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A few hours later.
The sunset was visible through the window.
“Ugh…”
Marie slowly came to, feeling a pain in her head.
When she opened her eyes, an unfamiliar space came into view.
A luxurious interior, with a warm and cozy atmosphere.“Miss! Are you awake?”
“Mildred…? Where is this?”
Marie rubbed her forehead and sat up in bed.
But soon she placed one hand on the floor.
The room spun, making her dizzy.
“Miss! Huhuhu!”
Mildred immediately threw herself onto the bed and began to cry.
Seeing Mildred, who usually had a stoic expression, act like this, it was clear she had been very worried.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
“Don’t you remember the carriage accident? If I had known, I should’ve gone along too.”
“Oh… the carriage accident…”
“You were unconscious for quite a while! How could this happen in succession?”
Then it all came back to Marie.
The carriage had overturned while being chased by bandits.
Hearing about the accident, Mildred must have rushed over from White House.
“Dwayne? Josh, are they okay?”
“Yes. Lieutenant Josh is fine, and Dwayne has a splint on one leg. But everyone’s safe, so don’t worry.”
“Really? That’s a relief…”
“They dared to put our Miss in such a state… those villains…”
Marie moved her arms and wiggled her legs.
Although there was significant pain, nothing seemed broken.
“That was close. I’m glad there are no major injuries.”
“Oh, the chair! What happened to the chair?”
Marie’s original intention had been to deliver the rocking chair to Calix.
The chair that had even prompted the Duke of Bloodstone to personally visit White House.
“Ah, that…”
Mildred wiped her tears but did not immediately continue speaking.
Marie immediately sensed the answer.
Her expression sank.
“…It’s broken.”
“Yes.”
“…Calix must have been very angry.”
Of course he would be furious; an important chair had been broken.
It might even have held precious memories.
“I’d heard the Duke was a strict person… but I’d never seen him with such a cold, icy expression before.”
“As expected. He must have been very angry that the chair was broken.”
Marie let out a deep sigh.
Although the carriage accident wasn’t her fault, she still felt responsible for not returning the chair sooner.
“The Duke was really furious. Dwayne had to pick up the broken pieces himself. He even got angry, telling him to burn the chair immediately and left.”
“Burn it?”
“Yes.”
Mildred took off her glasses and wiped them.
Small wrinkles had appeared across her forehead.
“I can’t understand why someone would get that angry over just a chair.”
“….”
“Just burning it doesn’t seem like such a big deal.”
Marie shook her head.
It wasn’t that it was unimportant.
‘Maybe it’s the opposite.’
Perhaps it was so important that he was angrier that it was broken and wanted it burned completely.
“…So what happened to the broken chair? Did they burn it?”
“It seems Dwayne collected the broken pieces. Miss, you had told him to take good care of the chair, right?”
“That was meant to mean ‘load it properly into the carriage,’ though.”
“Dwayne is a bit… literal. Once he receives an order, he interprets it exactly as given.”
“I see… so that’s what happened.”
In Dwayne’s mind, the chair still belonged to Marie.
And the straightforward giant could not follow any other orders without his master’s instruction.
“Where is Dwayne?”
“Ah, he was staying by your side without rest, so we had to chase him out of the room.”
“Really? Good move.”
“Yes. He was being so stubborn that Josh had to drag him away. Dwayne also needs treatment and rest.”
It was hard to imagine small Josh dragging the giant, but it was reassuring that he cared for Dwayne.
“Miss, aren’t you hungry? Should I have something brought out?”
“No. Let’s take the carriage and go back immediately.”
“Huh?”
Mildred frowned at Marie’s words.
“Miss, have you forgotten you were injured today? You should rest here for now.”
“No. There’s a ball tomorrow. I have a lot to prepare.”
“But… the doctor said you need to lie down for a few days.”
“No. Lady Brian said she would introduce me to people who want to request interior work.”
Marie slowly walked while feeling dizzy.
“Ha… she should be resting…”
Mildred frowned but quickly brought Marie her coat.
Reception Room
Josh stood up abruptly upon seeing Marie.
“Miss! Are you alright?”
