“…My nanny?”
“Yes, young madam. A message arrived from the Viscounty of Vitence. It seems she’ll be here within a few days.”
“…..…”
“They must have thought it would be difficult for you to adjust to a strange place all by yourself, so your family arranged this out of consideration.”
Her heart thundered wildly, pounding so hard it made her feel sick, like her body was out of sync.
“Roll up your pant legs! Honestly, with comprehension this poor… how disappointed the master must be!”
Nanny Margaret.
To Railey, Margaret was a figure of terror who wielded discipline as a tool of violence.
Until now, Railey, knowing nothing better, had never thought of her treatment as unjust.
She had simply believed that because she was lacking, she deserved to be punished.
‘But that wasn’t the case.’
She had never committed any grave wrongs deserving such persecution. Even if she had made mistakes, the degree of beatings and yelling she suffered clearly fell into the realm of abuse.
It was only now, after recovering memories of her past life, that she could finally see it for what it was.
“Young madam? Are you alright?”
Seeing Railey’s face suddenly turn pale, a maid quickly supported her.
“…I’m fine.”
“If you’re feeling unwell, shall I inform them you’ll skip breakfast? You really don’t have to push yourself.”
Even as Railey insisted she was fine, the maid’s gentle concern moved her deeply—so different from how her nanny had treated her—that it brought a wave of emotion.
“No, it’s alright. I promised to have breakfast with Young Master Serge today. I can’t just stand him up. Let’s go.”
If she used her health as an excuse to avoid eating with Serge, wouldn’t it seem as if she were sulking over him missing dinner last night?
Even if that wasn’t the case, Railey didn’t want to create any reason for friction. She genuinely wanted to maintain a good relationship with him.
As Railey walked toward the breakfast room, her mind was a whirl of thoughts.
There was no way her family had sent Margaret with good intentions.
Whether it was to keep her every move under surveillance or for some other hidden agenda…
‘Honestly, I want to send Margaret straight back, but it won’t be that easy.’
Even if Railey ordered her to leave, Margaret would simply pretend not to hear.
The next option would be to leverage her temporary status as the daughter-in-law and use the Duke’s authority to force her out…
But Margaret, having been sent from Railey’s family, was not a servant of the ducal house.
From the Duke’s perspective, Margaret was more like an envoy dispatched by an allied noble house.
How could she recklessly drive out someone like that and expect to clean up the aftermath?
The Viscounty of Vitence might use such an affront as an excuse to demand outrageous compensation.
They might even force a breakup and extort a massive settlement.
The Duke had no reason to take such a risk based solely on the word of a young girl who had only just married into the family.
And if it really escalated to annulment, for Railey, it would be the worst possible outcome.
But at the same time, she couldn’t even imagine enduring Margaret’s presence day after day.
That would be the beginning of a new kind of hell.
‘I need a legitimate way to send Margaret back. If that’s the case…’
Now was not the time to fall into despair.
She resolved to use everything at her disposal—the sinister ambitions of her natal family, the information she knew—to find a way.
***
“…and so, the nanny from the Viscounty of Vitence will arrive in a few days.”
“Hmm.”
Upon hearing the report from his aide, Walter gave a small nod.
“Would you like to permit the visit? It coincides with the Day of Rest.”
Yuan’s concern was valid. The House of Elestine had always lived in seclusion, precisely to ensure that their secret—their beastly nature—never leaked to outsiders.
No matter that the visitor was from their daughter-in-law’s family; letting an outsider into their home at such a sensitive time was unwise.
Yet Walter answered casually.
“It could actually turn into a good opportunity.”
“A good opportunity…?”
“A chance to test things.”
His gaze drifted out the window toward the terrace, where he had spoken with Serge just yesterday.
Serge was a boy of difficult temperament.
But despite his prickly words, as a father, Walter could feel how much his son had already taken a liking to his wife.
Walter didn’t want his young son to suffer wounds from an ‘unproven’ situation.
Thus, having someone from Railey’s family visit at this time actually seemed like a blessing.
With the head of the house away, it would be easier to expose any hidden intentions.
The child herself likely had no fault in this. But if her family harbored ambitions, that was a different matter entirely.
They could not allow past mistakes to repeat themselves.
If there were even a hint of a problem, he would have no choice but to punish that family—and send the girl away too.
Though he thought of it coldly, a part of him still hoped nothing would happen.
Whether it was for his son’s sake… or because the small girl herself had somehow caught his sympathy…
Even Walter couldn’t quite tell.
***
When Railey arrived at the breakfast room, a servant opened the door for her.
Seated at the head of the sunlit room was her husband, Serge.
The thick, round glasses perched on his nose and his hunched posture were just as she remembered.
‘It looks like he didn’t have any sudden transformations into a fox overnight.’
