The Emperor's youngest half-brother, an indispensable strategist. The only Grand Duke of Ronta and the lord of the North. The Grand Duke of Trovica's mansion, as grand as its great prestige, had dozens of servants. And at the center of it all were Annie and her group, who were arrogantly cleaning the windows.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen the Grand Duke so angry.”
“Ever since the time when he was with that woman at the Grand Duchess’s memorial banquet.”
“What about the government? If it’s really the government, then how come there’s not a single rumor about the master dating a woman?”
'Next time you see me, instead of greeting me with your two good legs, bow down politely on both knees.'
The words that the woman had said as she left the Grand Duke's residence suddenly came to mind.
"Number of animals!!"
Annie became displeased as soon as she thought about it, and she frowned and called out to Marie.
“Uh, yeah!”
“Come here and clean it up. Weren’t you in charge here yesterday? How did you end up with so many handprints? Did you do it on purpose because you knew it was my turn to clean it up the next day?”
“No, no! Oh my!”
“Then wipe it again properly, you lazy bitch.”
Annie kicked the bucket with her foot.
“Wipe it clean. Let it dry in the sun for a few days and then apply some oil. Then it will be fine again.”
Annie left the room she was cleaning with her group.
“But, the reason the master was angry yesterday might have been because of that woman.”
"What?"
“I think I heard the butler say that woman was very extravagant. Could it be that she was carrying the master on her back and living a very extravagant life?”
“I don’t think His Highness the Grand Duke would be that angry about her extravagance...”
“The reason he left earlier than scheduled was to visit that woman’s mansion...”
“If the rumors about the government are true, they might have had a big fight and gone to say goodbye!”
'That's what happened...?'
Annie smiled, lifting the corners of her lips as she felt the nerves that had been so tense being released.
“Well then, that’s true. Would a woman like that be compatible with His Highness the Grand Duke?”
Next time we meet, kneel and say hello?
The lady who came rushing in with dozens of knights was accompanied by about fifteen maids of the Count's residence. The woman approached Annie, who was frozen stiffly, without hesitation, and whispered with a friendly smile.
"What are you doing?"
A woman's voice was heard clearly among the crowd of servants who were swarming around, noisily.
“Have you forgotten? What did you tell me to do the next time you see me?”
The woman's eyes, barely visible, were bloodshot and seemed half-open.
“Have you finished checking? I didn’t know that the Grand Duke left without properly handling the matter.”
“...”
Butler Gaspard glanced over the official document in his hand several times. It was exactly the same format as the imperial official documents that occasionally came down to the mansion, and it had the Empress’s seal.
Sophie, the maid of the Grand Duke's residence, who had barely made her appearance with her aged body, opened her eyes wide and looked at me with anxious eyes. I smoothly raised the corners of my lips as if to reassure her that nothing was wrong.
“Lock them in the closet.”
“!”
“I need to help you feel like talking.”
Nobles have their own way of doing things. Direct beating is not a good option.
"Marie?"
“Yes, yes...?”
Marie, who had been trying her best to avoid eye contact with me from the corner of her eye, came to me, trembling pitifully.
“Don’t give those children locked in the closet even a sip of water or a piece of stale bread.”
“...!”
"And..."
“Isn’t there something piling up?”
Judging by Marie's slightly limping gait and her inability to make eye contact with anyone, it was clear that she had been suffering from Annie for some time. I whispered even lower, like a devil who would give everything in exchange for her soul.
“The demons in the closet will never guess that you are the one kicking the closet, night or day.”
Promise me. Let's keep our promise until the very end, Marie's expression became subtle.
“Madam... What are you going to do by locking me in the closet...!”
“Maid, you are old and need rest. Leave the rest to me, who will follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders. I have no desire to turn this mansion upside down. Isn’t locking you in a closet and regulating your manners a familiar and light punishment for servants of noble families?”
“...”
The maid, who had kept her mouth shut at the words of Her Majesty the Empress's order, just watched as Annie's group was dragged away by several knights.
“This, this, let go!”
“Sophie! Sophie! Help us! This is ridiculous! Our master is the late Grand Duchess!”
As they were dragged along and heard the sound of selling my dead body, even my slight discomfort disappeared. I quietly smiled at Marie, who was fidgeting and hesitating whether to follow them or stay by my side.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen the Grand Duke so angry.”
“Ever since the time when he was with that woman at the Grand Duchess’s memorial banquet.”
“What about the government? If it’s really the government, then how come there’s not a single rumor about the master dating a woman?”
'Next time you see me, instead of greeting me with your two good legs, bow down politely on both knees.'
The words that the woman had said as she left the Grand Duke's residence suddenly came to mind.
"Number of animals!!"
Annie became displeased as soon as she thought about it, and she frowned and called out to Marie.
“Uh, yeah!”
