Chapter 27
With a cracking sound, the egg broke.
“Aren’t you the Duke’s only child?!”
“Shh.”
Philip signaled her to lower her voice and handed the egg he was holding to Maddy.
Maddy accepted it in confusion and began rubbing it on her face again.
Philip watched the scene fondly before he slowly began to speak.
“His Grace has a younger sister.”
“Then why does no one know about her? Everyone thinks the Duke is an only child.”
“The Marchioness realized she was pregnant only after her husband had passed. With the cause of Crown Prince Heilden’s death never properly revealed, imagine how frightened she must have been to find herself carrying a child.”
“Oh, so she secretly gave birth to a daughter and raised her in hiding? Without telling anyone?”
Maddy suddenly popped the end of the raw egg she had been rubbing on her cheek and sucked it into her mouth.
It wasn’t exactly the kind of behavior suited for such a serious conversation, but to Philip, Maddy had already been firmly categorized as a “poorly educated but kind girl.”
Philip gave a short nod.
“Yes… She was so anxious. She wouldn’t take a single step outside the mansion and even dismissed most of the staff. All to safely give birth to the child. Yet, even so, the child was born with a frail body.”
“Huh? What? Why?”
Maddy widened her eyes as the egg she was sucking burst.
‘…I still have a lot to teach her.’
Philip gently wiped Maddy’s egg-stained hands, thinking to himself like he would about a granddaughter.
“She couldn’t open her left hand.”
The butler, Philip, looked down at his own left hand and opened and closed it a few times.
“Her left hand was frozen, as if it belonged to a tiny child. And around the time she turned four, she was poisoned and lost the ability to speak. How could anyone be so cruel… to a child so young…”
“That bastard.”
“Pardon?”
“Huh?”
“You just said… ‘That bastard.’”
“No, I mean—yeah. That bastard. It was probably someone trying to confirm if there really was a hidden child in the mansion, right? Testing with poison. What a sick freak. Who does that to a child?”
“Ah… yes. That’s when the Marchioness decided the ducal estate was too dangerous. Since the child’s very existence was a secret, she thought it best to let her grow up normally elsewhere.”
“I see.”
“Yes, that’s what happened.”
“Oh. So that baby grew up, got married, and had another baby?”
“Yes. Most likely.”
“What do you mean ‘most likely’?”
“What do you mean, ‘what do you mean’?”
“What do you mean… sir?”
Maddy, having casually slipped into informal speech, quickly winked and tacked on honorifics.
Philip chuckled and continued.
“After sending the child away, the Marchioness cut off all contact intentionally. She believed it was the only way to keep her child alive. In fact, we never even heard whether she grew up and married, so maybe it worked.”
“Oh, I see. But then… how did Yulician find out about his niece?”
“Yulician?”
“Yulician… His Grace the Duke. Hehe. We call each other by name when we’re alone. Hehe. You know~”
Maddy jabbed Philip’s side with her elbow and squirmed with delight.
She was a frustrating girl, but oddly charming to watch.
Philip couldn’t help but chuckle.
“I dare say no more than this. Just know, His Grace holds none dearer than you, Miss Maddy.”
“Hmm, okay. Got it. Thanks.”
Maddy raised and dropped her shoulders with a bright smile.
“I love His Grace too. Very, very, very, very, very, very much. As big as the sky and as wide as the earth.”
Stretching her arms wide to form a giant circle, her cheerfulness knew no bounds.
Philip stood to leave but then turned back.
He asked Maddy,
“I’ve heard that in the slums, kids learn to steal before they learn what love is. So how can you be so sure you love His Grace?”
“Yeah, we learned to steal first.”
Maddy closed her eyes as if reminiscing.
Then, opening them slowly, she looked toward the light streaming in through the small window, her green eyes glimmering.
“…From the very first moment I saw him, I wanted to give him everything I’ve ever stolen. And everything I ever will steal.”
That was such a Maddy answer.
She stood up, looked Philip straight in the eye, and said,
“I’m going to make Yulician happy, even if I have to steal someone else’s happiness to do it. From the moment our eyes first met, I’ve been thinking about protecting his future.”
Her unwavering gaze was so fierce it made Philip’s knees go weak.
He froze for a moment, but finally relaxed thanks to her sweet smile.
“Haha, I’m sure His Grace would be very pleased to hear that. Well then.”
“Thanks for sharing such a difficult story, Philip. Oh—can I call you Philip?”
“Of course.”
“Then please call me Maddy too~”
“You might become Her Grace one day.”
“Then I’ll change it then. For now, I’m just Maddy. Just plain old Maddy.”
Linking arms with Philip, she exited the small room.
“Philip, here. Take this.”
“What is it?”
