Chapter 5
Even after all that had happened, the nanny still hadn’t been dismissed.
Three days had already passed.
Not only had she received no punishment, but her attitude hadn’t changed in the slightest.
And what on earth was she doing all night instead of looking after Hayden?
Once, I couldn’t bear listening to the baby cry at night and went to comfort him…
Only to be chased away by the nanny.
What had she said again?
“I’ll take care of Young Master Hayden myself! Do you realize you’re overstepping your authority? Shall I report this to His Grace?”
Overstepping my authority?
I’m the Duchess.
Still…
The moment she mentioned telling Cheres, I had no choice but to back down.
If she still hadn’t been fired after everything that had happened, then she clearly enjoyed the Duke’s trust.
If I made a mistake, I might end up being the only one who suffered.
Where would I even go if I got kicked out?
Absolutely not.
Just looking at how the maid Tanya treated me was enough to remind me.
People say you shouldn’t disturb even a dog while it’s eating.
Yet Tanya had once snatched my bowl away while I was eating.
The memory was still vivid.
I absolutely could not return to House Hezest.
In any case…
There didn’t seem to be anything I could do here.
Even if I wanted to help, it felt like I shouldn’t.
I felt sorry for Hayden, but what choice did I have?
I don’t have any power, little bright-eyes.
It happened when I entered the dining room for lunch.
Cheres wasn’t there.
Only the nanny and Hayden, who sat in his high chair.
The nanny tilted her head when she saw me.
“Good afternoon, Your Grace. As you can see, I’m taking care of Young Master Hayden right now, so please forgive my lack of manners.”
Looking at the lavish meal spread before her…
I couldn’t help clicking my tongue.
Maybe I should become a nanny too.
If they treat you like this, the job doesn’t seem so bad.
Thinking that perhaps working as a nanny wouldn’t be such a terrible career if I ever had to leave the duchy, I sat down.
The maids quickly prepared my utensils and meal.
Then I glanced over to see what Hayden was eating.
“…You’re feeding that to Hayden?”
No matter how much I wanted to stay quiet…
There had to be a limit.
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
The nanny glared at me viciously.
The soup in front of Hayden was practically transparent.
There was nothing in it.
Just to make sure, I tasted it.
It was nothing more than flour soup with sugar mixed in.
I stared at Hayden in disbelief.
The moment he noticed me, he flashed a bright smile, showing off his four tiny teeth.
“Mama! Ma! Kyaa! Mama, mama!”
Seeing that innocent, cheerful face…
My temper exploded.
“I’ll say it again—you’re overstepping your authority! This is how babies are supposed to eat! You don’t know anything! He’s only going to spill everything and smear it all over his face anyway, so this is perfectly adequate!”
“What are you talking about? Every child goes through that stage! This is exactly when he needs proper nutrition to grow! How can you call flour soup an appropriate meal? And why is it so sweet?”
I shouted back without backing down.
I was simply too human to pretend not to see a child being neglected.
Is this woman actually insane?
How can she feed something like this to a baby?
Then my eyes landed on the luxurious feast the nanny herself was eating.
My head felt like it was about to explode.
“How can you stuff your own face with that while feeding this to a baby?!”
“W-What did you just say? If you think there’s something wrong with my childcare methods, then file an official complaint!”
What on earth was I supposed to do with this woman?
Grinding my teeth, I glared at the triumphant nanny.
She raised her chin arrogantly and looked down at me before turning her head away.
Even looking at her gaudy outfit made me dizzy.
Author…
Is this really how it’s supposed to be?
I’d never intended to interfere with the original story.
Nor had I wanted to get involved in House Beredan’s affairs.
It was already hard enough just trying to survive.
Why would I stick my nose into someone else’s problems?
“Mama! Ma! Ma! Kyaa! Mama! Mama!”
Still…
Little Bright-Eyes deserved better care.
Whether or not he was the male lead of this world’s story.
He was a baby!
Thinking about him gave me courage.
Though perhaps that courage was really fueled by sheer outrage at this ridiculous situation.
“If you keep crossing the line like this, then I’ll resign! I’ll report everything to His Grace! Since the Duchess wants to care for Young Master Hayden herself, then she can do it!”
