Chapter 10
Paul was stunned by the sight of his master.
Jester was a man as orderly as his personality. No matter how tired he was, he never slumped over limply, and even when he sat down or leaned against something, he never allowed himself to relax into a comfortable posture.
Yet now…
“My… my lord?”
Jester was lying face down across the desk in his study, his cheek pressed against the tabletop as he blinked slowly with vacant eyes. It didn’t even seem as though he heard Paul calling him.
Ever since Casia had coldly revealed what she truly thought, he had remained in exactly the same state.
Foolish as Jester was, he had somehow managed to pull himself together long enough to firmly deny that he and Vita had any sort of relationship.
Of course, it had accomplished nothing.
“It doesn’t matter even if you aren’t. I already told you. Whether it’s true or not… either way, there’s no need to worry about how I’ll take it.”
When she spoke like that, what more was there to say?
With her mouth, she said, “If Baron says there is nothing between him and Vita, then there isn’t.”
But her face clearly showed she didn’t believe a single word.
Jester was at his wit’s end.
He wondered how someone could distrust another person so completely…
Yet at the same time, he knew the fault was largely his own, so he couldn’t bring himself to resent Casia.
He had given Vita a room inside the castle because they were childhood friends, kept her close by, and even allowed her to speak casually to him.
If someone misunderstood that arrangement immediately, he really had no defense.
Jester admitted as much.
“So things didn’t go well? When I visited Her Ladyship’s room, she seemed to be in a rather good mood. I thought the two of you had settled everything peacefully.”
She looked to be in a good mood?
Jester suddenly realized that Casia had not the slightest personal attachment to him.
Meanwhile, he was worried, troubled, and unable to stop thinking about her…
Yet to her, none of it seemed particularly important.
“And Her Ladyship asked that Miss Vita’s punishment be left to your decision. She placed her under house arrest for now, but she said you may lift it whenever you wish… What would you like to do?”
“…Ha.”
Still sprawled across the desk, Jester let out a powerless sigh.
Just what was this?
His wife of barely one week wanted to leave the fate of the woman she suspected of having an affair with her husband… entirely in that same husband’s hands.
Jester irritably turned his head and buried the opposite cheek against the desk.
Paul soon heard his master’s sullen voice.
“She wronged my wife, so it’s my wife who should decide. I have nothing to say about it. Tell her to forgive Vita or not—it’s entirely up to her.”
Time continued to pass.
The married couple remained locked in something that wasn’t quite a cold war, yet wasn’t anything else either.
Day after day passed without them seeing each other’s faces even once, despite living in the same castle.
Paul had come to deliver a letter that had arrived from far away for Casia.
By now, he had grown quite accustomed to seeing the lady of the house enjoying her afternoon tea.
Not wanting to disturb her, he remained silent for a moment.
“Mmm. The aroma is lovely.”
Casia murmured as she gracefully lifted her teacup.
Unlike most noblewomen, who regularly enjoyed afternoon tea, Casia had rarely indulged in such leisurely moments during her previous life.
No one had forbidden her or criticized her for it, but she had always felt that leisurely acting like an aristocrat in the shabby castle of a poor rural territory that constantly smelled of livestock was an unnecessary luxury.
That wasn’t to say she had lived in complete poverty.
Rather, she had simply avoided the excessive extravagance common among nobles.
In truth, noble extravagance served as a measure of wealth and standing within aristocratic society, so it wasn’t something that should always be avoided.
A reasonable amount of luxury was practically essential for maintaining a noble’s image.
But honestly speaking…
What was the point of preserving a noble image after marrying the lord of a poor countryside territory, especially when that lord had originally been a commoner?
She might have been called a baroness, but in reality, she was little more than a noble in title.
The fact that she had once been the cherished daughter of the wealthy Count of Ruberno no longer mattered.
Within the Empire, a married woman generally took her husband’s rank.
Not long after arriving in the Greze Territory, Casia had accepted that fact.
She had needed to adapt to her new life as quickly as possible.
Beautiful dresses?
None.
Expensive jewelry?
None.
The luxurious foods prepared with rare ingredients that she had enjoyed at Ruberno Castle?
Naturally, there was nothing like that in Greze Castle.
No one would have expected Casia, who had lived the life of a wealthy noblewoman, to adapt so easily to Greze.
Yet she had done exactly that.
She had become so accustomed to simplicity and frugality that even after returning ten years into the past and deciding to live more freely during her second life, very little actually tempted her.
As long as her clothes were comfortable, that was enough.
As for beautiful jewelry…
There was hardly anyone here to show it to anyway.
“The cake is delicious too.”
These days, the thing Casia enjoyed most was afternoon tea.
The tea wasn’t nearly as rare or expensive as what she had once drunk at Ruberno Castle, but it was perfectly enjoyable.
And there was also the sweet cake specially prepared by the castle’s cook at her request.
She had long since lost the habit of indulging in luxury or wasteful spending.
Simply eating, sleeping, attending to life’s necessities, and enjoying a peaceful tea break each day was enough to satisfy her.
Besides…
The snow-covered view of Greze Territory from the castle was breathtakingly beautiful.
Ever since boldly declaring that she was “on strike,” the world had become an extraordinarily beautiful place for Casia, who now spent her days eating, resting, and enjoying herself.
“My Lady, a letter has arrived for you from Habeln. It appears to have been sent personally by Viscount Habeln…”
Watching Casia happily admire every sip of tea and every bite of cake, Paul smiled to himself.
Then he suddenly remembered the letter tucked inside his coat.
He quickly took it out and handed it to her.
