CH 228

Karl was quietly sitting in a chair at the Reingen Residence, which had now become so quiet. He took a sip of tea while thinking that this mansion had been so lively until a while ago, and was now silent after so many people left.

Many House Servants left House Reingen after the Bayen Faction’s crimes came to light and began to be investigated. In addition, House Reingen already had a delicate relationship with the other Bayen Faction members, so even more people left, and no one has come to visit, so the mansion seems to be getting quieter and deader by the day.

Perhaps Karl will eventually be forced to retire and hand over the estate to his sons. The sins of House Reingen, who were not so deeply involved in the first place, are not very heavy. Compensation for the victims, Karl’s forced retirement as he was House Head at the time, and some of House Reingen’s operations and territories will be audited and their authority will be restricted.

“Darling, Christa is back,” Marianne said.

“Oh, I see,” Karl said. “I thought 2 months would go by in the blink of an eye, but it felt like an eternity without her.”

If they had all their sons and House Servants, and they were busy with government affairs every day like before, 2 months might have gone by just like Karl said. However, as Karl was unable to do any civil work and was only ordered to appear at the royal castle once in a while before returning to the silent and empty Reingen Residence, 2 months without Christa felt so painfully long.

“Our darling daughter has returned after so long,” Marianne said. “Shall we go see her?”

“Kusu…” Karl sniffed. “Indeed.”

Even though he was pretending to be calm, Karl was restless and rushed out of the room, Marianne followed after him.

“I’m home! Father, Mother!” Christa said.

“Mm,” Karl hummed.

“Welcome back, Christa,” Christa said.

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They nod and reply to their adorable daughter as she blooms and has such a dazzling smile. Then he squinted at the figure beside her.

“So then… does Helmut have any business coming here with you?” Karl asked.

She traveled with Helmut, so it’s not strange that Helmut saw her home. But Karl still asked if he had any business. And Karl was surprised to hear his reply back:

“Right,” Helmut said. “My parents are currently staying in the royal capital. I would like both of our families to discuss my engagement with Christa, do you find that amenable?”

“So I see…” Karl said. “This is no place to discuss that. Come on inside.”

This is not a topic to talk about while standing at the entrance hall. Helmut’s business may be over and done soon, but it’s not like they’re just going to let him stand by the doors because he’ll be going out soon enough. Karl let Helmut through the living room instead of the drawing room and discussed their future plans.

After Helmut proposed a discussion with House Royce, Karl agreed to the general idea but avoided a definitive answer then and there. This is because he has yet to decide if their House can marry another family, given Reingen’s current state of affairs.

If this was just a normal day, Karl would have set the date then. But now he doesn’t know when he’ll be ordered to appear at the royal castle, and he can’t judge whether it’s okay to sanction a marriage to another noble House. He couldn’t promise how many days they would be able to meet without sending a messenger to the royal castle and confirming with both the kingdom and the royal family that they’d have permission to proceed with the union.

But… he thinks:

Right now, this is what can be called an emergency situation, but Karl also thinks that if it weren’t for this situation, Christa and Helmut’s marriage would not have been permitted, either.

He was devoted to the power struggles, and Karl never doubted that marriage was a political strategy to connect with other Houses and that marrying into a good family was his daughter’s path to happiness. If this hadn’t happened, he would have changed his mind by now, and he would never have married off Christa to a viscounty.

He thought that the worst would be his House being demolished, but he has come to understand that they can probably avoid that. Even so, it makes no difference since the Reingen Marquisate is still on the decline, and furthermore, relations have deteriorated after being expelled from the Bayen Faction. In such a situation, it would not be easy to find a marriage partner for Christa at her age.

If that was still the case, he might have given Christa as a wife to some boring House somewhere. She should have been sent to a place where she could help out the family even if it meant compromising a little, so even if it was on a decline they could tilt the angle up a bit.

Luckily, Christa has found a great match on her own. If House Reingen had remained safe and sound, Karl would never have allowed her to marry for herself, but… since he met him, he knows what sort of person Helmut is. Karl knew that Helmut was a very sincere and capable person.

