The rest of my days were peaceful and pleasant.
I talked with Anna, who greeted me and saw me off at the house, and had tea with her whenever I could find time.
It is an ordinary life, but once I lost it, I know how precious it is.
I cherish the precious moments with Anna as if I were chewing on them.
My mother-in-law gave me a ticket to a play.
I had discussed with my mother-in-law that Anna and I would go to a local theater.
My mother-in-law prepared the tickets for us.
She said it was a way of clearing my name.
I showed her the ticket and invited Anna to the play.
"Well. It's your first date in the city with Gino-sama.
I'm looking forward to it."
She smiled like a flower blooming and accepted my invitation.
Because of her appearance, Ana did not like to go out in public places.
So far, they had been to places where there were few people, such as picnics and sightseeing at the lake.
But this was the first time for us to go into the city.
Although Anna did not go to the city very often, she had much more experience in the theater than I did growing up in the country.
As the Duchess of Severnsworth, opera, drama, opera, and orchestra are not things that you go to the theater to see.
They would invite theatrical companies and orchestras to perform in their own halls.
This time, my mother-in-law and I chose to see the opera at a local theater instead of going to a private hall in our house.
Anna has not been in public for a long time, and it has become a habit for her to avoid the public eye.
Even though she has been cured of her illness and transformed into a beautiful woman, she still unconsciously avoids the public eye, which worries me.
"Gino-sama!"
Ana is waiting for me in the entrance hall, and when she sees me, she smiles brightly.
Today, Ana is dressed in a simple one-piece dress in the style of a merchant's daughter, as she is going down to the streets.
I knew Anna was cute.
She's cute no matter what she wears.
I can't help but be nervous when I see that her ankles are showing, unlike her usual dress.
Noblewomen in this world do not show their feet.
It is normal for them to cover their feet with dresses.
Commoner women, who prefer to wear functional clothes, wear short skirts, but even so, they do not show their calves.
If they wore the miniskirts of their previous lives in this world, they would be screamed at by young women, and mothers would cover their children's eyes with their hands to hide harmful people from them, and would be captured by the guards.
A man is aroused by the sight of a part of a woman's body that he rarely sees, even if it is just her toes.
He cannot help but turn his eyes in that direction.
"Oh, please don't look too much."
Anna says, turning red, as if she is also embarrassed to be showing her toes.
Behind her, Bridget is glaring at her with a fierce expression.
"Oh. I'm sorry.
I couldn't take my eyes off you, you were so attractive."
I say, deceiving her.
But Anna seemed to realize that it was her ankles that were attractive, and she blushed even more.
They say that shame is felt by showing the parts that are usually hidden.
Women in countries where it is customary to cover their breasts with clothes feel embarrassed to show their breasts in public, but women in countries where women usually live naked do not feel embarrassed when their breasts are seen.
I thought that Anna was embarrassed because she was showing her ankles, which she usually hides, just like a woman would be embarrassed when people stare at her in a bathing suit in a previous life.
Before the play, Anna and I went for a walk around the city.
Neither Anna nor I were familiar with the city of the capital, so we went to several stores, such as a general store and a jewelry store, which I had heard from Barbarie's brother-in-law as recommended date spots.
There are quite a few noblemen who have never been in a street store in the city.
When they shop, they do not go to the stores but call the stores to them.
In the case of accessories, they do not choose what they want from the stores, but let the stores make what they want.
Anna, who was also a reluctant duchess, had never been in a street store before, and was very excited and cute.
When I bought some of the accessories she liked, she was surprised when I took out my wallet to pay for them.
It is not common for nobles to pay for their own purchases in the city.
Either the squire pays on the spot, or the squire shows him the coat of arms and asks him to come to the house to collect the money, which is the squire's job anyway.
It was not only Anna who was surprised, but Bridget and the others as well.
Bridget complained that it was not like a high nobleman.
However, when she said that she wanted to pay for Anna's gift herself, Bridget did not say anything more.
Anna had never seen a unit of currency smaller than a silver coin before, and she looked into my wallet with great interest.
It was very cute.
As I was walking through the West Market of the capital, lined with many stalls, I saw a commoner woman walking in front of me holding on to the arm of a man who seemed to be her lover.
"I wish I could be like that with Anna."
I was so caught off guard that I said what I was thinking.
When Anna heard me, she looked surprised and turned her head.
"Good... good."
She turned red and clung to my arm.
Noblewomen usually only touch the palms of their hands to the body of the opposite sex.
When receiving an escort, they only place their palms on the man's arms, and when getting on and off a carriage, they only place their palms on the man's outstretched hands.
The dance in this world is not as close as the ballroom dance in the previous life, so even when we dance, we only touch our palms.
We don't usually intertwine our arms and touch each other except our palms.
In a previous life, this would not be a big deal, but in this world's values, Anna is doing something quite daring.
I was so happy that Anna was willing to do that much for me that I felt as if I were on top of the world.
We didn't talk to each other because we were both too embarrassed to do so, and we just walked side by side with Ana's arm wrapped around mine.
However, I felt Anna's softness and body warmth in my arms, and I could not think of any other word to describe the feeling of walking with her, knowing that she was indeed next to me.
We ate at a restaurant along the river and headed for the theater because it was time to go.
It was the first time for Anna to enter a theater in the city, and she was excited to see the fixed seats and the many people.
In the theater of the Seventh Worth family, the servants set up chairs where the family members can sit comfortably and sofas where the family can sit side by side.
For this reason, there are no fixed seats.
It is common for me to see a movie with my close nobles, but basically it is just my family.
From my point of view, it seems more unnatural that there are only three luxurious seats in a large theater, and a table with drinks and snacks is placed near the seats.
There are also private seats for aristocrats in this theater, but today I dared to sit in an ordinary fixed seat.
However, we were surrounded by guards and attendants, and the people sitting around us were all familiar faces.
The title of the play is "The Goblin Lady".
Of course, the main character is based on Anna.
◆◆◆◆◆
The play begins in the school days of the main female character, Anasii.
She wears a mask full of bumps and is bullied because of her appearance.
But there was a boy who always helped her.
That boy's name is Zinova.
Anashii falls in love with Zinova, the only boy who always stands up for her and sometimes plays with her alone.
However, Anashii has no intention of telling Zinova about her feelings.
Zinova is a beautiful boy and very popular with the girls.
Anashii, on the other hand, is an ugly girl known as the "Goblin Lady.
Anashii had resigned herself to the fact that she would never be good enough.
Eventually, Anashii's father comes to her with a proposal of marriage.
However, the marriage proposal does not go well.
