[Cassian’s POV—Ashcroft Manor—Several Weeks Later]
Several weeks quietly passed.
The excitement surrounding the White Fox Beasts gradually settled, and House Ashcroft once again returned to its usual rhythm; now they have started roaming free, and the people around the territory have gotten used to them. Now, there is no fear for the fox beast in the territory. Some of them are already being trained to walk beside our knight. Everything is good or...at least on the surface.
I quietly signed another report before placing it aside and looked towards Cedric, asking, "It has already been several weeks; has the reconstruction of the northern bridges begun?"
Cedric lowered his head respectfully as he unfolded another parchment upon my desk. "They have, Your Grace...however, the engineers report that progress has become exceedingly slow."
I furrowed my brow as Cedric pointed toward several villages marked upon the map.
"The snowfall this year has exceeded every prediction, the rivers have frozen far earlier than usual, and the roads leading into the forests have become nearly impassable. Supply wagons continue becoming trapped beneath heavy snow."
He paused before adding quietly,
"And...we are beginning to face another problem."
I looked at him. "The timber?"
Cedric nodded. "Yes, Your Grace. The trees themselves remain standing...but cutting them has become nearly impossible; the recent snowfall has soaked nearly every accessible log, the wood is too damp to burn, and it produces more smoke than heat. The carpenters refuse to use it for bridge construction, as it cracks after freezing."
He placed another report before me.
"Our reserve lumber has nearly been exhausted; the remaining dry timber has been prioritized for households because no village may survive the winter without fire."
Silence settled throughout the study.
The fireplace behind us quietly crackled. Ironically... Its warmth came from the very resource we were rapidly losing. Cedric continued. "We attempted supplementing the shortage with heat mana stones."
I slowly nodded. "A reasonable decision."
"Unfortunately," Cedric sighed. "Mana stones are exceptionally scarce; they are mined only within the eastern mountains, and most are already contracted to the Imperial Palace...and the Grand Temple. The quantity reaching the north each winter barely satisfies the hospitals, as they are far too valuable to heat every household. One heat mana stone may warm a single family home for several days...yet it would require thousands merely to sustain one city."
I quietly looked toward the snow-covered landscape beyond the window. White everywhere. It was beautiful but merciless. Winter had never been an enemy one could defeat with swords.
It demanded preparation, patience, and resources, and this year... It demanded more than House Ashcroft possessed.
Cedric broke the silence once more.
"If the snowfall continues for another month...the villages nearest Frostpine Forest will begin exhausting their firewood. The elderly and the children...they will suffer first."
I remained silent. My fingers slowly tapped against the armrest. Each winter the North fought the same battle, not against monsters or neighboring territories but against nature itself.
This year seems like nature intended to win.
After several moments, I finally broke the silence. "What is our solution?"
"If we possessed a sufficient number of Heat Mana Stones...Ashcroft could endure the next two months without significant losses. The villages would remain warm, and the reconstruction of the bridges could resume."
I leaned back in my chair. "Heat mana stones; they remain as scarce as ever, yet...I recall several noble houses controlling lands where mana stones are mined."
Cedric nodded immediately. "Indeed, Your Grace, the richest deposits belong to Baron Aldric Eisenhart, Lord of Ironridge. The Ironridge Barony possesses the largest known Heat Mana Stone mines within the Empire; their mines have supplied the Imperial Family, the Grand Temple, and the great noble houses for generations."
I quietly studied the report. "Ironridge."
Cedric continued. "However...the Baron no longer sells directly to individual territories. Every shipment must first receive approval from the Imperial Palace; once approved...the remaining supply is distributed according to the Palace’s judgment."
"Meaning... the palace decides who remains warm through the winter."
Cedric’s expression darkened. "Yes, Your Grace. However... if we negotiate directly with Baron Aldric Eisenhart, there is a chance we can purchase mana stones from him before the Imperial Palace claims the entire supply."
I tapped a finger against the armrest of my chair. "Then I shall write to Baron Eisenhart personally."
Cedric lowered his head. "As you command, Your Grace."
***
[Luceille’s POV — At the Same Time]
The gods must have been having the time of their immortal lives, because someone up there had apparently decided that burying Ashcroft beneath an endless avalanche of snow sounded entertaining.
Snowflakes continued to rain from the gray sky without mercy. The freezing wind slapped my face, the snow reached halfway to my boots, and despite wearing an enormous white wolf-fur coat that looked expensive enough to bankrupt a viscount...
. . .
. . .
I was still freezing.
"Whose idea was winter?" I muttered through chattering teeth. "I’d like to file a complaint."
A tiny furry head poked out from inside my coat; the little fox cub blinked up at me with innocent eyes before happily curling deeper into my warm jacket.
It wasn’t even my fur.
