I decided to pretend to be lovers with Rhodnes. Aside from taking revenge on Noevian, I had to live my life as Blie. It was time to say goodbye to the past when I couldn’t even swallow food that someone brought me while lying sick. I was grateful that I could do something for someone now.
"Hmm..."
After finishing what she was doing, Jonah wiped her hands on her apron and looked at the list herself.
“Oh, this is good.”
“What is it?”
My eyes lit up.
“Tomorrow is Chocolate Day. You wrote ‘Make Cookies’ on it. We’ll make it for you tomorrow morning, so take it with you. Are you going with His Highness the Grand Duke on the second day of His Highness the Crown Prince's birthday? If you give it to him on that day, wouldn’t it be a different experience?”
“No, read carefully. I made it ‘by myself’!”
“Madam... In person? Do you really have to?”
Jonah's strange gaze was now very familiar to me. Originally, Blie would have been busy finding fault with the cookies that others baked for her. I was a little excited at the thought of being able to do something I had always only imagined with my healthy body.
“I’m healthy enough to make my own cookies...!”
“Yes, you are very healthy!”
Seeing the owner's face looking excited, Jonah smiled brightly and clapped her hands in agreement.
“Then, I’ll gather the maids who are the best at baking cookies in the mansion and have them wait for you tomorrow!”
“Yes, tell them I said I’d take good care of it.”
How should I pack it?
'I didn't know you would suddenly kiss me like that.'
My goal was to provoke Noevian and enter the Grand Duke's residence as soon as possible, not after the time he mentioned had passed. I wanted to know why and how Noevian had killed me. At the same time, I had to personally investigate if there was any information that could bring him down. I also had to remember to find the body and show it to Rhodnes. And this time, I added a small wish that Rhodnes would no longer suffer so much and live a new life.
'A grateful person.'
A beautiful and grateful person who remembers Adrienne Piretta so fondly.
Knock-knock.
At the sound of a quiet knock on the bedroom door, I released the tension I had been holding onto and turned my gaze. It was Jonah’s job to take care of the pretty lady every evening, and today, as usual, I saw her coming in with a tray filled with all kinds of herbs and oils. I, who naturally stretched out on the long couch, opened my mouth to Jonah, who was pretending to be serious while mixing the perfume.
“Jonah, have you ever been in love?”
"Yes-?"
Jonah, who was not yet an adult, quickly blushed.
“What do lovers do?”
“Well, wouldn’t you know that better than me?”
Jonah answered intelligently as she mixed the powders to be spread on the master's head with the perfume.
'That's true, I guess.'
In the eyes of the servants, I must have been a great witch who lured the iron-blooded Grand Duke.
“I wonder what normal lovers do.”
“Your Highness the Grand Duke and the Lady are in an ordinary relationship. It doesn’t seem right...”
I felt my heart sink a little when I saw the cute face of Jonah, who was leading the story. I couldn't even count how many years it had been. People might have thought that Adrienne Swan Piretta was the woman that the Iron Chancellor, Noevian Trovica, fell in love with at first sight, but that wasn't the case. Adrienne and Noevian had a very long relationship without anyone knowing.
“Jonah, have you ever been in love?”
"Yes-?"
Jonah, who was not yet an adult, quickly blushed.
“What do lovers do?”
“Well, wouldn’t you know that better than me?”
Jonah answered intelligently as she mixed the powders to be spread on the master's head with the perfume.
'That's true, I guess.'
In the eyes of the servants, I must have been a great witch who lured the iron-blooded Grand Duke.
“I wonder what normal lovers do.”
“Your Highness the Grand Duke and the Lady are in an ordinary relationship. It doesn’t seem right...”
I felt my heart sink a little when I saw the cute face of Jonah, who was leading the story. I couldn't even count how many years it had been. People might have thought that Adrienne Swan Piretta was the woman that the Iron Chancellor, Noevian Trovica, fell in love with at first sight, but that wasn't the case. Adrienne and Noevian had a very long relationship without anyone knowing.
He, a member of the royal family, was at the Royal Academy, and Adrienne, a common noble, was at the Common Academy. They met for the first time in the library, one of the few spaces the two academies shared, and they constantly exchanged letters, understanding each other and sharing their feelings. Adrienne filled in what he lacked, and Noevian filled in what she lacked. That's how they relied on each other, and at one point, they even imagined a future together. They were young, so they didn't even know it was love, and they exchanged letters diligently.
It was when she confessed to Bianca that they had someone in mind when the debutante was approaching. Bianca said that what she had done was love!
They never met face to face, but instead, they exchanged letters without any regrets. When they met in person at the debutante, Noevian proposed to Adrienne in a way that was exactly like what she had imagined. Was this a normal love affair?
“Well, I heard that the higher-ups are curious about the love lives of commoners.”
