You Can Keep The Male Lead

Jenny put the envelope on the desk and tilted her head, lifting the belt.
“Where are you going to use this?”

“It’s just, it doesn’t look good to wear a dress and carry this dagger around.”

So I measured my size and fastened the belt to hold the dagger on the inner thigh in the dress.
I tried it on the spot.

I entrusted it to Madam Plada, and thanks to her excellent skills, it was well-crafted, and it wasn’t inconvenient to move.
I fastened the dagger to my leg and lowered the skirt again.

Jenny watched the whole process and once again asked, “Do you think you’ll ever use the dagger? Surely there will be many knights who will protect you.”

“But you never know.
And who knows? I might catch monsters with this dagger.”

“By the way, Madam.
It looks like it will arrive soon.” Jenny smiled slightly, as if what I said was a joke, then left. 

Well, I didn’t think I could swing a real dagger around and catch monsters, but sometimes, it’s hard to tell what might happen.

Although Rupert wasn’t here, the preparations proceeded without any setbacks.
There wasn’t much to prepare for the hunting per se; it was mainly essentials for the wife, Erin – parasols and the like, handkerchiefs, and several dresses.
Other daily necessities were packed, as well.

And thanks to Madam Plada’s full support, Erin’s wardrobe was quite glamorous.
And on her recommendation, I picked another maid. 

There were more and more things to do, so it was too much for Jenny alone.
There were many maids inside the house, but I didn’t know who was on which side, so I didn’t choose from them. 

“Hello, Madam.
My name is Lia.”

I looked at the woman who came up with Jenny and nodded.
She looked a little older than Jenny, but her movements were unusual.

“Nice to meet you.
Where did you work before?”

“I was working at the Imperial Palace but have recently taken a break.
I came here after receiving a recommendation from Madam Plada.”

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After hearing her explanation, I understood.
If you had worked in the Imperial Palace, you would have been educated on basic manners and manners.

“Jennie is helping me a lot in the house.
If you work for me, you’ll be dealing with things outside.”

I handed out the contract, which she swiftly signed.
I also gave Jenny a separate contract the other day.

“Yes, leave anything to me.”

The two were hired separately by me, apart from being employed at the townhouse.
Of course, this was a secret to Rupert. 

“Alright, I like useful people.
For now, go out and listen to Jenny’s explanation and rest.”

The moment the employment was decided, I changed the way I spoke to Jenny.
I wasn’t really used to it, but it was the right thing to do in this world.

I pondered over Lia’s usefulness as I watched them leave.
Madam Plada sent me a better talent than I thought.

But it’s up to me to make her my person.
If it were simply to do chores, the maids of the house would have sufficed.

After they had left, I picked up the white envelope Jenny had brought.
This time, the words ‘Dear Count Spilet‘ were written in elegant handwriting.

Someone was helping me from afar.
I’d like to return the favor if I find out who it was.

Anyway, what was inside the envelope did not seem to be paper.
So I shook the envelope and quickly opened it when I felt the hard texture.

“This is… a pendant?”

It was a small hexagon pendant, set with a transparent gem in the center.
It was a bit crude to simply be an accessory.
I took it out on the palm of my hand and inspected it but couldn’t find anything special.

However, upon closer inspection, the hexagonal metal surrounding the jewel had small letters written on it.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t read the characters. 

“What the hell is this?”

I still didn’t know its purpose, but there must be a reason for sending this.
Nothing in this white envelope was useless to me.

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Carrying the pendant, I went to the dressing room.
I took out a suitable necklace from the drawer, removed the pendant to replace it with the one I received today, and wore it around my neck.

I fiddled with it as I stared at the mirror.
At first glance, it didn’t seem very pretty, but it looked lovely on Erin’s neck.

Should I say that accessories benefit from her face? Erin’s face was always beautiful.
I stood in front of the mirror and watched myself for a long time.

Huh? Come to think of it, the pendant looked similar to the ring I saw a while ago.

