I Need to Raise My Younger Sister Right

Chapter 6

“Hmm, hmm. Hmm…” Rachel hummed as she looked through her papers.

Marcus looked at her strangely and asked, “What are you so happy about?”

“Working!”

“You find your work fun?”

“Of course. Working is my favorite thing in the whole world!”

She had been acting like this for the past few days. Marcus couldn’t understand.

I just can’t seem to read Her Grace’s mind.

He recalled their conversation from a couple days before, when he heard the name he had buried in the back of his mind come flowing out of the duchess’s mouth…

“I don’t know.”

“I’ll bet my hands that you do know. Are you really not going to tell me?”

It was the first time he had seen the duchess look so stern and full of confidence.

The duchess knew of the former duke’s illegitimate child. The only ones who knew of her presence were himself and the late duke and duchess. Only those three.

He had thought that there would be no way the duke and duchess would have shared this information with Rachel, but…

“Why are you looking for your half-sister all of a sudden?”

“Why else would I be looking for her? I have to bring her home. The fact that my younger sister is living elsewhere is unacceptable.”

“Is that really your only reason?”

“What other reason would I have?”

In most cases, people would usually leave a half-sibling to live elsewhere as quiet as a mouse—or in extreme cases, they would kill them. The existence of a half-sibling could tarnish the family’s honor or cause problems in the succession hierarchy.

Of course, in her case, her half-sister couldn’t have served as an obstacle, as she had already become the duchess.

Is she really asking out of sincerity?

That day, he’d made a promise with the duchess.

“Promise me one thing.”

“Promise? Marcus, who do you think your master is right now?”

“Please think of it as respecting the former duke’s wishes.”

“All right. Fine.”

The duchy was still unstable.

If an illegitimate child were to be introduced in the current atmosphere, it would only cause more confusion. For that reason, he would share the location of her half-sister only once the duchy was in a more stable condition.

No matter how he looked at it, he just couldn’t seem to understand the duchess, who would hum while immersed in her duties.

“Right, how are the official notices coming along?”

“We’ve posted them throughout the town and hired people to spread the word. It’s only a matter of time before the entire territory hears the news.”

During the past half year, the taxes in the duchy had doubled. As a result, people’s livelihoods had been completely destroyed. That was why they’d put out an official notice that everyone would be exempt from taxes during the next quarter in addition to the notice that the tax rates would be normalized again.

“How impressive. I didn’t think you’d have people spread the word too.”

“Most of the territory’s people cannot read, so posting an official notice on its own wouldn’t be enough.”

“Ah.”

Reading and writing were an exclusive privilege to those who were well-off. Those who weren’t middle class didn’t have time to learn to read or write, nor did they have the money.

I should consider setting up an academy later on.

She had no intention of running this territory just enough to keep it afloat.

This was where her fave was going to live, so it had to be more affluent and better than anywhere else.

I can’t afford to leave a single scar.

Rachel wouldn’t allow her fave’s hands or heart to be hurt. She wanted her to have a happy life, at least this one time.

In order to reach such a grand goal, she and the families supporting her had to be strong enough that no one could dismiss them.

“Hmm...”

So how would she achieve that goal?

Money! I’ll need money, of course!

She rubbed her shin as she thought. “Oh, right. Have you finished appraising the items we seized?” she asked Marcus.

“Yes, I have. I’m searching for a place that will give us the best price possible, but it looks like it won’t be easy, especially because we have to do it secretly...”

Worried, Rachel contemplated Marcus’ words.

If the unfortunate events that happened at House Agnus were to be revealed to the public, it would diminish the duchess’s honor.

A duchess who was played at the hands of a mere head lady-in-waiting… It was the perfect phrase to be used as the butt of a joke.

They had to dispose of the confiscated goods in secrecy.

“If they offer a reasonable price, let them have it. I had no intention of selling them for full value anyway.”

No matter how good the quality was, these were still used items. It couldn’t be helped that jewels and saplings varied in price depending on how well they were taken care of.

“At the very least, we’ll be able to secure some finances to run the estate once we dispose of those items.”

In order to begin running the duchy, her involvement in high society was crucial.

They say that when the rich go bankrupt, they’ll still be able to survive for at least three generations, but the current state of House Agnus wasn’t even worthy of its reputation as a prestigious family.

“I’ve just about finished my work for today,” Rachel said with a sigh.

“Please give me one second. I shall check over your work.” Marcus quickly scanned the documents that she had processed and nodded his head. “These are approved.”

Is this an audition? Why are you giving out approvals like you’re the judge or something?

Rachel snorted at Marcus’ arrogant remark and stood up.

“All right. Shall I gradually start heading out now?”

“Where will you be going?”

She stretched her cramped body and said, “Where else would I go? Now that we’ve somewhat finished the paperwork, I should slowly start exploring the atmosphere of the duchy.”

“It would probably be best for you to refrain from exploring the lands,” said Marcus.

“Huh?

“Erm. It’s a bit complicated to say...”

Worry spread over Marcus’ already bleak face, but only for a moment.

