Chapter 10
And the next day at noon.
As usual, Dorothy knocked on the door of the house next door.
The front door opened unusually fast today.
She assumed that Rose would be standing there the moment the door flew open.
After all, that had become part of her daily routine.
“Hello! Lady Ro—”
But the person who opened the door wasn’t Rose.
It was Brandon.
The front door opening earlier than usual.
Had Rose been waiting all the way until noon?
Dorothy, who had been suppressing a smile to herself, blinked in surprise.
“Good morning, Dorothy.”
Brandon greeted her with a bright smile.
Leaning against the doorframe, he stepped aside to make room for her to enter.
Where did Rose go? Why is Brandon opening the door?
Of course, they were siblings, so it wasn’t strange—but still.
“Good morning, Your Grace.”
She couldn’t just stand there in a daze.
Snapping back to her senses, Dorothy replied politely.
“Please, come in.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Is this what gentlemanly manners are like?
Impressed, Dorothy bowed again in gratitude.
Behind her, the sound of the door closing and the bolt sliding into place echoed.
“May I take your coat? I’ll hang it up for you.”
“Oh, no. I’ll do it myself.”
Opening the door was one thing, but taking her coat felt like something a duke shouldn’t be doing.
In fact, even opening the front door had been a small promise between Rose and Dorothy.
In most households, it would’ve been a servant’s job.
“Haha, as you know, there’s no one working in this townhouse besides Hill.”
Brandon answered kindly, as if he had noticed her confusion.
“Hill is probably busy cleaning the kitchen right now.”
Huh?
Dorothy blinked again.
Cleaning the kitchen at this hour?
Since she visited often, Dorothy naturally knew Hill’s daily routine.
Hill usually cleaned the kitchen only in the evening—after all the meals were finished.
It was rare for her, who followed her schedule so strictly, to be cleaning at noon.
Well, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
Something unexpected might have come up.
“And I can’t very well ask an honored guest to hang her own coat.”
In the end, Brandon took her coat from her.
“Your Grace, your leg isn’t fully healed yet… but thank you anyway.”
…Come to think of it, he looks perfectly fine.
She was sure he had been limping not too long ago.
Well, maybe he’s fully recovered.
Dorothy decided not to think too much about it.
He was young and had access to the best physicians, after all.
“Hey!”
At that moment, Rose’s thunderous shout echoed from upstairs.
With a clatter, Rose came rushing down the stairs.
Unlike usual, she was wearing her nightclothes.
No makeup, messy hair.
It was definitely out of character.
Dorothy knew that Rose always tried to dress properly whenever she came downstairs.
Leaping down the steps, Rose grabbed Brandon by the collar without hesitation.
“Why is my watch set back by two whole hours?!”
“Haha, why are you asking me that?”
“Don’t play dumb! Why would a perfectly fine watch end up like this?”
“Maybe it broke. Honestly, it hurts that you’d jump straight to suspecting me.”
Even while being grabbed by the collar, Brandon replied calmly.
“Do you really think that makes sense?!”
“There’s no reason it couldn’t.”
Then Brandon spoke lightly.
“Anyway, may I be excused for a moment, Sister?”
Unlike Rose, who looked like she was about to explode, Brandon’s face was brimming with vitality.
“I need to hang up Dorothy’s coat.”
Slipping away like a seasoned trickster, Brandon smoothly escaped the situation.
Rose stared after her younger brother with a dumbfounded expression.
And just like that, Dorothy was left alone with Rose.
“Dorothy!”
Taking a deep breath, Rose immediately grabbed Dorothy by both shoulders.
“Y-Yes?”
“Are you okay?”
“…What?”
“Did he do anything strange to you?”
“He greeted me warmly and opened the door for me. He even kindly took my coat.”
“That’s it! That’s what’s strange!”
Rose burst out in frustration.
“That’s exactly the problem! He’s not the kind of guy who does that! This is seriously weird!”
“Because he did something a servant would usually do?”
“No! The greeting!”
“…A morning greeting is strange?”
Everyone greets people in the morning, so why—
Dorothy couldn’t finish her sentence.
“Listen carefully, Dorothy.”
Rose warned her with a grave expression.
“If that bastard does anything weird, tell me.”
“…What exactly do you mean by ‘weird’?”
“When he does something that’s not like him—no, never mind.”
Suddenly, Rose looked at Dorothy with a peculiar expression.
“Your innocence might actually be helpful.”
“….”
“And you’re slow and clueless too. You probably don’t know a damn thing about men.”
“…Excuse me, but that feels incredibly rude.”
“No, it’s a good thing for you.”
Rose patted Dorothy on the shoulder.
“At least I can rest easy knowing you’ll avoid his clutches.”
She let out a sigh of relief.
* * *
What exactly counted as “strange behavior,” anyway?
The duke acting unlike himself?
As far as Dorothy was concerned, Brandon currently had a very positive image.
Sure, his smile could be a bit overwhelming.
But he strongly resembled a righteous man who fought against evil.
And hadn’t he personally welcomed her this morning?
“Ah, Dorothy. I have something to discuss—do you have a moment?”
As she was about to head home after spending time with Rose, Brandon approached her.
He guided her to the dining room and personally poured her some tea.
“It’s about what I asked you last time. You said you wanted to find your father, didn’t you?”
“Oh, yes. That’s right.”
“I’m sorry. It looks like it’ll take longer than expected. May I ask for your understanding?”
Finding her father wasn’t urgent for Dorothy.
“You don’t need to apologize. I don’t mind if it takes longer.”
“Thank you for saying that… which brings me to this.”
Brandon asked with a gentle smile in his eyes.
“Could you tell me about your parents? What they did before you were born might help.”
“Well, my mother was an ordinary woman. And my father… my mother used to say he was a hopeless man who learned about life only from books.”
A commoner who was close to books despite not being a noble…
At one point, Dorothy had even wondered if her father had been a librarian.
“I see. That helps a lot.”
“Does information like that really help?”
“Yes! I’ll definitely find him.”
Someone this kind doing strange things?
Dorothy began to think Rose might be misunderstanding something.
Maybe the duke likes me or something.
She let out a quiet laugh to herself.
It wasn’t as if Dorothy knew nothing about men.
Thanks to her engagement to Charles, perhaps.
Being alone with a man no longer made her heart flutter uncontrollably.
While smiling to herself, Dorothy noticed cookie crumbs stuck at the corner of Brandon’s mouth.
“You have cookie crumbs on your lip.”
She lifted her handkerchief and gently wiped his mouth.
It happened in the blink of an eye.
“Ah—uh….”
Dorothy didn’t notice his eyes widening, nor the tips of his ears turning red, as she spoke.
“Thank you, Your Grace. You’re always so kind to me.”
That he might like her—
It really was a ridiculous thought.
“You’re so kind that I almost mistook it for you liking me.”
She said it without thinking.
She knew too well that it couldn’t be true, so the words carried no deeper meaning.
She took a bite of her cookie, expecting the duke—who loved jokes—to laugh it off as usual.
“Uh….”
But the words she had casually brushed past had sent ripples through Brandon.
They shattered the calm, easygoing mask he always wore.
Sitting across from her as she ate her cookie unconcernedly, he was completely flustered.
Why am I so shaken?
I should laugh it off like always.
But it was as if his tongue had grown thorns—he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
“I—I…”
At last, he opened his mouth.
