Chapter 10

"Sorry to bring this up again, but Sara, would you mind helping me with my work a little?"

"Huh, me?"

"Rob, that's asking too much."

Rebecca immediately countered Robert's request.

"Levi also saw Sara's math skills, didn't you? We need as many people as possible to keep the work running. Of course, I intend to prioritize your studies, but any help you can give would be a huge relief. Actually, I also want to ask Levi for help. Of course, we'll pay you."

Robert, with a desperate look, seemed to want to ask not only Sara but also Rebecca for help. Upon closer inspection, there were faint dark circles under Robert's eyes. He looked quite exhausted.

"Um, Miss Rebecca, isn't it improper for a lady to talk about money?"

"In this case, there's no choice. After all, Rob is the one who broke the rules."

Rebecca could only smile wryly at this.

"Is the situation of the Granchester family that serious?"

"Yeah, it's pretty bad. Actually, one of the reasons I called Levi here under the pretext of Gavannes was for this."

"Wh-What? You should have said that earlier!"

"If I had, Levi wouldn't have come, right?"

"Hmm. That might be true, but..."

According to Robert's explanation, the steward and the accountant, who were from a branch family, had colluded to embezzle the estate's assets. As relatives, the Marquis and the main family had never suspected them, and it wasn't until an internal whistleblower that they realized what was happening. This incident occurred two years ago.

The embezzlement had been ongoing for several years, and a large amount of cash, gold bars, jewels, artworks, and furnishings had disappeared. Furthermore, the wheat reserves in the estate had dwindled to less than half.

"Does this mean the Granchester estate is in a financial crisis?"

"We still haven't grasped the full extent of what's missing."

"Even after two years, you haven't figured it out?"

"Most of the clerical staff were underlings of the steward and the accountant. As a result, when the incident was discovered, many of them fled with their families. Those who were caught had to be imprisoned, as we couldn't let them continue working."

"So, a large number of clerical staff disappeared because of the incident?"

"That's right."

"Can't you hire new clerical staff?"

"We'd like to, but there's no talent pool in this area."

"Then why not look in the capital?"

"We can't let other families know about the embezzlement."

It seems that the former steward and accountant might have also underreported the estate's harvest figures. Since taxes are calculated based on harvests, if they had underreported, the Granchester estate could be seen as having committed tax evasion, even if unintentionally. For a noble family, this would be an unbearable scandal.

However, if the tax evasion is discovered and corrected before a national audit, and the taxes are paid along with the late fees, it can be presented as a correction of accounting errors, and there would be no issues.

National audits are conducted every ten years for each estate. The next audit for the Granchester estate is scheduled in three years, so they need to grasp the full extent of the situation by then at the very least. The only problem is that, in addition to regular audits, suspicious estates can be subject to surprise emergency audits. Therefore, if they take noticeable actions like hiring a large number of clerical staff in the capital, it could raise suspicions that something is amiss in the Granchester estate.

"Since you are also victims of the embezzlement and it wasn't intentional, isn't there room for leniency?"

"The Granchester family will be held responsible for management. In the worst case, they might have to return the estate and their title to the state for lack of management ability."

"Is it that strict?"

"Sara, when a noble is granted an estate by the state, it means they are responsible for managing the land and its people. Nobles are not allowed to shirk this heavy responsibility."

Sara suddenly felt a sense of unease. The life of the Marquis, the young Marquis and his wife, and her cousins in the capital seemed very luxurious, and it didn't look like they were facing any financial issues.

"Nobody in the capital seemed to be saving money. Even though there might be a large tax payment in a few years..."

"There are also social obligations to consider. We can't neglect social activities in front of other families. Well, I do think they might be overdoing it a bit."

Rebecca frowned at this explanation.

"Many noble families go into debt to maintain appearances, but that doesn't benefit the people. The dignity of a noble shouldn't be about such things."

"They can't afford to be looked down upon. That's just the way nobles are."

"There should be limits. The young Marquise and Chloe buy a lot of new dresses and shoes every season. Many ladies frown upon such extravagance. 'Modesty' is also an important virtue for noble women."

Robert then smiled and took Rebecca's hand.

"Levi, you really do pay attention. You said it was improper for a lady to talk about money, but you have a good grasp of the situation."

"Ugh..."

"You've become very good at playing the part of a lady, but 'Little Lord' Levi is still there."

"Rob! Not in front of Sara!"

Rebecca, who now exudes elegance like a model lady, was quite active as a child. Due to the lack of girls her age, she often played with boys like Robert and Arthur, climbing trees and swinging wooden swords.

As a result, her nickname, "Little Lord," which refers to a noble boy, is somewhat embarrassing for Gavannes to reveal in front of a student. Childhood friends can be quite cruel.

"Well, I can't believe it. If I can, I can become a wonderful lady like Miss Rebecca."

Sara, the oldest among the three, read the room and subtly covered for Robert's blunder. However, Robert, being Robert, completely missed the mood.

"Haha, yeah, Sara will soon be able to put on many more masks!"

It was a disaster. Rebecca, her face red, excused herself and went to her room.

"Did I make her angry?"

"Of course, I think so."

Robert scratched his head and looked troubled.

"Uncle, did you really want to ask Miss Rebecca for help?"

"Of course!"

"Then you should go apologize right away. That was too much. I wouldn't help you either."

"Really?"

"Really."

Robert shouted, "Oh no!" and hurriedly followed Rebecca.

Sara instructed a nearby maid to prepare some snacks and flowers for Robert to take.

'Bringing an empty hand to apologize won't be as effective. Still, I think I understand why Uncle is still single at his age.'

Sara sighed deeply.