“Josh, I didn’t mean to worry you. I’m fine.”
He appeared completely unharmed.
“I’m sorry! I must have pushed too hard to go fast!”
“It wasn’t your fault, Josh. It was an accident.”
Next to him, Dwayne stood on crutches, looking down as if he had committed a grave sin.
“Mi…ss…”
“Dwayne. I’m glad you’re safe.”
Marie patted Dwayne’s arm.
Being so tall, it was impossible to reach his shoulders.
“Are… you… okay?”
“I’m fine. You’re the one who’s injured, Dwayne.”
Even though Marie said he was fine, Dwayne’s expression remained tense.
He seemed as anxious as someone who had witnessed someone survive death.
“See? You’re walking just fine. I’m more worried about you, who was under the carriage.”
“Y-yes…”
Josh gave a status update on Dwayne.
“For now, he’ll need a splint and crutches. They said it will take eight weeks to graduate from them.”
“Eight weeks? That was serious… Are you really okay, Dwayne?”
“Yes… no… pain…”
Dwayne answered awkwardly.
Even if giants are less sensitive to pain, there’s no way he felt no discomfort.
At least he could use his hands freely, which was a relief.
“He’s probably lying. If his bones are broken and he feels no pain, that would be a lie. Though he never showed any signs of pain before.”
“No…”
“Dwayne, you’ll have to be excused from guard duty for a while.”
“That’s the right idea, Miss. Assign him other tasks.”
“No… I can’t…”
The giant’s face twisted.
He seemed to worry that Marie might be in danger.
But Josh spoke firmly.
“How can you guard the Miss in this state? The knights would be hindered because of you.”
“Ugh…”
Dwayne fell silent.
“In your current condition, you’d be more of a burden than a help in a crisis.”
“Ugh…”
“Get better soon. Only then can you protect your master.”
“Dwayne, Josh is right. Rest for a while and take care of yourself.”
“But… Miss… danger…”
Josh quickly calmed Dwayne, understanding his intentions.
“Dwayne, don’t worry. Additional guards will be assigned from Bloodstone.”
“Ugh…”
“Josh, that’s enough…”
“No, Miss. With this recent bandit incident, you must be careful. Just in case, your lord instructed to change the carriage to a sturdier one.”
Marie no longer refused.
Her safety was important not only to Mildred and Dwayne, but also to the ventures Calix had invested in.
“Then… where is Calix?”
She felt she should apologize for not returning the chair and thank him for his help.
“He said he’s busy and can’t spare the time right now.”
Even though he was at the castle, he wouldn’t come down?
Marie was not pleased.
A person got hurt, yet he didn’t even come to check.
Fortunately, her injuries weren’t serious, though the carriage had overturned.
‘Even if it’s just a contractual relationship…’
She remembered Calix’s expression briefly before she passed out.
She might have been mistaken thinking he looked like he would cry.
‘Was that just a dream?’
The Next Day
When Marie appeared at Viscount Brian’s ball, a few people began whispering.
“I heard Baron Barrett’s succession was delayed. The Miss from White House filed an objection.”
“Good heavens! The ship sank in the middle of the sea, and now she insists he’s alive?”
Until recently, people weren’t particularly favorable toward Nathan Barrett.
But when Marie became acting count, they suddenly sympathized with him.
They seemed to think Marie was defying the established order.
“…Hmph, ridiculous. Maybe she just wants to extort money from Baron Barrett.”
“Perhaps. She’s a woman using the aura of the deceased count to make money, isn’t she?”
It was hard for people to view positively anything Marie did, even business ventures.
“Hmph, which noble would entrust their household to a woman like that?”
“Exactly. I would never let my wife give her any work.”
At that moment, Viscountess Brian, the hostess, approached the guests.
“Have you seen our nursery?”
“Oh, Viscountess. It was amazing! The walls sparkle like stars in the night sky!”
“Goodness. I just saw it myself. How did you do it?”
The guests were full of admiration and envy.
Then Viscountess Brian smiled gracefully and introduced the person responsible.
“Our nursery was decorated by Miss Marianne Whitehouse.”
