*****

「Heh. She sounds like an incredible young lady for her age. If your story is true, I’d almost want to hire her for the company myself.」

At the dinner table, sharing a meal together for the first time in a while, my brother Lloyd seemed to be only half-listening.

...It was only natural. Magnolia’s eccentricity was the kind of thing you couldn't truly believe until you saw it with your own eyes. Even Simon himself would have thought it was nonsense if he hadn't dealt with her personally.

「...But I’ve never heard anything about a girl being born to the main Gilmore house,」

Colette—my sister-in-law, who seemed to know the Marquis of Gilmore’s reputation—remarked, tilting her lovely face framed by brunette hair.

Whenever I saw her, I was struck by how rare a woman she was, possessing both the aura of an innocent girl and the allure of a sophisticated adult. In reality, she was a terrifyingly witch-like woman who would swallow you whole if you let your guard down for a second. I had seen countless men fooled by her appearance, only to be ruthlessly dismantled the moment they showed a weakness. She was the personification of just how frightening a woman could be.

To the public, she was the heroine who had used her business acumen to brilliantly restore the fading House of Orsay after she came of age. She was the daughter of the Baron of Orsay—though she was somewhat past the age one would call a "young lady"—and a formidable woman who held the title of Baroness in her own right due to her immense talent.

The Kingdom of Ascald is blessed with fertile land, thanks to the protection of the Goddess of Flowers. It is a grateful land where crops can be harvested in abundance without much effort, provided they are raised normally. Records show that even when all neighboring countries were hit by severe food crises due to crop failures, Ascald alone enjoyed a bountiful harvest. While it may seem like a humble blessing in times of peace, its value is irreplaceable when it comes to the very survival of its people.

As soon as the Duchy of Azenda was integrated, Colette used her foresight and the geographical advantages to quickly set her sights on the port. Focusing on the abundant food and processed goods produced in her territory, she teamed up with local merchants to sell their specialties to foreigners. Furthermore, she used the profits to purchase foreign goods and distribute them widely within Ascald, succeeding in amassing a massive fortune in no time.

Her ability to see the true nature of things and the wealth she built herself were recognized almost immediately. She soon became one of only two women in the Kingdom of Ascald to hold a peerage in their own right.

It was said that her greatest talent was her eye for discerning the truth. And the man this woman had chosen as her partner was not the son of some great noble, but a commoner: Lloyd Campbell, the chairman of the Campbell Trading Company and my older brother. He was a kind, hard-working man—compassionate and courageous. While he seemed easygoing at first glance, he didn't falter easily. He was a man of surprisingly steady nerves.

「Isn't it because he’s a schemer that he manipulates people and everything around him to his advantage?」

At my brother’s words, Colette lowered her long eyelashes and gave a soft chuckle.

「A true schemer moves things in a way that people don't even realize they're being manipulated, you know? They wouldn't waste effort on something as troublesome as a hidden child, much less go through the inexplicable trouble of raising her in the main house where the legal wife lives.」

According to Colette’s prediction, Magnolia was undoubtedly the child of the Marquis and Marchioness of Gilmore. It was a story Simon found utterly impossible to believe.

(Could he really treat his own flesh and blood like that...?)

Seeing Simon’s lack of conviction, she gave a sad smile.

「...Sometimes, people can be even more cruel to those of their own blood. Still, it’s not like that schemer to hide her away without an official debut...」

Colette tilted her head. Based on what her brother-in-law said, the girl was clearly brilliant. If she was young enough to be helping with the territory’s businesses, she surely wasn't sickly. What kind of excuse did the Marquis intend to make in the future?

It was a grim thought, but taking a child in to use as a pawn in a political marriage was a common enough occurrence. However, if he intended to raise her while hiding her existence, it made no sense to take in someone who was nothing but a source of potential trouble. Was it because something happened to her real mother? ...If that were the case, he would have just left her alone or entrusted her to someone else.

Though Colette didn't specifically track the movements of Gerald, who had no intention of entering the center of national politics, she kept a close eye on the Azenda Margraviate because it held the crucial port and was a neighboring territory. She had never heard a word about the "Demon General" having a granddaughter. The girl’s move to the territory must have been very recent.

It was clear from his daily conduct that the schemer Gerald wanted to keep his distance from the royal family... but even if he wanted to prevent her from becoming the next king’s consort, this was a complete failure of a move. A house of that stature couldn't have a child debut without word reaching even the most remote provincial nobles. Thus, to the outside world, the only child of the Gilmore family was the son who had debuted previously.

(He’s not the kind of man who wouldn't realize that... unless...)

「Was he planning to completely erase her existence and cast her away...?」

She whispered her small suspicion. As a mother herself, Colette felt a chill at the thought.

「...Colette?」

Her husband, Lloyd, called her name in concern as he saw the blood drain from his wife's face.

Beside them, Simon spoke to his three-year-old nephew—Lloyd and Colette’s beloved son. He was a normal three-year-old: growing up freely, a bit shy, but with a mischievous streak. Since the House of Orsay had Colette’s younger brother as the heir, Colette herself didn't need to worry about the succession of the Barony.

Though they were nobles, a Baron’s house was of lower rank. It wasn't unheard of for a daughter to marry a wealthy commoner merchant. It was only slightly complicated because she herself was a rare peerage-holder, but the pairing of a Baron’s daughter and a commoner happened often enough. They were currently considering the timing and circumstances of when to go public. Personally, she didn't care when it was, but her father was being quite fussy about it.

Regardless, Colette had thankfully given birth to the heir of the Campbell family. To avoid various troubles and confusion, this was a fact known only to a very limited number of people. Lloyd had wanted to wait for the public announcement of their marriage before having children, but considering her age and the philosophy of "having them while you can," they had gone ahead with it. They also had a one-year-old daughter, who was currently in her room sleeping after a full serving of milk.

Simon couldn't help but feel that Colette was definitely "filling in the outer moat" to make their situation permanent. Since the title of Baroness was for one generation only, the children were being raised as members of the Campbell family without a public debut. She had already brought an understanding priest into the fold and tied the knot; in reality, she was Colette Campbell, not Colette Orsay. The marriage was properly registered and accepted by the Church. It was terrifying... in many ways.

Simon looked at his nephew, who had such a meticulously prepared mother, and asked:

「...Hey. Can you write your name yet?」

The boy’s eyes sparkled at his uncle’s words as he shoveled a spoonful of food into his mouth.

「Yeah! I can wwite 'I' and 'O'!!」

「............ I see. That’s amazing.」

Simon patted his innocent nephew’s head.

He recalled the receipt he had been handed by Magnolia—who was only a year older than his nephew—and her beautiful, flowing signature. Thinking that, in a way, she might be even scarier than his sister-in-law, Simon scratched his head in frustration.

*****

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