44. There’s No Retirement Age at Castle Inkheart! (2)

“I’m pleased to welcome Mr. Nicola back today. Though I am the mistress of this castle, I cannot run it alone. The fact that I, lacking as I am, can properly fulfill my role as mistress of this castle is thanks to the help of each and every one of you gathered here.”

My clear voice spread throughout the banquet hall celebrating Nicola Graus’s return. Emotion appeared in the eyes of everyone listening to the congratulatory speech.

“I am well aware of your dedication and hard work.”

I made eye contact with each person affectionately. I could see loyalty welling up in the hearts of those I made eye contact with.

“Even if darkness blinds our eyes and you don’t receive proper recognition in the moment, I promise you. Eventually, your dedication will shine.”

“Woaah!”

“Long live the Grand Duchess! Long live the Grand Duke! Long live Inkheart!”

“Mr. Nicola, I’m truly happy to see you again!”

“Welcome back, Mr. Nicola!”

‘So this is why politicians hold street campaigns.’

Congratulations, Nicola Graus’s Retirement Age Extension Guaranteed.

A special banquet for Nicola was held under a huge banner.

“……Hmph, there wasn’t even a proper goodbye when I left, but now all this.”

While awkwardly rubbing his neatly trimmed mustache, Nicola couldn’t hide his inner satisfaction.

Not knowing that the ‘retirement age’ in the banner would soon be deleted and modified to read Congratulations! ‘Lifetime’ Tax Officer Confirmed.

Since human affairs are unpredictable, one should fully enjoy life while possible.

〈Oh, I heard you also consulted on tax evasion as a side job. I’ll turn a blind eye to what’s happened so far, but don’t line your own pockets from now on.〉

I didn’t lie about the working conditions.

It’s just that Nicola was destined for a maddening future where he would earn insane amounts of money but have absolutely no time to spend it.

I’m telling you, I’ll pay you a lot of money!

“How did you persuade him?”

Darius asked, amazed. Facing mountains of tax documents, even Darius had given up hope of hiring a new tax officer.

〈No one with a conscience could recommend this job to anyone.〉

That’s what Sir Lucion, Inkheart’s loyal knight, said after seeing those piles of documents. And I had no conscience.

While I was nodding coolly, acknowledging my lack of conscience, Darius added more words.

“You should have taken me with you. No matter how far I was from the territory at that time, what Nicola went through was all my fault.”

“Mr. Nicola is someone who still wants to work. What I said wasn’t important. It’s just that the treatment he received at the castle hurt his feelings.”

Nicola Graus looked at me, who was choosing only beautiful words, with eyes that seemed to say ‘where are you telling these lies,’ but my glib tongue didn’t stop.

“And the lord shouldn’t go to such places.”

“What?”

“I held Mr. Nicola’s hand and begged earnestly. Of course. Because he was hurt. If my sincere apology could wash away the humiliation he experienced then, I would apologize as many times as needed.”

“Then if I had gone with you, perhaps more quickly……”

“He might not have accepted at all. Imagine a situation where the Grand Duke apologizes repeatedly, but a mere former tax officer refuses the Grand Duke’s apology out of pride.”

Darius was the ruler of this vast north. Therefore, he had to be perfect. People don’t feel compelled to obey a flawed ruler.

……which was actually just an excuse. I left him behind because it would be inconvenient to con someone with him present.

‘I mean, who told him to evade taxes? Who told him to speculate in real estate? When common people can’t even own a single house and tremble over a tiny piece of land.’

If he had lived cleanly, would even someone like me, who went in determined to catch him, have fabricated non-existent crimes?

‘Yes, yes, I’m justified.’

Public figures should atone for their mistakes by working hard. Recalling the apology posts that celebrities used to upload on SNS before my transmigration, I rationalized my actions.

The world taught me wrong, I did nothing wrong!

“Then what about you, Anette?”

“Me? I don’t mind. If it’s for the Grand Duke’s honor, my own honor can be shattered many times over. It’s not Darius Inkheart’s honor, after all.”

I boldly downed the drink in my glass.

I just emptied the glass because I was thirsty, but that action added credibility to what I had just said.

‘Lady Anette.’

‘How can such a person exist?’

‘Lady Anette is the only gift those southern folks have given us.’

