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Chapter 21
Johannes didn’t say much until the very end.
Instead, he pulled his shawl tighter and immediately led me to my room. He must have judged that I wasn’t in a state to attend the banquet.
How could I possibly go out looking like this?
Marilyn’s face turned pale as she noticed the clear handprint on my neck.
“Miss Prim, what on earth is this…?”
She guided me to sit on the bed and carefully examined the bruised area.
“Who did this to you! To leave a lady’s neck in such a state…!”
“It’s nothing.”
“Nothing? The mark is so clear! These days, young ladies seem not to care about their own bodies.”
While tending to me, Marilyn sighed repeatedly, saying it would probably take at least a week for the bruise to fade completely.
The sight of me with my neck wrapped in bandages looked rather funny.
Marilyn repeatedly urged me not to leave the room before finally stepping out. She returned much later, reporting that the banquet had ended on a reasonable note.
“I visited Duke Schultz. At the banquet, he announced the marriage alone and said that, since Miss Prim is unwell, you could be introduced during the wedding ceremony instead.”
“That’s a relief. I’m sorry. Marilyn helped me so much, and I messed things up…”
I sighed, and she replied brusquely,
“How is that your fault, Miss Prim? It’s mine for not stepping in.”
Anyway, Marilyn suggested hiring a personal maid. Since the lady of the house’s position has been vacant for a while, the current staff aren’t suitable for that role. She had gone to get the duke’s approval for this arrangement.
“Fortunately, the duke said that if there’s someone you want, he’ll allow a recommendation.”
“Really? Then I want to hear your opinion. Who would you recommend?”
“Well… the Schultz family’s situation isn’t good right now, so someone discreet would be best.”
Finding a discreet person isn’t easy…
A personal maid—this was already giving me a headache.
Since I had no idea whom to choose, I kept asking her questions. At first, she answered a few times, but eventually she seemed tired of it.
With a slightly weary expression, Marilyn explained a few virtues I would need as the lady of the Schultz household.
For example, I had to be decisive, clearly state my demands, and fulfill all rights and duties once I had committed to becoming part of the Schultz family.
While I was mulling over these new concerns, preparations for the wedding began in earnest.
The following days were hectic beyond measure.
It had already been a week since Johannes announced the marriage. Time passed peacefully but quickly.
Since that day, I hadn’t met him. I felt awkward…
But he was probably just busy. There was likely nothing more to it.
I seemed to be the only one wandering around here.
Regardless of my feelings toward Johannes, I had to properly handle my assigned duties.
After all, I had to repay him for the help he gave me.
“This is hard.”
I muttered to myself with a sigh.
Sunlight streaming through the window slanted across the scattered papers.
With a fountain pen in my mouth, I mumbled as I stared at the piles of books on my desk:
The history of the Schultz family, the Schultz family tree, their achievements, management, traditions…
I had expected that there would be countless things to learn, but trying to grasp everything at once was extremely difficult.
“Well… I have to do it.”
I firmly held the fountain pen and began carefully organizing what I had learned onto the papers before me.
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The Schultz family, one of the three dukedoms of Dotilia, is one of the most influential noble houses.
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They have consistently produced respected scholars and military officers. Not only have they excelled in business and politics, amassing immense wealth, but unlike other families that became unstable with each change of monarch, the Schultz family has remained prominent.
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Musen, under their influence, is highly dependent on the Schultz family to the point that one could say it is run by them.
This was as far as I had memorized. Beyond that…
A knock at the door made me look up.
“Lord Fret Gunner.”
A gentle voice came from outside. I checked the wall clock. Lord Fret’s class time was approaching.
“Please, come in.”
“You’ve almost memorized everything.”
After several rounds of Q&A with Lord Fret, he closed the book with a satisfied smile.
When I nodded slowly, he said it was time to go into a slightly deeper discussion.
“The late viscount’s mother was the only sister of the current king. Few people are aware of this.”
This meant that Johannes was effectively third in line for the throne.
