Chapter 3│Read translated stories and daily updates at: Awebstories.com
The story goes back a little to the evening dinner at the home of the Marquess of Duston.
Leafa’s father, the Marquis of Daston, had been giving her some of his time.
Her father, who is Prime Minister at the Royal Palace and also manages the Marquess family estate, makes it difficult for her to see him, even as a daughter.
It is not uncommon for him to leave for work early in the morning, so you may not see him for the whole day.
When Leafa had important matters to discuss with her father, she arranged to meet him through his aide, Dan Norris.
Dan, a stern-looking middle-aged man, relaxed his eyes at Leafa’s unusual offer and agreed to the meeting.
“I’m sure the master will be happy to speak with you in private.”
Leafa decided to consider it a joke on Dan’s part, for she could not imagine her father, who was a tough man, being pleased.
“Leafa, it’s unusual for you to ask me for advice.”
It had been a long time since they had spoken beyond greetings, and her father seemed surprised.
Leafa’s mother, Tifa, and Dan Norris, were present in his study.
I’m sorry to bother you. I talked to Mother, and she said it would be best if I talked to Father.
The Marquis, again unusually, turns his gaze to his wife, Tifa. His wife, standing by his side, smiled serenely and nodded.
The epitome of a wife, she does not consult with her husband about every little thing in the house.
In other words, Leafa’s advice was the marquis’ business.
“Let’s hear it.”
The Marquis, who had absolute confidence in his wife’s judgment, listened to Leafa’s words.
“Yes, it’s about my fiancé, Kirk-sama.”
Leafa looked at her father and continued.
“Father, I wish to break my engagement to Kirk-sama.”
The Marquis did not change his face when his daughter asked him to do something quickly. He said,
“Hmm.”
“I understand that it was Grandfather’s arrangement.”
“Yes, Through the relationship between my predecessor and the former head of the Lagat family, a marriage was arranged for you, their grandchildren. “
In the beginning, the Marquesses of Duston, the most powerful of the five marquises, didn’t want to grow their power any more.
They would have too much power if they married into a powerful noble family. This would change the balance of power among the nobles.
Even the royal family, with whom they currently have a good relationship, may interpret this as a sign that they are willing to change their minds.
That’s why Leafa’s marriage partner was chosen from a lower-ranked count family that only had the former marquis as an acquaintance.
There were no extra fences in the way of breaking off the engagement.
“If I were to marry the Lagat family’s son, I wouldn’t say anything like this, no matter who it was, because it was Grandfather and Father’s decision.”
A noble’s marriage is a family affair.
No matter how much one may disagree, there is no room for emotion.
The Kingdom of Sarnina is a male-dominated country.
Women are expected to be chaste, but men are allowed to have multiple wives and mistresses.
Therefore, it did not matter to Leafa how many wives Kirk had or how many other women he flirted with in front of her.
Because Leafa had no feelings for Kirk except for the fact that he was going to be the son-in-law of her family.
But that incompetent fiancé with no control over his lower half had said something he shouldn’t have said in front of Leafa.
“Kirk-sama has made it clear that the child of his mistress will be the heir to the Marquess of Duston.”
The Marquess’s eyes widened at Leafa’s words.
Dan Norris’s smile froze on his face.
“I also owe Father an apology for this…”
Marquis, who had paused to think about what she had just said, focused on Leafa’s words.
Even for the Marquis, who treated matters of state with calm, this was too ridiculous to be shocking.
According to ordinary common sense, it was not something a son-in-law from a lowly county family would be allowed to say publicly.
However, what Leafa went on to say was even more shocking.
“As for Father’s assignment to Kirk-sama about the territory administration, I prepared it. Kirk-sama ordered me to do it.”
“Huh?”
A strange voice came from the always calm and collected Dan Norris.
It was Dan who gave the assignments.
Kirk came up with a lot of new ideas that were backed up by a lot of research data, and they could be used to solve problems in the territory if they were looked at carefully.
