My Dear Husband, Let's Keep It Business-Like! ~Countess Anastasia, Raised in The Downtown, Won't Give Up Her Way~ - Episode 68

“Mr. Alexander, a letter for you.”

Time flies; it has already been five years since I started studying abroad in Austburg.

At first, it was planned to be a one-year exchange program, but I have adapted so well to life here that I’ve been making up various excuses to extend my stay. It’s finally time to move on.

The day I had to return to Fairfanville was fast approaching.

“Ah, thank you.”

As usual, I received several letters from the chamberlain and checked the senders.

“Eugene Hamilton… Gene?”

It was a letter from a nostalgic childhood friend, a man who recently became my brother-in-law.

Even though he is my childhood friend and stepbrother, our personal interactions have long since ceased. It’s not that we’ve become unfriendly, but as our environments change, it’s natural for childhood friends to drift apart.

Technically, we were in the same academy, so we could be considered schoolmates, but since we were in different grades and I went abroad shortly after Jean enrolled, we hardly had any interaction.

It’s been quite a while, hasn’t it? Is this some kind of greeting for becoming sworn brothers?

While thinking, I open the seal.

I was shocked when I read the contents.

“The Crown Prince is preparing a dress for Anastasia!? But first of all, why doesn’t Anastasia have a dress? Was she not provided one by the duke’s family…?”

Anastasia is my stepsister who was taken in by the Fairfanville ducal family about two years ago.

At that time, I was already studying abroad, and I was not informed about the process by which Anastasia was taken in by the ducal family or the process by which she was to marry into the Hamilton family. Everything was reported to me afterward.

Even though I am the heir of a duke’s family, I am treated like this. In noble families, the head’s authority is absolute, and besides, I am not favored by my father.

Usually, I don’t show it much, but the difference in treatment between Christina and me has been obvious since we were little, and I was once told this clearly.

“Your smile looks like Eduardo’s and it’s disgusting. Don’t ever smile in front of me again.”

And.

He was drunk and doesn’t even remember, but since then, he hasn’t even noticed that I stopped laughing in front of him.

My father hated Lord Eduardo to that extent. The fact that he is now taking in Lord Eduardo’s daughter, Anastasia, only worries me.

That being said, I live in a distant place.

There was little I could do, and I was only able to meet Anastasia in person three times. I also gave her my contact information in case she needed help, but I never received a letter from her.

Anastasia was a quiet and timid girl, and it felt like she wasn’t opening her heart to anyone.

Since they had shown me a slight smile, I thought that someday they would open up to me, but I never imagined it would come to this…

The letter says, “You are probably just genuinely worried about my wife not having her outfit ready for the sudden evening party, but since I’m a bit anxious, I would appreciate it if you could keep an eye on her.” This is a non-confrontational way of expressing it, but I think it’s safe to say that this is completely suspicious.

The powerful person gives dresses to the wives of those under their command or those clearly of lower status.

This means “Come to the bedroom wearing this dress,” an old custom in our kingdom.

These days, such debauchery is not tolerated in public, but that’s only on the surface. I’ve heard that in some regional domains, such bad practices are still rampant.

That’s why the royal family, as the symbol of the nation, must take the lead in changing things, but what on earth is that crown prince doing…!!

In the Kingdom of Fairfanville, such archaic and strange customs and ideas still persist.

Our country, which once boasted great power and influence, has now fallen to the status of a weak nation lagging behind other countries in various aspects. This must be where the problem lies.

If you live in Austburg for five years, you will understand just how backward the Fairfanville Kingdom is.

If I weren’t in the responsible position of being the heir to the ducal family, I would want to spend my entire life in this country without returning home.

……Nevertheless.

At least, now is not the time to run away.

If I can’t help my sister-in-law who I couldn’t assist at all, and my childhood friend who sent me a letter believing in me, here and now, I will never be able to call myself their brother again.

I instructed the chamberlain to urgently gather information and scrutinize the contents of the letter, then headed to the research institute where I had studied abroad.

At this time, “that person” is probably in the greenhouse at the research institute.

The glass-enclosed greenhouse, when approached, reveals its interior well, but today too, she is happily sipping tea and talking to herself. It’s a sight that seems strange no matter how many times you see it.

She also noticed me and waved her hand and beckoned me over.

I bow and enter the greenhouse.

“May I have a moment of your time, Princess Carmilla?”