When Asha first heard about the idea of a couple's portrait with Carlyle, she was a little excited to be captured in the same frame with him. However, after listening to Lionel's explanation of what kind of clothes they should wear and what kind of poses they should take, she started to feel lukewarm about it.
'I have to wear uncomfortable clothes and pretend to be affectionate.'
Asha had to wear a five-piece jewelry set of (a tiara, necklace, earrings, bracelet, and ring), wear a dress that matched with the jewelry and even had to have her make-up done, then sit on a chair holding Carlyle's hand, who would be standing next to her.
It was very different from what she had expected, which was to wear something neat and comfortable and sit for an hour or so.
Carlyle, seeing the look on Asha's face, pretended to be serious and coaxed her.
"This is your duty as a member of the imperial family. Please do your best, even if it's unfamiliar."
"Yes…"
Carlyle felt a little relieved when he saw Asha chewing on the food she had been eating so deliciously until just now.
***
Immediately after Dorothea arrived at Pervaz Castle, the first harvest of crops sown in late June throughout the whole of Pervaz began.
After the battle with the Igram tribe ended, guests arrived from the capital to meet with Carlyle, causing Pervaz to be more vibrant and busier than ever before.
However, Carlyle was frowning because of the not-so-welcome news he had received.
"This is truly ridiculous…"
The urgent letter sent by Nest's Pete contained information obtained by chance from the side of Matthias.
…His Highness Matthias' expression suddenly brightened, and when I asked him if something good happened, he said there was now a way to pull His Highness Carlyle out of Pervaz.
That exact method is 'annulment of marriage', meaning to gather evidence that the marriage between His Highness and the Count of Pervaz had malicious intent or that the two are not living as a couple, and to announce the marriage as invalid…
Lionel, who had been reading the letter beside him, looked at Carlyle with a serious face.
"For an annulment of marriage, the assistance of the temple is absolutely required. In other words, either this method itself originated from High Priest Gabriel, or it's a matter already agreed upon with him."
"I said it. That person, Gabriel Knox, there's something off about him."
To have a priest state that they would take away the marital blessing they bestowed – this was a matter God would look down upon and find absurd.
"Matthias, that guy, seems to be a bit crazed with impatience."
"Indeed. To the point where he divulges these secrets to his surrounding aides…"
"The Empress raised a Crown Prince as big as an idiot."
"Purposefully, I'm sure. Because she needed a Crown Prince who obeyed her well."
"Where power gathers, it becomes cruel."
Carlyle laughed mockingly.
He had never experienced any familial affection living in the Imperial Palace. Not knowing what his dead biological mother was like, he didn't feel it in Gould County either.
That's why he was truly curious towards Pervaz.
How could everyone care for each other so much even when everything collapsed and they held nothing in their hands?
"Lionel. Shall we go out to get some fresh air?"
"Where would you like to go?"
"Just… to wander and watch the harvest or something."
Quickly grasping Carlyle's stuffy inner feelings, Lionel wordlessly prepared an outing under the name 'territory patrol'.
Exiting outside the castle was an excellent decision.
Feeling the cool breeze as he slowly rode his horse, his mood changed.
The atmosphere of the estate was also quite lively, not fitting for a place recently raided by savages.
"Now it finally looks like a place where people live."
Carlyle muttered.
When they first entered Pervaz, it was difficult to find a single person even after looking around the carriage, but now the fields were filled with people sitting and harvesting crops.
Even though it must have been hard to sit hunched over all day digging up the soil, everyone had a happy and satisfied look on their faces.
"And it seems like the people are healthier than before."
"That's what it should look like to the guests from Zyro."
"To others, they won't look like they're starving."
After the relief crops were distributed first, followed by the materials to make bread, the number of people dying in Pervaz decreased significantly.
In other words, it meant that there were many people who could have been saved if their nutritional status had been only slightly better.
Realizing that Pervaz's situation was so bad that deaths like starvation were rampant, Carlyle began to understand Asha's desperation a little.
"I heard we're going to have a harvest festival at the end of this month."
"Oh, I heard that too. It's the first harvest festival in Pervaz, right? It seems like Countess Pervaz is anticipating it quite a bit."
"She's excited like a child."
Asha declared that Pervaz would also hold a harvest festival this year.
The empire-wide harvest festival was on the second Thursday of October, but the further north you went, the later the harvest, so each territory held its own harvest festival.
Of course, Pervaz had never held a harvest festival before.
