Chapter 5 – The Northern Speraum (Part 7)
Reubellina struggled to maintain her composure as she dealt with the foolish Count Phineus. Every time he opened his mouth, the constant flow of idiocy made her want to click her tongue in exasperation.
“Hemil.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Take him away for now.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Count Phineus protested loudly, not understanding why he was being taken away. Listening to his cries of “Do you think I’ll just let you treat me this way?” made Reubellina sigh involuntarily.
Paddington, with a puzzled expression, cautiously asked her.
“Are you alright, Your Grace?”
“What if I’m not?”
According to imperial law, mere possession of the Red Diamond was punishable by death. That gem could cause enough trouble for Speraum. Given its value, its management was thorough, so it was puzzling how such scum ended up with it.
‘Perhaps….’
‘Was it a gift given to them by someone targeting the Speraum Grand Ducal House in the North?’
If someone other than the aristocracy possessed the Red Diamond, they could ask around about its origin and pin the blame on others.
It was a content detailed in the forbidden books related to the imperial palace’s secrets. While managing the trading company, Reubellina had access to all sorts of unusual things, including the Forbidden Book. People are always drawn to forbidden things.
Reubellina recalled a book that had sold quite well, and a cold sweat trickled down her back.
‘Did I almost get caught?’
It was difficult for the people in the Northern territories, who rarely ventured into proper society, to recognize the value of the countess’s ring. Even if they did, they wouldn’t dare speak properly under the authority of Count Phineus.
Reubellina squeezed her fist tightly, her fingertips cold with tension. Holding her hands together, she pondered.
“Was it a coincidence?”
She felt Paddington’s gaze shift, but Reubellina didn’t even glance in his direction. As her eyes fell on the messy papers scattered on the desk, Tartenon came to mind.
‘I suppose I should get his permission.’
To thoroughly review all the records of the domain, she would need the approval of the Grand Duke, Tartenon. As the future Grand Duchess, Reubellina could only access documents related to the internal affairs of the castle. She could not examine the records detailing the territory’s income or the operational costs of the knight order.
She had to review and confirm everything. She couldn’t afford to be betrayed by the pathetic royalty and end up executed with the accusation of treason, after coming all the way to the North.
Reubellina knew her thoughts were running ahead of her, but staying still would have obvious consequences. If the fortune from the Duchy of Asillious were added to the Grand Duchy of Speraum, the imperial family would undoubtedly try to pull her down by any means necessary.
‘It would be possible if it were the crown prince.’
Reubellina was convinced by Monterno’s attitude at the reception. His relaxed demeanor toward her so far was because he was confident Duke Asillious was on the side of the crown. Monterno’s demeanor had turned chillingly fierce the moment she announced her engagement to Tartenon.
Reubellina thought she should tell Tartenon about this, but she blinked as something suddenly occurred to her.
‘Come to think of it… ‘
He didn’t say goodbye. He said she should handle it well.
At first, she thought it was just a remark aimed at her being left alone. But upon reflecting, wasn’t it a casual farewell thrown out while anticipating this situation?
“Hah!”
Knowing this was going to happen and leaving without saying a word to her, going off to inspect the defenses so nonchalantly. And with Bruelin of all people.
Reubellina abruptly stood up. Just as she was about to leave the study, Hemil entered.
“I’ve handled it as instructed.”
“He put up quite a resistance, didn’t he?”
“Well, you know, sometimes a punch is mightier than the law in unseen places.”
Casually mentioning the use of violence, Hemil’s words caused Heather to click her tongue. Seeing the disdainful look in her eyes, Hemil was about to say something, but the terrifying gaze of Paddington made him clamp his mouth shut.
“I need to inspect the castle’s storehouse.”
“What?”
“Right away.”
As Reubellina opened the door to the study and stepped outside, Paddington hurriedly followed.
“I will guide you.”
Reubellina smiled satisfactorily at Paddington’s prompt guidance. She calculated that since the butler acknowledged her, managing the other servants would be easier.
Reubellina gestured for Paddington to open the door when they reached the storage. With a thud, the door opened, surprisingly heavy. Reubellina stared at the slowly opening door, then glanced inside the cluttered storage.
‘What’s this?’
It was fortunate that she only murmured those words internally. The items haphazardly strewn about the storehouse were far from befitting a Grand Ducal House. Seeing the disorganized mess, Reubellina sharply turned her head.
Paddington noticed Reubellina’s gaze and cleared his throat.
“Th-Ahem! The Grand Duke has forbidden entry to the storehouse.”
“So it’s the fault of His Grace?”
“Well, not exactly, but… Shall I order them to clean it up right away?”
“No, it’s fine.”
Reubellina walked into the storage without hesitation. Waving off those who tried to follow her inside, she took out a handkerchief. There was too much dust; she couldn’t just go in.
“I’ll look around by myself, so everyone wait outside.”
“Understood.”
Heather and Hemil, after a quick glance inside to confirm there was no danger, nodded and stepped back. Covering her nose and mouth with the handkerchief, Reubellina examined the items in the storage.
There were dresses covered in dust that would have to be discarded anyway. Reubellina’s steps became more resolute as she thought about it.