So, although Kirk’s reputation in life was not very good, Dan thought highly of him as the next Marquis of Duston.
“M-My Lady. In that case, you suggested that the lack of ingenuity in the flood control work in the territory could be solved by accepting the people of the Meisler territory…”
“I am.”
One of Leafa’s friends at school was the daughter of the Lord of Meisler.
Many Meisler residents make a living by fishing, but last year a big storm destroyed the fishermen’s boats.
Fortunately, no one was killed or injured, but 80% of the boats, which are the lives of the fishermen, were damaged by the storm.
People who make their living by fishing quickly become destitute.
The lords of Meisler spent their own money to help their people by repairing their boats and lowering taxes, but since there was no other industry except fishing, it was difficult for them to find other work.
To repair the ships, all the craftsmen in the area were mobilized, but the number of ships was so large and the cost of repair materials so high that it was difficult to keep up.
When Leafa heard such a story from her friend, she came up with the idea of accepting the people of Maisler’s territory as a creative means of flood control in the Marquis of Duston’s territory.
There were many fishermen who were good at hard work who were in short supply.
The distance between Maisler and Duston was only a day’s ride by wagon and back, so it would not be too difficult for them to travel to work.
In addition, the abundance of lumber and minerals produced in the Duston territories could also be used to repair ships.
By taking people in and providing resources as support from Duston to Maisler, they can maintain good relations with the Maisler, who is responsible for the protection of the sea.
As it is, it’s hard to figure out how to balance the costs of support and flood control work, as well as how important it is to keep good relations with the Maisler. Leafa thinks that the benefits to Duston territory are not small.
“That was a very good idea. Our people have already approached the Maisler territory, and we plan to begin accepting Maisler citizens in stages next month.”
“Thank you very much. I’m sure Milia-sama will be relieved.”
Leafa’s face broke into a smile at Dan’s words.
Lady Milia is the daughter of the Lord of Maisler.
“How long have you been working on the assignments?”
The Marquis looked dumbfounded, and Leafa said in a troubled tone.
“The very first assignment I made was to transport ore from the mine. I think I created all the ones after that.”
“Transporting the ore from the mines… wasn’t that from the beginning? So he’s been making Mylady do all the work! That little sh*t!”
Dan had the urge to kill Kirk, who was proudly explaining Leafa’s idea to Dan as if it was his own.
Not only that, he wanted to punch himself for looking forward to serving such an idiot.
The Marquis, noting that Dan’s complexion was darkening with anger, urged Leafa, who was still wanting to say something.
“Father, I thought there was nothing wrong with writing assignments on behalf of Kirk-sama. The job of a lord is to make decisions, and I thought a good aide or official would be enough to handle the affairs of the territory.”
Indeed, Leafa was right. The marquis, too, had relied on his aides and officials to help him manage his estates since he took office.
“And I understand that in aristocratic society, it is possible to have a child with a mistress as an heir…”
If Leafa couldn’t have a child, he could adopt one of his own blood relatives, or worse, as Kirk said, his mistress’s child could become the heir.
Well, it’s out of the question to declare it before marriage.
Leafa looks the Marquis of Duston straight in the eye.
“However, I am troubled by the fact that a person who is careless and does not even calculate the risk of breaking the engagement becomes the head of the family, even though he said before the marriage that he would take over the Marquis’ family by making his mistress’ child his successor.”
There is only one thing that Leafa feels Kirk is inadequate as a marriage partner.
He is too careless and too unaware of his position.
An engagement isn’t as stable as a marriage, but he has a bad attitude and bad behavior toward his superior fiancée.
If he had at least had the wisdom to keep it a secret until the marriage, he would have felt a little safer as the future head of the Marquess family.
In the royal court and among the nobility, it is common to laugh in the open and to maintain one’s power by using guile and intrigue in the background.
A single error in judgment can mean the difference between the rise and fall of a family.
“I don’t think an honest man like Kirk-sama, who is not good at hiding things, would be a good choice as our son-in-law.”
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