Butler Rolf, who had managed Lusenford Castle for over 20 years alongside the head maid, was a baron without a territory.
Before Peon’s arrival and its elevation to a grand duchy, this place was merely a county. The butlers had inherited the honorary title of baron while managing the county that lacked even a count.
However, when Peon became a grand duke and vast lands and castles befitting the title were incorporated into Lusenford, both Rolf and the head maid Doris somehow felt as if they had become something important.
Even though most of those lands and castles were ravaged by the minions of the evil dragon and covered in snow where not a blade of grass grew, they still felt that way.
Being a grand duke and the son of the empress, goods and gold coins poured in, specially sent by the empress.
Although it was a paltry sum for the grand duke, it was an enormous amount for those who had fought against the evil dragon and the cold in this barren land.
Their shoulders rose involuntarily with pride. No matter how much Peon was pointed at for being an illegitimate child, in Lusenford, he was a member of the royal family with precious bloodline who protected them.
“You called for me, Your Highness.”
Rolf, along with the now-exiled Doris, had raised Peon. They had nursed him through the night when he was injured while training with the knights in the practice field or when he fell ill with a cold. They celebrated his birthdays and rejoiced at his academic achievements.
Peon was not a person of Crania, but of Lusenford. He possessed the spirit and strength of the North.
But he unexpectedly married a southern noblewoman.
“Where are the keys that the head maid should have?”
“I’m temporarily keeping them.”
“Bring them now.”
“Now? Yes, understood.”
Of course, marrying a wealthy southern noblewoman was welcome news. When the new bride came to Lusenford, her enormous entourage was honestly even larger than when young Peon had arrived.
That’s natural since Peon had grown up. But Rolf and Doris had honestly hoped that Peon would marry into a prestigious noble family of Lusenford. After all, Peon was the Grand Duke of Lusenford.
“Here they are, Your Highness.”
“Is this all of them?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Rolf explained one by one what each key was for.
“There are quite a lot.”
“Yes. The head maid has managed many areas. It’s a position of great responsibility.”
“Such a position of great responsibility should no longer be held by someone who takes their master’s words lightly.”
His Highness the Grand Duke is still angry. Even so, Doris was too foolish. I heard she’s now stuck in an old hunting lodge near the border, staying with some relatives. How frustrating.
The other party is none other than the Princess of Ostein. She’s also the future Duchess of Ostein. If she has a child with Peon, that child would become both the Grand Duke of Lusenford and the Duke of Ostein – an incredibly powerful figure. How could anyone dare to offend such a noblewoman?
Rolf, who had discreetly distanced himself from this incident, conveniently forgot the fact that he had silently supported and condoned the head maid Doris’s actions. He also conveniently forgot that his tacit approval had further fueled Doris’s behavior.
“Your words are most wise.”
Five nobles who had looked down on and pressured the young Grand Duchess alongside the head maid at the banquet were dragged to the underground prison one after another. They were all executed without exception. Rolf thought the Grand Duchess was quite naive.
What’s the use of sparing the head maid’s life? It might be better to die at once than to continue living such a miserable life. In Lusenford, such half-hearted mercy only breeds resentment.
“From now on, the Grand Duchess will be in charge of all internal management. Transfer all the rights you’ve been holding, including those that should be under the Grand Duchess’s jurisdiction, to her.”
Rolf was startled. Peon’s purple eyes were staring at him unwavering.
“Learn from this incident and set an example. Show that there are people in Lusenford who have respect for their masters and excel in loyalty.”
Indeed. Baron Butler Rolf Anderson, was still “one who had respect for his masters and excelled in loyalty.” At least for now.
“Yes, Your Highness. I will do my best.”
Peon did not take his eyes off the butler until the moment he turned around and left with a bowed head.
****
Dr. Darinka, who ended up treating the Grand Duchess unexpectedly, was a jolly and very spirited woman with a plump figure. She was one of the few female doctors who made house calls without being married.
She had been ordered to continue caring for the Grand Duchess until she recovered enough to get up. So she either came to the castle in the morning or stayed there, monitoring the Grand Duchess’s condition.
“Would you like another blanket? It’s colder today.”
The Grand Duchess was quite a beauty. She must have heard that she was pretty since childhood, enough to take it in stride.
She had piercingly clear blue eyes, a straight forehead, clean skin, and pale blonde hair that shone white in the light.
However, her body hair, such as eyebrows and eyelashes, was darker closer to the roots, shorter, and more robust. This, too, suited her naturally.
Still, Lady Ravalley was prettier.
Yes, she smiled much more and was more lively, wasn’t she?
While coming and going to the castle during the Grand Duchess’s illness, Darinka had seen and heard quite a bit. Inside the castle, which had been tightly controlled by the head maid, people openly expressed regret over the head maid being dragged away.
Darinka, who knew who Lady Ravalley was and that she had stayed in this castle, saw that even those who spoke of her in such a manner had shut their mouths and became cautious by the next morning.
The Grand Duke had strictly controlled even the laundry room gossip about who was prettier.
From Darinka’s perspective, the Grand Duke greatly cherished the Grand Duchess, who was much younger than him.
Of course, the Grand Duchess was also of a much nobler status politically compared to Lady Ravalley, but that didn’t explain why he stayed by her side for three days as she hovered between life and death.
The Grand Duke never took his eyes off the Grand Duchess but couldn’t bring himself to touch her. He had swiftly obtained the miraculous medicine, Retilin, said to be in the evil dragon’s domain, but after the Grand Duchess opened her eyes, he rarely came near her.
‘Are they suddenly being formal with each other?’
Well, setting that aside, the real problem was the Grand Duchess.
“Look at this, Your Highness. Isn’t the pattern beautiful? It’s a unique Lusenford embroidery.”
No matter how much the maids fussed and brought new things to show her, the Grand Duchess would just smile once and that was it. Was it because she had experienced such a terrible ordeal right after getting married? The concern Darinka had cautiously expressed to the Grand Duke was becoming more and more apparent.
“You’ve recovered very quickly. That’s really fortunate.”
“It’s thanks to your hard work.”
The Grand Duchess, who never forgot to greet even her subordinates, was objectively a good mistress.
“I didn’t do much. The Grand Duke brought the medicine, after all.”
Of course, Darinka kept quiet about exactly where that medicine had come from. Even the fact that the Grand Duke had obtained the medicine was known only to the doctor, the Grand Duke himself, the Grand Duchess, and her maids.
“But it was you who prescribed that specific medicine as necessary.”
The Grand Duchess already showed an attitude befitting a Grand Duchess despite her age, and it didn’t seem strange at all but very natural.
“Thank you. Your Highness, you can now start your daily activities, but you must be careful. Being careful with food is most important, and you must take light walks for exercise no matter how cold it is.”
Patients usually loved it when Darinka said things like this. No one disliked hearing that their tedious illness was gone and they had recovered.
But the Grand Duchess didn’t seem particularly happy. While she praised Darinka’s efforts, those who dislike the fact of recovery often have a deeper illness.
“It’s also not good to work constantly. You need to rest a lot and do things in moderation for your body to stabilize and your mind to settle.”
“I understand.”
