“I washed the indoor shoes while you were away for a few days, I hope it wasn’t unnecessary meddling?”
“Not at all. I was about to do laundry myself. Thank you for your consideration, Mrs. Wells.”
“I feel like you’ve lost weight not eating my food for a few days.”
“I guess I missed Norman’s food a lot.”
Walking down the corridor, greeting everyone who approached with a worried look, I arrived at the Duke’s room later than usual.
I felt warm in my heart, feeling everyone’s genuine concern.
Knock knock.
“Ah, come in.”
The Duke’s pleasant bass voice led her into the room.
The Duke was buried in a pile of books.
Only after the door opened and he heard the sound of the trolley did the Duke put the book on the front table.
“How are the siblings?”
“Thank you, they’re doing well.”
“I said I would get a nurse.”
“It wasn’t that serious of an illness.”
“Wasn’t it hard to keep nursing the sick?”
“…A friend helped me. And I rested well yesterday because I got better.”
“Did you rest yesterday?”
“Yes.”
“What did you do on your rare day off?”
The Duke didn’t want to hear more about the friend. He could tell at a glance who that friend was and what feelings that friend had for Carol.
She couldn’t say that she went home to clean and came back, so she only talked about what she did besides that.
“I had dinner with the friend who helped me.”
The Duke paused. There was strength in his hand holding the cup, but the Duke elegantly put down the teacup.
“…Just the two of you?”
“Yes?”
“Weren’t the siblings also recovering?”
“That’s right?”
Unable to read the intention of the Duke’s question, Carol’s answer made the Duke feel frustrated.
“Even the reason for not going together… No, forget about this.”
The Duke quickly composed his emotions and picked up the words he had just dropped.
Carol, who did not notice the hidden emotions behind the Duke’s words, naturally moved on as he had said.
“The food will get cold.”
“Yes. Let’s eat.”
Today’s menu was Sunday roast. Carol, who dipped a lot of gravy sauce in Yorkshire pudding and took a bite, had a happy expression. The meat was delicious, but Carol liked Yorkshire pudding more.
When she was somewhat full, Carol noticed the yellow flower in the window.
“The flower is really beautiful.”
“Sent as a gift, and also left some to decorate my room with it.”
It was a flower sent instead of saying that he wanted to look at the same flower even in a different space, waiting for their time to meet the moon.
It was a modest expression of emotion like a small flower.
Carol looked at the flower. Seeing the yellow flower standing out in the old-fashioned room, she felt strange.
The Yorkshire pudding that she had been stuffing her cheeks with until just now felt like chewing old bread.
‘That flower must have gone to Margaret Chesworth.’
Because she was the only one who could receive it.
It was a good thing. Only the Chesworth family could break the curse, so it would be even better if they had a good relationship.
“Giving flowers in winter. You have expensive taste.”
She couldn’t bring herself to say the flowers were beautiful.
‘Did I overdo it?’
She seemed to have eaten too quickly because it was her favorite food.
At Carol’s blunt attitude, the Duke cautiously spoke.
“It wasn’t…that expensive.”
It was an amount that would have made Carol jump if she knew, but for the Duke, it was a small amount. Even so, the Duke deliberately downplayed it to avoid making Carol feel burdened, but it backfired.
“…I don’t need to know the price.”
“Did it upset you?”
“Me? Not at all.”
“Then that’s a relief.”
A strange silence flowed between the two. They were watching each other. Carol pinched the back of her hand and cleared her throat. Perhaps now was the time to ask.
“That.”
“That.”
At the words that came out at the same time, the Duke gave way.
“You go first.”
“You know, the fairy tale book you borrowed before.”
“That, the book where the moon child appeared?”
“Yes, yes. That book. Do you remember?”
“Of course.”
Carol swallowed her dry saliva. It was a sudden change of topic, but the Duke thought it was a topic she had come up with to change the subject and nodded in response.
“I was wondering if your thoughts are still the same.”
At her serious voice, the Duke also asked in a serious voice.
“My thoughts?”
“Yes.”
“The saying that it’s better to live a life doing what you want, even if it means dying, for even a day?”
“…Yes.”
Carol seemed particularly interested in this content. Could she have noticed that it was metaphorically expressed?
The Duke took a moment to choose his words.
“Are you still bothered by the fact that I changed my answer?”
“…Yes.”
Carol bit her lower lip as she answered. Her heart was fluttering because of the Duke. Carol had to hear the answer.
