we’ll eventually make a difference. At least, it would help narrow the gap in living standards.”

Ian asked earnestly, “Besides meat, what else is like that?”

I thought he was genuinely curious about people’s lives as a politician, so I answered honestly.

“There are differences in all kinds of food. Not to mention fruit—it’s a huge luxury for commoners. Something as common to nobles as tea becomes an extravagance for them. Only a tiny amount of low-grade tea is ever sold in the market, and it’s so rare that it’s priced even higher than usual.”

“…”

“If a commoner wants to enjoy noble culture, they actually have to pay more than the nobles. And things like sugar are nearly impossible to find.”

While food is at least somewhat affordable and people can try to get it, noble fabrics and leathers are nearly inaccessible. If someone does try to sell them, it’s almost always a scam. Even if they’re cheated, women in all-female households can’t do much about it for fear of retaliation…”

Ian suddenly disappeared from my side. When I looked back, he was standing there with a stunned expression.

“Ian?”

He seemed lost in thought, but his face suddenly showed a surge of emotion. He looked upset, almost sad. Worried, I asked,

“What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.”

“Even so, commoners are grateful for His Majesty’s rule. There are far fewer people dying of starvation now. And you were busy with even more important work, so don’t blame yourself.”

“No, it’s not that…”

Ian covered his face with one hand.

“I’m just… I’m just frustrated at how much I didn’t know.”

“How could you possibly know everything? I only know because I was in an unusual situation.”

How many people go from a noble lady to a relatively wealthy commoner, then become a duchess, and even experience life among the urban poor? Thinking about it, I realized I was quite something.

“I didn’t even realize…”

I approached him to offer comfort, but I was startled. Was he…crying? Ian’s eyes were glistening with tears. I was at a loss, completely taken aback. What do I do now? Ian took a deep breath and spoke.

“I suggested divorce so easily, without even understanding what life outside nobility was like.”

Ian wasn’t crying; he spoke calmly, with a detached tone.

“I thought there wouldn’t be much difference. I assumed that as long as I could bear the shame of being married to a divorced woman, I could still make sure you lived well.”

Ah…

“If I had done that, I probably wouldn’t have understood how you were truly living. I would have thought I was doing enough because you’re not the type to complain, and I’d have had no way of knowing if there was a problem.”

He was probably right. Still, I wanted to comfort him somehow.

“Ian, what I talked about was life outside the city. Living in the city isn’t so hard. The gentry mainly live there, so their standard of living isn’t much different from that of the nobility. So…”

“And yet, even knowing all that, you still wanted a divorce from me.”

Even now.

The words he whispered silently, without sound, froze me in place. Ian walked past me with a bitter smile.

“I’ll go rinse off at the lake.”