Above all, it’s Christa’s happy face. They were thinking of their daughter’s happiness after thinking of her as nothing more than a political tool. Certainly, there is a big difference in family status that does not match. But Helmut is a wonderful person and his daughter wants to marry him.

During this long vacation, they visited Helmut’s parents’ house. Christa must have seen their lifestyle with her own eyes. Even so, the fact that she is still willing to get married should mean that she is prepared to live in a viscounty.

Then Karl has nothing more to say. It’s better to live with a man you love than to continue struggling in this declining House. She can’t live like she used to in a viscounty. In the end, even if she married into House Royce, she would have a hard time. But if you’re going through hardships all the same, it’s better to at least go and live with a man you love.

“Master Karl, news has arrived,” their remaining butler said as he handed off a letter.

“Mm,” Karl hummed as he took it.

It’s a reply from the royal family. Karl immediately checked the contents and wrote a different letter.

“Please deliver this to Viscount Royce, who is staying at Margrave Carruthers’s Residence.”

“Understood,” the butler said.

And after confirming he had left, Karl rests his body on his chair’s backrest.

“Fuh~…”

Karl made a deep sigh. The royal family has given permission for the marriage of Christa and Helmut. He was wondering what he would do if they said no, but he’s glad that they accepted so easily. House Reingen no longer had the power to carry out work at the Royal Court and would have no power to change it, only accept the decision.

Perhaps the permission was granted because the other party was a viscount. If this was a more important House, it is possible they’d be rejected due to various suspicions. If you think about it, Helmut and House Royce might have been perfect partners.

He also confirmed with the royal family the date of the discussion with House Royce, so he was relieved from any chance of a summons that day. Even the royal family wouldn’t change their plans at the last minute, after having already decided ahead of time to grant Reingen a day to discuss the engagement.

Thus, after several exchanges of letters, they finally decided on a date for House Reingen to meet House Royce.

One day, when the discussion with House Royce was due in a few days, it had been about a month since Christa returned home and the Academy restarted.

Karl headed to the ceremony hall according to the letter that suddenly arrived about 2 weeks ago. Apparently, there’s someone’s promotion ceremony today. It’s a good thing, but there were many things about this event that he didn’t understand.

The letter arrived only about 2 weeks ago. Normally, if such a large-scale ceremony was to be held, it was customary that preparations had been made well in advance and that communication had been received well in advance, as well. Despite that, it’s strange no matter how you think about it, that they seemed to cobble it together in just 2 weeks.

It’s not a ceremony that all the nobles in the country have to forcibly participate in, but even so, 2 weeks is too short to invite them to come. The neighboring territories and those staying in the royal capital would be able to attend, but nobles in faraway territories would not be able to come in just 2 weeks.

“It’s not my place to say…” Karl said, “but there’re so many odd things about this ceremony…”

“Isn’t it a good opportunity?” Marianne said as he fixed Karl’s clothes a bit. “I don’t know how many more times you’ll be able to wear these clothes and climb up to the castle…. wouldn’t it be better to have yet one more time?”

If Karl were forced to retire after being held accountable for the fraud, he would no longer be Marquis Reingen. Then, of course, he would no longer wear the marquis’s attire, and it made him wonder how many more times he would be able to wear this suit to formal occasions.

“I suppose so…” Karl said. “Well then, I’ll be going.”

“Safe travels,” Marianne said.

And after being sent off by his family, Karl boarded a carriage and headed for the royal castle. It was within walking distance, but he can’t just walk around town as a noble in formal attire. He immediately heads for the ceremony hall of the royal castle as soon as he arrived.

Karl had to wonder even more about this ceremony. Few Houses dare to approach House Reingen after they were kicked out of the troubled Bayen Faction. As expected, the noble at the center of this ceremony is too luxurious. The ceremony itself and the attendees were too extravagant, and no matter how you look at it, it doesn’t match the explicit purpose of the event.

It is said that this ceremony is a promotion to a baron. If you’re an ordinary baron, you don’t use this ceremony hall, which is the largest in the royal castle, and it’s customary for the attendees to be only those who work for the royal castle, such as court nobles and ministers. What is with this time?

