ITMHM 10

Chapter: 10

“Miss Prim.”

Those sharp eyes slowly lifted back up to my face. Then his low voice brushed against my ears with a languid tone.

“The workload is determined by me, the employer. It should be stated in the contract.”

How presumptuous.
The Duke of Schultz was saying it indirectly.

“But—”

“Are you asking me to resolve it?”

As I was about to make an excuse, he asked back. It didn’t seem like he was trying to reprimand me for my rudeness.

“Yes, I am.”

“……”

“Practically speaking.”

I politely clasped my hands together. Then, paying even more attention to my demeanor, I continued.

“As I said before, I would like to take on more work. Preferably something that involves physical labor.”

The Duke of Schultz made a troubled expression and tapped his interlaced fingers. A short groan filled the silence as his brows furrowed deeper.

A sigh-like voice followed.

“Well, what should I do? The documents that come into the estate vary each time, and all tasks have already been assigned. The only vacancy left is the mistress’s duties.”

“Then I’ll take even that—”

“It seems you don’t mind being called presumptuous.”

Ah. Realizing my mistake, I shut my mouth.

The Duke of Schultz leaned his upper body forward. A faint smile lingered at the corners of his lips.

Unable to withstand the tension, I drew in a breath and turned my gaze away from his now deeper eyes.

“You said you prefer physical work.”

Lowering my gaze to the floor, I nodded slowly.

“Would anything be acceptable?”

“Yes, of course.”

“And you don’t even know what kind of work I might assign.”

At the clearly suggestive remark, I unconsciously lifted my head—and frowned.

The Duke of Schultz felt strangely different from when I met him outside. Sharper, yet more refined… and also more—

His clear blue eyes curved.

“I don’t believe Your Grace is someone who lacks propriety. Especially since you were close with my father…”

Before I could even finish, an absurd question came back.

“What do you think about getting married?”

I kept my mouth shut for a while. I couldn’t understand what he meant.

The atmosphere sank under tension. I barely managed to speak.

“What do you mean…?”

“You wouldn’t be called presumptuous, and the servants’ gazes would change.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t quite understand. Does getting married change something? Do married people get assigned more work…?”

“Well.”

For some reason, the Duke of Schultz looked amused.

“Then I apologize, but I don’t have a lover. And my father hasn’t even been gone that long, so something like that…”

“That works out well. I was just about to suggest that you marry me.”

“I see. The person I marry has to be Your Gra—… pardon?”

The absurdity of his answer loosened my previously respectful composure.

I blinked stiffly.

When I stared at him in disbelief, he replied as if it were nothing.

“I am proposing to you, Miss Prim.”

His tone was dry, as if discussing something mundane.

And his expression—what about it?

Was this some kind of aristocratic joke? It wasn’t funny at all.

But since he was my employer, I forced a smile. The corners of my lips trembled slightly as I barely managed to speak.

“…You must have been very close with my father. Seeing how comfortably you even joke like this with me.”

It was my way of telling him not to make such rude jokes again.

“It’s an honor, Duke Schultz.”

I lifted my skirt with one hand and bent my knees in a bow. I wasn’t sure if it was perfect, but it was at least a noble-style greeting.

The faint crease between his brows narrowed slightly.

“If my response was rude, I apologize. My father taught me to be respectful to those above me, but not to appear servile or easy to take advantage of.”

Kindness for kindness, rudeness for rudeness.

No matter how high their status, he said I had the right to that.

The Duke of Schultz stared at me for a long moment. It was almost embarrassing.

Then his sharp voice returned.

“I don’t believe we are close enough to exchange jokes.”

“…Pardon?”

Then what kind of situation is it to propose when we’re not close?

I barely swallowed the words that almost escaped my throat.

“I am serious, Miss Prim. It would be best for you to marry me.”

Just as he said, his expression was completely serious.

That only made it more absurd.

“I believe it is not proper to decide such an important matter as marriage on one’s own.”

In other words—why are you confusing someone who has no intention of it, based solely on your own opinion?

Naturally, this was the first time I had met Johannes Schultz since seeing him outside. We had no particular connection…

And my life wasn’t so beautiful that I could spout nonsense like he had fallen in love with me at first sight.

What is his intention?

I met his unfathomable blue eyes.

“Is this proposal also related to the reputation of the Schultz ducal house in Müssen?”

If not, then there was only one conclusion I could draw—and it wasn’t a good one.

“Even so, I refuse.”

He didn’t look particularly surprised. He must have expected my rejection.

“You won’t even ask for the reason?”

“No.”

It was obvious.

I was well aware that some high-ranking noblemen often indulged in decadent and promiscuous lifestyles.

It didn’t mean going to taverns to satisfy their desires. They wanted pure women.

They would take in poor commoner women, fill their stomachs, let them live in comfort—and in return, seek pleasure.

And when they were no longer useful, they would discard them.

But proposing marriage right away? That was strange…

I didn’t know why marriage suddenly came up, but perhaps it was some new trend.

Straightening my posture, I continued while hiding my emotions.

“And if you brought me in as a servant for this purpose from the beginning… then I will resign.”

There was no need to apologize.

It’s not like I did anything wrong. If anything, my only mistake was being naive.

There’s always another motive behind excessive kindness. I had simply believed him because he said he owed my father.

“It’s not that I didn’t have that intention, but you came to me yourself, and I thought now was a rather appropriate time.”

“Appropriate?”

“Miss Prim wants suitable work, and the only thing left is the mistress’s duties.”

I was speechless for a moment.

“You’re not saying that’s the reason you proposed to me, are you?”

“Of course not.”

His answer was simple.

“Then may I ask the reason? Surely you’re not going to say something cliché like you fell in love with me at first sight—”

“Miss Prim, I told you this is not a joke.”

“Then why—!”

“I am offering you a deal.”

His eyes deepened. I let out a hollow laugh.

He spoke so calmly about something so absurd. A deal—to someone who worried about surviving each day.

Even a passing dog would scoff.

“I believe a deal can only exist between equals.”

He had much he could give me—but I had nothing.

I was merely a servant employed by the Duke of Schultz, living off his money.

So what could I possibly—

His low voice cut off my thoughts.

“As I said before, I am not someone who particularly values the process.”

That must be why he had bluntly asked me before if I would work for the Schultz household.

“I am someone who obtains what I want, no matter what. That’s why I made the proposal without unnecessary explanations.”

Because it would go the way he wanted anyway.

That’s why he still wasn’t explaining in detail. But neither would I ask—because I had no intention of accepting.

“If it made you uncomfortable, I apologize. If you need an explanation, I will gladly provide one.”

I looked at him calmly.

Even now, his eyes were remarkably deep and beautiful. Some people even called Johannes Schultz the Jewel of the Baltz Sea.

It was a fitting title.

I gave a bitter smile and replied.

“No, you don’t need to explain. Even if I hear the reason, it’s clear that I will refuse.”

For a brief moment, the faint curve on his lips stiffened.

But only for an instant. He quickly returned to his rigid expression and looked away from me.

“I have no intention of forcing you either.”

But somehow, I already knew—

That in the end, it would come to that.