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Chapter 28
A Reward for My Savior
The center of Muenheim Castle, called “Marian Hall,” was designed long ago by the Marquis of Muenheim for his wife, Lady Marian Muenheim. The Marquis and his wife loved each other very much, but their beautiful story ended over a hundred years ago. Still, their traces were found all over the castle, like the words carved on the kitchen wall: “My dear Marian had her first child today.” The castle, which the couple cared for, now felt a bit lonely, but the kitchen was still warm because the oven had just been used.
Frida sat awkwardly at the table. In front of her was a plate of sliced ham, Adele’s special sausages, and bread. Before she could even ask what all this was, Daniel handed her a cup filled with something.
“Eat first. Adele was worried you didn’t eat dinner tonight.”
A few days ago, Daniel had stopped by the kitchen to drink some mint liquor. Just before, the cook had scolded him, pretending to be worried about Frida.
“If not for Madam, the castle would be full of cobwebs. Oh, the trouble I went through! Now that the Lord has recovered, you should live more comfortably. But Madam is still working so hard. What should we do?”
Basically, the cook was telling Daniel to let his wife rest and for him to do his part as husband. Most women could not even speak a word in front of Daniel, so the cook was quite brave. She was also good at making drinks.
Frida must have been thirsty. She drank several sips and looked at Daniel with surprise.
“What is this…?”
“Water. I told you, you should stay away from alcohol.”
Frida’s face looked disappointed. She had hoped for something else. Daniel turned his eyes forward and took a sip from his own cup, which was filled with alcohol.
“Why did you come to the kitchen so late at night?”
Frida quickly chewed and swallowed a big bite of sausage before she answered.
“Th-thirsty. I forgot to ask for water in my room. Cough, cough.”
Frida quickly swallowed the water, thumped her chest with her fist, and ended up burping. Embarrassed, she turned her red face away and pounded her chest faster. Why did I have to come down to the kitchen now? So embarrassing… She just frowned and said nothing.
Daniel suddenly asked,
“Why did you build an oven inside the castle?”
Surprised, Frida paused and looked at him. Daniel turned his body and looked at her.
“The oven?”
She pointed to the one in the kitchen, but Daniel shook his head.
“No, I mean the public oven inside the castle walls. You let the people use it.”
“Oh, that… well, there are a few reasons.”
Frida slowed down, thinking about how to explain. Her purple eyes, glowing in the lamp light, rolled around as she thought. Daniel could not even guess how much she knew or how smart she was. He had been surprised more than once while riding his horse around the land. The estate had changed completely since he left for the northern war. The villages outside the castle were organized, too. It was obvious who had done all this—it wasn’t him. If Frida hadn’t come from a famous saint’s family, she might have been called a witch and killed. What she did was amazing.
“While cutting trees around the castle, I tried to count the people living nearby. But most people coming in and out were adults who could work, so I couldn’t know how many children or elderly people there were. With too few workers in the castle, I wondered how I could get everyone to come in by themselves. I needed a reason for people to come and go.”
She picked up a piece of bread and waved it in front of Daniel.
“The answer was bread. Food.”
It was a clever idea. When Ricardo heard it, he said Frida was a genius and gave her two thumbs up.
“Utrecht was never a farming area, so most houses didn’t have an oven. So I built a public oven in the castle, and gave out bread there. If I promised to give bread by headcount, everyone would come themselves.”
It took less than two weeks to count the people living around Muenheim Castle. Even better, people who heard about it started settling near the castle. Soon a village was formed and a market opened. Some people even began trading with nearby places.
“The most useful part was counting the children. When they get older, I want to send the smart ones to the university in Celleno. If they learn law or medicine and come back, it’ll help the land a lot. If some become priests, maybe the palace will build a church here.”
Her voice became brighter as she spoke, almost like an excited child seeing snow for the first time. Daniel felt happier just listening.
“I heard you gave out eating utensils, too.”
Daniel’s voice was softer.
