Estelle, eyes widening in surprise, gently wiped Duren's lips.
It was a touch full of affection.
"It's okay. That just means you're getting better."
After saying that, Estelle calmly cleaned the sheets and Duren's clothes that had been stained with vomit.
"Duren, you said you wanted to go home, right? From now on, this is your home."
"Can't I go back to my old house?"
"No, it'll be difficult. Just think of it as if you've gotten a new home, and even a new family."
"…"
"Nana, Pippin, Riley, Benjamin, James, Sophia…"
Estelle listed the names of the attendants who had recently grown close to Duren.
"And Duke Winterren."
"…"
"They will all become your family."
"Family."
"Yes, family."
Estelle spoke the word family a little awkwardly.
"People who comfort you when you're sick so you can get well quickly, people who stand by your side when things are hard for you,"
"…."
"No matter if the whole world turns its back on you someday, your family will never betray you."
Estelle spoke softly in a gentle voice, then smiled faintly as if to reassure him.
Somehow, that face imprinted itself deeply into Duren's eyes that night.
The next day.
After tossing and turning through the night, Duren finally managed to fall asleep at dawn and only woke around midday. With drowsiness still lingering on his face, he underwent a checkup.
"The fever has gone down, and the indigestion seems much better,"
the physician examined Duren's condition and diagnosed.
Then he pressed firmly on Duren's upper abdomen.
"Does it hurt here?"
Duren shook his head.
Duren shook his head.
"If you feel even a little discomfort in your stomach, just take the digestive medicine I prescribed. For the time being, you only need to be careful with your diet. I'll also write down a separate list of foods you should avoid."
Finishing the examination, the physician rose from his seat.
"It's a relief that you're not in pain today, isn't it?"
"Mhm!"
When Estelle asked, Duren nodded vigorously.
It was fortunate that it was nothing serious.
Seeing Duren looking so spirited, the attendants who had been listening to the doctor's assessment alongside Estelle let out sighs of relief.
"Madam, it's entirely my fault,"
the head chef suddenly stepped forward.
"It was my mistake not to lock the kitchen, so from now on, I swear on this wrist of mine to be more careful."
"No, it's not! Head Chef, you did nothing wrong. I should have been more thorough in keeping watch."
"That's not true! Madam, it's all my fault!"
From all directions, servants insisted that Duren's indigestion had been their own mistake.
Not only Estelle, but the attendants as well had suffered much distress upon hearing that Duren had fallen ill.
At that moment, the maid Riley dropped to her knees.
"My fault is greater than anyone's. If I had only been more attentive while caring for the young master under your orders, he could have received treatment much sooner…"
"Riley! This isn't your fault, get up."
"But unlike adults, even a small illness can be fatal for a child. I failed to properly care for the heir of Winterren—please deliver me the punishment I deserve."
Estelle tried to stop her, but Riley's resolve was firm.
The others looked on with worried eyes.
To Duren, they were still strangers.
He didn't feel as close to them as he did to Estelle.
But at least, he could tell one thing—these people weren't going to hurt him.
Plop.
Duren climbed down from the bed.
"Young master, your stomach must still hurt, please rest!"
Voices of concern called out, but Duren resolutely walked toward Riley.
And then—
Bonk.
Because he had lowered his head slightly as he approached, his forehead bumped right into Riley's chest. But without moving away, he nestled himself snugly into her arms.
Recently, his cheeks had filled out, soft and round.
His tiny nose and lips were delicate, almost adorable.
And his round eyes looked up as if to ask, "Why aren't you patting me?"
"Young master…"
In that moment, Riley forgot her composure and held Duren tightly in her arms.
Nestled against her, Duren no longer struggled or tried to run away.
Because they were all his family.
It had already been over a month since Estelle entered Winterren.
During that time, Lennox had roamed not only the Winterren territory, where monsters swarmed, but also across the Empire.
"P-please! Aaaah!"
After returning to the past, he had three things he needed to do.
First. Recruit talents who could be of use to him.
Second. Eliminate the pests that blocked his path.
"Spare me!"
Even now, a pest was crying out beneath his feet.
"Why should I spare you?"
The man, already reduced to tears and snot, lay collapsed at Lennox's feet.
Before his eyes gleamed the deadly flash of a blade.
"I-I have a family! Surely, as Your Grace has recently married, you understand how precious family is!"
The man pleaded desperately, spittle flying from his mouth.
"If you wanted to return to your family's arms, you shouldn't have written double ledgers."
