Episode 39. Breakthrough
The replies arrived in two days. Both letters arrived on the same day. Martha thought as she opened the envelopes. It was fast. The very fact that a letter had arrived from the House of Valois carried weight for both families.
Curious about the reason, they couldn't wait and sent a reply immediately.
The House of Viscount Werner.
I look forward to seeing you.
The House of Count Strauss.
You are welcome anytime.
Martha placed the two replies side by side. The House of Viscount Werner was brief. Just saying they would see her. It could mean they weren't happy to see her, or they were holding back their words.
The House of Count Strauss said they were welcome anytime. It could mean they had been waiting for someone like them.
Martha called for Maxim.
"Let's schedule both families for the same day. The House of Viscount Werner in the morning, and the House of Count Strauss in the afternoon."
Maxim nodded and left. The day of the meeting arrived. Claude and Martha, and the Duke of Ashford and Leon, rode in the same carriage. Inside the carriage, Martha looked out the window and mentally organized the conversations they would have today. Claude said.
"Are you nervous?"
Martha replied.
"No. It's not like we're going to war, so why is there any need to be nervous?"
"Then why are you silent?"
"I was thinking. About how to soothe him, and how to extract information from him."
Claude looked at Martha, then at the window.
"Viscount Werner won't be easy. He's a very timid man."
"I know."
"Still, do you think he'll be persuaded?"
Martha asked.
"You don't try to persuade a timid person. You just need to show them that there is something even scarier."
The Duke of Ashford chimed in from the side, joining the father and daughter's conversation.
"Indeed, after exchanging a few words with our Princess Serena, I'd realize there is something scarier, indeed."
"What do you mean?"
Claude chuckled, and Martha glared at Ashford. Ashford turned his head away at Martha's glare and looked out the window.
"No... I mean that today looks like it will be smooth sailing, too."
Martha said, looking out the window.
"We just need to make them realize that fighting together is a less frightening choice than hiding alone."
Leon remained silent. In fact, he seemed the most nervous.
The carriage traveled for quite a while and arrived at the Viscount Werner estate. The main gate opened, and they stepped inside. They were escorted to the reception room. A moment later, Viscount Werner entered. He was a man in his mid-fifties. He looked like he would have been a man of good build by nature, but he seemed somewhat withdrawn.
His shoulders were hunched inward. His gaze was wary. The ducal families of Valois and Ashford. It was evident on his face that the burden of two ducal families visiting at once was overwhelming. As Viscount Werner took his seat, he said.
"What brings you here?"
Martha said.
"Why are you in such a hurry, Viscount?"
"I'm breathless. Bring out some tea, prepare some snacks, and say hello!"
The Viscount, looking flustered, glanced at Martha, then at the Dukes beside him and Leon. He then called over a servant standing nearby, whispered instructions to prepare the necessary items, and dismissed the servant.
"I was so flustered that I couldn't even properly greet you. Greetings, Dukes."
Martha confirmed that the attendant had left and got straight to the point.
"I wanted to discuss the Golden Lion Merchant Guild."
Viscount Werner's expression hardened.
"I have no particular connection to that guild."
Martha said.
"But you have had a change in estate administrators before."
Viscount Werner looked at Martha.
"It was just due to internal matters."
"But the administrator embezzled the estate's income."
Viscount Werner fell silent. He would open his mouth, then press it shut tightly. He would try to say something again, then shut his mouth tight. Watching him, Martha thought to herself, 'Oh my, you fool. The woman waiting is going to suffocate.'
Viscount Werner opened his mouth softly.
"That matter has already been settled."
"The caretaker has changed, too."
"Has the connection with the Golden Lion Merchant Guild been severed?"
Viscount Werner looked at Martha.
"I don't know what you mean."
"You know where that caretaker came from."
Viscount Werner remained silent. Claude spoke.
"Viscount, we suffered the same thing. The Duke of Valois also had a caretaker who embezzled the estate's income. I know where that caretaker came from as well."
Viscount Werner looked at Claude.
"Then what do you intend to do?"
Claude said.
"That is what I came to discuss."
Viscount Werner looked at the table, then out the window, and then back to Martha.
"Our financial situation is very bad. Income has decreased since that incident, and recovery is not easy."
Martha said.
"I think the Duke of Valois can help. My family's fortunes almost went downhill during my adolescence, but I pulled myself together and am now preparing various business ventures within the family."
"Get on there."
As Leon muttered to himself.
"Adolescence... at 18..."
Martha poked him in the side. On the other side, the Duke of Ashford remarked.
"It's not a horse, so why would you want to get on it?"
