🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 15
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
Morgan frowned at Reno.
‘That sly bastard. What do you mean you were just drawn here on a walk? And what’s this about being intrigued?’
Though Morgan cursed him inwardly, he also felt a measure of relief.
He had arrived at the exact moment Reno might have tried something with Maricel.
‘I knew it.’
As Morgan stood there glaring at Reno, Maricel hurriedly offered up her own chair and urged him to sit.
“Ah! Miss Maricel, a new chair will be here shortly—”
“I’m a nanny! Not a lady.”
Morgan found it extremely irritating that Reno kept calling Maricel “lady.”
“Heh heh. Understood. Nanny Maricel, the chair will arrive shortly. Please don’t trouble yourself.”
With that, Morgan pulled a chair over and seated himself right beside Maricel.
“Ah, Your Highness, please try some of this. I’m not sure if it will suit your taste.”
Unlike with Reno, Maricel felt noticeably conscious once Morgan joined them.
“Why are you cutting the meat with scissors?”
“Ah. Today the meat tastes best when cut with scissors. If it makes you uncomfortable, I can prepare it again—”
“That’s unnecessary. Don’t go to the trouble. I only asked because I’ve never seen it done this way before.”
Morgan disliked that Maricel seemed uneasy around him.
‘Why does she treat Reno differently?’
He also disliked the idea of Maricel leaving her seat to fetch new utensils.
Of course, someone else could go—but knowing her personality, she would insist on going herself.
“Huh? Butler Pour is bringing chairs—but not one, two? How did he know…?”
As Abelyn stood up to speak, Jeffrey hurried over and took one of the chairs.
“Your Highness, you’ve arrived?”
Pour spoke as though he had been expecting Morgan.
“Place one chair here for Maricel to sit, and the other beside Reno.”
In other words, Maricel was to sit beside Morgan, and Pour would sit next to Reno.
Pour smiled faintly as he set the chair beside Reno and Mary before taking his seat.
With the supreme master present, the atmosphere stiffened somewhat—but Reno and Fleur looked delighted.
Reno found Morgan’s reaction quite entertaining, and Fleur was pleased to see his uncle and Maricel seated side by side.
That night, Fleur went to bed earlier than usual.
The party must have made him that happy—he was even smiling in his sleep.
He had said he would lie down just for a moment before washing up, but he fell asleep immediately, so they decided to skip washing for the night.
Missing one wash wouldn’t cause any great harm, and it didn’t seem worth waking him from such deep, peaceful sleep.
Thanks to that, I was able to wash up early myself and finish the day sooner—so it worked out well for both of us.
In any case, letting Fleur participate as the star of the party had been an excellent decision.
He’d enjoyed it far more than expected. He looked so happy…
My chest had swelled so much I nearly teared up.
There had been the unexpected variable of Reno and Morgan showing up, but overall, it had been quite successful.
Still, the person who was supposed to leave quickly had stayed for a full hour.
‘Wasn’t he busy…?’
Hmm… he had definitely been working. For him to impulsively take out an hour made no sense. And the fact that he only stood up to leave when Reno did was strange, too.
‘Wait—don’t tell me… does he like men?’
Ah! No. In the original story, he’d fallen madly in love with the female lead.
What a ridiculous thought.
‘Still, if he can spontaneously spare one hour, doesn’t that mean he could secure two hours in advance?’
That was definitely a good sign.
I’d been waiting for the right opportunity to bring up the picnic. It seemed the chance to make the plan happen had come sooner than expected.
‘I should ask Pour or Reno to help arrange an appointment.’
But Reno said the more he got to know me, the more intrigued he became. What did that mean?
Just as I was about to ask him, Morgan appeared and I lost the chance.
‘Honestly, he’s no help at all.’
I can’t exactly go find Reno just to ask about that one comment.
‘Don’t tell me… does he like me?’
Reno is attractive, after all. Always smiling, considerate of women’s feelings, kind, sociable, good at navigating society.
The problem is he clearly has playboy tendencies.
Which means he’d be a rather unstable candidate for a spouse.
I’ve already experienced a man who was kind to everyone in my previous life.
Of course, I was also at fault for mistakenly believing he was only like that to me.
So when someone like Reno approaches me, I instinctively become cautious.
It’s a prejudice, perhaps—but it’s there.
In my past life, after being strung along twice, I was too afraid to date at all.
Sigh. The aftereffects were considerable.
I’m naturally trusting, so I suppose I should consider myself lucky I wasn’t scammed for something worse—but the emotional scars remained.
After that, I began analyzing everything, questioning everything, sometimes constantly asking “why.”
Even so, I’ve resolved to live a new life now—but it’s not easy.
I’d feel comfortable dating around twenty-four, but in this world, twenty-four is nearly considered an old maid.
