Practicing Leadership

Translated by: ME

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

「Magnolia-sama, what shall we do about the flowers?」

「Let’s see... something pale and spring-like, I think.」

A noblewoman’s primary duty is the management of the household. Normally, a daughter would shadow her mother, learning the ropes through years of practice...

However, Magnolia lived apart from her biological parents. Having been taken in—or perhaps more accurately, having moved into—the home of her grandfather, the Margrave, she found herself in a household without a mistress.

Recently, in addition to her artistic education, it was decided that her domestic training should not be neglected. Thus, Magnolia had been entrusted with a portion of the Margrave’s household affairs. Currently, she was in the middle of selecting the day's floral arrangements and confirming the seasonal changes to the decor.

...One could say it was very typical of this house that her "practice" wasn't practice at all, but rather being thrown straight into the deep end.

(I wish someone would actually show me how it's done first, though~.)

Living with a grandfather whose personality suggested he wouldn't mind a few failures, and an uncle who would likely provide endless lectures based on pure logic, perhaps doing it for real from the start wasn't an issue.

Better to gain much from one real experience than to learn little from ten lukewarm practice sessions.

Since her true test would be managing her own household after marriage, the idea was to let her fail as much as she liked here at the Margrave’s estate. She could only pray that if she did something truly beyond the pale, Sebastian—the capable head butler—or Plum—the gutsy head maid—would step in to stop her.

(Besides, it’s not like Wisteria-san seemed to be doing much at the main house, so in the worst-case scenario, the steward, butler, or head maid probably just handles everything anyway.)

「It might be wise to review the summer fabrics. I’d like to place an order for whatever we’re lacking...」

「Understood, My Lady.」

Seasonal redecorating is such a chore, Magnolia grumbled to herself while giving her instructions.

---

Preparations for Magnolia’s debut in the autumn began bit by bit.

Creating the guest list, preparing and sending invitations, arranging the venue to suit both the guests and the season, the food, the party favors, the preparations for the dinner parties for those traveling from afar...

Normally, this event takes place between six months and a year after birth. Even though noble child-rearing almost always involves a wet nurse, the period following childbirth is quite a heavy labor—or perhaps a mental strain—for the mother. Since the lady of the house cannot remain entirely uninvolved even after birth, mothers truly have it rough in any world.

「Duke Bristol... Position: Prime Minister...? Is it really okay to invite someone like this to the borderlands...?」

Comparing the list of invitees with the peerage register she had mostly memorized, she hammered the positions, preferences, and special notes listed next to the names into her head.

This was to prepare for any sudden "incidents." There was a mountain of information to remember—preferences, hobbies, physical constitution, family structure—all to ensure no social blunders were made.

Magnolia now understood perfectly why Wisteria-san, despite her immense love for socializing, never hosted balls or dinner parties at home.

The guests were fundamentally associates of the parents or the house, or people with whom the family had formal ties. Usually, the child is just "there," but this time was an exception: a debut at age six. It was anticipated that she would be subjected to unnecessary prying, speculation, and occasionally, eyes filled with curiosity.

Lily and Dean turned pale every time they looked at the copy of the list.

Unlike Magnolia, who was a noble in form only and possessed the mindset of a commoner from Earth, the two of them—being true nobles, however low-ranking—could feel the gravity of the situation.

「...As expected of the Margrave’s house... To have such a line-up of distinguished guests. I’m worried I’ll commit some grave discourtesy.」

「I’m supposed to help with the service... I wonder if I’ll be okay.」

「Those who cannot make it will send proxies, so it will be fine,」 said Claude, who had returned from the capital and was looking over the copy.

The Margrave’s family was currently gathered for tea for the first time in a while. Recently, Magnolia had been tasked with directing the tea table arrangements. Yes, it was practice for directing a party.

Servas, with Magnolia sitting on his knee, nodded at Claude’s words. 「Bristol will likely send his second son as his representative... He lives nearby, after all.」

In terms of house connections, many resided in the Ascald Kingdom, but considering that Magnolia was meant to stay in the borderlands, the majority of the guests were nobles from the Margraviate.

「What is the official story regarding my circumstances?」

「...Apparently, you were frail as a child. That causes the least amount of scandal.」

「Oho.」

Having been raised while being shunned by her parents, Magnolia had never had the debut she was supposed to. In the world of the nobility, this was apparently unheard of. In such cases, it was assumed the debut hadn't happened because something was "wrong" with the child.

So, the story would be: she was frail as a child and it was feared she might not survive, so the debut was postponed. She had been recuperating in the healthy air of the borderlands, and now that she was healthy, she was having her debut... or something to that effect.

It was an excuse that hit the nail right on the head. No creativity whatsoever.

