Chloe seemed more lively than usual, perhaps because she was excited about Kris being around, and she started talking to me more.
“I think I’ve finally learned how to do bookkeeping well enough to manage a simple ledger. But I still don’t really understand things like commercial law or tax law.”
I was holding back my words for the sake of my pride, but honestly, I didn’t know much about commercial law or tax law either.
I only knew, as a matter of custom, how much tax is applied to selling goods and how to present gifts.
“How did you study, Kris?”
At that, Kris, who had been too awkward to speak up since becoming part of our family, answered me.
“There’s no shortcut to studying, sister. You just have to memorize everything by writing it down.”
“But there’s so much to memorize! Things like customary law, case law, actual applications... How can I memorize all of that?”
When preparing for a civil service exam, memorizing only what comes out in the 'exam questions' would probably be sufficient unless I was taking an important test myself.
However, in this world, there are no past exam question books or textbooks, making it difficult to even acquire the original law codes.
‘Just like Chloe said, how am I supposed to memorize all that?’
Even if I manage to graduate, universities that grant qualifications like administrative officers or lawyers require passing exams, and I can’t...
No, those places are where students memorize every single word of the textbooks, so that might be possible after all.
In any case, someone like me would never be able to do it.
“Sister, it’s not like you and I are going to become lawyers or accountants. Why do we need to memorize all that? We just need to focus on the practical applications. Even among the employees in our merchant guild, no one has memorized the entirety of commercial law, including me.”
Understanding customary law and case law is the role of lawyers or accountants.
When things get complicated, you can simply give a proper gift to Judge Andante and ask for a reasonable discussion, and most of the time, it gets resolved.
Chloe looked at Kris with an expression that seemed to say the world was cruel.
“Then have I been wasting my time studying for nothing all this while?”
“...... Yes, exactly. That’s why the Baron said that if there’s something you don’t know, ask a tutor or someone else. Working hard without direction only leads to wasted effort.”
While there might be no shortcuts to studying, there are plenty of ways to study efficiently.
Just like when learning swordsmanship, training for a year on my own in a haphazard manner would yield less skill than learning properly from a good teacher for a month.
“Well, now that I know that I shouldn’t do it that way, I’ll be able to do better next time, sister.”
Kris reached out her hand and patted Chloe on the head.
A smile spread across Chloe’s face.
Even Kris, who had been struggling to adapt to this new environment until just a moment ago, seemed to have relaxed.
“The teacher also said that if I learn just a bit of commercial law, I’ll be able to help out with simple tasks under the young master. So I’m going to study harder.”
When I first told Chloe that it was okay to study, I thought it would be enough to learn just the letters, but I never imagined she would carry her studies this far.
It’s an unexpected development, but it’s a good one.
‘Chloe studying is for my sake, right?’
Then Chloe quietly started eating the snacks in front of her.
It was cute to see her nibbling on snacks with her hands back in the day, but now, perhaps because she’s learned etiquette, she eats cookies in a refined and elegant manner, like a squirrel with an acorn.
Chloe picked up a few cookies and leaned closer to me with half of one still in her mouth.
I could tell what she intended without her saying anything.
I gently pulled her shoulder, brushed my lips against hers, and took a bite of the cookie.
Chloe had been extremely shy the first time I did this, but now she looked at me with eyes that seemed to ask for more.
“Please feed me this time, young master.”
It wasn’t just Chloe and me in this room.
However, it wasn’t like there were any ‘men’ here.
Based on Chloe’s request, this time, I put a cookie in my mouth and approached her.
Unlike me, Chloe gently leaned in, bringing her upper body close enough to touch mine.
Feeling Chloe’s chest brush against me through her clothes, I realized...
‘She isn’t wearing any underwear.’
“Thank you, young master. And look over there.”
When I turned my gaze, I saw Kris blushing bright red like an apple.
She was biting her lips slightly and trying to turn her head away, yet her eyes were still following me and Chloe.
Her gaze was fixed on my lips.
Chloe saw this and gave a playful smile.
“Young master, it seems like Kris wants to be fed directly as well. What do you think?”
People communicate more through expressions, eye contact, and atmosphere than through words.
So I could understand without needing to ask.
I picked up a snack without saying anything.
Holding it lightly in my mouth, I took hold of Kris’s shoulder.
She flinched at the touch of a man's hand for the first time...
“Please be gentle.”
Why on earth is she saying something that sounds like it should come out during a first kiss or a first night?
Was she that nervous?
I mean, in this age, adult education videos that were common for both young and old weren’t unheard of.
‘She probably doesn’t think kissing alone would lead to pregnancy...’
Even just kissing would be extremely stimulating.
In reality, even with all the theoretical knowledge gained from adult education videos, some guys can’t even control their excitement at just holding a girl’s hand for the first time.
