TPTM 09

Chapter 9

“Ah, Miss Tulia. You’ve come again today.”

Lech, the chief aide to Grand Duke Frezier, stepped out of the office with a gentle smile.

Tulia had been standing by the window holding a basket small enough to fit in her palm. When she saw him, she smiled back.

“Hello.”

“If you keep speaking so formally, it will make things difficult for me, miss.”

“…Hi.”

Lech chuckled softly.

“Yes, hello to you too, miss.”

“Did you eat lunch?”

“Of course. Have you eaten, miss?”

“Mhm.”

To Lech, Tulia was a strange existence—like a single tulip blooming in a field of pure white snow.

For one thing, she was a direct descendant of the Frezier family, yet she treated him like an old acquaintance—almost like a familiar grandfather.

Of course, there were plenty of people who tried to win favor with Lech Kelposher, the chief aide of Grand Duke Asis Frezier.

But trying to gain someone’s favor and acting familiar with them were completely different things.

And more importantly, Tulia Frezier had shown absolutely no interest in him for the past several years.

Is this because I scolded those maids that day?

Lech Kelposher had no idea why Tulia Frezier suddenly looked at him with such warm eyes filled with affection and trust.

It wasn’t unpleasant, though.

To be honest… it even made him feel a little sorry for her.

Tulia behaved as if he were the only person in this entire mansion she could talk to.

Well… that may actually be true.

The thought left a faint bitterness in his heart, but there was nothing Lech could do about it right now.

Perhaps because of that sympathy, his gaze lingered on her appearance.

Her accessories and clothes are quite modest.

Her jewelry and dress were barely adequate—just enough to meet the minimum standard. It was obvious that she hadn’t been assigned a maid with proper skills.

And her hair…

Honestly, he felt terrible for thinking it, but—

Is that… some kind of trend these days? Hair that looks like it exploded?

Absolutely not.

She hadn’t simply let it hang loose without decoration either.

It looked like she had tried, in her own way, to arrange it properly—but that hairstyle…

Even a commoner with a bit of sense would never walk around with hair like that, let alone a noble lady from a respectable family.

It seemed Tulia hadn’t even been assigned a single competent maid.

Half of the internal affairs of the Frezier Grand Ducal household was controlled by Viscount Lilius and his wife.

Although their son Tedric had recently been severely scolded by Grand Duke Asis Frezier—and even had the direct family necklace temporarily confiscated—that alone wasn’t enough to strip them of their authority over household affairs.

After all, this wasn’t some ordinary noble house.

Replacing the administrator of the internal affairs of this enormous grand ducal household was practically equivalent to replacing the prime minister of a kingdom.

It was the kind of matter that would attract the attention of even the family elders.

His Grace never issued an order that extreme.

Still, the Lilius couple were currently lying low, carefully watching the Grand Duke’s mood.

This was the main residence. There were many eyes watching, so they couldn’t openly mistreat Tulia.

But until just a few days ago, Tulia had been little more than a ghost within the family.

Which meant it would be difficult for her to complain that no maid had come to help her dress.

In fact, Viscount Lilius and Lady Aubrey, the viscountess, were probably hoping for exactly that.

If they could find fault with Tulia, it would only strengthen their position.

Wait… but something feels strange.

Lech Kelposher looked at Tulia again.

Unlike the Grand Duke, who had little interest in his grandchildren, Lech always kept track of the personalities of the Frezier direct descendants.

Tulia Frezier was known for valuing her appearance greatly. If she wasn’t perfectly dressed, she would never step outside her room. That was why people called her extravagant.

So why was she walking around confidently with hair that looked like it had been struck by lightning?

The Tulia he knew would never appear like that.

If anything, she would have thrown a tantrum about not being assigned a proper maid.

I wonder what His Grace would think if he saw her like this.

Lech smiled and asked,

“Miss Tulia, did you bring homemade jam again today?”

“Yes. Though… Grandfather probably won’t eat something like this.”

Lech could only smile at that. He couldn’t deny it.

Grand Duke Asis Frezier, a man whose power rivaled even the Emperor’s, received rare and precious tributes from across the world every single day.

And Tulia was the granddaughter who, until a few days ago, had never received even the slightest attention from him.

The Grand Duke was certainly not the affectionate type who would personally taste a jar of jam gifted by such a granddaughter.

At least he never ordered it to be thrown away… but he hasn’t tasted it even once.

Still, after glancing at Tulia’s jam, the Grand Duke had made an offhand remark.

“That child Tulia… seems to resent me quite a bit.”

At the time, the aides in the office had broken out in cold sweat and forced awkward smiles.

And today as well…

The jam Tulia brought didn’t look particularly good.

Seeing her diligently making and bringing something like that every day, Lech thought that Tulia Frezier truly must be the daughter of Marquis Aster Frezier, the man said to possess the heart of a beast.

“Ahem.”

Shaking off his thoughts, Lech smiled again.

“Sometimes a simple gift like this is nice, don’t you think?”

“Right?”

“Of course, Miss Tulia.”

When Tulia smiled back, her pink explosion—no, pink cloud—of hair puffed up softly.

“Oh, Miss. Perhaps you should return to your chambers now? The… ah… head meeting will be ending soon—no, my apologies. The vassal meeting will be ending soon, and many of them will come out.”

In other words, if the vassals saw that hairstyle, it might hurt Tulia’s pride…

Well, he wasn’t even sure how her sense of pride worked anymore—but still, it might be better if they didn’t see it.

So this is the time.

Tulia’s eyes sparkled brightly.

“Okay. I’ll head back.”

She thanked him for the information and turned away.

Lech failed to notice the sly smile curling at the corner of her lips.

So the Grand Duke really doesn’t eat the jam I bring.

As expected of the head of a powerful family—he was wise.

Lech had seemed a little apologetic when he couldn’t confidently say the Grand Duke would eat the homemade jam, but Tulia actually felt relieved.

I mean, I tried my best making it, but… with a cooking skill of –10, who knows if someone would survive eating it…

It was much better if he simply acknowledged that she had personally made and brought the gift.

A clumsy but heartfelt present.

Despite his cold appearance, Grand Duke Asis Frezier was actually weak against that kind of thing.

Well… it’s very clumsy though.

The Grand Duke had eyes. One look and he’d know.

The apple jam she made wasn’t something a human should eat.

After all, it was jam created with a –10 skill penalty.

The color alone looked terrible.

Still, she’d heard that most nobles weren’t good at cooking anyway.

If she kept bringing jam every day, she might gain at least a little bit of favor.

And thanks to visiting every day, I finally figured out the time when the vassals come out.

Starting next week—no, even this week—rotten fruit would no longer be delivered to her kitchen.

Just as Tulia expected, a few days later—

Viscount Lilius returned to the couple’s bedroom with his face flushed red.

“You! Just how exactly are you handling your work?!”