25 - Not Your Son, But Your Father
Chapter 25
Even when I walked right up to him, Procyon, who had been staring at the ground, only looked up after his name was called.
"Lord Procyon."
Perhaps he had felt someone approaching but assumed it was one of the knights coming out to stretch their stiff bodies, so he remained still. As soon as he heard my voice, Procyon automatically stood at attention.
"Yes, Grand Duchess! Is there something you require...?"
His stiff, rigid posture clearly showed he was watching my every move.
I spoke as gently as possible.
"You were very surprised yesterday, weren't you? I was too harsh. I apologize."
Procyon inhaled sharply and couldn't seem to exhale. His eyes darted around wildly.
"Grand... Grand Duchess?"
"I know you didn't deliberately rob the sweet potato store. I trust you, Lord Procyon."
Even with my insincere consolation, the 18-year-old boy's eyes reddened.
"Grand Duchess... sniff..."
Overcome with emotion, Procyon couldn't continue speaking.
He really must like sweet potatoes...
Yesterday, when I subtly glanced at the sweet potatoes and made a comment, he immediately gave them up, so I had just assumed he bought them in bulk because they were cheap.
When we arrive in the North, I should buy him a cart full of sweet potatoes. Right now, Procyon is in charge of cooking, so he made a ruthless decision, but as long as he doesn't try to feed them to me, I don't care.
I gave the sobbing Procyon a reassuring eye smile.
Procyon pressed his palms against his nose and stammered out his true feelings before I could even mention a reward.
"I'm sorry, Grand Duchess. In fact, until just now, I had a huge misunderstanding about you."
Huh?
"A misunderstanding?"
"For a moment, I thought you might be as scary, ruthless, and unforgiving to loyal subordinates as our lord... But now I'm sure that's not the case! It was all a misunderstanding born from my ignorance!"
Procyon, with his chest puffed out as if he had nothing to be ashamed of, looked at me with sparkling eyes, as if seeking praise.
He seemed absolutely certain that Edith would never hear the words he had just spoken, let alone me.
Scary and ruthless? Unforgiving to subordinates?
That was too much of a distortion.
I stared at Procyon with narrowed eyes.
The youngest son of a Count's family with eleven sons really had a lot of nerve.
I saw Edith, who had been watching from afar, turn away with a face struggling to suppress laughter.
His Grand Duchess was almost stuck with an unfair reputation, and he was just enjoying it.
"So, I'll become your loyal subject from now on!"
Suddenly?!
A knight's oath of loyalty wasn't something anyone could receive casually. Besides, Procyon was a knight from a noble family.
"You don't have to force yourself—"
"I'm not forcing myself at all! I want to become your loyal subject and tell the truth to people who, like me, have a big misunderstanding about you!"
I was gradually becoming burdened by this innocent young knight.
Since Procyon was a knight of the Grand Duke's family anyway, it wasn't strange for him to want to become a loyal subject of the Grand Duchess. However, given Procyon's cheerful and somewhat harmful personality, I had a feeling it would become incredibly troublesome.
To Procyon, who was playing all the instruments himself, I decided to temporarily become a family-like superior, though it pained me to do so.
"Lord Procyon, how much is your salary?"
It was a somewhat random question, but Procyon, impressed by me, answered honestly.
"Uh, excluding hazard pay, the regular amount I receive is about 1.5 million marks."
"You get paid more than the knights in the capital? But what have you been doing until now, Lord Procyon?"
At my gentle question, the Count's eleventh son looked confused, unsure if he was being scolded or not.
"That... cooking...?"
I nodded to show that I was listening intently.
"That's right. You cooked as I asked. And in your free time, you went out and had fun with Lord Vega."
"..."
Procyon took a step back.
Where are you going, young master?
"While the other knights were busy filling the vacancies of the runaway servants, you teased them by saying the Grand Duchess only told you to cook and showed off your souvenirs, right?"
"Th-that's because it was my first time in the capital..."
Procyon hurriedly stuffed a bracelet with delicate red flowers into his sleeve.
His face was quickly turning tearful, like a large dog.
He was like a cousin who was fun to tease.
"I see."
"Y-yes..."
"..."
"Um... can I go now...?"
