Chapter 50

"Nonna, what's with that outfit? And you walked here, too?"

"Yorana, I have a request."

"That's unusual. For you to ask me for something."

"Before I go to the Kingdom of Shen, I heard from Susan that the head of the Haines family is a great person, but is he still great now?"

Yorana Haines found Nonna as adorable as a granddaughter, but she wasn't so soft-hearted as to be swayed by Nonna's cuteness.

"What do you want to ask my son?"

"I want to work at the castle."

"No, you can't."

"...I thought so."

"Nonna, you're still a child. If it were discovered that my son was making a child work at the castle, he would have to take responsibility. That's why it's not allowed."

"I see."

Seeing Nonna, who had come with such determination, now deflated, Yorana felt a warm feeling.

"You can't ask my son, but my poker friend's daughter is the head lady-in-waiting. She can tell you about the castle."

"Wow, thank you!"

"But, you have to tell me honestly why you want to work at the castle."

"Hmm..."

"That's not too much to ask, is it?"

"Hmm..."

"Nonna, do you remember? 'If you try to get what you want for free...'"

"It will cost you more in the end, right?"

"You remember well. That's the basic principle of the noble society. Even for Nonna, I need to get something in return."

"Hmm..."

"Victoria? Or Jeffrey? Could it be Clark?"

"..."

"I see. It's about Victoria, isn't it?"

"How did you know? Ah!"

Lady Yorana laughed happily.

"You're still too easy to lead. What's wrong with Victoria? I'll do my best to help, so tell me. Is she being chased by some important person from another country again?"

"I don't think so."

"Why do you think that?"

"Yorana, can you keep what I say here a secret from my father?"

Yorana Haines didn't answer immediately. She wanted to fulfill Nonna's request, but she had responsibilities as an adult.

(I just need to keep it from Jeffrey Asher. I'm sorry, Nonna, for being such a sneaky adult.)

"Alright. I won't tell your father anything. So, why do you want to work at the castle?"

"My mother has to work for the country for two months."

"Hmm. A request from the country, huh?"

"I'm worried about my mother. I want to know what kind of work she's doing."

"You might just get in the way if you go to Victoria."

"That... depends on what kind of work my mother is doing. I'll check with my own eyes, and if she seems safe, I'll come home immediately."

"What if she doesn't seem safe?"

"I want to stay close to her and protect her."

"That's not possible. I already told you."

Nonna's face lost its energy again at the immediate answer.

"The castle isn't a place where just anyone can come and go. You need to show your permit every time you enter. If you try to sneak in by improper means, your parents will be punished. In some cases, it won't just be your parents. Edward and Clark and his parents too. Are you willing to cause trouble for so many people just to check? Stop it. It's not worth it. Besides, there's no guarantee that Victoria works at the castle."

Nonna nodded after thinking for a moment.

"That's true."

"Victoria might not even work in the capital, let alone the castle. But, I might be able to find out what she was asked to do."

"Really?"

"Yes. I'll try to find out. I can't guarantee that I'll find out for sure, though. So, you should go home and wait for my message."

"Understood. Thank you, Yorana."

Nonna bowed politely to the only person she could rely on and was taken home in the Haines family carriage.

Bersa was surprised, asking, "When did you go out?" and reported the matter to Jeffrey. When questioned, Nonna told Jeffrey, "I went out to play in the city alone," and was scolded severely.

On the other hand, Lady Yorana immediately wrote two letters.

One was to her poker friend of thirty years. The other was to Edward Asher.

※...※...※

Edward Asher received the letter after returning home.

He read the letter from the former Countess Yorana Haines, with whom he usually had no dealings, and was momentarily stunned.

"That was close. That girl has skills comparable to an agent. I'm glad Yorana told me. I underestimated the bond between Victoria and Nonna."

There was also the matter of the man calling himself Gunther Bahl. The attempted assassination of the Crown Princess, the monitoring of the anti-royalist faction, and the increasingly active movements of the Sバルツ Kingdom's army due to the discovery of gold veins. There was a mountain of things to do. He couldn't afford to be hindered by Nonna now.

After finishing the letter, Edward called his wife, Blythe.

"Yes, what is it?"

"Blythe, I have a favor to ask."

"Oh, how unusual. What is it?"

"I'm going to discuss this with Jeffrey, but I'm thinking of taking Nonna into our home for two months. Victoria is going to be busy, and I think it's too much for Jeffrey to handle a girl her age alone."

Blythe had never been asked a favor by her husband since their marriage and thought, (This must be very important.) She didn't ask any questions.

She knew that Victoria doted on Nonna. If Victoria was going to leave Nonna with Jeffrey for two months, it must be a significant matter. If it was something she could talk about, her husband would have explained it to her. She judged that there must be a reason he couldn't explain the details.

"Leave it to me. I'll take good care of Nonna. I'm looking forward to living with her."

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

Jeffrey was surprised when he heard the news.

"Brother, what do you mean by taking Nonna in?"

