Chapter 6 – Changes in Emotion (Part 4)

“Ta-da!”

Heather bounced in excitedly, turning this way and that to check the condition of her shirt.

“It’s incredibly comfortable!”

“Heather.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“It’s not wrong to examine the shirt, but you know your behavior was improper, don’t you?”

“Oh, I apologize.”

Heather immediately knelt before Reubellina, bowing her head to apologize. Reubellina waved her hand lightly.

“I forgive you this time.”

“Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Grace.”

“Only this once.”

“I will keep it in mind.”

With Reubellina’s forgiveness, Heather placed her hand on her chest and showed the knight’s courtesy.

‘It’s a relief she’s not too frivolous.’

While her outward appearance seemed careless, Reubellina could see from Heather’s eyes that she was not. Having interacted with over a thousand people through the trading, Reubellina’s judgment was sound.

“I hope you find the gifts to your liking.”

“These seem more like gifts for the knights than for me.”

“I’ll prepare something separate for you, your Grace.”

“That’s enough.”

Reubellina shook her head sideways. Her attitude already indicated it was sufficient. Armur quietly nodded at her stance.

“I should inform Ren about this.”

“I’ll go and let him know!”

Heather stepped forward.

“Very well, then, Sir Heather, go and tell him.”

“Can I inform the other knights as well?”

“Of course.”

It would be good if rumors spread that there were excellent goods at Musen trading. Then more customers would visit Musen.

‘I can kill two birds with one stone – promote the trading and all that.’

Reubellina smirked, and Sandy laughed, knowing what she meant. Heather was already in Reubellina’s grasp as she ran out the door. Armur also noticed that fact and coughed.

“Oh, would you like a cup of tea?”

“I’m fine.”

Armur politely declined Reubellina’s offer to serve tea, and then directly asked.

“I want to purchase goods from the North for trading.”

“What do you want?”

“I want everything that is available in the North.”

“That’s not something I can decide.”

Reubellina shook her head. There were many eyes watching here, so she could not open her mouth carelessly. Armur also knew this fact, so he had requested something excessive that she could not fulfill. Reubellina had to instill in the people of Speraum Castle the idea that she had appropriately cut off his request.

“The Grand Duke has arrived!”

Everyone in the reception room stood up. Reubellina also stood up from her seat.

“Lina.”

Reubellina opened her mouth to Tartenon, who was approaching directly toward her.

“Are you coming from the training ground?”

“Yes.”

Tartenon, brushing off the dusty pants, said he would go wash up if it was not urgent.

“Let’s see the gifts brought from Musen.”

“You can handle that as you see fit.”

When Tartenon replied nonchalantly, Reubellina blinked.

‘What? Can I trust you like this?’

Despite having written contracts, Reubellina found Tartenon’s attitude of entrusting almost everything to her somewhat strange.

‘Why is he doing this?’

Reubellina was an outsider to Speraum, yet Tartenon entrusted her entirely with internal affairs and the storeroom, which seemed suspicious. Reubellina blinked to clear her confused mind.

“Is the item you brought the shirt Heather was wearing?”

“Yes.”

“Bring it here.”

When Tartenon gestured, Armur retrieved the shirt from the box and courteously offered it. It was a different attitude from before, displaying a certain level of respect for the reputation of the Grand Duke from the North.

Reubellina discreetly looked away from Armur, who couldn’t straighten his back. Sandy quickly covered Reubellina’s eyes as Tartenon, holding the offered shirt, began to undress. Reubellina felt a pang of disappointment; she had glimpsed his bare skin only for a moment.

‘What a pity.’

‘He seemed to have a pretty good physique today.’

Unable to blame the loyal servant, Reubellina entrusted her gaze to Sandy’s hands. The sound of fabric brushing against skin, with her eyes covered, was surprisingly stimulating. She crossed her hands to conceal the chill creeping in with a strange tension.

“What are you doing?”

Tartenon, now dressed in the shirt Armur brought, stood before her and Sandy lowered her hands accordingly.

“It’s the faithful servant’s struggle to preserve the chastity of an unmarried noble lady.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes.”

Tartenon, who had put on the shirt brought by Armur, stood in front of her, and folded his arms.

“It’s fine.”

It was natural for Armur’s mouth to lift at the corners in response to his words.

“How many sets did you bring?”

“Fifty sets.”

“And you said it’s a gift?”

“That’s correct.”

After a brief moment of consideration, Tartenon declared.

“I’ll order two hundred sets.”

“Really?”

Armur’s expression brightened, and simultaneously Reubellina clenched her fist.

‘Great!’

Reubellina couldn’t openly cheer due to suppressing her joy.

‘How much will two hundred sets cost?’

Of course, since it was Tartenon, she had decided to provide them more affordably than anywhere else, so she smiled thinly. Despite seeing Reubellina’s smile, Tartenon continued as if he hadn’t noticed.

“How soon can you deliver?”

“Within a week.”

Tartenon smiled satisfactorily at Armur’s response. Although the sounds of the servants’ excitement could be heard, Tartenon paid them no mind and ordered everyone to leave. As Sandy closed the door behind her, only Tartenon and Reubellina remained.

“Isn’t that too much?”

“If we sell sugar and cinnamon, we’ll easily make that much money.”

“Oh.”

The sugar was more expensive than the two hundred shirts bought. Just one sack of sugar could easily cover the operating costs of Speraum Castle.

“It seems like it’s time to reorganize the knights.”

“I noticed the weapons are quite worn out.”

“At least thanks to the items sleeping in the storeroom, we can breathe a little easier.”

“Were you really unaware of this?”

“…Yeah.”

Reubellina stared at Tartenon intently. Although he answered casually, the anger flickering in his eyes couldn’t be hidden.

‘The household isn’t properly managed.’

In a single breath, Reubellina grasped the problems of Speraum Castle.

The castle’s servants feared Tartenon but did not truly follow him. The loyalty of the knights to Tartenon was undoubtedly strong, but it was only because they had succumbed to his power.

Since Reubellina did not fully understand the true nature of the one called the Grand Duke of the North, she felt the need to investigate.

‘I should ask Teryn to look into it.’

“By the way, who would have put sugar and cinnamon in Speraum’s warehouse?”

Reubellina asked Tartenon, feigning ignorance.

“I still have one living relative.”

“What?”

‘Wouldn’t it be good if a close relative was alive?’

Before Reubellina could finish her thought, Tartenon continued speaking.

“The person who drove my father to his death.”

“What did you say?”

To Reubellina, family by blood was an irreplaceably precious existence. Since her mother’s death, her father was her only remaining blood relative, making him all the more precious. Tartenon made her think about the cruel side of noble society.

The Duke of Asillious’s family was one where descendants were rare. Her father had no siblings, and neither did she. She had once wished she had a brother or sister. She had even wished for an aunt or uncle.

“My father was sent to hunt a white lion at my aunt’s request but never returned.”

“So…”

“So, without the royal family’s permission, I inherited the title of Grand Duke.”

“Then does that aunt still hold the right of succession?”

“Of course. She refuses to marry to not give up her claim.”

Reubellina opened her eyes wide. Seeing her face full of surprise, Tartenon gave a bitter smile. He didn’t want to bring up his unpleasant family history. It wouldn’t do Reubellina any good to know. But there was no choice. The person who had been in and out of Speraum’s storage was definitely his aunt Viverna’s person.

‘Since Reubellina knows there is a spy in the castle, she should be careful.’

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have bothered to reveal that the blood relatives of Speraum were not on good terms.