“A pocket watch from Lady Bartolose’s bag.”
“Oh dear! Look at this little thief!”
“Hahahaha!”
“You must return this!”
“Come on, can’t I just say I picked it up?!”
“If you picked it up, you return it to the owner!”
“She already went home!”
“Then you return the item to its owner!”
“Even though she slapped you?”
“Even if she’d hit me in the head, it still belongs to her, Miss Maddy.”
“Ugh, you’re no fun, Philip. So uptight.”
“Ha! You have a long way to go before becoming Her Grace. A very long way.”
“Hehehe.”
“Not funny!”
“Hehehehehe.”
“Ah, dear! Just give it here. I’ll have someone return it to the young lady.”
“Eh? You’re really giving it back?”
“Of course!”
“This is platinum! Look! See how shiny it is? It’s expensive!”
“Miss Maddy!”
“The back’s gold too, Philip. You know how much meat you could buy with this?! Huh?”
“Maddy!”
Philip finally shouted, and Maddy loosened her grip on the watch.
“You finally called me Maddy. I really like my name.”
She let go of the pocket watch without a trace of regret and skipped ahead.
Philip couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief.
He was starting to understand why His Grace was so hopelessly drawn to her.
She was strange, and amusing.
It had been over ten days since Count Montenezzando had gone to the racetrack.
He hadn’t wanted to spend the money recklessly, so he kept it hidden away in a drawer.
He knew he should return it, but he didn’t want to.
Yet he couldn’t keep it stashed forever either.
Each morning he awoke wondering if the city guard would come knocking.
Still, he didn’t feel like going to the racetrack to meet that lucky fellow again.
The Count let out a deep sigh.
Even when he opened the drawer—
Sigh…
And when he closed it—
Haaah…
All he could do was sigh.
Whether he saw the money or not, the darkness in front of him didn’t lift.
He slowly opened the drawer again and looked nervously at the stacked bundles of cash.
It was the first time money made him feel miserable.
At that moment, the Countess burst into the room.
“Dear! I have to throw a party this weekend! I need a lot of money!”
The Count slammed the drawer shut and answered robotically.
“I don’t have any money! Not a single coin!”
“What do you mean?! I need at least 500 Dillons for this party!”
“Five hundred?! Are you kidding me?!”
“If I don’t host this party, people will think the Montenezzando family has fallen!”
“Why do we need to prove we’re still standing?”
“You and me! Our whole family! Are you not going to marry off our daughter Vivian?!”
“She’s only thirteen! What marriage?!”
“She is thirteen! That’s why we need guests to come see her at our home! Anyway, I have to hold this party! Give me the money!”
“Did you deposit money with me?!”
“If you don’t want to disgrace me, then go get it from your precious nephew, the Duke!”
“Will you die if we skip one party?!”
“This week’s party is essential! I’ll just die if we don’t have it!”
The Countess stomped her feet like she might actually drop dead.
In the end, the Count had no choice but to take the money from the drawer.
“Here! Here! Take it! Use it! Spend it all! It’s yours! You spent it, not me!”
“You always say you’re broke while hoarding cash like this! You’re so gross!”
She snatched the money like an eagle and stormed out.
It was done. The money was gone. No turning back now.
“Come arrest me! It’s over! Hahaha!”
The Count laughed madly, like someone who’d lost his mind.
The reason for the Countess’s mysterious weekend party?
Fewer than ten guests came.
Two neighboring families showed up and left after a few hours.
The Countess bit her nails and stomped her feet in panic.
“What the hell did you do?! Don’t take it out on me! Fix this!”
“You should’ve stood closer to me at the party! You were so distracted the guests all left!”
“Oh, blaming others again! You never take responsibility!”
“What did I do?! You’re the one who doesn’t care about the family! Don’t think I don’t know about that little wench Ricky at the racetrack!”
“What does Ricky have to do with this?!”
“Ha! You’re not even denying it! So? You’ve been avoiding the racetrack because you feel guilty?”
“Guilty?! I have a clear conscience!”
But even as he said it, guilt washed over him.
It wasn’t Ricky that kept him from the racetrack—it was the nearly 1,000 Dillons he owed.
Just seeing a guard pass by the mansion made his heart race.
He couldn’t go on like this.
So Count Montenezzando returned to the racetrack, resigned to his fate.
The man had looked like a foreign officer—he might have left the region by now.
If the man was still there and asked about the lost betting ticket, he’d just play dumb.
“Count, today you should bet on Lily, Tervam, and Buzz. I assure you, you’ll win at least 1,000 Dillons.”
The man appeared behind the ticket booth, grinning.
“Waaah!”
“Hello there. Have you been well?”
He hadn’t left. He didn’t even ask about the missing ticket.
