A special room in a detached building.
The candles burning on the chandelier brightly lit the room, but they couldn't even light up the shadow cast over Esily's face.
"Brother."
Seeing Esily glaring at her, Fred let out a low cough.
"Why?"
"Why not? He doesn't look like someone who would enjoy a ball in that outfit, by any means."
"What's wrong with my outfit?"
Fred, who was seated on the other side of the table, shrugged his shoulders casually. But only her sigh escaped from Esily's mouth.
That's right, now Fred was wearing a thick buff coat and a longsword at his waist. He even had a crossbow strapped to his back, so she couldn't tell whether the man in front of her was a hunter or an aristocrat.
She seemed to have a vague idea of what that outfit meant, but from Esily's point of view, she couldn't erase her regret.
"You're going to another strange place, aren't you?"
"Is this a strange place? I'm just having fun at the ball, getting drunk, and going out hunting in my youthful spirits."
"Who would believe such a lie?"
"I trust my sister. She will take good care of herself this time too."
Take something like that for granted. Esily poured her lips as she stared at her face.
"Instead, making excuses is now the limit. Not only his vassals, but also his servants, began to doubt him. Do I have to watch her gossip about not knowing where she is or what she is doing?"
"Sorry. But it can't be helped."
"What can't be helped?"
"That…"
Fred flicks his pigtail and looks at her. It's always like this. Esily, thinking that there was nothing special about it, reacted indifferently.
"To be honest, there are many ways to find out what you are doing. It's not like there aren't people in the county who are my eyes and ears. But I won't."
A thin smile crept across Fred's lips.
"Why?"
"Because I don't want to dig into the secret my brother is trying to keep."
"What. That's a bit exciting, seriously. Then tell me your information."
"It's too early to be impressed. Even if I don't dig out secrets, I can roughly predict what my brother is doing in the middle of the night."
"Okay? Then, shall we listen to our cute Esily's guess?"
"The death of the first brother. And Your Majesty the Emperor."
When the two clues are listed, the smile on Fred's lips disappears. Thanks to that, Esily's suspicions were confirmed.
"My brother still hates 'His Majesty the Emperor'. You don't consider the unfortunate event that occurred during the Orc Conquest War an accident. Yes?"
"Esley!!"
"I understand. I hate 'His Majesty the Emperor' too. It is incomprehensible that we continue to engage in small-scale local wars in the name of territorial defense or that we do not follow the trend of the times and pursue self-righteous foreign policies. But it must not lead to hatred for the Emperor."
"You got it wrong!!"
"No. I got it right. My dear brother, you shake your little finger every time you tell a lie. It still is."
The conversation, which started lightly, gradually became heavy. He certainly didn't mean anything to say when he came to enjoy the martial arts. But Esily did not back down.
"I don't know what you're plotting, but if it's for your family's sake, stop."
"I don't work for my family. It doesn't matter what happens to Count Pelgarin."
"Then, continue the legacy of Pelgarin for the sake of me and my father."
It's hard to get out of it because she pushes it so confidently. Fred sighed and leaned against the back of his chair.
"Are you telling me to become the next head of Pelgarin?"
"Since you ascended to heaven, you are at the top of the succession line. It's not like there's no other talented person to lead Pelgaroin other than you, my older brother."
"You have Maldon."
"That pig?"
Calling my other brother a pig, Fred laughed involuntarily.
"Okay. Because that pig is also my little brother. Are there any problems?"
"What kind of nonsense... Maldon is not the vessel to lead the family. How does a person who spends all day hanging around with slaves and being obscene to servants lead a family? Maldon is a maniac who believes that women's pilgrimage is his ability."
"Well. He's definitely not the kind of person to lead a family. Then your sister... no, you can become the head of the household."
Emily's face turned red at the sound of her mischievous words.
"No, don't even joke about it! As a woman, how can I lead the family?"
"Is it possible? You are the only one among us who seriously cares about the family."
"It is impossible. The retainers said they would make a fuss over the family tradition. Even if it isn't."
"You're smart, but you're young."
Fred interrupted her and stroked his chin solemnly. After staring at him for a while, Esily puffs out her cheeks curtly.
"Stop imitating our father."
"Haha. Sorry. Still, I wanted to tell you that it's not impossible at all. The vassals care more about the existence of the family than the tradition of the family. That way, the rice cake dumplings will fall on them too."
"What do you mean?"
"Someday you will find out. So that's what I'm saying: hold tight to Theorard. I didn't agree to marry you because I liked him only for his kind side."
Esily blinks her eyes blankly, as if she still doesn't understand. Fred then leaned over to Esily and tapped her on the table.
