CHAPTER 9
Marquis Celestine took a quick look at Pervin’s face. His face showed no emotion, as if nothing had happened. Or maybe he’s just hiding his emotions. Because Pervin was a cold person who did not express his feelings well. Pervin opened his mouth as he continued to look at the papers.
“So?”
“…So? Aren’t you curious about her at all?”
“Lance, don’t you think it’s rude to mention another woman’s name over your wife?”
Pervin’s cold, sharp eyes met Marquis Celestine. Marquis Celestine touched her nose in embarrassment. He didn’t know much about her friend’s childhood. Having lost her mother shortly after her birth, and due to her father’s neglect, Pervin spent her childhood confined to her country estate with her nanny, Madame Tilly. The person who shares those times is Lady Stella Belle, who has a fief in a nearby area. Didn’t you say that you two were childhood friends? I’m sure I heard that from Lady Belle. But I don’t know why Pervin’s reaction was so cold.
“Uh… Right.”
“Okay then, Lance, if you’re done with your business, let’s go. I guess I have to see His Majesty the Emperor.”
“You are enjoying a chat with His Majesty in the backyard right now?”
Pervin snorted at him.
“I also want to enjoy talking to my wife. Whether it’s the push or the body.”
“What… what?”
He left behind an unknown statement and disappeared. Marquis Celestine, who was left behind, scratched his curly hair.
“It’s clear that the Duchess has gone through an upheaval that seems to have changed her person, but why is that guy, Pervin, like this? It looks just like when she was newlywed, that…”
* * *
“We need to grab attention this once!”
This place, filled with excited people’s voices, is Carlyle Mansion. Numerous people were moving around the large mansion as if a grand event was taking place.
“How long has it been since we merged? This time, we will definitely find a successor…”
“A baby who received the sacred blood of Verma and the blood of Carlisle. How amazing is this?”
“Hurry and bring the musk, Marianne. I have to bury it with my wife.”
I was currently in the process of polishing my entire body, surrounded by employees. Listening to that damn ‘successor’ until her ears hurt. It seemed like they were trying to wash me, dress myself, and polish my entire body to get her in the best shape for the wedding. She put on pale makeup, wore an ivory dress with gorgeous lace in various places, and sprayed light perfume all over her body. Eventually, even a noble yet sinister-looking musk appeared. That’s when Marianne’s face melts as if in ecstasy, as she appears holding the musk. The maids who helped with the dressing also looked mesmerized, as if they were intoxicated by the smell of musk.
“Oh my, it smells so good.”
“I want to hug my wife… Breathe! Why do I think like this!”
At this time, I also feel dizzy due to the musk smell. Mrs. Tilly hid her musk pouch deep in the hem of my dress. Without even realizing it, I was struck by her lightning-like movements. In her confusion, she rummaged through her dress, but could not find anything, as she had hidden it well under the fluttering hem of her layers.
“You don’t have to go this far, Mrs. Tilly.”
Mrs. Tilly smiled sinisterly and she assured me:
“Ma’am, this is an opportunity that has come for the first time in several years, so we must seize it tightly. Marianne, please bring some more rose oil.”
Marie Anne smiled pleasantly as she hung on my arm.
“What if you get drunk on musk!”
“Huh! Here you are.”
Marie Anne rubbed her eyes as if trying to come to her senses.
“The musk smell was so captivating that my eyes immediately rolled back. It feels like becoming a wolf.”
“Marianne! You dare make fun of her mouth just because your wife is watching over you!”
“No, it’s okay.”
I smiled and nodded at her. I tried to put my hand into the hem of the dress to find the musk and remove it, but I couldn’t find it because the hem of the dress’s petticoat was so abundant. Mrs. Tilly dabbed a little of her rose balm on the back of my neck, and she said,
“I’m sure you’ll be able to win the master’s heart this time, ma’am. I know very well how much pain you must have had while getting married from Verma to this unfamiliar place. Moreover, since the master did not like her and she did not have children, the elders of the Carlisle family would not have been very pleased with her. So, take this opportunity to make sure you do it. That way, you can spend the rest of your life comfortably here.”
I did my best to hide my embarrassment. Marie Anne, who was doing her hair, looked in the mirror and looked ecstatic. She added excitedly that she often met maids from surrounding noble families at the market.
“Other kids often say that their wife is pretty or that their girl is the prettiest, but I don’t think that’s ever the case. “Ma’am, instead of just staying at home like this, can’t you go to meetings held at other noble residences?”
I shrugged.
“I still have to go to the ball held at the imperial palace next week.”
Mrs. Tilly said, “Oops,” and hit her thigh.
“Oh, so I guess I should order a dress right away? Which clothing store should I contact…? Everyone is probably itching to do business with us, but we have to choose carefully. Since this is my first transaction, I need to be careful…”
I remembered the closet in my room. Although there were only strong colors such as black and red, there were still quite a few dresses.