As soon as he sees Anashii, the matchmaker curses her and turns down the proposal.
Then, someone comes to Anashii with a proposal of marriage.
It is Zinova.
Anashii is delighted.
But her father did not approve of her marriage proposal.
His father refused to accept the marriage proposal because of the family's disparity.
"If you wish to marry Anasii, you must bring a dowry that I can accept."
That is what Anasii's father told Zinova.
Zinova tells Anasii that she will bring him a dowry and then leaves.
Zinovas set up a trading company and worked tirelessly to earn a large amount of money.
She then proposed marriage to Anasyi's father, using the money as a dowry.
The father reluctantly agreed to the betrothal between Anasii and Zinova.
Even after the engagement, Anashii was abused and tormented as a "goblin girl".
At that time, Zinova heard a rumor that the formula for a potion to cure Anashii's illness was found in an unexcavated ruin.
Zinova tells Anashii that she will be away for a while on business for the Chamber of Commerce, and sets out alone to explore the unexcavated ruins.
Despite being covered in wounds, Zinova finally obtains the formula for the potion.
Anashii is worried when she sees Zinova returning home covered in injuries.
"I'm sorry. I fell down."
Zinova says and covers it up.
Then Zinova busied herself gathering ingredients for a potion.
Sometimes she fights orcs, sometimes she fights ogres, and even though she is covered in wounds, she gathers the ingredients.
She succeeds in making the potion.
He takes the potion to Anashii's house, but he hears Anashii's father saying to himself.
"What a pity.
If Anashii wasn't sick, I could have arranged a marriage with the prince."
"What do you mean? "
Eavesdropping, Zinova asks Anashii's father.
"Exactly what you said.
I was almost able to arrange a marriage, but he refused because of his illness."
"And when Anasii's illness is cured? "
"Of course I'll break my engagement with you and marry you to the prince.
The prince and you are different in status.
Of course Anashii would be happier as a royal.
You can live in luxury till the end of your life and everyone will bow down to you.
It's only natural for Anashii to be happy.
Love is an uncertain thing that eventually cools.
Royalty is better in the long run.
Yes.
And when that happens, will you break off our engagement?
Anashii's honor won't be harmed if you break off our engagement because you cheated on her.
Of course you can do that if you want Anashii to be happy. "
Zinova is shocked by Anashii's father's words.
"Anashii's happiness..."
Zinova mutters as she stands alone on the stage.
The scene changes and Anashii and Zinova take the stage.
"Hey, Anashii.
What do you think of the prince? "
Zinova asks Anashii as she and Anashii stand alone on stage.
"What? I think he's nice."
"Well, what if the prince proposes to you? "
"Of course, I'd be honored."
"...I see."
And with that, Zinova disappears from the stage.
"I said that because it would be disrespectful to speak ill of the prince, but was it wrong?
I really don't want to marry the prince.
It's Zinova I love."
"It's Zinova I like, you know.
Ginova, I miss you."
Anasii sobbed as she was kneeled around by many men.
"Yes.
Let's go thank her for the cure.
If I can just catch a glimpse of Zinova, I can hang on for a while."
Anashii goes to Zinova's business to thank her for the cure.
There, she learns from Kei that the betrothal was a ruse and that Kei only cooperated in exchange for the right to run Zinova's business.
Anashii's father has arranged a marriage with the prince.
The matchmaking between the prince and Anashii begins.
"This is a beautiful woman.
I'm lucky to have someone like you as my wife."
The prince says.
"I can't marry you, Your Highness.
I'm in love with someone else."
With that, Anashii leaves the arranged marriage table.
Anashii wanders the streets.
She finds Zinova sitting on the street, a vagrant, and Anashii embraces her.
"Anashii?
You can't do this to me.
You're going to marry a prince and be happy."
Zinova rejects Anashii, and Anashii presses Zinova to get back together.
They continue to argue for a while.
Eventually, Anashii kneels down and kisses the back of Zinova's hand.
"Will you marry me?"
Anashii proposes to Zinova.
"If you'll go that far... okay.
I'll take care of you for the rest of my life."
The two of them go to Anashii's father's house.
"Anashii. What a fool you've been.
I will not allow you to marry a man like that."
Anashii's father is indignant.
"If you don't approve, I'll leave home.
I will abandon my family name and live with Zinova."
"Love does not last ten years.
I'm saying this out of love for you."
"No. This love will last a lifetime.
Goodbye, Father."
"Wait!
All right... I accept your hand in marriage."
Zinova and Anasii embrace and kiss, and the curtain falls.
◆◆◆◆◆
There was thunderous applause.
Anna and I couldn't stop crying and couldn't leave our seats.
We went into a coffee shop and discussed our impressions of the play.
It turned out that I had cried for Anasii and Ana had cried for Zinova.
To be honest, it was embarrassing for us to be the subject of a play.
"If this restores Master Gino's honor, I'll be fine."
I couldn't stand to see her smile so brightly, so I got up and walked over to her and hugged her and kissed her.
Bridget, who came rushing out, pulled me away and angrily asked me what I would do if I did such a thing in front of people and it would be an ugly news for Anna.
The curious stares of the people around us made Ana turn red.
We left the store as if we were running away.
"Well, I'm sorry.
I saw your smile and I couldn't resist."
"...No, no."
It's not customary to kiss in public in this country.
And noblewomen are only allowed to touch the palm of their hand in public.
Anna must have been very embarrassed.
◆◆◆◆◆
The Severnsworths subsidize the theater company that puts on productions of The Goblin Lady.
The amount of the subsidy is so large that the company makes a profit even if there is no audience.
Because of this, "The Goblin Lady" was performed not only domestically but also internationally, and the show became very popular.
The amount of money invested in the production must have been terrifying, but for the Seven Worths, whose income from lotion alone is equivalent to the national budget, it was a small price to pay.
Until now, in this country, marriage proposals have been made by men to women, and women have never proposed to men.
However, under the influence of "The Goblin Lady", women began to propose to men.
This is due to the fact that "The Goblin Lady" is based on a true story, and the model is Anna.
There is a precedent of a woman proposing to a man, and that woman is a duchess.
Because of her high status, she could not be criticized as "trifling," and female proposals became so popular among commoners that they became a social phenomenon.
It was not only commoners who saw women proposing to each other.
In aristocratic society, where political marriages are the mainstream, there are a small number of aristocratic women who look for marriage partners in social circles.
Some of these aristocratic women proposed to men, just as commoners did, and this became a hot topic in the social circles.
The influence did not stop there.
Up until now, it had been considered the proper role of a noblewoman to marry the man of her family's choice, even if he was not the one she wanted.
