'Could she have gone out?'
When Eric hurriedly entered the front door, the servant lowered his head.
“Your Excellency, are you here?”
Randon was looking anxiously at his master, who was becoming more and more out of town these days.
'What's wrong with him?'
After a while, Randon remembered an important fact and told the Duke.
“A while ago, Marquis Arjen sent a personal message.”
“What?”
“The promised appointment passed, but he asked me why you didn’t visit him.”
Only then did Eric remember that he had told Madeleine that he would visit the palace.
He completely forgot.
The Marquis of Argens had a jewelry shop that turned jewelry into accessories, and was a good customer who bought jewelry from the Duchy of Brant on good terms.
Marquis Arjin made a suggestion this time.
He will buy jade at a fixed price of 10 silver per carat, double the market price for 5 years.
‘Jade is heavily mined, but the market price has not exceeded 5 silver per carat in more than several decades.
It's definitely not a bad suggestion even if there is a monopoly clause at twice the price but…'
Right now, Cornelia's actions were in his head.
Eric opened his mouth as if he had made up his mind.
“Send him a message and I will give him an answer in a few days.”
Randon didn't understand.
It was a matter that would benefit the duchy, no matter who was watching, but why was his master so late in answering?
“But, Your Excellency, Marquis Arjen has already sent people many times, but doing something like this…”
Before Randon could finish speaking, Eric's face contorted.
“Since when has the Duke of Brant given consideration to the Marquis of Argens?”
Randon swallowed dryly and made a hasty excuse.
“Your Excellency, that is not what I meant...”
However, Eric cut off his words as if he didn't want to listen to him anymore.
“You are the butler of our family.
The butler does not question the master’s work.”
When the frightened Randon closed his mouth, Eric warned him coldly.
“Don't hurt me again with things like that.”
“Yes… okay”
Although I made a mistake with the master, he passed it on.
Randon was relieved by this fact, but his chest felt tight.
'The Grand Lady will be angry...'
At that time, he heard Eric's voice, lost in his thoughts.
"Come to think of it, I can't see the Duchess's carriage.
What happened?"
Only then did Randon remember what he had forgotten.
“Oh, the Duchess went out with a slave today.”
“Where did she say she was going?”
“I don't know that much”
Eric clenched his fists tightly.
Even though Randon had known about Marquis of Arjen such details a moment ago, he was responding as if he did not care about the lady of the palace, Cornelia.
“I'm sure I told you to tell me if something happened to the house, but why didn't you tell me first?”
“Well, I didn't think it was unusual for the Duchess to go out...”
“What if I go out and have an accident?”
At Eric's question, Randon shook his head vigorously.
“It can't be, can it?
She took that slave with her too.”
“Do you think that a single slave, not even an accompanying knight, can prevent an unexpected accident?”
“That is...”
Eric's lips curled as if he wasn't going to listen anymore.
“For you, the Duke’s pregnant wife is less than the Marquis of Argens.”
Only then did Randon realize his mistake.
“Oguk, forgive me, I made a mistake...”
Normally, he would have overlooked the butler's mistake.
Randon was a servant he had seen since childhood, and he was the son of a maid who treated him well.
But Eric didn't.
“I am not the person to ask for forgiveness from.”
Eric, who had been staring at Randon coldly, opened his mouth.
“Randon, I will demote you from butler to servant.”
“Yes?
But sir, I...!”
Before Randon could say anything, Eric said coldly,
“If the Duchess forgives you, I will think about your situation.”
A look of despair crossed Randon's face when he heard those words.
After shopping, and having relieved some stress, I was about to go home.
At that time, the sound of the song caught my ears and I involuntarily stopped.
'This....'
On the side of the road, there was a musician performing in the street.
The song was very familiar to my ears.
'It's an afternoon nap, Dami slept well just listening to this song'
I stood in a daze and listened to the song for a long time, and soon I was in tears.
I miss my baby.
I wanted to sleep right next to him, cuddling him and singing lullabies to him again.
"my lady?"
At that time, I was awakened by Sardin's voice calling to me.
'Yes, it's not too late, I could get emotional after everything worked out.'
I quickly wiped my tears and spoke coldly.