“Come here and clean it up. Weren’t you in charge here yesterday? How did you end up with so many handprints? Did you do it on purpose because you knew it was my turn to clean it up the next day?”
“No, no! Oh my!”
“Then wipe it again properly, you lazy bitch.”
Annie kicked the bucket with her foot.
Bang!
The bucket splashed with a sound, and the dirty water that had been washed in the mop many times soaked into the wooden floor, giving off a musty smell.
“Hey, if water seeps into this floor...!”
“Hey, if water seeps into this floor...!”
“Wipe it clean. Let it dry in the sun for a few days and then apply some oil. Then it will be fine again.”
Annie left the room she was cleaning with her group.
“But, the reason the master was angry yesterday might have been because of that woman.”
"What?"
“I think I heard the butler say that woman was very extravagant. Could it be that she was carrying the master on her back and living a very extravagant life?”
“I don’t think His Highness the Grand Duke would be that angry about her extravagance...”
“The reason he left earlier than scheduled was to visit that woman’s mansion...”
“If the rumors about the government are true, they might have had a big fight and gone to say goodbye!”
'That's what happened...?'
Annie smiled, lifting the corners of her lips as she felt the nerves that had been so tense being released.
“Well then, that’s true. Would a woman like that be compatible with His Highness the Grand Duke?”
Next time we meet, kneel and say hello?
On the subject of a government that is so indulgent that it is abandoned. With a much lighter heart, Annie was thinking about how she would enter the Grand Duke's bedroom once he returned and finished the funeral.
Then, thinking that she should go shopping on the street without telling the busy maid, she walked toward the first-floor entrance. It wasn’t long before her humming suddenly stopped.
Boom!
The door to the magnificent mansion opened violently, and a crowd of strangers poured into the Grand Duke's residence. The person who had barged into the Grand Duke's residence without an owner was Countess Acacia, who had recently ransacked the Grand Duke's residence and disappeared.
“It’s been a while, Annie.”
“...!”
“It’s been a while, Annie.”
“...!”
The lady who came rushing in with dozens of knights was accompanied by about fifteen maids of the Count's residence. The woman approached Annie, who was frozen stiffly, without hesitation, and whispered with a friendly smile.
"What are you doing?"
A woman's voice was heard clearly among the crowd of servants who were swarming around, noisily.
“Have you forgotten? What did you tell me to do the next time you see me?”
The woman's eyes, barely visible, were bloodshot and seemed half-open.
***
“Have you finished checking? I didn’t know that the Grand Duke left without properly handling the matter.”
“...”
Butler Gaspard glanced over the official document in his hand several times. It was exactly the same format as the imperial official documents that occasionally came down to the mansion, and it had the Empress’s seal.
Countess Acacia, who was smiling leisurely, had a sharp air about her. Behind the sofa in the lobby where the noblewoman, who exuded an unfamiliar dignity, sat as if at home, the maids of the Count’s residence, with their backs straight, were looking around the mansion as if they had moved into a new house.
Gaspard felt a sense of crisis at the momentum of the stones that had rolled in.
“If I want to show the body to the mourners, I have to guard it.”
Gaspard swallowed dry saliva as Blie Acacia sat with her legs crossed and stroked the sofa armrests, looking strangely sensual.
“His Highness the Grand Duke did not display the body of His Highness the Grand Duchess outside because he did not want it to become a spectacle. Naturally, anyone visiting the mansion is not shown the body.”
"So?"
“Of course, he ordered me not to show the body to Madam and to leave quietly.”
“Don’t guard the body, just stay quiet and go?”
I narrowed her eyes and stared at the butler, Gaspard. Seeing him standing stiffly, clutching the imperial document in his hand, the power Doris was giving him for a moment became real.
“That is the order His Highness the Grand Duke gave you, not the order I received from Her Majesty the Empress.”
“I am grateful that the Imperial Court has sent someone, but the Grand Duke is also the owner of this Grand Duke’s residence and the owner of the body, so please follow his instructions and I will make sure that you are not inconvenienced while you are here.”
Who could possibly say that the body was Noevian's?
“If I want to show the body to the mourners, I have to guard it.”
Gaspard swallowed dry saliva as Blie Acacia sat with her legs crossed and stroked the sofa armrests, looking strangely sensual.
“His Highness the Grand Duke did not display the body of His Highness the Grand Duchess outside because he did not want it to become a spectacle. Naturally, anyone visiting the mansion is not shown the body.”
"So?"
“Of course, he ordered me not to show the body to Madam and to leave quietly.”
“Don’t guard the body, just stay quiet and go?”
I narrowed her eyes and stared at the butler, Gaspard. Seeing him standing stiffly, clutching the imperial document in his hand, the power Doris was giving him for a moment became real.
“That is the order His Highness the Grand Duke gave you, not the order I received from Her Majesty the Empress.”
