Enoch untied the letter from his ankle with clumsy hands and read the soft writing.
Greetings, daily life, and a few questions.
A slight warmth seeped into his dry face.
"Pen."
“Here it is.”
Adjutant Ched, who always carried a quill and a short piece of stationery, quickly offered it to Enoch.
He folded the letter neatly and tied it to the bird's ankle, using the sturdy gauntlet as a support to prevent his handwriting from becoming rough.
A pigeon that had plenty of water and snacks flew overhead once before disappearing.
“What did the lady say?”
“She told me to come back soon.”
“Wow.”
The second vice-captain, Huber Carwen, who was impressed without realizing it, quickly closed his mouth. Enoch was staring.
“Well, then what will you do about it, my lord?”
“...”
Enoch slowly took his gaze away and looked down at his family members again. His hand, wrapped in a cool gauntlet, brushed his chin once.
It would be cleaner to change the successor while we're at it.
“From now on, the new Baron Thatcher is the second son. Dispose of him.”
“Please save me. The head of the family, the head of the family...!”
The knights dragged out the eldest son. Enoch threw the family seal to the second son who had suddenly inherited the family.
“I hope you don’t take the step twice, Baron Thatcher.”
“...I will keep that in mind. I will never let you down.”
Excluding the families that secretly sympathized.
Enoch, who had changed the three heads of the collateral families who had directly stepped forward as examples, finally set out on his way back.
In his arms were four letters received over the past ten days.
Four days later, when he arrived in the capital, the moon had already risen long ago.
Immediately after passing through the castle gate, Enoch, who was slowly driving his horse through the quiet highway, pulled the reins slightly and stopped the horse.
“Why is that, my lord?”
“Towards the first mansion.”
Vice-captain Huber Carwen, who realized that it was about the first mansion of Nobilis, the capital where Agatha was staying, quickly answered.
“He’s been quiet since he took over as our family’s guard.”
"No. Are you awake?”
"Yes?"
“I need to check.”
Enoch sent away all but five or six of the knights who were trying to follow him in a hurry and turned his horse towards the first mansion of Nobilis, the capital city.
***
It's been two weeks since Enoch left.
It was about a week before the wedding.
In the meantime, Agatha decorated the wedding hall, had her wedding dress made, prepared the reception, and packed her bags to leave for the Pahlavi Islands to carry out the imperial command.
In the meantime, she keeps an eye on the movements of her relatives and continues small-scale social activities.
Thanks to the active cooperation of the Aratus family and the exchange of opinions with Enoch through letters, there were no obstacles to progress, but it was no exaggeration to say that the day changed every time she opened and closed her eyes.
Also, she checks on the repairs to the newlywed house and negotiations with the vassals and the Mainukor Empire.
Even though it's late at night, the first mansion feels like a night out.
Agatha was half-asleep, holding the last letter she had received from Enoch in one hand and a document detailing the wedding progress in the other.
"Miss. Why don’t you just go to bed and sleep?”
Allen, the head butler of the Nobilis family, spoke carefully as he set down the warm tea. Agatha pressed her eyelids.
"What time is it?"
“It’s almost 2 a.m..”
“Yes. Just look at this.”
“...”
The butler gave her a suspicious look.
As always, Agatha took the letter and signed the bottom of the read document, naturally reaching for another document and commanding.
“Allen. It’s noisy outside. Go out.”
"...All right."
Unfortunately, Agatha's excuse was true. This early in the morning, the mansion was a mess for the first time in a long time.
Did an assassin come?
There was no need to worry, as the Knights of Aratus and the Imperial Knights given by the Emperor were secretly guarding it.
Thanks to that, Agatha was able to finish the remaining documents without worrying about what others thought.
She had just signed the last document and was reaching for her slightly cooled cup of tea.
“He told me not to be too hard on myself.”
“...!”
“The Marquis of Aratus has arrived.”
A man's voice was heard faintly, and Allen spoke up belatedly.
Agatha stood there blankly for a while, looking at the man standing in front of the silently open door.
