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Chapter 5
“But more importantly, an intestinal disease? What kind of illness is it? Is it damage to the inner lining, or does it affect the stomach?”
“…It’s closer to damage to the inner lining…”
“Really? Th-then what happens? Do they vomit? Or have diarrhea? Chills?”
“…Are you interested in medicine as well?”
Adelia let out a small “Ah!” and smiled sheepishly.
“A little. Ah! But please don’t misunderstand. I’m just curious about how fungi and viruses affect the human body.”
Siern couldn’t bring himself to ask, why?
If he did, and this strange student answered with sparkling eyes, ‘For human experimentation!’—
What on earth would he even say to that…?
As Siern remained silent for too long, Adelia’s excited mind cooled in an instant.
Then suddenly, her vision went dark and her head spun.
‘W-What on earth did I just do…?’
This was exactly the problem.
Whenever the topic of microorganisms came up, she got so happy that she couldn’t control herself.
‘Even the academy professors were shocked several times…’
Now she was an adult, officially a research student. She should be able to manage herself properly, and yet…
Cold sweat ran down her back.
“I-I’m sorry, Professor.”
Adelia quickly bowed deeply and stepped back.
Siern was taken aback once again.
“Uh…”
“……”
“What are you apologizing for?”
“Th-that is…”
Biting her lip nervously, her face flushed red as she spoke.
“I-I got too excited and made things difficult for you…!”
“Wait, wait. Let’s stop with statements that can be misunderstood.”
Adelia snapped her mouth shut again and looked up at him with teary eyes.
“No, why are you crying?!”
“I-I… am I going to be kicked out?”
“What? No. Of course not.”
At that, Adelia let out a relieved sigh, as if someone who had died had come back to life.
“That’s a relief…”
Siern found this student, whose emotions rose and fell so dramatically, strangely amusing.
He hated troublesome things. That was why he had never even tried to take on a research student before.
But for some reason, watching this…
…squirrel-like girl who came on her own, jumping up to the sky and dropping to the ground all by herself, wasn’t unpleasant at all.
“If you’re done being excited, let’s move to the next room. There are things you need to be careful about, so stay alert and listen closely. Understood?”
“Yes, understood.”
Seeing Adelia’s bright, sparkling eyes, Siern gave a small grin.
The council meeting was boring and exhausting.
They endlessly dragged out pointless discussions over a single agenda.
Because of that, Roerston had to leave the meeting hall in a near-dead state.
However, none of that exhaustion showed on the outside. Roerston was someone who managed himself perfectly at all times.
He was a man who did everything he could to avoid becoming the subject of gossip.
But even Roerston, the moment he reached his carriage, collapsed onto the seat as if he were spreading himself out.
“…This is driving me insane. I have to do this several times a month?”
He grumbled, practically lying down.
At that, Rudolf—his aide and secretary sitting across from him—sent him a rather sharp look through his monocle.
“Your Grace, please think of the honor of the Ipsel Ducal House. Such posture is not appropriate.”
Roerston looked at him with a weary expression.
“Are you serious, Ru?”
“I am always serious.”
“I just spent hours listening to pointless table talk among a bunch of old men, you know?”
“No matter the reason, it is not proper for someone bearing the Ipsel family name to behave that way.”
Grumbling, Roerston sat up and glared at him.
“If it weren’t for my father’s orders, I would’ve kicked you out already.”
Rudolf let out a scoff and adjusted his slipping glasses.
“You should have tried living without me back when you stayed in the academy dormitory.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Don’t talk like I depended on you for everything.”
“Wasn’t that mostly true?”
“If you say that in front of Adelia, I’ll cut your salary entirely.”
Despite the threat, Rudolf simply shrugged as if it didn’t matter.
He was a man one year younger than Roerston, born into a scholarly family that had long been associated with the Ipsel Ducal House.
Rudolf’s parents had died in an accident when he was young, and his grandfather, who had been researching engineering, passed away suddenly.
After that, no household was willing to take in the child—until the former Duke of Ipsel stepped in.
—“Then I will repay your kindness with my own body.”
True to those words that had nearly knocked the former Duke over in shock, young Rudolf had done his best as Roerston’s companion and playmate.
And now, as an adult, he remained by his side, even managing his schedule like a secretary.
Rudolf was also the only person who knew about Roerston and Adelia’s contract marriage.
“…Speaking of the Madam,” Rudolf said.
Roerston, who had been gazing out the carriage window, turned to him.
“There will be many events you must attend in the future, but it seems Madam is not paying any attention to them at all.”
“She’ll need time to adjust. Today was her first day entering the laboratory. Do you think she had the mental space to think about social events?”
“Even so, it has already been over a month since the two of you were ‘officially’ married. It may become problematic if the Duchess continues to avoid all formal appearances.”
That was true.
Roerston thought for a moment.
It was unusual.
A duchess who never showed herself after marriage.
But since this was a fake marriage he chose for his own convenience, he didn’t want Adelia to bear unnecessary burdens.
He thought it would be enough if she fulfilled only the minimum duties of a duchess…
But after hearing Rudolf’s point, he began to think that perhaps it was time to attend a party together at least once.
“Ru.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Pick out a party suitable for a young lady making her debut in society. Somewhere with a quieter atmosphere.”
“There will soon be a birthday party for the princess at the royal palace. That would—”
Right. That too.
Roerston pressed his brow, looking troubled.
“…I’ll go there alone.”
“But—”
“If Adelia goes somewhere like that, she’ll probably shrivel up. Even now, she’s so small that she fits perfectly in my arms.”
Rudolf, surprised that his master was unexpectedly concerned about his fake wife’s well-being, quietly made a note in his notebook.
“Haah…!”
After finishing Professor Siern’s laboratory tour,
Adelia sat in the lounge sofa, stretching her legs, feeling almost euphoric.
‘There’s so much information I gained today, my head is spinning.’
But even that dizzy feeling was pleasant.
Knowledge! Knowledge! Knowledge!
Adelia was always thirsty for knowledge.
And when it came to microbiology, even more so.
Subjects like classical literature or mathematics had advanced courses at the academy, but microbiology was barely brushed over.
But today, she had learned so much that it made her feel lightheaded.
‘I’m so happy…!’
She wanted to live in this laboratory forever.
Even if she became mold on the wall…
‘Wait—if that happens, would I become a newly discovered type of mold? Then Professor would research me and publish a paper…!’
Overwhelmed with joy, Adelia felt almost like a drunken person.
Just as her imagination was about to spiral out of control, the lounge door burst open and Professor Siern walked in.
“What are you doing, ignoring my knocking—”
“Professor! Will you study me?!”
“…What?”
“Ah, not like this. I mean, if I turn into mold!”
“…Are you planning to decay anytime soon?”
“Ah, not quite yet…”
From beneath his dark hair, Siern’s eyes stared at Adelia with a strange glint.
Startled, he stepped back slightly as she continued muttering to herself.
“You may go home for today. Come again tomorrow at 8, just like today. Sometimes it may get busy and you might leave late… but usually, we finish around this time.”