“Shall we return to the Duke’s house?
Let us go in a carriage.”
“I will give you a chance to make up for your mistakes.
Find the Duchess and bring her back within the hour.”
After reprimanding the family knights, Eric, who was ordered to search for Cornelia, quickly turned to Martha.
“How dare the maid not know where she is...”
He knew that the palace servants kept their distance from Cornelia.
This was because Cornelia was a royal by nature, and it was difficult to approach her due to her sharp tone of voice and domineering air.
But what I thought was a feeling of social distancing will be ignored.
The reason Eric didn't know this was because he never imagined that a proud woman would endure such treatment.
'Why didn't you tell me about this?'
The belief that someone who used to pester nobles over trivial things would be ignored in this way by those of lower status.
Eric couldn't understand Cornelia at all.
But what bothered me even more was that it wasn't there.
'Things will get better.
I haven't heard anything from Janet yet...'
Although he thought that she would be safe with Janet as an escort, an ominous thought kept popping into his head.
'I have to look for her.'
When he went to Martha and began to speak, a servant came running hurriedly.
“Sir, your wife is back!”
The corners of my mouth raised as I looked at Jade, who was in a large bag full of them.
'It's been a while since I've done my shopping properly'
In the next few months, the price of Jade will rise 50 times due to the leadership of sea routes.
They began direct trade with the eastern continent across the sea through the pioneering sea routes, as they treated the jade as a precious jewel.
With this, I took care of my emergency fund,
Now all that's left is to talk to my husband.
I laughed thinking about my husband, who has been going out a lot lately.
'Come to think of it, around this time, he signed a contract with the Marquis to monopolize the purchase of Jade, right?'
Around this time, the Duke of Brant signed an exclusive contract with the Marquis of Argens, to sell the Jade at double the current market price and deliver it to him for five years.
‘At that time, the damage to the duchy was too great…’
With the price of the jade rising, Eric tried to break the exclusive contract somehow.
This was because selling jade, which now costs 5 gold per carat,
For 10 silver it was a huge loss.
However, he did not make much progress, and in the end, the Brant family chose not to sell the gad rather than sell it at a bargain price.
Within two years, the price of jade fell again.
‘Even though the family suffered a huge loss, the eldest lady did not care and did not abandon Marquis Arjie.’
However, at the time, I thought Eric was becoming distant from Madeleine, but apparently I was wrong when he sold me and my child and tried to marry her.
'Well, now I have nothing to do with those two whether they are lovers or not.'
I unknowingly clenched my fist for a while, and when the carriage stopped, I tried to get out of the carriage.
Then the door opened...
“Cornelia!”
I was surprised by the fierce voice calling out to me and the hardening of Eric's face.
“It's rude to open the door like that suddenly...”
“Where have you been?”
“I went wherever I went, why do you care?”
“Answer me”
His tone had always been calm, but unlike usual, it lacked calmness now.
Yes, like someone is angry with me.
'Looking at what he's doing now, it seems like he's suspicious of me for something,
But if I don't say anything and he catches me, it might get even more annoying.'
“I don't know why you say so much, but I visited the city, I was shopping.”
When I spoke, he stared at me for a long time before speaking quietly.
“From now on... when you go out, be sure to tell the servant of your destination.
And be sure to take an accompanying knight with you.”
My eyebrows became furrowed.
"Why?
Are you trying to see if I'm causing trouble or not?"
At my sarcasm, his brow immediately wrinkled.
“You are still a member of my family.
If something goes wrong with your safety, it is my responsibility.”
I laughed out loud.
'A member of your family...'
He still never called him his wife.
But he still calls me “family” and tries to control me...
‘He doesn’t want his reputation to be damaged, so he tells me to keep quiet until the divorce.’
Then, standing at the front of the cart, I saw him extending his gloved hand towards me.
“Hold it”
Previously, the loss of the Duchy: The current price of a karat jade is equal to 5 pieces of silver, and the Marquis bought it for 10 silver, but after opening the party with foreigners who treat the Jade as a valuable thing, the price became from 5 silver to 5 gold pieces, and this was considered a loss for the Duchy, who sold it to the Marquis for only 10 silver pieces.