I’m the fifth son of a count’s family, but I became the head of a duke’s house.
“It has been a while, Your Grace.”
“Indeed, it has been a while, Bishop Heinemann.”
I was meeting with Bishop Heinemann in my office.
Heinemann placed a large stack of letters he had brought onto my desk with a heavy thud.
“I thought we might have a conversation, but… it seems that won’t be possible. Please take care of yourself.”
“…Thank you, Bishop Heinemann.”
With a smile, Heinemann nodded, then gave a slight bow and left the office.
What had originally begun as a diplomatic maneuver—partly as a form of harassment and partly under my father’s orders—had now become an overwhelming workload.
Sometimes, letters were secretly delivered through the snow by enemy knights. Other times, they came through religious channels, like Bishop Heinemann. It was the same method Prince Sieg used.
As a result, the pile of letters continued to grow.
Even the nobles who had once sworn loyalty to the royal family could, given the current circumstances, temporarily establish friendly relations with Count Kastaren. There were many matters to discuss, such as information-sharing with them and Count Kastaren, as well as war planning for after the snow melted.
Additionally, some nobles who had surrendered were anxious about their future treatment—whether their territories would be partially confiscated—so negotiations regarding the terms were also necessary.
As for the opportunists, there had been no further contact with them since that incident… Either way, my scheming had led to this mountain of paperwork consuming my time.
After finishing a few replies, I leaned back in my chair, taking a moment to breathe while gazing at the pile of letters.
I briefly wondered if I should make copies of all these and send them to my father, but copying them would be tedious, and receiving a mountain of documents like this would likely just confuse him.
Since Father told me to handle things as I saw fit, I figured that sending a summarized report should suffice.
As I was taking a breather, Erich had somehow approached me without me noticing.
“How is your progress?”
Ugh. No, I was working properly, okay!?
I know you’ve accused me of slacking off before, but that was just bad timing—I was actually doing my work!
“O-of course… It’s going smoothly?”
I tried to defend myself, but Erich, seemingly unconvinced, shifted his gaze toward my desk—where a yet untouched stack of letters was still piled up.
From an outsider’s perspective, it might look like I hadn’t made any progress, but I really had been working hard…
For some reason, Erich reached into his pocket, pulled out something wrapped in cloth, and placed it on the desk.
Curious, I unwrapped it—and found a batch of cookies, Erich’s favorite.
Even when other knights asked him to share them from time to time, he never gave in. And yet, he was giving them to me…?
“You seem quite exhausted, Your Grace.”
He usually nags me to work harder, yet he’s been paying attention to me all along. This feels backwards—shouldn’t it be the other way around, with me as the superior and him as the subordinate?
Still, I should at least express my gratitude.
“Thanks… Well, I’ll get through it little by little.”
“Yes. Please do.”
With that, Erich turned on his heel and started walking away.
But after taking a single step, he seemed to remember something, slightly turned his head, and looked back.
Then, he raised a finger to his lips.
“I’d rather not have the other knights begging for some, so keep this a secret.”
I silently nodded, and Erich returned to his seat.
I took a bite of the cookie. The sweetness spread through my weary mind, revitalizing me.
Alright. Time to get back to work.