Chapter 15
“Ah, my apologies. I got a bit carried away.”
“It’s fine. You’re allowed to get worked up sometimes.”
Huh, that sounded almost like the translator was swearing at me—oddly refreshing.
Mikhail’s mad eyes gleamed fiercely, the light bouncing off his monocle. They flashed as if a bolt of lightning were about to strike.
“Why did Father leave my younger siblings in the hands of people like that?”
“It’s tradition. The families of Count Pavel and Baroness Caitlyn have served the Ballienors for generations. Besides, the Duke doesn’t know their true nature.”
“What do you mean, doesn’t know? If you know, how could Father—of all people—not know?”
“That’s because both of them become meek little lambs in front of the Duke.”
…That, I could believe. In front of Duke Metherio, anyone would turn into a docile lamb.
Though I found it distasteful that the Duke had neglected his children, I still tried to understand his position as the highest authority in the household.
In a patriarchal, hierarchical society, a father’s role in childrearing was extremely limited. A noble head of house—especially a duke—was unlikely to fuss over his children in detail. And with the lady of the house absent, the situation could only have grown worse.
“Mikhail, you’re thinking I’m the only one who can change the current situation, aren’t you?”
“There’s no other way but for you to step forward, My Lady.”
“Alright. I’ll try my best, but you’ll have to help me a lot.”
“Do you even have to ask?”
I flopped forward, burying my face into Mikhail’s shoulder.
A faint scent of fresh mint and green grass clung to the back of his neck, reminding me of Lemur oak trees.
“Hey…”
“Yes, My Lady?”
I was about to bring up the connection between the pendant I’d found beneath the Lemur oak and the cat, but I shut my mouth in a hurry.
I had a hunch—if Mikhail started digging into the cat’s identity, he might actually discover that it was Crown Prince Richard.
“…Never mind.”
It would be best to keep the Richard matter buried for now.
My eyes darted about awkwardly, and the corners of my lips quirked into a sheepish smile as I searched for something to say.
“It’s just… you smell nice.”
Before the Duke returned, I took my time looking around his office.
The last time I’d been here, I’d been too nervous to notice anything beyond the desolate, ruin-like state of the place. But today, I spotted a number of interesting details.
First off, my eyes were immediately drawn to a photo garland strung up with countless family pictures. He had practically covered an entire bare wall with them, as if he no longer even intended to hide them.
Next to his desk sat a wardrobe the size of a small car. If not an elephant, it could certainly hold a hippo or two.
Opening it revealed a row of massive coats adorned with silver buttons. If I laid one out flat, Jeremiah, Davina, and I could easily lie down on it together for a picnic.
Without thinking, I climbed inside, snuggling into one of the coats. After all, humans also have that instinctive desire to curl up in small, dark spaces—just like cats seek out boxes.
The wardrobe smelled of musk, but the Duke’s coat carried a different scent—both the green freshness I’d smelled on Mikhail and the metallic tang of iron.
It wasn’t a particularly pleasant smell, so I quickly tried to climb back out. But as I shifted, something small and white fell to the floor.
It was a polaroid-style photo—the kind I’d seen plenty of on the wall.
Sure enough, the back bore a note in rough handwriting:
“Davina’s First Roll Over ♥”
Oh, Duke… really? You hid photos in here too? You’re thorough with your kid-fan behavior, aren’t you?
If photo technology advanced a little more, I bet he’d hang up giant posters.
Suppressing a laugh, I admired this priceless piece of blackmail material. I’d have to tease him about it later.
“What? Ariel?”
The Duke’s surprised voice came from outside the door. I quickly stepped out of the wardrobe, schooled my face into an innocent smile, and greeted him.
“Father! You’re back?”
“Ariel! What’s going on?”
With a face half-joy, half-confusion, the Duke stepped into the office. His gray-blue eyes flickered warily, like a dog wondering if I’d found something I wasn’t supposed to.
“You didn’t… find anything?”
“Nope. Nothing at all.”
“…Nothing at all?”
“I just thought your wardrobe was nice and cozy.”
I smiled sweetly, as if to say I appreciated the tour.
“Ahem. I hear you haven’t eaten dinner yet.”
