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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 36
Chapter Title: A Trip Home
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[To my dearest Lari,
The weather has grown quite warm lately.
Are you staying healthy and well?
The reason I’m writing to you today is that we’ve heard from the County of Gusto.
They said you sent Gregory a notice breaking off your engagement. Is this true?]
“Ugh.”
Reading the letter absentmindedly, I flinched, my shoulders tensing.
“What? What’s wrong?”
The Duchess, who was sitting beside me, turned to look at me with a bewildered expression.
But I forgot to even answer as I hurriedly read the rest of the letter.
[I’m not writing to scold you about the broken engagement.
I trust that our daughter knew what she was doing.
However, I would like to hear the details, so would you come down to the Viscounty of Ansi for a visit?
It’s been far too long since I’ve seen your face, Lari.
—With love, Mom]
That was how the letter ended.
I felt a sharp prick of guilt.
‘Right, I never told my parents I broke off the engagement…’
I had sent the notice in a fit of anger, after all.
And after that, with the Duchy’s salon and the vassal meetings, I’d been so incredibly busy…
“Honestly, Lady Ansi!”
Just then, the Duchess called out to me, her cheeks puffed out in displeasure.
“Yes, yes!”
Snapping back to my senses, I turned to her.
The Duchess asked me sullenly.
“What kind of letter is it?”
“Ah… well.”
I folded the letter, slipped it back into the envelope, and replied.
“My parents are asking me to come down to the Viscounty of Ansi for a bit.”
“The Viscounty of Ansi?”
The Duchess’s eyes went wide.
I nodded.
“Because I broke off my engagement with the County of Gusto. It seems they want to hear an explanation.”
Of course, I knew they wouldn’t be too angry.
My parents had never been fond of my engagement to Gregory from the start.
‘Come to think of it, I broke my parents’ hearts by stubbornly insisting I would marry Gregory…’
I fought back the sigh that threatened to escape.
Why on earth was I so obsessed with Gregory back then?
I shouldn’t have been.
Not to the point of hurting the people who cherished me…
But just then.
‘Hm?’
Feeling a strange prickling on my cheek, I glanced to the side.
And I saw it.
The Duchess, her eyes sparkling, muttering to herself as if she wanted me to overhear.
“Ahh, I’d love to visit the Viscounty of Ansi someday.”
“…”
“Lady Ansi and I even signed a friendship contract.”
“…”
“I hear friends are supposed to introduce each other to their families.”
“…”
“I even introduced you to my brother.”
…How could I possibly pretend not to notice when she was so blatantly saying, “Take me with you!”?
I gave a wry smile and asked the Duchess.
“Would you like to come with me?”
“Yes, I’ll go!”
The Duchess exclaimed, thoroughly delighted.
But that was only for a moment.
“W-Well, it was Lady Ansi who asked me to come along.”
She added coyly, for no reason.
“O-Of course, I did say I wanted to go. But it was Lady Ansi who invited me!”
“Of course. I suggested it because I wanted to go with you, Your Grace.”
“Right? I’m not forcing you to take me, am I?”
Only then did the Duchess flash a radiant smile.
* * *
…In any case, that was why the Duchess and I were now riding in a carriage together.
Gazing out the window, the Duchess rested her chin on her hand and muttered sullenly.
“Honestly, you have no idea how much my brother nagged me right before we left.”
“Nagged you?”
I tilted my head.
The Duchess pouted.
“He told me not to bother you, Lady Ansi.”
Then, her shoulders slumped, and she asked in a pitiful voice.
“You know, Lady Ansi… am I a bother…?”
“Of course not.”
I shook my head with a gentle smile.
It felt like watching a once-aloof pedigree cat slowly turn into a lap cat.
At first, I had been so nervous because I didn’t know how to act around her.
But seeing her treat me so warmly now made me feel a little proud…
“Right? I’m not a bother, am I?”
Her spirits lifted in an instant, and the Duchess started to grumble.
“But my brother does nothing but pick on me. Do you know what he said to me?”
Her expression hardened as she perfectly mimicked the Duke.
“You, don’t wander off. Stay put. I’ll come get you myself when it’s time to return.”
“*Pfft.*”
I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
‘Oh my gosh, that’s a perfect impression!’
After a moment of stifled giggles, I wiped a tear from my eye and asked.
“But what did he mean by coming to get you? I don’t quite understand…”
“Oh, my brother said he’s also going on a business trip to the south.”
“A business trip?”
For the Duke himself to make the trip, it must be something quite important.
The Duchess gave a casual shrug.
“The Duchy recently invested in a southern fleet. He said he has to look into something related to that.”
“Ah…”
I thought I knew what she meant.
The Viscounty of Ansi was located in the south, right by the sea.
Most of its people were involved in fishing and trade, and several merchant companies had established headquarters in the south to operate their trade fleets.
I knew there was one in the Viscounty of Ansi as well. If I remembered the name correctly…
“By any chance, is the fleet the Duke invested in the one belonging to the Wright merchants?”
“Huh? How did you know that, Lady Ansi?”
The Duchess’s eyes widened like a startled rabbit’s.
I shrugged lightly.
“The Wright merchant company is the largest among the southern traders. So I just took a guess.”
“I heard the Viscounty of Ansi is famous as a resort destination. You have merchant headquarters there too?”
“Yes, well…”
I smiled bitterly.
What the Duchess said was true.
Though the Viscounty of Ansi was small, it was a rather wealthy territory, thanks to the combined income from tourism and trade.
Which was probably why Gregory, hoping to gain the title of Viscount of Ansi for himself, had maintained our engagement despite his dislike for me…
Just then.
“Honestly, such a workaholic… Oh, look at that!”
The Duchess, who had been complaining about her brother, stuck her head out the window and shouted.
“Look, I can see the sea!”
We were close to the Viscounty of Ansi.
* * *
The main house of the Viscounty of Ansi.
The three-story mansion where I had lived since I was a child welcomed me.
The sight was so familiar it brought a lump to my throat.
As soon as I stepped out of the carriage, I ran toward my parents.
“Mom, Dad!”
“Lari!”
My parents beamed at me.
They looked exactly as I remembered, and for some reason, my heart felt full.
However, things were a little different for my parents.
“D-Duchess Claudius.”
The moment the Duchess appeared from inside the carriage, my parents froze solid…
“It is an honor to meet you, Your Grace.”
“We are truly honored to have you here, Your Grace.”
Swallowing nervously, my parents greeted the Duchess with the utmost courtesy.
The only problem was…
‘Mom and Dad… they look like their minds have gone blank.’
No, even a wind-up doll wouldn’t move that stiffly!
Then again, it wasn’t that hard to understand.
I had sent a letter ahead to inform them, but this was Duchess Claudius herself visiting.
‘I was incredibly nervous when I first met her, too.’
And that was when I had been the one to request the meeting.
But for my parents, this was like being struck by lightning out of a clear blue sky.
‘Lady Ansi, what do I do?’
Facing my rigid parents, the Duchess looked back at me, her eyes quaking.
