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Chapter 10
“Miss Prim.”
A sharp gaze slowly settled back on my face. Then, a low voice lazily tickled my ear with boredom.
“The amount of work is determined by me, your employer. It should be specified in your contract.”
How presumptuous. Duke Schultz was saying this in a roundabout way.
“But—”
“Are you expecting me to resolve it?”
Just as I was about to make an excuse, he countered. He didn’t seem to intend to reprimand me for my impertinence.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“…”
“Practically speaking.”
I clasped my hands politely and continued, paying careful attention to my tone.
“Again, I wish to take on more tasks. I’d prefer physical work.”
Duke Schultz fiddled with his interlaced fingers in a troubled gesture, letting a short sigh fill the silence as he furrowed his brows further.
A voice that sounded like a sigh followed.
“But what can we do? The documents that come into the castle vary each time, and all tasks have already been divided. The only gap is in the mistress’s duties.”
“Then at least those duties…”
“You don’t seem to mind being called presumptuous.”
Ah. I realized my mistake and fell silent.
Duke Schultz leaned forward slightly, a faint smile on his lips.
I couldn’t avert my gaze from his deepened eyes, and I inhaled sharply, unable to contain my tension.
“You said you like physical work.”
I lowered my gaze to the floor and nodded slowly.
“Anything is fine?”
“Yes, of course.”
“You never know what I might ask you to do.”
I looked up unconsciously at the clear intent in his words, frowning.
Duke Schultz felt strangely different from when we met outside—sharper, but more refined, and yet… something more.
His transparent blue eyes narrowed.
“I don’t think you are a man who lacks principles. Especially since you were close to my father…”
Before I could respond, an absurd question was thrown at me.
“How about marriage?”
I stayed silent for a moment. I couldn’t understand his words.
The atmosphere, thick with tension, sank further. I finally managed to speak.
“What are you saying… right now?”
“You won’t be called presumptuous, and the servants’ gazes will change as well.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t quite understand. Will something change if we marry? Would married people be given more tasks or…?”
“Well…”
Duke Schultz’s face somehow looked amused.
“In that case, I must apologize, but I have no lover. And it hasn’t been long since my father passed, so…”
“That works out. I was just about to propose to you.”
“Exactly. You expect me to marry you…?”
The absurdity of his words loosened my previously polite composure. I forced myself to blink.
Seeing my expression of disbelief, Duke Schultz responded casually.
“I am proposing to you, Miss Prim.”
His voice was dry, as if he were talking about everyday matters.
And his expression…
An aristocratic joke? Not amusing in the slightest.
But since he was my employer, I forced a smile. The corners of my mouth trembled as if they had a mind of their own. I finally spoke.
“…You must have been very close to my father. To treat me so casually and make such jokes.”
I didn’t know if he did this with other servants, but I understood the unspoken warning: never make such rude jokes to me again.
“It’s an honor, Duke Schultz.”
I lifted my skirt slightly, bent my knees, and bowed. It might not have been perfect, but it was a noble gesture.
The sharp crease between his brows tightened slightly.
“If my response seemed rude, I apologize. My father taught me to be polite to superiors, but never servile or easily underestimated.”
Kindness meets kindness, rudeness meets rudeness.
No matter how high-ranking the other party, I had that right, he said.
Duke Schultz stared at me for a long time. Almost embarrassingly so.
Then his sharp voice returned.
“I don’t think we are close enough to joke like this.”
“Yes…?”
Then what does it mean to propose if we are not close?
I swallowed the words that nearly escaped my throat.
“I am serious, Miss Prim. You should marry me.”
True to his words, his expression was utterly serious.
I felt even more bewildered.
“I believe such an important decision as marriage should not be made alone.”
He meant it was improper to confuse someone who has no intention of marrying him with a unilateral decision.
Naturally, this was the first time I had faced Johannes Schultz since meeting him outside. We had no real connection…
And my life was not so idyllic that I could believe some ridiculous story about love at first sight.
What is he thinking?
I met his inscrutable blue eyes, unable to guess.
“Is this also a proposal related to the Schultz family’s reputation in Myssen?”
If not, there was only one conclusion I could draw. And it was not a good one.
“Even so, I must refuse.”
He didn’t look particularly surprised. Naturally, he must have expected my refusal.
“Do you not want to know the reason?”
“No.”
Obvious.
I knew that some high-ranking noblemen often led debauched lives. Not going to taverns, but seeking clean women.
They would take poor women, provide them a lavish life, and gain pleasure. When done, they would discard them.
But a sudden marriage proposal… this was odd.
I didn’t understand why marriage came up, but I assumed it was some new trend.
I straightened my posture and continued, hiding my feelings.
“And if you employed me as a servant with this purpose in mind… I will resign.”
There was no need to apologize.
‘What did I do wrong? If anything, I was only naive.’
Excessive kindness always has another purpose. My mistake was believing him simply because he helped my father.
“It’s not that I had no intention, but you came to me, and I thought now was a suitable time.”
“Suitable time?”
“You want proper work, and the remaining tasks are only the mistress’s duties.”
I was at a loss for words.
“You’re not saying that’s why you’re proposing to me?”
“Of course not.”
A straightforward answer.
“Then may I ask the reason? Surely it’s not some cliché like love at first sight…”
“Miss Prim, I already said it’s no joke.”
“Then why…?”
“I am offering you a transaction.”
His gaze deepened. I couldn’t help but let out a bitter laugh.
He casually talks about such things while I worry about daily survival. A passing dog would snort at this.
“I believe a transaction is only possible between equals.”
He could give me much, but I had nothing. I was merely a servant employed by Duke Schultz. I still live off his money.
So what could I possibly…
A soft voice interrupted my thoughts.
“As I said before, I am not someone who cares much for the process.”
So he bluntly asked me to work at the Schultz estate.
“I get what I want, so I made the offer without unnecessary explanations.”
Since things would go his way anyway.
He doesn’t give detailed explanations, and I won’t ask either. I have no intention of accepting.
“I apologize if this makes you uncomfortable. If you need an explanation, I will gladly provide it.”
I looked into his calm eyes.
They were deep and beautiful, as others called Johannes Schultz the “Jewel of the Baltic.”
A fitting description.
I answered with a bitter smile.
“No, you don’t need to explain. Even if I hear the reason, it’s clear I will refuse.”
For a moment, a faint smile formed on Duke Schultz’s lips. But it was fleeting. He returned to his usual serious expression and averted his gaze.
“I also have no intention of forcing you.”
But deep down, I knew it would end that way anyway.