As she sorted through the items in the storage, Reubellina restrained a sigh. There were no valuable items at all. She understood why Tartenon had prohibited access to the storage.
‘Perhaps someone else might look down on Speraum if they knew about this.’
It was clear that he had kept this from even his trusty Paddington. Considering Paddington’s attitude toward Count Phineus’s people, if he had known the storage was empty, he would have groveled before them.
“Huh?”
At that moment, Reubellina spotted something shiny rolling in the distance and unhesitatingly moved towards it. The interior of the storage was dimly lit, but if something was sparkling inside, it had to be a self-luminous item.
Rushing over, she found it was a sword. And a very ornate one at that.
“What is this?”
It looked like a very expensive sword, and it was strange that it hadn’t been properly maintained. As a knight, Tartenon would have cherished his sword the most, yet it was simply discarded in the storage.
Reubellina set the sword aside. She didn’t know the story behind it, but a sword of this caliber should fetch a decent price.
She rolled up her sleeves and started moving in earnest. Dust clung to her here and there, but the important thing now was to salvage any useful items from this storage.
Further in, she found there were still some valuable goods. The current people of Speraum might not recognize their true worth, but that didn’t matter. She was here, after all.
Suddenly, Reubellina’s eyes gleamed as she discovered a sack in a secluded corner.
“Uh, that!”
There was no mistaking that the items were from Musen Trading. The thick sack-like pouch was a specially made one, with dried straw used to prevent moisture. The outer layer of the sack was coated with water-resistant lotus leaves.
Obtaining lotus leaves was as rare as finding a star in the sky, but lotus leaves were not that hard to come by. If one spent a whole day rummaging around the warm southern ponds, they could find a decent amount.
However, this was the North. The value of this item was priceless. Reubellina could not hold back her joyful laughter.
“Ahahaha!”
Hearing the high-born noble lady’s loud and delighted laughter from inside the storage, the servants glanced at each other. Sandy sighed and shook her head. It didn’t matter in the Duchy of Asillious, but Reubellina openly revealing her true nature after coming to the North was worrying.
‘Just selling this sack alone could buy the knights their weapons.’
The sacks numbered around ten, as far as Reubellina could see. Counting them one by one, she lifted a sack to confirm if it contained what she had in mind. The firmly sealed sack matched her expectations.
The sweet scent of sugar oozing from the sack could not be hidden. But that was not all. Another aroma was emanating from the opposite sack.
Detecting the faint cinnamon fragrance, Reubellina suppressed the urge to roll around gleefully.
‘Tartenon likely did not put these items in here. If it were him, he would have recognized the importance of these goods.’
It didn’t matter who had placed them here. Now that they had come to her attention, these were items to be used for the benefit of Speraum.
“Speraum should be able to establish a solid foundation with this.”
Reubellina murmured quietly, her golden eyes shining ominously.
***
After ordering the sacks in the storehouse to be moved to Tartenon’s office, Reubellina asked Armur, who had been waiting.
“What’s the current price of sugar and cinnamon?”
“This area hasn’t quite developed a culture of enjoying those yet, so I’m not sure. But in the south or the capital, it’s a bit different.”
“So, how much?”
“Assuming those sacks are full of sugar, it would be around 50 million rubles.”
“What’s the maximum price we can get?”
Reubellina asked seriously, her head covered in dust. Armur, a merchant, also spoke with the same attitude as her. When it came to money, there was no room for playful behavior.
“If we process and sell it to the nobles and the imperial family, we could get an even higher price, but the quantity might decrease in the process. Selling them as sacks would be more profitable. I’ll do my best.”
“Good. When will the others arrive?”
“They said they’ve set out, so they should be here within a day or two.”
Reubellina nodded, then warned Armur.
“We should ensure nothing like what happened with Count Phineus occurs.”
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
As Reubellina and Armur exchanged glances subtly, he bowed respectfully. When their conversation ended, Paddington escorted Armur out.
Reubellina’s head was covered in dust, and the hem of her skirt had already turned a murky black. But the servants watching her could not laugh. While the sight was comical, they had witnessed the abilities of the Grand Duchess-to-be. She was a completely different person from the previous Bellaruse.
“What are you all doing?”
Sandy’s new voice caught the servants’ attention. Sensing their gaze, they hurriedly dispersed. Watching the servants scatter, Sandy moved as well. Sensing that the area was somewhat organized, Reubellina turned around, and Sandy’s intimidating gaze bore down on her.
“My lady.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“You’re not going to keep walking around like that, are you?”
Her clothes, hands, and face were covered in dirt.
“Of course not. I’m going to wash up.”
“That’s a relief. Please, go up to your room. I’ve already prepared the bath for you.”
From the moment Reubellina entered the storage, Sandy, who was quick-witted, had prepared the bathwater. Reubellina smiled slightly at Sandy’s prompt action as she slowly made her way to her room.
“Lina?”
Tartenon, with furrowed brows, stood in front of her.
“What’s this about…”
“There’s a reason for it, so please don’t say anything more!”
Reubellina quickly replied and walked past Tartenon.
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