Chapter 10
“Madam? Answer me!”
“Madam, are you alright?”
After Penelope left, Charles, who came in with food, looked at the tired Mercian and asked worriedly.
“I’m fine. Just hungry.”
Mercian smiled warmly at Charles’s kind words and replied.
“As I thought, I brought a special dish from our head chef. This stew is something you can only eat at the Duke’s house. First, you should take off that wedding dress.”
Charles pulled the bed curtain, and several maids entered the room.
“We’ll help you take off the dress, Madam.”
The maids quickly took off Mercian’s wedding dress and helped her change into another dress, then bowed and left the room.
“Madam, please eat first and rest a little. The Marchioness is attending the reception, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
“Thank you.”
“Well then, I’ll be going now.”
“Okay.”
“Oh, Madam?”
As Charles was leaving, he came back, bowed, and said to Mercian,
“Congratulations on your marriage again.”
“Thank you, Charles.”
After Charles left, Mercian sat quietly, feeling a strange sensation.
Why did Charles’s congratulations touch her heart more than those from Luciane or Penelope?
And why were tears coming again?
She was sure she wasn’t upset, yet tears flowed uncontrollably.
Wiping them away, Mercian promised herself she would never cry over such things again.
…
After some time, Mercian calmed down and looked at the stew Charles had left.
If she didn’t eat, Charles would worry, right?
She took a bite of the stew.
It wasn’t as hot as when it was first brought, but the warm broth went down her throat, making her feel warm all over.
For some reason, she felt a little comforted by the wounds Penelope had left on her heart.
Yes, she couldn’t cry forever.
From now on, I belong to the Canoluf Duke’s family.
I must get used to this life.
As Charles said, the stew tasted unlike anything Mercian had ever tried.
Mercian finished the stew, then collapsed on the bed to sleep.
***
In the dining room of the Duke, “Did you bring Madam the stew?”
At Clea’s question, Charles nodded.
“She must be very hungry. Maybe we should have brought her some bread, too.”
Hearing this, Charles hesitated for a moment, then blocked Clea, who was about to bring bread, and said,
“Head maid, I think it’s better if you don’t go to Madam.”
“Why? Don’t tell me her sister came to see her again.”
“No, the Countess came to see Madam, but for some reason, Madam looked very sad.”
“Looked sad?”
“Yes, both her sister and her mother seem like terrible people.”
“Charles! Don’t speak carelessly!”
Clea scolded Charles, who shrugged his shoulders and murmured,
“But both of them make Madam sad.”
“Charles, you’ve just met her today, but you’ve already opened your heart to her?”
The head chef, preparing food for the servants, said something, and Charles’s eyes lit up as he replied,
“That’s because the chef hasn’t met Madam yet. She’s so kind and nice. Even when she talks to me, she’s gentle and never looks down on me for being a maid. But that sister of hers acts like she’s already the lady of this house…”
“Charles, didn’t I tell you to stop?”
At Clea’s warning, Charles said no more and sat down.
The chef handed her a bowl of stew and said,
“Well, if Charles says so, then it must be true. That’s good to hear. It’s a relief to have a kind lady as our Madam. And it doesn’t seem like the head maid disagrees either.”
“She is a good person. Also delicate. But Charles, since we serve her as our lady, we must not speak carelessly about her in front of others. The same goes for other nobles.”
“Yes, head maid!”
“Come on, stew doesn’t taste good when it gets cold. Eat up.”
Hearing this, Charles and Clea stopped talking and started eating the stew.
***
“Madam? It’s time to get up.”
Waking at Charles’s voice, Mercian got up and saw it was already dark outside the window.
“Already evening?”
“Yes… It’s time to go to the bridal chamber now.”
“Bridal chamber?”
“Come on, there’s a lot to prepare, so get up.”
What is there to prepare?
. . .
“Ah… ahh! Charles, not there!”
Mercian screamed softly in the bath as Charles and the maids rubbed her body as if kneading dough.
“I apologise, Madam. A full-body massage is the first thing done on the first night at the Duke’s house to relieve tension. Please bear a little discomfort.
A little discomfort? No way! Please don’t touch my belly fat…
Thirty minutes later…
“Madam, now I will apply the fragrant oil.”
Exhausted from the massage, Mercian nodded weakly, and the maids applied fragrant oil all over her body.
“Is it over now?”
“Yes. Now you can get dressed and go to the bridal chamber.”
“Get dressed? Thanks.”
……
“Charles? Are these clothes?”
“Hahaha, this nightgown was specially prepared by the Dowager Duchess.”
“No, this isn’t clothes. It’s see-through! How can I wear something so embarrassing?”
“Oh, ma’am. Easy-to-remove clothing is better and saves time because you’ll be taking it off anyhow.
Take off anyway… sigh…
Perhaps if I had a nice figure.
But this shows my belly fat too clearly.
I can never wear this!
Mercian stubbornly refused to wear it and finally left the bath wrapped in a bathrobe over the nightgown prepared by Olivia.
