Chapter 256

Duchess Elandria’s life had been perfect until recently.

Brothers who adored her, a husband who let her do as she pleased, and beautiful, healthy children. As mistress of the house, she presided over the second most prestigious family in the world, and aside from the Imperial Family, no one had any reason to look down on her.

Then, one day, it all collapsed. Her family was accused, her husband killed her brother, and their house fell apart… in an instant. As if she were being forced to pay, all at once, for every ounce of happiness she’d enjoyed.

And the final nail was driven into her heart when she visited her son after a long absence.

“Mother.”

The last time the Duchess had seen Nellusion was last winter, back when the family was still harmonious, living under one roof.

After learning that her brother, Lord Wells, had been killed by her husband—there was still no confirmation, but the longer time passed, the more certain she became—and after leaving the Duke’s residence in the Imperial Capital, she refused to see her husband, or even her son.

She hated her husband, and her son looked too much like him. Worse, she’d even wondered if her son might have been involved in Lord Wells’ death. After all, hadn’t Duke Elandria and his son always been at odds?

And yet, unlike her husband, whom she could simply cast aside, she couldn’t bring herself to hate her son with the same coldness. Her heart ached at the rumors that her poor child was struggling to support their fallen family. She couldn’t help loving him.

That was why she’d come to find him again. Whatever the truth behind the horrifying news that he had tried to kill his father, she needed to see with her own eyes how he was doing, especially when everyone said he was suffering after losing the dukedom and the trust of aristocratic society.

The small house Nellusion stayed in, instead of the Duke’s residence, was just as Valentin always said—shabby. It was sturdily built with good materials, but to a woman who had lived in wealth her entire life, it looked no better than a servant’s attic.

Worse still, her son sat alone in the drawing room of such a place. When he saw his mother, he forced an awkward smile, tugging at the corners of stiff lips.

“Nell! My son!”

That smile shattered every doubt.

Ah, why hadn’t she come sooner and held him? The Duchess questioned what kind of mother she’d been and grieved until her chest ached, because Nellusion looked so pitiful it made her forget every suspicion she’d ever had.

And Nellusion, catching the shift in his mother’s emotions at once, hid his exhaustion as if it were nothing. He gestured to the seat across from him.

“It’s been a while, Mother. I’m glad to see you. I’m sorry I haven’t been able to visit…”

“Sorry for what? This is your mother’s fault, my dear. What’s with that tired face? And this house—what is this? Come back to your mother’s family right away. Even if your mother’s home is in shambles, it’s still better than this!”

“How can I face the elders of my mother’s family? Father did such a thing to my little uncle…”

Nellusion lowered his eyes, as if he couldn’t bear to continue.

So he knew.

The Duchess wasn’t surprised. Her conviction had hardened so completely that if someone claimed another person had killed Lord Wells, she would have rejected it outright.

“How is that your fault? Just tell me you had nothing to do with it. This mother was afraid you might have been involved…!”

“No, Mother. Of course not. How well my little uncle treated me, even before… I only found out recently.”

That settled it.

The moment her doubts vanished, the Duchess rushed to Nellusion and wrapped him in her arms, love and guilt surging through her. She sobbed, repeating that she was sorry for not trusting him.

In her embrace, Nellusion flinched.

This hug was different from what he remembered. Weak, thin, and somehow… resentful. Nothing like ‘that’ Duchess Elandria.

The most confident, elegant noblewoman in the world.

His hand trembled in place. Then, after a brief moment, he steeled himself and hugged his mother back. The corners of his lips slowly lifted.

‘Just as I thought.’

Nellusion didn’t know who had killed Lord Wells, who had been arrested in Tropur. But the chance that Duke Elandria was the culprit was low. There was no long-term benefit to be gained from it. If Valentin hadn’t let it slip carelessly, he might never have known his mother had fallen into such a misunderstanding.

‘Perhaps the real culprit is the Grand Duke of Maindulante or Princess Camille.’

But he had no intention of correcting his mother.

Now that his father had returned to life and was openly hostile to him, Nellusion had to cut off any possibility that his mother might take his father’s side, or try to force a reconciliation between father and son.

In the most pitiful voice he could manage, he spoke as if it were an afterthought.

“Mother, it’s so hard. I’m scared. I don’t understand how things ended up like this. Father is saying ridiculous things—that I tried to harm him—and I have no place at court.”

The Duchess’s anger flared.

There was no way kind Nellusion would try to harm his father. It had to be lies, all of it.

She didn’t understand why her cunning, wicked husband would pretend to be dead and return only to slander his own son. There was no benefit in it. But what mattered was simple: she had to protect her child.

From her husband, who had already killed her brother-in-law.

“Don’t worry, my dear! Can’t a mother protect her child? I know about the slush fund that man hid in the territory, and the many secrets he buried within the Imperial Family. There are lords under his command who still rely on your mother’s family. This mother will fight for you!”

“Thank you, Mother. Hearing you say that makes me feel relieved. Valentin… she seems to be misunderstanding. She’s been pure since she was young. If she’d just waited a little longer, I was going to make her a dignified Crown Princess Consort, but she won’t believe me…”

“Crown Princess Consort?”

The Duchess had no idea about the marriage proposal between Valentin and the Imperial Family. By the time those talks were underway, she had already retreated to her own family.

