Duke, Please Fail! - Chapter 3

Episode 3

Tom and Gerald nodded in agreement with Sophie’s words. Tom immediately spoke.

“I handle the forest, pastures, and orchards. Sophie takes care of the square, public facilities, and fences. Gerald deals with the brewery, barns, and warehouses.”

To be precise, what supervisors did was manage and oversee the facilities and laborers in their designated areas, collecting relevant taxes and recording them in ledgers. I primarily used those ledgers to compile reports and present them to Leonel.

Of course, overseeing the farmlands, crops, and residents fell under my jurisdiction.

“If you ever need anything related to our tasks, please don’t hesitate to call on us.”

The three of them returned to their work without acknowledging my response.

I didn’t even feel slighted by how dismissive they were. I passed by them and entered a room further inside.

‘Now what?’

Before, I had learned the practical work by asking Sophie, Gerald, and Tom various questions. But now, after three years of experience, there was nothing specific left to learn.

So, there was only one thing left for me to do.

‘Well, what else? I need to get my revenge on Leonel!’

Surely there was an effective way. A method that wouldn’t harm the estate residents or my reputation yet would effectively ruin the estate Leonel couldn’t manage or profit from.

If only I could join forces with someone who can tie down the Duke. Is there such a person among the estate residents?

As I pondered, the face of one person flashed in my mind.

‘Faust Lebrave.’

Among the estate residents, the general impression of him was as follows:

A wastrel who squanders his life on alcohol and gambling. A mere drifter with a solid body who only knows how to pick fights!

Due to his behavior, the residents neither trusted nor assigned tasks to him. He had caused trouble here and there and had been brought to trial numerous times. However, strangely enough, Leonel and those around him were lenient towards Faust.

‘Alright. I’ll give Faust the largest plot of land!’

Since he wouldn’t work, it was obvious that the crops on that land would fail. If the timing was off even slightly, the vast land would just lie fallow, causing significant losses. But since the Duke treated Faust leniently, he wouldn’t be punished, and if they claimed they didn’t know about him when he first arrived, my reputation wouldn’t be affected.

‘Perfect!’

I jumped up from my seat and swung the door open. It made quite a noise, but everyone was too busy working to pay any attention to me. I cautiously stepped outside to not disturb anyone and headed towards the carriage waiting nearby.

‘Since Faust starts drinking from the crack of dawn… let’s head towards the tavern!’

Once I arrived in the village, I loitered around the area near the tavern, where Faust was likely to be.

It didn’t take long before a man with abundant hair on his arms and chest, reeking of alcohol, emerged. His huge frame seemed to defy the concept of leading a healthy life, and he walked with a swaying gait.

That’s undoubtedly my Faust. My accomplice.

“Excuse me!”

“What?”

Faust turned abruptly with a slur and scanned me up and down with an unsavory gaze. It left a distasteful feeling, but it was all to make that Duke suffer!

“What? Do you have an interest in me? Huh?”

Faust approached with a pout. I nodded vigorously.

“Yes, I’m interested.”

Even though I gave him the response he wanted, Faust still had a perplexed expression. He even stumbled backward a few steps. I approached him and took out the metal badge hanging around my neck.

“I’m the new estate manager.”

“Th-th-th-that, what! Are you saying that if I say something wrong, you’ll send me to prison or something? Huh?!”

“Surely not, Faust.”

He had been rolling his eyes and about to lose his temper, but he abruptly stopped and burped.

With a broad smile, I proposed to him.

“Would you like to work with me?”

Faust stared at me with a dumbfounded expression.

“……Hahahaha!”

Suddenly, he burst into a loud laugh.

“Hey, do you even know who I am?”

Of course, I did. The good-for-nothing troublemaker, swindler, drunkard, lazybones! Over the three years of my work, I had heard rumors of him being brought to trial dozens of times.

The very first piece of advice I received on my first day was about Faust. He was known for being involved in brawls and causing trouble, so they advised me never to assign him any tasks.

In other words, he was exactly the type of person I needed right now. The mastermind who could wreck the estate! I couldn’t hide my smile as I nodded.

“Follow me, Faust.”

“What? Really? Huh? Are you serious?”

I quietly ushered him into the carriage and returned to the estate management office.

As soon as I entered, the supervisors looked at me. Their expressions resembled those who had just discovered a ghost lurking behind someone’s back.

I smiled at them with a composed expression and led Faust into my office.

“Please have a seat, Mr. Faust.”

“Here we go. The young lady is new here and doesn’t seem to know much yet. Don’t do something you’ll regret.”

I didn’t like the way he was muttering under his breath, as if it was a perfect opportunity to give him a good slap on the cheek. But he was going to become my accomplice, so I decided to overlook it for now.

“Here’s the contract. I’m planning to entrust Mr. Faust with 5,000 plots of land.”

