"My lady, may I come in?"
It was Mason's voice.
"Enter."
Blair handed Pipi's milk bottle to Mellie and went to the table. On the table were documents she had prepared in advance.
Blair handed the documents to Mason as he approached.
"This is a budget proposal based on the past 5 years' budgets. Please take a look."
Mason was inwardly surprised. Though Blair had asked for past budget data, he hadn't expected her to draft a budget herself.
He thought she would quickly give up after skimming through the numbers-filled budget documents, finding them too complicated.
Mason began to examine Blair's budget proposal, thinking her perseverance alone was praiseworthy.
Blair fidgeted with her fingers, unable to hide her nervousness as she waited for Mason's assessment.
It felt just like when she was young, waiting for her teacher to check her homework.
Mason's brow furrowed rather seriously as he scrutinized the budget with his usual solemn expression.
As his review dragged on, an anxious Blair spoke first.
"I just drafted it for practice, so please feel free to point out anything I might have missed."
"No, it's excellent. It's hard to believe you drafted this alone for the first time."
Surprised by the unexpected response, Blair stared at him with wide eyes. Undisguised admiration tinged Mason's voice as he spoke.
While Mason wasn't one to overstep boundaries with his employer, he also wasn't one to make up false flattery.
So this praise was sincere.
"I think we can implement this year's budget based on this proposal."
Blair's heart fluttered at the compliment.
It was the first time she'd been praised since Esmeralda's death. Throughout her life, all praise had been reserved for her brother Ivan.
Katrina didn't want Blair to outshine Ivan. If Blair ever received something better from her father, Katrina would envy and resent Blair as if Ivan's share had been stolen.
The tastiest, most precious things always had to be Ivan's. If Blair had something Ivan didn't, Katrina would take it away to give to her son.
Thirsting for even a shred of that maternal affection, Blair hid her talents. Always just a step below Ivan. She couldn't outshine her brother, nor could she be a burden.
That's how she lived for twenty years.
At some point, even she stopped believing in her own worth. It felt natural to be inferior to Ivan.
So to hear this praise now... it made her so happy her throat ached.
Ah, I too.
I too can be good at something. I too can be acknowledged.
That fact she'd forgotten to live by finally felt real.
"Of course, there are some areas that could be improved..."
Mason pointed out what needed correction precisely yet politely.
Blair became a model student listening attentively to her teacher, taking in the parts he explained.
Just as the budget feedback was wrapping up, Lina entered with a knock.
"My lady, just now—"
Lina, who was about to get straight to the point, belatedly noticed Mason's presence and closed her mouth. Mason tactfully excused himself.
With Mason gone, only Lina, Blair, and Mellie tending to Pipi remained in the room.
Lina glanced sidelong at Mellie, who was preoccupied with Pipi, and whispered so only Blair could hear.
"We've received word from the guild, my lady."
* * *
"The recently discovered mana stone mine in the northwest is being mined smoothly. The estimated reserves are..."
Herdin gazed impassively at the passing scenery outside the carriage window. Luth's voice reporting on business affairs flowed past his ears like that scenery.
Everything was going smoothly. Both business and the search for Blair's memories.
A few days ago, Agnes had come to give an interim report. It was exactly one month since counseling began.
Agnes said that rather than digging up painful memories from the start, they were retracing happy memories first.
Adding that while many clients distrust their counselors, Blair was quickly opening up to her, so things were progressing well.
'Your wife's happy memories frequently feature the late Empress. That's probably why she didn't try hard to recover her memories. She was afraid of the possibility that someone she trusted and relied on so much might have really tried to kill her.'
'Even though such a precious person might have been falsely accused?'
'She had a major accident and was badly injured. When she came to, she couldn't remember what happened, and people around her were saying that person tried to kill her...'
'...'
'Naturally, she would have come to assume that. That person might have tried to kill her, and she lost her memories from the shock.'
'...'
'And with even Her Majesty the Queen Mother saying so, she would have believed it even more. She doesn't want to make her living mother out to be a liar, nor does she want to dig into the possibility that the late Empress might have really tried to kill her.'
'How selfish.'
'Your Excellency. The lady was only eleven years old then.'
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