Early in the morning of the hunting competition, I prepared the Imperial carriage given by the Crown Prince.
The northern provinces were quite far from here.

People said that it would take a full day if they went with a regular carriage, but half a day would be enough with an Imperial carriage.

Riding a carriage in a world where magic existed… If teleportation was impossible, shouldn’t there at least be a flying carriage or something like that?

Groaning inside, I watched the cargo being loaded into the carriage.
Even though I didn’t bring much, the amount was so large that we had to prepare a separate carriage.

“Madam, everything is ready,” Lia said, putting her hands together and bowing politely after the luggage was prepared.

Looking at her again, the attitude of courtesy was different.
Of course, Jenny also obeyed me, but she didn’t have a strict education as an Imperial maid, so she was comfortable sometimes.

So I decided to take Lia to this hunting competition.

“Lia, you said this wasn’t your first hunting contest, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I’ve been sent twice when I was working at the palace.”

Seeing Lia answer with a bright smile, I imagined she’d definitely be a daughter from a noble family.
Rather, she had a more sophisticated attitude than I did.

I nodded and smiled, satisfied.
Then, when Chloe and Rupert came to mind, I got a little confused.

I had other purposes besides the hunting contest, but there was a possibility that the situation would be so harsh that I would be ridiculed.

…I have to be determined.

Once I made up my mind again, I got on the carriage.

On the way, I looked out the window and calmly thought about the future.
The scenery passing by quickly was unfamiliar yet beautiful.

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On one side, a large river flowed.
The carriage ran along the riverbank. 

Unlike the world in my past life, this place had preserved its abundant nature.
Of course, there were some inconveniences because of that, but there was magic to compensate for it.

But the carriage, which was running well, suddenly stopped.

I looked out the window and saw a familiar face.
And the moment I saw that face, my body became tense, and my heart beat faster.

Enoch, he was there.

Lia immediately opened the door, got down, and knelt in front of him.
It was a scene I’d seen before.

I was about to go down, but he beckoned me to stay. 

“I didn’t expect to see you here, Count.” I read the uncertainty in his expression and tone.

Weren’t you waiting for me in particular? But why were you standing on this empty field?

I eyed Enoch and almost jumped when I saw the blood on his clothes.

“Your Highness, are you hurt?”

My heart dropped when I thought he was hurt. What should I do? How long did it take to get to the hospital from here?

I took out a handkerchief and rushed to wipe off the blood, but he lightly grabbed my wrist and stopped me. 

“Calm down, Count.
It’s not my blood.”

“Ah…”

Then I put my face out and looked behind him. 

At first glance, the scene was gruesome.
One wheel of the carriage was broken and rolling around, and people were lying around it, bleeding.
It looked like some kind of battle took place.

Enoch was the only one alive.

“Sorry to startle you.
If I had known the Count would come here, I would have cleaned it up.”

“It’s nothing, Your Highness.
So, you’re alright?”

He nodded slowly, looking at my face as if examining me.
A sigh of relief came out.

“So, Count.
I wonder if we can ride the carriage together.”

Without questioning him further, I moved aside and sat down.
It would’ve made more sense for him to sit across from me, but instead, Enoch sat down next to me. 

Lia got up and bowed once more.
“I’ll sit in the back.
Please feel free to talk comfortably.”

Before I could say anything, Lia closed the door.
While I felt bad, it seemed that maids could not ride together in a carriage carrying the Crown Prince due to the world’s societal structure.

Enoch didn’t seem to care much about that.

“What happened?”

Anyway, I asked a question right away. 

Enoch smiled awkwardly and spoke in a joking tone, “Somehow, every time I see the Count, a carriage is broken.
I don’t know if you think I’m a carriage destroyer.”

I was going to ask him if this was the right time to joke, but when I saw him smiling, I decided against it.
It’s a relief you’re safe.

I was astonished that I was genuinely concerned about him, but I was also relieved that his attitude toward me had not changed.