MTIHIS | CHAPTER 05

CHAPTER 5

“The Viscount’s estate is made up of a main building and a small annex.”

It was Greta’s official introduction to House Kreutz.

After I had pestered her with endless questions yesterday, she decided to explain everything properly today.

“The annex is practically the servants’ quarters, while the main building has three floors above ground and one underground.

For reference, the basement is only used to store food and miscellaneous items, so you don’t have to worry about it.”

Greta recited her lines mechanically, as if she had memorized a script.

“The third floor of the main building is entirely for you, Madam.

There are only your rooms, so you may move around freely.”

“Huh? What about everyone else?”

“They live on the second floor.

On the left are the master’s bedroom and study, and on the right are the Duke and Duchess Kreutz’s rooms.”

“Why am I the only one alone on the third floor? That’s kind of sad.”

When I pouted, Greta flinched and replied carefully.

“…The master arranged it so you could stay comfortably without feeling self-conscious.”

“Oh really? So Aizen did it out of consideration for me?”

The moment I realized it wasn’t an intentional exclusion, my smile returned.

Greta avoided my gaze as she continued.

“The kitchen is on the east side of the first floor, run by Chef Jack.

If you go west, there’s the garden.”

“Wow, I want to see the garden!”

My eyes sparkled.

A private garden attached to a mansion—how romantic is that?

“Then please follow me this way.”

I followed behind Greta, who walked at a steady pace.

Soon we arrived at the garden, which was… not lush and beautiful, but rather bleak and plain.

Even considering the northern climate, the lack of flowers and abundance of snow was almost shocking.

Then, as I looked around, I spotted a familiar face.

Amid the bare trees stood a beautiful woman with red hair like roses and jewel-like eyes.

“Mother!”

Unable to contain my joy, I ran toward her.

My mother-in-law, who was walking with two unfamiliar women, widened her eyes slightly when she saw me.

“You are…”

“Good morning!

Have you eaten?

Taking a walk?

You look so elegant this morning, Mother!”

Since I’d eaten breakfast alone because my husband and in-laws were busy, this meeting felt like a blessing.

My mother-in-law stared at me stiffly before speaking slowly.

“…You talk a lot.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I bother you?”

“I dislike noise.”

“Then I’ll speak quietly from now on.”

I cupped my hands around my mouth and whispered softly.

“If you’re walking, may I join you?”

“…Don’t you have anything else to do?”

“No! Oops—um, no.”

I instinctively raised my voice and then quickly lowered it to a whisper.

Even so, my mother-in-law still didn’t look pleased.

I shifted more air than sound into my words and asked about the two women.

“Then who’re the ladies with you?”

“They’re Laura, the family physician, and Miriam, the head maid.”

“Ah, the physician and head maid.”

The woman with short dark-green hair bowed politely to me.

“Good day, Madam. I’m Miriam. Forgive me for greeting you late.”

“…Laura.”

Unlike Miriam, Laura gave a reluctant greeting, her eyes faintly hostile.

Maybe the old me didn’t get along with her.

After motioning them away, my mother-in-law sighed.

“Enough. Speak normally.”

“Yes, ma’am. Then, may I ask something? You’re aware of Aizen’s illness, right?”

“Of course. His treatment was interrupted when you collapsed.”

Her reply carried a tone of reproach, and I flinched.

Rolling my eyes nervously, I asked again.

“But… since the family has a physician, why was I the one making his medicine?”

“Laura doesn’t have the skill to treat Aizen’s condition.”

“Then couldn’t we hire another doctor?”

“Unfortunately, our family is humble and quite poor.

We can’t afford to employ more physicians.

That’s why you studied pharmacology and researched treatments yourself.”

Wait, we’re poor?

A noble family… poor?

A dying husband and a penniless household—what a combination.

While I blinked in disbelief, my mother-in-law’s tone turned cold.

“So hurry and make the medicine again.

If Aizen dies because of you, I will never forgive you.”

“Ah…”

“Remember this. It is your duty and destiny to save Aizen.”

I stared blankly at her retreating back and called out to Greta.

“How poor are we… exactly?”

“The Duke and Duchess retired long ago, and the master’s illness prevents him from working, so times are quite hard.

We often can’t pay the wages of even twenty servants on time.”

“What? That bad?”

“Yes. That’s also why we can’t prepare hot water or strengthen the heating magic.

We can’t fully ward off the cold.”

So it wasn’t the lack of a boiler—it was the lack of money.

“My shoulders suddenly feel really heavy…”

Basically, I was the only one in the Kreutz household capable of earning income.

