Chapter 32.1

“……?”

He stared blankly, as if he didn’t understand what the question was asking.

Fabian, who had a puzzled look on his face, replied with perplexity.

“There is no need to worry. The Lord Marquis can handle this without difficulty. The battlefield is a danger zone; even without Madam taking the trouble to take action, it can be solved…..”

“Yes, it can indeed be dealt with right now. But the same issue will occur again in a few years time.”

“…..uhh….”

He scratched the back of his head, trying to find the words to continue.

“Ah, yes, there is a high chance of that happening.”

“If this occurs repeatedly, the troops will eventually become weakened. I do understand why handling things this way was the best choice, but it still has its problems.”

“But Madam can still leave such a dangerous thing for someone else to…..”

Unable to keep refuting her, Fabian stopped, taking in a deep breath.

“No. I am sure Madam has a different plan now.”

“Oh my, you’re willing to trust me?”

“Well, if my master says to go left, I can’t go right, can I?”

Nadia laughed out loud at his tongue-in-cheek lament. Things would be much easier to do with his cooperation. As she turned to go back in the direction she came from, she said:

“Off you go now.”

*********

Fifteen days after Count Altair had declared territorial war.

There was a battle happening in the distance, but to Edward, an administrator, it did not seem real.

Fighting on the plains was the strong suit of Winterfell’s powerful cavalry. As expected, news of their victory arrived after not too long.

‘…..even though we gained nothing from the victory’, thought Edward.

Still, it was much better than losing, wasn’t it?

While fighting on the battlefield was the knights’ job, an administrative officer’s job was to distribute supplies and handle cleaning up any messes. As always, Edward arrived at work at his fixed time, and once working hours began, he headed towards the marchioness’s office. It had been two months since he got recognized for his ability to manage things properly and received the honor of assisting her, working close by her side.

Knock knock.

“Madam, it is Edward. I have a report to give.”

However, there was no response.

‘Is Madam not in?’

After waiting for a beat, he knocked on the door again, a bit harder this time.

Knock, knock, knock, knock.

“It’s Edward here. I have a report to make. Is it okay if I enter?”

It remained as silent as before.

Edward tilted his head, placing his ear on the door. But there was no sign of anyone being inside the office.

‘It seems Madam will be late today.’

Madam was very punctual, always being the first to be seated at her desk. But one couldn’t always be so diligent, could they?

He cautiously opened the door, checking to see if he was wrong, but there was not a soul inside the office.

Click.

Edward closed the door and turned towards the hallway he came through.

‘Is Madam planning to take the day off? Perhaps so. There’s been a lot to do recently…’

Not telling him beforehand was a bit odd, but it wasn’t too out of the ordinary. The marchioness saying she wanted to rest for a day made it a holiday, after all.

However, after he ran into a maidservant who had been behind him, he realized the situation was a bit weird. If his memory served him right, that was Madam’s personal maid.

Added to that, at a glance, he could tell that what she had in her arms was a luxurious looking blanket. Anyone could tell that it wasn’t for a servant’s use. Feeling that something was off, Edward approached the maidservant and asked her.

“Where are you coming from?”

“I just came from cleaning Madam’s bedroom.”

“….what did you say?”

“Is there something wrong?”

“Isn’t Madam sleeping in her room?”

“I, I don’t know. Last night, I only heard Madam say that she will not use her room today, so I should clean it…. I just thought she left her room early this morning.”

“What?! So, so where exactly is she right now?!”

“I don’t know either…. Now that I think of it, I haven’t seen her since last night. Where on earth could she have gone?”

The color slowly started to drain from Edward’s face. Even her personal maid had no clue where she was.

He left the befuddle maidservant behind and hastily fled the corridor. He went to check the study, the sitting room, the back garden, and just in case, he even checked the kitchens.

But not to talk of Madam, he didn’t see even a strand of her hair.

His thoughts immediately turned to the worst possibility.

‘It can’t be…. back to her natal home…!’

It was hard to see how she could have left without a word to someone she had gotten along well with, but to Edward, it wasn’t completely impossible.

Precisely because this was the Winterfell fiefdom.

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Even to a Winterfell native like him, the fiefdom was nothing to write home about.

Barren land, nonexistent resources, bone-chilling cold, teeming with monsters…

It was already graced with all the worst conditions, but the icing on the cake was having as their neighbor that lunatic who was always starting a dispute, day in day out!!