Chapter 15 – The Grand Duchess Will Shake The Foundations
In the Schlezen castle; inside Gerard’s office…
Drip, drip~ Tears flowed down the width of Molli’s skirt.
Astonished, Gerard slid his handkerchief toward her.
“Thank you.”
With her face stuck in the cloth, she sobbed openly.
‘Ha…’
It was a first. A woman crying so sadly in front of him. His mother, the late Empress Stephanie, and his sister and swordmaster, Jenia, considered it shameful for a woman to cry so openly in front of others.
Before, whenever she had spaced out staring at Theodor, he suspected she might burst into tears grieving for her husband and child, but he had never expected to see such a display like this before him.
Gerald rubbed his lower jaw with his fingers.
‘It is hard…’
He wasn’t comfortable with Molli. She was his sister’s nanny’s daughter and had been his sister’s childhood friend but not his friend. They merely exchanged greetings and a few words related to work at most.
She lost her husband in the war against the demon realm five years ago, and her full term child was stillborn shortly after. However, when Theodor cried loudly at Jenia’s funeral, she gladly breastfed him and naturally entered Schlezen Castle to become Theodor’s nanny.
Gerard was grateful that she took care of Theodor as her own child. In addition, thanks to strict education, Theodor maintained the dignity of a Grand Prince to such an extent that he could be taken anywhere. She buried herself in Theodor’s care and never took time for herself, and now she was crying so soundly.
“How about going on a vacation?”
‘Vacation? I came here to suppress that Sinclair, and that’s what I get?’
Molli tightened her already clenched fists. It was not a problem that could be resolved by crying.
Molli carefully pressed the tear marks with the handkerchief and took a deep breath.
“Theodor was brought into my arms less than a month after he was born. To me, he is like my own child. How can you ask me to take a rest?”
“But he’s definitely not Madam’s child.”
“…!”
Molli was perplexed. Of course, she believed Gerard would take her side.
“Now that I have a wife, you can rest.”
Molli frowned.
‘Did you just call her wife, instead of Grand Duchess?’
In her heart, Molli wanted to marry Gerard. She had been watching him since childhood and, showing no interest in the opposite sex, he only focused on swordsmanship and magic throughout his life.
After all, he became the youngest hero in the history of the Empire who traveled through the Demon Realm with the late Emperor Julius. And after the Emperor died, he relentlessly conquered the Demon Realm.
That’s why she never took the initiative or tried to get close in any way. Fortunately, Molli was able to meet Jenia from time to time, thus, she was able to meet him a few times. But he was like a star in the distant universe. Beyond her reach.
When she got old enough to marry, she buried her unrequited love for him in her heart and chose an ordinary man to marry, but he died prematurely. After that, she was lucky enough to become Theodor’s nanny and to be by his side once again. She expected that seeing her taking care of Theodor so dearly, his heart would eventually turn toward her; however, an unexpected event occurred.
After years where he seemed willing to live only as Theodor’s father in hopes of breaking the curse, he suddenly got married. To the Marquis’ young Lady, from the Empress’ family.*
It was the perfect moment, but she couldn’t express her feelings to Gerard. He was already married, even her title pushed her back.
But the first thing the Grand Duchess did after marriage was to take her job. Like a stone rolling in and pushing another stone out.
Even if such a thing happened, it could never happen.
“I cried not because of me, but because of Theodor.”
“…!”
Gerald folded his arms, crossed his legs, and leaned his back deep into the sofa. It was his habit of showing that he was paying attention. His serious eyes held her attention.
Molli was pleased with such atmosphere.
Sunshine gently entered the office window, and the man who usually buried himself in books had opened himself to listen to her, and she saw only her own reflection in his eyes.
“As the Archduke knows, there are a lot of people who have targeted the Grand Prince, so I managed the Prince’s diet and food.”
That was correct. After several attempts to poison Theodor, the nanny had been cooking mainly for him. Of course, dependent on the sample and test method approved by the Archduke only.
“But the Grand Duchess will shake the foundations.”
“I see.”
“Your Grace?” Molli was taken aback by his casual reaction.
“My wife said that. She wants to do her best as Theodor’s mother. This seems to be her first step, so don’t feel too bad about it.”
“Is she acting after consulting with His Grace?”
“The will of the Grand Duchess is my will.”
Molli was boiling up, but she couldn’t get angry, so she bit her lip.
“But if the Grand Prince is in danger…”
“That’s not possible. Is there anything else you wish to discuss?”
He straightened his posture and uncrossed arms and legs. As the topic was over, he was about to stand. Molli’s mouth tasted bile. Gerard always pushed her away with such formality.
“If there isn’t. Then.”
Gerard rose from the couch and walked to his desk.
Molli bowed her head and left the office. Her hands were still trembling at his quick dismissal.
‘The Grand Duchess even took away this time with him!’
As the door closed, she leaned against a pillar in the hallway, breathing heavily as if in pain.
To calm her nervousness at this huge obstacle appearing before her, she grabbed both trembling shoulders with her hands.
Inside Sinclair’s drawing-room.