In the midst of such common sense, the protagonist of "The Goblin Lady" ruined the marriage proposal made by her family, carried out her love even though she was ready to be disowned, and even won her love by proposing to the woman.
Her strength of will and her way of life, which is not afraid of overturning common sense, had a great influence on the noble girls, and many of them admired the heroine of "The Goblin Lady," in other words, Anna.
Anna is invited to tea parties by many of these women who admire her.
From the image of the play, many people imagined her to be a dignified woman who radiated supremacy, but in reality, Anna has a gentle impression, and her beauty is as gentle and fragile as that of her mother-in-law.
The girls were all struck by this gap and became her admirers.
When Anna and I attended soirées together, we were surrounded by many noblewomen, and they began to ask Anna and me many questions.
When they found out that the story of the Goblin Lady was generally true, they became very excited, saying, "It's wonderful," "It's romantic," and "It's an enviable love. It's so romantic!
Of course, there were some conservative women who frowned at such innovative women.
However, such women were less common among the younger generation and more common among the middle-aged and older generation.
Many of the middle-aged and older women used the rejuvenating lotion of the House of Seventh Worth.
They are afraid of having their supply of lotion cut off if they criticize the House of Seven Worth in public.
That's why they keep their mouths shut in public.
The two sisters-in-law of House Barbarie have also been greatly influenced by the Goblin Lady.
"As expected. Brother-in-law. After the play, they praised her with tears in their eyes and asked her to have a tea party with Anna.
I invited Anna to a tea party at the Barbarie house, and not only my sister-in-law but also her friends listened to Anna's story with sparkling eyes.
In this way, the Seven Worths' plan to clear my name was a great success, and no one spoke ill of the commotion I had caused at the graduation party.
On the contrary, my reputation had risen sharply, and I was increasingly respected, especially by young women.
However, this does not mean that there are no people who show an explicitly negative attitude toward me.
The year before I broke off my engagement at my graduation party, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince also broke off his engagement at his graduation party.
Even though we were doing similar things, I broke off my engagement and greatly increased my reputation, while the Crown Prince greatly decreased his.
Apparently, the Crown Prince was not pleased with that and did not hide his displeasure from the moment we greeted each other.
"Are you Miss Anastasia's fiancé?"
"Yes."
I replied straightforwardly without saying anything else to the Dauphin's disgruntled inquiry.
"I hear that a man who is not even the legitimate son of a poor baronet has become engaged to the daughter of the House of Seventhworth.
Don't you think that's disproportionate? "
Oh. I see.
I suppose I'm in the way of your taking Anna to be your wife.
"I consider myself fortunate."
I don't say it's disproportionate.
"Then dissolve the engagement," he'd say.
"Marriage should be about status.
Don't you agree? "
Smirking, the Dauphin continues with his question.
If it were anything else, I'd let him get away with it, but not if he's after Anna.
I'm determined to fight back.
"Oh. Has Your Highness finally given up on your marriage to Miss Marriott?
I didn't know that."
"What? "
His Royal Highness the Dauphin frowns at my question.
"Oh, no?
Your Highness said earlier that we should consider the difference in status in marriage.
I thought that you had given up on your marriage to Miss Marriott because of the great difference in status between royalty and barony."
I told His Highness so.
This is what happens when you deny other people a marriage with a status difference while you yourself aim for a marriage with a status difference.
You really are a dumb person.
"Master Dee. I'm scared."
Miss Marriott, standing next to the Crown Prince, hugs him with a frightened face.
Lady Dee is probably the nickname of Crown Prince Dietfried.
She has the audacity to call a man who is not her fiancé by his nickname in a public place.
His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, hurriedly expressed his concern for Miss Marriott.
"You dare to interfere in the royal family's marriage affairs!
You are disrespectful! "
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince shouted in an angry voice.
His voice is loud enough to draw the attention of the people around him.
"I beg your pardon."
"Hmph .
Decline your engagement to Miss Anastasia.
I'll forgive you if you do.
No, don't worry.
I'll make Miss Anastasia my lady-in-waiting."
Since I apologized, the crown prince took advantage of my weakness and made a demand of his own.
"No, thank you."
"What? What?
Are you refusing to listen to the order of the royal family? ? "
Not expecting to be refused, the Crown Prince shouted again.
"It's not the royal order, sir."
"You!
Do you even know what you're saying? Do you know what you're talking about?
Are you going against the royal family when you're a mere viscount! ? "
"Your order to withdraw from the engagement is not the consensus of the royal family, is it?
If it wasn't the royal family's intention, why would you go against the royal family? "
"It's the Dauphin's order!
Are you still going to defy him! ? "
"I say again.
I have no intention of withdrawing from my engagement to Anna."
It's no big deal if it's the Dauphin's life.
The crown prince is the only one in the royal family who would say something like this.
If His Majesty agrees with you, there is no need to follow the Dauphin's will alone.
More importantly, I'm not going to bend my mind anymore even if it's the royal family.
I was going to resist even if it was the king's order.
"You! You! "
"What's going on? "
The Dauphin's voice was so loud that it drew the attention of the people around him.
The people who had been chatting and laughing stopped their conversations and all looked at us.
Her Royal Highness came over to me and asked, probably to settle the situation.
"This is your mother.
I have offered to take Miss Anastasia to my side, but she has rudely refused.
I'm about to execute this rude person."
The Crown Prince said confidently, but the Queen's face paled when she heard his words.
Oh, no.
I said it out loud when everyone around me was quiet and paying attention.
Due to religious reasons, this country is monogamous.
A concubine is allowed only in an emergency situation when the king is unable to have a child, and marrying a concubine from the start is a denial of religion.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has not yet given up on the idea of marrying Baroness Marriott, but his Majesty has not approved his marriage to her.
For this reason, the Crown Prince has not even married the Crown Princess.
Even if he had plans to marry a concubine, he had to keep his plans secret in order to avoid confrontation with the Church forces when he was unmarried.
If the plan to marry a concubine was revealed while she was still unmarried, the nobles who were close to the Church would be more likely to oppose it.
Even the House of Unsworth would have to make an official protest to avoid unnecessary confrontation with the forces of the Church, and show that the House of Unsworth had nothing to do with the Dauphin's plan.
"Miss Anastasia, Miss Zinorius.
I'm sorry to have disturbed you.
Diethfried seems to be tired."
Her Royal Highness said and ordered the guards to send the Dauphin back.
"Mother! ? "
The Dauphin is surprised that his mother is not on his side.
The guards grabbed him by both arms and the Crown Prince left.
"I'm really sorry.
We'll have to meet again to apologize."