I froze, unable to blink.
‘As expected…’
Thinking about the power Johannes held, I realized he was someone completely out of my reach.
Yes, for someone like him, nearly dying would be nothing. It might take time, but replacing a person like me wouldn’t be a problem at all.
As I thought this, a chill ran through me.
“Wait a moment.”
Lord Fret looked at me with a questioning gaze, his slate-blue eyes narrowing.
“So the king executed someone who had been married to a previous king’s family member…?”
Lord Fret nodded.
“In the face of power, even family is just an enemy. The Schultz family hasn’t had a good relationship with the royal family. At present, the royal family has even blocked their access to finances. It doesn’t affect basic living, but…”
He glanced at me, as if observing my reaction. Perhaps he thought I might be uncomfortable with this negative talk about the royals.
But for someone like me, who had lived an ordinary life, politics felt distant.
Lord Fret must have sensed I wasn’t bothered, so he continued describing the subtle schemes against the royal family.
“They probably aim to completely exclude the Schultz family from large financial ventures and politics to firmly weaken their influence.”
In other words, the checks and balances against them were intense.
“I, along with the Schultz household staff, don’t believe the late duke embezzled funds.”
“I don’t think so either… just by what I hear from you, Lord Fret.”
My father had always said that Duke Schultz was a good man. Growing up with that belief, I couldn’t easily accept otherwise.
Perhaps the royal family, unwilling to face public anger, created a ridiculous plot to blame the Schultz family.
‘Even if it was to eliminate rivals, it’s despicable and absurd.’
No matter how I tried to see it positively, I couldn’t. I spent the class in a persistently unpleasant mood.
“This concludes today’s lesson. Have you thought about who to hire as your personal maid?”
Lord Fret closed the book and asked. I shook my head.
“Um… no. Marilyn did make a recommendation, but I’m still thinking.”
“I see. But at least hire someone by a week before the wedding. I’d like to give you time, but the schedule is so busy…”
I received the list of wedding dress designs and guest names Lord Fret handed me.
“Yes, I understand. I’ll think about it as soon as possible.”
“Madam, are you nervous?”
“Huh? Ah… a little?”
The reason I paced anxiously around the room was simple: today was the wedding day.
“Don’t worry. If you do everything as prepared, it will go smoothly.”
I smiled at Ahin, the newly hired maid of the Schultz household, to reassure myself.
“Ahin, you’ve worked hard too.”
“What did I do? You’re so beautiful, madam. The most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen.”
“Not the dress, though?”
I teased her, but I genuinely meant it. The dress, made of organza, was the most beautiful I had ever seen.
“It’s beautiful because you’re wearing it,” Ahin said, straightening the lace decorations and smiling. Freckles across her bronzed skin shifted as she moved.
“Don’t flatter me too much.”
“I’m serious…!”
“Then let’s say it’s because you helped me look good.”
I chuckled, and Ahin pouted playfully.
“Madam, could you bow for a moment? It’s all done now.”
Ahin, who had just placed the veil adorned with flowers, circled me and added,
“I’m so grateful you hired me. When else would someone like me, a foreigner, get to work in such a grand ducal household?”
“You’re good at everything anyway.”
After thinking it over, as Marilyn said, it was better if the personal maid didn’t know much about Dotilia.
My condition for the maid was simple: someone discreet.
Having accepted Johannes’ proposal, I would now officially be part of the Schultz household. I needed to prevent information from leaking. Many would be curious about the household affairs once Johannes returned.
Thus, Ahin, newly hired, was a foreigner with limited Dotilian language skills.
Being a war refugee from the northeast, her sentences were restricted, but she handled my service and the mansion’s cleaning, so communication wasn’t a problem.
As the wedding time approached, my nervousness grew. I spoke to Ahin while pacing.
“I need some time alone to calm down. Can you wait outside?”
“Yes, madam.”
Alone again, I gazed out the window.
Hiring a personal maid wasn’t strange in itself.