I wasn't even thinking of hitting him, but Procyon cowered.
I pretended to be purely surprised.
"You're really amazing, Lord Procyon. I was so impressed by your boldness in traveling around the capital, which is a completely different environment from the North, without being intimidated."
"Huh?"
"I think I've underestimated you too much. So, as a sign of apology, I'd like you to escort the carriage that Edith and I are riding in. Can you do that?"
"Um, excuse me?"
"I want to prove how much I trust you. You have the talent to lead the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess's carriage all the way to the North."
Procyon's face turned pale in an instant.
"W-would it be possible to just walk to the North instead?"
I smiled brightly and cut off any other options.
"We'll be leaving in ten minutes."
I turned away to go to Edith when Procyon called out to me desperately.
"Your Highness! Grand Duchess!"
"The weather is really nice today. Isn't it, Raven?"
When I spoke to him, Raven cawed happily.
On the other hand, Procyon was on the verge of tears, like a broken faucet.
"I was wrong! Just hit me! I'll take it!"
Oh dear.
"Lord, I hate violence."
"Caw?"
Raven made a noise as if to say, "What nonsense," but it bounced off without reaching my conscience.
* * *
The closer we got to the North, the colder it felt. Procyon peeked his head through the small window connected to the driver's seat and said,
"Grand Duchess, we're almost there."
Procyon had looked like he was about to die when he first took charge of the carriage, but now he was constantly talking to me, saying he was bored. Occasionally, with a determined look, he would ask Edith if the weather wasn't nice, seeking her agreement.
And if Edith showed even the slightest reaction, indicating that she was listening, he would be so moved that he looked like he was about to die.
I felt strange every time Procyon gave me a look that said, "Thank you for rolling me around."
I guess you need this kind of mentality to become a confidant of the male lead in the future.
I suddenly looked back at Edith. Her face, which had been like a sculpture carved from moonlight, instantly gained vitality and formed a crescent-shaped smile.
Come to think of it, who is Edith's confidant?
Edith wasn't completely indifferent, as she had even assigned nannies to Gilbert and Rigen.
She wouldn't have not made a confidant. She just lived in seclusion because she thought the Grand Duchy could function reasonably well without her.
I tried to recall the contents of the novel. There were so few scenes with Edith that I had memorized them quickly.
<Grand Duke Kalakis summoned his aide.>
<The Grand Duke ordered his aide.>
But who is that aide?
His name wasn't revealed, and his appearance wasn't described.
Everything, including gender, age, and position, was shrouded in mystery.
Hmm. It's probably not one of the knights here.
They followed Edith to the capital, but they were actually more affectionate towards me.
If we got any closer, Procyon might think of me as a rich cousin who left home when she was young but returned after making a name for herself. He would probably reveal his financial situation without hesitation.
I brushed the ominous feeling out of my head and opened my lips.
"You've worked hard. What are you going to do first when you arrive, Lord Procyon?"
"I would never want to be as far away from the Grand Duchess as possible... Of course, I must purify my body and mind and wait until I receive new orders! Hahaha!"
Procyon decided to assist me for the time being even after arriving in the North. When Edith nodded at his words for the first time, he couldn't contain his emotions and volunteered himself. He also repeated that he wanted to become my loyal subject.
He said it was all thanks to me. But he seemed to be regretting those words now.
Looking at him, Procyon was the type to walk the path of hardship himself.
I leaned against Edith's shoulder and watched the passing scenery outside the window. It usually took more than fifteen days to travel from the capital to the North, but we were traversing it in less than a week. Every night, we went to a town and stayed in a luxury hotel without any problems.
However, I didn't sleep with Edith. With Edith's consideration for me to rest comfortably, I took Sera and Raven and occupied the suite.
Anyway, Edith said we came quickly by using a shortcut, but considering the knights mentioned traffic control, it didn't seem like a commonly used road.
I could feel the temperature dropping with each passing day. On the sixth day since we left, my breath fogged up when I opened my lips.
As Sera wrapped a fur cloak around me, Procyon called out to me cheerfully.
"It's there, it's there. Grand Duchess, can you see the emerald gate? Once we pass that, we're in the North. Esmeralda."
