TGDHC Chapter 44

Chapter 44: News from the North

“Mmm, this is really good.”

I savored the flavorful chicken leg meat inside the busy restaurant.

The reaction to the picture menu was much bigger than I expected.

I thought it might be popular, but hearing that the restaurant had been packed at lunchtime just two days after putting up the menu board made it impossible for me to stay still.

So I dragged Norton out with me on a secret visit.

I even asked Leta to get me some plain clothes, and when I showed up dressed like that, Norton took off his armor and came along too.

Though he still brought a long, suspicious-looking bundle—probably his sword.

“Sir Norton, no one here knows I’m the duchess. Relax and enjoy your food.”

“I am eating comfortably.”

“I saw your hand twitch when that woman talked to me earlier.”

“My apologies.”

After I finished my milk pudding, Norton pushed his untouched apple pie toward me.

“That’s yours, Sir Norton.”

“I don’t need it.”

“I’m full from the pudding too.”

“…”

“I wasn’t staring at it because I wanted it.”

After a little back and forth, Norton finally began eating the pie with his usual expressionless face, while I looked around the now much livelier restaurant.

The big food drawings gave the place a brighter feel.

Even the view outside, at the inn’s entrance, looked busier.

No matter what kind of food was on the menu, the picture board itself grabbed attention. People walking by would stop to look at it.

Feeling pleased, I moved my foot—only to bump into something.

Lifting the tablecloth, I saw a thin magazine lying on the floor.

It was titled as News from the North.

“A weekly magazine? What an honest name—very northern indeed.”

Curious, I picked it up and opened it. Norton coughed.

“Oh no, Sir Norton. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” he said, glancing at the magazine while covering his mouth.

“I just swallowed wrong.”

The magazine had local news like sheep contests, book reviews, and interviews with successful businesspeople—lots of Blenheim updates.

As I flipped through it, I found a column page.

“Capital fashion trends?”

Cough! Norton made another awkward noise.

“Here, have some water.”

I pushed a glass to him and kept reading the article.

“Among the noble ladies in the capital, there’s already fierce competition to get moon-shaped jewels for their summer stomachers (corsets). The famous tailor shop Sharide is said to have bought up a stockpile of gems and decorations, rivaling even the big merchants…”

I turned to Norton.

“Do people in the territory actually read this?”

He cleared his throat again, and the back of his neck turned red.

“Wh-who would read something like that…”

His strong denial made me feel a bit awkward.

“It’s just a magazine. What’s the big deal?”

“…My apologies. I’m not sure.”

His normally calm face turned red and blue.

What’s with him?

Is there something inappropriate in here?

I was wondering about his strange reaction when—

“Every household keeps at least one,” said Marie, appearing quickly as she placed another apple pie in front of me.

“The territory is big, so it’s not easy to hear news from other towns.”

“Are there a lot of these magazines?”

I asked as I took a big bite of the apple pie.

“There are more lately. Some are free, but full of ads.”

Marie shrugged.

“But News from the North is still the most well-known.”

As I swallowed the sweet juice of the perfectly baked apple, I nodded.

“These kinds of columns are actually pretty fun.”

After Marie left, I held the column page out to Norton while he was drinking water—and he sneezed again.

“…”

“My apologies.”

Seems like my bodyguard has an allergy… to weekly magazines.

---

Knock, knock.

Early in the morning, as Loic was getting dressed, he looked up.

The duchess had said she was too busy with tea preparations to visit this morning.

“Your Grace, may I come in?”

It was his loyal butler’s voice.

“Come in.”

Loic cleared his throat, feeling a bit embarrassed that he’d been expecting someone else.

“What is it?”

Whitley entered the room with a gentle smile.

“I’m here to help you get dressed.”

“You are?”

Loic raised an eyebrow in confusion.

He usually dressed himself unless it was a particularly formal occasion where he needed the butler’s help.

“Do I have something important today?”

He tried to remember if there was a special appointment he had forgotten.

“No, nothing like that,”

Whitely said, raising the corner of his lips slightly.

“I’ll bring your clothes.”

Without even asking Loic’s opinion, Whitely brought a black jacket and a white shirt.

Loic found his butler’s behavior strange but quietly slipped his arms into the shirt as it was handed to him.

The shirt felt a bit unfamiliar.

The sleeves flowed more loosely than before, but it was actually quite comfortable.

“Are these new clothes?”

“Yes.”

It was definitely strange.

Usually, Whitely would explain how many pieces had been made and what changes were done, but now he said nothing.

He looked like he was waiting for Loic to notice something on his own.

“You’re all dressed. Would you like to look in the mirror?”

Look in the mirror?

Why’s he doing something he normally never does?

With a strange feeling, Loic stood in front of the mirror. And then…

“This is… different.”

After staring at the mirror for a while, he finally spoke.

It was different.

Hard to describe, but clearly not the same as before.

Confused, Loic turned to look at Whitely.

The usually serious butler had a playful sparkle in his eyes.

“Did… she…?”

Loic trailed off, eyes wide.

He was afraid of saying something embarrassing if he was wrong.

But Whitely gave a pleased nod.

“The Grand Duchess ordered these clothes for you herself.”

“The Grand Duchess…”

Loic was briefly speechless as he gently touched the collar of his light spring coat.

“She picked out the fabric and checked every detail. She even measured the sleeve length and width so you’d be comfortable during work.”

The fabric was definitely high quality, and the tailoring was very fine. It was obvious that great care went into making the outfit.

“It is… comfortable.”

“She also paid a lot of attention to how it looks. The madam at the boutique said even in the capital, it’s rare to see men’s clothing this stylish.”

When Loic looked up again, he saw a rather dashing man in the mirror.

Feeling awkward, he ran a hand through his hair. Whitely smiled softly.

“It suits you well, Your Grace.”

“Does it?”

Loic recalled the night they had tea together when his wife called over the dressmaker.

— “My husband gave this to me as a gift.”

She had smiled so brightly while showing off her dress.

That day, Loic had finally understood why noblemen spent fortunes on presents at jewel auctions—just imagining his wife smiling like that made him want to give her the best of everything.

Just that smile had made him happy.

And now, she had even ordered clothes for him.

‘Clothes made by my wife…’

Just thinking that made his neck feel warm.

Today was the weekly meeting with the knight captains. He wondered if it was too flashy to wear something like this for an internal meeting.

‘Would it look like I’m showing off?’

Would it seem like he was flaunting his wife’s affection?

He blushed at the thought.

It’s not like the clothes had “made by the Grand Duchess” written on them.

‘I’m being ridiculous…’

Had any of the castle staff or knights ever commented on his outfits?

No. Nobody cared what he wore.

Still fidgeting with his sleeves, Loic noticed Whitely watching him fondly. Embarrassed, he quickly left the room.

Maybe the cold air would cool his face down.

As he walked through the corridor, he heard someone call out.

“Commander!”

The First Knight Captain, Demiche, was coming across the garden. A red-haired, red-bearded man with a red cloak—he looked fiery in every way.

Behind him, the First Knights rushed to line up behind their captain.

“We salute you, Commander!”

Their voices rang out as if it were a military chant. Loic nodded in response.

“Training?”

“Yes, sir. Since the gates open today, we moved training to the morning to avoid the crowd,”

Demiche replied cheerfully.

“Are you headed to the meeting room? Let’s go together.”

“Alright.”

Loic responded simply and began to walk, but—

Ssshp. Demiche sniffed and said,

“Wait a minute, Commander—you look different today.”

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• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Freya• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •

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Advance chapters of this novel are available on my kofi channel

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