Her face lit up. She pulled back from him and beamed.

“Is our Valentin still able to enter the Imperial Family? There are rumors the Imperial Family has decided to suppress House Elandria. Ah—but now Valentin is the only daughter of a great noble family. Is that right?”

“Yes, Mother.”

Nellusion smiled, and the Duchess practically glowed.

“I knew this day would come! How pretty and charming is Valentin? There aren’t many young ladies so noble, and so lovely. My angel. So when can I become the mother-in-law of His Highness the Crown Prince?”

“It’s not that easy, Mother. As you know, our family has many weaknesses the Imperial Family has seized on, so we need to show sincerity.”

“Sincerity? …But I don’t have enough money for a great dowry…”

The Duchess’s expression dimmed as she recalled the Wells family mansion, nearly empty, its servants all sent away. Nellusion lowered his voice.

“It’s not a large dowry he needs. What His Highness the Crown Prince needs now is merit. With the front line being pushed back, he needs achievements to show the nobles. I’ve learned some valuable information that could strike at the enemy’s weakness, but I’m short on money to carry out the operation. I know you don’t have much, Mother, but if you could add even a little, I think I can finish quickly.”

Hatred for her husband and the sweetness of Crown Princess Consort had clouded her, but the moment money came up, the Duchess briefly regained her senses.

The Wells family had already been shaken once by the Tropur incident, then given up what little they had left trying to please the Crown Prince. They had lost customers to other merchants, and now only weak roots remained.

But when she looked at her son’s face, her resolve softened. After only a brief hesitation, she nodded, determination flashing in her eyes.

“Okay. I’ll give you everything I have left. Do whatever you need to do. If our Valentin becomes the Crown Princess Consort, won’t she repay us for everything?”

Nellusion’s smile deepened, happiness swelling in his chest.

His promise to make Valentin the Crown Princess Consort was not a lie. He no longer cared who Valentin married or what she became. He didn’t care if House Elandria survived in name alone. Abelus didn’t seem to know much about the old secrets, and the Emperor—who did—had already fallen. Nellusion no longer feared for his life.

He simply wanted this to succeed.

He was desperate to find the secret passage whose location he believed he knew, and to tear Maindulante apart.

He knew, too, that the Wells family had even less money than House Elandria. His mother would likely have to sell everything—her small villa, her personal belongings, even the trivial jewelry she’d received as a girl. Whether Nellusion succeeded or not, his mother’s remaining years would be miserable. Would Valentin even be able to keep paying her tuition?

But what could he do?

That close-knit family was already completely over.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Make sure every village learns how to use straw boxes before autumn. The central government will support you as much as possible, but there will be villages that lack firewood. Listen more closely than ever to the people, and don’t let a shortage of manpower turn into disaster.”

“Yes.”

Rex Bronson, restored as head of management after Nerys became Grand Duchess, answered firmly. The other managers gathered in the conference room wore the same determined expressions.

With soldiers gone to war and the elderly and weak forced into farm labor, agriculture and animal husbandry could not proceed as they did in peacetime. The managers wracked their brains, devising and teaching methods to handle the work of daily life with fewer resources and less effort.

The straw box was something Nerys had found in old records. The principle was simple: boil food in a cast iron pot as usual at first, then remove it from the heat, place the pot in a box packed with straw, cover it, and let the remaining heat finish cooking overnight.

Using it for common dishes—stew, flour porridge, and the like—saved a great deal of firewood, and it also let people tend to other tasks without worry while the meal finished itself.

Beyond straw boxes, White Swan Castle tested and adopted any lifestyle changes that might help the people, compiled educational materials, and distributed them. Even so, with war raging in the midst of a busy farming season, there was no avoiding hardship for those whose lives had grown more difficult.

Yet none of White Swan Castle’s managers looked exhausted. Daily victory reports from the front kept morale steady, and the Grand Duchess herself set the example—throwing herself into the work, vowing she would not let a single person die unnecessarily.

“Then go.”

At Nerys’s dismissal, the managers filed out at once. Nerys rose as well, preparing to move on to her next task.

“…Ah.”

Her vision swam.

Dora startled and caught her as she staggered.

“Are you alright, Madam? Are you feeling unwell? I’ll call a doctor right away!”

“No… I’m fine. Don’t make a fuss.”

Guarding the castle in place of a husband gone to war was the traditional duty of a lord’s wife. Nerys wanted to carry that duty well. She didn’t want to alarm the people of the castle and dampen their spirits.

Dora hovered, unsure what to do. Nerys smiled at her anxious face.

“I’m really okay. I think I’m just tired.”

“Of course you must be tired. Didn’t you doze off earlier?”

“Yes. I’ve been dozing off a lot lately. The smell of food is hard to bear, and I’ve become sensitive…”

Nerys trailed off.

After a moment, Dora fell silent too.

Nerys counted back in her mind. Come to think of it, had she had her period last month? She sometimes skipped it when there was too much on her mind, but…

Before Nerys could say anything, Dora raised her hand.

“I’ll call a doctor. Quietly. Right away.”

Her heart felt as though it might burst. Nerys—who would normally insist on finishing her work first—only nodded in silence.

(T/N: Our dear Nerys is pregnant!!° Yeyyyyy!!!)