“I am grateful that the Imperial Court has sent someone, but the Grand Duke is also the owner of this Grand Duke’s residence and the owner of the body, so please follow his instructions and I will make sure that you are not inconvenienced while you are here.”
Who could possibly say that the body was Noevian's?
Adrienne stared at Gaspard without hiding her laughter. He seemed to be regaining his composure, perhaps thinking that he had made a convincing argument.
“So what you are saying is that the orders of His Highness the Grand Duke have priority over those of Her Majesty the Empress, the ruler of the Empire?”
“That, that! Don’t you know that’s not what I meant?”
“You said that, so why didn’t you say something like that?”
I knew what the butler meant. 'I appreciate the royal consideration, but I will handle it myself.' But I had not come here to engage in meaningless bickering.
“I can’t help it since they won’t even show the body to the royal caretaker who came to guard it.”
“Even though you have come with such authority, you cannot completely surpass my authority as the chief steward within the Grand Duke’s residence.”
“You are right.”
Gaspard finally smiled triumphantly in relief.
“Then we will have to find the body even if we have to question all the servants except you.”
Until Blie Acacia, who has been acting strangely like an aristocrat lately, said this.
“Call all servants except the butler.”
"That...!"
“You should follow your master’s orders like that. No one will blame you. You should do what you have to do. I must follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders, so I will need some help from others.”
The smile that had briefly appeared on the lady's face disappeared in an instant, and her cold, hard face turned away.
“First of all... what about you cheeky guys?”
When the lady turned her head, there was a group of Annies standing stiffly at the entrance, watching the whole situation.
“So what you are saying is that the orders of His Highness the Grand Duke have priority over those of Her Majesty the Empress, the ruler of the Empire?”
“That, that! Don’t you know that’s not what I meant?”
“You said that, so why didn’t you say something like that?”
I knew what the butler meant. 'I appreciate the royal consideration, but I will handle it myself.' But I had not come here to engage in meaningless bickering.
“I can’t help it since they won’t even show the body to the royal caretaker who came to guard it.”
“Even though you have come with such authority, you cannot completely surpass my authority as the chief steward within the Grand Duke’s residence.”
“You are right.”
Gaspard finally smiled triumphantly in relief.
“Then we will have to find the body even if we have to question all the servants except you.”
Until Blie Acacia, who has been acting strangely like an aristocrat lately, said this.
“Call all servants except the butler.”
"That...!"
“You should follow your master’s orders like that. No one will blame you. You should do what you have to do. I must follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders, so I will need some help from others.”
The smile that had briefly appeared on the lady's face disappeared in an instant, and her cold, hard face turned away.
“First of all... what about you cheeky guys?”
When the lady turned her head, there was a group of Annies standing stiffly at the entrance, watching the whole situation.
***
There were a few places where I could guess where the body was hidden. However, I couldn't just search everywhere because people's eyes would follow me wherever I went.
“Is there a child who can help me carry out Her Majesty the Empress’s orders?”
“If you ask us, we don’t know anything.”
“You don’t know anything about this mansion?”
I didn't think that Annie's group, who were going around the mansion and gossiping, didn't know anything. If I were to question them and take my time, I would be short on time, and if I were to use violence without thinking, there would be many eyes watching me. I couldn't act rashly when I didn't even know where Doris's eyes and ears were.
"Yes?"
When I saw Annie standing stiffly and not kneeling, and the other maids watching, my spirit of victory soared. I didn't know where Doris's person was, or who Noevian might have planted to watch me.
“Then you must help me so that I can follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders.”
"Yes...?"
“Is there a child who can help me carry out Her Majesty the Empress’s orders?”
“If you ask us, we don’t know anything.”
“You don’t know anything about this mansion?”
I didn't think that Annie's group, who were going around the mansion and gossiping, didn't know anything. If I were to question them and take my time, I would be short on time, and if I were to use violence without thinking, there would be many eyes watching me. I couldn't act rashly when I didn't even know where Doris's eyes and ears were.
"Yes?"
When I saw Annie standing stiffly and not kneeling, and the other maids watching, my spirit of victory soared. I didn't know where Doris's person was, or who Noevian might have planted to watch me.
“Then you must help me so that I can follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders.”
"Yes...?"
Sophie, the maid of the Grand Duke's residence, who had barely made her appearance with her aged body, opened her eyes wide and looked at me with anxious eyes. I smoothly raised the corners of my lips as if to reassure her that nothing was wrong.
“Lock them in the closet.”
“!”
“I need to help you feel like talking.”
Nobles have their own way of doing things. Direct beating is not a good option.
"Marie?"
“Yes, yes...?”
Marie, who had been trying her best to avoid eye contact with me from the corner of her eye, came to me, trembling pitifully.
