Chapter 36
Anything related to Cedric always veered in a direction completely different from what I intended.
Because of that, there had been many times when I lost my composure and was swept along by the situation.
The conversation with Father had been the clue.
Marie’s look of utter shock gave Ines confidence.
Once, Ines’s aunt had been nothing more than the daughter of a mere viscount.
Now, she held the exalted position of the Empress Consort.
It was the result of marrying an emperor far older than herself.
That crude letter was a desperate plan Ines had come up with after hearing why the emperor had placed her aunt in the position of Empress Consort, unlike all the other women.
She was, in other words, taking advantage of the emperor’s desperate desire to keep her aunt by his side when she kept trying to run away.
If the reason Cedric had become interested in her was the same as the emperor’s, then it was only natural that his interest would quickly fade in the face of such blatant displays of affection.
“Miss, please listen to me. I heard you were put in an awkward position at the hunting festival as well. The Duke is definitely going to misunderstand.”
“Awkward? What do you mean?”
Realizing her mistake, Marie clamped her mouth shut for a moment before finally pouring everything out as if pleading her case.
Maids often ran into one another at the market or in the bustling streets.
There were many noble ladies besides Ines who had been aiming for the Duke of Angel.
Since a personal maid spent so much time with the lady she served, she often came to regard her mistress’s affairs as if they were her own.
“That damned fox said this. She said you acted far too cutesy toward the Duke of Angel, and everyone around you frowned because of it.”
Many noble ladies had been disheartened by the rumor that Miss Greenwood, whom they had quietly looked down on, might become the Duchess of Angel.
Naturally, the personal maids who served those ladies could hardly have favorable feelings toward Ines.
The maid who had picked a fight with Marie belonged to that group.
“It’s not that I believe her! That’s exactly why you shouldn’t send a letter like this. Please? Miss.”
“No.”
Marie had spoken while bracing herself for her mistress to be shocked or angry with her.
Yet her lady’s reaction was astonishingly calm.
Rather, the smile spreading across her face was so delighted that it made Marie uneasy.
“Please send it. The letter.”
Marie stamped her feet anxiously.
She felt as though she was the only one in a hurry, and it made her chest feel unbearably tight.
“Miss, please.”
“Marie? Do as I said. Stop arguing with me.”
She had finally found the right answer.
Her eyes sparkled.
***
“This way, Miss Ines.”
This isn’t right.
“The head maid is absolutely delighted that you’ve taken an interest in our family’s historic tea set, Miss Ines.”
His smiling face was full of mischief.
“When I instructed the head maid to bring out anything worthy of showing you, she grumbled that I was tormenting an old woman, yet she prepared so many things that there wasn’t even any room left in the dining hall this morning, forcing me to have breakfast in my room.”
This is definitely not right.
“After we’ve looked around everything, let’s head to the stables together. The stable master was so fired up after hearing you would be visiting. Ah, before that, I should show you the gallery first. I completely forgot that you mentioned Angel House’s artworks several times in your letter.”
“Ah… Haha. Yes.”
Forcing an awkward smile, Ines quickly turned her head away.
Despite Marie’s desperate attempts to stop her, she had insisted on sending the letter.
The reply had arrived almost immediately, as though he had been waiting for it.
The invitation date written in the reply was the earliest day he could possibly arrange.
[“I can’t disappoint Miss Ines. I’ll make every possible preparation to live up to your expectations.”]
The final greeting in the letter left her feeling uneasy.
She couldn’t tell whether he was mocking her or being sincere.
But now that she had come here, she understood.
There hadn’t been even the slightest trace of ulterior motives in it.
Cedric had genuinely been looking forward to her visit.
Still, she had never imagined he would welcome her so grandly, leaving Ines completely overwhelmed.
‘Why…?’
He was an exceptionally perceptive man.
In truth, no ordinary person could bear the responsibility of leading an entire noble house.
Needless to say, that was especially true for a family as prestigious as the House of Angel.
Every day, he had to separate the worthy from the worthless among those who came seeking the Duke family’s wealth.
In the House of Lords, he had to discern the intentions of people who seemed to harbor ten snakes in their stomachs.
And that wasn’t all.
Yesterday’s enemy could become tomorrow’s ally.
He also had to read the ever-changing political landscape and maintain the delicate balance expected of the neutral faction.
Compared to such difficult and complicated matters, there had been nothing hidden about her letter.
It was far too obvious, revealing her desires with almost innocent sincerity.
