It was a smile so gentle that even Ivan, who had seen him for a long time and already knew what he was like, could be fooled.
“Please have a sit.”
Lily tapped the seat next to her.
“Then I won’t hesitate.”
As Damian settled down, Lilian inhaled and exhaled the medicinal smoke once more.
“By the way, Sir Ivan.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Things are a bit chaotic in the meantime. You must have worked hard.”
“…yes?”
Ivan jumped up as if he heard something unbelievable. As if to prove that people will become like this when they’re not praised.
Damian’s expression changed at the strange reaction. Ivan tried to excuse his actions.
“No…that… I didn’t know that Her Ladyship would notice… So, that’s it.”
“I know how to read the account books. You must have acted as the hostess. Didn’t you?”
He was surprised not because Lily knew how to read the account books, but because she acknowledged his hard work, but Ivan didn’t bother explaining. He was afraid of receiving Damian’s glare any longer.
Of course, Lilian didn’t notice what was going on between the two. In fact, Lily was a natural at this work like Ivan. The difference was that, unlike Ivan, who couldn’t stand the backlog of things, Lilian was a person who was energized the more work she had to do.
“It’d be good for me to get a little bit of the overall situation. May I see the Head Butler and the Head Maid?”
After the large-scale greeting failed and the Grand Duchess went into seclusion, Mrs. Maureen always waited for Her Ladyship to call her.
“Your Ladyship, I’ll be there.”
As Head Maid, she wanted to formally greet the person she would serve in the future, but what she needed more than that was actually the practical work.
There were many things to report, such as the number of employees in the mansion and the amount paid in salaries, as well as essential monthly expenses for maintenance and heating. Preparing for the winter and stocking up on supplies to welcome guests during the social season could not be carried out without permission from the hostess.
“I can’t take too much time since she’s sick, right?”
“Let’s be satisfied with offering a seal for today.”
Mrs. Maureen nodded her head, looking uneasy at the words of the Head Butler.
The moment the head butler knocked and was allowed to enter the room, he opened the door…
“…oh my goodness?”
An unexpected sight awaited them.
A mountain of papers occupied the top of the low table. The Grand Duchess was wearing a coat over a dressing gown, but the odd thing was that she was wearing glasses and holding a pen.
Surprised, Lilian smiled when she noticed the two of them standing in front of the door.
“Come in.”
“Ah, yes…”
Dazed, the Head Butler and Mrs. Maureen stood before the Grand Duchess.
Mrs. Maureen took a quick look at the Grand Duchess. She certainly looked sickly, with her face pale and her wrists as skinny as winter twigs.
However, there was no sign of nervousness that she was prepared for. Their Grand Duchess looked sick, but just as docile and kind.
Lily put her pen down as if to say hello. The documents she was looking at were taken over by the Grand Duke who was sitting next to her and put them aside.
‘Isn’t that usually the opposite?’
Standing in a daze, it was the Head Butler who came to his senses first.
“Nice to meet you, Your Ladyship. I am in charge of the family affairs of the Grand Duke’s family. Feel free to call me Allen. This is Mrs. Maureen, the head maid.”
“N-Nice to meet you, Your Ladyship.
Please call me Maureen. It’s a pleasure to serve you.”
“Thank you for your hospitality. I heard that you went through a lot of trouble preparing to welcome me.
However, my body isn’t comfortable, so I hadn’t greeted you properly until now.”
“Oh, no. How can you say such a delusion, that is…”
Mrs. Maureen babbled and waved her hand.
“I’m very afraid to suddenly join the Grand Duchy. As you can see, I’m not a strong person, but I’m going to need a lot of help from you two to handle the heavy burden. Please take good care of me.”
Is she willing to take on the heavy burden? Mrs. Maureen, imagining her not being able to do this and that, getting on her nerves, crying, or indifferently leaving her to take care of it herself, was at a loss for words. It was because she was unexpectedly deeply moved.
The same might have been true of Head Butler Allen as well, as his voice was a bit hoarse when he answered.
“Thank you for accepting help from the likes of us. We will do our best.”
“I’m glad you said that. So, I’ll ask for help without hesitation.”
“Pardon?”
