Chapter 36

Since neither Sir Clark nor the Anderson family said anything, our family decided to wait and see.

It’s a betrothal that hasn’t even been proposed, so we can’t just ask, “What happened?” or “Nona wants to decline.”

Besides, Sir Clark might have forgotten about the marriage proposal from five years ago.

Nona and I are in a carriage heading outside the city walls. The two guards we hired stayed at home.

“We can’t possibly not accompany you when you and Miss go out,” they complained, but we don’t need guards when Nona and I are together. We want them to protect the servants, the house, and the gold coins.

The land our family purchased is about a two-hour carriage ride from the city walls, a desolate area adjacent to farmland. As far as the eye can see, there are wheat fields and vegetable gardens. The ingredients supplied to the capital are grown here.

Currently, the sheep pens are under construction, and the workshop and living quarters for spinning yarn are also being built. People in the distance are building fences to prevent the sheep from damaging the nearby farmland.

In the middle of the property, a horse is slowly pulling a plow. The person walking behind is sowing grass seeds.

The people who noticed me and bowed are well-diggers. When Nona and I approached, they took off their hats and bowed.

“Is the water coming out?”

“Yes, it will definitely come out. Ashberry has abundant groundwater.”

“I hope it’s delicious and cold water.”

“Then, we’ll let Miss have the first drink.”

“Yes, I’m looking forward to it!”

The wind blowing over the desolate land feels very refreshing.

“With such blessings, it’s almost scary, Nona.”

“Everything here feels so slow. I’d like to live here, Mom.”

“Yes, me too.”

I thought I would keep changing my place of residence and that marriage was impossible. But before I knew it, my hands were full of treasures.

“We might be able to live here during the off-season of the social season.”

“Yay! I can play with the lambs again.”

“I might want to try spinning and dyeing yarn.”

After such a conversation, we headed to the South District.

We were going to see the old bookstore and lending library. Mr. Zaharol had apparently found the rightful owner.

“Leave it to me. I’m good at finding people,” he had said, and he found them in no time.

The sign of ‘Zakari Bookstore’ had been replaced with ‘Sandro Bookstore.’ The shades outside the windows had been removed, and thin white curtains were hung inside.

When we entered, the doorbell jingled, and a quiet-looking old man was reading a book at the counter.

The inside of the store looked the same as Zakari Bookstore at first glance. When I peeked into the locked bookshelf, I saw books with titles I didn’t know.

“Could it be, Lady Asher?”

“Yes, that’s me.”

The man bowed deeply to me.

“Thank you for returning the store to me. I had lost both my home and my business and was despairing, thinking I would die quietly somewhere. Being able to live as I did before is all thanks to you.”

“No, no. I just informed the Second Knight Regiment a little.”

“No, I heard from Mr. Zaharol. Thank you very much.”

At that moment, Nona brought two books by Del Dorgar.

“Mom, can you buy these for me?”

“Sure.”

“Miss, this is a small token of my gratitude. Please accept the entire Del Dorgar series. I can only do this much, but please forgive me.”

After that, there was a back-and-forth between me and the store owner, “That’s not right,” “No, please,” and I eventually accepted.

The Del Dorgar series is a popular series, and we ended up taking all twenty-three volumes.

“Mom, that’s amazing! What a great deal!”

“Nona, stop talking about profit. It’s vulgar.”

“Really? So, if we beat them, we get such things?”

“Nona!”

“I know, I know. Just kidding.”

That day, Nona read the books with a face like a cat that had licked cream, but when Sir Clark came over at night, the atmosphere in our house changed.

Nona, without giving me a chance to stop her, said to Sir Clark, who had entered the house,

“By the way, can we make that old promise invalid? The marriage promise.”

Sir Clark froze.

“When I saw Nona after she returned from Shen, I felt like you might say that. Well, it’s within my expectations. Okay, I understand. Let’s pretend that proposal never happened.”

Sir Clark said that, drank the tea I had made, ate the pastries the cook had baked, and with a bright smile, as if he didn’t care about the rejected proposal, said,

“Professor, I’ll take my leave for tonight. Nona, don’t forget our opera date.”

“He took it so easily.”

“Right? That’s why I said it was a promise made when we were kids and didn’t understand things.”

“I was so flustered. Sir Clark is a beloved and cute student, but I couldn’t imagine Nona’s marriage. But, Nona, don’t worry about me. Live as you please.”

“Okay, okay.”

That night, when Jeffrey returned from the Second Knight Regiment, I told him about it, and he said with a wry smile,

“Ah, he’s probably not giving up. He must have decided to back down because he thought Nona would be stubborn if he pushed it now.”

“What do you mean?”

“My mother’s brother is Uncle Bernard, and my brother Edward is in charge of managing all the records in the Records Management Department and is also the head of the Department of Institutional Maintenance, which ensures that detailed rules are properly followed. I never gave up on you either. Clark is also a Fitcher, and the Fitchers don’t give up easily.”

“Well… for now, I’ll try not to worry. I just want Nona to live as she likes.”

Yes, Sir Clark is a wonderful young man. I panicked when the word marriage came up suddenly, but if Nona changes her mind, this could be a very happy story.

“Let’s see how it goes.”

“Yeah, we don’t need to worry. The title came suddenly. I have no intention of clinging to the title, and I don’t plan to force Nona to inherit it. Rather, how was the ranch?”

“I saw it! I want to live there and spin yarn when I get old.”

“That sounds nice. I’ll become a shepherd, and we’ll live happily together until we’re old.”

I stretched up and gently stroked Jeffrey’s hair.

“Even if you get old and forget me, I’ll make you a happy husband until the last second.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing. It’s just my goal.”

I hugged Jeffrey’s large body with all my strength and whispered sweetly in his ear.

“Jeffrey Asher, you are my shining crown.”

Here, the story takes a break.

The next part will continue from there.