‘Cedric doesn’t like people like that.’
She could say that with confidence.
No, who in the world would like someone like that?
Perhaps because he had been surrounded by such people since childhood, Cedric was even more sensitive to it than most.
Yet even after receiving that letter, Cedric didn’t seem disappointed in her at all.
If anything, his eyes sparkled as though he were delighted.
“Come along. If we’re going to look around everything and still have time for the horseback riding lesson we promised before, it will take quite a while.”
Smiling faintly, Cedric spoke clearly and deliberately.
“As you said, Miss Ines, the Angel ducal estate is like a vast museum in itself.”
“Ah…”
Cedric watched Ines with amusement as she made no attempt to hide her bewilderment.
She was awkward when dealing with people, and equally poor at concealing her emotions.
“Duke Angel?”
“Yes, Miss Ines.”
“You… did read my letter, didn’t you?”
To keep himself from laughing at her cautious, utterly confused question, Cedric clenched his teeth tightly.
Unlike Ines, however, Cedric was well accustomed to hiding his emotions.
Not a trace of what he was feeling appeared on his face.
“Yes, I did. I read it several times. Enough that I could recite it from memory if you asked me to.”
Smiling slightly, he playfully asked,
“Shall I try?”
Ines’s face instantly turned pale.
***
“This is the Royal Porcelain set you mentioned, Miss Ines.”
“Ah… Yes.”
“Oh, that’s right. You also wrote about the tea cups made by the Hapton Company. As a matter of fact, they gifted me not just a tea set, but a complete dining set. The next time you and I have dinner together, let’s use that set.”
“Ah… Yes.”
One person’s words were excessively long.
The other person’s replies were excessively short.
The head maid watched with warm satisfaction as she observed this side of the Duke, whom she had served since childhood.
‘They suit each other so well.’
Though she was only admitting it now, the head maid had never thought very highly of House Greenwood.
As the head maid of the House of Angel, she needed to keep herself thoroughly informed about everything happening within high society.
Naturally, she knew everything from the Imperial Consort Lea Greenwood, who enjoyed the emperor’s exclusive favor, to Ines’s reputation.
Ines Greenwood.
The head maid had never encountered anyone whose name was so contradictory.
Her given name sounded delicate and fragile.
Yet her family name, “Greenwood,” seemed to radiate ambition without the slightest attempt to conceal it.
That was why, ever since she had first heard years ago that the young lady harbored unrequited feelings for the Duke, the head maid had never thought favorably of Ines.
She might pretend to be modest, but in the end, she was still a Greenwood.
No matter that they had become a count’s family, how could a daughter of the Greenwood family possibly become the mistress of the prestigious House of Angel?
The very notion had seemed absurd.
However, the head maid had no choice but to admit that her prejudice had been wrong.
Now that she had seen Ines with her own eyes, she found herself vaguely convinced that no one could be better suited to become the Duchess of Angel.
‘I’m getting sentimental in my old age.’
The moment the Duke mentioned that the young lady knew about the tea cups passed down through the family, she had become excited without even realizing it.
A fine tea set represented the dignity of a household.
That had always been the head maid’s firm belief.
Young people these days didn’t understand that.
Even the Duke regarded them as nothing more than tools for drinking tea, showing little interest in the tremendous value of the pieces he used.
The fact that he only used the tea cups made by that painter named Adrian these days proved as much.
Yet Ines, who looked so young in her eyes, shared the very same belief.
She had been so delighted that she emptied the display cabinets, bringing out all the beautiful, elegant, historic pieces that had long been overlooked in favor of Adrian’s tea cups, until the table was overflowing with them.
‘Is he really that happy?’
The Duke had never once treated even the servants harshly.
But this was the first time she had ever seen him look at someone with such gentle eyes.
The way he gazed affectionately at the flustered Ines beside him was unbelievably sweet.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes! Is something the matter?”
The head maid snapped back to her senses at the sound of Ines calling her.
“It must have been difficult bringing out all these precious items.”
Deeply touched by Ines referring to them as precious, the head maid quickly nodded.
“Oh my, what a kind person. You needn’t worry about that at all. This old woman is simply overjoyed that milady loves tea cups.”
“Ah.”
“You understand how distressed I’ve been watching the Duke use only *those* tea cups these days, don’t you, milady? Tea cups aren’t merely tools for drinking tea. They are works of art. You think so too, do
n’t you?”
Seeing the head maid speak so passionately as though she had found an ally, Cedric let out a helpless chuckle.
