<CHAPTER 4>
The next day, after breakfast, the butler gave Elodie an easy-to-understand report on the financial state of the estate and the castle.
After hearing everything, Elodie fell into thought.
Beside her, Kabil quietly munched on some cookies.
Crunch, crunch.
The little sounds were oddly adorable.
Yet Norman, who sat across from her with those sounds filling the background, wore a gloomy expression.
“The taxes were raised far too much by His Grace, the former Duke, you see……”
Norman trailed off awkwardly, and Elodie nodded.
The situation was far from good. The former Duke had squandered a considerable portion of the family fortune, and he had also raised the tax rate excessively simply because the land was fertile. As a result, the number of people living in the territory had declined considerably.
It was an estate that was barely creaking along, but still somehow functioning.
Compared to the vast lands belonging to the duchy, it was undeniably poor.
“It seems the amount of taxes we can collect next year will decrease even further.”
Norman spoke with a worried expression.
“I understand. Thank you. If I have any more questions, I’ll call for you.”
“Understood, Your Grace.”
At Elodie’s words, Norman bowed his head and left.
Norman was filled with hope.
For some reason, he had the feeling that everything was going to work out.
“Strangely enough, I have that feeling……”
The former Duke and Duchess had cared nothing for the state of their territory and had been interested only in alcohol.
And after their deaths, they had discovered the heir—a young, wounded child who was terrified of adults.
Under such circumstances, having someone as mature as Elodie become the mistress of the house was nothing short of a stroke of luck.
In truth, Norman had never expected anything this grand from Elodie.
The reason they had brought a thirteen-year-old girl in as the lady of the house was simply so that she could help the young lord, who feared adults, adjust to life in the castle.
But for a thirteen-year-old young lady to worry about the state of the territory and even its finances…….
Norman praised his own decision once again, convinced that he had made the right choice.
Of course, nothing had actually been solved yet.
At most, there had been a few small changes.
Kabil no longer locked himself in his room crying like he used to. His wariness toward adults had eased somewhat, and every now and then, he even smiled.
Even so, Norman was filled with hope.
Strangely, whenever he looked at Elodie’s face, the uneasiness in his heart seemed to settle.
How could such a young girl’s impassive expression make him feel so reassured……?
Elodie had a peculiar talent for putting people at ease.
Even the castle servants, who had secretly worried about what would happen if a spendthrift Duchess came into the household, no longer seemed concerned.
On top of that, Elodie was kind to the servants as well.
“Perhaps that’s why all the servants seem to like Her Grace, too. What a relief.”
She was especially respectful toward Norman, the butler.
Even when he asked her to speak to him more casually, Elodie continued to treat him with the utmost courtesy.
Her reason was simple.
She could not bring herself to disregard an old and loyal retainer of the ducal family.
Norman took out a handkerchief and dabbed at the corners of his eyes.
Perhaps he was simply becoming more prone to tears with age.
Everything felt as though it was going to turn out well.
It had been an incredibly long time since he had felt such hope.
“Yes. Everything will be all right…… Surely!”
And that premonition soon became reality.
“Pardon? A hidden vault?”
A few days later, Norman stared down at Elodie in bewilderment as she suddenly came looking for him.
“Yes! Come with me!”
Elodie had found the hidden vault belonging to the ducal family and immediately dragged Norman along with her.
Norman hurried after Elodie as she practically skipped along, looking utterly astonished.
For several days, Elodie had put everything else aside and devoted herself entirely to searching for the vault.
“Where on earth did I find it again?”
The novel had never specified exactly where it was, so she had struggled quite a bit to locate it.
Eventually, she found the vault left behind by the former Duke’s father—in other words, Kabil’s grandfather.
It was hidden in the dusty study that Kabil’s grandfather had once used.
There was a secret door directly beneath the desk.
“It’s locked. Where could the key be……?”
The vault was firmly locked, but Elodie did not bother searching for the key.
Instead, she grabbed a long metal rod and used the principle of leverage.
In simple terms, she just pried it open by force.
CRACK!
With a harsh, ominous sound, the wooden cover sprang open.
“Whoa……”
As soon as the vault opened, an enormous amount of gold bars, gold coins, and jewels was revealed.
Of course, it was not enough money to feed everyone in the castle for the rest of their lives, but there was certainly enough to get them through next year even without collecting taxes.
There was also a letter.
It was a long-winded letter from Kabil’s grandfather, filled with one nagging complaint after another directed at his son, the former Duke.
Apparently, he had expected that his wastrel son would eventually find the vault after his death.
“Oh…… How could this be……”
Norman burst into tears as he read the letter.
Elodie watched the butler for a moment before turning her gaze back to the gold bars, her eyes gleaming.
“How should I spend this money so that people will say I put it to good use?”
Elodie pondered.
First of all, there was something she wanted to do for her Kabil……
“Norman, it’s all right for me to use this fortune, isn’t it?”
“Pardon? Of course. Everything belonging to the ducal family belongs to His Grace and Your Grace.”
“Then use some of these gold coins to reinforce the knights.”
“Pardon?”
“I have no intention of wasting it on luxuries. But we do need to spend it on things that must be done.”
“……You’re right, Your Grace.”
Norman had already stopped crying. He nodded at Elodie.
“He’s really an innocent man.”
Elodie clicked her tongue inwardly as she watched Norman obediently nod along.