His white hair neatly brushed with pomade, the butler Thomas and the head-maid, Madeleine, who reminded me of the superintendent in〈Sensei B and The Love Letter*〉,were sitting before me. They were both respectful and well-mannered. In modern terms, they were like a King and Queen.
Of course, I was naturally nervous. I clenched my hand and squeezed it, then straightened it out and lifted the corners of my mouth gracefully.
“Did you bring the materials I asked for?”
“Yes. This is the ingredients management information for Young Master’s diet, and this is the current food ingredients list from the Schlezen Castle.”
Thomas held out a thick package.
“I wonder how you handled the controls for the Grand Prince’s poisoning. I’m also curious about the detergents used by the laundry and cleaning department, things like that.”
The head maid’s jaw dropped. Madeleine had been working as a maid since the time of the late Emperor, and it had been a long time since she had seen such a meticulous hostess. She was nervous, yet she kept her back straight.
‘Besides, how can an aristocratic young Lady know about such detailed and specialized things?’
Noting Madeleine’s expression, I quickly added while smiling in an attempt to subdue her astonishment.
“Hearing the nanny in the kitchen a while ago, I thought that unifying the ingredients, management samples, and tests could be better for the safety of the family members in the castle, so don’t take it too seriously.”
“Ah..!”
Madeline politely brought her hands forward. It was because this appearance resembled the late Empress Stephanie.
Empress Stephanie took the place of Emperor Julius when he left to conquer the Demon Realm and managed and nurtured the finances of the castle and territories. Additionally, the Imperial goods were raised fairly by competing with guilds, so they saved their budget without noise.
“This is class material for the Young Master.”
Looking through the data provided by Thomas I asked,
“Do you regularly check Theodor’s health?”
“Health?”
‘In modern times, we keep records related to vaccinations and so on, like a child’s parenting handbook, but even if it’s not to that degree, there must be some records.’
I nodded. It was because Theodor’s skinny body bothered me.
“I want to check some things, like allergies.”
“Ah… There can be no allergies or anything like that in the Grand Prince.”
“Oh, I see. Then, are the records related to the Grand Prince’s health kept secret by the physician, or are notes deleted right away?”
“I believe the physician keeps it secret.”
“Then I will have to meet him. Please call him over.”
“The physician?”
“Ah, would it be better for me to go to the place where he works instead?”
I quickly made a note in my to-do list notebook using a pen.
‘Since this has happened, we can share opinions on the medicinal materials used here and materials related to poison from the other world, right?’
Thomas was bewildered when he saw me writing down something in the notebook.
‘What? What is this feeling?’
He felt as if he had met the Empress again, whom he had met while working as prime minister in the former Imperial Palace. Thomas glanced toward Madeleine standing next to him
Her lips were tightly shut as if she had met the late Empress once more.
After writing everything down, I lifted my head and glanced at Thomas.
“Oh, a healer stays in the palace, right?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
As Thomas nodded, I smiled with satisfaction.
“That’s great. If we have a healer, we will be able to find magic and other medicines related to healing soon.”
The two people in front of me looked at each other, wondering what this meant.
‘I can solve the spices I want with the knowledge of the healer’s botany, right?’
My heart was pounding. It felt as if something great was about to happen.
Looking at the data piled up on the table, I placed a hand above it and asked Thomas and Madeleine.
“When shall I return the materials?”
Both the butler and the head-maid looked startled by my unexpected question. They must have thought I’d take a quick glance — of course, they never thought I’d check everything thoroughly. Either way, Thomas added quickly.
“When you’re done reviewing, you can return it to me.”
“I see. Alright, please take good care of me from now on.”
I held out my hand for a handshake.
‘Oh my God, it’s a ritual used only in the Imperial Palace!’ Thomas kissed the back of my hand naturally, and Madeleine kissed both of my cheeks.
‘What the hell just happened?’
As I was baffled not knowing what to do, the two of them stepped back silently to leave the parlor, as they did when they worked in the Imperial Palace.
That was then.
“Oh, right. I’m going to make Theodor’s dinner in the kitchen later in the evening. Can you tell the chef to clean the kitchen properly before then? I noticed earlier that the ceiling was filled with dust, and the bowl had mold marks from the murky water. If you wipe it dry with a towel, those marks will disappear.”
Madeline’s face flared up. The truth was she hadn’t taken the time to even bother with the kitchen because she was managing the entire castle, yet, the newly arrived Grand Duchess had noticed it.
“I’ll take your order.”
The two let out a long sigh as they left Sinclair’s room. Still, they were thrilled wondering if Schlezen Castle would be as refined and dignified as it was when the former Empress was still alive.
——
*When a person married within the Imperial family, their family also indirectly became part of it. That is why Sinclair is spoken of as the daughter of the Marquis of the Empress’ family, even though the Empress was also the daughter of the Marquis before marriage (and after, cuz she’s still his daughter lol.) In nobility, what mattered was the title rather than the name.
**B사감과 러브레터: is a short novel by Hyun Jin Gun.
There’s a short adaption to k-drama made in 2017 by TVN and CJE entertainment I think, with Song Ji Hyo as the protagonist.