Chapter 23: A Large Order
‘Sigh, am I crazy?’
Loic secretly sighed as he met the Grand Duchess’s gaze.
The first thought that came to his mind when he saw her pout was, “Cute.”
‘But it’s true that she’s incredibly cute.’
The strange thing would be not finding her adorable after seeing that expression.
In the end, Loic felt the need to justify himself and confessed the truth.
“Tomorrow, the entire knight order has training, so I’ll be at the training grounds all day.”
“The entire order?”
“It’s the quarterly training inspection.”
“So all the knights will be there?”
“Everyone who has been officially became a knight, yes.”
Hearing that, the Grand Duchess’s eyes lit up with curiosity.
“Can I come to watch?”
“No.”
“Of course!”
Loic and Perel spoke at the same time.
‘This guy.’
Loic shot Perel a cold look, making him clamp his mouth shut in realization.
“No, you can’t.”
“Why not?”
There were plenty of reasons.
Because you’re the daughter of a marquis.
The training of the Blenheim Knights was a top-secret matter. Even the staff of the Grand Duke’s estate were not allowed to observe, let alone someone who would return to the capital in a year.
‘But saying that will definitely upset her.’
Loic tried to sound casual.
“It’s just training. There’s nothing interesting to see for outsiders…”
“Outsider?”
The Grand Duchess’s expression fell as she blinked sadly.
“That’s too much. I’m officially a part of Blenheim now, I’m married to you.”
Loic flinched.
That look again.
‘Get a grip, Loic. You agreed to keep your distance.’
Loic tried to avoid her gaze, but she suddenly pointed at Perel.
“My wedding officiant is standing right here, and you still treat me like an outsider? I can still feel the ring Perel placed on my finger.”
The ring on her fourth finger gleamed under the sunlight.
“Right, Perel?”
“Ah… well, Your Highness…”
Perel nervously glanced at Loic.
‘Wait… was that a wedding ring?’
Loic blinked in confusion.
It was definitely Perel who prepared the ring. Loic had never even thought about picking one himself.
Realizing this, he suddenly found himself at a loss for words.
“Are you worried I’ll spy on your training?”
As Loic stood there, speechless, Perel hurried to smooth things over.
“Of course not, Your Highness!”
“I’m not asking to watch the whole thing. I’ll just drop by briefly.”
The Grand Duchess took a small step closer.
“Besides, I need to formally meet the knights at some point, right? Wouldn’t it be convenient to do it while they’re all gathered?”
‘Meet the knights?’
Loic was taken aback.
“Wait… Your Highness.”
The Grand Duchess narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
“Don’t tell me… you never planned on introducing me to them?”
A cold sweat ran down his back.
Honestly, he hadn’t even thought about it.
He had only agreed to let her stay in the estate for a year, nothing more. Since he never intended to welcome a Grand Duchess into his life, he hadn’t bothered to consider the formalities.
When the knights had insisted on an introduction, Loic had been too busy planning how to send her back to the capital to take it seriously.
‘I really am the worst husband.’
Now that he thought about it, he hadn’t treated her properly as a Grand Duchess even once.
Sigh.
The Grand Duchess glanced at his guilty expression and let out a triumphant sigh.
“Duke, please arrange a meeting with the knights during the training. Can you do that?”
“…Alright.”
Loic reluctantly nodded.
Perel, looking equally relieved, quickly added,
“The majority of crucial training occurs in the morning. The knights ought to have some free time by the afternoon.”
“Thanks for letting me know, Perel.”
After getting permission, the Grand Duchess clapped her hands as if her business was done.
“Well, I just remembered something I need to do, so I’ll be going now.”
As the Grand Duchess hurried away, Loic watched her leave and bit his lip, making a firm decision.
“Perel.”
Perel flinched at Loic’s low voice.
“Gather all the knights in the training ground immediately.”
“What? But weren’t you going to inspect the watchtower…?”
Loic clenched his large fist.
