MDCHC 11

chapter 11

“There’s no key in this key cabinet that would fit that safe?”

I pointed to the safe in a corner of the Countess’s study and asked Mrs. Perede.

“…That contains important items, so I keep the key separately.”

She bowed her head as she answered, but she didn’t make any gesture to go get the key or open it.

“If it’s that important, then as the Countess, I should be the one managing it.”

I looked at her steadily as I spoke.

“…Yes. Of course.”

Mrs. Perede, who was quietly facing me, answered with a slight quiver at the corner of her mouth.

“And what about this household ledger? Why is it empty?”

I held up a file that had been blank for nearly two years. Although it was called a ledger, this large mansion was practically like a corporation. The amounts recorded were far from ordinary household finances.

“That ledger was managed by the previous Countess of Camellia Mansion, and since her passing, there has been no one to oversee it.”

“Oh, really? Then I’ll manage it from now on.”

I nodded as if understanding her explanation.

“Since no one has managed it for two years, you haven’t spent large sums, right? So the assets now shouldn’t be much different from two years ago?”

“Well… money has been spent on basic mansion maintenance and the employees’ salaries.”

“But during that time, there were also the estate’s income and Sir Winchester’s stipend as the Royal Knight Captain and the Crown Prince’s fencing instructor, so it should roughly balance out, shouldn’t it? According to you, there was neither someone managing nor spending the money.”

“…….”

Mrs. Perede pressed her lips together and said nothing. From the fact that she hadn’t recorded the inflow and outflow of money, I already had an inkling, but her silence made it even clearer. That sly fox had not only played the role of the forest king while the real tiger was away but had also treated everything in the forest as her own.

“I’m not sure about that part.”

“Why not? As the mansion’s housekeeper, shouldn’t you know these things better than anyone?”

“I apologize for my shortcomings in failing to fulfill my duties.”

Of course… a fox indeed. Planning to slip away that easily?

“Oh, come on~ things happen in life.”

I smiled gently. I wasn’t ready to let her go yet.

“It doesn’t look like you’re treating Miss Daniel very well. Why is that?”

“I’m not sure what you mean by that.”

“She’s still a child, so why isn’t there a nanny?”

“That’s how it’s been since the previous Countess’s time.”

“Then who raised Miss Daniel?”

“The maids took turns caring for her.”

Really? They left her hungry if they were busy, kicked her out of her room to clean, and called that raising her?

“And why does she wear old, small clothes, and why doesn’t her room feel like a child’s room?”

“We tried our best within the budget set by the previous Countess, but the amount was a bit small…”

Passing the blame to the deceased since they can’t defend themselves, I see.

Seeing through Mrs. Perede’s schemes so clearly, I couldn’t help but smirk.

“Then we’ll just increase Miss Daniel’s budget. Significantly.”

“T-That’s difficult.”

“Why?”

“The previous Countess…”

“She passed away.”

“…….”

“And I’m the living Countess.”

My acceptance of marriage to Sir Winchester wasn’t entirely a matter of dumb luck or being caught up in circumstances. Seventy percent was, but thirty percent was done according to my plan.

“We’re going shopping for Miss Daniel, so get ready.”

Even if the story eventually had a happy ending, the trials for Daniel had been far too long. How could an impatient Korean wait that long?

My daughter’s path to happiness started immediately.

“Um….”

I noticed Daniel hesitantly opening her mouth and realized I might have stared too intently.

“Ah, sorry. Did I stare too much?”

I quickly turned my head. Only then did I notice the scenery flashing past the carriage window.

“Ah, no. It’s not that.”

“Oh, really? Then can I keep looking?”

I quickly turned back to look at the child. When our eyes met, hers widened and her face flushed red. Of course, even that flushed face was adorable.

“…Yes.”

Daniel? How can you look down like that?

“Do you have something to say?”

I tilted my head slightly to gauge her expression. The child lifted her face just a little.

“Where are we going now?”

Daniel asked nervously, fiddling with her fingers. I realized I hadn’t even told her the plan, only got her ready to leave.

“Well… we’ll stop by a few places—children’s clothing stores, shoe shops, furniture stores, maybe some good restaurants? Oh! Is there anything you can’t eat? Allergies?”

“No, nothing.”

She shook her head. Tsk… she’s so skinny, and she’s not even a picky eater. At her age, children are supposed to have chubby wrists, plump cheeks, and round bellies—it’s charming!

Good! I’ll make sure she eats well for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, plus lots of snacks, so she gets plump and healthy.

“And in the end… we’ll go home, right?”

“Well…”

I hadn’t set a strict course yet, but I considered maybe ending at Pomots. After all, I hadn’t formally introduced Daniel yet.

Taking the tiny, fragile Daniel shopping, trying on clothes, shoes, and furniture might tire her too much, so I was thinking of postponing that.

“A-Are we… going home?”

Suddenly, Daniel’s face went pale.

“Are we going… somewhere else?”

The child looked like she was about to cry, and I hesitated before answering.

“A-Are we going to… the orphanage?”

“Huh?”

“Or to a boarding school?”

“No, wait, Daniel. What are you saying?”

I quickly cut off Daniel’s nonsense about orphanages and boarding schools. She had parents; why would she go to an orphanage? And she’s far too young for a boarding school.

“The Countess used to say…”

“The Countess? You mean the previous Countess, the late Countess of Winchester?”

Daniel nodded.

“She told me to call her ‘Countess,’ not ‘Grandmother.’ If I called her grandmother, she’d get very angry. How dare I call her that when we don’t even know her background…”

I was at a loss for words. Daniel’s real name must have been something like Gil-dong de Winchester? She grew up unable to call her grandmother ‘grandmother’? And she was only four years old when that woman passed away two years ago. A four-year-old couldn’t call her grandmother without being scolded? That lady had quite the temper.

Wait a minute… could it be?

“Does Sir Winchester also call his father ‘Count’ instead of ‘Father’? Or just ‘Sir Winchester’?”

Daniel shook her head.

Phew… at least they weren’t that messed up.

“I’ve never called him that.”

Huh?

“I just… never really called him anything.”

Not just messed up—they’re a complete mess. Messed-up families at least have some structure; this one just dribbles everywhere.

“Daniel?”

I called gently, but her head didn’t lift. She just pressed her lips together to hold back her tears.

“You won’t go to an orphanage or a boarding school. In the end, you’ll come home.”

“Really?”

She looked at me with wide, doubtful eyes.

“Yes. When I said we might go somewhere else, I didn’t mean some strange place like that. I meant we might visit very nice people to introduce you to them.”

“Really…?”

Finally, she lifted her head a little and looked at me. I smiled and nodded.

“The servants said that if a new Countess came, I’d be immediately kicked out.”

“Who? Which servant said that?”

“I don’t know exactly. More than one, I guess.”

Hah… I’ll have to track down all those who said that. Too bad.

“Stepmothers usually dislike children. That’s why they’d send me to an orphanage or a girls’ school… The previous Countess tried to do that too…”

Recalling past hardships, Daniel’s voice wavered with tears. Threatening a four-year-old like that—what a temperament the previous Countess had. No wonder people had such prejudice against stepmothers.

“Daniel.”

I spoke in the gentlest voice I could manage.

“I am your stepmother.”

At the word ‘stepmother,’ the child’s shoulders trembled.

“But I really, really like you, Daniel.”

How much more would I need to show her for her to understand?

No, it didn’t matter if she understood yet. I just wanted that tearful expression to turn into a bright smile.