“No. It’s nothing, actually. I suppose it could serve as a good experience if you witness it for yourself at least once.”

Rachel didn’t reply.

What the…? Why is he saying that so solemnly?

Feeling somewhat uneasy, she tilted her head.

***

The inspection of the territory began. It only took an instant for the anticipation on Rachel’s face to vanish as she ventured out into the streets, full of excitement.

The carriage shook aggressively.

It felt as if her tailbone was going to break, and her butt felt bruised.

This moment made her realize how blessed she’d been to live in the modern world with well-paved roads.

Damn it! When I gather enough money, I’ll have to start by repairing the roads.

She wiped away a tear that had leaked out. “Ann, don’t your buttocks hurt?”

“Me? I’m used to this, so it’s fine. It’s much more comfortable compared to the other carriages.”

Rachel gasped. “This is comfortable?”

“Of course. If you ride in the carriages made for the workers, it feels like your neck is going to break within ten minutes. Compared to that, Your Grace’s carriage is like heaven!”

Unbelievable.

I can’t even sit properly because it hurts my tailbone. How can she call this comfortable?!

Gloominess loomed over her at the sudden thought that her life in this world might be a total mess.

“My lady, we have arrived.”

The carriage came to a halt, and Rupert, who was acting as an escort, opened the door.

Because it was supposed to be a secret inspection, Rachel was dressed as a middle-class lady. Due to the fact that it was trendy for the middle-class to imitate the nobles, it didn’t seem unusual for her to be accompanied by escorts, so the people simply glanced as she walked by. She was able to blend in naturally and not draw too much attention.

Her footsteps first headed towards the market.

“Get your flowers! Get your flowers!”

A young woman with brown hair, brown eyes, and a wide smile on her face held out a flower towards the passersby. People walked past her with looks of annoyance on their faces.

A child standing behind the woman said with pouted lips, “Everyone’s so mean, Sis. Why won’t they even buy a single flower?”

“Well… Because everyone else is having a hard time too.”

“I wish an angel could just appear and buy all your flowers.”

The woman laughed. “I wish that could happen too.”

For some reason, Rachel just couldn’t pass them by. She watched in silence as the woman consoled the complaining child.

Then she said, “I’ll buy all of these.”

“Huh...?”

“How much do they cost?”

“O-o-one second! How many flowers were there again...?”

The woman frantically counted the flowers in her basket and said, “Just three silvers will do! It would normally be five, but I’ll give you a special discount since you’re purchasing a lot.”

Rachel took ten silvers out of her pocket.

“T-this is too much...” the woman said.

Ten silvers was more than she could typically earn in a week.

Rachel smiled faintly at the flustered woman as she said, “It’s because the flowers are pretty.”

Actually, it’s because your relationship with your younger brother is heartwarming and endearing.

I also hope to live with my fave affectionately and happily like you.

“Thank you!”

“Wow! You sold everything, Big Sis! She must be a real angel.”

“Nicky, hurry up and say thank you to her!”

“Thank you! Please come again to buy flowers from my big sis!”

Rachel waved goodbye to the pair and proceeded to walk around the market.

“Ann, Sir Rupert, this is a present from me to you.” She gave Ann and Rupert a handful of flowers each.

“I’ve never been gifted a flower before,” said Rupert. “Thank you.”

“Sir Rupert, you don’t have a girlfriend?”

“Unfortunately, I’m pretty busy with my training. A girlfriend is only a dream.”

My goodness… Sir Rupert must be a very lonely man.

“What about you, Ann?”

“I also don’t have time for that kind of stuff. I’m too busy making a living for myself. Anyway, these flowers are so fragrant!”

Rachel continued to look around the market while she chatted with her companions.

However, the situation didn’t look too good.

It’s exactly like it said in Marcus’ report.

Most of the major items in his calculations had risen in price by twenty percent compared to the previous year.

It’s a total economic collapse for the commoners.

The items displayed on the stands weren’t even of high quality.

One of the reasons for this was due to the larger merchants withdrawing from the territory because of the high tax rates, making it harder to maintain a consistent flow of supply and demand.

“Hey, did you hear about the five houses that fled during the night in the town below?”

“Of course I did! I want to desert everything and flee too when I think about the taxes that I have to pay this quarter.”

“God damn it. Just what is the duchess doing? We never had these problems with the former duke. Shit...”

Rachel stopped walking when she heard the conversation between the merchants.

“Wait,” she said to them. “What do you mean by that? The duchess has announced that everyone will be exempt from taxes this quarter. She even put up a notice.”

At her question, the merchants scowled as though she’d said something ridiculous.

“Huh? What do you mean? Those newly appointed tax collector bastards have been going from house to house to collect our taxes!”

What?

Rachel turned around to face Rupert.

Rupert also wore a hardened expression on his face.

“As a matter of fact, they’re right there!”

With an angry look on his face, one of the merchants pointed at something happening behind them.

“Ahh! P-please don’t do this!”

“You should pay your taxes if you’ve earned money!”

“Let go of my sister! Let go of her!”

Two men had grabbed the young woman who had sold her the flowers earlier and were dragging her away.