“Sorry, son. Are you thirsty? I’ll make you something to drink first.”
At my words, Theodore’s eyes grew as round as a startled rabbit’s.
“For me? You’ll make it yourself?”
“Of course. It’s for my son’s body and soul.”
I nodded, got up from my seat, and instructed the maid who was serving us.
“Lead the way to the kitchen.”
The maid’s mouth fell open in confusion. It’s true, she had probably never heard of or seen a noblewoman make a drink.
“But, I, I…”
“Hurry.”
When I pressed her, the flustered maid glanced at an older maid standing in the middle of the dining room.
The older maid, noticing the glance, came over to me.
“I am Darian, the head of meal service. Follow me.”
She said, and led the way. I followed her toward the kitchen.
Of course, I didn’t forget to hold out my hand to Theodore. He ran over like a chick and grabbed my hand, saying,
“You’ll make it with your own hands just for me?”
“Of course.”
At Theodore’s voice, which sounded as excited as if he were walking on clouds, Darian, who was walking ahead, smiled and looked back at him. When her eyes met mine, she gave a light bow and walked a little faster.
Then she opened the door with a loud bang.
“Her Highness the Grand Duchess and His Highness the Grand Prince have arrived!”
Her voice, as if she were holding her breath, echoed loudly. At her announcement, the busy kitchen staff turned their heads and dropped their dishes with a clatter.
Some of them dropped the vegetables they were working on.
It was understandable for them to be flustered, as the Grand Duchess and Grand Prince had directly entered without having the meal brought to them.
Of course, even amidst the chaos, a few people stopped what they were doing and bowed respectfully.
I picked up an onion that had rolled to my feet and placed it back on the counter.
I was about to ask a nearby servant for some water, but I remembered the rough, chalky water I had at the banquet and stopped myself.
‘I need to make a water purifier first, I swear.’
I couldn’t let Theodore drink that rough water, perfect for an upset stomach.
“Go wash and bring some fresh vegetables and fruits. Also, prepare a grater and some cheesecloth.”
“Pardon?”
The servant looked flustered and stammered.
“Is what I said difficult? I said to bring vegetables, fruits, a grater, and cheesecloth.”
Just then, a large, red-haired man came over, wiping his hands on a dirty apron, as if to see what all the fuss was about.
“Greetings to Her Highness the Grand Duchess and His Highness the Grand Prince. I am the head chef, Lucio.”
I frowned. For a man who cooked, he was generally untidy. I looked around and saw that the kitchen, which should be clean, was just as messy.
‘An inspection will be necessary.’
“What is the matter?”
There was no time to answer the chef’s apathetic question. Theodore’s throat was probably as parched as a cracked field in a summer drought.
“You, you! Hurry!”
I pointed a finger at the manservant and maid who were standing by, glancing at the chef, and urged them on. Only then did the manservant, as if he had no choice, run out of the kitchen.
He was probably going to the pantry.
The young maid opened a kitchen shelf and brought a cheesecloth and a grater.
The chef, watching the young maid move busily, casually threw out a remark.
“It seems Her Highness the Grand Duchess is not aware…”
I raised an eyebrow at the chef’s interference.
Just then, the kitchen door burst open, and a blonde beauty about Gerald’s age entered with a displeased expression.
‘Who is she? How rude?’
I looked at the woman with a puzzled expression.
“A monster!”
The chestnut-sized Theodore quickly hid behind my skirt.
The woman must have heard what Theodore said, but she just nonchalantly stepped between the chef and me.
And she looked up at me challengingly.
“What are you doing, Your Highness the Grand Duchess?”
I immediately retorted to the woman who was staring at me defiantly.
“And who are you?”
“Ah.”
Only then did she seem to remember. She bent her knee and bowed her head slightly, then introduced herself clearly.
“I am Mori Darius, Countess and wet nurse to His Highness the Grand Prince Theodore. I am in charge of His Highness’s diet and food.”
‘Given her confident gaze and the way she stated her title, is she trying to gain the upper hand?’
How laughable. I can’t let her get away with it.
“So?”
“Pardon?”
I sharply shook the cheesecloth the maid had brought and wiped the grater with a rag right in front of her face.
“You may leave. From today, I will personally be in charge of the Grand Prince’s diet.”
At my command, Mori seemed to bristle, but like a noblewoman, she calmly objected.
“The Grand Duchess handling the Grand Prince’s diet? Your Highness the Grand Duchess should be doing your own work.”
“My work?”
“Yes.”
“The number one priority of my work is to take care of my son so he can grow up healthy. Therefore, managing my son’s diet is also an important part of my work.”
A quiet stillness filled the kitchen.
Theodore, like a dog that needed to go to the bathroom, twisted his legs and held onto my thigh like a dead tree, burying his face deeper.
‘This shy little boy is going to become a devil?’
That was absolutely not going to happen.
I would make sure that every single one of Theodore’s cells was plump with my love so that he could grow up beautiful and kind.
“Here are the carrots, radishes, apples, and tomatoes.”
The servant who had run out earlier came back with cleanly washed fruits and vegetables and placed them on the table.