" .....! "
"You were the one stabbing me in the back, and now you beg for mercy?"
"H-how did you… Kuh!"
Having died once and returned, Lennox knew.
He pressed down on the man's hand with the tip of his boot.
As merciless pain crushed him, the man tasted despair so complete that he could no longer even hope for mercy.
"I'll give you just one chance."
"R-really?"
A rope was thrown down.
"You'll take charge of the Bellonsa family's accounts. Then you'll draw up double ledgers to siphon away their wealth and drive them into tax evasion."
"T-the Count's house of Bellonsa, you mean?"
"Yes. It should be easy, since it's exactly what you've been doing until now."
And the last, the third task—
To lay the groundwork for the downfall of Bellonsa.
The man at his feet was a skilled "operator," one who had gone unnoticed for quite some time even by Lennox.
Which meant Count Bellonsa would never suspect that his fortune was being quietly siphoned away by this man's hand.
"Get up, if you've understood."
"Th-thank you! Truly, thank you! I'll never forget this grace!"
Before Lennox's mood could change, the man scrambled away in a rush.
Watching his retreating figure, Lennox gave an order to the servant standing behind him.
"Put someone on him. If he tries anything foolish, deal with him immediately."
"Yes, Your Grace."
The moment Lennox returned from the future, he had already finished investigating not only Vera, who had gone abroad to study, but also every member of the Bellonsa family.
All that remained was to watch as they sank into the mire without even realizing it.
"And, Your Grace, a letter has arrived from Lord Pippin."
"Give it here, now."
Pippin was a capable aide.
He handled most matters on his own.
For him to bother sending a letter, it was highly likely the subject was Estelle—that woman.
Before leaving the estate, Lennox had ordered that if she displayed even the slightest suspicious behavior, he was to be informed at once.
What had that woman done now?
Surely she hadn't already started whining about wanting a divorce.
As these thoughts ran through his mind, Lennox unfolded the paper—
And a curse slipped out of his mouth before he realized it.
"Has she gone insane?"
Lennox wondered if he had suddenly come down with dyslexia, because he had to read the letter several times over.
But the contents never changed.
He thought to himself—
If it wasn't that he had dyslexia, then Pippin must have lost his mind.
It was the only explanation, because the letter was filled with nothing but curses directed at Lennox.
—… How could you treat Lady Estelle in such a way! I demand you rescind your order to mistreat her at once!
Lady Estelle is not someone who deserves such treatment!
Reading further, Lennox began to wonder whether Pippin was his aide or Estelle's.
It was baffling.
Pippin had never once betrayed him.
Not in the past, not in the future.
What has that woman been doing while I was gone?
She was more than capable of pulling some stunt.
Suddenly, the details from his background check on Estelle resurfaced in his mind.
Name: Estelle Bellonsa.
Her biological mother was a commoner.
Her biological father—unknown.
When Count Bellonsa remarried her mother, Estelle was entered into the family register.
And when her mother suddenly died, she was married off like a transaction before even reaching adulthood.
Up to this point, nothing unusual.
No one could have predicted it.
That she would one day be called the Empire's greatest heiress.
At her third marriage, they say she was given a full physical examination before even entering the bridal chamber.
Only after confirming that there was nothing wrong with Estelle was she sent inside.
And yet, despite such a thorough check, her husband was later found as a cold corpse.
Her third husband was William Rowland.
The late William had connections with Baron Nultea, who owned the land where mandrakes grew.
So Estelle's claim—that she had learned about mandrakes through him—was not entirely baseless.
She inherited not only wealth but assets as well, so she might have obtained the knowledge during that process.
Her other two deceased husbands, as well as the fourth—branded with the stigma of impotence—had no connection at all to Baron Nultea. Thus, William remained the most natural link.
The fourth husband, Helios Kreutzen, abruptly devoted himself to the temple. So yes… in the end, it all traces back to William.
In this way, Lennox had investigated Estelle thoroughly.
But even after uncovering details as precise as the measurement of her left ring finger, Lennox still could not clearly determine what kind of person Estelle truly was.
"Fine. If background checks don't work, then I'll confirm it with my own eyes."
Whether she had truly killed her former husbands, and if so, how she had done it—that didn't matter.
What mattered was that she had managed to sway even his loyal subordinate.
With a beauty capable of toppling nations, had she bewitched his aide as well? That was something Lennox intended to find out for himself.
It was at that moment that his next destination naturally became the ducal residence.