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Knock knock—
At that moment, there was a knock at the door.
“Ah! Please save me!”
Dioge let out an involuntary scream.
But the door opened, and in came a beautiful woman with light brown hair.
“Oh? So Calix and Josh were here?”
“…I came by to greet you first,” Calix answered casually.
The bright light in his red eyes had softened into a gentle glow.
“…Huh?”
Dioge couldn’t take his eyes off Calix’s face.
So the monster duke could even show such a soft expression.
At that moment, Mari approached Dioge.
“Dioge! You’re awake.”
“Uh…?”
Turning his head, Dioge’s mind went blank for a moment.
A beautiful woman in a sky-blue dress was approaching him.
Her graceful movements and sparkling green eyes felt familiar.
Yet he couldn’t recall ever seeing her before.
“…Do I know you?”
“I am—”
As she tried to introduce herself, Dioge nearly screamed.
“Could it be! The Countess’s daughter?”
That was correct.
She had the same eyes as his former employer, Count Whitehouse.
“Oh my, how did you know? Did Calix tell you I was coming?”
“No. He didn’t say a word,” Calix said, shaking his head with a relaxed expression.
Mari smiled faintly.
“Dioge has never seen me before… I guess I must resemble Henry quite a lot?”
“Yes! Your hair color is different, but your eyes are exactly the same. The Count also had the same green eyes as you!”
“I see…”
“Th-then, does this mean… you will be my master?”
“Oh my, master is too much… just call me your employer.”
“Ah! I see! That’s a relief!”
At that moment, Calix, standing nearby, fixed Dioge with a sharp gaze.
“Ugh—!”
Dioge flinched.
It was clear that Calix was scolding him for forgetting his status as a servant.
He hurried forward and plopped down before Marianne.
“No! Please, miss! Be my master!”
“You…? You don’t need to call me master… just call me miss.”
Dioge jumped up in protest.
“No! Then I’ll die!”
“Die? From whom?”
“Ah, th-that is…!”
He glanced at Calix.
But the red gaze was intense.
“I- I mean… I would be punished! I’ve completely quit drinking now!”
“Oh… What determination. I see. Good thinking.”
Dioge clasped Mari’s hand passionately and pressed a kiss to the back of it.
“……”
But the moment he noticed Calix’s glare turning fierce, he immediately let go of her hand in shock.
“To think the Count’s younger sister would be my master! I’m alive now.”
“Uh…?”
“No! That’s not it!”
If he were dragged to the cliff castle, it would be certain that he’d live a full slave’s life, suffering and dying eventually.
But if she were the younger sister of Count Henry Whitehouse, there would be nothing to worry about.
If she was his sister, she would surely be gentle and kind, just like her brother.
“I regretted never being able to visit you after the Count passed… please take care of me from now on.”
He knew that Mari had refused proper education and had secluded herself for a long time.
“If she’s Miss Whitehouse, she may not be able to handle the interior work herself, but I’ll do the hard labor to protect her. Even if my bones ache, I must do my best!”
If her projects didn’t go well, he would be dragged to the cliff castle.
“Thank you. I heard you had a tough time with your brother… I’m glad you’re up so quickly. From now on, I’ll take care of you.”
“Eh?”
He muttered in confusion.
“You… will take care of me?”
The reclusive Miss, who had been a shut-in… would take care of him?
Yet she must be in a pitiable situation, with little skill or money.
“Yes. Dioge, you have nowhere to go.”
“I have a place to go! To be tortured!”
But Dioge couldn’t bring himself to say that.
He couldn’t speak such harsh words in front of this elegant mistress.
“But don’t worry. Somehow, this house has become like a guesthouse. I’ll give you this room.”
“This room… you mean I can use it?”
Dioge, suddenly assigned a room, looked around once more.
Clean white walls, simple brown furniture, sky-blue bedding with a scent of soap.
The kind of pristine place he had always dreamed of, after recoiling from heaps of trash!
“I can’t believe I left that garbage heap like that…”
He felt thirsty, maybe because he was sober.
