The riding course that the butler had planned began in the southernmost village of the area and followed the embankment road upstream.

The reason for this route was simple: their guest was James.

Having spent his childhood here, he found estate management far more interesting than ordinary sightseeing.

The problem was that Cornelia and David were joining the outing as well.

Unlike James, they had no connection whatsoever to the Isle territory.

Because of this, the butler was worried that they might find the excursion dull.

After all, the greyish-brown embankment could hardly be described as picturesque in winter.

“It looked like snow was starting to fall this morning, and now it’s already piled up.”

Cornelia spoke excitedly.

Fresh, white snow covered the bare branches and the frozen ground completely.

This was the first snowfall of the year, marking the end of autumn.

Because of this, the path they were riding along was far more beautiful than usual.

Once they reached the embankment, the scenery opened up to reveal a breathtaking view.

The embankment road looked as though it had been draped in a pristine white carpet.

The widened path and long stretch of road stood out clearly against the snow, creating a scene that was both striking and beautiful.

‘Thank goodness the butler’s worries ended up being pointless.’

With this thought in mind, Richel tightened her grip on the reins.

Her horse snorted loudly beneath her.

Having not been outside for such a long time, it was clearly desperate to run freely.

Richel gently stroked its neck to calm it down.

It was now time to entertain the guests and show them the territory.

The horse shook its head several more times and exhaled impatiently before Edwin finally rode up beside her.

His face was completely composed; he was nothing like the tearful mess he had been the previous day.

“Your horse seems a little restless… Won’t it be difficult to keep explaining things while handling it at the same time? You can switch with mine if you want.”

Edwin’s horse came from one of the finest purebred bloodlines available.

This breed was reserved solely for the Count of Isle and had been passed down from the first Count to Edwin’s father, and finally to Edwin himself.

This intelligent horse could safely navigate its surroundings even if the rider paid little attention to the reins.

But Richel shook her head.

“It’s alright. My horse has a bit of a temper. If the rider changes, it’ll throw an enormous fit.”

“Don’t worry about that. I can handle it.”

Edwin glanced at Richel’s horse.

Like his own, the white horse had an expensive and prestigious bloodline, but it had a far fiercer and more sensitive temperament.

As Edwin tried to move closer to Richel, her horse suddenly flattened its ears and tossed its head violently.

Richel pulled back sharply on the reins.

“Tsk, you shouldn’t be so spiteful.”

In truth, her horse was not just sensitive.

It was possessive and jealous.

It disliked her approaching other horses and would throw outrageous tantrums if she rode a different one.

If she switched horses here, her horse might well charge straight at Edwin’s.

“It’s alright. It’s temperamental, but it listens to me well enough.”

Even as she spoke, the horse snorted irritably again.

It was clearly unhappy about another horse lingering so close by.

Realizing that it would become more agitated if she continued to provoke it, Richel urged her horse forward.

Only when she moved to the front of the group did the horse finally stop behaving so irritably.

‘Honestly, this personality of yours…’

Nevertheless, Richel stroked the horse’s neck affectionately.

She adored her horse dearly.

After making sure that the others were following behind, she led her horse forward at a slow pace for a while.

She wanted everyone to fully appreciate the beauty of the embankment road.

The rhythmic sound of hooves crunching through the snow echoed beautifully around them, blending into the stillness of the winter landscape.

Only after passing the guards stationed along the first stretch of the road did Richel finally bring her horse to a stop.

“The road we’re riding on now was originally so narrow that even a single horse could barely pass through it. It only became this wide after two years of expansion work.”

“It used to be that narrow?”

Cornelia asked in surprise.

The path they were riding on was incredibly broad.

If the road had always been this wide, that would have been one thing, but widening a narrow path to this extent was no easy task.

Richel smiled as she answered.

“One wrong step and you’d roll straight down the side.”

Laughter spread through the group at the joke.

Soon, James spoke.

He looked genuinely astonished.

“How did you finish construction in only two years? There must have been limits to how much labor you could mobilize from the territory.”

When mobilizing villagers for labor, care had to be taken not to interfere with farming.

Otherwise, people would struggle to survive, and the estate would lose its tax income.

Labor could typically only be gathered for one or two months after the harvest and for another one or two months after the end of the planting season.

At best, people could only work for three or four months of the year.

There simply wasn’t enough time to complete a project of this scale in just two years.

“Did you hire outside labor? If so, the costs must have been enormous.”

Hearing James’s questions, Richel smiled faintly.

Everything he was curious about were the very same concerns she herself had struggled with while overseeing the project.

“We didn’t hire outside labor. We continued construction even during the farming season.”

“You did?”

“We mobilized both the estate soldiers and the villagers.”

“That was possible? If the farming suffered, there should have been massive resistance.”

If people were forced to handle two demanding tasks despite lacking the capacity for both, then naturally, everything would eventually fall apart.

James stared at the embankment road stretching out before them, his brow furrowed as though he genuinely could not comprehend how it had been achieved.