The envelope bore the blue rose seal that symbolized House Habeln.
Casia accepted it absentmindedly.
Viscount Habeln.
Drayan Habeln.
How many years had it been since she’d last heard that name?
In her previous life, a letter had arrived on this very same day with exactly the same contents.
After sending him a rather cold reply, they had never contacted each other again.
It had already been well over ten years since she had last seen his face.
The nobles of Habeln Territory, which bordered Ruberno, had long maintained close relations with her family.
Back when Casia had still been the daughter of Count Ruberno, she and Habeln’s heir, Drayan, had been especially close.
The same had been true of Count Ruberno and the previous Viscount Habeln.
Marriage between Casia and Drayan had even been discussed several times, though never seriously.
Despite their close relationship, Habeln’s standing simply couldn’t compare with Ruberno’s.
Count Ruberno had wanted to marry his beloved daughter into the wealthiest and most powerful family possible.
Marriage proposals flooded Ruberno Castle one after another, yet none had truly satisfied him.
‘After all that… I ended up being sold off here.’
If only her father hadn’t spent so much time weighing every possible marriage proposal…
Or better yet, if he’d simply married her into nearby Habeln…
She probably would never have ended up being sent to this place.
‘Honestly… anywhere would have been better than here.’
Thinking that, Casia opened Drayan’s letter.
She had watched from afar as the aging former Viscount Habeln succumbed to illness, and as the much younger heir, Drayan Habeln, inherited the title.
After finally stabilizing his territory following his succession, Drayan had found enough breathing room to contact Casia.
She vividly remembered receiving this very letter around this time ten years ago.
She even remembered its contents perfectly.
Glancing cautiously at Paul, Casia swallowed nervously.
The contents had been so outrageous.
Of course, returning to the past hadn’t changed a single word.
“My dear Baroness of Greze…
Yeah, right.
I nearly cried just writing that.
I still can’t believe it.
Are you seriously surviving out there in that backwater?
You’re not sick or anything, are you?
Things have finally settled down enough that I can breathe again, and I started thinking about you.
Honestly, I’m worried.
I’m packing my bags and coming to see whether that’s really a place fit for you to live, so send me a reply.
I’m also dying to see the lucky bastard who married the Empire’s greatest beauty and then dragged her off to some rural wilderness.
If I’d known things would turn out like this, maybe I should’ve spent my life throwing punches instead.
If I keep writing, I’m going to start swearing, so I’ll stop here.
Write back quickly.
Your old friend,
Ian.”
Back then, Casia had been so startled that she immediately shoved the letter into the blazing fireplace.
No matter how close they were, who wrote a letter that casually?
If one of the servants—or worse, Jester—had seen it first…
The thought alone was horrifying.
The letter openly mocked both Greze, a tiny rural territory, and Jester, a baron who had risen from common birth.
For some reason, Casia herself had felt embarrassed.
At the time, she had also worried that if her husband saw the letter, he might believe she secretly shared Drayan’s opinion.
Filled with anger, the Casia of her previous life had immediately written a furious reply.
She told him she had been deeply shocked and disappointed by his insulting letter toward both her and her husband, and that she never wished to hear from him again.
Actually…
That was putting it mildly.
The real letter had been much harsher.
She was fairly certain she’d included several insults as well.
Afterward, several letters of apology arrived at Greze Castle.
She tore every single one to pieces and burned them.
Why had she gone that far?
Casia tilted her head before letting out a quiet laugh.
Because she had constantly been conscious of Jester.
No matter how old a friend Drayan was, corresponding with another man had made her uncomfortable.
And she had hated that he looked down on her husband.
Having resolved to become a virtuous wife, it had only been natural for the Casia of her previous life to drive Drayan away with harsh words.
Later, whenever she happened to think of him, she occasionally wondered if she had gone too far.
‘Yeah… I lost a good friend.’
There was no doubt that Drayan had genuinely cared about her.
This time, Casia neither threw his letter into the fireplace nor tore it apart.
“Paul.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
“I’d like to send a reply. Could you prepare everything for me?”
“Certainly.”
Paul promptly brought over a sheet of fine stationery, a pen, and an ink bottle, placing them on the tea table.
As Casia tried to recall the face of Drayan, whom she had not seen for more than ten years, she picked up the pen.
“Viscount Habeln says he wants to visit. It should be all right to invite him, shouldn’t it?”
As she began writing, she asked the question casually.
Paul nodded.
It was only proper etiquette to welcome a visiting noble, especially one who had announced his visit in advance.
“Of course, My Lady. I’ll inform the Baron and make thorough preparations to receive our guest. When does he expect to arrive?”
“He’ll probably set out as soon as my reply reaches him. He said he’d already packed his luggage, so I imagine he’ll leave the moment he receives it. In that case… perhaps about two weeks?”
“Yes, that sounds about right. I’ll prepare accordingly.”
“Thank you. Please explain everything properly to the Baron as well. Viscount Habeln is an old friend of mine.”
“Y-Yes, My Lady…”
Humming softly to herself, Casia continued writing.
She looked genuinely excited.
Paul silently watched her.
Unlike the icy reply she had written ten years ago, the letter Casia sent this time was filled with warmth and longing for an old friend.
“My dear Viscount Habeln,
What if someone other than me had read this? How could you write such an improper letter?
I’m doing fairly well.
There are quite a few faces I miss, and I think yours is one of them.
It seems the busiest days are finally behind you. I’m glad you’ve been able to catch your breath.
Come visit once you receive this letter.
I’ll be waiting.
I miss you too.
Your old friend,
Sia.”