She said with a pale face and left.
She must have wanted to cry out, but she did not show any sign of it.
She was an honorable person.
As expected, the duke formally protested to the royal family as the House of Sevensforth.
Her Royal Highness went to the trouble of visiting the House of Sevensforth and bowed her head to request that the official protest be dropped.
The Duke, however, refused to listen.
The House of Sevensforth is currently in the process of capturing the Church forces.
Not protesting now would be too negative for the House of Unsworth.
The Church and the Churchian nobility have also formally demanded that the royal family respect religious precepts.
The Church and the Churchman nobles did not have much influence, but the protest from the House of Sevensforth was fatal.
The Seventhsworths, who had decided to remain silent on the succession dispute between the Dauphin and the First Prince, officially protested against the Dauphin, which made people think that they had distanced themselves from the Dauphin.
The Dauphin would have no chance of succeeding to the throne if he came into conflict with the House of Sevensforth.
Thinking so, the nobles of the Crown Prince's faction left the Crown Prince at once and formed a faction that pushed for the Fourth Prince.
The Crown Prince, having lost all of his supporters, was unable to maintain his position and became the abolished Crown Prince.
The seat of the Dauphin became vacant and the Crown Prince Diethfried was replaced by the Third Prince Diethfried.
I felt pity for the Queen.
Her Royal Highness had been struggling all her life to keep her son, the Third Prince, as the Crown Prince.
It is said that Her Royal Highness is a pragmatic person, who bows to lower class nobles when necessary.
However, I believe that she was forced to bow to the lower nobility in order to protect the position of her child.
It is said that he was a power-hungry man, but I do not think so.
He single-handedly established the Crown Prince's faction and kept it together until now.
It is impossible for such a capable person not to realize that carrying the Crown Prince is a muddy boat.
In fact, he is still trying to support his son even though the Dauphin has broken off the engagement to the Duchess Lillard and the Dauphin's faction has been conclusively defeated by all accounts.
If she only wanted to keep her power, she would have cut off her own son as soon as possible and go to the guardianship of another capable prince.
What she has, I think, is not the desire for power but love for her son.
Despite her desperate efforts for her child, her child continues to drag her down, and in fact, His Highness the Third Prince even blames his mother.
It's really unrewarding.
When the Third Prince slipped up and revealed his plan to make Anna his wife, Her Royal Highness looked pale.
That was probably because she knew how this would turn out and knew that there was no way to recover.
She's a very good person.
"It's just like Gino-sama to have sympathy for Her Royal Highness, who is often criticized for lacking royal pride and being power-hungry.
You have a tolerant view of things."
When I mentioned this to Anna, she said so with enchanting eyes.
Since the two sisters-in-law of the Barbarie family have taken a liking to her and have frequent tea parties with her, Ana seems to have become more like them.
◆◆◆◆◆
I was given a count's title.
Now I am not Genorius Barbarie but Genorius Simon Barbarie.
This is the name you get when you are a member of the Barbarian family and you also have the title of Count Simon.
He was given the count's title because of the high praise he received for the paper he sent along with Anna's cure.
The paper I wrote was about the principles of the onset of Ana's extreme magic overload and its cure, but people in this world won't understand it if I simply write that.
I also added magical concepts and theories that are necessary to understand the paper, so that people in this world, which is far behind in magic, can also understand it.
As a result, I proposed a number of new concepts and theories, which apparently caused a tremor in the medical magic world.
People in this world did not even know about "magical diseases" such as extreme magical excess.
Then, he suddenly clarified the principle of the onset of extreme magic overload, a kind of magical disease, and even established a cure.
Although this is not my field, I still had a doctorate in my previous life.
I know how difficult it is to construct a new theory just by proposing a hypothesis, so I can understand the surprise of the mages.
Normally, the first discoverer of a new theory names it after himself, but I have named all my theories after Anna.
For example, the Lem-Le Anastasia distribution, the Anastasia-Saun reaction, and the Lyon-Anastasia method.
In academic language, Rem le Anastasia means "Loving Anastasia", Anastasia Saun means "Anastasia, be healthy", and Lyon Anastasia means "Shining Anastasia".
Since the academic language is taught in the school, both Anna and the duke and duchess understand the meaning.
The duke looked satisfied.
"I like it. It's quite a sensible name."
And the mother-in-law said
"Well. That's a very romantic name."
She chuckled.
"Well, then, won't Gino-sama's name go down in history? "
Anna said, turning red, embarrassed that she had been exposed to a new academic term in front of her parents.
"My name may not remain, but my thoughts will remain forever.
Everyone who works with healing magic will learn of my feelings for you.
Isn't that a problem? "
I said with a laugh.
Her red face grew even redder, as if she was quite embarrassed that it was going to be in the textbook.
How adorable.
Along with the title, I received a fief.
When the former Dauphin broke off the engagement, his aides were also involved in it.
As punishment, part of his family's lands were confiscated by the crown and given to me.
It was not a rich area, but rather a poor area.
Moreover, it is an enclave under the direct control of the royal family, so it seems to be difficult to manage, and the land is quite large, but they gave it to me generously.
Her Royal Highness must have worked very hard, because such a territory was confiscated as a punishment.
If I were to manage the land in a normal way, I would have to spend a lot of money to manage it, because the cost of managing the land is higher than the income from the estate.
The reason why this land was given to me was probably to suppress the House of Unsworth.
I think the reason why they targeted me instead of the Duke or my mother-in-law is because I am an easier target.
Although I will eventually join the House of Unsworth, I am still a member of the House of Barbarie.
From the perspective of the faction headed by House Sevensforth, it would be difficult for them to protect me since I am not yet a member of House Sevensforth.
Despite the fact that I am in a position where it is difficult for them to protect me, it has been decided that I will eventually join House Sevensforth.
If you burden me with a debt while I am not yet a member of House Sevensforth, it will become a debt for House Sevensforth in the future.
It was His Royal Highness the Third Prince and the nobles of the Dauphin's faction who arranged for me to be given this land.
I suppose they think they've forced me into debt and dragged me down.
But sooner or later they'll clog their pockets.
I already have a plan to reform the land.
It's a vast and barren land, but there is a place where seven-colored ore can be mined.
At present, the seven-colored ore is only recognized as an unusual and beautiful mineral.
As such, it is only used to make inexpensive local accessories, but it is the raw material for mithril.
This is a wasteful use.
Mithril is a first-class material for golems, and can be used to make high-quality weapons and armor.
I was a golem engineer in a previous life.
I know the ratios of various mithril alloys, and what each is suitable for.
Compared to developing a cure, this is like twisting the hand of a baby.