Embarrassed and dazed, he desperately wanted a drink.
“……”
But Calix, wearing a black mask, still watched him with icy eyes.
The moment Dioge took even a single sip of alcohol, that man could easily gut him.
A chill ran down his spine.
Glancing out the window, he saw the black flag of the Bloodstone Duke family and knights attending the duke.
“Gah…!”
He closed his eyes tightly, as if he had seen something he shouldn’t.
A shiver ran through his whole body.
“I shouldn’t celebrate not being dragged to the cliff castle! They watch a slave’s every move!”
Dioge trembled, terrified of the future.
“How much harder are they planning to make me work?!”
A little later.
In Mari’s workshop, Dioge gawked at the prototypes and designs: glowing stars, cloud-patterned wallpaper, and more.
“Are you saying these glowing star patents belong to you, miss?”
“Yes.”
“And you designed this cloud wallpaper yourself?”
“Yes.”
“No way…”
The girl who had never received an education and had been secluded at home—the one the Count had always worried about—was running an interior business?
“No, this isn’t just a business! Count Henry never thought of anything like this!”
The Henry Whitehouse he knew pursued beauty, order, and elegant interiors.
His interiors were always beautiful and elegant, but never had he introduced such radical changes as Mari’s.
“How about this? I’ll be giving instructions like this from now on,” Mari asked, showing another design in progress.
“……”
Dioge couldn’t respond immediately, his mouth opening and closing.
“Miss… what do the numbers next to the plans mean?”
“Oh, that’s the work order. On the separate sheet, there are notes and a list of materials for each process. Even if I’m busy, you can handle it, right?”
“Incredible…”
Each process had detailed notes, neatly organized in an intuitive table.
“I’ve never seen instructions this efficient! Count Henry never gave instructions like this!”
Previously, as the chief supervisor, he had to repeatedly ask Count Henry personally about details.
The Count was often unreachable due to social events or overseas travel.
“Every time, time was wasted and costs skyrocketed!”
Of course, Count Henry never worried about the cost.
He usually only took royal or high-nobility commissions.
But as the construction supervisor, Dioge always felt the escalating costs reflected his own incompetence.
“Miss, you wrote this yourself?”
Dioge’s voice trembled.
Was what he was seeing real?
“I thought only the Count was talented… his sister’s skills were hidden?”
Now he wanted to gulp cold water instead of alcohol.
“How is it? Think you can handle this together?”
“Miss! Handle together? If you designed and planned it, I will trust and follow everything!!”
“Thanks for trusting me. I’ll also trust you with my designs from now on.”
“It’s an honor, miss! You don’t have to worry at all about construction. I’m confident as an interior supervisor! I also know several skilled workers.”
“That’s reassuring!”
Mari was surprisingly relieved at how easily things were going.
“I thought convincing him to clean the house would take over a week. I’m glad he agreed immediately.”
She had feared he might refuse the supervisor role, doubting her ability.
Instead, he eagerly stepped up.
She felt grateful.
“Miss…!”
Dioge’s eyes welled up.
“Sniff… if only the Count had received that letter…”
“What do you mean?”
“Huh? Didn’t he suddenly dream of a fortune and try trading? He never harmed anyone in his life, so I don’t understand…”
Mari had to ask, as she had never heard this story.
Even the Count’s fortune should have been sufficient; needing a sudden windfall seemed odd.
“Do you know who sent the letter? Was it a threat?”
“No. I believe the Count investigated someone. I don’t know who exactly.”
“I see…”
“But who would threaten someone as good as the Count? He held no grudges. And yet… on his first voyage…”
Mari nodded absentmindedly.
“Mari, wake up! Why are you acting like this? Your parents passed away, and now you too…”
Henry had a gentle personality.
He was not the type to hurt or act maliciously.
Yet he also ordered that Mari be locked in her room, relying solely on the doctor’s advice.
This caused his sister to close her heart to him.
“Meanwhile, the butler tormented Mari. Her brother didn’t even notice. Henry wasn’t wise; he didn’t check on her often. Perhaps someone exploited his weakness.”