“Thank you for your hard work. Water to wash my hands.”
At my words, the maid quickly brought water from the basin for me to wash my hands.
I washed my hands thoroughly with soap.
As I began to prepare, Mori stepped forward again.
“If you plan the diet, I will prepare it.”
Mori’s suggestion didn’t seem bad. But I didn’t like her attitude.
“I don’t think so.”
I grated a washed carrot, skin and all. Then I put the grated pulp into the cheesecloth, wrapped a long wooden stick around each end, and squeezed it tightly.
Orange carrot juice poured into the cup.
Before I knew it, Theodore had come out from behind my skirt, rested his elbows on the table, and propped his face up on the back of his hands, his eyes full of anticipation as he stared at the cup.
Next, I grated an apple and poured the juice the same way.
Theo licked his upper lip and shifted his feet back and forth. A child was still a child.
“Just a moment, Theo.”
I felt sorry for having startled him earlier, so I wanted to make the drink a little tastier.
“Honey!”
At my words, someone placed a jar of honey in front of me. I added the honey and stirred it with a fork.
I knelt down and held the glass out to Theo.
But Mori grabbed the cup. I had no choice but to look up at her, standing tall.
‘What is this? This insolence?’
How dare a mere wet nurse do this to the Grand Duchess?
I felt the need to establish my dominance.
Besides, I needed to quench Theodore’s thirst first.
“Let go.”
“The Grand Prince could be in danger.”
“Are you… doubting me?”
“I am just following procedure. Anything the Grand Prince drinks must be tasted for poison first.”
For someone who had been given an order by the Emperor and the Owens to kill this child, this level of security seemed commendable.
But this kind of suspicion was unpleasant.
“Do you only do a poison check with a taste right before it’s consumed?”
“…!”
Mori’s eyes trembled slightly. The hand holding the cup lost its grip.
I needed to drive the point home.
If I briefly explained the toxicology I took in my second year of university, would she be speechless?
Well, the emperors of ancient China were called ‘Son of Heaven,’ but they were also one of the high-risk professions always exposed to the danger of assassination.
According to different perspectives, there are different statistics, but my professor said that in the historical dynasties of ancient China, a total of 180 emperors met a violent death.
Our Theodore also had a very high chance of meeting such a violent end.
After all, he was a life the Emperor was targeting.
However!
In reality, only about 14 emperors were assassinated by poison in China.
This was because they had a strong system in place to manage the threat of poisoning.
The way she’s making such a fuss, does it mean the Schülzen Castle doesn’t have such a system?
Or is she just trying to find fault with me as a newcomer?
As a person who had received a modern university education, and as a mother who was determined to be acknowledged, I decided to examine everything one by one.
So, shall we start with a system check?
“The fact that Theo is so thin and his hair is frizzy is evidence that he hasn’t been eating nutritious food. Does this mean he hasn’t been given meals because there are too many suspicious circumstances?”
At my words, Mori let go of the cup, and the very thirsty Theodore quickly tilted the juice cup and gulped it down.
“Your Highness the Grand Prince!”
Mori was shocked, but Theodore, after drinking it all, replied with a bright face.
“Yep, sometimes the wet nurse didn’t give me food.”
Mori’s face turned red.
“That’s because it takes time for poison to spread…”
“Last time, you didn’t give me food for more than two nights.”
Theodore pouted.
“Because some poisons take a few days to appear.”
I was dumbfounded by Mori’s shameless answer.
“It’s very rare for a poison to take more than a day to spread. Unless a small amount of poison is intentionally administered continuously. Usually, a poison ingested with food will appear in as little as an hour and a half, or at most six hours.”
Mori tried to say something more, but I didn’t give her the chance.
“I think you are the one who is more suspicious.”
“Pardon?”
Mori’s eyelids fluttered, but so what?
Not feeding Theodore properly—isn’t that abuse?
Gerald must have entrusted the child to these people to lift the curse and was just holed up in his study.
Sigh, the life of a ducal family.
I remembered how, when I was a temporary teacher, I had to consult with the parents of a student from a semi-chaebol family through tutors A and B.
The child’s face, full of pretension and starved for affection, came to mind, and I felt sorry for Theodore.
“So, because of your ignorant method of tasting for poison, our Theo has been starving or only eating cold food that was prepared a long time ago.”
Theodore nodded vigorously, and Mori made a spirited excuse.
“Safety comes first.”
I sighed. It was pointless to argue with a stubborn noblewoman.
I looked at Theodore, who had grown up without being able to eat delicious things.
Our pitiful little child was holding the empty cup and shaking it upside down, his head held high like a baby duck with its beak open.
“Would you like more?”
At my offer, Theodore put down the cup and nodded his head first. This time, I grated a fresh tomato.
But Mori grabbed the tomato on the grater. I was so flabbergasted that I glared into her blue eyes, which were brimming with indignation.
OMG WHO THE HELL DOES THIS WOMAN THING SHE IS?! Even if she’s Theos nanny., she’s still JUST a nanny. She has absolutely no right at all to treat the new grand duchess this way.