I talked with Anna, who greeted me and saw me off at the house, and had tea with her whenever I could find time.
It is an ordinary life, but once I lost it, I know how precious it is.
I cherish the precious moments with Anna as if I were chewing on them.
My mother-in-law gave me a ticket to a play.
I had discussed with my mother-in-law that Anna and I would go to a local theater.
My mother-in-law prepared the tickets for us.
She said it was a way of clearing my name.
I showed her the ticket and invited Anna to the play.
"Well. It's your first date in the city with Gino-sama.
I'm looking forward to it."
She smiled like a flower blooming and accepted my invitation.
Because of her appearance, Ana did not like to go out in public places.
So far, they had been to places where there were few people, such as picnics and sightseeing at the lake.
But this was the first time for us to go into the city.
Although Anna did not go to the city very often, she had much more experience in the theater than I did growing up in the country.
As the Duchess of Severnsworth, opera, drama, opera, and orchestra are not things that you go to the theater to see.
They would invite theatrical companies and orchestras to perform in their own halls.
This time, my mother-in-law and I chose to see the opera at a local theater instead of going to a private hall in our house.
Anna has not been in public for a long time, and it has become a habit for her to avoid the public eye.
Even though she has been cured of her illness and transformed into a beautiful woman, she still unconsciously avoids the public eye, which worries me.
"Gino-sama!"
Ana is waiting for me in the entrance hall, and when she sees me, she smiles brightly.
Today, Ana is dressed in a simple one-piece dress in the style of a merchant's daughter, as she is going down to the streets.
I knew Anna was cute.
She's cute no matter what she wears.
I can't help but be nervous when I see that her ankles are showing, unlike her usual dress.
Noblewomen in this world do not show their feet.
It is normal for them to cover their feet with dresses.
Commoner women, who prefer to wear functional clothes, wear short skirts, but even so, they do not show their calves.
If they wore the miniskirts of their previous lives in this world, they would be screamed at by young women, and mothers would cover their children's eyes with their hands to hide harmful people from them, and would be captured by the guards.
A man is aroused by the sight of a part of a woman's body that he rarely sees, even if it is just her toes.
He cannot help but turn his eyes in that direction.
"Oh, please don't look too much."
Anna says, turning red, as if she is also embarrassed to be showing her toes.
Behind her, Bridget is glaring at her with a fierce expression.
"Oh. I'm sorry.
I couldn't take my eyes off you, you were so attractive."
I say, deceiving her.
But Anna seemed to realize that it was her ankles that were attractive, and she blushed even more.
They say that shame is felt by showing the parts that are usually hidden.
Women in countries where it is customary to cover their breasts with clothes feel embarrassed to show their breasts in public, but women in countries where women usually live naked do not feel embarrassed when their breasts are seen.
I thought that Anna was embarrassed because she was showing her ankles, which she usually hides, just like a woman would be embarrassed when people stare at her in a bathing suit in a previous life.
Before the play, Anna and I went for a walk around the city.
Neither Anna nor I were familiar with the city of the capital, so we went to several stores, such as a general store and a jewelry store, which I had heard from Barbarie's brother-in-law as recommended date spots.
There are quite a few noblemen who have never been in a street store in the city.
When they shop, they do not go to the stores but call the stores to them.
In the case of accessories, they do not choose what they want from the stores, but let the stores make what they want.
Anna, who was also a reluctant duchess, had never been in a street store before, and was very excited and cute.
When I bought some of the accessories she liked, she was surprised when I took out my wallet to pay for them.
It is not common for nobles to pay for their own purchases in the city.
Either the squire pays on the spot, or the squire shows him the coat of arms and asks him to come to the house to collect the money, which is the squire's job anyway.
It was not only Anna who was surprised, but Bridget and the others as well.
Bridget complained that it was not like a high nobleman.
However, when she said that she wanted to pay for Anna's gift herself, Bridget did not say anything more.
Anna had never seen a unit of currency smaller than a silver coin before, and she looked into my wallet with great interest.
It was very cute.
As I was walking through the West Market of the capital, lined with many stalls, I saw a commoner woman walking in front of me holding on to the arm of a man who seemed to be her lover.
"I wish I could be like that with Anna."
I was so caught off guard that I said what I was thinking.
When Anna heard me, she looked surprised and turned her head.
"Good... good."
She turned red and clung to my arm.
Noblewomen usually only touch the palms of their hands to the body of the opposite sex.
When receiving an escort, they only place their palms on the man's arms, and when getting on and off a carriage, they only place their palms on the man's outstretched hands.
The dance in this world is not as close as the ballroom dance in the previous life, so even when we dance, we only touch our palms.
We don't usually intertwine our arms and touch each other except our palms.
In a previous life, this would not be a big deal, but in this world's values, Anna is doing something quite daring.
I was so happy that Anna was willing to do that much for me that I felt as if I were on top of the world.
We didn't talk to each other because we were both too embarrassed to do so, and we just walked side by side with Ana's arm wrapped around mine.
However, I felt Anna's softness and body warmth in my arms, and I could not think of any other word to describe the feeling of walking with her, knowing that she was indeed next to me.
We ate at a restaurant along the river and headed for the theater because it was time to go.
It was the first time for Anna to enter a theater in the city, and she was excited to see the fixed seats and the many people.
In the theater of the Seventh Worth family, the servants set up chairs where the family members can sit comfortably and sofas where the family can sit side by side.
For this reason, there are no fixed seats.
It is common for me to see a movie with my close nobles, but basically it is just my family.
From my point of view, it seems more unnatural that there are only three luxurious seats in a large theater, and a table with drinks and snacks is placed near the seats.
There are also private seats for aristocrats in this theater, but today I dared to sit in an ordinary fixed seat.
However, we were surrounded by guards and attendants, and the people sitting around us were all familiar faces.
The title of the play is "The Goblin Lady".
Of course, the main character is based on Anna.
◆◆◆◆◆
The play begins in the school days of the main female character, Anasii.
She wears a mask full of bumps and is bullied because of her appearance.
But there was a boy who always helped her.
That boy's name is Zinova.
Anashii falls in love with Zinova, the only boy who always stands up for her and sometimes plays with her alone.
However, Anashii has no intention of telling Zinova about her feelings.
Zinova is a beautiful boy and very popular with the girls.
Anashii, on the other hand, is an ugly girl known as the "Goblin Lady.
Anashii had resigned herself to the fact that she would never be good enough.
Eventually, Anashii's father comes to her with a proposal of marriage.
However, the marriage proposal does not go well.
As soon as he sees Anashii, the matchmaker curses her and turns down the proposal.
