How well she managed people too.

Erica took charge of hiring and managing the people who would run this annex and the count’s residence.

Since Erica had only been employed and managed by others her whole life, living far from the experience of hiring and managing others, he thought she might find it difficult, but that was completely wrong.

The reason she finished the interior decoration so quickly was also thanks to Erica discovering the right talent. Among the maids hired for the count family, there was someone whose taste and work methods were similar to Erica’s.

Come to think of it, it’s like when she was placing and utilizing personnel in the right positions during the war.

Who to ask for help and how. How to procure funds and supplies.

She knew these things as well as a soldier who had experienced countless wars.

“The countess doesn’t seem like someone of common birth at all.”

The maids crossing the hall below the stairs voiced exactly what Roderick had been thinking.

“Not that the count isn’t noble-like, but……”

The maid lowered her voice to whisper, but sound tends to carry upward well. The whisper reached all the way up the stairs.

“Doesn’t the countess, who is a commoner, seem more like a born noble than the count, who has noble blood?”

Though it might sound irreverent, he knew it wasn’t meant to disparage him as their master.

While Roderick was absorbed in palace affairs, Erica had already built up goodwill within the household and was popular among the servants.

And above all, Roderick had to nod in agreement with the statement that Erica seemed more noble.

‘How foolish I was to worry that she might not adapt to noble status.’

When Roderick went from commoner to noble, everything was difficult and unfamiliar. He doesn’t know how hard it was that things he could do in the commoner’s world became impossible in the noble’s world.

Erica would surely be the same, so Roderick tried to take the lead in looking after her, but what do you know……

‘It wasn’t for nothing that Erica was called a little princess when she was young.’

She mastered etiquette as if she had observed it her whole life after seeing and hearing it just once. She also figured out frighteningly quickly which nobles to befriend and which to keep at a distance.

Moreover, she even flattened the noses of those who looked down on her for being a countess of commoner origin in various ways.

Erica seemed like someone who had been born noble from the beginning.

‘Then does this mean Erica has also found her rightful place?’

As he climbed the stairs, a guard from the count’s family who was standing in front of a door bowed to Roderick.

“Count, you’ve arrived.”

“Is my wife in that room?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

When he entered the room, he saw Erica leaning back diagonally on a long, soft chair.

‘Could it be that something’s wrong with her?’

His heart sank for a moment, but seeing her usual good complexion and bright smile brought relief.

“Hmm?”

Erica, who had been tilting a teacup handed to her by a maid, looked at him with questioning eyes.

“Captain of the guards, what about His Majesty, and why are you here at this time……”

Using formal speech with each other in front of others was also one of the changes.

“Ah, come to think of it, there’s a ministers’ meeting soon. I should finish quickly.”

So that’s why she had returned to the residence. She must have been managing the count family’s household affairs.

Across from Erica sat the Winterborn family’s chamberlain in a respectful posture.

“The last agenda item is the Festival of St. Anessa.”

St. Anessa was one of the saints worshipped in the grand temple, and around early April, the entire kingdom held festivals to honor St. Anessa.

Since they had barely survived the famine not long ago, many territories lacked the money and resources to hold such festivals, so they tried to scale down or skip the festivals altogether.

“As supplies for the festival, provide twenty cattle and sixty jars of wine decorated with the Winterborn family’s crest to the Winterborn territory and the capital.”

This meant to sponsor the festivals for the people of the Winterborn territory on the border and the capital’s residents.

Both this place and the Winterborn territory had decided to hold festivals, even if on a smaller scale.

Shouldn’t there be moments for those who had endured the difficult war to escape harsh daily life and feel joy?

And it was also a strategic choice made as a lord and supporter of the king.

‘It will plant hope that things are getting better.’

Of course, that wasn’t the entire reason why the count family was sponsoring festivals in the capital as well.

Who the lord was and whether they had legitimacy weren’t very important issues for people whose survival mattered most.

‘It’s only important to nobles who have interests in bloodlines.’

Did the people open the gates because they respected Winterborn and the tragic princess? They opened them because they hated the lord who had involved them in war, causing their families to die and starve.

To the people of the capital, which was the new home for the four families, the new king would still be just a child no different from the previous king, and the Winterborn family would be nothing more than throne usurpers like the old Draven family.

They were also invaders who had disrupted their living place.

So there was a need to appease them and show that they were different from the marquis to win the people’s hearts.

‘How fortunate that Erica and I think as one on such matters.’

The chamberlain, who had been pondering something after hearing Erica’s instructions, asked.

“There’s wine that the Kingdom of Tireno sent as a gift last week.”

When the new king’s coronation took place, delegations from other kingdoms had visited. At that time, everyone had sent gifts to the Winterborn family as well, wanting to make a good impression on the real power holders.

“Since you said there’s nowhere else to use it now, shall we send that?”

“No. That’s the highest grade.”

She wasn’t opposing it because it was wasteful.

“Then people will think we always eat and drink only such luxury items while the people starve.”

“Even when doing good deeds, we’d only give those who see us as thorns in their eyes ammunition to spread bad rumors.”

Roderick had the same thought.

“That we’re not giving what we cherish willingly for the people, but giving because we have too much.”

“We should make it look like we’re being generous despite our own lack of means.”

“Ah, I didn’t think of that.”

“Make all the gifts from domestic products. Even if they cost more, absolutely.”

Erica emphasized several times to engrave the family crest very large and visibly on the gifts so everyone would know, before moving on to the next instruction.

“And give one silver coin as a gift to all servants working at the count’s residence that day.”

“One silver coin to everyone? Isn’t that equivalent to a month’s wages for workers?”

“I know. But from the beginning, we need to engrave in everyone’s minds that we’re different from the marquis. And the best welfare is money after all.”

This was why the servants already loved Erica dearly.

“I dare say, I’m not sure if our current funds can handle this.”

“The funds are here.”

Thud.

Erica placed a bag she had been carrying under her arm on the table. Just from the bag’s shape and size, one could tell it contained quite a lot of money.

Like the chamberlain, Roderick’s first reaction was to wonder where the money had come from.

‘Don’t tell me……’

Roderick’s heart sank as he first checked Erica’s left hand. Then he felt relieved seeing the engagement ring in its place.

After the chamberlain took the money bag and left, and only the two remained, Erica revealed the source of the money.

“It’s money I received from selling high-grade magic stones that Snowball left after eating to Grandma Greta.”

“……You did business with Grandma?”

“Business? I was just going to give them to her, but Grandma said she wouldn’t take them for free.”

“Is it just my overactive imagination that you intended to give Grandma high-grade magic stones knowing she would say that?”

“The problem is you know me too well.”

Roderick helped Erica as she tried to sit up. Erica called a maid to fix her hair that had become disheveled from lying down while continuously checking the clock.

“At this rate, we’ll be late for the meeting. Let’s go quickly, captain of the guards.”

As Erica tried to get up, Roderick suddenly bent down.

“Sigh……”

A sigh naturally escaped Erica’s lips. Roderick was trying to lift her up like a princess again. Erica pushed his shoulders away and asked.

“Baby’s father.”

“Yes, wife.”

“Is our baby sick?”

“What? No, that’s nonsense……”

“Then why do you treat me like a patient when I’m carrying a baby?”

“……”

Roderick was momentarily speechless and flustered.

“You know I don’t mean it that way, wife.”

When he stubbornly tried to lift her up again without backing down, Erica whispered in his ear so the maid couldn’t hear.