Chapter 8

“You’ve awakened after two days. This should have been done immediately after you arrived at the castle……”

Jerome’s voice trailed off, as if offering an excuse. His face held a semblance of guilt, like someone doing something they shouldn’t.

“……These are quite detailed lists.”

The documents, presumably prepared by the Duke’s representative, were quite substantial. Flipping through them one by one, Ninia realized that these documents weren’t something she could simply skim over.

The first page was the marriage agreement, and from the next page onwards, a detailed list of monthly expenses, basic necessities, a list of maids, accessible areas, and so on were meticulously laid out.

It was closer to a restriction of actions document than a marriage agreement. Moreover, not a single right befitting a Duchess was visible in the document.

‘……I suppose I can read the rest later.’

After skimming through about half of the documents, Ninia gave up on reading further. This was partly due to Jerome’s anxious look, and secondly, because no matter what clauses were written, Ninia had to sign this document.

“I’ll sign it.”

“……But are you really alright with this?”

It was Jerome who handed her the document, and yet he was the one who seemed hesitant. That’s how unusual the contents were.

The budget allocated to Ninia was not enough to maintain proper decorum, let alone any luxury. Not only did she not have a personal maid, but she was also forbidden from going out without the Duke’s permission, and the spaces she could access alone were extremely limited.

Though Jerome had come at the urging of his master, even he was certain that no one in their right mind would sign this document.

However, Ninia readily nodded.

“Yes. I won’t go out unless the Duke permits it, and the budget is sufficient. The rest is similar to when I was at the Temple.”

She had no one to visit anyway, and to spend money in this place where repairs were ongoing… Just the thought made her conscience prick. Personal maids were selected from among noble ladies. But no young lady raised in comfort would want to come to this place that looked like the middle of a battlefield.

‘The fact that I’m alive is a miracle in itself.’

Ninia still questioned the fact that she was alive, but at the same time, she felt she should be grateful just to be breathing.

Of course, the object of her gratitude disliked her.

“Could you lend me a pen?”

Ninia asked, hiding a wry smile. After a moment of hesitation, Jerome sighed and brought her a quill and ink. Ninia placed the document on the table, turned the pages, and signed her name wherever a seal was required.

If she were still a Saint, she could have used a seal, but Ninia now only had herself. Watching her sign, Jerome clicked his tongue. Ninia’s handwriting was beautiful and elegant, difficult even for a professional scribe to imitate.

“Is it done?”

“Yes, this is all.”

Finally, after signing the last page, Ninia looked up. Jerome collected the documents and put them back in the brown envelope. After the momentous event, concluded with just a few dozen sheets of paper, there was silence.

Ninia didn’t even ask about the wedding ceremony.

Perhaps the object of her marriage was this document itself. Ninia stared at the drab-colored envelope in Jerome’s arms and then spoke.

“……Is the Duke at the castle?”

“His Grace is away on external business.”

Unlike his eagerness for Jerome to obtain her signature, the Duke himself wasn’t even at the castle.

“I see.”

But even this, Ninia readily accepted. Jerome thought that this aspect of Ninia’s always calm demeanor was fortunate at this moment.

He didn’t need to mention to this frail former Saint that the reason for the Duke’s absence was to deal with a nobleman who refused to relinquish his mine.

Even if it weren’t for the mine issue, Tarahan was incredibly busy. This was a war where victory meant acquiring not only the northern territories but also significant wealth.

However, victory was near impossible, and the northern nobles were old and weak. Instead of fleeing to the central regions, they signed an agreement promising to offer their most prized possessions to Tarahan if he achieved victory.

‘Weak and cowardly.’

But when he actually gained the upper hand in the war, they all feigned ignorance. The reason was that the Emperor didn’t recognize him.

‘I made such a promise, but all my ministers are rising up against you, so there’s nothing I can do.’

The Emperor had promised Tarahan, his hidden illegitimate son, the title of Duke and the northern lands after his victory in the war. But he had gone back on his word.

‘Such treatment is excessive for an illegitimate son born from a mother of excessively low status.’

