Chapter 4
Overwhelmed by the atmosphere, I stared blankly for a moment before quickly standing and lowering my gaze.
Sally, too, seemed startled by the duke’s sudden appearance. But she quickly trotted over, bowed politely, and…
“Your Grace, that girl came in here without permission. She dared to enter the villa where you reside.”
She immediately tattled on me for coming inside.
Ugh, that little…!
I was about to get angry, but then a thought struck me.
…Wait. If I get on the duke’s good side, couldn’t I meet Rahel directly?
If I could catch his attention, I could become a servant, or even an errand runner.
It would be much faster than slowly gathering information from the staff.
This might actually work.
I quickly changed my plan and looked up with a confident smile.
Kaltz studied me for a moment before asking, “Who let this child into the villa?”
“I… I brought her in,” James said, stepping forward to shield me.
“She helped me get some cheese. I felt bad sending her away without anything, so I was just giving her a snack before sending her home. She’s done nothing wrong. Please punish me instead.”
“This child got the cheese?”
“Yes. She even persuaded the dairy owner and helped negotiate the price.”
Kaltz’s sharp gaze moved from James to me.
She was a pretty enough child to draw the eye, but otherwise, just an ordinary girl.
This child negotiated with the dairy owner?
While he was still observing me, I stepped out from behind James.
“I am Vivian Hessen, daughter of Dias Hessen. I greet the esteemed Duke.”
I gave a flawless curtsey.
“If it would not be improper, may I say something about this situation?”
Kaltz gave a slight nod, telling me to speak.
I continued calmly.
“Sir James told me Your Grace is a man of honor, someone who would never overlook a kindness. He said that if you turned away a benefactor without thanks, you would surely be displeased.”
“…”
“And so, in order to follow Your Grace’s will, he said he would repay me for my help.”
Of course, James had never said such a thing.
Kaltz didn’t know whether the words were true or not—but he understood my intent immediately.
She’s trying to prevent me from punishing him.
If he drove me out and punished James now, it would make him seem like a dishonorable man who didn’t value gratitude.
By praising him, I had also lifted his mood, while protecting James in the process.
This was not the speech of an average child her age.
Kaltz quietly looked into my honey-gold eyes.
Most children my age would avoid his gaze out of fear, but strangely, I didn’t.
And yet, my look wasn’t arrogant—it was steady, curious, with a hint of fear, and wrapped in polite respect.
Bold little thing.
James, glancing between us nervously, quickly bowed his head.
“I’ll send her home right away.”
“No,” Kaltz stopped him with a single word.
“We can’t treat a benefactor that way. Give her more to eat, and make sure she’s properly rewarded for her effort.”
Everyone in the kitchen stared in shock at the unexpected decision.
Even Sally looked between us in disbelief.
“You’re… rewarding her? Not punishing her? She came in without permission—”
“This child helped provide for Edelvine’s plentiful dinner tonight. As she said, it would go against our honor to mistreat a benefactor in the name of Edelvine.”
In this villa, the duke’s word was law. Sally couldn’t scream and stomp in front of him.
“Do you think my decision is wrong, Sally?”
His cold question made her bow her head.
“N-no, Your Grace. I think it is a merciful judgment.”
From the corner of her eye, she saw me watching her. Sally wanted to shout, but she could only bite her lip in frustration.
Before Kaltz left the kitchen, I quickly stepped forward and bowed.
“Thank you, Your Grace! I will repay today’s kindness with whatever I can do in the future.”
A clear hint that I intended to visit again.
Kaltz gave a short, amused breath at the cunning child, then turned and left the kitchen.
Clever, and sly too.
A quick-witted person was easier to handle.
Even after returning to his office, Kaltz found himself thinking about that bright-eyed little girl.
“Owen,” he called.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“That child from the kitchen—how old did you say she was?”
“I heard she is nine.”
Nine.
Just about the same age as Rahel, who had just turned ten this year.
And I happen to need a girl around her age right now. Perfect.
If he wanted to hide the fact that Rahel was actually a boy, he needed a convincing act.
Someone close enough to spend time with Rahel and believe she was a girl—a companion to play with, someone the public could see together with her.
If an outsider girl looks comfortable with Rahel, no one would suspect he’s a boy.
And if, by chance, she discovered the truth…
She’s a commoner. Easy enough to deal with.
After a brief thought, Kaltz decided. There was no reason to throw away a card that had walked right into his hand.
Chirp, chirp!
Another bright, peaceful day began.
“Yaaawn…”
Still half-asleep, I swept the front yard of the bakery.
Dad, having finished tidying up inside, came over looking proud.
“Vivi, you’ve been waking up early these days. What’s gotten into my sleepy princess?”
I flinched.
I only woke up early to go to the villa later.
If he knew I’d been going to the Edelvine villa every morning, I’d never hear the end of it.
But Dad, my life is at stake here.
Of course, I couldn’t say that, so I just gave an awkward smile.
“Mm-hm. I decided to become a good and hardworking Vivian from now on.”
“Ow!”
Dad bumped the edge of his glasses into the shop sign he was lifting.
His glasses fell, but he caught them quickly.
Honestly, such a klutz.
He had a slightly clumsy side.
I checked his face. “Are you okay, Dad? Let me see.”
“Ah, yeah, I’m fine.”
Then, glancing around, he quickly put his glasses back on.
I looked up at him with narrowed eyes as he went back to preparing the shop.
Why does he even wear those glasses? They just get in the way.
As far as I knew, his eyesight was fine—he could walk around, cook, and read without them.
But if he was meeting people, he almost always wore them.
What a waste…
Those glasses hid his ridiculously handsome face. If he showed it off, business would boom.
While I was thinking about all the missed sales, a familiar voice called out:
“Oh, Vivian. Helping your father again today?”
“Such a good girl. My Peter could learn from you…”
It was Aunt Lauren from the general store and Aunt Karin from the fruit shop—self-proclaimed No. 1 fans of my dad.
Every morning, they came to see his face.
“Hehe, hello, Aunties.”
Dad, having finished opening the shop, walked over to greet them.
“Good morning, Lauren. Karin.”
“Hoho, good morning, Dias. Your face is as bright as ever today,” Lauren teased.
Karin playfully smacked her arm. “Oh, stop it!”
After laughing together for a while, both women suddenly clapped their hands.
“Oh, right. Did you hear the news?”
“What news?” Dad asked.
By the time their gossip ended, they spotted a customer entering the general store and hurried off.
Just another ordinary start to the day.
As Dad watched them go, he turned to me.
“Alright, Vivi. Let’s get ready to open for customers.”
“Yes!”
I was about to step inside when Dad suddenly turned his head.
Huh?
The sound of hooves approached, and a luxurious carriage stopped in front of our shop.
That crest…
Painted on the side was none other than the Edelvine ducal family’s emblem.
Who could it be?
As if to answer my question, the person who stepped down from the carriage was…