The reality was overwhelming, but it also lit a fire inside me.

“If that’s how it is, I’ll relearn pharmacology, save Aizen, and revive this family myself.”

I couldn’t just give up on a husband who was literally a millennium’s taste.

Then, a friend’s words flashed through my mind.

“You’re really something. When you fall for someone, you charge in like a bulldozer—no brakes, no hesitation.”

“Me? Really?”

“Yeah. Like an eight-ton truck going full speed.”

But what could I do?

They say you can’t hide a sneeze, poverty, or love.

“Greta, let’s go out.”

I declared solemnly.

I couldn’t just sit around doing nothing.

***

Wrapped in a fur-lined cloak, I stepped down from the carriage, the cold wind tossing my hair.

My breath came out white as I looked over the bustling central square of the Kalrad Duchy.

At its center stood a fountain adorned with a proud wolf statue, and to the south stretched a busy market street lined with medieval-style buildings.

Following Greta’s lead, I entered a bookstore.

A young man behind the counter stood up when he saw us.

“Welcome.”

“I’d like to study pharmacology. Could you recommend some beginner books? I need to start from the basics.”

He asked me to wait a moment and disappeared between the shelves.

“Greta, do you think one gold coin is enough to buy all the books I need?”

That was all the cash I had on hand.

I’d heard that ten coppers made one silver, and a hundred silvers made one gold, but I still didn’t quite grasp the value.

“Most books cost around two silvers each, so you can buy dozens and still have money left.”

“Perfect.”

I smiled, but then someone brushed my shoulder as they passed.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

A man holding a picture book bowed his head.

As his scarf slipped loose, I glimpsed a strange rabbit-shaped scar on the back of his neck.

He quickly snatched the scarf and wrapped it tightly again before settling in a corner to read.

Just then, the clerk returned with a stack of books.

The Basics of Pharmacology in Pictures, Medicine Even a Three-Year-Old Could Make, Helpful Herbs and Deadly Poisons.

While I checked the titles, Greta paid the clerk.

“The total is fifteen silvers and five coppers. Shall I carry them to your carriage?”

“No, thank you.”

She refused curtly and lifted the ten thick volumes with one hand as if they were feathers.

“She’s strong,” I thought.

Her job must be tough if she’s built muscles like that.

Outside, the wind had eased.

The bright sun poured down a warm, lemon-colored light.

“Wow, what a nice day. Greta, since we’re out, let’s look around the market before heading back.”

“We should return directly.”

“But it’d be a waste to go straight home. Just a little walk? Please?”

When I grabbed her wrist and pleaded, she hesitated before nodding.

We left the books in the carriage and headed toward the lively marketplace.

Vendors shouted, children ran by with candy, and old men swept storefronts.

A merchant waved at me.

“Pretty lady! Try this ice cookie! It’s delicious!”

“Oh, really?”

Intrigued by the name, I approached her.

The cookie looked like it was made of ice, transparent with golden jam visible inside.

“What’s it made of?”

“I use homemade apple jam and honey. It melts sweetly in your mouth.”

At four coppers each, I quickly bought two.

“Here, Greta.”

“…For me too?”

“Of course.”

There were two of us—how could I eat alone?

“Ah… thank you.”

Greta accepted it awkwardly and took a big bite.

The crisp shell broke apart, releasing the sweet scent of jam.

It was incredible.

The merchant hadn’t exaggerated.

I hummed happily.

“Mmhmm, nothing lifts the mood like good food.”

We strolled through the market, nibbling cookies.

Fishmongers haggled, kids played, and one merchant nodded off sitting upright.

When we passed an apothecary, I peeked in—and nearly fainted at the exorbitant herb prices.

Could our poor family even afford this?

Even the most basic ingredients would burn through one gold coin in no time.

“I guess I need to make money before I can make medicine. But how can I earn it quickly?”

As I pondered, something on the street caught my eye.

“What’s that?”

A notice board with a flyer pinned to it drew my attention.

I stepped closer and read.

“Wanted…?”

It was a bounty notice for a broker who’d swindled people out of their deposits and disappeared.

His accomplice had been caught, but the main culprit—who had taken the money—was still on the run.

“Suspect reportedly has a duck-shaped scar on the back of the neck.

A reward of ten gold coins will be paid immediately for information or capture.”

Ten gold coins? That was ten times what we had brought today.

But wait.

“A duck-shaped scar…?”

I pictured a duck in my mind—two slanted lines like a beak or ears.

No way…