I clenched my teeth.
This damned household.
These damned people.
No matter how I looked at it…
This woman had to be one of the people responsible for making Hayden’s future such a miserable one.
I can’t tolerate this anymore.
Lord…
Please welcome one more sinner to Your side today.
Just as I was about to unleash everything built up inside me—
“…Do you mean what you just said?”
Cheres had appeared.
Seeing the nanny’s face immediately light up, I hurriedly swallowed my courage back down.
If you get thrown out, you have nowhere to go.
Control yourself.
I’m sorry, Hayden.
I’ll secretly look after you whenever I can.
“Y-Your Grace…! Please listen to my side of the story—!”
“I asked whether you meant what you just said.”
“…Pardon?”
“You said you’d resign of your own accord.”
“Yes?”
“That’s truly wonderful news.”
…This isn’t going the way I expected.
I kept my mouth tightly shut and watched.
Cheres stared coldly at the nanny.
“I sincerely hope never to see you in House Beredan again.”
“I also intend to file an official complaint against the family that recommended you to us.”
“You’d better look forward to that.”
He had heard our entire conversation.
“I’d like to know why a woman with practically no experience whatsoever was placed in my household as Hayden’s nanny.”
“Y-Your Grace…!”
“Leave behind everything you’ve received from this estate.”
“If you don’t…”
“Your next destination will be prison.”
The moment Cheres finished speaking, the nanny collapsed onto the floor.
Watching her…
I secretly let out the breath I’d been holding.
Whew…
So I’m not the one getting thrown out.
Hayden caught my eye and beamed.
His four tiny white teeth were unbelievably adorable.
“Mya! Mya!”
Apparently…
In Hayden’s eyes, I looked like food.
* * *
Diane burst into tears as she clutched her bag.
Mrs. Urein, the head maid who had always treated Diane kindly, now looked down at her with icy eyes.
“P-Please don’t throw me out, Mrs. Urein! Who’s going to take care of Young Master Hayden if I leave? Please! This is all because that witch of a Duchess has deceived His Grace!”
Diane clung desperately to Mrs. Urein’s leg.
She hadn’t even been given a chance to cling to Cheres.
“Please just listen to me once, Madam! This is so unfair!”
“Is it truly unfair?”
“Yes! What do you think the southern nobles will say when they learn His Grace is treating me like this just because he believed the words of a woman from House Hezest?”
She screamed desperately.
It was nothing less than a threat.
She intended to spread rumors that the leader of the South had fallen under the spell of the Witch of Hezest and was persecuting a southern noblewoman.
But Mrs. Urein silenced her with a single sentence.
“I doubt they’ll pay much attention to the words of a woman with a history of fraud.”
Her voice was cold.
Mrs. Urein herself came from House Nellis, one of Beredan’s longtime vassal families.
She had begun serving House Beredan when she was barely old enough to understand the world.
Now she had risen to become head maid and was deeply involved in overseeing the management of the entire ducal household.
That alone proved how much Cheres trusted her.
The moment the investigation into Diane had been completed, Cheres had summoned both Mrs. Urein and the head steward.
He shared everything they had uncovered.
He also ordered investigations into the people who had previously handled Diane’s background check.
It was obvious they had been accomplices.
“It seems we weren’t employing a nanny after all… but serving an imperial princess.”
Along with that biting criticism…
Cheres presented the records of every expense Diane had made.
Every coin she had requested under the pretense of buying necessities for Hayden…
Had actually been spent on herself.
Dresses.
Shoes.
Jewelry.
Beauty treatments.
“Even most noble ladies don’t indulge in luxury to this extent. The noblewomen of the capital have even started gossiping about her. They say the nanny must either be the daughter of some unimaginably wealthy family… or perhaps even the Duke’s secret mistress.”
It was such an outrageous rumor that it left everyone speechless.
The fact that they had remained unaware of it until now was humiliating enough to make their faces burn.
Who else had been bribed?
Who else had been blinding both Cheres and his retainers?
It was almost unbelievable.
Once they pulled up one root…
Countless tangled vines came with it.