Yesterday was one thing, but if she had stood him up again this morning, it would’ve been painfully awkward between them. Thankfully, that disaster had been avoided.
“Good morning, Young Master Serge. Are you feeling alright?”
“Ah…”
When Railey greeted him cheerfully, he ducked his head and fidgeted awkwardly.
It seemed he had just remembered that he was supposed to be playing the part of someone who had canceled their plans last night due to illness.
“Thanks to your concern…”
“I’m glad to hear it! But if you’re still not feeling well, please don’t hesitate to tell me, alright? Don’t push yourself.”
“…Yes.”
“……..…”
“….……”
The conversation froze again, as neatly as if sliced with a knife.
Still, Railey wasn’t particularly hurt by it—after all, she had already gotten a sense of her husband’s personality yesterday.
It was a little awkward, sure, but not unexpected.
“Oh, where’s Father-in-law?”
“He’s… busy with some matters today, so he told us to eat without him.”
“I see! Understood.”
Railey promptly took her seat at the table.
Fresh salads, warm bread, fluffy omelets, handmade sausages, and soup—everything was impeccably prepared.
Back at the Viscounty, she had been forbidden from eating freely under the excuse that a young lady must not grow plump and unsightly.
Now, being able to eat delicious food without restriction felt almost like a dream.
Even though her mood had soured over Margaret’s impending arrival, refusing to enjoy a perfectly good meal would only be her loss.
Railey generously slathered butter and grape jam onto her croissant and took a big bite.
The rich flavor filled her mouth, bringing a tiny but undeniable sense of happiness.
And then, from across the table, a question came flying.
“Is it… good?”
“…….!”
Her husband had initiated a conversation first!
As Railey blinked in surprise, Serge continued in a slow, careful voice.
“When you walked into the breakfast room earlier… you looked a little down. But after eating… you look happier.”
“………”
Apparently, Serge was surprisingly observant.
It was a little embarrassing that his observation boiled down to, ‘She was gloomy when she arrived, but brightened up immediately after eating,’ but still, it was a step forward.
‘Was it that obvious I was ready to lick the plate clean because the food was so good?!’
“Did I eat too greedily…?”
“Um, no, it’s just… seeing you eat so happily… it was nice.”
“………”
A nicer way to put it might be “you ate heartily”—but in the end, it still meant she had eaten quite messily.
As Railey fell silent in embarrassment, Serge hurriedly tried to explain.
“It’s just, um, well… I was wondering if… something bad had happened…”
“Ah…”
“Maybe the food made you forget about it… or maybe… it was just my imagination that you looked sad earlier… I wasn’t sure…”
He then bowed his head and mumbled, “Eating well isn’t a bad thing. I’m sorry…”
His communication skills were truly a mess, but somehow Railey didn’t feel bad about it.
He was doing his best, in his own way, to read her feelings and talk to her.
Maybe he had worried seeing his wife looking down.
‘Is it because we spent time together in his fox form yesterday? Maybe the distance between us feels a little smaller now.’
Smiling shyly, Railey answered his unspoken question.
“No, I was just worried I might have had poor table manners.”
“Not at all… And you don’t have to worry about manners around me…”
Though clumsy, there was a warmth in Serge’s words.
Thanks to that, Railey found it easier to be honest.
“The truth is… I was feeling a little down this morning.”
“You didn’t have to force yourself to have breakfast with me!”
“What? No! It wasn’t because I didn’t want to eat with you!”
Panicked, Railey hurriedly explained, desperate to clear up any misunderstanding.
Of course, she couldn’t reveal her more serious troubles—that she had been abused, that her parents were awful—but at the very least, she didn’t want him thinking she had been upset about sharing a meal with him.
After hearing her explanation, Serge propped his chin on his hand and asked.
“You were feeling down because you have a difficult relationship… with the nanny coming from your family?”
“Yes…”
Saying it aloud made it sound like childish whining, and Railey shrank a little.
But Serge didn’t seem to mind at all as he asked quietly,
“Then why not just send her back?”
“My parents are very strict… Even if I tell her to leave, it wouldn’t matter.”
“…..…”
Behind the thick glasses she couldn’t quite see through, Serge’s golden eyes darkened ominously.
But he continued speaking slowly, without showing any emotion.
“Then we could ask my father to bar her from even stepping into the Ducal estate…”
“No—that’s not possible!”
“…..…?”
“If we did that, it would cause huge trouble for the Ducal family. And if my family takes offense, it could lead to an annulment…”
“….…”
Serge, watching Railey’s flustered expression, quietly asked,
“…You don’t want to annul our marriage?”
“Yes! Of course!”
If she were forced to return to her natal family after an annulment, she would face a hell far worse than anything she had experienced so far.
Hearing her firm answer, Serge’s ears turned faintly red.