「From the Ascald Kingdom, it’s only Duke Bristol, the Marquis Gilmore house, Baroness Orsay, and Marchioness Perronsch, then.」

「Umu. It’s a late debut in the borderlands, so we asked the other houses to refrain. Duke Bristol, being the head of the premier ducal house and the Prime Minister, is an exception—it’s easier to push off various royal matters onto him if we invite him... though he’ll likely be too busy to come himself. As for the Gilmore house, they’re your biological family, so we can’t exactly not invite them.」

...Quite a few true feelings were leaking out. Magnolia nodded along with Servas.

「Well, regardless of whether they come or not, we have to extend the invitation.」

It was a dilemma: the other side likely wouldn't want to attend, but they couldn't exactly refuse either. The entire Margrave family sighed softly and returned their gaze to the list.

「Orsay is the city at the very edge of the neighboring territory. The Baroness’s father serves as the local magistrate there. She herself is a woman who runs an extensive business.」

「The main branch of the Campbell Trading Company is there, and they do business together, right?」

Claude confirmed Magnolia’s question. Baroness Orsay was an entrepreneur.

Though called the "main branch," it was more like a general trading company, dealing in a vast variety of goods from food to imports and daily necessities. It was similar yet different from the Campbell Trading Company run by Simon, which specialized in garments.

Because he had seen her dealings with this main branch and her logistical connections, as well as her interactions at the Gilmore house, Simon looked out for her. Despite his busy schedule, he would occasionally travel all the way out to the boondocks of the borderlands. He was a very good man.

「It’s the closest territory, and we might have dealings with her since she uses the port of Kruis... And Marchioness Perronsch, listed in the next column, is the 'Marquis of the East Wolf.'」

The "Marquis of the East Wolf"—the house that ruled the east... or more accurately, the southeastern part of the Ascald Kingdom.

Alongside the Gilmore house, they were one of the premier military families of the Ascald Kingdom. Though it had weakened considerably now, their territory bordered a desert nation with a very fierce temperament, the great Marinase Empire, and several small nations. It was quite a harsh territory.

「The Marquis of the East Wolf was a woman...?」

This time, Servas nodded.

「The title passed to the next generation a few years ago. The Perronsch family has ruled the eastern lands for generations, never backing down against the people of the desert, and they have always been called the 'Marquis of the East Wolf' for being as terrifyingly brave as wolves...」

「The current Marquis is the same age as my older brother. During the era of internal strife and civil war, she hid her status, participated in the fighting, and earned military distinction.」

Incredible. Was such a thing even possible? It was hard to imagine a typical noblewoman swinging a heavy sword in battle. Suits of armor were also unbelievably heavy.

When Magnolia thought of "typical noblewomen," Wisteria—her mother—and the Daughter of Count Mobuno came to mind... Their personalities aside, their physical strength was likely within the average range. She couldn't imagine those two wearing armor and swinging swords at all.

「The previous head was not blessed with a son, but it happened that one of his daughters possessed a talent for martial arts, so he raised her as his heir.」

(In a great masterpiece of Japanese historical girls' manga, there was a story with a protagonist like that, too!)

Extra commentary repeated in her mind during Servas's explanation.

(...Though in the end, she vanished into the whirlpool of history. As a young girl reading that manga, the former Magnolia shed many tears.)

Well, putting that aside.

She remembered Lila, the maid who had served her at her parents' house. If she recalled correctly, Lila had mentioned she was supposed to join the Perronsch knights before her marriage was decided.

(Because the heir is a woman, do they accept female knights too...?)

It’s not that the Gilmore knights don't accept women, but apparently, female knights were originally very few in number. Because it was a knightly order said to be the strongest in the kingdom, it was supposedly difficult for women to participate due to physical requirements.

...Well, if one saw them pressing soil with logs or rolling giant iron rollers, one wouldn't think even an ordinary man, let alone a woman, could participate.

「That’s amazing.」

「Neither military merit nor an elevation in rank is a hindrance to becoming a formal heir... but still, for both of them to be that way.」

「...It’s Magnolia’s future.」

Magnolia was impressed, while Servas remained vague. Claude delivered the final blow with a single comment, then sipped his tea with a composed air, as if it were nothing.

「Magnolia won't become one of those scary women!」

「...If things keep going this way, she will almost certainly become the third woman to hold a title.」

Claude cut him off, stating it as a final certainty. At Servas’s pleading gaze, Lily, Dean, Gai, and Sebastian—even the knights standing at the edge of the garden—all averted their eyes.

Magnolia tilted her head.

(I don't really want a title, though. But women that even Gramps calls scary... I wonder what kind of people they are...)

Setting aside Baroness Orsay, the entrepreneur.

As for the Marquis of the East Wolf, Marchioness Perronsch, Magnolia imagined a muscular woman warrior—a regular female Commando—and blinked her drooping, round eyes.

*****

Cuz they are in the East and there's a lots of wolf, maybe.

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