Obviously, It's My Child - Chapter 151
Martha chuckled and said.
[“It seems like he thinks he has lost you to the Duke.”]
Claire reflected on this. Since their engagement, the time she had spent with Elliott had decreased.
There were new business ventures and then the marriage, but the unexpected complications from the Empress had left her with no rest.
Erich’s involvement had enriched Elliott’s life in many ways and had its benefits, but it had also brought issues like this.
Elliott was a good boy and hadn’t strayed. Though he had become quite clingy.
‘I was only thinking about going to the estate for now…’
She was also supposed to visit Ludendorff, which made her a bit anxious. It felt risky to take Elliott along, and she was concerned about leaving him behind.
Suddenly, the door burst open.
“Mom!”
Elliott yelled energetically as he ran in and threw his entire body onto Claire’s lap.
“Oof!”
Her already sore back gave a sharp twinge. If it weren’t for the hot springs, she might have thought she’d broken something.
Elliott clumsily clambered up to her lap.
“Mom!”
He was an angel. Although the weight could shatter her knees.
Claire lifted Elliott up onto her thighs and hugged his plump body, soothing her tired muscles and heart.
“Where have you been?”
“To Uncle Gustav’s. There were lots of guests!”
Elliott spread his arms wide to show just how many. He looked as excited as a puppy.
“I got candy!”
“Let me see.”
Elliott flinched.
“I didn’t eat it. Nanny saw.”
“I’m just curious what candy you got.”
After hesitating, Elliott carefully pulled out a wrapped candy from his pocket.
Claire took it and held it in her hand while petting Elliott’s head.
“Should Mom swap it for some chocolate?”
“Really?!”
Elliott’s eyes sparkled; he preferred chocolate over candy. Claire pocketed the candy and lifted Elliott up.
It might not seem educational.
But it was better than him secretly eating something out of sight. Food from strangers couldn’t always be trusted.
Claire walked over to the table and opened the chocolate box with one hand.
She then bent down a bit so Elliott could see into the box clearly.
“Pick one.”
“Ung….But.”
Elliott hesitated.
“This was given to Mom by Dad.”
“It’s okay. Dad won’t get mad if I give it to you, Elliott.”
Still unsure, Elliott agreed only after Claire promised to share the candy with Dad. He then giggled and picked one out.
“Mmm.”
He savored the chocolate slowly, making contented noises that Claire found adorable.
Claire moved to the armchair with Elliott in her arms.
“Is Dad busy again?”
With chocolate on his lips, Elliott asked.
“Should we go on a trip, just the two of us?”
Elliott looked sincerely conflicted. He resented being left behind when she vanished with Erich, but felt sad without him.
Erich was still in his study, dealing with the aftermath of the recent incident.
Claire had finished her part by sending a letter to Roger, instructing him to review and report any unusual employment practices.
But Erich’s tasks were not so simple.
It was clear that slave rings had infiltrated much further north.
And unlike Jacob, who acted alone, it was likely that others were engaging in separate businesses involving drugs while being backed by the Empress.
To root out any slave operations, Erich had to check not only the mines and factories directly owned by Klausener but also other businesses within his domain owned by other merchants that required substantial labor.
[“Can’t we regulate this?”]
Formally, administration was the lord’s responsibility. However, Erich frowned and said.
[“We can’t allow such activities within Klausener. Moreover, this isn’t just an issue with the Arren people.”]
What’s harmful will eventually spread and affect the entire region.
It had to be stopped before it could go any further.
[“I clearly couldn’t understand the Empress? Did she think she could control it?”]
[“Maybe she thought it didn’t matter. After all, they’re just commoners. The intent to use Arren as a nutrient to cement Rommel’s dominance doesn’t mean she intends to enrich Rommel’s commoners too.”]
Erich looked at Claire with a troubled expression but couldn’t counter her point.
Perhaps in his youth, he might have been ignorant of reality, but not anymore. Still, a certain disbelief lingered in his heart.
He didn’t possess the same consciousness as Claire, who believed in treating people humanely.
However, owning and governing land was both the right and duty of the nobility, and virtue lay in that responsibility.
That duty included the people on the land.
Truly dignified nobles were rare, but Erich had at least expected the Empress to fall within that category.
He had thought that indulging in power wasn’t a significant issue as long as one’s duties were fulfilled.
Claire, of course, scoffed at that idea.
[“People obsessed with power fulfilling their duties? Unlikely.”]
Erich sighed.
Rooting out the slave rings and filling those vacancies with new employees wasn’t the major issue.
The real challenge was deciding how to handle the addicts.
Considering the upper echelons might be connected to the Empress, they couldn’t act rashly.
He was reluctant with moving slowly either, as it could allow time for the guilty to flee.
But scouring his vast domain and businesses to eradicate the problem in one fell swoop would require extensive efforts and preparations.
Claire hadn’t complained about this being a terrible honeymoon.
It was she who had first refused Erich’s suggestion to delegate everything to subordinates and put it all off.
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