Chapter 9

"Good morning, Berta. I've never seen you dressed up before, but you look very beautiful. You look like a fairy of the morning dew."

"I'm just a village girl."

"You are a countess's daughter now."

Hannes approached.

Neither Benedikt, Renalt, nor Margareta were there.

Berta was momentarily puzzled but it made sense. While they often spent time together at the academy, their roles were different. Hannes, after all, was the aide to the first prince, and his presence with the second prince Benedikt at the academy was to prepare them to support the first prince in the future.

To prevent unnecessary conflicts between the factions of the first and second princes, it was also known that the second prince had no interest in the throne and was expected to serve as an aide in the future. By showing that he was getting along with his future colleagues, he was silently restraining the first prince's faction. Hannes belonged to the first prince's faction.

Berta found it strange that Hannes had come to the Rumbek family, but he probably came to explain something. She was grateful, but the amount of information was overwhelming.

Berta felt very tired.

Hannes walked straight over and, for some reason, sat next to Berta. She was startled to have him sit on the same sofa. The sofa was softer than any she had ever sat on, and in her unfamiliar dress, she couldn't move at all. So even when he sat closer than expected, she couldn't move away as she had done before.

Berta looked to Matthias for help, but he was feeling a bit sick from drinking too much tea and was about to leave. She desperately tried to stop him with her gaze. He smiled wryly and sat back down.

Berta was relieved, but she didn't notice Hannes sitting next to her, watching Matthias with a cool smile. Matthias, with a wry smile, decided to let the air get awkward. Even with servants around, he couldn't leave Berta, his tired sister, alone. He decided to stay to fulfill her request.

Hannes turned his gaze from Matthias and took out a small package wrapped carefully from his luggage. He unwrapped it and handed it to Berta.

"I'm returning this to you."

What he handed her was a tattered letter.

Berta looked up in surprise at the familiar envelope and took the letter.

It was a letter from her sister, which had been seized as evidence.

"I have confirmed it. It is sufficient evidence to accuse the count of improper manufacturing and selling of drugs."

After learning of her sister's death and the count's plans, Berta, who had returned to the village to seek revenge, reread the letter and noticed the message from her sister.

The three letters her sister had sent, full of misspellings, were the code to expose the count's crimes and the recipe for the drugs.

At first glance, it was just a text full of misspellings, as if the writer had gone mad.

Even if the count's men saw it, they would only think the writer had gone mad.

However, when the misspellings were corrected and connected, they formed words and sentences.

For example, if there was a misspelling in "こんにちは," it would be corrected to "こんにちは" and the "は" part would be extracted. The next misspelling would be corrected and extracted in the same way, forming an accusation against the count. The same method could be used to read the drug recipe.

With this accusation, Berta could have sued and possibly exposed the count. However, she was too weak to do so.

The long-standing Rumbek family, with a prosperous territory and no apparent problems, would have laughed at Berta, a mere village girl, and sent her away. Most importantly, she feared that the count would seize and destroy the accusation if he found out. Without irrefutable evidence, the voice of a commoner would be silenced by the nobility.

So Berta sought power. She decided to ingratiate herself with a more powerful noble, higher than the count. That was why she enrolled in the prestigious Plattelbo Academy. She thought children might be more interested in her than adults. Besides, as a child, it was harder to meet important adults.

She planned to ingratiate herself with a powerful person and use their power to take revenge on the count. However, the count had blown himself up before Berta could understand what was happening. She couldn't even punch him in the face to vent her frustration.

... The count's misconduct was exposed and he was placed under house arrest, all because of an assault on Berta, now a countess's daughter. If it were just the result, she might have wanted to laugh and say "serves you right." But since it happened without her involvement, she couldn't laugh.

Still, she managed to entrust her sister's final message to them.

This letter was the one Berta had given to Benedikt through Matthias three days ago. Since her belongings had arrived before they returned to handle the situation, she couldn't give it to them directly.

She hugged the returned letter. She never thought it would be returned since it was submitted as evidence.

When she said this, Hannes smiled. It was the same suspicious smile as always.

"I made a copy, and the original is a keepsake for you. I changed the storage location, so if you want to keep it safe, there's no problem."

"Huh, this is abuse of power..."

"It's a privilege of the powerful."

She was confused by his smile. It was very inappropriate. Inappropriate, but she didn't want to let it go.

However, if this were discovered, it would be more than just a reprimand. Evidence is crucial to the truth of a case, and it is seized to prevent it from being hidden or falsified. Changing the storage location just because it was a keepsake was not acceptable. She also had safety concerns since it contained the drug recipe.

Berta personally wanted to keep it, but if it were discovered, it would undermine their trust. In the noble world, trust is paramount. Even if interests align, a contract cannot be made without trust. Berta couldn't risk jeopardizing that.

Berta, who had studied, knew that nobles valued contracts.

Because she knew this, she couldn't be a fox borrowing the tiger's might.

Hannes smiled at the confused Berta. The same suspicious smile as always.

"There's no problem. I have thoroughly explained and persuaded His Highness, the Crown Prince, without any fabrication or deceit."

"Why... Why such special treatment? I'm just a countess's adopted daughter, and I don't deserve such special treatment."

"He allowed it. On the condition of greater loyalty and merit in the future, he agreed to return your sister's keepsake to you, my fiancée."

What?

How many times had she been stunned?

How many times did she feel like she was being launched into space?

Berta, with her mouth open in a daze, looked up at Hannes.

Hannes was smiling.

Smirking, with the corners of his mouth turned up.

"Let's confirm your position, Berta."

"Huh?"

"You are no longer just Berta, but Berta Rumbek, the adopted daughter of the Rumbek family, recognized for your academic excellence and connections. Noble daughters often get engaged early, and many have fiancés by their debut at 15. You are 15 now. The Rumbek family, though currently in financial trouble, is a prestigious and well-regarded family. Many nobles want to form alliances with you. The decision on whom you will marry is up to the current count."

Do you understand so far?

As he asked, his eyes smiled. His gaze, which met hers directly, was like that of a predator eyeing its prey. Berta, with her mouth still open, couldn't look away.

"To put it bluntly, you are a countess's daughter, but originally a commoner, and this incident could be considered a scandal. Some might treat you as a concubine. However, the Rumbek family, though in financial trouble, has no intention of selling you, especially since you have a good relationship with the second prince and his fiancée. The current count has found a suitable match for you. Yes, someone who will aid the Rumbek family without seeking the second prince's authority and who will not treat you poorly just because you are a commoner. A suitable match."

Dramatically, Hannes, who had been sitting next to her, stood up. His gaze still fixed on Berta, he stood before her and, respectfully, knelt. His gloved hand enveloped her rough, calloused hand.

"Hannes Yefosh, the heir of the Yefosh family... I am your fiancé."

I look forward to a long and happy future.

As he said this, Hannes kissed Berta's reddened hand.

Matthias: "Thump"

The story ends here.