Mia stood behind me, bundled in several layers herself; her nose was bright red from the cold, and her hands were trembling...yet she still somehow maintained the perfect maid smile.
How? Was smiling a survival instinct for maids? Or were they simply built differently?
I narrowed my eyes. "Tell me honestly."
"Yes, Your Grace?"
"Are maids secretly immune to winter?"
Mia blinked. "No, Your Grace."
"Then why are you smiling?"
"Professional habit."
"...Terrifying."
She smiled even brighter, and it was definitely terrifying. I let out another exhausted sigh and looked toward the training field.
Now...why was I standing outside instead of enjoying my luxurious bedroom, wrapped in blankets, with hot chocolate and absolutely no responsibilities?
Simple because fate hated me.
"GYAAAAAHHHHH!!" A knight’s agonized scream echoed across the snowy field. "IT’S CHEWING MY HAAAAAND!"
He sprinted across the snow while a fluffy fox beast happily dangled from his arm; the creature looked absolutely delighted as it wagged its tail enthusiastically.
Apparently, his hand had been mistaken for an exceptionally tasty chew toy.
"STOP BITING ME!"
Chomp.
"...IT BIT ME HARDER!"
Behind him, a white fox beast happily trotted after him. Its enormous jaws gently clamped around the knight’s armored gauntlet like a puppy refusing to let go of its favorite toy.
"I’M NOT FOOD!!"
The fox tilted its head, then continued chewing.
"Yip."
Another knight ran past us. "HELP!!"
A second White Fox Beast enthusiastically chased after him. The poor knight turned and ran for his life, sword waving wildly as he stumbled through knee-deep snow. The fox chased after him with the pure joy of a puppy that had just discovered zoomies.
I stared at the scene dumbfoundedly. In short, the Ashcroft Knights were losing, not against monsters, not against enemy soldiers and not against assassins. Against tiny, fluffy foxes.
"My life has become a comedy."
Unfortunately, the list of my problems was getting longer by the hour.
First, that shameless Temple still hadn’t returned Ashcroft’s treasure. Second, the fox beasts refused to cooperate, and third... Ashcroft knights...elite warriors capable of fighting magical beasts...were currently being psychologically defeated by creatures that looked like oversized pillows.
Wonderful.
I rubbed my temples dramatically.
"Ugh..."
"What is it, Your Grace?"
"I think I’ve aged ten years in a single morning."
Mia tilted her head. "Your Grace... you’re only twenty-one."
I stared into the distance with the eyes of someone who had paid taxes for forty years. I sighed the sigh of every overworked office employee from my previous life.
"Physically, I’m twenty-one."
Another knight screamed.
"Mentally..."
A fox proudly stole his boot and sprinted away.
"...I’m at least sixty."
Silence.
I looked back toward the battlefield where five fully armed knights were currently negotiating with a fox holding a boot hostage.
"Humans in this world behave like wild beasts." A fox politely sat down and offered another knight a paw.
"And somehow..."
The knight hesitantly shook it; the fox nodded with great dignity. "The foxes behave like enlightened sages; what exactly am I supposed to do with these people?"
"You cannot do anything."
A voice colder than the snow itself drifted from behind me.
I turned around. Cassian stood there with his arms crossed, black coat fluttering gently in the winter wind. His expression remained as indifferent as ever, his golden eyes fixed on the disaster unfolding before us.
Cassian didn’t even react as he said calmly. "They need to tame the foxes themselves; it isn’t your responsibility."
I looked at him with a deadpan expression. "Then why am I summoned here every single time?"
He answered without even looking at me. "Because they’re scared, leave them alone with those beasts; they’ll survive."
"...Will they?"
"I didn’t say uninjured."
Fair enough.
He finally turned toward me. "Would you like to accompany me to the Imperial Capital?"
I blinked, then my eyes narrowed. "Wait, did that shameless high priest refuse to return our treasure?"
Silence.
Cassian didn’t answer. I already had my answer, and my eye twitched. "That crazy old raccoon...that bald, donation-collecting, treasure-hoarding, holy scam artist..."
"Luceille."
"...That temple vampire sucking the wealth out of every noble house in the Empire—"
"Luceille."
"He probably kisses our gold bars good morning!"
"Luceille."
"He—"
Cassian looked at me. "No matter how creatively you insult him...it doesn’t change the fact that you personally donated those treasures."
. . .
. . .
The words struck me like divine judgment. My soul left my body, and I slowly crouched. Then...I completely deflated.
Mia gasped. "Your Grace!"
I hugged my knees. "These stupid hands, they donated our own money..."
I looked toward the snowy sky with empty eyes and gritted my teeth. ’Past Luceille. Why? Why were you so charitable? Why did you let your ego win over the money’
The wind answered with silence. Even the foxes seemed sympathetic. Cassian watched my dramatic breakdown for several seconds. Then...
