Chapter 15

 

***

 

“Yes, they don’t particularly like us.”

Melody instantly understood whom the boy referred to as ‘us’ – it was the Duke’s three sons. The elders were not fond of the Duchess who had abandoned her duties and family to disappear. Consequently, they looked upon her children with disdain as well.

‘Wow… Ronny is so concerned about Loretta that he’s acting this way.’

In the original story, he only said this to Loretta when they met in the corridor:

“They’ll probably want to kick someone like you out of the mansion as soon as they arrive.”

Of course, that was his way of warning Loretta about the elders. Eventually, these words would backfire, causing Loretta to become extremely nervous and make mistakes in front of the elders.

“Don’t worry. I’ll definitely pass on your concerns to Miss Loretta.”

“What?”

“You came to tell me because you’re worried about Miss Loretta, right?”

“Have you gone mad?!”

His face turned bright red upon hearing the truth. That was a definite ‘YES.’ And not just any ‘YES,’ but a super ultra ‘YES,’ considering how red he became.

How has he already fallen so hard for my little sister…

Amused by the interesting boy, Melody decided to tease him.

“So, you’re not concerned about Miss Loretta, but about me?”

He abruptly stood up, as if the question wasn’t even worth answering. Melody quickly bowed her head, feeling a bit guilty. After all, it wasn’t right to tease the young master of the Duke’s household.

“I’m sorry, sir.”

She quickly changed her demeanor and offered a formal apology. She could feel his intense gaze and imagined he was glaring at her with a fierce expression.

“I got carried away because I was so happy that you were worried.”

“What?”

“I mean, because you’re worried about Miss Loretta.”

Melody clarified that she had not mistaken his concern for her. He seemed flabbergasted, trying to say something several times before finally yelling at her.

“You, you’re really bad!”

“Yes.”

“Don’t be so presumptuous!”

“I’m sorry.”

“They’ll probably want to kick someone like you out of the mansion as soon as they arrive.”

Wait a minute?

That line sounded familiar to Melody. It was something Ronny had said to Loretta.

Puzzled, she looked up at Ronny, who was lost in thought.

“…!”

As their eyes met, Ronny’s face turned red again and he looked away.

What does this ‘YES’ mean this time? Is he actually welcoming the idea of me being expelled?

“Even if you look hurt, the truth won’t change. The elders will definitely dislike you!”

“I’m not hurt, though.”

“Hmph. Pretending to be strong when you’re weak.”

“And the esteemed guests won’t want to expel me.”

“What?”

“I’m just a child who came with Miss Loretta. It’s unlikely that such important people would pay any attention to me, just like you don’t.”

“Who said that?!”

“Pardon? What do you mean?”

“I mean you… Ah, forget it.”

He muttered something under his breath, then turned abruptly.

Melody tried to open the door for him, but he pulled it open himself, turning his head away with a sulky expression.

“You’re really ugly!”

“Pardon?”

“Hmph!”

Finally, with a satisfied smirk, as if he had won a victory, he slammed the door and left.

‘When did he start holding back the desire to call me ugly?’

With such a relieved expression on his face.

But let’s make one thing clear: it’s not that Melody is unattractive. Rather, it’s just that Loretta is so incredibly pretty and cute that she could melt the surroundings.

Moreover, for him, since his sister became the standard of beauty in this world, Melody probably seemed like half-melted butter in comparison.

“If we compare the young master to the Duke, he’s like half-melted butter too. Hmph.”

Melody completed her timid revenge with a mutter to herself.

After all, Grandma had said keeping words bottled up could gather dust in the heart.

Ah, what a relief. Melody snorted and turned away.

 

***

 

The next morning, when Loretta and Melody woke up, they found the maids of the Duke’s house eagerly waiting in their room.

As soon as the two girls finished a simple breakfast, the maids dressed them in neat and cute clothes.

Then, they brought in two new gift boxes, just like the last time with hats, adorned with large cards from the Duke.

“It seems the Duke really adores you two!”

