“Ah, Princess, you’ve arrived.”
When I went down to the office, it wasn’t the duke who greeted me but the butler.
“His Grace is with the vassals. You should head to the meeting room.”
“Meeting with the vassals at this hour?”
“Yes. It’s unusual since he usually departs quietly for the battlefield.” The butler also seemed puzzled.
It was strange to summon all the vassals just for a few days’ trip to the estate when he had been absent for years at times.
“You called for me, Father.”
“Yes, Siani.”
Upon opening the door, I saw the duke, Irik, and the vassals. The duke’s face had turned grim in less than half a day.
“…”
As I took my seat inside, the vassals glanced at me. I sensed Irik looking at me, but I wasn’t particularly interested.
I need to fit Inein.
It was the moment my mind was preoccupied with the thought of trying the new uniform on Inein.
“As you all might know, I am heading down to Rivelros soon.” The duke seated at the head of the table then spoke. “I don’t plan to be gone for more than a month, but it’s best to be prepared just in case.”
The atmosphere in the meeting room was chilly, whether due to the duke’s stern expression or my arrival.
“While I am away, the internal affairs of the duchy will be…”
At that moment, the vassals’ eyes and ears all turned towards the duke. Managing internal affairs in the absence of the head of the family was traditionally the heir’s responsibility. Thus, the duke’s decision implicitly pointed to the successor.
I can hear their eyes rolling all the way from here.
Most seemed to believe the duke would divide responsibilities between Irik and me. Or that Irik, having assisted the duke longer, would take on more authority…
“I will leave everything in the hands of my daughter, Siani.”
“Your Grace…!”
That’s why twists are interesting.
“Therefore, treat Siani as the acting head of the family and follow her lead.”
It was me, not Irik.
Not a part, but everything.
Eventually, I was given full authority over Duchy Felicite.
“Your Grace, how can you!”
The room was instantly abuzz.
As expected, it was a good thing I brought up about Luna’s matter today. I barely managed to suppress a smirk.
The duke seemed to be apologizing by handing over power. But for me, achieving my goal was enough.
“Ah, Your Grace, Princess is still young and has not long been your assistant. How can she take on full authority?”
A vassal seated in the middle spoke up. Judging by his position, he seemed to be pretending to be neutral but was part of Irik’s faction.
“Compared to the decades you all have served me, hasn’t my daughter achieved far more in just a few months?”
The duke’s voice was resolute as if his mind was already made up.
“The trade guild in the central region has tripled its net profit compared to last year, and the performance of the fabric lab has doubled. Also, the budget for the underground castle has been reduced, and we’ve started differential payments for the support given to all vassals.”
As the vassals bowed their heads, my chin lifted higher.
“Of course, she’s excellent, but her youth might still be a concern…”
“That’s why Obelo will assist her.”
“Yes, yes? Sir Obelo?”
The vassals’ eyes suddenly poured towards Obelo.
“H-how could Sir Obelo…”
There was a double shock at the realization that Obelo was on my side.
“I’ve said it before. A rose grown in barren land is stronger and more beautiful.”
Obelo, facing their resentful gazes, looked genuinely joyful.
“Enjoy your hardships! Ohoho!”
It was as if he had been waiting for this moment.
“Sir Aeron and I will wholeheartedly assist the Princess, so don’t worry.”
Aeron was the head of the emerging forces, and Obelo was the head of the established forces. With both of them assisting me, the vassals looked like they were about to collapse.
Tsk, what a pity. I sincerely regretted it as I observed their sullen faces. If I had known I was going to debut as the next successor, I would have put more effort into my eye makeup.
“Irik, you too must help Princess a lot.”
The duke’s statement, mentioning ‘Princess’ instead of ‘Sister,’ clearly delineated the line between him and me.
“Yes, Your Grace. Understood.”
Yet Irik appeared calm.
It was strange. He used to flinch at any mention of the heir.
“That should be enough for now. I must be on my way.”
“Travel safely, Your Grace.”
As the vassals and Irik bid him farewell, it was a routine reaction given the duke’s frequent absences.
“Father, I’ll accompany you to the carriage.”
“Ah.”
My act of nonchalance caused the duke to hesitate.
“Let’s do that.”
As I walked out with the duke, I instructed the butler to bring the camel coat the duke often wore in the fall.
“It’ll be chilly at night now.”
The duke, having spent half his life on battlefields, was unlikely to be bothered by the weather. But I had to dutifully play my role as ‘daughter.’
“Take at least one coat for the carriage, just in case.”
“You’ve come to think of these things too.”
We reached the waiting carriage outside.