“Yes, I heard from the Turk merchants. I think it helped a lot last summer. Anton said that after people started using spoons and forks, there were less diseases.”
She held up her fork with some ham.
“In Turk, both nobles and commoners use tools to eat, not their hands like us. It’s safer for hot food and keeps hands clean, so there are fewer illnesses. Poor people can’t easily make their own, so I gave them out.”
She sighed and dropped her fork.
“I wish we had more doctors. Anton is teaching some kids, and wants to send them to Celleno University. Did you know there’s a new university over the mountains in Solz? They say it has many good doctors.”
Frida talked nonstop, her arms and head moving with excitement, her eyes shining. Daniel watched her, his attention caught by every movement.
“Do you remember the flower I mentioned? The one that looks like the Turk’s turban? If we can grow it, it’ll be worth a lot of money. But I was worried about money. If you hadn’t given me the key to the vault, I would have had to wait until next year’s herb harvest.”
Frida’s face turned red from happiness. She didn’t know what to do with all her joy. Daniel, too, felt something he couldn’t understand.
“By the way, I don’t think I ever thanked you properly.”
Frida stepped close to Daniel, smiling brightly with warmth and gratitude.
“Thank you so much. You are the person who made my dreams come true.”
Daniel felt a little drunk, even though he hadn’t drunk much. Maybe he really was drunk, because otherwise he wouldn’t have said what he said next.
“Do you like me as I am today?”
As soon as he finished, Frida nodded without any hesitation. Her pure white eyelashes fluttered. Her violet eyes, always focused only on Daniel, didn’t move away. Daniel’s gaze slowly moved from her eyes to her blushing lips. His hand, holding his cup, slipped into her soft hair.
“Then let this be a reward from you to your savior.”
“Huh? What do you mean—”
Daniel gently pulled her by the hair. His eyes, once on her lips, moved to her lips, and he kissed her.
(Scene Break: The Next Morning)
The Duchess was sick again. Adele quickly asked Muriel, who had just come into the kitchen, about Frida’s condition.
“Knight, how is Madam? Where does it hurt?”
Matilda, the maid, turned from the oven and looked at Muriel.
“Did she eat the soup I brought? She didn’t even eat dinner last night. I’m worried.”
Muriel sat and touched her cheek with her finger, frowning.
“She doesn’t have a fever, but I don’t know why she can’t get up.”
Adele wiped flour from her apron and handed Muriel a plate of bread, cheese, and ham.
“What about the doctor? What did Anton say?”
“He said she’s tired from working too hard fixing up Skadi Hall.”
“Is that all? She also worked late every night, met with merchants, and looked after the herb garden. No wonder she’s tired. She should rest for a few days. Knight, you should guard her door so she can’t leave.”
“I already told her not to move for three days. Or maybe even keep her in the castle for a week.”
“Good. If not, when would she ever rest?”
Muriel tried to forget her worries and ate bread with lots of cheese.
‘Should I knock or not? Oh, what should I do?’
Frida chewed her lips, debating whether to go to the wall. There was only one way to sneak out of her room without Muriel noticing, but to do that, she would need help from the last person she wanted to see right now.
“Come on, Frida. Just focus on what’s important. Nothing is more important than trust around here.”
She knew it. But she just couldn’t get the courage to knock. Frida grabbed her head and sank to the floor. She had lied about being sick. She had to give Dominic the money to pay the workers today. They had all been recommended by the mercenary group, and it had taken a lot of effort to gather them. She couldn’t break her promise. But that morning, when Muriel saw Frida still in bed, she thought Frida was sick and banned her from going out. Now, Frida was stuck.
“I’m fine, Muriel. I’m just… embarrassed, that’s all.”
Why embarrassed? Because… When she remembered the warm breath over her lips, Frida grabbed her hair and sat down again. She lost her balance and bumped her head on the wall. Her face was hot, as if it was burned by the summer sun.
Just then, knock, knock, she heard a knock on the other wall.
