When The Count’s Illegitimate Daughter Gets Married

Chapter 29

Not long after the carriage started rattling, she carefully chose her words.

“Ah, can I ask you something presumptuous?”

“What is it?”

“Do you feel attached to her?”

Ian raised his eyebrows at her question, but his eyes never left the figure beneath him. His palm, which was gently tucking a silver strand behind Laritte’s ear, paused.

“That’s a strange thing to say.”

“But…..”

“I’m just returning the loyalty. Do you think I’ve fallen in love?”

Redra restrained herself from uttering, “I asked because it seemed like that is the case”, while he continued.

“She saved me, helped me heal, and even accompanied me on my operation. Haven’t you taken a note of those things?”

He asked, delivering a sudden glance to Redra.

Ahem! She coughed out of embarrassment, a slight blush finding its way onto her cheeks.

“……That’s what it’s all about.”

“I see…..”

As a token of allegiance to her captain, Redra decided to assume that for now.

***

The dukedom of Reinhardt was located in the southeast of the capital.

Even in the vast Iassa Empire, which occupied an entire continent, the duchy was particularly a fertile land for harvesting crops. Rich sources of iron constantly emerged out of the depths of the mines. The duchy was large enough to hold thriving towns and villages.

Although the duchy’s officials were bemused by the loss of their master after his collapse, the dukedom was still in great power.

The word began to spread through the region that Ian, who was known to have died, was returning.

The carriage arrived in front of the Duke’s mansion in the afternoon.

“You may step down, Captain.”

After stepping down from the carriage, Ian walked to the gate holding the weak figure in his arms.

The rusty gate gave off a dreary creaking sound as it opened before him, which served as a piece of evidence that this place was deserted for a few months. Even the garden had lost its former beauty. The harmonious colors of the flowers had long gone, and the jagged surfaces of the trees that showed their growth had been neglected.

He walked past the garden as his eyes fell on the field beside it.

The place where the knights always used to train, filling it with a loud clank of swords and chatter of his students, was now filled with piles of dried up leaves.

“……”

As he grabbed the knocker of the front door, Redra, who was following him, cautiously informed him.

“I’ve sent in an employee of our family, so the main building must have been cleaned by now.”

The territory of Count Reikla was in close contact with the Order of Duchy. She must have managed the house to the extent that it could be bought.

“I wouldn’t have minded if it was untidy.”

When his extended arm pushed open the door, his eyes somehow printed the image of his former employees standing on either side of his path.

In fact, his ears used to go sore due to the unending chatterboxes.

They said he was known to be a murderous and terrifying Duke, but inside the mansion, he was known as a kind master.

‘Under the influence of mother.’

His shoulders felt heavy.

Many of those employees might have starved to death. They couldn’t have found a job for the stigma of being the traitor’s servants.

But, there must be some people who have survived.

‘It’ll take a while to get everyone back.’

He thought as he opened the door.

The moment he anticipated the interior of an empty mansion to be……

Ian faced a young maid, her hands busy in cleaning the laundry.

Obviously, she was one of the Duke’s many employees.

“…..Oh my.”

The maid, who dropped the laundry, covered her mouth as if she was moved by his appearance. Her lips quivered as she shouted.

“M-M-M-Master is here!”

At her words, maids and servants came out running from every direction of the place.

Their eyes seemed anxious.

“I-I didn’t expect this day to arrive.”

“Hey, don’t cry! Why are you crying on this gifted day…….hic hic.”

“I’m so happy to see you alive again, master!”

“Count Reikla is here as well!”

To share their joy, they hugged each other since they couldn’t hug Ian.

As two maids rushed to hug Redra, Ian murmured.

“But how?”

He expected that there would be a couple of employees under Count Reikla, but he didn’t expect to find his employees as well, and a lot of them at that.

He had been planning on bringing all the survivors back.

Upon hearing the uproar, the employees from all parts of the mansion gradually appeared.

Although they made up less than 30 percent of his total employees, there were still many.

The cook…….

The nanny, Ava, who raised Ian from his childhood.

Her eyes traveled to the frail form of Laritte in Ian’s arms.

“Who’s this beautiful lady? Is she asleep? Please let me hold her, master.”

“Nanny.”

“Now now, master. We’ve now seen each other alive and well.”

Although she asked him to not get emotional, tears welled up in her eyes.

Ian clenched his teeth.

“We were neglected…..”

The maids began to speak.

“I thought I’d starve to death, too! The officials who came in under the Imperial Order took away my salary as well. I don’t have a family, so I had nowhere to go…..”

“Some of us, who didn’t have any money, were in big trouble.”

So that’s how their story went.

Even those with unclear backgrounds were accepted. Moreover, the mansion was so warm that the bond between the employees could not be stronger.

When the Duke was forced to go under hiding and everyone was scattered, some of the older employees began to take care of the rest.

“Alice and I lived in Bella’s house.”

“The new recruits followed the nanny.”

“And the rest of the young servants, who had nowhere to go, were taken care of by the kind-hearted knights!”

Ian gave a sigh of relief after hearing the fact that most of them were alive.

In addition, they had constantly been writing to each other and sharing their news.

As the news of the Duke’s return broke out at dawn, all of them had hurried to ride carriages in order to return to the mansion. They even took care to minimize the expenses by riding a single carriage together.

“During this period, the youngest maid and the chauffeur fell in love with each other and got married. Cough, Cough.”

Those who were shedding tears smiled as one maid spoke up.

The people Ian valued more than getting revenge.

He spoke quietly while everyone chatted loudly.

“You’ve all had a hard time under your ugly master.”

Their cheerful tones like sparrows disappeared instantly.

“No, it isn’t true, My Lord.”

“But, who is this lady?”

“Is she sick? I’ll take her to bed!”

All the expensive items in the mansion were confiscated. It looked empty, almost like the villa.

But, it was once again filled with the warm emotions of people, right after four months and ten days.