ICMMF | Chapter 8

Episode 8

“Steward. Why don’t you take the initiative first?”

After meeting Lucy, Amelia went to find Emmet.

She had much to report to him. Above all, she was worried about the young lady, so she brought up that topic first.

Emmet pondered briefly.

An eight-year-old child, yet unusually knowledgeable about illnesses.

A child who had lived almost completely cut off from the world, yet oddly well-informed about the affairs of the mansion.

A child who claimed to be the Duke’s daughter, but had never once asked about her father.

It was said that Miss Aicel began showing symptoms of sleeping sickness a year and a half ago.

That meant she had cared for her mother since before she was even seven years old.

They needed to find out who she lived with back then, and how she had managed her life.

And most importantly, they had to let Miss Aicel—and the child—know that they were not harmful people.

That she had allies here and there was no need to be afraid alone.

The letter bird had been sent yesterday, so the master didn’t even know Miss Aicel had returned.

And there was no telling how long it would take until his return.

To keep the child from feeling anxious in the meantime, communication was necessary.

“I understand. I’ll meet with her after dinner.”

Emmet, who had planned to wait until the master returned, changed his mind.

“And this.”

Amelia took a ruby necklace out of her pocket.

Just as she extended it to Emmet, she clenched her hand as he came closer.

“It’s a side job.”

“Ha ha ha!”

Emmet immediately recognized the original owner of the ruby necklace and laughed while shaking his head.

Even without asking, it was obviously the work of Lady Audrey.

And since Amelia called it a “side job” so confidently, it didn’t seem like it would cause harm to the two young ladies.

Even if something did happen, it meant she would block it herself.

“Understood. I’ll leave the lady’s business to the head maid.”

He had already expected that the lady would act at any time.

The fact that her hands and feet were now Amelia was actually a welcome development.

“It may just be my unnecessary worry, but…”

Just as he thought they were done talking, Amelia spoke again.

Emmet, who had turned his eyes to the documents, looked up.

“You may also want to keep an eye on Lady Ethelred.”

Amelia finished her sentence in a voice that grew smaller and smaller.

Then she looked around. Even though she knew only she and Emmet were in the master’s office, she remained cautious.

After all, it was a mere maid daring to speak about monitoring the actions of the Marquess’s daughter.

“Hmmm, now that you mention it, I had completely forgotten.”

Unlike Amelia, who worried she may have said too much, Emmet adjusted his glasses and his eyes changed. A displeased glint settled in his cool blue eyes.

He had been so mentally exhausted over the past two days that he even forgot Lady Ethelred was staying here.

He hadn’t even mentioned her in the letter to the master.

Nothing had been decided yet, but Lady Ethelred was staying as if she were the duchess herself, bringing along her own maid.

The only one in the mansion who could send her back to the Marquess family was the lady of the house.

Which meant that, ultimately, there was no one in the mansion who could restrict her actions.

By now, she likely knew everything about the situation at the mansion.

Who was staying in the annex, and which child resembled the master.

“I’ll take care of her.”

Emmet nodded again, as if thanking her for bringing up what he had missed.

He wasn’t unaware of the kind of disposition Lady Ethelred had shown during her two-month stay in the mansion.

So it was only natural to come up with countermeasures.

“You often go to see Miss Lucy, don’t you?”

He would be the first to speak with Miss Lucy, but perhaps someone like Amelia—whom the child welcomed—would be better than a scary grandfather.

It was better to hear the story from each of them and piece it together.

“I’ll be visiting every day even if you don’t ask.”

Amelia cupped one of her warm cheeks with her hand, saying it was an unnecessary request.

It was because the image of the child who had welcomed her came to mind.

“But really, doesn’t she look too much like him?”

Emmet smiled faintly, fully understanding who she meant.

He was already looking forward to how surprised and flustered the master would be when he saw her.

“Aaagh!”

Pacing nervously around the room, Freya couldn’t contain her temper and hurled the cushion from the sofa.

When there was no satisfying sound, she swept the tea set off the table with both arms.

As the crashing sound echoed through the room, she exhaled deeply, as if pleased.

“Oh dear, young lady.”

Hearing the noise, Anna rushed into the room.

The sound had echoed in the hallway too, so she checked to make sure no one was around and closed the door.

