# 52
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“Eleanor-”
“Sir, did you find an assistant to help distribute the prizes in the sword competition this time?”
At the moment when the second round was scheduled to begin, Lady Margaret asked him.
Elinor didn't even look at him.
The only thing that reached him was the sound of the baby crying behind her back.
said Matthias, holding back his boiling anger.
“Cornelia probably would.”
“Why are you trying to make me do it again?”
“If it's not you, who will?”
Congratulating the winner of the sword competition has been the task of the Grand Duke and his wife, generation after generation.
The Grand Duke presented the victory shield, and the Grand Duchess presented the bouquet of flowers.
But the previous Grand Duke died, and was succeeded by Matthias, who is still single.
So, up until now, Cornelia, the eldest daughter of the former, had been helping with that work.
Cornelia said quickly.
“This time there's someone else who can do it. Miss Elinor-»
“Can my daughter take over that job?”
Lady Margaret interrupted Cornelia.
Cornelia asked, surprised.
“Grace?”
“It's an honorary position to congratulate the winner of the sword competition, isn't it? I hope you give Grace a chance too.”
“But Grace never told me she wanted to be my assistant.”
“Grace is very shy by nature, isn't she? "She asked me because she was embarrassed to say it directly to the princess."
Cornelia remembered her shy friend.
Her friend who had loved Matthias for a long time.
‘But Elinor has a child. My brother and mother don't seem to think about sending Elinor away.'
It's unfortunate for Grace, but the two are not destined for each other.
Matthias should have married Elinor.
She was sorry she said she would help and then it turned out like this.
So, Cornelia later planned to find Grace a wonderful man who was much better than her brother.
But the moment Cornelia was silent for a while, it seemed that Grace asked her mother for help.
“Grace helped the princess a lot in training a long time ago. So she already knows the necessary procedures and parts. “It will be a big help.”
“Grace will certainly do well.”
The Grand Duchess muttered hesitantly.
“But that was originally the work of the Grand Duchess...”
Matthias's gaze naturally turned to Elinor.
He was curious how she would respond to this.
But Elinor showed no reaction.
She drank the tea meant for her only quietly.
Matthias said suddenly getting angry.
"Good."
"What? My brother, really?
“The sword competition is a very important event with a history of hundreds of years.”
Matthias pretended to be serious to create the atmosphere.
“Since it is a very important event, it is better for the role of assistant to be someone I trust and entrust.”
“But…… Since it is such a position, we can instead introduce Miss Elinor to people normally.”
“Why introduce Miss Elinor?”
Mathias curled his lips contemptuously.
“She's just a stranger. “It has nothing to do with Hilliard.”
"my brother. Why do you say that? How strange Miss Elinor is. “It has been more than a month since I stayed in the Grand Duke’s Palace.”
"Good."
Matthias smiled wryly.
“She probably wouldn't think like that herf.”
He said this deliberately, aware of Elinor, but Elinor showed no reaction.
Mathias quietly ground his teeth in pain.
“I will entrust the role of assistant at the coronation ceremony to Grace.”
“Thank you very much, sir. Grace will be very happy.”
Lady Margaret was happy as if the matter belonged to her.
Matthias drank the cold tea in one go.
Everything goes according to His will.
But he really doesn't understand why he feels so bad.
* * *
Tidian advanced to the finals, faced some difficulty in the semi-finals against the previous winner, but eventually succeeded in reaching the final.
Finally, the day of the final came.
“Aww!”
A massive scream shook the stadium.
Even in the playoffs, there was almost no empty seat on the field.
But today, there were many more people filling the stadium than back then.
Elinor heaved a small sigh at the place full of enthusiasm and excitement.
'It's already the last day.'
Tonight, with a spectacular fireworks display, the Hilliard Country Sword Competition comes to an end.
This means that today is the last day that the Garden of Five Colors is open to the public.
From the beginning, the cave was only open during the sword tournament period.
'Charlotte didn't come.'
Was the place too modest to attract Charlotte's interest?
It was a place that even the Emperor liked, so she thought maybe she would come.
If she had at least had help from Agares, she wouldn't have been so worried.
At the very important moment, Matthias intervened and she missed the opportunity to hide the child's sacred power.
‘Where did Agares disappear to?’
She thought that since he was interrupted in the middle, he would definitely try to approach her again, but there was no news.
There is only one possibility for Agaris to disappear, which moves on interest.
When something comes up that interests him more than Elinor.
Elinor looked around the court in vain.
You might find Agares among the crowds, like last time.
At that time, the Grand Duchess spoke to her.
“Are you looking for Matthias?”
"no."
Why am I looking for the Grand Duke who always does what he likes and is just rude.
He describes her every night as a woman with light hips that attracts men, and he does not apologize once until the end.
However, he was very protective of her.
If they meet by chance, they stare and stare.
Does he think I'm meeting him because I want to?
“I was looking around to see if my little sister had come to watch the game.”
“There was no communication from the Garden of Five Colors.”
"Yes. “It is very difficult to meet Charles again.”
The eldest lady made a regretful tongue sound.
Elinor was very unfortunate in many ways.
She graduated from the academy with excellent grades and was able to continue to succeed.
But to protect her nephew, she gave up all the opportunities given to her and disappeared.
The Grand Lady knew of any rumors circulating about Elinor within the palace.
She walks around every night to meet men.
The child is not actually the Grand Duke's real son.
They were full of evil rumours, and even Matthias seemed to have quarreled with Elinor over those rumours.
'Idiot.'
If it is just a cooperative relationship, there is no need to quarrel.
Even if there were rumors about Elinor, it would not affect the search for her younger sister.
It might even attract Charlotte, who is interested in news of her older sister.
There is only one case in which a man becomes jealous of a woman because of another man.
When he has feelings for that woman.
But her foolish son didn't seem to realize those feelings.
'I was really suspicious.'
Actually, Elinor is not a bad bride. But it is very good.
Young, beautiful, smart, and even kind.
Especially since she has a strong sense of responsibility.
She even considered taking care of her infant nephew instead of her sister.
These days, among young people who only think about themves, this is a quality that is difficult to find.
'This girl isn't really a single mother either.'
If only the baby came back to his place, it wouldn't be so bad for her to officially date Matthias.
Therefore, she wanted them to maintain a good relationship first, but the problem was the son himf.