LRVP Chapter 56

Chapter 56

“Sorry?”

My eyes widened as Gillian suddenly asked for my opinion.

Since when did he care what I thought?

“Lady?”

“Oh, right. I won’t send Lucian to the capital. Just like Viscount Dusel said, it’s obvious what will happen once his strength is proven.”

Lucian was still too young to join a dangerous monster subjugation mission.

At the very least, he should still be with his family.

“Then I’ll relay your message to the Duke as you said.”

With Gillian’s final words, the long retainers’ meeting came to an end.

It was a surprisingly anticlimactic conclusion.

‘I thought the retainers would argue for ages.’

But to think Gillian would respect my opinion.

It really hit me how powerful the authority the Duke had given me was.

Even the retainers, who normally would’ve told me to stay out of family matters, stayed silent.

“Lady.”

As I was about to stand, thinking power truly was a great thing, Gillian stopped me.

***

“Where is Lady Rilfrey?”

“She’s attending the retainers’ meeting.”

“I see…”

At Riley’s answer, Claude’s shoulders visibly drooped.

He had planned to take a walk with her today, using the warmer weather as an excuse.

‘Guess I’ll just check on the kids until she’s done.’

Claude immediately turned and headed toward the nursery.

‘Why is it so quiet today?’

Normally, the nursery would be filled with crashing sounds, but today, it was oddly silent.

Claude quietly opened the door.

Inside, three children were huddled in a circle with their heads together.

He bent down to look at them.

“What if we stick it on with glue?”

“It’ll fall off if it gets wet.”

“Then don’t get it wet.”

“You’re not going to wash Luto? It’s all dirty.”

In the middle of the group sat the bunny doll that Lucella had given Lucian yesterday.

“What are you all talking about?”

“Uncle!”

At Claude’s voice, Amelia lifted her head. Her hands were full of colorful buttons.

“What’s with the buttons?”

“To give Luto eyes!”

“Luto?”

“Yeah, Lucian’s bunny—short for Luto!”

Amelia pointed to Lucian’s bunny doll. It looked like it already had a name—Luto.

“So that’s why you were talking about glue.”

“Yeah.”

“But you don’t glue doll eyes on. You sew them so they stay put.”

“Ohhh.”

The three children nodded as if they finally understood.

“But Auntie said not to touch sharp things.”

“Yeah, the teachers said so too. Always call an adult when using scissors or knives.”

“An adult…”

All three pairs of eyes turned toward Claude.

“…Why are you looking at me?”

Lucian, flustered, held out Luto to him.

“Please do it.”

“No way, Uncle can’t do stuff like that.”

It was Amelia who stopped Lucian.

“How could someone who’s only ever held a sword know how to sew?”

And she was absolutely right. Claude had never touched a needle in his entire life.

Still, for some reason, her words hurt his pride.

“Really?”

Seeing Lucian take Luto back so quickly stung even more.

“Who says I can’t sew?”

“You can?”

“Of course.”

Claude lifted his chin with confidence.

“Swords and needles are basically the same. Sharp and require precision.”

“Whoa…”

None of the kids knew what “basically” meant, but Claude’s choice of words sounded impressive.

“I think Uncle’s right. Swords and needles both make you bleed if you get poked.”

“So they’re both dangerous tools?”

“Then Uncle must be great at sewing since he’s good with swords!”

“Exactly.”

“Then Uncle should sew on Luto’s eyes!”

Lucian jumped up and handed Luto to Claude.

“W-Wait a second…”

“Bring us a needle and thread, please!”

Before Claude could make any excuses, Amelia had already called a maid.

Before long, a sewing kit was in Claude’s hands.

“You can do it, right?”

“Uncle is an amazing swordsman, after all!”

Sparkle.

The children’s eyes glittered like stars. Claude let out a deep sigh.

“…Fine. I’ll try.”

Thus began Claude’s first sewing attempt in his life.

***

“What is it?”

I asked as Gillian approached me.

“The Duke inquired about how the young masters are doing.”

“Their condition?”

He never cared about that before—what’s gotten into him?

‘Although… he’s probably more curious about Edwin than Lucian.’

Gillian likely said “young masters” out of politeness.

“Tell him not to worry about Edwin. He’s adjusting well. He eats and sleeps well and is growing fast.”

“I see. Do you happen to know what kind of food Master Edwin likes?”

“He used to love chocolate, but lately he seems to prefer fruit.”

“What about his favorite games?”

“He had a lot of fun building a snowman the other day…”

Why so many questions today?

It felt like he was holding me up for no reason.

‘The Duke is curious about some odd things today.’

Not like he ever checks in on Lucian like this.

“Edwin just likes it when we all play together—me, Lucian, Amelia, and the Marquis.”

“The Marquis… you mean Claude Agris?”

“Yes.”

I nodded, and Gillian’s eyebrows twitched, looking somehow displeased.

“When exactly does Marquis Agris plan to leave the mansion?”

“He said he’ll stay until his leg fully recovers, so at least another month.”

“It’ll take that long?”

“The doctor said it would take at least two months.”

Gillian’s eyebrows twitched again.

“Did I say something wrong?”

“No.”

He quickly smoothed his expression and shook his head. But I knew that look.

‘That’s the face he makes when he’s annoyed.’

He made the exact same face when I said I was volunteering at an orphanage.

‘What is it this time?’

Could it be he’s upset about having two extra mouths to feed?

‘How does he live with that many things that bother him?’

I clicked my tongue silently and turned away from him.

“Then I’ll go check on the kids. Taking care of them is my job, after all.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“Why?”

“The Duke is considering renovating the nursery. I need to inspect it to report anything lacking.”

“Well, okay.”

He’s not exactly easy to be around, but it’d be rude to refuse.

As we walked side by side toward the nursery…

Thud thud thud thud.

A fast-paced running sound echoed from a distance.

“What’s that?”

No one in the house ran around except Lucian.

‘But these footsteps are too loud for him.’

I squinted toward the sound approaching fast.

“Lady!”

Charging toward me, having even thrown away his crutches, was none other than Claude.

And clinging to his side…

“Aunty!”

Lucian dangled from his arm as he came running.

***

“What is this?!”

Lucian looked ready to cry as he saw the finished doll.

“It’s a total mess!”

Claude couldn’t even lift his head at the brutal critique.

Lucian was right—Luto was a disaster.

The left eye had thread sticking out everywhere, and the right eye had a loose button barely hanging on.

At least the eyes were in the right place.

The worst part, however, was Claude’s hand.

His fingers were dotted with blood from all the times he’d pricked himself.

“Sigh, what am I going to do with you?”

Amelia shook her head and began wiping his hands with a handkerchief.

“If you’re no good at it, why lie?”

“…Sorry.”

“Just go get treated.”

Pushed out of the room by Amelia, Claude trudged off.

That was when word arrived that the retainers’ meeting had just ended.

“Master Lucian, the retainers’ meeting just finished.”

“Really?!”

Lucian shot to his feet, still fiddling with Luto’s button.

“I’m going to see Auntie!”

He clutched Luto and dashed off to the meeting room.

Claude, who was heading to the infirmary, changed direction and followed him.