“Uh, uh.”
I, who was worried, quickly came to my senses and looked at Jonah, who was thinking deeply. For the lover's act with Rhodnes to seem real enough to turn Noevian's stomach upside down, I had to know what ordinary lovers do. Jonah continued to speak while rubbing the mixed potion on my head.
“Actually, if you have a lover, I think it’s safe to give them things they wanted to do or give them. Do you want to give His Highness a present?”
“Ah, a present!”
I clapped my hands without realizing it.
“Yes, I can give him a gift!”
Things I wanted to do when I had a lover. Things I wanted to give to others. Those things were clear in my head even without having to write them down on paper.
'I wish there was something I could do for you.'
Haven't I always looked at Noevian with that kind of thought?
“Well, I heard that the higher-ups are curious about the love lives of commoners.”
“Uh, uh.”
I, who was worried, quickly came to my senses and looked at Jonah, who was thinking deeply. For the lover's act with Rhodnes to seem real enough to turn Noevian's stomach upside down, I had to know what ordinary lovers do. Jonah continued to speak while rubbing the mixed potion on my head.
“Actually, if you have a lover, I think it’s safe to give them things they wanted to do or give them. Do you want to give His Highness a present?”
“Ah, a present!”
I clapped my hands without realizing it.
“Yes, I can give him a gift!”
Things I wanted to do when I had a lover. Things I wanted to give to others. Those things were clear in my head even without having to write them down on paper.
'I wish there was something I could do for you.'
Haven't I always looked at Noevian with that kind of thought?
I wanted to see my loved one smile and be happy because of me. While under Jonah's care, I began to write down the thoughts that were bubbling up on paper. Things I couldn't do with Noevian before and would never do again. Things that would be enough to upset Noevian if I did with Rhodnes.
“Madam, what is all this?”
“Something I wanted to do for my lover.”
“Madam, what is all this?”
“Something I wanted to do for my lover.”
"Hmm..."
After finishing what she was doing, Jonah wiped her hands on her apron and looked at the list herself.
“Oh, this is good.”
“What is it?”
My eyes lit up.
“Tomorrow is Chocolate Day. You wrote ‘Make Cookies’ on it. We’ll make it for you tomorrow morning, so take it with you. Are you going with His Highness the Grand Duke on the second day of His Highness the Crown Prince's birthday? If you give it to him on that day, wouldn’t it be a different experience?”
“No, read carefully. I made it ‘by myself’!”
“Madam... In person? Do you really have to?”
Jonah's strange gaze was now very familiar to me. Originally, Blie would have been busy finding fault with the cookies that others baked for her. I was a little excited at the thought of being able to do something I had always only imagined with my healthy body.
“I’m healthy enough to make my own cookies...!”
“Yes, you are very healthy!”
Seeing the owner's face looking excited, Jonah smiled brightly and clapped her hands in agreement.
“Then, I’ll gather the maids who are the best at baking cookies in the mansion and have them wait for you tomorrow!”
“Yes, tell them I said I’d take good care of it.”
How should I pack it?
I held my pounding heart tightly and lay down on the bed as soon as Jonah finished her work. It was the time when social circles and gossip magazines would provocatively mention the name Blie Acacia. Just because I went to a few balls as his partner, would there be provocative articles about me and Rhodnes, who was already rumored to be a prodigal son?
Wouldn’t I need to be different to seem like I was really hot with him, not just one of the many women he had affairs with?
If the government Noevian wanted to hide so badly kept talking about it like this, Noevian would obviously try to hide Blie by bringing her into his territory. He might even try to bring her into the Grand Duke’s residence as soon as possible. That’s the Noevian I knew.
As my thoughts drifted to Noevian, the excitement I had been thinking about one by one with my healthy body subsided slightly.
'I didn't know you would suddenly kiss me like that.'
My goal was to provoke Noevian and enter the Grand Duke's residence as soon as possible, not after the time he mentioned had passed. I wanted to know why and how Noevian had killed me. At the same time, I had to personally investigate if there was any information that could bring him down. I also had to remember to find the body and show it to Rhodnes. And this time, I added a small wish that Rhodnes would no longer suffer so much and live a new life.
'A grateful person.'
A beautiful and grateful person who remembers Adrienne Piretta so fondly.
I went to the Count's library and looked through the baking books. I felt relaxed and motivated as I thought that I could do anything for the person I was grateful for with ny healthy body. I banished the Noevian that was burning my heart out of my mind. And for the time being, I decided to focus on strengthening my bond with Rhodnes and achieving my goal.
***
Marge stared at the hostess of the mansion who had been busy since morning with a tired gaze. The Countess, who had gotten up early and gone to the 'dawn market' with several maids, had come into the kitchen where she had never been before and was diligently kneading dough. Thinking of the past when she would cause a fuss over even a single thread on her pretty clothes, the sight of her wearing a hood and having flour smeared on her face while learning how to make cookies from the maids was very unfamiliar.