Then, someone comes to Anashii with a proposal of marriage.
It is Zinova.
Anashii is delighted.
But her father did not approve of her marriage proposal.
His father refused to accept the marriage proposal because of the family's disparity.
"If you wish to marry Anasii, you must bring a dowry that I can accept."
That is what Anasii's father told Zinova.
Zinova tells Anasii that she will bring him a dowry and then leaves.
Zinovas set up a trading company and worked tirelessly to earn a large amount of money.
She then proposed marriage to Anasyi's father, using the money as a dowry.
The father reluctantly agreed to the betrothal between Anasii and Zinova.
Even after the engagement, Anashii was abused and tormented as a "goblin girl".
At that time, Zinova heard a rumor that the formula for a potion to cure Anashii's illness was found in an unexcavated ruin.
Zinova tells Anashii that she will be away for a while on business for the Chamber of Commerce, and sets out alone to explore the unexcavated ruins.
Despite being covered in wounds, Zinova finally obtains the formula for the potion.
Anashii is worried when she sees Zinova returning home covered in injuries.
"I'm sorry. I fell down."
Zinova says and covers it up.
Then Zinova busied herself gathering ingredients for a potion.
Sometimes she fights orcs, sometimes she fights ogres, and even though she is covered in wounds, she gathers the ingredients.
She succeeds in making the potion.
He takes the potion to Anashii's house, but he hears Anashii's father saying to himself.
"What a pity.
If Anashii wasn't sick, I could have arranged a marriage with the prince."
"What do you mean? "
Eavesdropping, Zinova asks Anashii's father.
"Exactly what you said.
I was almost able to arrange a marriage, but he refused because of his illness."
"And when Anasii's illness is cured? "
"Of course I'll break my engagement with you and marry you to the prince.
The prince and you are different in status.
Of course Anashii would be happier as a royal.
You can live in luxury till the end of your life and everyone will bow down to you.
It's only natural for Anashii to be happy.
Love is an uncertain thing that eventually cools.
Royalty is better in the long run.
Yes.
And when that happens, will you break off our engagement?
Anashii's honor won't be harmed if you break off our engagement because you cheated on her.
Of course you can do that if you want Anashii to be happy. "
Zinova is shocked by Anashii's father's words.
"Anashii's happiness..."
Zinova mutters as she stands alone on the stage.
The scene changes and Anashii and Zinova take the stage.
"Hey, Anashii.
What do you think of the prince? "
Zinova asks Anashii as she and Anashii stand alone on stage.
"What? I think he's nice."
"Well, what if the prince proposes to you? "
"Of course, I'd be honored."
"...I see."
And with that, Zinova disappears from the stage.
"I said that because it would be disrespectful to speak ill of the prince, but was it wrong?
I really don't want to marry the prince.
It's Zinova I love."
"It's Zinova I like, you know.
Ginova, I miss you."
Anasii sobbed as she was kneeled around by many men.
"Yes.
Let's go thank her for the cure.
If I can just catch a glimpse of Zinova, I can hang on for a while."
Anashii goes to Zinova's business to thank her for the cure.
There, she learns from Kei that the betrothal was a ruse and that Kei only cooperated in exchange for the right to run Zinova's business.
Anashii's father has arranged a marriage with the prince.
The matchmaking between the prince and Anashii begins.
"This is a beautiful woman.
I'm lucky to have someone like you as my wife."
The prince says.
"I can't marry you, Your Highness.
I'm in love with someone else."
With that, Anashii leaves the arranged marriage table.
Anashii wanders the streets.
She finds Zinova sitting on the street, a vagrant, and Anashii embraces her.
"Anashii?
You can't do this to me.
You're going to marry a prince and be happy."
Zinova rejects Anashii, and Anashii presses Zinova to get back together.
They continue to argue for a while.
Eventually, Anashii kneels down and kisses the back of Zinova's hand.
"Will you marry me?"
Anashii proposes to Zinova.
"If you'll go that far... okay.
I'll take care of you for the rest of my life."
The two of them go to Anashii's father's house.
"Anashii. What a fool you've been.
I will not allow you to marry a man like that."
Anashii's father is indignant.
"If you don't approve, I'll leave home.
I will abandon my family name and live with Zinova."
"Love does not last ten years.
I'm saying this out of love for you."
"No. This love will last a lifetime.
Goodbye, Father."
"Wait!
All right... I accept your hand in marriage."
Zinova and Anasii embrace and kiss, and the curtain falls.
◆◆◆◆◆
There was thunderous applause.
Anna and I couldn't stop crying and couldn't leave our seats.
We went into a coffee shop and discussed our impressions of the play.
It turned out that I had cried for Anasii and Ana had cried for Zinova.
To be honest, it was embarrassing for us to be the subject of a play.
"If this restores Master Gino's honor, I'll be fine."
I couldn't stand to see her smile so brightly, so I got up and walked over to her and hugged her and kissed her.
Bridget, who came rushing out, pulled me away and angrily asked me what I would do if I did such a thing in front of people and it would be an ugly news for Anna.
The curious stares of the people around us made Ana turn red.
We left the store as if we were running away.
"Well, I'm sorry.
I saw your smile and I couldn't resist."
"...No, no."
It's not customary to kiss in public in this country.
And noblewomen are only allowed to touch the palm of their hand in public.
Anna must have been very embarrassed.
◆◆◆◆◆
The Severnsworths subsidize the theater company that puts on productions of The Goblin Lady.
The amount of the subsidy is so large that the company makes a profit even if there is no audience.
Because of this, "The Goblin Lady" was performed not only domestically but also internationally, and the show became very popular.
The amount of money invested in the production must have been terrifying, but for the Seven Worths, whose income from lotion alone is equivalent to the national budget, it was a small price to pay.
Until now, in this country, marriage proposals have been made by men to women, and women have never proposed to men.
However, under the influence of "The Goblin Lady", women began to propose to men.
This is due to the fact that "The Goblin Lady" is based on a true story, and the model is Anna.
There is a precedent of a woman proposing to a man, and that woman is a duchess.
Because of her high status, she could not be criticized as "trifling," and female proposals became so popular among commoners that they became a social phenomenon.
It was not only commoners who saw women proposing to each other.
In aristocratic society, where political marriages are the mainstream, there are a small number of aristocratic women who look for marriage partners in social circles.
Some of these aristocratic women proposed to men, just as commoners did, and this became a hot topic in the social circles.
The influence did not stop there.
Up until now, it had been considered the proper role of a noblewoman to marry the man of her family's choice, even if he was not the one she wanted.