“What did the lady say?”

“Well, that is…”

“Ha!”

Freya understood even before Anna finished.

Lady Audrey was avoiding her.

Sure, she had been mentally preoccupied yesterday, but Freya had requested a meeting since this morning, and there had been no word all the way until evening.

Shouldn’t she have come and explained the situation first?

When asked to have breakfast together, she dodged with a headache excuse.

When offered tea good for headaches, she refused that too.

Who knew what ridiculous excuse she had given when asked to spare a moment of her time.

Even without hearing it, Freya could already feel the fury bubbling inside her.

Aicel Silva.

Since hearing that name yesterday, Freya had been pondering.

The woman Duke Kreshmir was still searching for. The one who ran away during his expedition, right after the engagement ceremony.

And now, nearly nine years later, she had returned with the Duke’s child.

Freya didn’t know how to relay this news to her father, so she had only unfolded the letter paper without writing a single word.

He would no doubt blame her and erupt in anger.

She could picture Marquess Ethelred’s face vividly in her mind.

If the child didn’t exist, she could have persuaded him, saying she’d take care of it.

This wasn’t something that could be hidden forever.

Since it was the Duke’s child, the world would find out eventually.

“What about that woman?”

Freya asked about the situation in the annex, rotating her stiff neck side to side.

They said she was sick.

Just how ill must she be, to have lived in hiding for nine years only to return to the mansion?

Her headache was intensifying, and she had no idea how to deal with this situation.

“I was going to tell you anyway, but… I don’t think there’s any need for you to be so upset.”

“What?”

Startled by the sharp red eyes glaring at her, Anna flinched.

“How dare you judge my emotions, you insolent brat?”

With a vicious voice, Anna’s head snapped to the side.

It had happened so fast, she was more shocked than in pain. She quickly lowered her head.

Her cheek belatedly flared up like it had been scorched.

“T-the young lady… has sleeping sickness.”

Holding back her tears, Anna finished her report.

“She also… has Vapour Disease, apparently.”

Even though sleeping sickness meant her life was already over, Anna revealed everything she knew.

If Miss Freya found out about this later, she would be hit again anyway.

Because of her stinging cheek, she couldn’t remember what she had prepared to say. She tightly closed her eyes. Teardrops started falling silently.

“What kind of disease is that?”

“It turns the whole body red—especially the upper body, like a burn—and causes extreme pain, they say.”

Bowing deeply and wiping away her tears, Anna explained in a clumsy manner.

But at least she hadn’t left out anything important.

It was the first time Anna had heard of Vapour Disease, too.

When she asked the doctor, he had answered irritably with just that.

Given that she was an outsider in this mansion, his attitude was only to be expected.

“Oh? So she’s going to die anyway.”

“Pardon? Ah, yes. Because sleeping sickness can’t be cured.”

Anna answered quickly and lowered her head again.

It was better to get hit on the head than the face.

She needed to be prepared for the young lady’s unpredictable hand.

But then, she heard a giggle from above.

She tried not to look, but couldn’t help glancing at the young lady’s face.

“Pfft, hahahaha!”

Freya bent back with laughter.

“Really, this wasn’t worth stressing over, was it?”

After laughing for a while, Freya patted her forehead as if all the heat had flown away.

See? No need to get mad.

Anna muttered silently inside, unable to say the words out loud.

Still, she found it horrifying that the young lady could laugh so freely over someone else’s death, and quietly began picking up the broken teacup shards one by one.

As Anna cleaned the mess, Freya recalled the Duke’s child.

A child with the same hair and eyes as Duke Arden.

“There’s no reason I can’t be a mother.”

Come to think of it, a child wasn’t much of an obstacle.

Once she married the Duke, she could just send the child off to the Academy like his other two foster sons.

If she provided a home in the capital, she could live without ever seeing the child again.

If the child died of illness before that, so be it.

Isn’t that what children are?

They suddenly die of fevers, or from contagious diseases.

They’re such weak and fragile beings, after all.

“Hmph.”

If the child died, it would create an opportunity to comfort the man. That might bring them closer.

“Brew some fresh tea.”

Freya ordered brightly to Anna, who was still cleaning the floor. Then she sat at the desk with the letter paper spread out.

Now, she finally knew what to write to her father.