'There's no more medicine to give you, what should I do?'
Ding! Tiring!
'There's no more medicine to give you, what should I do?'
Ding! Tiring!
The people who had been gathered in groups of three or five and chatting in front of the stove opened the stove as soon as the bell-shaped clock they had set rang and took out the cookies. When the golden-baked heart-shaped and star-shaped cookies appeared in the steam rising, the Countess and her maids cheered at the same time.
“I...made it...!”
The face of Blie Acacia, who seemed moved at first glance, was the best. She covered her mouth with her hand, her nose covered with soot from the furnace, and opened her mouth to the maids around her.
“No, no, we made it! Thank you. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have been able to make it this quickly.”
“I never knew you were so good with your hands!”
“That’s right, you hardly ever make mistakes, and if you keep doing this, you might open a confectionery shop or something!”
'Oh, like that.'
The young maids, who didn't know that telling the Countess that she was doing a good job wasn't a compliment, shook their heads at the slip of the tongue. Marge, who had been clicking her tongue at the thought that Blie, who was prone to mood swings, would scold them all at once, nodded obediently and looked at her with sparkling eyes.
'Huh...?'
“Marge, Marge, you should try it first.”
'It's poison. It was definitely poisoned.'
Or maybe it's a laxative! Marge definitely thinks so in her head. Blie's face, smiling brightly and offering to try it first, was so innocent that she couldn't say no.
“Me, me?”
“Yeah. We ate a lot of sweets while making it! I think the most accurate evaluation would be if Marge tried it.”
Oh my. If that was acting. If it was some kind of sophisticated method to punish her for acting so rudely all this time with laxatives or poisoned cookies...!
“I...made it...!”
The face of Blie Acacia, who seemed moved at first glance, was the best. She covered her mouth with her hand, her nose covered with soot from the furnace, and opened her mouth to the maids around her.
“No, no, we made it! Thank you. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have been able to make it this quickly.”
“I never knew you were so good with your hands!”
“That’s right, you hardly ever make mistakes, and if you keep doing this, you might open a confectionery shop or something!”
'Oh, like that.'
The young maids, who didn't know that telling the Countess that she was doing a good job wasn't a compliment, shook their heads at the slip of the tongue. Marge, who had been clicking her tongue at the thought that Blie, who was prone to mood swings, would scold them all at once, nodded obediently and looked at her with sparkling eyes.
'Huh...?'
“Marge, Marge, you should try it first.”
'It's poison. It was definitely poisoned.'
Or maybe it's a laxative! Marge definitely thinks so in her head. Blie's face, smiling brightly and offering to try it first, was so innocent that she couldn't say no.
“Me, me?”
“Yeah. We ate a lot of sweets while making it! I think the most accurate evaluation would be if Marge tried it.”
Oh my. If that was acting. If it was some kind of sophisticated method to punish her for acting so rudely all this time with laxatives or poisoned cookies...!
As she thought that, Marge picked up the heart-shaped cookie that was still warm and steaming with her trembling hands.
“Please come and try it, maid!”
“Mrs Marge, come on!”
'Did I scold you too much for cleaning properly last time? They might be in on it too.'
She doesn't know. Anyway, the smell was so delicious and buttery that she almost munched on the cookie, thinking she was going to die.
"Hmm?"
“How is it?.”
"Uh..."
It was the first time she had such delicious cookies. It was rare to have the opportunity to eat cookies made with high-quality ingredients. It was something she could only sneak a bite of before the party was over and the leftovers were thrown away. The buttery aroma that enveloped her mouth and her nostrils, and the chocolate that melted inside, made Marge's eyes sparkle.
“You really could open a cookie store.”
“Wow-!”
“See, Ma’am! I told you, you really have talent?”
“How did you come up with the idea of putting chocolate inside a cookie? I’ve seen people sprinkle chocolate chips on it, but this is a first!”
The kitchen was filled with cheers. As she watched Blie handing a basket of cookies to the old butler who had come running in surprise at the commotion, Marge chewed and swallowed the cookies she had not yet finished. She felt like she was about to cry.
'I don't think I'll have to look for medicine anymore.'
The old butler, who was looking at them with a pleased expression, made up his mind as he locked eyes with her. If Countess Blie Acacia had really gone mad since someday, it would be better for the peace of this household to leave her as she was.
“Please come and try it, maid!”
“Mrs Marge, come on!”
'Did I scold you too much for cleaning properly last time? They might be in on it too.'
She doesn't know. Anyway, the smell was so delicious and buttery that she almost munched on the cookie, thinking she was going to die.
"Hmm?"
“How is it?.”
"Uh..."