The others looked just as bewildered.

Feeling a small swell of pride, Richel answered.

“We lent the Count’s horses to the villagers and laborers working on the expansion. That way, they were able to finish their farming much faster. As you know, using horses to plough fields or transport goods makes the work far easier and more efficient.”

“You lent them horses…? There couldn’t have been enough workhorses to mobilize the entire territory.”

The labor horses used for heavy work were usually purchased only in the exact numbers required.

After all, as time passed, such horses lost value and strength, eventually becoming awkward to use.

“There weren’t many labor horses, but there were other horses available.”

“Surely you didn’t use riding horses for labor?”

Richel smiled at his expression of utter disbelief.

After all, what she had done was impossible.

The Isle family owned well over a hundred horses.

Most of them were purebreds, dating back to the days when the family ran a breeding business.

These magnificent horses were groomed down to their manes and treated with exceptional care.

The horses they rode today were among them.

“I simply put those horses to more meaningful use. At the time, all the riding horses did was eat and wander around nearby pastures.”

Those expensive, carefully maintained horses had been sent out into fields and farmland to assist with various forms of labor.

James grimaced as he spoke.

“Isn’t that treating them far too carelessly? Those horses aren’t worth just a coin or two. If one of them got injured, it would’ve cost more than simply hiring laborers.”

“Of course.”

Richel knew very well just how expensive those horses were.

But no matter how precious a jewel might be, if it could neither be displayed nor used, it was ultimately meaningless.

“But those horses were meant for riding or for sending out as gifts. And during the last three years, the Isle family wasn’t exactly in a position to invite guests for horseback outings or send celebratory presents.”

With the Count having vanished without a trace, such things had been impossible.

Until Edwin returned, those horses had been destined to remain uselessly idle.

At the same time, she could not simply sell them off carelessly.

Within noble households, luxuries like that were symbols of wealth and prestige.

‘If we sold them, rumors would’ve spread immediately that the Isle family was collapsing.’

Horses she could neither sell nor leave unused.

So she put them to use in ways far removed from their original purpose.

She lent them to villagers for farming and used them to haul soil during the embankment expansion work.

‘If we hadn’t utilized those horses, this project would never have finished so quickly.’

When the villagers heard that they would be allowed to use the Count’s horses, they also helped with the work on the embankment.

As the Isle family’s expensive horses were fully mobilized during construction, the labor itself became far easier.

In that sense, the horses had more than earned their keep.

Richel gave a proud little smile.

“The horses we’re riding today also contributed to building this embankment.”

James still looked dissatisfied, but he could no longer openly criticize her.

After all, the results before his eyes were undeniably impressive.

Laughter suddenly rang out from one side.

It was Cornelia.

“You used purebred horses like that? How did you even come up with such an idea?”

“The situation was urgent. And I figured these horses deserved at least one chance in their lives to rebel a little.”

She added lightly.

“Of course, I didn’t ask for their permission first. I just made them do it.”

Everyone burst into laughter at the joke.

To maintain the relaxed atmosphere, Richel took hold of the reins again.

The group continued forward at an easy pace.

Cornelia moved her horse closer to Richel.

The real Countess was fascinating and extraordinary, not at all like the person Cornelia had remembered.

“Did the horse I’m riding work a lot too?”

“It worked hard enough that its white coat practically turned brown with dirt.”

“But it looks perfectly clean now?”

“Well, it simply grew a new coat. Just because a horse spends some time working in the fields doesn’t mean its white fur permanently changes color.”

That was the nature of inherent value.

Even if it was temporarily obscured by external circumstances, it would eventually be revealed in all its glory.

The Isle family’s prized horses had worked in fields and on farmland, yet their fundamental value had never diminished.

They remained magnificent horses regardless.

True value does not disappear so easily.

‘I hope this embankment becomes the same kind of thing.’

Something that would endure for a long time while continuing to prove its worth.

If she could leave something like that behind here, then perhaps the life she spent in this place could also be called meaningful.

Cornelia spoke again.

“But… wouldn’t it have been fine to leave the road as it was?”

“I may have only been acting in the role temporarily, but I still accepted responsibility for it. If you take on a duty, you should fulfill it properly.”

For a brief moment, Cornelia’s expression darkened.

But Richel failed to notice as she urged her horse forward again.

At last, it was time to ride.

“That’s enough explaining. I was thinking we could finally pick up the pace. Is everyone alright with that?”

Everyone nodded in understanding at her explanation.

Hands moved busily as reins were adjusted.

After surveying the group briefly, Richel urged her horse forward once more.

The five horses began to gallop across the wide, snow-covered road.

Richel savored every moment, relishing the long, white path stretching endlessly before them.

The icy air rushed against her face like a sharp winter wind, leaving her feeling invigorated.

Just as she slowed her horse slightly to round a bend in the road, a group of people suddenly rushed out onto the path ahead.