I held Kris gently, three times more tenderly than I did with Chloe, and slowly leaned in.
With each small advance I made, Kris’s face grew redder and redder.
It was to the point where anyone would think there was a fire.
“......”
However, Kris did not reject me.
After softly kissing her, I gradually pulled away.
“How was it?”
Kris, upon hearing my words, couldn’t speak for a considerable amount of time.
When I first met her, she felt as cold as a snow princess, but when I got close, I thought.
‘Incompetent.’
When it comes to romance, she seemed much more incompetent than other girls.
Is it really possible to react like that just from a single kiss?
“You’re so cute, young master.”
She was good at everything else, but being clumsy in this area was a charm.
I patted Kris’s head as I did with Chloe.
“It feels warm and reassuring. It’s completely different from when my dad used to pat my head.”
Kris’s expression softened slightly.
“I’ve never felt anything like this in my life, so I’d like it if you could do it a bit more. It’s a little scary because it’s unfamiliar, but it feels so good beyond that.”
Chloe wasn’t quite like that.
But since she said it was good, I continued to pat Kris’s head for quite a long time.
Chloe kept watching Kris as if she found her adorable.
“It’s completely different from usual and so cute when you’re being pampered by the young master. It’s like Nero.”
However, Chloe, feeling a strange competitive spirit, then lightly perched herself on my lap.
After sitting, she seemed to show off her status as the primary wife.
Turning her body towards me, she hugged me tightly and kissed me.
“If we end up doing something more than this later, what will you do if you’re already so shy?”
Then, perhaps stimulated by what she was showing to Kris...
She leaned close to my ear and suggested first.
“Young master, you must be getting tired now, right?”
Upon hearing that, Kris covered her face with her hands as if she was embarrassed.
But she made a hole between her fingers and was still watching everything.
“...... I’ll show you what it means to be a role model as an older sister.”
Kris probably thought she would pass through the door of adulthood today.
But due to her own embarrassment, she still hadn’t crossed over.
However, she was looking at Chloe and me with envy.
This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.
The next morning, as soon as I opened my eyes, instead of speaking to me, Chloe whispered in Kris’s ear.
Deliberately loud enough for me to hear.
“Kris will soon be unable to live without the young master, just like me.”
... I’m happy that the atmosphere is harmonious, but can I really survive this?
And from this day forward, I began physical training by inviting a former soldier during my remaining time.
After a few days off, which the duke arranged for me, I went to greet the ‘father-in-law.’
Until last time, as a mere baron, I felt a bit less revered by the servants.
This time, however, they treated me with utmost respect, just as they would a member of the duke’s family.
“Your Grace, it’s an honor to meet you.”
The duke laughed when he saw me.
“If my grandson-in-law acts so awkwardly, I’ll be quite disappointed.”
“The closer we are, the more we should observe the proper etiquette, right?”
“That’s true. Indeed, our Medici baron is polite and does nothing poorly.”
“It’s an honor.”
“People around me are saying I’m foolish for marrying off my granddaughter to a baron, but what kind of relationship do you and I have? If I hear such nonsense, I’ll grab the neck of whoever says that and beat them up.”
The most important point in what he said was that.
‘No matter what the other nobles say, I trust you. We are partners.’
... No, I never intended to be this kind of partner.
But if I protested, I’d come to understand deeply that pasta can be eaten with both mouth and nose.
If I want to live long, I must keep my mouth shut.
And they say she’s beautiful, right?
“The wedding will take about a year to prepare since it involves much coordination with the royal family, including renting out the Florence Cathedral.”
... Even the duke’s family has to consult with the royal family for marrying off their granddaughter.
“By the way, did you rest well?”
“Yes, I had a good rest. And now it seems I have to go ‘poison’ that pagan governor...”
“I was hoping to show you my granddaughter’s face this week, but that’s quite unfortunate.”
The duke waved his hand at my words.
“Make sure to come back as soon as you can. Don’t get hurt, and Alfred said something to you.”
“What did he say?”
The duke chuckled.
“He said he’d enlist you if you made Erica cry.”
... No, please not the military.
“He said he’d make you the commander of the cavalry, or rather, a knight order (which is essentially a medium cavalry unit).”
Among the various units in the empire, that was the place with the most brutal training.
“How could I ever make my lady cry?”
“She’s not a lady; she’s your wife. It seems my grandson-in-law is a complete novice when it comes to married life.”
“Haha, do I look like someone who would make my wife cry?”
“Of course not. Oh, and on your way back, think about a new family name. There have been complaints that ‘Baron Medici’ is very inconvenient because there are two families with that name at the heraldry office.”
With that, I left as if I were fleeing to Nador.