Well, as they say, even a straw sandal has its match. I’d like to believe there’s someone for me.
And if not, there’s always arranged marriage, according to this world’s customs.
Judging by Maricel’s parents, they would prioritize her well-being and happiness, so perhaps that wouldn’t be so bad.
‘Wait… should I ask what Maricel’s parents think of Reno?’
If they approve, maybe that’s enough?
…But honestly, that’s awkward too. If I ask, they might think I’m interested in Reno and start pushing for marriage.
‘Ugh, missing that chance to clarify is frustrating in so many ways…’
Heh.
‘What’s this? I must be living comfortably to be worrying about things like this.’
I laughed at myself for indulging in such luxury of thought.
Nearly three weeks passed after the party without even a glimpse of Morgan.
During those three weeks, I successfully separated bedrooms from Fleur—so what was this about a three-week business trip?
It was to the southern outskirts, quite far. Just traveling back and forth would take at least a week.
Still, he’s supposed to return tomorrow. I should ask Pour to arrange an appointment in advance.
Just as I thought that, the first floor grew unusually noisy.
‘What’s going on?’
Peeking down from the second floor, I saw Pour hurrying toward the entrance, with the servants following quickly behind him.
“Did something urgent happen?”
I quickly descended the stairs.
As I stepped off the final stair and looked up, I saw Pour and the servants standing at attention on either side of the entrance.
And at the same time, Morgan was removing his gloves and coat, handing them to Pour.
‘Wow! He’s back!’
So delighted was I that I hurried over with quick steps and joined in greeting him.
“You’re back?”
“…?”
But his reaction was icy. No—he even looked displeased.
‘What? Did I make a mistake?’
I turned toward Pour.
His expression was startled and troubled.
I knew immediately.
I’d made a serious mistake.
“…Ah, Your Highness. I—spoke out of happiness. Please forgive my rudeness.”
The only thing I could think of was that I’d spoken too casually instead of using proper honorifics, so I apologized first.
But strangely, his expression grew even colder.
On top of that, he looked at me with something close to contempt and asked,
“You knew it was rude, and did it anyway?”
“What? Absolutely not. I was truly just happy to see you. I will use proper honorifics from now on.”
“Honorifics?”
“Yes. Instead of saying ‘You’re back?’ I should have said ‘Have you returned safely, Your Highness?’ That was my offense, wasn’t it?”
Morgan stared at me as though he meant to bore a hole through my face.
I had no idea what I’d done wrong, yet under that cold, piercing gaze, I felt both embarrassed and wronged.
As I struggled to suppress the complicated emotions rising in my chest, he finally withdrew his contemptuous look, instructed Pour to prepare a light snack, and strode toward his office.
‘Phew…’
An involuntary sigh of relief escaped me.
Left alone, the servants looked at me with pity. As time passed, embarrassment and humiliation crept up, and I felt tears prick at my eyes.
‘What on earth did I do wrong?’
If he would just tell me, I could apologize properly and fix it.
Instead, I only felt unfairly hurt.
Once he disappeared completely from sight, I grabbed Pour and asked,
“Pour, what did I do wrong?”
“Well… it’s just…”
Pour hesitated briefly, then leaned close to my ear and explained the meaning of what I had just done.
“Whaaaat?”
I nearly fainted when I heard it.
That action was something only the mistress of the house would do.
My feelings of injustice and hurt vanished instantly, replaced by understanding.
‘Ah. I’m doomed. No wonder his expression turned sour. He had every right to look contemptuous.’
How did that connect to that meaning?
Thinking back, the Manoir viscount couple had acted that way too—but I hadn’t known it was reserved only for married couples.
From what I’d seen, even the original Maricel had neither interest nor knowledge in such matters.
I’d constantly declared I had no interest in such things—so what must he think of me?
Saying one thing while secretly coveting the position of Grand Duchess.
As if I’d finally begun revealing my true colors.
I wanted to crawl into a hole from embarrassment.
What if he suspects the picnic plan is another scheme?
That can’t happen…
What if I get dismissed?
No. No!!
I have to clear up the misunderstanding. As quickly as possible.
“Um… Pour?”
“Yes, please speak, Nanny.”
“I truly didn’t know it had that meaning. I don’t want His Highness to misunderstand me as some shameless woman scheming for the Grand Duchess position. You know I only care about properly caring for Young Master Fleur, right?”
“Of course. More than merely knowing it.”
The warmth in Pour’s reassurance felt like gaining an entire army behind me.
“Thank you, Pour. For believing me. So… please arrange a meeting so I can clear up the misunderstanding.”
“Do not worry, Nanny. I will inform him. And I sincerely hope the misunderstanding is resolved.”