"...Enoch?"
At that time, his appearance was a bit rougher than when they first met.
Dusty black robes, steel-plated leather gloves, clothes with a faint smell of blood, and sturdy combat boots.
Because of the forced march, his otherwise sharp jawline now looked like it would be cut.
Agatha was startled and stood up from her seat at the sight of everyone coming straight here after returning.
“What are you doing here this late at night? Is there any problem?”
“..."
The man, who was standing awkwardly somewhere, soon knocked politely on the office door with a sigh.
“I’m sorry for being rude at this late hour. Can I come in?”
“Of course. Allen, bring me some warm tea.”
“The tea is fine. I plan to go back soon.”
“Oh, yes. Then please sit over here.”
Agatha guided him to the sofa in the office. He sat across from her and stared blankly at her for a while without saying a word.
“Well, did your trip go well?”
"Yes. I’ve finished it neatly, so there won’t be any noise for a while even if I leave for a long time.”
"Thank God."
By the way, why did Enoch visit the mansion at night?
Of course, it's not that she wasn't happy, but she was still worried that something might have happened.
Enoch, who had been looking at the desk behind the sofa for a while, opened his mouth.
“Your complexion seems to have gotten worse since I last saw you. Have you been busy?”
“Do you have a lot of tea?”
Agatha smiled awkwardly and stroked his cheek.
It's been a while since she's seen him, so she wanted to look pretty.
If she woke up early every morning, her face wouldn't look good.
“I have a lot of work to do, but I hate it when things pile up. If I don’t check things that day, sometimes problems arise later and I have to deal with them later...”
There was always a lot of work to do as she had to take care of this large family all by herself.
If she doesn't take care of it occasionally, she will have a hard time when something special happens like this.
Of course, problems always arose because of her relatives, so it was difficult to get her way.
It was an awkward topic to bring up for someone who had been on a forced march, visiting several families in two weeks.
“You must be tired. Go and rest. I’ll come to the front door-”
“Agatha.”
"Yes?"
It was the second time he interrupted.
“If it’s okay, could I know your schedule for tomorrow?”
“...? Of course. It’s possible.”
Are you curious about how things have been going so far?
Since the letter alone was not enough, Agatha talked about tomorrow's schedule, including the direction of the work.
Enoch listened intently, nodding occasionally.
"Yes. It’s very late, so I’ll take you to your room.”
"No. I am-"
“Isn’t it early morning? It seems too late to say hello in the hall.”
That's right. That's true, but...
Even as she obediently placed her hand on his outstretched arm, Agatha couldn't shake the feeling that something was stopping her.
In the end, Agatha, who was the landlady but was escorted to the front door, greeted Enoch at the door.
He did not leave until Agatha went inside.
Allen, the head butler of the Nobilis family, who was watching this with satisfaction, bowed his head respectfully.
“Thank you for your help, Marquis.”
“I would have done it even if you hadn’t asked.”
She said she had been busy ever since she fell and got back up. She didn't show it to him, but she must have stayed up all night a lot.
“I see something on her schedule for tomorrow that I can take over.”
“Shall I organize it and upload it?”
“Come back early in the morning. Don't wake Agatha. Send me all the documents that require approval.”
"All right."
Enoch mounted his horse again, receiving a polite farewell from the servants.
Only today did he understand why Agatha was overdoing it.
'There is no one around her to rely on.'
She must have been doing everything on her own up until now.
Because she has to do it herself.
Moreover, he was able to understand the identity of the subtle sense of kinship he had felt toward Agatha.
When he lost both his parents in an instant and was thrown into the battlefield, wasn't that the same for him?
And now, unlike him who had emerged from the mud with strength, she now had a blank expression on her face, not even recognizing what the problem was.
"Let's go."
"Yes."
Enoch turned around, leading a group of knights, and tightened his grip on the reins.
He wouldn't have known if he didn't know, but once he found out, he had no intention of leaving it alone.
Agatha was now his wife.
He was not a foolish man to step on a train that had already failed once.
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