An Overnight Stay at the Duke’s Estate
Thanks to Lord Donold’s generosity, we ended up spending the night at the Duke’s estate.
—That sounds casual, but honestly, this development was completely unexpected.
Since the Abbott region is one of the farthest territories from here, we were planning to spend the night at an inn in a nearby town before heading back. Apparently, though, we’re the only ones who travel that way—Lord Donold seemed quite surprised by it.
Well, I guess most other nobles have secondary residences they can stay in on the way home. The Tryon family doesn’t have anything like that.
While Lord Doyle and Lady Alyssa continued chatting happily after dinner, the adults—myself included—engaged in some lively small talk with Lord Donold. Under normal circumstances, someone of his status wouldn’t be someone you could just casually sit down and converse with, but his incredibly approachable demeanor had melted away all the tension.
What caught Lord Donold’s interest the most was the environment of the Abbott region.
“I’ve heard before that it’s a place rich in nature, but that’s about all the information I could find. It’s always been on my mind.”
It seems he’d been interested in it for quite some time.
But why would the head of a ducal house be paying attention to a remote territory like the Abbott region?
As I was wondering whether to ask, he seemed to sense it and brought it up himself.
“Back in the time of the previous head—that is, my father—there used to be a mana ore mine in the Abbott region. I’ve heard rumors that it’s now an abandoned mine.”
“Mana ore...”
That was news to me.
Mana ore is one of the essential resources in this world. With just a bit of mana, it can cause water to gush out, produce heat, or have other effects depending on the type—an indispensable part of everyday life.
But if this was during the previous head of the McCreed family’s time… that’s well before my time, or Elina’s, or even Marietta’s. If anyone would know, it’d be Mr. Brough.
“Mr. Brough, is it true there used to be a mana ore mine?”
“Y-Yes… but nothing could be mined anymore, so the operation shut down.”
If the mine had still been active, perhaps we wouldn’t be so worried about our local industries… mana ore mines are rare even globally, so it’s a real shame.
“Then, since the mine was abandoned, no one has been near the mountain?”
“That should be the case. There used to be a village for the miners nearby, but no one lives there now.”
“I see...”
Lord Donold looked down as if deep in thought, then after a moment, he raised his head decisively.
“I’d like to discuss this matter thoroughly with Lord Doyle, the current lord.”
With arms folded, Lord Donold said this firmly.
Could it be… the real reason the Tryon family was invited to the ball was to talk about the mana ore mine?
What do you think about this chapter?