The given reason was that all the nobles, including the founding families, opposed it. The justification that, as Emperor, he had to prioritize the nation and his subjects, and since everyone opposed it, he had to comply, served as an excellent excuse.

Since one of his parents was of low birth, Tarahan needed a noble, someone of high standing to compensate—in other words, justification.

That was why Ninia was here.

‘Does she know that?’

Jerome wondered if Ninia was behaving obediently because she knew these circumstances, or if her saintly nature made her accepting of everything.

“I apologize for interrupting your rest. I’ll take my leave now. Please make sure to take your medicine.”

When the master was busy, those below him were doubly so. In the North, there were many who, even after being recognized by the Emperor, still clung to what they should have relinquished.

Tarahan personally visited and eliminated them, and Jerome organized the acquired assets and reported back. Now, at least the compensation part would be concluded quickly.

“Take care.”

Jerome left the room, leaving Ninia’s farewell behind. He probably wouldn’t have much time to see Ninia as he had until now. Not having to face the new Duchess for long periods was a relief to him.

The door closed. Left alone, Ninia looked away from the door. The more than half-full bowl of porridge had grown cold. Instead of eating, she drank a glass of water and slowly sat up in bed. She felt dizzy but not to the point of being unable to stand.

‘Is this thanks to the doctor?’

For someone who had been bedridden for two days, she felt relatively well. Ninia touched the gauze on her arm. Unable to contain her curiosity, she eventually peeled back the gauze. A wound, as if from a needle prick, was visible on her skin.

“This is called an injection, right?”

Ninia carefully pressed on the red spot. An injection was a type of magical medical tool.

While the Mage Extermination Decree had swept across the continent, their lineage hadn’t been completely severed.

Those who couldn’t cast magic but could draw upon the flow of magical power in the atmosphere to create new artifacts were called magic engineers.

They created various magical tools using magical power, a prime example being the injection.

Doctors filled injections with medicine and pierced the body with the needle to inject it. Of course, such treatment was a violation of divine law for both the giver and the receiver.

‘How strange.’

The Temple claimed that only holy power could heal people. Medicines like bandages and drugs were also considered impure unless blessed.

Countries that worshipped the Goddess Caner as their national religion denounced illegal medical practices as the touch of the devil and enacted widespread prohibitions.

‘Magic engineers and doctors are devils.’

But there was always an underworld. The poor, who couldn’t afford priests, sought out doctors and pharmacists first. However, in countries where medical practices outside the church were forbidden, there weren’t proper licenses, so charlatans were rampant, and accidents were frequent. Even knowing this, those without money had no other choice.

“The man from earlier didn’t seem like a charlatan, though……”

If he were genuine, that was even more problematic. The national religion of the Pietchen Empire was Caner. Not in some hidden corner, but in the Duke’s castle itself, a doctor had treated the Duchess. If a Caner follower saw this, they wouldn’t hesitate to run to the Temple and report that a devil resided in the castle.

However, even within the same empire, there was no temple of the Goddess Caner in the North. The reason why the nobles here were all weak was that immediately after his ascension, former Emperor Rubios had banished those who opposed him to the barren North, where the Goddess’s gaze couldn’t reach.

After the former Emperor’s death, the exiled nobles amassed wealth through loan sharking in the North, but the wealth accumulated through usury would now come under Duke Tarahan’s control.

“Oh, he told me to take my medicine.”

Belatedly remembering Jerome’s instructions, Ninia looked around. Three white pills sat neatly next to the porridge bowl.

Staring at the pills, Ninia reached for the table. Even when she was at the highest position, she had extended her hand to the lowest, so she knew how people took pills.

She took a sip of water and swallowed a pill.

Gulp.

The pill, enveloped in water, went down her throat. Ninia repeated this two more times.

It was her first time, but it wasn’t difficult.

“Strange.”

Ninia muttered softly. What she found strange wasn’t the bitterness of the pills, nor the sensation of swallowing the small, hard beads.

‘Why don’t I feel guilty?’

Even though she had violated divine law, she felt no emotion.

Was it because the Goddess’s touch didn’t reach the North? Or was it because she had been abandoned?

Probably the latter. Ninia quietly closed her eyes.