Joe wasn’t all talk.

The next morning he arrived at the House of Ishpern with a group of workers in tow.

He spoke politely.

“Most of them are temporary. They may not be up to your standards, My Lady, but given the current labour shortage on the estate, I plan to observe them over time and formally employ those who prove themselves skilled with their hands.”

“I will leave that to the steward”

Benjamin witnessed none of this.

The night before, as if to make a point, he had dragged a chest of drawers over and placed it beside the bed – then left the room without returning.

And before the sun had risen, he had already left the estate.

He seemed quite upset about the incident in the bathroom the night before.

‘It is such a relief not to have him around.’

Helena cursed Benjamin inwardly.

‘May you trip and break your nose, then fall backwards and crack your skull.’

With Benjamin gone, the House of Ishpern was Helena’s domain.

Standing in front of the workers, she gestured at the entire castle.

“Then I don’t need to tell you what to do, do I?”

Seeing the state of the castle, the workers were filled with determination.

“Yes, ma’am!”

Joe led the workers up to the top floor of the castle. Helena, who wanted to see the place for herself, followed.

By the time she reached the top, she was slightly out of breath from the climb and paused to catch her breath. Meanwhile, Joe began assigning the workers to areas.

“We’re going to clean one floor at a time, from top to bottom. Let’s divide into sections, and as for bringing up water to clean – let’s take turns.”

While the workers seemed motivated, it was Joe who stood out the most – his eagerness practically glowing in his eyes.

Holding a silver candelabra in the shape of twisted juniper branches, blackened with rust, he addressed the group.

“As you all know, this castle is the residence of the Lord of Burwood, Count Ishpern. Although it is now covered in dust, its beauty, history and tradition…! Let’s do our best to make it shine again!”

Joe Wilton.

An orphan from birth, Joe’s intelligence was recognised at an early age and he was adopted by Kurt Wilton, the former steward of the House of Ishpern. He was so much like Kurt that even a biological son couldn’t have been more like him.

Joe loved old things, he loved beautiful things.

And his hobby – cleaning.

“Let’s turn this place into a castle worthy of our beautiful lady and the count!”

Leaving Joe, who had eagerly begun polishing the rusty silver candlesticks, Helena wandered alone down the dusty corridor.

As she explored, she came across a set of stairs leading to the watchtower and decided to climb them.

Climbing the dizzying steps, she reached the towering height of the watchtower – and was greeted by a wide, sweeping view of Burwood.

“Wow…”

Helena, though gasping for breath, wore a satisfied smile.

“Definitely worth the climb.”

Under the clear morning sky, the vast lands of Burwood stretched out before her.

The hill on which the Count’s castle stood was covered in silvergrass, and as the sunlight streamed down, it shimmered with a golden glow too beautiful for words.

A gasp escaped her lips.

Before her eyes, golden waves swept across the silvergrass fields – it was the wind, no doubt.

So wind is something you can actually see, she thought in awe.

As if on cue, the melodious call of a beautiful bird rang out nearby.

Without knowing why, Helena felt deeply moved.

Her heart full, she looked out over the entire horizon.

The blue sky and the green earth – two worlds that could never touch – merged at the horizon, drawn together in a single line.

Standing before such vastness, Helena felt her once agitated heart gradually calm, replaced by a deep, instinctive sense of awe.

Beneath the boundless sky, the land of Burwood stretched far and wide – mostly open plains and gently rolling hills.

The grasslands and forests were still lush green, while the farmlands, now in harvest, were a soft golden hue.

The fields were neatly divided into neat plots, and the clusters of houses looked like mushroom colonies scattered across the landscape.

There was no sign of any large cities in sight.

There were no large cities in sight, but small villages were evenly scattered across the land, giving it a quaint, charming appearance.

And the way the shadows of the clouds moved across the picturesque landscape, how breathtakingly beautiful it was.

“It’s a good domain.”

Leaning against one of the watchtower’s pillars with a satisfied smile, Helena’s expression suddenly hardened.

“The count is the problem.”

She turned her gaze to survey the entire castle grounds.

The House of Ishpern, perched on a hill overlooking the estate, was divided into two main areas: the main castle and the annex.

The largest structure was the main castle – where she currently stood – surrounded by towers that served both as defensive posts and quarters for the hired staff.

To the right of the main castle was a building for the Count’s knights and soldiers, but this too had fallen into disrepair and now had a bleak, desolate air about it.

Behind the knights’ quarters stood ancient trees that had grown as tall as the buildings themselves. Just beyond them, partly hidden by the foliage, only the tip of a roof could be seen – probably the annex.

Counting the buildings with her eyes, Helena muttered to herself.

“It will take at least a month just to clean everything.”

Having roughly memorised the layout of the castle, she descended from the watchtower.

The main castle had four pointed watchtowers, like the one she had just climbed, jutting out from its roof. Not counting the towers, the main building itself had five floors.

The 5th and 4th floors contained guest rooms with excellent views, as well as a large banqueting hall that seemed to have been unused for some time. Fortunately, this section had been kept relatively clean, with cloths draped over the furniture and doors properly closed.

While the workers cleaned the watchtower and the 5th floor, Helena took Joe on a tour of the rest of the castle.

The 3rd floor contained more luxurious guest rooms, reception areas, exhibition rooms and a small banqueting hall.

Unfortunately, there were signs of fire damage from the 3rd floor down.

Soot had stained the walls and windows, and layers of white dust had settled on top, making the corridors dull and grey throughout.

Joe looked at the damaged paintings hanging in the open exhibition hall and along the corridor with a regretful expression on his face.

“It’s such a shame about the paintings. The ones in the exhibition hall seem to be valuable pieces…”

“If you’re upset, what are you going to do about the first and second floors? Most of the things down there will probably have to be burned.”

She wanted to open each room to check the inside, but some doors were locked.

“There are locked rooms.”

As she explored the third floor, she found that every room that looked remotely important was secured with a key.

At first this was frustrating – but then she thought it might actually be a good thing.

After all, being locked up probably meant that the contents inside had been spared damage.

“I’ll have to find out where the keys are.” 

“If I come across them, I’ll bring them to you, my lady.”

They then made their way down to the second floor – now entering what could only be described as a sigh-inducing zone.

The second floor was where Helena was currently staying, but the only room that had been cleaned at all was Benjamin’s bedroom – the one she used.

It seemed that the workers previously hired had concentrated their efforts on the areas Benjamin used.

The rest of the floor was in a terrible state.

“First of all, we’ll have to remove all the carpets and throw them away. The curtains too.”

“I’ll take care of that.”

Helena walked through the eerie rooms – some of which looked as if ghosts had taken up residence – flinging each door wide open as she passed.

Joe followed close behind, inspecting the condition of the large furniture and any valuables.

It appeared that the second floor had once been occupied by members of the Ishpern family.

There were four large, luxurious rooms, each with its own sitting area and bathroom, and a library in the centre.

After inspecting the rooms, Helena made a brief assessment.

“Just as I expected – a mess.”

The furniture was warped and cracked from damp, and the silk wallpaper was mouldy.

Not only the walls, but the curtains, fabrics and leather were in the same condition.

Metal fittings and handles were so rusted or discoloured that it was hard to tell what they had originally looked like.

Covering her nose and mouth with a handkerchief, Helena continued on to the second floor.

She soon discovered that the largest room was locked.

From the armour at the entrance and the ornate carving on the large door, it appeared to be the room of a former Count.

Although the locked rooms couldn’t be inspected, the rest of the castle was in total disarray.

The library in particular was in a terrible state.