ISHM 06

Chapter 06

The breeze that swept in lightly stirred his blond hair, tinted red by the sunset.
No matter how much criticism he was receiving at the moment, he was still the heir to Duke Schultz’s household. His honor would soon be restored, and just as it always had, the matter of embezzlement would quickly fade from people’s memories.
Even if he had received help from his father, ignoring someone like me was not something anyone would fault him for.

So why?

With a puzzled expression, I stared straight into his eyes. Yet no matter how much I looked at those irises—colored so enchantingly they reminded one of the sea—I still couldn’t tell what he was thinking.
After hesitating for quite a while, I finally voiced the proposal he had made.

“You’re saying you want to entrust me with work for the Schultz ducal household?”

“That is correct.”

“Even though I might not be able to do the job well?”

The young duke nodded without hesitation. Growing even more perplexed, I slowly clenched my fist and asked again.

“Why are you helping me like this?”

Instead of answering, he took a cigarette case from his coat. He placed one cigarette between his lips, tossed the rest onto his father’s coffin, then lit the cigarette he was holding—each motion flowing as naturally as water.
When he noticed me frowning, he spoke.

“My apologies. I always used to smoke together with him.”

It didn’t seem like an excuse, but it did dispel the impression that he might be deliberately rude.
Still, Father hadn’t smoked. He must have been under a lot of strain.

As I sank into those thoughts, I heard his low, restrained voice again.

“As I said earlier.”

He drew in the smoke deeply, then exhaled it slowly, pausing for a moment.

“I couldn’t stand by and watch the daughter of someone I was close to suffer. I received a great deal of help from Corporal Prim. Since I can’t repay him directly, I’m repaying his daughter instead.”

It was a cynical answer.
In other words: the one I owed a debt to is dead, so I’ll repay it to you, his daughter—if only to preserve my own dignity.
That was probably the gist of it.

It was a proposal born entirely of aristocratic, self-centered thinking. He might have thought he was being considerate, but arrogance practically dripped from it.

I looked at his indifferent profile and spoke, gripping the front hem of my jet-black dress tightly.

“Is there perhaps another reason you feel you need to repay this debt? I don’t know much about military ranks, but I don’t think my father could have given such tremendous help to someone as high as a fleet commander. Or is it simply pity for me…?”

The young Duke of Schultz raised an eyebrow.

“No. I received a far greater debt than you imagine, Miss Prim.”

His sculpted face looked calm, as though he were telling the truth. And there was no reason for a man of his standing to approach me while lying.
But still…

It’s an offer that’s far too burdensome.

To become a servant in a noble household, one had to possess the qualifications specified by that family. On top of that, discretion was essential, making it extremely difficult to be hired.
In other words, some level of financial backing was required even to obtain those qualifications in the first place.

Otherwise, why would people say that to become a noble household’s servant, three generations had to have lived upright lives?
Of course, the Russell Marquisate was an exception, since they were desperately short on staff.

I recalled a recruitment notice from the Schultz ducal household that I had once seen in passing.

Fluency in foreign languages preferred.
Professional certifications favored.

I was confident in my ability to keep my mouth shut, but I wasn’t fluent in any foreign language the ducal household would want. And since I was still studying for a pharmacist’s license, I didn’t even have a professional certification.
No matter how great the debt he claimed to owe, this would essentially be preferential hiring.

I didn’t want to do something that weighed on my conscience.

Putting on a polite smile, I said,

“Then I’m grateful, but I must decline. I do have the option to refuse, don’t I?”

His neat forehead creased even more.

“I thought these were conditions you couldn’t refuse. May I ask why?”

“I feel I’ve already received more than enough help from you, Colonel.”

“That can’t be.”

He let out a small, incredulous laugh—like someone amused by the absurdity of the idea that he had helped me at all.
And I immediately understood that he was serious from what he said next.

“Edith Prim.”

He drew in the cigarette smoke deeply, then slowly released it.

“I haven’t yet put forth even the slightest effort for you.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“The position I offered earlier is the same. I would simply be paying you what your labor is worth.”

I was left speechless.
Despite his impeccable manners and the utmost politeness in his tone, I had never felt such arrogance.

“That’s…”

If this hadn’t been in front of my father’s coffin, I might have felt at least a little tempted.
But my father taught me to live with integrity. He taught me not to accept kindness without compensation, and that a certain degree of suspicion was necessary to survive.

I stared blankly at the burning tip of his cigarette, then looked at his excessively handsome, emotionless face.
His straight posture and restrained demeanor, revealing nothing of his feelings.
Only then did I truly realize that I was speaking with a noble, and I bit my lower lip.

After taking a deep breath, I replied,

“But if I weren’t Corporal Prim’s daughter, I don’t think you would have made this offer. I truly appreciate it, but I don’t want that kind of help. I’m trying, in my own way, to get by on my own—without relying on anyone.”

At his next question, I couldn’t help but look stunned.

“What if it were a request?”

As if he had expected me to refuse.

“…A request?”

“I have sufficient wealth and authority to repay a debt. And yet I’m making this request so formally because…”

He paused briefly.

“Miss Prim, you likely know better than I do what my reputation within Müsen is like right now.”

He swept back his wind-tousled hair, the slight frown between his brows deepening.
It felt a bit irreverent to think this in front of my father’s coffin, but Johannes Schultz possessed an appearance that anyone could fall for. His limited range of expressions simply made him seem cold and difficult to approach.

“Judging by how freely people speculate about my whereabouts, I trust you understand just how far the prestige of the Schultz ducal house has fallen.”

He dropped the shortened cigarette onto the dry grass and crushed the butt under his shoe, leaving a faint scorch mark behind.
Watching his behavior—somehow less restrained than before—I answered slowly.

“Of course. I know.”

No matter how striking his looks or how distinguished his family, as a noble who naturally drew everyone’s attention, he couldn’t help but care about his reputation.
I knew that, but hearing it directly felt different.

Tilting his head slightly, he looked me over.

“That’s why I want a trustworthy servant. And if that person were you, Miss Prim, it would be ideal.”

“…And how can you trust me in the first place?”

“Corporal Prim spoke often of his daughter. He said you were an upright and righteous young lady—rare these days.”

Despite his words, his voice remained exceedingly dry.

“Pardon…?”

“I trust Corporal Prim’s judgment. Therefore, Miss Prim, trust your father—and trust me, who trusts your father.”

After a brief pause, the young Duke of Schultz took a long step forward, closing the distance between us. From undeniably close range, he reached out his hand.
As the half-lifted veil was fully drawn back, my view became clearer than before. His deep, unfathomable blue eyes fixed directly on me.

“I believe you will never disappoint me.”