“Where am I?”
It should have been her bathroom, but why did she come out into another room?
“Oh, the Dukes’ and Madam’s bathrooms are connected.”
“…What?”
Connected bathrooms?
Is it true that they use the same bathtub?
When he noticed Mercian’s face turning red, Charles grinned and reassured her.
The Duke hardly ever uses the bath on this side. Now you just wait here for him. Have a good time. We’ll be going now…”
After Charles and the maids left, Mercian slowly looked around the room.
The room, a little bigger than hers, was neat, just like Ruann’s personality.
It had only a bed, a desk, and a small wardrobe, so the large space felt empty.
I got married, huh?
***
Meanwhile, in the Duke’s study: “Are you okay?”
“Yes, Ed, I’m all right. After eating something, I feel better.
“You might want to see another doctor, Master.”
“Ed, I’m fine. Stop worrying and leave.”
Edward hid his worried face but left the study carrying the tray with Ruann’s empty plate.
Ruann slowly got up, took a hidden bottle of liquor from the bookshelf, poured a glass, and took a sip by the window.
Has it been about two weeks since that happened?
Ruann quietly looked at the faint red line extending a little from his wrist.
“Duke, are you ready?”
Lost in thought, Ruann took a sip of the drink in his glass as Cassel entered the study and asked.
“What about the guests?”
“The Dowager Duchess just sent everyone home, saying there’s no need to keep the reception going long since the Duke looks unwell.”
“And the Crown Prince?”
“After seeing the Duke’s very weak appearance, he looked satisfied and left immediately.”
“Understood. Then I should go now, right?”
“Are you feeling okay?”
“What?”
“I mean… didn’t you skip eating for two days just to look worse in front of the Crown Prince? What if you collapse on your first night with the Madam? D-Duke!”
Ruan opened the study door and left without another word, as if he no longer needed to listen.
“W-Why won’t he listen… This is important… He might not know because it’s his first time, but it takes a lot of stamina.”
“What do you mean?”
“Uh?”
Muttering to himself, Cassel waved off Edward’s words as if they were nothing.
“No, Ed. He’s just talking to himself.”
***
In front of Ruan’s room.
Sigh, I can’t keep the Madam waiting any longer, can I?
Ruan took a deep breath and slowly opened the door.
As he walked into the room, his eyes met with Mercian’s, who had been looking around the room.
“Oh, sorry. I was just looking around because I felt restless.”
“No, it’s your room, Madam. Please feel free to look around as much as you like.”
There was a brief silence.
Feeling awkward, Mercian tightened her gown.
Ruan looked at her and asked, “Isn’t the robe uncomfortable? Shall I have a nightgown prepared for you?”
“N-Nightgown? No, I’m already wearing it.”
“What?”
“I mean… I was cold, so I put on the robe because the nightgown is a little flimsy.
I apologise. I prefer to sleep with the window open usually. Just a second.
Mercian rushed over and saw Luan, who appeared weak enough to faint, attempting to use his thin wrist to close the heavy window.
“I’ll close the window for you.”
After Mercian closed the window, a short silence fell again.
Ruan then looked at her and said,
“First, before you sleep, there are a few things I’d like to tell you.”
“Oh, yes. Please tell me. There must be some rules in the Duke’s house.”
Mercian sat at the table, and Ruan sat across from her.
“There are no strict rules in the Canoluf Duke family. As I mentioned before, Edward manages the family’s finances, so if you need any money, just ask him. Additionally, you will be given a monthly allowance to purchase jewellery or dresses, typically worth 300 gold coins. Of course, you can ask Edward for more if that isn’t sufficient.
“Three hundred gold coins? That’s a lot. I don’t need that much. I already have a lot of dresses, and the dress room’s inventory is sufficient for the six months I’ll be here, which spans two seasons.
“That money is yours, so I won’t interfere with how you spend it. By the way, is there anything else you want to ask me?”
“Well, I’m curious about something.”
“Go ahead.”
“Do you plan to spend nights with me?”
Cough! Cough, cough!
Ruann choked on her tea after Mercian’s sudden question.
“Oh, I’m sorry! Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. Cough cough So, you mean…?”
“Well, since we’re married and the agreement says we should spend four nights a week together to have a child, I have no intention of refusing. But…”
“But?”
“I mean, you look very weak, and I worry that if we spend nights together, something bad might happen to you… Oh my!”
Before Mercian finished speaking, Ruan quickly came over, picked her up in one go, and whispered in her ear,
“Madam, don’t judge everything by appearances alone. If you don’t want to spend nights together, I won’t force you. But if you are this eager, I have no reason to hold back, do I?”
Ruan, still surprised, blinked and said nothing as he carried her swiftly to the bed and gently laid her down, saying,
“If you wish to refuse, say so now. I won’t mind if you reject me.”
Is this the same man who looked like he might collapse at the wedding?
Mercian watched in disbelief as Ruan, twice his size, lifted her with ease and spoke again while maintaining a kind gaze.
“Madam? Please answer!”