“What, what?”

“Start right away tomorrow. I’ll pay your wages upfront, and you can return it later with the harvest.”

“You’re paying upfront?”

“Yes. If it’s too difficult to manage alone, you can hire someone. However, make sure to only hire people you used to drink and play with.”

“This is insane, totally insane!”

Right. These conditions are truly absurd and would never be proposed under normal circumstances unless one intended to ruin the estate. But that’s exactly what I intended to do.

“So, are you not interested? It’s a good way to earn money.”

“Of course, I will! Don’t cry and beg me to step down later.”

Faust jabbed his finger onto the contract. Then, he looked around as if checking if anyone was watching, and suddenly stood up.

He quickly left the management office, walking with heavy steps. It was as if he feared I might change my mind and cancel the contract. I covered my mouth with my gloved hand as I watched him leave.

“Hehehe.”

An eerie laughter escaped from me. It surprised even me to hear such a sinister laugh.

Feeling a bit embarrassed despite being alone, I quickly composed myself and placed the contract in a drawer.

* * *

In the late dawn, Arette entered the study. Levance, who was half-asleep while going through documents, raised his head. Leonel, who was reviewing reports, also looked at Arette.

Arette bowed and then began to speak.

“Your Grace, I have something to report.”

“What is it?”

“The new estate manager has entrusted the cultivation to Faust today.”

Levance lifted his head and asked Arette.

“Faust, you mean that Faust?”

“Yes.”

Leonel’s expression, which had been calm as he listened, changed oddly.

Faust had originally been a knight in the army led by Leonel. He had fought alongside Levance, Arette, and Leonel in the closest proximity.

During the war, Leonel received a report that his close friend Tatiasun, more like family than a friend, was passing information to the enemy.

Leonel couldn’t simply order his friend’s execution based on a report. It took too long to verify the truth, and the war dragged on for that long.

Meanwhile, Faust’s wife passed away.

‘If I had believed the report back then and proceeded with the execution, Faust might have been able to keep his impending loss at bay.’

But some regrets can’t be undone.

Returning home to find that his wife was already buried, Faust fell into a deep despair. For months, he didn’t participate in training. He indulged in alcohol, lashed out in anger, and wandered.

Even those who sympathized with Faust eventually turned away. Despite being scolded and confronted by Tyler, Faust couldn’t escape his pitiful state.

Eventually, he was expelled from the knighthood.

Leonel felt deep guilt as if all of that was his fault.

“Why Faust of all people?”

“That’s right. People around us must have warned her to stay away from Faust, but it’s strange.”

Leonel had given Faust various tasks by bringing him in several times. However, Faust couldn’t quit drinking, and he repeatedly clashed with estate managers.

But Faust wasn’t just Leonel’s wounded finger, or rather, just a wounded finger. Cursed and broken, he was like a twitching finger that couldn’t find respite.

To entrust cultivation to Faust. Moreover, to the new estate manager on her first day of work.

It almost seemed as if she knew from the beginning that he was Leonel’s wounded finger.

“Something’s suspicious.”

Leonel muttered softly and abruptly stood up. Startled, Levance quickly got up too.

“Where are you going?”

“To the estate manager.”

“At this hour? Are you out of your mind?”

Levance rushed out and blocked Leonel’s path.

“No, you can’t.”

Arette interjected from the side.

“Exactly. Visiting a lady’s room at this hour would be unbecoming even for a knight.”

Leonel pushed Levance and Arette aside simultaneously.

“I am no longer a knight.”

Leonel became a duke at the age of 14 after losing his parents. The nobles of his rank eyed him greedily, hoping to eliminate him and take his title. He needed a place to rely on to survive.

He went to the queen, offering to protect her in exchange for following her every command. From the age of 16, he fought on the battlefield under her orders.

Up until that point, he was still a knight.

However, after he ended the life of the traitor who had once been his close friend, he abandoned the title of knight.

Leonel grew tired of the war. That’s why a few years ago, he refused the queen’s command to join the battlefield. The queen asked him,

‘Do you know anything besides killing people? If you do, prove it.’

The queen ordered Leonel to turn the barren Altwood duchy, which he had neglected due to his focus on the war, into a fertile land within seven years.

‘If the results are acceptable, I won’t send you to the battlefield. But if you fail, I will charge you with disobedience and execute you.’

Leonel couldn’t accept or decline. The queen’s decision was already firm. He had no choice but to comply.

And he had only five years left.

Leonel glanced at his pocket watch for a moment before resuming his stride.

“The estate manager is just that, an estate manager, not a lady.”

“It’s almost 4 in the morning. Visiting someone at this hour is simply madness!”

“I’m not here to share secrets.”

“Then what? Are you going to interrogate her?”

“Your words are not entirely wrong. Prince Adelhardt might have planted someone to assassinate me.”