A maid exclaimed, to which Loretta responded with pride.

“Yep. I showed the Duke how I breathe three times.”

Loretta demonstrated her deep breathing exercises in front of the maids, causing her belly to puff up cutely. The maids couldn’t help but laugh.

“Melody taught me. Loretta’s breath is cute too. The Duke even praised me for breathing well.”

Imagining the stern Duke complimenting the little girl’s breathing, the maids laughed even more.

“Open it quickly! We’re curious too!”

Only then did Melody realize why the maids were so excited from early in the morning. They couldn’t wait to see what the Duke had sent as gifts.

Melody and Loretta decided to count to three and open the boxes simultaneously.

Three, two, one, and ta-da!

Inside the boxes were green ribbons.

These were long enough to drape along their hair, and once again, both girls received the same item.

“Oh my, green ribbons.”

“The Duke really knows, brighter colors would suit the young ladies better.”

The maids seemed slightly disappointed with the color of the ribbons.

“Still, if both of you wear the same ribbons, it will be very cute.”

“That’s true.”

The maids carefully placed a green ribbon on Loretta’s right side and on Melody’s left side. Watching the completed look, they almost squealed with delight.

“How adorable! Today, you two must hold hands and stay together.”

“You’re like a set, oh my.”

“The Duke’s gift sense is terrifyingly spot-on.”

They had just been lamenting the dark color of the ribbons, but now they were full of admiration. As they marveled, the sound of carriages began to fill the air outside.

Loretta and Melody rushed to the window to see a procession of splendid carriages arriving.

They had come.

The elders of the Duke’s family, who would certainly not welcome Loretta’s existence.

 

***

 

The Duke of Baldwin sat at the head of the conference room, exerting his utmost patience.

“Do you understand what is most important for the Duke and us to uphold?”

The Baldwin duchy had always granted significant authority to its elders. One of their roles was to provide the Duke with relentless advice and counsel. This system was established to pass on the wisdom of elders, accumulated over years of diverse experiences, to the Duke. However, it sometimes led to conflicts between the Duke and the elders, causing headaches for the vassals. Currently, they were in such a situation.

The current elders valued tradition and honor above all, and did not hesitate to rebuke the Duke for the sake of these principles.

“The upholding of the Baldwin duchy’s tradition and honor.”

“Have you considered how foolish it looks for a Duke to be swayed by unreliable testimony in his search for a daughter?”

“I’ve explained the credibility of the testimony in a letter previously sent to you, which the Council of Elders also approved.”

“That was before we knew the Duke would make such a public spectacle of the search. Do you know what the nobles are saying now?”

The Duke was well aware of the rumors: the Duchess had borne a child outside the mansion. It was said the Duke had cast out his pregnant wife. The elders would obviously view this scandalous rumor as damaging to the duchy’s dignity. They would prefer to ignore the existence of a child born outside the mansion, especially since there were already three heirs. The honor was important, but the elders couldn’t express such a lowly intent openly. So they continued to subtly obstruct the Duke’s efforts to find his daughter, without openly opposing him.

The Duke raised his hand to stop them. He didn’t want to hear the painful rumors again from the elders’ mouths.

“It’s best not to concern oneself with an ownerless horse.”

The elders exchanged looks and then brought up a slightly different topic. Thankfully, they still had a point of contention.

“Fine. At least, preserve the dignity of this mansion.”

The mention of the mansion’s dignity made one of the Duke’s eyebrows twitch slightly.

“That girl… You may have brought her in as a potential daughter, but we’ve heard she was almost sold by a slave trader.”

The elder’s face twisted with disgust, as if he had stepped on filth on the street.

“It’s a delicate matter to enter Baldwin, even for nobility. And yet, you’ve brought in a child who might have been a slave.”

The issue of Loretta’s residency quickly extended to Melody.

“Even if we generously assume that the first child might be of the Baldwin lineage, the other girl’s situation is different.”

“The daughter of that filthy and lowly criminal, a slave trader, should not set foot in this sacred mansion!”