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Chapter 41
After I Die, the Little Groom
Nadia, who had departed for the Baldwin Duchy, encountered a carriage bearing the Baldwin seal in less than a day.
The two carriages, each with business to attend to with the other, stopped simultaneously. From the Baldwin carriage, Heinrich’s secretary, Allison, stepped down.
Allison escorted Nadia and helped her descend from the carriage.
“Baroness Hess, may I ask where you are headed?”
“To the Baldwin Duchy. I have something to discuss with His Excellency.”
“His Excellency has gone to the Crimson Territory. Before leaving, he instructed me to bring you along.”
“The Crimson Territory…”
Nadia murmured softly to herself. Now she understood why Heinrich had hurriedly left the capital.
The human trafficking taking place in the Crimson Territory was undoubtedly affecting the entire northern region.
Although it wasn’t the right time to feel glad, Nadia couldn’t help but feel a spark of happiness.
‘As expected, Heini hasn’t abandoned the northern people.’
Even if Heinrich had changed slightly from before, his care for the North had not disappeared.
“Let’s go quickly. I intended to meet His Excellency for the same matter.”
Allison expressed her admiration at Nadia’s words.
“You already know. His Excellency said there is no need for a lengthy explanation to you.”
Nadia gave a bitter smile. Any pride or happiness she had felt at Heinrich’s thoughtfulness had long vanished.
If only she had woven a denser network of information, she could have known and acted sooner…
…Even if it had been only a fraction of Libennia’s intelligence network.
“Baroness Hess, if you don’t mind, you could join the Baldwin carriage. It’s much larger and sturdier, so the journey would be less taxing.”
Regret was useless.
Nadia pulled herself together and followed Allison onto the carriage.
Fortunately, the road between the Baldwin Duchy and the Crimson Territory was well-paved.
Thanks to this, Nadia was able to reach the Crimson Territory without enduring days of hardship.
Nadia and her companions disembarked at the outskirts of the Crimson Territory and transferred to a shabby carriage. By tying up her hair and covering herself with a long robe, she could pass as an ordinary merchant at a glance.
Allison looked apologetic at Nadia’s humble attire.
“I apologize. His Excellency insisted that you not stand out.”
“That’s fine. If two nobles appeared suddenly, the Crimson Territory would certainly be on alert. Where is His Excellency?”
“You’ll have to walk a little.”
Allison took the lead, with Nadia and Vivian following behind.
The Crimson Territory was affluent, bustling with people at every street corner. Compared to the impoverished Hess territory, Nadia’s spirits sank a little.
As they prepared to enter an alley, someone suddenly grabbed Nadia’s sleeve tightly.
The guards hiding nearby started to rush out, but Nadia signaled them to stop with a glance.
Allison looked puzzled at Nadia’s action.
‘…She handles guards skillfully. Hess territory probably hasn’t had the means to hire guards until now.’
Perhaps she had recently hired them and had grown accustomed to handling them.
Allison, pretending to be an ordinary companion, addressed the man holding Nadia.
“What is this? Who are you, grabbing a woman’s wrist like that?”
The man chuckled awkwardly under Allison’s threatening tone.
“Oh, sorry to startle you. It’s nothing serious. I just thought this lady has some unique talents. I wanted to offer her some work…”
“Work?”
Nadia suspected that this man might be connected to those who had taken the missing people.
She asked him with an innocent expression.
“Oh, work? I’ve heard there’s always plenty of work in the Crimson Territory. But I don’t have many skills… What do you mean by talent?”
Quick-witted Vivian stepped in, keeping up the charade.
“Listen, miss. We said we’d offer work. Accommodation, food, everything included.”
“Hmm… but the pay is still a bit…”
Vivian thumped her chest in frustration.
Allison, unused to this sort of acting, looked flustered. Perhaps it was better than trying to perform properly.
“I just want to hear you out. So what kind of work is it?”
The man cleared his throat pompously, as if preparing to tell a grand story.
“You ladies should listen too. The pay is really good. At the far north, even farther than the Baldwin Duchy… and there are fruits…”
At the mention of “fruits,” Nadia’s expression dimmed slightly.
Although he seemed far from the head of a criminal organization, observing him could help her understand the situation.
Nadia nodded politely, listening carefully.
“…Selling them in the capital earns a lot, but that mostly goes to the higher-ups. Still, we could pick up a couple of lower-grade fruits, earn some pay, and sell them ourselves… aaah!”
The man, mid-speech, suddenly screamed and flew into the air.
“Sa-spar… gghk!”
Startled, Nadia stepped back, and Allison and Vivian moved to shield her.
Among the three, Nadia was the first to recognize what had happened.
“…His Excellency!”
The man’s body wobbled like a sheet of paper before being thrown to the ground.
Standing where the man had been was Heinrich, cloaked in black.
“Bind him.”
Several knights appeared at Heinrich’s brief command and tied the man up tightly.
The man was so shocked that he gaped and fainted.
Heinrich glared at Nadia with his red eyes.
“Why are you dealing with such people one by one?”
“…I wanted to see how they lure people.”
“You could use torture.”
“Torture won’t reveal everything.”
“People like this have no pride. They’ll tell you everything.”
Nadia wanted to say that even a swindler could have pride, and torture might not break their last ounce of dignity.
But she was Nadia, not Libennia, and the gap in status between her and Heinrich was immense.
She decided that pointless struggles were meaningless.
“Thank you for calling me. There are missing persons in my territory as well, and I intended to ask for help.”
“But such reckless actions?”
Heinrich frowned sharply.
Nadia was caught off guard, not understanding why he was so angry.
“It wasn’t reckless. That man never intended to kill me—killing me would reduce his gains. With so many hidden guards, kidnapping was impossible.”
“…Again.”
“Huh?”
“You speak as if you know everything. Even so, don’t you feel instinctive fear? Must you confront those with ill intent personally to be satisfied?”
Heinrich still looked deeply displeased, restraining his anger with effort.
Nadia hadn’t acted thoughtlessly.
The fact that Heinrich thought so made her feel profoundly wronged.
She replied in an unusually firm and raised voice.
“If it’s not dangerous, why should I send subordinates? Since the opportunity arose in front of me, hearing it directly is an advantage.”
“So…”
“As the heir of Hess, it’s my duty to rescue the missing in my territory. I only gathered information accordingly. It’s true that I sought your help due to lack of strength, but that doesn’t mean I would do nothing and hide like a coward. If that were what you wanted, you shouldn’t have brought me here in the first place.”
Having said her piece, Nadia lowered herself as if to kneel.
“I apologize for any rudeness. But I will continue to do my best to find the missing. If I interfere with your work, please tell me now. I will return to my territory and find what I can do on my own.”
Heinrich looked at the crown of her lowered head and walked forward without saying a word.
Nadia waited until the edge of his cloak brushed past her before rising to follow him.
Allison whispered as she walked beside him.
“…His Excellency, honestly, that was strange just now. Didn’t you bring Baroness Hess because you thought she was capable? And it wasn’t a truly dangerous situation. Why the sudden overprotection?”
Heinrich didn’t glance at Allison.
She sighed quietly, realizing that since his wife’s death, he had completely closed himself off, making it difficult to serve him. Lately, it was even harder to read his mind than she remembered from back then.
‘If only the young lady had been alive at a time like this…’
