MDCHC 15

chapter 15

“Damn it!”

With no way to vent my frustration, I slammed my fist down on the dining table. My teeth clenched, and I glared fiercely into empty space.

“Um… is the food not to your liking?”

The maid serving me asked in surprise.

“N-no, it’s delicious.”

Hearing the slight tremble in her voice, I quickly reassured her. The breakfast was indeed delicious. As expected of a wealthy household, the quality of the food here was far better than in Pomots.

What frustrated me wasn’t the food—it was that I had wanted to start a refreshing morning eating breakfast together with Daniel, but I’d been told he had already gotten up and finished his meal.

“Does he take after his father? No trouble waking up in the morning.”

I muttered unconsciously as I poked at the salad in front of me. It definitely wasn’t because I was lazy. I was average! Daniel was just unusually diligent!

“Let’s see… If they wallpaper and paint his room today, at least for today he won’t be able to sleep there, right? Which means! He’ll have no choice but to sleep with me tonight!”

Before I knew it, my frustration had completely vanished, replaced with sweet anticipation at the thought of sharing the night with Daniel.

‘Come to think of it, what time does Daniel go to bed? Since he wakes up so early, he must sleep early too, right?’

“Do you happen to have Daniel’s daily schedule?”

I turned to the maid serving me.

“Well, I only handle the meals, so I wouldn’t really know about that.”

“Really? Then who’s in charge of Daniel’s daily routine?”

“Uh… I wouldn’t know either, since I just serve meals and do kitchen work…”

“Then what did Daniel eat for breakfast today?”

“Young Master had a fried egg with bread, a slice of apple, some steamed broccoli and carrots, and a glass of soy milk.”

She answered promptly. I pictured Daniel’s meal in my head. Compared to what I was eating now, it seemed a bit plain, but for a child, it was probably enough.

“I’ll have lunch with Daniel today. What time does he usually eat?”

“Around 11 o’clock.”

Maybe because breakfast was so early, lunch came early too. If lunch was at 11, that meant I had to eat again in about two hours. Which meant I needed to stop eating now.

“Clear this away. And bring me Daniel’s schedule.”

“Lady, I heard you were looking for the schedule.”

Again?

Seeing Madam Perede walk into the room, I sighed inwardly.

She was the housekeeper in charge of the entire estate, so it made sense that she was involved in everything. But the fact that whenever I asked for something, she was always the one to show up—well, that was a problem.

It meant I could only communicate through her. In other words, only the communication she allowed was possible.

“Yeah.”

Since the important thing right now was Daniel’s schedule, I just stretched out my hand as if to say, “Give it here.” Instead of handing it to me, she deliberately placed the paper down on the desk.

It was a stiff sheet, smelling of fresh ink, with only five lines written on it.

6:00 – Wake up
7:00 – Breakfast
11:00 – Lunch
4:00 – Dinner
6:00 – Bedtime

“This is it?”

The words slipped out the moment I read it.

“Yes,” Madam Perede replied matter-of-factly.

“What about snack time? Playtime? Lessons? Nothing? And why does he sleep so much? Is he really asleep that whole time?”

“For children, sufficient sleep is very important. If you wish to give him a snack, you may do so anytime. Aside from the times listed there, the rest of the day is free time—so the young master can play or study however you wish.”

I was speechless.

“With who?”

“…”

“Who plays with Daniel, and who teaches him? You said there’s no nanny and no tutor, right?”

“It was the late madam’s wish to let the child grow freely, without restraint—”

“Stop talking about dead people. So basically, all you did was feed him and put him to bed, right?”

I cut her off irritably. The more I heard, the more absurd it got.

“Haah… What on earth was his father doing while his child was being neglected like this?”

Resentment toward Lord Winchester rose up in me, and I muttered without meaning to. Handsome face, proper words, speaking so clearly that I forgot everything when I saw him in person—but this was the man who had left Daniel neglected until now. And it wasn’t even in the past. It was still happening.

“His lordship is very busy.”

Though I hadn’t been talking to her, Madam Perede butted in, her stern face defending her master. Whether it was loyalty to him or simple defiance against me, I couldn’t tell.

“So busy that he abandons his own child like this?”

“Would you like his lordship’s schedule as well?”

“Yes.”

I didn’t back down from her biting tone. She pursed her lips tightly, then spun on her heel with a sharp snap of her skirt.

I too pressed my lips together, staring at the door she’d exited through. After a moment, the one who returned wasn’t Madam Perede but a timid maid, who entered nervously, bowed, and handed me two sheets of paper.

“What’s this?”

Unlike Daniel’s, these were completely filled with writing. One seemed to be a basic daily schedule, the other a weekly timetable.

“Up at 4:30 a.m.? Is he some kind of country grandma?”

I nearly fell over reading Lord Winchester’s wake-up time. The sun wouldn’t even be up yet! Sure, I expected him to rise early, but this was ridiculous.

“Breakfast at 6, but he goes for a run before that? On an empty stomach? Isn’t he hungry? Leaving for work at 6:40? You can see the Imperial Palace roof from here—why so early? And what’s he even doing at that hour? Bedtime at 9 p.m.? Someone who claims to have trouble sleeping goes to bed this early?”

I’d only seen one schedule, but already questions poured out of me. The weekly one was even worse—black for knight commander duties, blue for his duties as Earl Winchester, red for personal swordmaster training. Not a single day was empty. Each day had at least two responsibilities, sometimes five. In a few days, he was even scheduled for travel.

“He’s barely ever home! He leaves before Daniel even wakes up and comes back after he’s already asleep. How would he ever see his own kid?”

It was the schedule of a complete workaholic. I clicked my tongue and set the papers down.

“Wouldn’t he get exhausted working like that…”

Just looking at it made me feel out of breath. Even if he was a strong man and a swordmaster, such a relentless schedule looked like it could make him collapse at any moment.

Two schedules—one with nothing at all, the other bursting at the seams—sat side by side in front of me.

“A total mess.”

A deep sigh escaped my lips.

The lavish spread for lunch pleased me. Even better, it matched the “child-friendly menu” I had specifically ordered.

“Daniel! Eat well!”

“…Yes.”

He answered softly, then began to eat hesitantly. Pretending not to watch, I peeked at his awkward fork movements. Even the way he held it was wrong.

‘No one’s ever taught him, huh.’

I held myself back from correcting him immediately. If I pointed it out now, he might shrink back and lose his appetite.

‘Still, it’s good to see him eating well.’

Even if the hamburger steak sauce smeared on his lips, the fried egg yolk splattered on his clothes, and the cherry tomato rolled onto the floor—well, kids were like that.

“By the way, Daniel, why aren’t you wearing the clothes we bought yesterday? Didn’t you like them?”

I asked casually as he sat there in his slightly small, worn-looking clothes.

“Ah!”

As if suddenly remembering, Daniel looked down at himself. Then he quickly lowered his hand to cover the egg yolk stain already on his shirt.

“I wore this in the morning.”

“Really? I guess you didn’t feel like changing?”

Heh, I get that. Honestly, I’d love nothing more than to spend all day in comfy pajamas. If only some hip fashion icon would make pajamas a trendy street outfit!

“If I wear two outfits in one day, I get scolded.”

Clink—my fork froze in midair.