“Don’t give those children locked in the closet even a sip of water or a piece of stale bread.”
“...!”
"And..."
I held her arm affectionately and whispered.
“Every two hours, kick the closet that contains those things as hard as you can several times.”
“That’s, uh, what...”
“Every two hours, kick the closet that contains those things as hard as you can several times.”
“That’s, uh, what...”
“Isn’t there something piling up?”
Judging by Marie's slightly limping gait and her inability to make eye contact with anyone, it was clear that she had been suffering from Annie for some time. I whispered even lower, like a devil who would give everything in exchange for her soul.
“The demons in the closet will never guess that you are the one kicking the closet, night or day.”
Promise me. Let's keep our promise until the very end, Marie's expression became subtle.
“Madam... What are you going to do by locking me in the closet...!”
“Maid, you are old and need rest. Leave the rest to me, who will follow Her Majesty the Empress’s orders. I have no desire to turn this mansion upside down. Isn’t locking you in a closet and regulating your manners a familiar and light punishment for servants of noble families?”
“...”
The maid, who had kept her mouth shut at the words of Her Majesty the Empress's order, just watched as Annie's group was dragged away by several knights.
“This, this, let go!”
“Sophie! Sophie! Help us! This is ridiculous! Our master is the late Grand Duchess!”
As they were dragged along and heard the sound of selling my dead body, even my slight discomfort disappeared. I quietly smiled at Marie, who was fidgeting and hesitating whether to follow them or stay by my side.
Marie, who seemed to understand the meaning of the smile, stopped and followed them as they walked away.
***
I immediately looked through the documents that the butler had given me while crying. Things that I couldn’t get any information from. The names of the nobles who came to pay their respects in person at the mansion, and those who occasionally brought consolation gifts to impress Noevian, were written down in the notes column, including the types of gifts.
It was very miscellaneous information that Noevian had clearly entrusted to the butler. As I was racking my brain about how I could access more important information with my authority, suddenly, very suddenly, this thought flashed through my mind.
“...Why is the butler’s handwriting exactly like Noevian’s?”
I know Noevian's handwriting, as well as the butler's handwriting. Since Noevian and the royal family, all learn the imperial handwriting that has been established for a long time, even if it differs slightly from person to person, it does not deviate greatly from the format.
“...Why is the butler’s handwriting exactly like Noevian’s?”
I know Noevian's handwriting, as well as the butler's handwriting. Since Noevian and the royal family, all learn the imperial handwriting that has been established for a long time, even if it differs slightly from person to person, it does not deviate greatly from the format.
Wait. I felt like all the blood in my body was being sucked out.
"Jonah."
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“Did you get a reply to the letter you sent to the Second Prince?”
“No, instead this...”
Before I came to the Grand Duke's residence, I had sent a letter to Rhodnes early in the morning, asking to meet him immediately. The thick envelope that Jonah handed me contained, instead of a reply, only corrections to my Elacon assignment that he had previously received from me. He had not responded to my letter asking me to meet him.
'As expected, he's angry. I'm being too presumptuous.'
I felt pain as I recalled the face of Rhodnes, who had pushed me away as if I would never see him again. However, I had not been able to sleep properly the night before and had spent the night wide awake, so I was full of energy and wanted to meet him and check on him all the way to this grand palace.
"Jonah."
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“Did you get a reply to the letter you sent to the Second Prince?”
“No, instead this...”
Before I came to the Grand Duke's residence, I had sent a letter to Rhodnes early in the morning, asking to meet him immediately. The thick envelope that Jonah handed me contained, instead of a reply, only corrections to my Elacon assignment that he had previously received from me. He had not responded to my letter asking me to meet him.
'As expected, he's angry. I'm being too presumptuous.'
I felt pain as I recalled the face of Rhodnes, who had pushed me away as if I would never see him again. However, I had not been able to sleep properly the night before and had spent the night wide awake, so I was full of energy and wanted to meet him and check on him all the way to this grand palace.
About Cowan, about the small forest. I quickly glanced over Rhodnes’s corrections, and then suddenly I stood up stiffly.
“Madam, is there a problem?”
Jonah's worried voice echoed through the guest room. I flopped back down into my seat and placed the documents Gaspard had given me and Rhodnes's notes on the table.
“The handwriting... is exactly the same.”
The handwriting that Rhodnes had carefully edited. The handwriting of Butler Gaspard in the documents. And the handwriting of Noevian that I remembered. The handwriting of all three was identical.
“Madam, is there a problem?”
Jonah's worried voice echoed through the guest room. I flopped back down into my seat and placed the documents Gaspard had given me and Rhodnes's notes on the table.
“The handwriting... is exactly the same.”
The handwriting that Rhodnes had carefully edited. The handwriting of Butler Gaspard in the documents. And the handwriting of Noevian that I remembered. The handwriting of all three was identical.
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