Chapter 7

After I moved into the Earl's mansion, literally with nothing but the clothes on my back, the work of arranging Percival and Jessica's wedding decreased. Until now, the servants from the Mayfield family, Percival's birth family, had visited me to discuss the church where the ceremony would be held, the guests, and the preparations for the reception. However, it seems that Percival himself is now handling these arrangements.

Hmm... By getting involved in the wedding preparations, it's good for Percival to reaffirm his resolve to get married and become the head of the family.

"Miss Grace, I've compiled a list. Here are the construction companies that have expressed a desire to communicate with you through letters."

If I call out to them during the announcement of my engagement to the Earl, they will come. Even with my tarnished reputation, the companies that have developed trade routes in other territories or expanded villages into towns are eager to be invited to our territory. Vanessa, you've done your research on the nobles closely associated with these companies, thank you.

Alright, let's start selecting and hand the list over to the Earl! I've narrowed it down a lot. Since the Earl has the final decision, I've narrowed it down to 10 companies to make it easier for him to choose. I consulted with the butler, Mr. Norman, to exclude companies associated with nobles who have a poor relationship with the Earl. However, there are a few companies that I'm personally a bit interested in. The problem is the nobles who have invested in them.

While compiling this list, I heard from the head butler of the Rockwell family, Mr. Norman:

"This company... even if the Earl approves, the noble who has invested in this company..."

"Is there a problem?"

"Miss Grace, you should know, it's the Duke of Breakley."

The Duke of Breakley, huh.

I leaned my elbow on the ebony desk, a gesture unbecoming of a noble lady, and cradled my head in my palm. My gaze remained fixed on the list.

Elias Breakley, Duke of Breakley.

He inherited the dukedom at a young age.

He's quite capable, with connections to foreign chambers of commerce and investments in various companies. He's always busy traveling.

It was said that when he became the current head of the family, he returned the family's territory to the royal family. The royal family had apparently asked him to continue governing, but he reduced the territory. However, the number of companies he has invested in has increased.

It seems that the Duke of Breakley is managing the territory that the Earl of Rockwell received when he inherited the title.

You might think there's no problem, right?

"Should we avoid the Duke of Breakley?"

"The previous Duke would not accept the offer. Besides, he is already involved in managing the Rockwell territory. If he were to get involved in the border territory, it would cause a stir."

That's true.

But, I want to establish a good relationship for the sake of the border territory. More than anything, this person is excellent at talent development and has invested in many companies.

"Besides, he almost became the heir to the Duke of Redcliff..."

Elias Breakley, Duke of Breakley, is the son of the Duke of Redcliff's first wife.

The Duke of Redcliff's first wife, Beatrice, was the daughter of the Duke of Breakley. So, he is the Earl's older brother...

Beatrice married the Duke of Redcliff and, after a year, returned to her family for medical treatment and was divorced.

She gave birth to Elias and passed away...

That's the official profile, but in reality, Beatrice eloped with a gardener shortly after marriage, gave birth to Elias, and then died. The gardener also died of an epidemic later.

Elias, therefore, is the son of the gardener and Beatrice, and not related by blood to the Duke of Redcliff. The Duke of Breakley's family, Beatrice's family, kept this scandal quiet and was grateful to the Duke of Redcliff for covering it up.

I can understand that the Duke of Redcliff, whose wife was taken by a common gardener, would be embarrassed.

But even so, the Duke of Breakley's family is extremely loyal because the scandal was covered up.

Elias grew up in such an environment...

I wonder...

Is Elias happy about the Earl, who is a bastard of the Redcliff family? After all, he was supposed to be in a position as the son of the royal family's younger brother.

There were even voices among the nobles raised by the Duke of Breakley's family, who didn't know the truth, saying that even if they were divorced, Elias should be the heir.

In the end, the situation calmed down when the Duke of Redcliff was approached by the royal family to marry a princess from another country, and Elias became the head of the Duke of Breakley's family.

There are still people who are dissatisfied that Elias has no right to the throne.

The Earl's background is quite complicated...

Anyway, I handed the compiled list to the Earl and spoke to him as he reviewed it.

"We need to prioritize the fortifications and trade routes of the border territory. The attacks by the Dark Crocodiles are a matter of life and death for the residents, and we need to improve the traffic for the academy and military facilities that we are attracting."

There are few residents, so even if we attract facilities, there won't be enough shops for the people living there.

We need to reorganize the residential, commercial, and agricultural areas.

Since the population is low, we can do this now.

"Right, by the way, the branch of the monster hunting guild has been decided."

Wow! Great!

I mean, the Earl works fast!

What do you mean, "I've never managed a territory before..."?

Is it natural because his job is to manage a border territory on behalf of the country? He's quite capable.

"Miss Grace, you said it was just a comment at the ball, but the construction companies are still inquiring. What should we do?"

Mr. Norman asked the Earl.

"Just a comment at the ball, and this is the result?"

No way! It's not because I said something. It's probably because many companies see the potential in developing the border territory.

"I want to work on other villages too, so it doesn't have to be just one company. What do you think, Grace?"

Huh? You're asking me?

Hmm...

"Then... an auction."

"What?"

"Since multiple companies have expressed interest, we can have them submit documents with their conditions and prices, and select based on the content and price... in a public manner...? By making it public, the companies will feel it's fair, and there will be no complaints or grudges—right?"

When I said that, the Earl and Mr. Norman exchanged glances and looked at me.

To be continued, Tuesday, February 15th at 12:00 PM. (I forgot...)

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On February 9th, Kadokawa BOOKS will publish this story in book form.

It will be featured in the book activity report. The illustrations inside are beautiful, so if you see it in a bookstore or online store, I would be happy if you could purchase it. m(__)m