Claude to poke him in the side. Viscount Werner looked at Martha. Seeing the curious look in Viscount Werner's eyes, Martha immediately continued.
"Of course, it wouldn't be one-sided; there would need to be mutual help."
It seemed it took Viscount Werner some time to grasp the meaning of those words. He looked at Martha for a moment, then at Leon, then at the Duke of Ashford, then at Claude. And then back to Martha.
Martha calmly sipped her tea while receiving those gazes. After a long pause, Viscount Werner continued.
"You understand what it means to step forward directly against the Golden Lion Merchant Guild, don't you? We know how far their reach extends. They even came as far as our territory."
Duke Ashford listened and spoke.
"Viscount."
Viscount Werner looked at Duke Ashford. Duke Ashford said.
"Do you think hiding like this will solve anything?"
Viscount Werner froze. Duke Ashford continued, his voice low and heavy.
"The Golden Lion Merchant Guild has reached out to five families. It's not just your family. But if everyone is scared and hides, they will keep moving. Another target will appear. Hiding won't end it."
Viscount Werner looked at Duke Ashford again. Duke Ashford said.
"The House of Valois stepped forward first. The House of Ashford has stepped forward as well. We are going together. You are not stepping forward alone."
Viscount Werner looked at the table. He watched for a long time. Martha waited, watching it. Viscount Werner said.
"I have proof. Where the caretaker came from, and where the money was sent, I have recorded it all."
Martha said.
"That is exactly mutual help. Give us that proof. In return, the House of Valois will provide financial assistance. And at the Imperial Council, instead of acting alone, several families will unite and step forward."
Viscount Werner thought for a moment and said.
"...I will think about it."
It was not a complete decision. However, his eyes were different from before. Seeing the Viscount's anxious gaze quickly turn into a calm one, Martha thought that was enough. The seeds planted today will bear fruit later.
She left the Viscount Werner estate and boarded the carriage. They were on their way to the House of Count Strauss.
Duke Ashford said.
"Do you think Viscount Werner will be persuaded?"
Martha said.
"It will take a little time, but it will work out. However, it will be faster than you think. He knows how hard it is to hide away alone. The Viscount needs a solid rope right now."
Duke Ashford said, looking at Martha.
"Is the Princess always this relaxed?"
Martha asked.
"It's not that I'm relaxed, you just learn as you live."
"But I've lived longer than you have?"
"How you live matters. Quality over quantity!"
Duke Ashford looked at Leon. Then he looked back at Duke Claude.
"Let's call off the engagement."
Leon looked straight ahead. Claude said,
"Didn't someone say before that a captain jumped off a ship in the middle of the ocean?"
Duke Ashford froze. Martha looked out the window. Leon continued to look straight ahead. The carriage was quiet. Siegfried, sensing the atmosphere from the driver's seat outside, grinned.
The Strauss estate. The main gate opened, and they stepped inside. The atmosphere was different from that of the Viscount Werner estate. The garden was well-maintained. The servants moved in an orderly fashion.
On the surface, it appeared to be a trouble-free family. However, there was a certain quietness. The servants' silent glances. People have a sense of intuition. And Martha, who had a history of about sixty years as a lady-in-waiting, read this atmosphere the moment she took a few steps. There was definitely something going on with this Count's estate.
She was escorted to the reception room. Count Strauss entered. He was a man nearing sixty. He had a quiet and prudent demeanor. His hair was nearly white. His steps were slow, but unwavering. The look in his eyes as he greeted Martha and her party was different from that of Viscount Werner. It was not a look of fear. It was a look of weighing the situation. It was a look trying to gauge who these people were and how much they knew.
As Count Strauss took his seat, he said.
"The Princess of Valois said she wished to see me; what is the purpose?"
Martha replied.
"I will ask you directly, Count. It concerns the Golden Lion Merchant Guild."
Count Strauss nodded, as if he had been waiting for that story to come from Martha's lips for a long time.
"I thought so."
Martha looked at Count Strauss.
"You suffered damages, too, Count."
"Yes."
"The estate's income was siphoned off, and you must know where the manager came from."
"I know."
Count Strauss answered calmly. He did not beat around the bush or pretend not to know, unlike Viscount Werner. He appeared to be someone who already knew and had already sorted things out. Martha said.
"However, I heard that you suddenly disappeared from the Imperial Palace about three months ago. That doesn't seem to match the timing of the damages related to the Golden Lion Merchant Guild."
Count Strauss looked at Martha. Then he looked alternately at the Dukes and Leon standing beside her. His gaze changed for the first time. It was the look of someone making a decision. Count Strauss said.