Already?
By the way, looking at the pile of papers and her holding the pen until just before they arrived, it was clear that she was working.
“In fact, I should have been greeted and understood the situation as soon as I arrived, but it was a bit late.”
Gulp. In an unprepared situation, the Head Butler and Mrs. Maureen gulped.
Lilian asked various questions about the situation, including the state of maintenance in the mansion, the number of employees and overall operating costs.
When Mrs. Maureen, who was filled with the desire to report it, responded quickly, Lilian’s eyes, which had mostly stayed on the paperwork, smiled. Mrs. Maureen realized that she had satisfied her new mistress.
“I see. Anyway, at this point, with about four months left in this year, it must be difficult to completely separate housekeeping from inside and outside. There will not be enough manpower to do the related work.”
“That’s correct. If you start doing it now, someone might die from overwork.”
The Grand Duke’s administrative department was far inferior to Turin’s. But Lilian laughed a little, thinking it was a joke.
“For now, hand over all the practical aspects of the Duchy to me. Without a separate budget, I will use the budget allocated to me for now. Relevant documents and accounting should be completed during overtime. And I wonder if it’d be better to separate it from the next fiscal year and start operating.”
Lined up, reasonable instructions poured in.
“Ah, I’ll also organize the ledgers that are mixed up. …would that be okay?”
Is she okay?
In the poor environment created by the master’s indifference, the three of them, Ivan, the ill-fated henchman, the Head Butler and Mrs. Maureen, who had been rolling and tossing about, knew at this very moment that they would be even more loyal to Her Highness the Grand Duchess than expected.
“Of course.”
“I agree. No, I would appreciate it if you would please.”
As the three scrambled to agree, Lily turned to Damian, who also nodded.
“What do you think, Your Highness?”
Damian, indifferent to internal affairs, only roughly grasped the context of the conversation between the two. But even if he didn’t understand at all, the answer he would give is the same.
“Do whatever my wife wants.”
Ha, look at how docile that tree frog is.
Ivan, who had met someone he could communicate with after a long time and felt refreshed, admired it. He was so impressed that he wanted to hit the master, who had the right to decide his life and death, with just one blow to the back of his head.
He was a man who could have been so cooperative if he wanted to, and he felt betrayed and trembled.
“Then, that’s it for today.”
With a gentle smile, Lilian took off her glasses.
“Do you have any special suggestions?”
There couldn’t have been. Everyone shook their heads in unison.
***
When she came to her senses, only the two of them were left.
Actually, it wasn’t like that because it happened, it was that Damian didn’t go out.
“Your Highness, are you busy by any chance?”
Was that a rhetorical question or a question out of pure curiosity? Suddenly, he had the strong desire to sharpy ask “Do you want me to leave?” but Damian barely held it in.
“There’s no specific schedule left.”
He hopes she won’t chase him away.
There was no such thing as self-respect. It would hurt to be rejected, but he had no intention of giving up on Lilian.
‘Though I wish she’d accept before I act mean.’
Should he try acting cute again, or should he try persuading her with sophistry?
Damian was about to roll his head, but Lilian made an unexpectedly welcome face.
“It’s good that you’re not particularly busy.”
“…yes?”
Did he hear it wrong?
Then Lilian got up from her seat and brought a familiar box.
It was the white box containing the title of Imperatrix Leyengrad.
“I don’t know what the timing will be, but maybe we can ask the Ministry of Finance to handle it.”
She was grateful and sorry that Damian waited silently while she became anxious and backed away.
‘I bet he didn’t even know why I’m doing this.’
She may not be able to fully explain her feelings, but she hoped this conveys the meaning of self-reflection.
Damian received the box without a word.
In fact, Damian gave Lilian too many things not just because he was happy that he could give something to Lily.
A gift given with a loving and happy heart, hoping that the other person will be happy?
Sorry but Damian Rupenwein wasn’t that pure.
‘I hope that someday, when you find out my secret, you will be comforted by the money. At least that’s real.’
However, if the husband is not human, how much comfort would money and power give? Besides, Lilian was innocent and not that obsessed with wealth.
‘So this is all my greed.’
Damian just liked that there were more papers tying them together.
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