Ⅳ
Morning, Pult Harbor.
It was a beautifully clear day. The lingering chill had completely dissipated in the sunlight, leaving only an exceedingly gentle spring breeze.
Neither cold nor fierce.
Like a mother's hand caressing everyone.
The Marquis of Einhaas, who had not slept all night, sat on horseback with his back straight, gazing beyond the harbor.
Behind the Marquis stood Miss Windsor.
Farther back were Little Yacaz, Little Lalia, and Little Leondsay.
These nobles, whose fathers had fallen in battle, had inherited their fathers' titles without difficulty.
For those whose children had also fallen after their fathers died, succession would proceed down the line-of course, this was a lengthy process requiring careful consideration and investigation. During that time, these families' debts would inevitably come due. By the time the rightful heirs emerged, they would most likely receive only the ancestral home and a few shops.
The ancestral homes would naturally be utterly empty, the sort that would bring even rats to tears.
And the shops?
They would be the least valuable ones, too.
Even so, no heir would refuse them.
For heirs who had never stood a chance of inheriting in the first place, receiving these properties was already a windfall.
They needed only to sell one shop to maintain a respectable lifestyle. With a little business sense, they might even restore their ancestors' glory.
That was generally where the nobles' talk of restoring ancestral glory came from.
Naturally, there were also those who refused to accept it and harbored resentment.
In that case...
They could simply choose another heir.
That was precisely what Miss Windsor was doing at the moment-
There are no problems with the Yakaz, Lalia, or Leondese families.
As for the Darnell family...
It needs a thorough purge.
Miss Windsor pondered inwardly.
As for the