Episode 39

Uncomfortable?

‘Of course!’

It’s rare to dislike someone for no reason.

Desar had been living at the Drenihan Duchy since he was very young, and perhaps we had crossed paths a few times.

Considering Desar and I had such limited surroundings, it’s not surprising that I don’t remember.
But who knows.

Since I have no memory before the age of five, I can’t be sure that I never had any contact with Desar.

‘But what could a mere five-year-old do?’

I brushed away unnecessary thoughts and said,

“I just tend to be shy around strangers. Did I come off as cold to you, Sir Desar?”

“No, not at all. It’s just that when you boarded the carriage earlier, you didn’t take my hand…”
“Hand?”

Usually, unless I was with Ludwig, I boarded the carriage alone, so I hadn’t even thought about it.

I responded as if I genuinely didn’t know.

“I’m sorry, I guess I was in such a hurry that I didn’t notice your hand, Sir Desar.”

“It’s nothing. I apologize if it seemed otherwise.”

Desar cleared his throat and looked out the window.

Wow, if this misunderstanding hadn’t been resolved, Desar’s hostility could have escalated.

While I felt relieved, the carriage traveled exceptionally smoothly.

It was as if we were gliding over a marble floor, with no jolts at all.

The path to the Karsian estate was the same as before, but the ride felt entirely different.

‘Could Ludwig have…’

Did he actually pave the road?

During a brief stop for the horses to rest, I was able to resolve my curiosity.

“The road from the Duchy to the Karsian estate has been paved for you, miss. I hope you have a comfortable journey.”

I nodded in surprise at the coachman’s words from Karsian.

As the carriage started again, we soon arrived at the Karsian estate.

The Karsian estate was a prosperous and fertile land.

The carriage rode through a city so developed it rivaled the capital.

At that moment, I noticed a crowd gathered in one place.

“The man who wants to succeed the Grand Duke is a dangerous man! Not only did he grow up without proper education, but he’s also greedy enough to push out the still-healthy Grand Duke!”

“If he becomes the Grand Duke, he’ll surely raise taxes and take our property, making life much harder than before!”

The people shouting passionately were obviously instigators.

They were the ones Ludwig had told me about, recruited by the council.

Ludwig had been reclusive, wore a mask that made people uncomfortable, and had a poor reputation in general.

He had recently managed to somewhat improve his bad image, but such rumors still had a significant impact on the estate’s residents who hadn’t seen him.

The agitated people began to gather around the instigators, making the street more crowded.

Despite the estate’s prosperity, the council’s tyranny had prevented the residents from enjoying their rightful benefits.

Because of the council’s long-standing influence, they were not very welcoming of the young Grand Duke.

They were neither wealthy nor impoverished, but their complacency was remarkable.

In truth, the exploitation by the council was worsening by the day, and it was clear that the future looked bleak.

As the carriage, observing the street’s situation, passed the old castle walls, it finally came to a stop.

Soon, the door opened, and a familiar face appeared.

“Ludwig.”

“Sierra, you must have had a hard time coming all the way here.”

I took his extended hand and stepped out of the carriage, saying,

“It wasn’t hard at all. Thanks to you paving the road, I barely felt the ride.”

“That’s good to hear. But who is that?”

Ludwig cast his gaze towards Desar, who was following me out of the carriage.

“He’s the personal guard assigned by my grandfather.”

“I heard that Lord Serkhan has been appointed as the successor. Is that why?”

“Something like that.”

Desar gave Ludwig a cursory nod while keeping a close watch on our clasped hands.

Ludwig greeted him with a slight smile, but there was an inexplicable tension in that smile.

For some reason, sensing the subtle hostility between Ludwig and Desar, I decided to move ahead towards the Grand Duke’s residence.

“Let’s go, Ludwig. I’m eager to see how the crown turned out.”

“Oh, this way, please.”

Were they aware of each other as strong adversaries, resulting in that brief moment of tension?

I had an uneasy feeling that what just happened was merely the beginning.

* * *

In the reception room of the mansion, a crown stored in a crystal case was shining brilliantly.

True to the name of the pure white crown, it was entirely made of pure gold, adorned intricately with emeralds and diamonds.

And in the main gemstone spot that was previously empty…

“It’s a pink diamond. A gemstone that reminds me of your radiant eyes, Sierra.”

The main spot on the crown was said to be decorated with the gemstone that best suited the owner of the crown, so I had considered various possibilities.

Yellow sapphires reminiscent of my blonde hair, or rubies matching the symbolic color of Drenihan, and so on…

But to my surprise, the correct answer was a pink diamond.
Pink diamonds are so rare that seeing one in person is almost impossible.

Even as a young lady of a powerful family, I had never seen one before.

‘That’s why I didn’t even consider it as a candidate….’

Ludwig took the crown out of the case and placed it on my head.

Looking at my reflection in the mirror in the reception room, the crown matched perfectly with the dress I was wearing today, as if they were a set.

“The crown has found its owner. It suits you better than anyone else.”

“Thank you. Thanks to you, Ludwig, I get to wear such a crown.”

“It’s all because of you that I could win. Furthermore, it led me to be able to succeed the Grand Duchy.”

Although not entirely untrue, hearing such flattering words directly made me feel embarrassed.

“I’ll put the crown back in the case for now. I’m afraid it might get scratched unless it’s a big event like the New Year’s Festival, haha.”

I took off the crown and handed it to the waiting butler.

“Such a crown is nothing compared to you.”

‘Saying it’s nothing… it’s immensely valuable even at a glance.’

If it were to go on auction, it would fetch a historic price.

Above all, a pink diamond’s value is immeasurable due to its rarity.

Ludwig spoke with genuine eyes.

“You looked truly beautiful wearing the crown. I even felt regretful that I couldn’t give you something better.”

“The only thing better than this would be a royal crown.”

“Yes, a royal crown indeed.”

“Haha.”

It turned out that he enjoyed jokes more than I thought.

“But on the way here, it seemed like there were fewer servants.”

The Grand Duke’s mansion was much quieter than before.

Even the butler had been replaced.

“I have kept those who served Karsian. If you felt it was quiet, it means there were that few of them.”

As expected, he had neatly gotten rid of the council’s spies.

Who would have thought the butler was one of them?

I sat on the sofa and brought up the main reason for my visit to the Grand Duke’s residence.

“Have you still not found the council’s account books?”

“No, no matter where we search their residences, not a single speck of dust is found.”

He looked frustrated.

It was only natural that he couldn’t find it despite searching the collateral families.

What he was looking for was hidden right here, in the Grand Duke’s castle.

“Hmm… If I had something to hide, I would place it where no one would think to look.”

“Where no one would think to look?”

“For example, in this Grand Duke’s castle.”

“The Grand Duke’s castle?”

Ludwig seemed deep in thought at my words. Of course, he wouldn’t have imagined they had the audacity to hide the account books in the Grand Duke’s castle.

“Moreover, what if it was in the founding Grand Duke’s prayer room? I’ve heard it was used as a meeting room by the council.

What if they blatantly hid it in the room they frequently visited?”

“In fact, we have lightly searched the prayer room once. Since it’s a place the council members always visit when they come to the Grand Duke’s castle, we checked it just in case.”

“But you didn’t find anything.”

Ludwig nodded.

‘Of course not.’

The secret passage Jenna found in the original story was in a place that could never be discovered through ordinary searches.

“In fact, during the last banquet, I overheard the council members having a very secretive conversation.”

“A secretive conversation…?”

“It sounded like a coded message. Thinking back now, it seemed to be pointing to their secret location.”