"Nonna apparently tried to get a job at the castle. Victoria is going to be away, but Nonna seems to think she's at the castle."

"At the castle? Working?"

Jeffrey was surprised that Nonna had such thoughts, but given the strong bond between the two, it was understandable. He bit his lip, thinking about how to explain this to his brother.

"I won't interfere with what you and your wife decide. Victoria will come back when her business is done, right? But if Nonna does something on her own, you'll be the one to blame. Blythe will take care of Nonna. Don't worry."

"I was planning to take good care of Nonna myself."

"Handling a girl her age is difficult. And you never know what she'll do if you take your eyes off her. Jeff, can you leave it to Blythe?"

"Can I ask Nonna first?"

"Of course."

Nonna, who was flipping through the adventure novel "Del Dorgar, the Messenger from Hell" that she had read many times in her room, was surprised when Jeffrey told her.

"Why do I have to go to Edward's house? Because I went out without telling anyone today?"

"Brother is worried about you."

"What about Ash and Berry?"

"You can take the cats too. Brother and his wife both like cats. My mother does too. And it would help if you could talk to my mother. Blythe takes care of my mother herself, not leaving it to the servants. If Nonna could talk to my mother for two months, it would help Blythe."

Nonna remembered what Victoria had told her: "Jeffrey's mother had a hard time in the past. Her heart couldn't bear the sadness and broke. So, please be kind to her when you meet her."

(I can't do much to help my mother, but maybe I can help Aunt Blythe and Grandmother. I don't want to be irritated waiting for my mother for two months.)

"Alright. If I can take Ash and Berry."

"Sure. Can you start tomorrow?"

"Okay."

Thus, Nonna and the cats were entrusted to Edward Asher's house for two months.

This unexpected arrangement would have unforeseen consequences, but that's a story for another time.

※...※...※

Edward sighed in relief after receiving Jeffrey's approval.

There was a reason he had relied on the shadow for something he had kept hidden from Victoria for so long.

"Having poison put in the Crown Princess's food is a serious situation. The enemy's hand has reached so close to the royal family. The Prime Minister can no longer handle it."

He had noticed that the Prime Minister's health was deteriorating for quite some time.

He had been handling internal affairs while the Prime Minister dealt with external matters, but the Prime Minister could no longer do so. He had refrained from intervening out of consideration for the Prime Minister, but it would be too late if the royal family couldn't be protected.

Lady Delphine is 165 cm tall and very slender.

Her physique couldn't be faked. It's rare for a trained agent to be that slender.

There are three female agents with such a physique and skills.

Two of them are on long-term missions in other countries. Bringing them back now would be a waste of the enormous effort and cost. If someone suddenly disappeared, it would raise suspicion. It wouldn't be easy to send someone new to that position after the Saint Floren Festival ended.

Luna, who had been given domestic tasks in anticipation of such a situation, was no longer available.

There was another troublesome issue.

Ashbury hadn't been involved in a war for nearly twenty years. While the agents had played a significant role in this, the trend in recent years has been to reduce the budget for special missions.

The opinion is that "spending money on special missions is less effective for deterring other countries than visible military buildup." The budget has been reduced year by year. Bringing back agents and wasting a large amount of money is not an option.

Edward chose the country's peace over his affection for Jeffrey and Victoria, and decided to use Victoria.

(Sorry, Jeff, Victoria.)

Edward apologized silently.

※...※...※

Edward sighed in relief after receiving Jeffrey's approval.

There was a reason he had relied on the shadow for something he had kept hidden from Victoria for so long.

"Having poison put in the Crown Princess's food is a serious situation. The enemy's hand has reached so close to the royal family. The Prime Minister can no longer handle it."

He had noticed that the Prime Minister's health was deteriorating for quite some time.

He had been handling internal affairs while the Prime Minister dealt with external matters, but the Prime Minister could no longer do so. He had refrained from intervening out of consideration for the Prime Minister, but it would be too late if the royal family couldn't be protected.

Lady Delphine is 165 cm tall and very slender.

Her physique couldn't be faked. It's rare for a trained agent to be that slender.

There are three female agents with such a physique and skills.

Two of them are on long-term missions in other countries. Bringing them back now would be a waste of the enormous effort and cost. If someone suddenly disappeared, it would raise suspicion. It wouldn't be easy to send someone new to that position after the Saint Floren Festival ended.

Luna, who had been given domestic tasks in anticipation of such a situation, was no longer available.

There was another troublesome issue.

Ashbury hadn't been involved in a war for nearly twenty years. While the agents had played a significant role in this, the trend in recent years has been to reduce the budget for special missions.

The opinion is that "spending money on special missions is less effective for deterring other countries than visible military buildup." The budget has been reduced year by year. Bringing back agents and wasting a large amount of money is not an option.

Edward chose the country's peace over his affection for Jeffrey and Victoria, and decided to use Victoria.

(Sorry, Jeff, Victoria.)

Edward apologized silently.