In the midst of such common sense, the protagonist of "The Goblin Lady" ruined the marriage proposal made by her family, carried out her love even though she was ready to be disowned, and even won her love by proposing to the woman.
Her strength of will and her way of life, which is not afraid of overturning common sense, had a great influence on the noble girls, and many of them admired the heroine of "The Goblin Lady," in other words, Anna.
Anna is invited to tea parties by many of these women who admire her.
From the image of the play, many people imagined her to be a dignified woman who radiated supremacy, but in reality, Anna has a gentle impression, and her beauty is as gentle and fragile as that of her mother-in-law.
The girls were all struck by this gap and became her admirers.
When Anna and I attended soirées together, we were surrounded by many noblewomen, and they began to ask Anna and me many questions.
When they found out that the story of the Goblin Lady was generally true, they became very excited, saying, "It's wonderful," "It's romantic," and "It's an enviable love. It's so romantic!
Of course, there were some conservative women who frowned at such innovative women.
However, such women were less common among the younger generation and more common among the middle-aged and older generation.
Many of the middle-aged and older women used the rejuvenating lotion of the House of Seventh Worth.
They are afraid of having their supply of lotion cut off if they criticize the House of Seven Worth in public.
That's why they keep their mouths shut in public.
The two sisters-in-law of House Barbarie have also been greatly influenced by the Goblin Lady.
"As expected. Brother-in-law. After the play, they praised her with tears in their eyes and asked her to have a tea party with Anna.
I invited Anna to a tea party at the Barbarie house, and not only my sister-in-law but also her friends listened to Anna's story with sparkling eyes.
In this way, the Seven Worths' plan to clear my name was a great success, and no one spoke ill of the commotion I had caused at the graduation party.
On the contrary, my reputation had risen sharply, and I was increasingly respected, especially by young women.
However, this does not mean that there are no people who show an explicitly negative attitude toward me.
The year before I broke off my engagement at my graduation party, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince also broke off his engagement at his graduation party.
Even though we were doing similar things, I broke off my engagement and greatly increased my reputation, while the Crown Prince greatly decreased his.
Apparently, the Crown Prince was not pleased with that and did not hide his displeasure from the moment we greeted each other.
"Are you Miss Anastasia's fiancé?"
"Yes."
I replied straightforwardly without saying anything else to the Dauphin's disgruntled inquiry.
"I hear that a man who is not even the legitimate son of a poor baronet has become engaged to the daughter of the House of Seventhworth.
Don't you think that's disproportionate? "
Oh. I see.
I suppose I'm in the way of your taking Anna to be your wife.
"I consider myself fortunate."
I don't say it's disproportionate.
"Then dissolve the engagement," he'd say.
"Marriage should be about status.
Don't you agree? "
Smirking, the Dauphin continues with his question.
If it were anything else, I'd let him get away with it, but not if he's after Anna.
I'm determined to fight back.
"Oh. Has Your Highness finally given up on your marriage to Miss Marriott?
I didn't know that."
"What? "
His Royal Highness the Dauphin frowns at my question.
"Oh, no?
Your Highness said earlier that we should consider the difference in status in marriage.
I thought that you had given up on your marriage to Miss Marriott because of the great difference in status between royalty and barony."
I told His Highness so.
This is what happens when you deny other people a marriage with a status difference while you yourself aim for a marriage with a status difference.
You really are a dumb person.
"Master Dee. I'm scared."
Miss Marriott, standing next to the Crown Prince, hugs him with a frightened face.
Lady Dee is probably the nickname of Crown Prince Dietfried.
She has the audacity to call a man who is not her fiancé by his nickname in a public place.
His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince, hurriedly expressed his concern for Miss Marriott.
"You dare to interfere in the royal family's marriage affairs!
You are disrespectful! "
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince shouted in an angry voice.
His voice is loud enough to draw the attention of the people around him.
"I beg your pardon."
"Hmph .
Decline your engagement to Miss Anastasia.
I'll forgive you if you do.
No, don't worry.
I'll make Miss Anastasia my lady-in-waiting."
Since I apologized, the crown prince took advantage of my weakness and made a demand of his own.
"No, thank you."
"What? What?
Are you refusing to listen to the order of the royal family? ? "
Not expecting to be refused, the Crown Prince shouted again.
"It's not the royal order, sir."
"You!
Do you even know what you're saying? Do you know what you're talking about?
Are you going against the royal family when you're a mere viscount! ? "
"Your order to withdraw from the engagement is not the consensus of the royal family, is it?
If it wasn't the royal family's intention, why would you go against the royal family? "
"It's the Dauphin's order!
Are you still going to defy him! ? "
"I say again.
I have no intention of withdrawing from my engagement to Anna."
It's no big deal if it's the Dauphin's life.
The crown prince is the only one in the royal family who would say something like this.
If His Majesty agrees with you, there is no need to follow the Dauphin's will alone.
More importantly, I'm not going to bend my mind anymore even if it's the royal family.
I was going to resist even if it was the king's order.
"You! You! "
"What's going on? "
The Dauphin's voice was so loud that it drew the attention of the people around him.
The people who had been chatting and laughing stopped their conversations and all looked at us.
Her Royal Highness came over to me and asked, probably to settle the situation.
"This is your mother.
I have offered to take Miss Anastasia to my side, but she has rudely refused.
I'm about to execute this rude person."
The Crown Prince said confidently, but the Queen's face paled when she heard his words.
Oh, no.
I said it out loud when everyone around me was quiet and paying attention.
Due to religious reasons, this country is monogamous.
A concubine is allowed only in an emergency situation when the king is unable to have a child, and marrying a concubine from the start is a denial of religion.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has not yet given up on the idea of marrying Baroness Marriott, but his Majesty has not approved his marriage to her.
For this reason, the Crown Prince has not even married the Crown Princess.
Even if he had plans to marry a concubine, he had to keep his plans secret in order to avoid confrontation with the Church forces when he was unmarried.
If the plan to marry a concubine was revealed while she was still unmarried, the nobles who were close to the Church would be more likely to oppose it.
Even the House of Unsworth would have to make an official protest to avoid unnecessary confrontation with the forces of the Church, and show that the House of Unsworth had nothing to do with the Dauphin's plan.
"Miss Anastasia, Miss Zinorius.
I'm sorry to have disturbed you.
Diethfried seems to be tired."
Her Royal Highness said and ordered the guards to send the Dauphin back.
"Mother! ? "
The Dauphin is surprised that his mother is not on his side.
The guards grabbed him by both arms and the Crown Prince left.
"I'm really sorry.
We'll have to meet again to apologize."
She said with a pale face and left.