Without warning, he stepped closer, and a large warm hand rested gently on my shoulder. "Would you like to have lunch with me?"
I stared at him. Then, without a shred of dignity remaining, I leaned forward dramatically until my forehead bumped against his chest. "I want fried spicy chicken, extra crispy with lots of chili powder."
Cassian’s lips curved into a faint smile. "I’ll tell the chef."
Before he could even take another step Mia bowed so quickly that I was worried she’d launch herself into orbit.
"I-I shall inform the kitchen immediately!"
She turned around and sprinted toward the manor. Cassian glanced at Mia disappearing into the mansion; still resting his hand lightly on my shoulder, he guided me toward the manor.
"Let’s go..."
The warmth coming through his gloves felt strangely comforting against the freezing weather. Behind us, I felt too many eyes on me. The training ground suddenly became suspiciously quiet.
I frowned. "Why did it get so silent?"
Cassian didn’t answer when I turned around; every single knight had frozen in place. One still had a fox hanging from his sleeve. Another was halfway through drawing his sword, and a third still stood on one leg after slipping; not one of them moved.
Every fox had also stopped.
One was sitting politely, even if it wasn’t chewing anymore. Instead every pair of eyes, human, fox, knight, and cub.
Everyone was staring at us.
"...Why are they looking at us? Did we grow horns?"
Nobody answered. Following their line of sight, my gaze slowly drifted downward, to... Cassian’s hand... Still resting naturally on my shoulder.
. . .
. . .
. . .
My brain finally rebooted.
Sliiiiiiiide~~~
Like a suspiciously self-aware penguin, I smoothly slid sideways out from under his hand without making eye contact.
Cassian remained exactly where he was; his hand was still suspended in the air for a second before he calmly lowered it. Not a trace of embarrassment crossed his face.
Instead, he simply smiled, a small, gentle, and almost amused smile.
"Shall we go?"
"...Yes."
I nodded so fast my hood almost fell off. Then quietly walked beside him, with no shoulder touching and no accidental contact.
A respectable distance, very respectable...extremely respectable.
As we continued toward the manor, a horrifying realization suddenly hit me.
. . .
. . .
Wait a second. I’ve gotten way too comfortable. I’ve been living as Luceille for so long, wearing dresses and getting princess-carried. Leaning on Cassian, without even thinking.
I stopped walking for half a second.
Hold on, my body may be a woman, but my soul is still a thirty-year-old man.
My eyes widened in horror.
...Did I just casually lean on another man? IN PUBLIC?!
Inside my head, alarms began blaring louder than the Imperial emergency bells.
My brain immediately activated every emergency alarm it possessed.
WARNING! WARNING! IDENTITY CRISIS DETECTED!
I...am a straight man. A perfectly ordinary tax-paying, salary-working, women-loving man!
I dramatically glanced toward Cassian’s broad back.
And that is my husband.
Silence.
. . .
. . .
"...That sentence feels illegal." I immediately shook my head so hard my red hair flew everywhere.
I refuse. I may look like a beautiful noblewoman but deep inside... I am still Minato Takeda! I scratched my butt while watching baseball! I celebrated payday with convenience-store fried chicken! I once survived three consecutive weeks eating instant noodles!
"I am a MAN!"
The little fox cub sitting on my shoulder tilted its head. "Yip?"
That man is destined to fall in love with the heroine. I am literally the tutorial wife! I exist to die! So, we shall maintain a healthy social distance. Emotionally OSHA-compliant.
The little fox cub sitting on my shoulder tilted its head.
"Yip?"
Satisfied with my flawless strategy, to maintain distance from the Villain, I took one confident step backward, until—
Warm fingers suddenly slipped around my hand.
"...Eh?"
I blinked, slowly... very, very slowly... I lowered my head.
Cassian was holding my hand. My brain blue-screened.
SYSTEM ERROR. SOCIAL DISTANCE VIOLATED.
I slowly looked up. Cassian met my eyes with his usual calm expression. "If you accompany me to the capital, we may visit the merchants and can restore Ashcroft’s treasure vault."
. . .
. . .
My pupils transformed into shining gold coins.My survival instincts, my identity crisis, and my carefully planned social distancing...everything collapsed like a poorly built sandcastle.
My eyes sparkled brighter than the Treasury itself. "Then...we can refill the treasure room?"
Cassian answered without hesitation. "Yes."
And just like that, without realizing it, I had already stepped closer, still holding his hand and still smiling like a greedy little dragon who had just discovered a mountain of gold.
At that exact moment... I completely forgot whether I was a man or a woman. All I remembered was one beautiful, glorious dream.
A treasure room...filled to the ceiling...with retirement funds.
Priorities...were important.