It was the first time she had such delicious cookies. It was rare to have the opportunity to eat cookies made with high-quality ingredients. It was something she could only sneak a bite of before the party was over and the leftovers were thrown away. The buttery aroma that enveloped her mouth and her nostrils, and the chocolate that melted inside, made Marge's eyes sparkle.
“You really could open a cookie store.”
“Wow-!”
“See, Ma’am! I told you, you really have talent?”
“How did you come up with the idea of putting chocolate inside a cookie? I’ve seen people sprinkle chocolate chips on it, but this is a first!”
The kitchen was filled with cheers. As she watched Blie handing a basket of cookies to the old butler who had come running in surprise at the commotion, Marge chewed and swallowed the cookies she had not yet finished. She felt like she was about to cry.
'I don't think I'll have to look for medicine anymore.'
The old butler, who was looking at them with a pleased expression, made up his mind as he locked eyes with her. If Countess Blie Acacia had really gone mad since someday, it would be better for the peace of this household to leave her as she was.
***
Countess Acacia, who was wrapped more beautifully than prettier cookies, was dazzlingly beautiful today. Madame Leblaix had been requested to go on a business trip directly from Countess Acacia, and even though it was one of the busiest days of the year, she ran to the Count’s residence without a word and dressed her up with all her might.
Compared to the past, when she had
dressed so vulgarly and flashily that it covered her beautiful face, it was a change like rotten pumpkin vines gilded and studded with diamonds. All the servants’ eyes were shining in anticipation of Noevian Trovica, who was coming to fetch the government he had fallen for even during his wife’s funeral. When the creaking sound of the magnificent carriage stopped at the wide-open entrance of the Count's mansion, Marge's nostrils flared in excitement, but then her eyes, which followed the long legs stretching out inside the carriage, widened as if they would spill out at any moment. It was because she saw such a shocking face.
“Not His highness the Grand Duke... ?”
Grand Duke Noevian Trovica was one of the most beautiful men in Ronta, but the man in front of her did not have the intellectual civil servant feeling that Noevian had, but rather the feeling of a military officer who overpowered those around him and gave off a sense of intimidation. Not only that, if you looked up along his long body, you could see a delicately sculpted face, which was the most inhuman face that Marge had ever seen.
“Not His highness the Grand Duke... ?”
Grand Duke Noevian Trovica was one of the most beautiful men in Ronta, but the man in front of her did not have the intellectual civil servant feeling that Noevian had, but rather the feeling of a military officer who overpowered those around him and gave off a sense of intimidation. Not only that, if you looked up along his long body, you could see a delicately sculpted face, which was the most inhuman face that Marge had ever seen.
Except for a few servants who could not take their eyes off him with their mouths wide open, Jonah and Marge’s gazes were finally turned to the landlady who had been waiting. The lady, smiling brightly, greeted the beautiful man at the entrance as if she had been waiting, and smiled softly.
"Lady...?"
And he waved his hand to her. A quiet gust of wind passed in front of the Count's residence, and the servants all muttered with blank stares.
“Blonde, red eyes...”
“Could it be that we’ve only heard about...”
“Has she actually seen Ronta’s problematic child?”
The maids, whose hair was red from head to toe, could only then hide their excitement and start jumping around.
“Wow, wow...”
“Madam, is Madam having an affair?”
“You already have a lover.”
“What about His Highness the Duke?”
“Everyone, be quiet! If you want to talk, go inside and talk.”
"Lady...?"
And he waved his hand to her. A quiet gust of wind passed in front of the Count's residence, and the servants all muttered with blank stares.
“Blonde, red eyes...”
“Could it be that we’ve only heard about...”
“Has she actually seen Ronta’s problematic child?”
The maids, whose hair was red from head to toe, could only then hide their excitement and start jumping around.
“Wow, wow...”
“Madam, is Madam having an affair?”
“You already have a lover.”
“What about His Highness the Duke?”
“Everyone, be quiet! If you want to talk, go inside and talk.”
"Your nose is bleeding.”
“I’m tired.”
Marge, who had roughly covered her nose with the handkerchief Jonah had handed her, met the eyes of the old butler, who also had his mouth open. It wasn’t because of the man’s appearance, but the feeling that the peace of the house that was just beginning to return was shaking so strongly that the back of her head felt cold. Marge and the old butler’s eyes were shaking just as much.
“I’m tired.”
Marge, who had roughly covered her nose with the handkerchief Jonah had handed her, met the eyes of the old butler, who also had his mouth open. It wasn’t because of the man’s appearance, but the feeling that the peace of the house that was just beginning to return was shaking so strongly that the back of her head felt cold. Marge and the old butler’s eyes were shaking just as much.
They say that they stick together. The problem child who was a leaky bowl inside had met a problem child who was already a leaky bowl outside!
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