“I’ve been unaware.”
The duke seemed quite moved by my actions.
“It was Luna who always took care of things like this…” He muttered, staring into space.
“Ah, so what I mean is.”
He seemed more surprised by his own words.
“That Luna tended to look after me more than you did.”
“…”
“Not that you didn’t care for me, but Luna was always the more affectionate one.”
As I remained silent, the duke awkwardly babbled.
“Here is the coat you mentioned, Princess.” The approaching butler handed me the coat.
“Father.” I draped the coat over the duke’s shoulders. “When I asked you to expel Luna from the duchy, it wasn’t because I wanted to compete with Luna for your love.”
“…”
“It was a formal request to punish the culprit who disrupted the order of the manor as your daughter and princess of Felicite.”
The duke was just an element necessary for succeeding in this life. As long as his unreasonable favoritism didn’t obstruct my path, his feelings toward Luna were irrelevant to me.
“How could Luna compare to my own daughter?”
“…”
“As promised, I’ll leave Luna’s disposition to you.”
“Yes. Understood.”
“But Siani.”
As the duke stepped towards the carriage,
“Don’t be too harsh. After all, Luna looked up to you a lot.”
Ha, really. Anyone would think I’ve been tormenting Luna when they heard it.
“Father, I understand your feelings. You’ve regarded Luna as your daughter, so it must be hard to accept this situation suddenly.”
Yet I maintained a kindly tone to the end.
“But shouldn’t we speak plainly?”
“…”
“This is about Luna facing the consequences of her actions, even attempting to frame me, your daughter, and a princess of Felicite.”
But my expression towards the duke was unreadable, likely resembling the disdainful look I reserve for annoying characters.
“You shouldn’t forget that part.”
“Siani, what I meant was—”
“Leave before it gets any darker, Father.”
I finished buttoning his coat.
“Please send a letter once you arrive at the villa.”
My gestures were gentle, but it was a clear message for him to go.
“Alright. I’ll write as soon as I arrive. Take care of yourself.”
I nodded with a smile in lieu of a response. “Take care, Father.”
“Travel safely, Your Grace.”
The carriage carrying the duke rolled out of the gate. After standing there as a formality until the carriage was out of sight, I turned to leave.
“Butler, prepare to send a marriage proposal to the Benio Grand Duchy as soon as it’s daylight.”
“Yes, Princess.”
The farewell was brief.
“Oh, and that knight’s name was…”
As I was about to return to the dressing room, I suddenly remembered the knight.
“The cute and clever one often seen with Aeron. His name was…”
Wait, was it Robert? Roberto? His common name and surname were too forgettable.
“Yes?”
“Right, Phil Roberto.”
I finally remembered his name and instructed the butler.
“Find Phil Roberto’s contract and resume, then bring them to me within the week.”
“Ah, the cute and clever Phil Roberto. Understood, Princess.”
* * *
“Hmm, what to do.”
The butler, emerging from the main building’s archive with a troubled expression, had searched three archives already but found a mountain of Roberto by surname. Searching by the name Phil resulted in another mountain of Phil.
“And I don’t even know which division that cute and clever knight belongs to.”
Furthermore, whether it was the main building or the east building, the knights were categorized into guards, patrols, etc. Considering the vast number of personnel in the duchy, the thought of searching all archives was daunting.
“Should I ask the princess again? Or gather all the butlers from each division to search?”
Siani’s order was indeed vague. But the butler pondered because…
“It seemed the princess wasn’t sure herself…”
Gathering the commanders from each division would waste at least half a day coordinating their schedules. I’ve experienced from ruling the duchy before.
Moreover, this was the first task Siani, acting as the head of the household, had entrusted to him. The desire to perform well stirred Loid.
“Ah, that’s right.”
Suddenly struck by a good idea, Loid headed to the control room.
“Ahem, Head Butler Loid here. I will issue a notice to all butlers in each division.”
It was the voice announcement system that echoed throughout the entire duchy.
“Princess is looking for a resume of a knight named Phil Roberto, known for his cute and clever appearance.”
Loid’s voice spread from the main building to the east, west, and south buildings, and even the annex.
“Please immediately check the archives in each division. We’re looking for documents, not the person, so Sir Phil Roberto, the knight with a cute and clever appearance, doesn’t need to come in person.”
He emphasized again, thinking it was a brilliant solution.
“Aah, the princess is looking for the resume of a knight named Phil Roberto, known for being cute and clever.”
However, there was one problem.
“…Phil Roberto?”
The Norma in the west building also heard the announcement.
Just gave that man a death sentence oml.
For real, poor guy