Chapter 21

“Are you Umberto’s son?”

Upon opening the carriage door, my eyes instantly fell on the boy sitting next to Rona.

“Yes, Madam.”

“Get out. Your father is waiting.”

His face sparkled as soon as he heard me, but his bright complexion soon turned gloomy again.

“What’s wrong?”

“I haven’t been paid by the count yet. I don’t want to be a burden to my family.”

“Don’t you worry about that. I promise to sponsor you at the Grand Duchy.”

He was worried his younger siblings wouldn’t have enough food if he returned to his family empty-handed.

“Ollie, that’s your name, right?”

“Yes, Madam.”

“Ask Dante to educate Ollie together with Manuel. He’ll be useful as an administrator. Give other children suitable positions as well.”

As I was giving Rona orders, I recalled Katan’s tight budget, and my personal property was beginning to dwindle as well.

‘I must increase the mana stone’s price more than when I sold it at Cardinale.’

A price increase was justifiable because people from the Mado Empire didn’t have such resources in their home country.

Standing in front of their wheat field, Umberto and his daughter, Selina, opened their eyes wide in disbelief when they saw us.

“Daddy~! Sister!”

Ollie rolled downhill and ran toward his family. Perhaps they had been waiting for us, but Umberto’s family members were already craning their necks in anticipation.

“Ollie!”

Umberto hugged Ollie at once, burying his face into his son’s thin neck.

The breeze blowing through the wheat field subdued his voice. I couldn’t hear him properly, but the heartwarming sight made me smile.

The fresh scent of unripened wheat was savory.

“Madam, thank you so much!”

Selina was looking at me tearfully, at a loss at what to do.

“If you’re truly grateful, try to persuade farmers to use the red soil.”

“..I’ve used it already. Although the field I worked on is not as wide as my father’s.”

I was surprised by her answer.

‘I thought you were worried that it would ruin your field.’

“Is it working?”

I was very nervous waiting for Selina’s answer.

“Well, about that...”

Is the artificial red soil I made practical enough to be used in actual fields?

Although I developed it, agriculture was not my expertise to begin with.

I was half skeptical that it would work well, so I couldn’t help it even if the farmers refused to believe in me.

I held Selina’s hands, feeling thankful for her willingness to use the artificial red soil even at the risk of destroying her field.

But Selina replied cheerfully.

“Madam’s red soil is so amazing! Not only the green wheat, but also the southern Hail rice started to grow!”

“Is that true?”

“Yes. It hasn’t fully germinated underwater yet, but take a look.”

I walked to the place where Selina led me. Soon, I was able to see tiny rice seeds sprouted cutely in the nurseries.

“Hail rice is so difficult to sow, that’s why only the southern nobles were able to eat it. This feels unreal!”

I couldn’t help but bite my lip to contain my excitement.

‘I can’t believe I succeeded..’

Seeing her happy face was a somewhat peculiar experience.

Come to think of it, I never used alchemy to help anyone.

“Madam’s alchemy is really amazing!”

Selina smiled brightly and hugged me. Although I wasn’t treated as badly as a demon hunter was, alchemists were scorned in the Las Vecchia Empire where the holy church ruled.

George and my father used my alchemy to support their various schemes yet they neglected and abused me.

This pride and joy I felt for the first time in my life truly rendered me speechless.

To top it all, the relief I brought to Ollie’s family made me burst into tears.

‘George would be very surprised if he saw me like this.’

I was a woman who never shed tears. I didn’t shed a single tear even when George accepted Ibelina as his empress. George called me a woman with an iron heart because of that.

But now, tears flowed down uncontrollably.

While being held by Selina, I tried so hard to hold back my tears and sniffled my runny nose. But someone else pulled my shoulder and hugged me.

I lifted my head in surprise when hard arms wrapped around me. The chilly scent of a winter wind tickled my nose.

“Your Highness?”

“What makes you cry sorrowfully?”

Joseph looked down at me with a grim face. I couldn’t utter a single word until his long fingers wiped my tears-stained cheeks.

“B-Because I’m happy. My red soil was effective.”

“Really?”

Surprised, Joseph looked over my shoulder at Selina, who already pointed at the Hail rice sprouts.

“Your Highness, this is the southern Hail rice which is only able to grow in the southern red soil.”

Upon hearing Selina’s eager explanation, he looked at me and murmured briefly.

“That’s indeed amazing.”

‘You’re making me blush for no reason.’

Once I came to my senses, I quickly escaped Joseph’s arms and nodded.

“I want to distribute artificial soil to farmers in Katan. There are not many farmers yet, but if we show them that farming is possible, more people will begin farming.”

Katan was poor because most young people made a living through hunting. Therefore, it was impossible to collect taxes on poor residents who struggled just to fill their stomachs each day.

Except if Joseph was heartless enough to squeeze their money dry like my father.

“I will tell Dante that the red soil made by my wife has been proven effective.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Without realizing, I smiled broadly at Joseph only to blush again upon seeing his deep gaze that was directed to me.

‘Why are you looking at me like that again?’

Is there something on my face? Or did my overly excited expression look foolish to you?

“Then, how many people should we hire to help Madam develop the land?”

“....”

“Your Highness!”

Dante raised his voice at his master, who was lost in thought after ordering him to help Rita.

“Huh?”

“I asked how many workers we should hire to help Madam.”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea.”

Joseph belatedly nodded and just agreed with Dante heedlessly.

While exchanging opinions with Dante, Joseph was constantly reminded of his wife.

‘She’s someone who can smile like that.’

Two months had passed since they were married, and it was his first time seeing his wife smile so sincerely.

‘I’m such a terrible husband.’

Even though the marriage was only a way to free Rita, he was still her lawful husband.

Joseph put all the blame on himself, and grasped his head in agony.

“Do you have any concerns?”

Dante was puzzled at his master’s behavior and tilted his head.

“What month is it now?”

“It’s the first day of August.”

A long crease formed on his forehead upon hearing Dante’s answer.

“But why is it still so cold?”

“..Are you feeling cold? Should I add more firewood in your room?”

“Not my room, but you need to take special care of my wife’s room.”

“I think Madam’s room is warm enough. Do you want me to increase the temperature?”

“Yeah. Make it warm enough until it truly feels like summer.”

“Ah, yes..”

Dante just nodded lethargically at his master’s stubbornness.

Joseph noticed the slight displeasure on the butler’s face, but Joseph’s mind was filled with Rita and wondering if she was having a hard time adjusting in Katan.

He couldn’t help but worry every time he thought of Rita’s thin and fragile body. Katan was too cold for Rita, born and raised in the warm south.

‘She said she hated the cold when she was young.’

”It seems that the count locked our young miss in the basement again because she was misbehaving.”

”Wait, isn’t it too much? Our young miss is only 11 years old now!”

When the monsters invading Cardinale were subdued, the emperor ordered him to head to Katan right away.

He couldn’t meet Rita in the end.

”I really hate the basement. I’m freezing to death.’

The young Rita would tremble every time she brought up the basement that a young lady normally wouldn’t be familiar with.

‘I won’t let you shiver in the cold again.’

Joseph clenched his fists, recalling the young girl who trembled as if holding back tears.

Seeing her cry, his heart pounded because he was upset.

“Dante.”

“Yes?”

“...You wouldn’t want to see your savior struggling, right?”

“Well, I think so?”

Coming to terms with his unfamiliar emotions, Joseph nodded at Dante’s response.

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