I could almost hear people’s inner thoughts.

Ugh. Starting with someone covering their mouth in the banquet hall, all the people of Castle Inkheart began to be moved together.

To think she wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice herself to assist the Grand Duke, what a Grand Duchess.

Wow, I never knew I had this hidden talent for incitement. I wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t transmigrated.

By now, those who suspected me for being from the south when I first set foot in the Inkheart territory were truly terrible people.

But human memory tends to distort.

At first, they clearly glared at me as a suspicious woman from the stingy south, but they all conveniently forgot that memory and firmly believed that they had thought, ‘From the first moment I saw our lady, she was very elegant and dignified, not showing any southern traits at all.’

And so everyone was cheering for Lady Anette. And Darius stood in the middle, alone with a strange expression.

‘Huh?’

A strange expression? That couldn’t be.

‘What could there be not to be happy about?’

What could be unsatisfactory about me stepping forward and paving the way without him having to lift a finger?

He claimed today’s glory without having to worry about a thing.

So he should have been laughing happily without a thought, just like everyone else.

“Anette.”

Darius grabbed my hand with a chilly smile.

“I’ll try harder.”

“Wh-what will you try harder at?”

“You’re always busy moving around alone. So, I’m saying I’ll try to be a husband who can be with you.”

The last words were almost at the level of whispering in my ear while embracing me.

It seemed like he was saying something unnecessary, like I still don’t seem to trust him, or that he would become a husband I could rely on.

“No, there’s nothing you can particularly do in my perfect plan… I mean, let’s let go of this first? People are watching.”

As the atmosphere around us grew increasingly strange, I tried to push Darius away, and sure enough, people around us started whispering.

“The two of you truly make a well-matched pair.”

“They say the Grand Duke’s complexion improves day by day thanks to Lady Anette’s support.”

This is an outrageous slander!

“Wh-what are you saying! I’m just trying to somehow plug the holes in the castle’s finances, so all of this isn’t for Darius but because I don’t want to work, which is why I forcibly brought back even someone who had retired!”

“Haha, even the bold Lady Anette has moments when she feels shy.”

“At your age, you’re still bashful in the face of love.”

“These are good times indeed.”

The people in the banquet hall were already looking at us through colored glasses.

‘What if Evangeline misunderstands when she becomes Darius’s wife as in the original story! What if she misunderstands that Darius and I were more than friends!’

The fate of a presumptuous extra who covets the female protagonist’s man is nothing but death.

My face turned pale at the hallucination of an axe flying over my head.

Evangeline was a saintess in the original story, but I don’t know why she always appears with an axe in my imagination…… No, that’s not it! No, my death flags are piling up in this warm atmosphere!

“Da-Darius. Everyone is teasing us. I’m embarrassed.”

At my desperate head gesture, Darius smiled reassuringly.

“I’m always grateful to you, Anette.”

‘That’s right, unlike what people say, you feel some inexplicable distance from me! You’re grateful for my achievements, but on the other hand, you feel indebted because you don’t feel any affection for me as your wife, so you’re politely wrapping up this situation!’

But why, contrary to his polite words, is his hand around my waist getting stronger? Why are we sticking closer together? Why do these people like it more and more?

“Look at how the lady can’t even lift her head out of embarrassment. Her face is bright red.”

“Hahaha.”

Giving love advice to others was the most fun thing in the world.

Today, the rumor that the lady from the south loved our Grand Duke too much was spreading to great acclaim with the cooperation of bystanders.

Everything seemed good. That’s why I missed the hesitant expression he wore for a moment.

Even though it was the first moment my plan went awry.

* * *

Nicola Graus did his job extremely well. As if releasing all his pent-up frustration from having to consult on others’ tax evasion or looking into real estate, he worked tremendously hard.

“I believe our shop’s sales have already been reported transparently. Even though you’re a tax collector, can I take your return visit as a demand for a bribe?”

A richly dressed merchant spoke arrogantly in front of Nicola, who had come to collect taxes.

He was a merchant holding an important position in De Ville Trading Company, a mid-sized trading company in the territory.

I leisurely watched the scene while drinking a beverage at a cafe in front of the building that Nicola Graus had decided to fleece. This spot was good for watching.

‘Go, my chosen SSR!’