She must have wanted to cry out, but she did not show any sign of it.
She was an honorable person.
As expected, the duke formally protested to the royal family as the House of Sevensforth.
Her Royal Highness went to the trouble of visiting the House of Sevensforth and bowed her head to request that the official protest be dropped.
The Duke, however, refused to listen.
The House of Sevensforth is currently in the process of capturing the Church forces.
Not protesting now would be too negative for the House of Unsworth.
The Church and the Churchian nobility have also formally demanded that the royal family respect religious precepts.
The Church and the Churchman nobles did not have much influence, but the protest from the House of Sevensforth was fatal.
The Seventhsworths, who had decided to remain silent on the succession dispute between the Dauphin and the First Prince, officially protested against the Dauphin, which made people think that they had distanced themselves from the Dauphin.
The Dauphin would have no chance of succeeding to the throne if he came into conflict with the House of Sevensforth.
Thinking so, the nobles of the Crown Prince's faction left the Crown Prince at once and formed a faction that pushed for the Fourth Prince.
The Crown Prince, having lost all of his supporters, was unable to maintain his position and became the abolished Crown Prince.
The seat of the Dauphin became vacant and the Crown Prince Diethfried was replaced by the Third Prince Diethfried.
I felt pity for the Queen.
Her Royal Highness had been struggling all her life to keep her son, the Third Prince, as the Crown Prince.
It is said that Her Royal Highness is a pragmatic person, who bows to lower class nobles when necessary.
However, I believe that she was forced to bow to the lower nobility in order to protect the position of her child.
It is said that he was a power-hungry man, but I do not think so.
He single-handedly established the Crown Prince's faction and kept it together until now.
It is impossible for such a capable person not to realize that carrying the Crown Prince is a muddy boat.
In fact, he is still trying to support his son even though the Dauphin has broken off the engagement to the Duchess Lillard and the Dauphin's faction has been conclusively defeated by all accounts.
If she only wanted to keep her power, she would have cut off her own son as soon as possible and go to the guardianship of another capable prince.
What she has, I think, is not the desire for power but love for her son.
Despite her desperate efforts for her child, her child continues to drag her down, and in fact, His Highness the Third Prince even blames his mother.
It's really unrewarding.
When the Third Prince slipped up and revealed his plan to make Anna his wife, Her Royal Highness looked pale.
That was probably because she knew how this would turn out and knew that there was no way to recover.
She's a very good person.
"It's just like Gino-sama to have sympathy for Her Royal Highness, who is often criticized for lacking royal pride and being power-hungry.
You have a tolerant view of things."
When I mentioned this to Anna, she said so with enchanting eyes.
Since the two sisters-in-law of the Barbarie family have taken a liking to her and have frequent tea parties with her, Ana seems to have become more like them.
◆◆◆◆◆
I was given a count's title.
Now I am not Genorius Barbarie but Genorius Simon Barbarie.
This is the name you get when you are a member of the Barbarian family and you also have the title of Count Simon.
He was given the count's title because of the high praise he received for the paper he sent along with Anna's cure.
The paper I wrote was about the principles of the onset of Ana's extreme magic overload and its cure, but people in this world won't understand it if I simply write that.
I also added magical concepts and theories that are necessary to understand the paper, so that people in this world, which is far behind in magic, can also understand it.
As a result, I proposed a number of new concepts and theories, which apparently caused a tremor in the medical magic world.
People in this world did not even know about "magical diseases" such as extreme magical excess.
Then, he suddenly clarified the principle of the onset of extreme magic overload, a kind of magical disease, and even established a cure.
Although this is not my field, I still had a doctorate in my previous life.
I know how difficult it is to construct a new theory just by proposing a hypothesis, so I can understand the surprise of the mages.
Normally, the first discoverer of a new theory names it after himself, but I have named all my theories after Anna.
For example, the Lem-Le Anastasia distribution, the Anastasia-Saun reaction, and the Lyon-Anastasia method.
In academic language, Rem le Anastasia means "Loving Anastasia", Anastasia Saun means "Anastasia, be healthy", and Lyon Anastasia means "Shining Anastasia".
Since the academic language is taught in the school, both Anna and the duke and duchess understand the meaning.
The duke looked satisfied.
"I like it. It's quite a sensible name."
And the mother-in-law said
"Well. That's a very romantic name."
She chuckled.
"Well, then, won't Gino-sama's name go down in history? "
Anna said, turning red, embarrassed that she had been exposed to a new academic term in front of her parents.
"My name may not remain, but my thoughts will remain forever.
Everyone who works with healing magic will learn of my feelings for you.
Isn't that a problem? "
I said with a laugh.
Her red face grew even redder, as if she was quite embarrassed that it was going to be in the textbook.
How adorable.
Along with the title, I received a fief.
When the former Dauphin broke off the engagement, his aides were also involved in it.
As punishment, part of his family's lands were confiscated by the crown and given to me.
It was not a rich area, but rather a poor area.
Moreover, it is an enclave under the direct control of the royal family, so it seems to be difficult to manage, and the land is quite large, but they gave it to me generously.
Her Royal Highness must have worked very hard, because such a territory was confiscated as a punishment.
If I were to manage the land in a normal way, I would have to spend a lot of money to manage it, because the cost of managing the land is higher than the income from the estate.
The reason why this land was given to me was probably to suppress the House of Unsworth.
I think the reason why they targeted me instead of the Duke or my mother-in-law is because I am an easier target.
Although I will eventually join the House of Unsworth, I am still a member of the House of Barbarie.
From the perspective of the faction headed by House Sevensforth, it would be difficult for them to protect me since I am not yet a member of House Sevensforth.
Despite the fact that I am in a position where it is difficult for them to protect me, it has been decided that I will eventually join House Sevensforth.
If you burden me with a debt while I am not yet a member of House Sevensforth, it will become a debt for House Sevensforth in the future.
It was His Royal Highness the Third Prince and the nobles of the Dauphin's faction who arranged for me to be given this land.
I suppose they think they've forced me into debt and dragged me down.
But sooner or later they'll clog their pockets.
I already have a plan to reform the land.
It's a vast and barren land, but there is a place where seven-colored ore can be mined.
At present, the seven-colored ore is only recognized as an unusual and beautiful mineral.
As such, it is only used to make inexpensive local accessories, but it is the raw material for mithril.
This is a wasteful use.
Mithril is a first-class material for golems, and can be used to make high-quality weapons and armor.
I was a golem engineer in a previous life.
I know the ratios of various mithril alloys, and what each is suitable for.
Compared to developing a cure, this is like twisting the hand of a baby.