“You have a lot of clothes in your closet, Mrs. Tilly. “Does she really need to buy more?”
Mrs. Tilly showed a nuance in my words as if that was absolutely not the case.
“The clothes you wore when you got married have long since gone out of style. It was already 4 years ago. You have to put everything back together. bud! At this point, it would be better to buy some accessories. Now you’re going to be doing extracurricular activities, but you can’t just wear that silver bracelet forever. and…”
At that time, I was wondering when to stop Mrs. Tilly’s endless chatter. A young butler who brought a message from the imperial palace knocked on the door.
“This is a message from the master.”
“Oh, I guess it’s a message from the master telling me to groom myself and wait!”
In this situation, I, the wife, stayed still, but the maids next to her became even more upset. I quickly opened the scorpion. And I breathed a sigh of relief.
“He is telling me to go to sleep first.”
“…yes?”
“That can’t be possible. The look in my master’s eyes today was such a passionate look that he definitely said he would hold you in his arms tonight.”
“There’s no way the master with such romantic eyes would go back on his promise! Please read it again, ma’am!”
In this situation where the maids were excited and could not believe the authenticity of the letter, I shrugged my shoulders and read the letter.
“It says this. ‘I have to work overtime at the emperor’s request, so don’t wait and go to sleep first’.”
The servants sighed as if they were used to it.
“Ah… It’s overtime again…”
“How on earth can His Majesty the Emperor treat our master like that…? Get me to work.”
“The shadows under your eyes look deeper…”
They looked at me, the product of what they had been holding on to for hours. I jumped up, let down my hair, and tried to put on a more comfortable dress rather than a fancy dress. But the maids surrounded me and actively tried to dissuade me.
“Can you please just wear this until you go to bed, ma’am? No, if you just dress like this until evening, I won’t have any time to spare!”
“You’re pretty even without decorations, but I can’t tell you how beautiful you are when you decorate yourself like this, ma’am. Please, if you can please our eyes a little more…”
“This hairstyle is the masterpiece of my life! Please stay like this just a little longer…”
The maids looked around me with sparkling eyes. It was a bit awkward that they treated me as if they were a piece of art they had created, and that they were full of affection for me. Well, winning their hearts is one way to escape from the image of a bad place. I nodded willingly.
“Let’s wear this until dinner, then.”
The maids put their hands together and looked ecstatic.
“Thank you!”
“It’s really lucky to be able to see a living statue right in front of you.”
“See you later in the evening, everyone. I’m going to spend some time in the garden and then come back.”
Mrs. Tilly quickly stepped forward.
“I will follow with you, ma’am.”
“I’m going to organize my thoughts by myself.”
Mrs. Tilly smiled sweetly at me with a look in her eyes that said, “Ah, I see.” It seemed like I was sad because the meal with her husband was cut off.
“Ah, then please come back. “When dinner is ready, we will ring a loud bell at the sponsorship door, so you can come back when you hear the bell.”
“All right.”
I opened the door and went out.
* * *
When the long-awaited union between the Duke and Duchess was canceled, the heartbroken maids retreated to the first floor in despair. Marie Anne grumbled her heart out to her aunt, Mrs. Tilly.
“Your Majesty, you are truly indifferent. It is not just a few days, but several years since you have been reunited, and you are keeping the master busy with your work.”
Mrs. Tilly answered, turning her bewildered eyes to the sky.
“You probably didn’t know, master, that this is the first time we’ve been together since the first night.”
“I guess so?”
“I guess he didn’t order me to work overtime even if he knew. Oh, whatever.”
Although his tone of voice clearly did not blame the emperor, his eyes were full of blame for the emperor. Why are you interfering with my master’s happy married life, like an Emperor! …Marianne was indignant at the look in her eyes.
“No, you must have known! A son who carries on the noble blood of Verma and Carlisle could become the heir to the throne! Currently, only daughters are being born to Her Majesty the Empress, and my master is also a distant relative of the royal family. Isn’t that why His Highness the Duke of Sibelom, the current successor, keeps his master in check? His Majesty the Duke of Sibelom is not yet married and has no children, so if your wife gives birth to a son from the Carlisle family, the heir to the royal family could be…”
“Oops! Don’t say things like that, my master is such a loyal subject to the royal family…”
Mrs. Tilly silenced her imprudent niece. The moment they were about to enter the kitchen. Her Alfred, who had received a message from her messenger from her imperial palace in her vestibule, saw her and came running. She tilted her head as if Mrs. Tilly was finding her strange.
“Didn’t you already receive the message from the imperial palace earlier, Alfred?”
“Also, the master sent a message to say so. Where on earth are you, Madam?”
“She went out for a short walk in the garden. Why are you in a hurry?”
“No, it’s not that urgent…”
Alfred scratched his head and relayed the message he had heard from the messenger.
“They say they plan ahead and arrive home on time. How on earth did this happen…”