“Yes. I’m still the same.”
“Even if you have to pay a huge price?”
“If I didn’t know from the beginning, I wouldn’t know.”
The Duke’s clear voice drilled into Carol’s ears.
For some reason, Carol felt like she had made eye contact with the Duke.
Even though it was impossible.
Overwhelmed by indescribable emotions, Carol tightly closed her eyes.
Could there be a special reason for the change of mind? She licked her lips, but no words came out.
In this state, it would be more beneficial for everyone if Margaret Chesworth broke the curse rather than Elisha Chesworth.
‘If she can break it, that is.’
No matter how hard Margaret tried, she couldn’t break the Duke’s curse.
Even though Elisha Chesworth visited the Duke’s Mansion for a bad reason, she fell in love with the Duke, seeing only his inner self with her outstanding insight created by divine power.
‘If she comes, the probability of breaking the curse will increase.’
Even in the capital, Margaret made sure that Elisha could not come to the party where the Duke was present.
But there’s no way Elisha could come to the north.
How do I call her? Calling her is a problem, but how do I make them meet?
It feels like a tangled thread.
The atmosphere that was about to settle was broken by the Duke.
“I’ve only talked about myself. What was the teacher going to say?”
She had forgotten what to say. Carol relayed the conversation she had with Mrs. Wells earlier.
“Right. Since I took sick leave, I ended up working on the founding day when I should have been resting.”
In the empire, there were no Christmas or Lunar New Year’s Day, but there were similar days.
It was the founding day commemorating the start of the imperial calendar.
“It’s the founding day, so we should have a meal with the family. I’ll send the carriage a few hours late.”
“Thank you for your consideration.”
All the powerful families who could enter the royal palace were heading towards the capital, and if not, the families who ruled the territory were the main ones to hold the grand national holiday of the empire.
Of course, the Duke did not belong in any case, so it was also a day to spend like any other day.
“Oh, and…”
“Hmm?”
“I have something to ask about the contract extension you suggested before.”
“Tell me.”
The Duke answered calmly, but he couldn’t hide his twitching ears. What should he do to tie her up if she quits? A sinister thought crossed his mind. But he hated it more if he forced her to stay and she ended up hating him.
“Would it be very difficult to contract on a monthly basis?”
Carol asked cautiously. It was not usually appreciated to extend it as if it were a short period. Especially if the other person was of high status or had a lot of money.
It was because it was cheeky.
But she couldn’t just extend the period, nor could she quit as soon as the contract period ended.
“It seems like you’ve been worrying for a long time.”
“…I think I need a little more time to think.”
For Carol, this was the best.
A tragic death would have been the ending the Duke most desired…
‘But that tragedy never happened.’
It can be said with pride that the Duke’s quality of life has improved.
But even so, the Duke was still trapped in the Duke’s Mansion and lived a futile life.
‘Breaking the curse would be the best…’
She had to think about what to do if she couldn’t.
Even if she couldn’t break the curse, she wanted to find a way to improve the Duke’s life.
It would be best to quit as it is. She hadn’t been caught for forging her status yet, and since she had worked for a short time, she would soon be forgotten.
But she wanted to be with him a little longer.
At first, she thought it was guilt for arbitrarily deciding the ending she wanted.
But before she knew it, she also wanted to be with the affectionate people living in the coldest winter a little longer.
“If it’s difficult…”
She would have to think about how to break the curse from afar.
But the Duke cut off Carol’s words and spoke quickly.
“No. Let’s do that.”
“Yes?”
“It would be better to talk to Mrs. Wells about the details.”
“…Is it okay?”
“For me, I would be grateful if you could stay with me a little longer.”
“I’m sorry for such an answer after you’ve given me such a generous favor.”
“Don’t say you’re sorry. Don’t say that. I’m grateful for the good news.”
“…No.”
The Duke’s words that it would be enough if she stayed a little longer deeply touched her heart.
Carol put her hand on her chest and tilted her head.
The Duke, who couldn’t see such Carol, spoke in a slightly excited voice.
“I thought the founding day was now a meaningless day for me. But this time, it might be fun.”
“Won’t there be a lot of tribute goods coming in?”
“That’s just trivial things.”
“I am worried whether I can make you happier than the tribute goods do.”
At Carol’s worried words, the Duke was taken aback.
“I didn’t mean to burden you.”
“I didn’t feel much burdened.”
She just remembered a phrase from the novel she had forgotten.