"Background. The fame of Viscount Deharm will give you tremendous power. The moment the support of the territories exceeds that of the vassals, the Countess of Pelgaroin will fall into your hands."
Esily's eyebrows were naturally furrowed at his coy and sticky tone.
"I didn't get engaged to Theorard with that in mind. Sincerely love… No, I got engaged because I liked him. Don't look at me as a snob."
"It's rough. Would you please stop treating your brother, who is advising his dear sister, that way?"
"Under. That's Okay. Saying more would only hurt your mouth, so let's go."
"It should be. Looking at your outfit, I think you'd better get out of here."
"What!"
Esily was hot, but Fred laughed and got up from her seat.
Looking at her wearing a dress that was close to her skin, expressing her body sensually, and even wearing expensive accessories that she didn't normally wear, it was evident that she was conscious of Theorad.
She went down to the mansion a few days ago and thought she had had a big fight with Theorard, but it seemed like it was overdue.
'Well, there's no way a relationship that was so affectionate would collapse overnight.'
Her sister's love business seemed to be going well, so he didn't seem to have much to worry about.
Fred waved his hand, wishing her a good day, and left the room.
"My brother doesn't know anything."
She is embarrassed for nothing, so she talks to herself.
This is what she wore to keep her dignity at the ball, not to impress Theorard. She had no desire to look good, at least not to 'bad Theorad', whom she had seen at her mansion a few days before.
Smart-
In the midst of clearing her troubled heart, she hears a knocking sound.
"Come in."
After Esily gave permission, the door opened, and a servant with a young face entered.
"Noble Lady Esily...!"
It was unfortunate in many ways to see her bowing unnaturally with such a high level of honor. She seemed to be a servant she had hired before moving, but she was quite uncomfortable with this excessive formality in the magazine.
"I am not a noble person, so there is no need to say that I am noble. Please feel free to call me Lady Esily."
Servent eyes widened.
"Young lady, no. How did I say your name?"
"It is natural to remember the faces and names of the family members you will be living with. Rather, could you tell me what brought you here?"
"Ah, yes. Actually, Viscount Theorad Deharm arrived at the annex just a while ago, and that's why he visited here on business to inform you."
Theorard arrived already? Esily nodded her head as she hardened her expression.
"Thank you for letting me know. I will go down a little later. So, please wait on the guests."
"Yep. All right, lady! As your command."
Esily gave a strong answer and closed the door.
'I'm sure that elf slaves will come too. Then....'
After staring at the place Servent had left, Esily got up from her seat and rummaged through the drawers near her.
It was because she suddenly came up with a way to find out Theorard's true feelings.
*
[Mc Pov]
Among the words of our ancestors, there are these verses.
To choose something, you have to give up something else.
So I made a bold decision. Even if my life was in danger, I couldn't hide my sincerity about Esily.
'I'm not sure if this is the right choice, but it's not a choice I'll regret.'
Rattle-
The carriage shakes once and then comes to a slow stop.
After waiting for a while, the driver opened the door.
"Bless the regent. We have arrived."
"Thank you."
Expressing my gratitude with a light glance, I got off the carriage and took a few steps forward.
Then, a man dressed smartly in a tailcoat rushes towards me. He seemed to be a servant of Pelgarin, who served as a helper at the party in the annex.
The servant came up to me and politely bowed his head.
"Your Excellency Regent. Are you here already?"
"Okay. I'm afraid I've come too early?"
"You don't have to worry about that. A lot of people are already gathering in the hall of the annex. When I saw the Regent's carriage entering the front gate, I also told Lady Esily that she should come down soon."
"Thank you for your hard work in the middle of your busy work."
"No. Because I just did what I was supposed to do. If you have more than that, please give it to me. I will guide you to the annex."
I brought a separate coat, but it was nothing to call it luggage.
"It's okay. I'll take this one myself. The distance from the outbuilding isn't that far, so I don't want to trouble you."
"Ah. From what I've heard, you're proud. Then I'll be presumptuous, but I'll be your companion even to the annex. Also, if you have any questions about the annex, feel free to ask. "
"It is. Let's go."
As I move my steps, a servant follows me to the side. As I walk along the road, I can hear the quiet singing of grass insects.
'This is freedom.'
For just one day, I could get away from the elf and live a happy life. I was about to start humming, but the attendant looked at me suspiciously.
"By the way, Your Excellency Regent."
"Yes? Speak."
"Do you know why you sent the slaves in the first place?"
"Are you talking about the elf slave? You seem to be misunderstanding something. I've never sent a slave to an outbuilding. Could my slave be in the annex?"
"Yes."