“Tell them to come fully equipped. I’m going to personally check everything. Make sure the training ground is spotless. I’ll inspect all the drills today.”
“All of them?”
Perel frowned as if wondering if that was really necessary.
“Do you want the Grand Duchess to be disappointed? Do you want to hear that we’re worse than the Marquis’ knights?”
“T-that can’t happen.”
Perel swallowed nervously.
“I’ll inform Sir Hedrick to gather the knights right away.”
As Perel rushed off, Loic headed to his room to change into his training clothes.
He had promised to treat the Grand Duchess properly in their contract.
Even if he kept his distance, he still had to fulfill his responsibilities.
Suddenly, I had a lot to do.
I had already planned to meet the knights.
It wasn’t going to be a grand event, just something I intended to prepare for slowly.
But seeing the Duke act so distant, not even bothering to introduce me, made me annoyed.
I acted impulsively.
‘The time is too tight… I need to hurry.’
I asked Whitley to prepare for my outing. Remembering that Leon had offered to guide me before, I requested him as my escort. But when I arrived at the carriage, there were two knights waiting—Leon and Norton.
“Norton?”
Leon was smiling as usual, but Norton, though expressionless, looked slightly downcast.
He seemed disappointed that I had specifically asked for Leon.
“Norton, you’re not upset, are you? I just needed someone who knows the area well, so I asked for Leon.”
“Upset? Not at all, I just…”
Norton hesitated before speaking.
“I can guide you around Goldrain now as well.”
His determined expression showed that he had prepared himself to make up for his previous mistake.
“Really? Then I’ll leave today’s guiding to you, Norton.”
I smiled and asked,
“I want to buy some handkerchiefs. Where should I go?”
Norton seemed to be recalling information in his head before answering carefully.
“You can probably order them from a tailor shop… I believe Coutere is the most famous.”
Norton glanced back at Leon for confirmation, and Leon grinned, nodding.
“We’ll take you to Coutere.”
With two reliable knights escorting me, I got into the carriage.
Coutere, a well-known tailor shop in the north, was located in the heart of Goldrain.
“It is an honor to serve you, Your Grace. I am Madame Ramondria.”
Madame Ramondria’s first impression was rather cold.
Her speech was polite, but she looked like someone who had been through many hardships.
Seeing how the employees moved swiftly at just one glance from her, she seemed like a strict boss.
As they busily prepared to take my measurements, I waved my hand.
“I’m not here to order clothes. I just want to buy some handkerchiefs today.”
“…Handkerchiefs?”
Madame’s eyes briefly showed confusion.
“I need them for gifts. Do you have anything to show me?”
“Of course. Please wait a moment.”
Madame nodded politely and disappeared.
Despite her quick response, I had to wait quite a while.
By the time I had nearly finished the tea an employee had brought me, Madame returned, leading a few workers.
They placed a display board on the table and soon revealed various handkerchiefs.
There were simple ones with lace, ones with embossed patterns on the edges, and others embroidered with colorful designs.
“Are these usually for sale?”
“…The employees make them during their free time.”
Madame answered calmly after a slight pause.
So that’s why it took a while.
It seemed that since a Grand Duchess had suddenly come looking for handkerchiefs, they had hurriedly gathered whatever they had to avoid disappointing me.
Thinking about it, handkerchiefs were usually embroidered by the owners themselves or made by maids.
“If you have a specific design in mind, we can make it quickly.”
Madame spoke confidently.
I turned to Norton, who was standing behind me.
“Norton, how many knights are in the Blenheim Order?”
“Ninety-nine will be participating in training tomorrow. One unit is currently on a mission.”
Ninety-nine knights?! It’s not an army—why are there so many?
“Since Blenheim is a border territory, the number of knights is quite high.”
Seeing my shocked expression, Norton added an explanation.
Feeling a little embarrassed, I turned back to Madame and asked,
“Can you make ninety-nine handkerchiefs in one day?”
Madame’s eyes widened in surprise.