Attending the event was such a gorgeous lineup that Karl wondered if all the nobles who could attend were summoned. Furthermore, even though it was for a baron, the scale was like a ceremony for a country’s hero or heavyweight noble. And the thing he didn’t understand the most was the territory to be granted to the baron in question.

The Tertu Plateau, which had just been given to the freshly-promoted Caan Barony, is only a stone’s throw away from the royal capital. Within the territory of the royal family, part of their land is ceded and given away to a new noble, and it’s right next to the royal capital. What does this all mean?

The size of the ceremony, and even if the territory wasn’t that large its location was so important, Karl is sure anyone would think that it doesn’t make sense. He can’t help but wonder if the Caan Barony is such an important House.

“Baron Caan… huh? Somehow… I think I’ve heard that from somewhere…” Karl muttered to himself.

Although he was invited to the ceremony, Karl only watched from afar. He couldn’t even see Baron Caan, the one being promoted. The name had a bit of a ring to it, but without thinking twice, Karl went home.

A few more days after the ceremony at the royal castle was the date Houses Reingen and Royce would have their discussion.

In reality, it’s almost decided without any further discussion. Christa and Helmut’s marriage is already a done deal, and unless House Royce refuses it, it is impossible for House Reingen to refuse or cancel it. This time, it was called a discussion to decide on it, but in reality, it was strongly implied it was a chance for the parents to meet face to face.

All that’s left is to discuss the belongings, property, and rights that Christa will bring when she gets married. Considering the current state of House Reingen, it would be difficult to let Christa carry a large dowry of valuables and money. It has also been decided that Christa’s succession rights to House Reingen will be almost completely eliminated.

If the lineage for the House Head, in other words, Christa’s siblings, were all to die out, it’s possible that Christa and Helmut’s children would inherit the title, but they would like to minimize the relationship with House Reingen now that it’s all downhill for them, so it would be better for both parties. That’s why Christa gives up her right to inherit House Reingen. It’s effectively a severance so Christa doesn’t take responsibility for anything that happens to House Reingen from now on.

“Viscount Royce will be arriving soon,” Marianne said.

“I know that,” Karl said.

They headed for the front door because of this premonition. Originally, the viscount would visit the marquis, so the marquis would have to welcome him in his home. Due to the difference in family status and position, there are also cases where you wait in a room and let the other person guide you.

However, this time it is a high-profile occasion, and House Reingen were the one giving up their daughter. They don’t think they can be so arrogant when they’re going to ask others to take care of their daughter.

And the carriage came in as they began waiting at the entrance, rather, they were already outside and waiting for Karl and his family to be ready.

“Thi-… this is…” Karl muttered, at a loss when he sees the carriage.

It’s a mysterious vehicle with a unique structure that he has never seen before. It’s certainly a strange or unusual design, but that’s not all. A person like Karl could tell at a glance that the carriage not only looked different but also of super-luxurious construction.

It’s just different from the flash and glitz of the nouveau rich. Aside from the strange design, it is a carriage with subdued decoration, but the skill of its creation oozes out every detail. Finely created decorations, artistic flairs, and ornamentation that didn’t look gaudy, but the workmanship was superb and beautiful all it’s own. He can’t even imagine how much money and time it would take to make this one carriage.

Then Karl let out a muffled scream when he saw the people who got out of the carriage.

“Thank you for inviting me today,” Helmut said. “This is my father, Heinrich III, and my mother, Clementine.”

“It’s my first time meeting you, Marquis Reingen,” the older man said. “I’m Heinrich III, the Viscount of Royce.”

Three people got off the carriage, one Karl should know. But even though he knows it should be the same person, his head refuses to comprehend it.

Clothes show the strength of the House. It doesn’t matter if you’re putting all your effort into just one piece of clothing to show off, or if it’s just one of the many pieces of fine clothing you have. Certainly, there would be a big difference in the strength between a House that only invested its resources into one piece and a House that has many items of equal value.

Still, whether or not you can prepare a wonderful outfit is directly linked to the power of your House. Even if it’s just one piece of clothing, being able to prepare something of such quality means that you have that much power. A poor and powerless family can’t prepare anything great, even if it’s just that one piece of clothing.

But this…… this House who called themselves a viscounty was standing before them now with clothes that could rival a duchy, let alone Karl’s best clothes.