It was said that a thousand years ago, Devhardt, the first emperor and hero who ended all the tribulations on the continent, suffered greatly from the problem of ruling the empire.
Despite one-third of the continent being reborn as a huge empire united by Devhardt, unrest, both large and small, continued throughout the land.
Thinking differently, it couldn’t have been natural.
After snarling at each other and aiming spears for countless hours, becoming ‘same imperial citizens’ didn’t mean they could sit together and drink alcohol.
Even though the Emperor’s edict declared no quarrels would be tolerated, the situation didn’t calm down at all. They had hated each other for too long and took each other’s things for granted. Now, there was nothing but unfounded hatred between them.
The chaos accelerated, and the situation became more serious each day.
On the other hand, the empire, not long after its founding, couldn’t afford to project its power even to the frontier. In the end, Devhardt came up with a special measure. He attempted to spread the influence of the imperial family by placing the vassal he cherished and trusted the most, the 4th duke, at the end of the border.
Even though they gave the fief to the eldest land in the frontier, saying they would pay attention as much as they were national contributors, they essentially put the duke’s family in a corner of the country.
Thus, Estel in the north, Tournigen in the west, Decaraznan in the east, and Crusell in the south emerged.
This may be why the four ducal families, which ranked second in the Empire to the Imperial Family, were forced to stay in the remote corners of the border.
It was just a musty old story that’s already a thousand years old. I knew very well that nothing would change by complaining now, but I just couldn’t stand one fact.
‘No, but why are we the ones in the north?’
The history books of the empire were filled with nonsense about noblesse oblige, in which the 4th ducal family personally sacrificed themselves.
I couldn’t help but feel my face become pale as a piece of toilet paper every time I read the related record. Why, of all things, did the Duke Estel take over the north?
From what I heard, if you look at novels popular among women in the noble society, characters with the title of Duke were always living in luxury, their fighting skills were strong enough to reach the Master realm, and they had a cold temper like a lone wolf, never showing mercy to their enemies. They would shower the heroine with priceless jewelry and a mountain of dresses
There was even a story where the ‘Northern Grand Duke’ possessed so much money that it overflowed, and he was enjoying immense sensational popularity. Based on common sense, it would be right to think that there would be a lot of money in a place where iron poured out of the mines like a flowing river, and a never-ending field of golden crops?
However, the real Northern Grand Duke was nothing more than someone trying to survive the winter, far from giving the heroine an armful of jewelry and dresses.
I was thinking such things because the scenery of the land belonging to the Marquis of Castana, seen from outside the carriage, showed a very different look from the average state of the north, where the barrenness was unspeakable.
It was a green meadow.
The peaceful sight of shepherds herding cows in a wide meadow came into my view.
Beyond the meadow, a wide field stretched out. The field was densely planted with wheat, and at first glance, the sight of the wheat blowing in the wind was beautiful, like golden waves rolling on the ground.
Additionally, pine and cypress trees were densely planted around the field to create a windbreak, harmonizing with the surrounding scenery, making it look like a painting.
“Master said the Marquis of Castana has a way to artificially control the weather using mana. They also have a way to restore the soil’s fertility and replenish nutrients in the soil. So, I don’t think you need to blame yourself too much, Young Lord.”
Aria, who was sitting next to me, cautiously spoke, as if reading something from my expression.
Really, like Bianca and Aria, if a person learned mana, could they read other people’s minds as if looking into them?
“Yes, I know. Their prosperity is due to the supernatural power of mana.”
How could I not know that?
Ten years in the future, when winter came to the entire continent due to the witch, it was thanks to the magic of the Marquis Castana that farming was possible in a limited environment. Even for them, overcoming the extreme cold where even the moisture in the air froze and producing food must have been difficult.
Not long after I was immersed in various thoughts while watching the scene outside the window, the carriage stopped. From the front of the carriage, the driver’s voice was heard.
“Young Lord, we have arrived.”
“…I see. Good job.”
Had we finally reached our destination? While Aria and I quietly waited in the carriage, the door opened cautiously. In front of the door, a middle-aged man in a tailcoat with his hair slicked back was bowing respectfully toward me.
“Heir to Estel, welcome to the Residence of House Castana.”
I nodded.
It was a given that the Marquis would not come to greet me personally, but the middle-aged man in front of me was not someone of low status either.
I gave the middle-aged man a slight nod and got off the carriage.
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