"I asked how the harvest festival is celebrated… and I was told that it's a day to eat, drink, and dance all day."
"Well, that's not too different."
He didn't tell them the complicated procedures, such as offering some of the harvested grain to the temple, slaughtering cows and sheep in the courtyard of the lord's castle, and holding a thanksgiving prayer meeting or blessing mass presided over by a priest.
After all, Pervaz had neither a temple nor cows or sheep to slaughter.
However, the meaning of the harvest festival, "to thank the gods for the food they have provided," seemed to be more fitting for the hearts of Asha and her people now.
The deepest gratitude for the fact that something had sprouted from the land that had been trampled on for so long and that it had borne fruit. And the joy, even tinged with sadness, that they could feed their families.
"Do they need anything else to celebrate the harvest festival?"
Carlyle said, feeling somewhat happy.
Just then, Asha, who was patrolling the territory on horseback, spotted Carlyle and Lionel and approached them.
"What brings Your Highness and Sir Bailey here?"
Her face shone like sun-ripened grain, perhaps because she had just seen the crops piled up in the fields of the territory.
"Even though I'm like this, I'm still also Count Pervaz. It's the first harvest of the territory, so I have to check it out."
Carlyle replied with a joke.
But at that, Asha's expression turned a little surprised, and then she smiled, spreading her lips from left to right. Even Lionel, who always had a hard time reading Asha's expressions, could tell that she was happy.
Absolutely! Here's a literal translation of the Korean text, keeping in mind that it may sound awkward or unusual in English because of this direct approach:
Carlyle was so captivated by that smile that he forgot what he had said.
"Thank you for thinking this much about Pervaz. To be honest… I didn't expect it…"
Carlyle couldn't correct himself that he had actually just come out to get some fresh air because of that attitude that seemed somewhat shy.
"Hmm, yes, is the harvest going well? It seems like you've mainly planted relief crops…"
"We planted wheat, but the harvest is next year. The crops we will harvest this time are potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, turnips, oats, and so on."
After hearing the story, Carlyle recalled Asha explaining part of the seed sowing plan when describing the use plan for the materials and money he had previously sent down.
At that time, I thought Asha must have 'naturally' embezzled money….
Looking back now, it occurred to me that I didn't know Asha Pervaz well at all.
"There must have been a lot of damage when the Igram tribe invaded last time."
"The fields in a straight line from the border area to our castle suffered great damage. But they didn't touch other places because they came the shortest distance."
"That's fortunate."
"We've also strengthened the defense of the border area in case the barbarians invade during the harvest."
Asha was determined as if the success or failure of this year depended on this harvest.
Well, if this farming fails, the morale of the people of the Pervaz territory will hit rock bottom. Conversely, if the harvest is large, the despair and sadness of so long will be replaced with hope and joy at once.
Asha couldn't help but be desperate.
"Until when is the harvest?"
"We're checking now, but it will probably be over by the end of this week. Frost may fall as early as next week."
"Already?"
"Don't forget that this is the northernmost part of the empire."
Imagining the cold winter of Pervaz, which is 'so cold that even your balls will shrink', Carlyle decided to tell his servants to take out his winter clothes by the end of this week.
"Did you say the harvest festival is next Wednesday?"
"Yes. I'm asking Sir Bailey and preparing for this and that. It may not be enough in the eyes of those who came from Zyro, but I hope you enjoy it together."
"Just prepare enough alcohol. Then the rest will be taken care of."
"Ahaha! That might be true."
Carlyle realized that this was the first time Asha had laughed out loud at something he said.
'Definitely… she's excited.'
Otherwise, she wouldn't be Asha Pervaz who smiles so defenselessly in front of him.
***
Fortunately, there were no barbarian attacks during the harvest. It seemed that they were still wary of the fact that there were foreign soldiers in Pervaz after the last surprise attack.
Thanks to this, the Harvest Festival was able to start without any major problems.
"Lord! The alcohol and meat have arrived from Elsir!"
"Is that the last wagon?"
"Yes. It seems that what we already have is enough, so I think we can keep this as an emergency supply."
"Good. Hand it over to the kitchen."
The food and alcohol that had been ordered in advance a few weeks ago had been arriving steadily since the day before, and with the addition of the last wagon just received, there would definitely be more than enough.
"Isn't this too much?"
Decker was worried enough to ask about the amount of alcohol and food he had never seen before in his life.