“I’m starving.”
“You should have started without me.”
“I wanted to eat dinner with you, Father, so I waited.”
When I looked up at him with the expression of a rain-soaked puppy, his eyes immediately reddened.
Honestly, Duke, how did you survive all this time pretending to be cold-blooded when your tear ducts are this weak?
“Very well. Let’s eat together.”
We moved to the reception room next door. Unlike the private, slightly shabby office, the reception room was in a presentable state—at least nothing that would embarrass him in front of guests.
A massive rectangular table was soon filled with food—beef, chicken, pork, turkey, duck—meats of all kinds.
“I heard you like meat.”
“Of course. Nothing beats meat for restoring one’s strength.”
As I eagerly sampled the dishes, I kept an eye out for the right moment to bring up my real purpose.
The crispy-skinned chicken thigh steak was the star of the night—juicy inside, perfectly seasoned with herbs, easily rivaling the beef and pork in quality.
“You’ve got quite the appetite.”
“It’s delicious. I wish my siblings could eat with us.”
I deliberately mentioned them, adding a little dramatic sigh.
The Duke lowered his head as he cut into his steak, speaking just before taking a bite.
“Do the children seem to be adjusting well in the annex?”
“Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that.”
I dabbed my lips with a napkin, and he set down his utensils, as if bracing for impact.
Putting on my best pitiful expression, I gazed up at him.
“My siblings are beautiful, handsome, adorable, and perfect, but… Baroness Caitlyn and Count Pavel…”
I bit my lip mid-sentence. His brows furrowed.
“…The Baroness and the Count?”
“They seem to treat me and my siblings too much like children—as if we need to be controlled and disciplined. Especially the nanny. I know they mean well but… no, forget it. It’s probably my own shortcomings.”
“No. Go on.”
“To me, it felt disrespectful. I’m not doubting their loyalty. It’s just… since they see us as children, they sometimes seem to forget their place.”
I intentionally held back. I could have told him everything that happened, but without evidence, it would only sound like tattling.
Sure, the Duke would probably believe me, but punishing long-serving retainers based on a single complaint wasn’t wise.
Right now, I only needed to plant a seed of suspicion for future use.
“I’ll warn them myself,” he said at last.
A simple answer—but not a simple implication. As someone with past corporate experience, I knew exactly what it meant when the CEO decided to personally “warn” an employee.
Still, that alone wasn’t enough for me.
A typical well-behaved daughter might have been satisfied with that, but I was the calmly unhinged kind—I wanted more.
“Father, do you know who I am?”
“…What are you leading up to this time?”
“I am the legitimate eldest daughter of the Ballienor family. With the Duchess absent, there is no woman in this house of higher rank than me. If anyone is going to warn them, it should be me.”
Something about my argument made the corners of his mouth twitch, though I wasn’t sure why.
“What exactly do you want?”
“I want you to give me the vacant position of Lady of the House. I want the authority to discipline the retainers appropriately and take part in my siblings’ training and education.”
Five years ago, after Ariel’s mother died, the position of Lady of the House had remained empty.
Many noble families had hoped to marry their daughters to the Duke, but he never budged. There were even rumors he punished retainers who tried to encourage him to remarry.
“…Lady of the House?”
His eyes sharpened at my unexpected request. I smiled brightly, doubling down.
“Yes. Lady of the House.”
One lesson I’d learned from seven years working in a factory was this—if you want to change the system, you need authority.
No matter how much I chanted about inefficiency as a regular worker, nothing changed—until I started making instant coffee for the foreman every day. Suddenly, things shifted.
Three years later, I became the youngest foreman in the company. When I later resigned for my siblings’ sake, even the department head came to beg me to stay.
Foreman, Lady of the House—it’s all the same. You run the operations efficiently and manage the people.
But the Duke, who had no idea about my “experienced hire” background, tried to stop me with a reasonable objection.
“There is no precedent for granting such authority to a daughter who isn’t yet of age. And you still need more rest. Once you officially take that position, you won’t be able to live as comfortably as you do now.”
Waiting for just such an argument, I offered a compromise.
“Then how about this—just for the one month my siblings are staying in the annex, grant me the authority to act as Lady of the House?”