"We have apprehended a suspicious individual in the estate."
Martha paused. Count Strauss continued.
"It was three months ago. Late at night, there was a noise coming from the direction of the office. When the servants went to investigate, they found someone inside. It seemed they were rummaging through documents. They were looking for something."
Count Strauss paused briefly before continuing.
"We caught them. They tried to escape, but the guards stopped them. At first, we thought they were just thieves. But then, an Imperial sword was found on their body."
The reception room fell silent. Duke Ashford's gaze changed. Claude froze. Leon looked at Count Strauss. As she listened, Martha thought to herself.
'He had broken into the office to find something.'
The fact that they searched through the documents means they were either trying to destroy evidence or came to verify how much they knew. But he was carrying an Imperial Sword. An Imperial Sword.
Count Strauss said.
"I interrogated him. At first, he said nothing, but as time passed, stories began to emerge little by little. He claimed to be one of the bodyguards of the commander of the Empress's direct unit."
As Martha listened, she thought. A bodyguard of the Empress's direct unit commander. There is a living witness. A witness directly connecting the Golden Lion Merchant Guild to the Empress.
Count Strauss said.
"He is currently imprisoned in the estate's jail. It has been three months. I didn't know what to do with him. It was too big a burden to handle alone. If I brought him up to the Imperial Court, he was a member of the Empress's direct unit, so I didn't know how much to trust him, but if I just let him go, I didn't know how the damage might come back to haunt me later."
Martha looked at Count Strauss. His eyes were weary. It was the look of someone who had been carrying this burden alone for three months. Martha said.
"You did well."
Count Strauss looked at Martha. Martha said.
"You have been guarding it alone for three months. It cannot have been an easy task."
Count Strauss remained silent. Martha said.
"You don't have to handle it alone anymore."
The drawing room was quiet. The Duke of Ashford said.
"We must hurry while that witness is still alive."
Count Strauss nodded. Leon said.
"Could I know more details about that figure? What kind of unit is it, and who is the commander?"
Count Strauss said.
"I will document it. And..."
Count Strauss looked at Martha.
"Princees Valois."
"Yes."
"May we join this fight as well?"
Martha looked at Count Strauss. His gaze was different from before. It was no longer a look of hesitation. It was a look of determination. Martha spoke.
"Of course. That is exactly why we came. If a factional fight breaks out between the Emperor's and Empress's factions, looking from the sidelines, it ultimately comes down to quantity over quality. Whose side has more people? Whose influence is stronger?"
Duke Ashford pouted.
"You said earlier that quality is more than quantity."
Martha pretended not to hear and quietly tapped Duke Ashford's foot.
They left the Strauss estate. The sun was setting. As Martha climbed into the carriage, she glanced at the sky. The sunset was setting. Four people boarded the carriage. There was silence for a while.
It was Duke Ashford who spoke first.
"We've struck something bigger than expected today."
Martha said.
"Yes."
Duke Ashford replied.
"Having the Empress's personal guard, the commander of her own unit, as a witness is a much stronger hand than we anticipated."
Leon said.
"Bringing the Strauss estate to our side has become our top priority."
Claude said.
"We must hurry while that witness is still alive."
Martha looked out the window and said.
"The Count Strauss family is already on our side. They had already made up their minds and were waiting."
The Duke of Ashford looked at Martha.
"How did you know that?"
Martha said.
"When the reply came saying, 'You are welcome anytime,' It wasn't just empty words."
Leon looked at Martha. The Duke of Ashford said.
"You read that from a single line in a letter?"
Martha said.
"You'll understand as you live."
The Duke of Ashford looked at Claude.
"Duke of Valois, let's really call off the engagement."
Claude said.
"Tell Serena that directly. My words have absolutely no effect."
The Duke of Ashford looked at Martha. Martha looked out the window and said.
"Duke of Ashford, if we talk about breaking off the engagement one more time, it will be a disaster."
Leon looked straight ahead. The Duke of Ashford sighed. Claude looked elsewhere. The carriage sped away. Martha looked out the window and thought.
The escort of the Empress's direct unit commander. With this witness, a link is formed between the Golden Lion Merchant Guild and the Empress. I must not miss this. I must hurry.
The sunset streamed in through the carriage window. It was red and warm.
[Lucy's Secret Shock Journal - Episode 39]
I visited the Viscount Werner and Count Strauss estates today. I learned today that there is a living witness. The Princess's gaze was different today. It was a look that said she would not miss anything. Young Master Leon saw that. I saw it. I wrote it down in my notebook.
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