The mother stopped her work and turned to the maid with a puzzled expression.
“A guest? We can’t meet with anyone while in isolation…”
“A guest, you say—”
Before the maid could finish her sentence, voices overlapped:
“Please! Please!”
“We beg you! There’s something we must ask of the lord!”
Multiple voices of desperate men and women could be heard. Sara froze, startled.
“Wait, wait! We’re in the middle of an epidemic isolation period, so meeting is impossible.”
“This is for your own good! Later, submit a petition—”
The attendants seemed to be trying hard to hold them back.
“A petition, you say? Do you know how many we’ve submitted already?!”
“We’re not afraid of the plague!”
“Yeah! Either way, we’re all going to die!”
The visitors were shouting such things at the attendants.
“Are they villagers?”
While hugging the frozen Sara tightly, I asked the maid.
“Yes, they appear to be residents of a nearby village. They say they have an urgent request.”
The villagers were calling for the lord. They must have seen the grand duke’s carriage and assumed that Father had returned to the lakeside villa after several years.
“Wow, so this area is also under Father’s domain? Wasn’t it farther away?”
“The capital of the Valois Grand Duchy is much farther, but these two villages, the lake, and the forest here are also part of the Graf’s territory.”
It seemed Father owned land in various places besides the Valois region.
“…In this area, we could keep goats… right?”
I thought it would be fun to build a small house here and live with goats. There was a forest and a lake, so there must be plenty of animals. We could grow crops and even fish.
“Hehe…”
“Luria , you really love goats, don’t you?”
Mother chuckled and lifted Sara, who I had been hugging, onto her lap.
“Sara, are you okay? Were you scared?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
Mother hugged Sara tightly and gently stroked her hair.
“There, there.”
“Ehehe.”
Being held by Mother seemed to calm Sara.
While stroking Sara’s hair, Mother murmured,
“Hmm. I don’t recall receiving any reports about issues in this region from the steward…”
“What will you do?”
“Well, we’ll hear what they have to say first.”
With that, Mother stood up.
“If the Graf failed to notice this problem, then it’s his responsibility. In that case, I’ll clean up after him.”
“…But are you sure? Accepting direct appeals is…”
“This visit is unofficial anyway, so it’s fine. Let’s pretend there was no direct appeal.”
Carrying Sara, Mother walked briskly ahead. I followed along with Daru and the others.
“Mother, is it bad if there’s a direct appeal?”
“Yes. Skipping the necessary procedures makes a direct appeal a crime.”
“Wow.”
“It also means they’re desperate enough to break the rules.”
After walking for a while, Mother stopped and spoke to the maid.
“Let’s have Luria listen to this as well. Could you bring her hood?”
“Understood.”
As the maid ran off, I asked Mother,
“Mother, is it really okay? I’m happy, though.”
“I think it will be a good learning experience. Besides… don’t you want to raise goats around here?”
“I do.”
It seemed Mother had heard my earlier muttering.
“Whether it’s possible or not, you should understand the problems rural estates face.”
Apparently, Mother had various thoughts on the matter. Shortly after, the maid returned with a hood, and I put it on.
“Does it suit me?”
“It does. Hehe.”
Sara, still in Mother’s arms, giggled happily.
“Sara, you’re coming too. Are you scared?”
“…I’m okay.”
“Sara, since you’ll become the lord one day, it’s better to know these things. If you’re scared, just hold onto me.”
“?”
Sara didn’t seem to fully grasp the idea of becoming a lord. But since she was the only child of the baron and Marion, she would naturally inherit the title. Even if she married a man who joined the family, Sara would still need to know how to manage the estate.
Mother must have considered all of this.
“Mother is always thinking about so many things, huh.”
“Of course.”
When we reached the entrance, Mother spoke to the steward in charge of indoor security.
“I will hear what the villagers have to say. However, ensure there’s sufficient distance between us.”
“Understood. Please wait a moment.”
The steward bowed and went outside.
He explained the risks of infection to the villagers and marked a line they were not allowed to cross. After positioning attendants for security, he returned inside.
“Thank you for waiting. Preparations are complete.”
“Thank you.”
Carrying Sara, Mother stepped outside, followed by me, Daru, Carol, and Koruko.
As we emerged, the villagers on the other side of the attendants all prostrated themselves at once.
“Huh?”
At that moment, I noticed something unbelievable beyond the villagers and exclaimed.
(What… is that?)
Something was in the distant forest. Using my special skill of focusing hard to enhance my eyesight, I observed closely.
“A goat?”
There was a giant goat in the forest. Not just a goat—there were also large cows and wild boars.
(Wow! So cool!)
As I was lost in thought, Mother scolded me in a whisper, “Luria , don’t get distracted.”
