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Chapter 24
His private quarters were closer to the office of a capable steward than the space of a knight. In truth, since Aquila took charge of the castle’s internal affairs whenever Erno was away, it wasn’t an inaccurate description.
He valued practicality to an excessive degree, so the room was almost austere, but the desk—neatly arranged without a speck of dust or the slightest disorder—clearly reflected its owner’s character.
Despite Diana’s unannounced visit, Aquila welcomed her without the slightest hint of fluster.
However, when he noticed Sasha and Elka behind her, a trace of puzzlement appeared on the face of the knight who had been gentle and composed until then.
“What brings Your Grace to see me today?”
Even though a half-finished document lay on his desk, there was no annoyance in his voice as he asked.
“I’m drafting a budget to rebuild the greenhouse, but it looks like it’ll cost more than I expected. Could you tell me how much budget I can freely use?”
“Come to think of it, I’m late in explaining this to you. In fact, this works out well. You should see it for yourself.”
“See what?”
“What belongs to Your Grace.”
Aquila extended his hand. When Diana took it, his hand—clearly more accustomed to holding a pen than a sword—gently helped her to her feet.
Guided by Aquila, they arrived at one of Fenril Castle’s libraries. Hearing that this was not just one library but one of several already made Diana feel overwhelmed by Fenril’s wealth.
Without hesitation, the knight pulled out several books and placed them back upside down. With the sound of a mechanism moving, a hidden space was revealed.
Tracing his fingers along the smooth wall concealed behind the shelves, he pressed at certain points until a keyhole appeared. Aquila then drew a necklace from beneath his collar. A small key hung from it.
The locks guarding Fenril Castle’s treasury continued in several more layers beyond that. Only after a process so strict that even a determined thief would grow weary did the final door finally open.
“I’m sorry, but could you two wait here for a moment?”
Though inwardly disappointed, Elka and Sasha nodded without complaint. Aquila thanked them with a glance and opened the door leading to the treasury for Diana.
“Welcome to Fenril’s treasury.”
As if enchanted, Diana’s feet moved on their own. Once her mouth fell open, it refused to close again, gasps escaping her lips everywhere her eyes landed.
“Everything here belongs to Your Grace.”
Though she heard it, saw it, and even walked among it all, the words felt utterly unreal, sending a shiver down her spine.
“These are mining rights, gemstone extraction permits, property deeds, and other legal documents that guarantee the Grand Duchess’s rights.”
Aquila, who had briefly disappeared, returned with thick bundles of documents. Diana, however, couldn’t even bring herself to look at them.
After the unseen rights came visible wealth.
“My goodness!”
The moment her wandering gaze finally landed on it, the jewels Baroness Lapin had once cherished so dearly became worth less than shards of glass in Diana’s eyes.
Diamonds as large as a child’s fist, brooches made by stringing pearls as tiny and fine as grains of sand onto white horsehair, earrings and necklaces lavishly set with the finest gems, bracelet-and-brooch sets, and rings so numerous that even using both fingers and toes wouldn’t be enough to wear them all.
Diana, who had always thought herself free of material desires, had to reconsider her self-assessment.
Standing before a life-sized wolf statue that was unmistakably made of pure gold, Diana finally lost the power of speech.
No matter how wealthy Fenril was, it didn’t seem likely this had been made merely as decoration.
“Ah, here it is.”
While she pondered the purpose of the golden wolf, Aquila found what he was looking for among the treasures.
“Shall we take just this much for now?”
Opening a box, Aquila placed three gold coins onto Diana’s curious palm.
“This is my first time touching gold coins. I think I understand now why greedy merchants in stories love the sound of coins clinking so much.”
“Just give the order. I could fill your bathtub with gold coins instead of water.”
Diana would stake her greenhouse on the fact that he wasn’t joking.
With shining curiosity, Diana turned the gold coins—ones she was touching and taking for the first time—over and over in her hands.
“Du… du… ducats?”
The edges were worn, so she couldn’t be sure, but that was what was written on the back.
“They’re ducat gold coins. If you take them to a merchant guild, they’ll exchange each one for a hundred of the current gold coins.”
“A hundred each? Are they really that valuable?”
So these three coins were worth as much as Baron Lapin’s entire yearly income.
After trying to calculate it in her head, Diana gave up with a quiet sigh. If she kept going, her head would surely explode.
“And there’s a whole box full of them…”
There’s actually more. Aquila almost said it, but stopped and decided to keep that secret for now. If he told her everything honestly, the faint-hearted lady might actually faint.
“It may take some time, but if you sell them to collectors, you could get even more than a hundred per coin.”
“N-no!”
“Pardon?”
“I—I don’t think I can manage that much money. So please… just put them back where they were.”
Faced with an amount far beyond anything she was used to, worry and fear overtook her. Pale-faced, Diana tried to return the ducat coins to their place.
But Aquila’s hand gently caught hers first, closing her fingers around the coins again.
Startled, Diana looked back at him with eyes full of anxious uncertainty, but Aquila shook his head firmly.
“You must get used to it. And you will.”
Will that day really come? Her eyes, on the verge of tears, seemed to ask.
“…I’ll try. But I will never spend a family’s yearly budget just for a single day’s pleasure.”
A truly admirable resolve. Aquila felt genuine admiration. It was hard to believe this was the same person who trembled over a single gold coin only moments ago.
That night, Diana had a nightmare. In it, maids made of pure gold attended her bath, and she floundered in a bathtub overflowing with gold coins before sinking under with a glug.
“Good morning, milady.”
“Mmm… good… morning… Sasha…”
Because of that absurd dream, Diana wandered in a haze even after returning the greeting.
“Today’s market day. Please get up.”
“…Ah.”
At Sasha’s words, Diana suddenly sat upright. Startled, Sasha jumped back, eyes wide as if she’d just seen a corpse come back to life.
Diana opened the leather purse hanging at her neck. It was a gift Elka had given her the day before.
My purse.
And my money. Gently brushing her fingertips over the three gold coins resting quietly inside, Diana hurriedly prepared to go to the market.
Stepping outside with dark eyes sparkling in anticipation at the thought of seeing beyond Fenril Castle for the first time, Diana stopped short before the unfamiliar object Walter had brought.
“This is… um… a sled?”
Even in the southern regions, where snowfall was rare even in winter, sleds existed. But unlike the southern sleds that were little more than seasonal toys for children, what awaited her was a large sled drawn by a magnificent antlered reindeer.
“I thought you’d prepare a carriage.”
“Oh dear. Should I have prepared a carriage after all?”
“No, it’s not that. I actually like this better. It’s my first time riding a sled. And if I take the Grand Duchess’s carriage, people will recognize me. I want to go quietly.”
To be precise, she disliked the wary looks and reactions of ‘That’s the new Grand Duchess?’ But hiding her true feelings, Diana gently stroked the reindeer’s back.
Seeing it in person, the reindeer was far more graceful and beautiful than in any illustration.
Sensing her gentle nature through her touch, the reindeer quickly warmed to her and nudged its head toward her.
People watched the scene with fond smiles—a sight so pastoral and modest that it was hard to believe this was a Grand Duchess carrying the annual income of a small fief in her purse.