Norman was trusting by nature and had a great deal of affection for others.
That must have been why he had brought Elodie here without realizing what kind of person she was.
But now that she had become Elodie……
“I suppose that means I have excellent judgment.”
What was even more surprising was that Norman did not ask why she wanted to reinforce the knights.
He simply trusted Elodie without question.
“If I told him to buy one of those miracle health mats, he’d probably empty his entire fortune.”
In fact, Elodie was more worried about Norman than anything else.
For the time being, she intended to spend some of the money on the knights.
The ducal family had a large number of knights, but ever since the former Duke’s death, they had practically stopped training.
Elodie wanted to turn the knights into a powerful force that could eventually accompany Kabil to war.
“That way, both Kabil and the knights will be safe.”
Of course, there was another reason as well.
The former Duke had been a useless lord who had not cared a whit about his territory, but he had still been a Duke.
Now, however, the duchy was ruled by a young Duke.
There was always a chance that someone might look down on them and attempt to raid the territory.
That was why Elodie was in such a hurry to reinforce the knights.
And there was one person perfectly suited for the job.
“You want me to take temporary command?”
Brienne Bedos stared down at Elodie as though she had just said something absurd.
“Yes. Until Kabil grows up and takes over the position of commander himself.”
“……I’m already overwhelmed just teaching His Grace. I’m actually quite a busy man, you know.”
“You don’t even have a wife or children. What are you pretending to be so busy for?”
Brienne stopped breathing for a moment and stared at Elodie in shock.
Who would have thought a girl this young could hit him where it hurt……?
It was an attack he had never experienced before, and he was too stunned to react.
“You don’t even have a lover.”
Another bone snapped.
Brienne stared down at Elodie with a wounded expression.
“So please reinforce the knights for Kabil.”
“But reorganizing the knights will require money……”
“We have plenty of money, so call the knights together and resume their training for now. Recruit apprentice knights as well, and increase the number of guards.”
“……Understood.”
Putting the right people in the right places.
That was what mattered most.
Elodie dumped a mountain of work on Brienne, then took Kabil’s hand and headed back into the castle.
And then she began her own work.
“And so, the princess and the prince lived happily ever after in the gingerbread house.”
Her work consisted of eating cookies with Kabil and reading him fairy tales.
It was a scene that would have made Brienne complain bitterly about the unfairness of life had he seen it.
But this was important work for Kabil’s proper emotional and intellectual development, so Elodie took it very seriously.
Although Kabil was seven years old, his development was delayed to the point where he could do almost nothing on his own.
That was why Elodie spent most of each day with him.
They ran around together in the garden and played with mud, making all sorts of things.
She even made simple toys for him out of scraps of fabric discarded by the maids.
“That was fun, wasn’t it? Should I read you one more?”
After finishing the fairy tale, Elodie closed the book.
As she rummaged through the books for the next one, Kabil’s eyes lit up.
“A gingerbread house sounds amazing. Madam! We don’t have a gingerbread house?”
“Hmm?”
“We don’t have our own house?”
Kabil asked with an innocent expression.
“What are you talking about? This is our house.”
“This is?”
“Yes. You’re not going back to an orphanage. This is our home. We…… You’re going to live here for the rest of your life.”
I’ll be leaving because I’m getting divorced, though.
At Elodie’s words, Kabil nodded.
“Then I don’t have to go back to the orphanage?”
“Why would you go there? Kabil, your home is here.”
If anyone has to go there, it’ll be me. Though I won’t be visiting out of kindness. I’ll be going back for revenge.
Elodie’s firm words were enough to put Kabil at ease, and his face brightened.
“I like living here with you forever, Madam!”
“……Sure, why not.”
Hearing him say that when he would eventually fall in love with a princess in the original story made her feel a little bittersweet.
“It would be nice if we had a gingerbread house, too!”
Kabil’s innocent words brought a smile to Elodie’s lips.
“No, Kabil. A gingerbread house……”
“Hmm?”
“It would attract ants.”
“……”
I hate ants…….
At Elodie’s firm declaration, Kabil’s expression fell slightly.
She hadn’t wanted to crush his childhood dreams like this, but……
Kabil had an especially strong sweet tooth.
It was probably because he had never been able to eat sweets at the orphanage.
For Kabil’s health, Elodie strictly controlled the amount of snacks he was allowed to have.
He needs to grow big and strong.
Hmm? Come to think of it……
“Kabil, will you stand up?”
“Hmm?”
“You seem a little taller.”
It had not been long since she started feeding him properly, yet he already seemed slightly taller than before.
They say children grow every time you blink. How satisfying.
He still had a long way to go before he caught up with children his age, but even so, the change made Elodie proud.
Elodie led Kabil over to the wall.
Then she made a mark at his height.
“Let’s record our heights here every year.”
She measured her own height as well.
Of course, she was noticeably taller than Kabil.
“When you grow up, Kabil, you’ll be taller than me.”
At Elodie’s words, Kabil’s eyes widened in surprise.
He looked adorable.
“Really?”
“Of course.”
In the original novel, Kabil had been described as an exceptionally tall and handsome man.
Just imagining what he would look like made Elodie feel proud already.
If you want, I can also keep a **running master glossary of every character/name/title introduced in this novel** so the spellings remain identical across all future chapters.
