He Likes Me a Lot More Than I Thought!

Rumours spread quickly in the Sebrirua mansion.

It wasn’t just a problem here.

The news network of the maids was quite systematic, and since there were so many people, it wasn’t long before the rumour leaked out and most of the servants found out about it.

Rumours whispered in the room spread quickly, and with Marius’ scream and Rieta making a fuss, it was only a matter of time before other servants knew.

And there was another problem.

I wasn’t worried about it though……Definitely.

“Today’s lunch is your favourite, young madam! The chef seems to have paid a lot of attention.”

“Young madam! I’ll prepare a bath for you! I have a special perfume sent by my great aunt.”

“Are you free? Would you like to go to the greenhouse? The tulips are blooming beautifully, young madam!”

Young madam, young madam, young madam!

I didn’t realise the small ball that was shot[1] by Shuel would fall vertically over my head.

[1] rumours spreading and the aftermath.

No, I knew it would fall, but at least not this way.

Every servant I encountered kept blabbering.

My eyes were shaking from the words ‘young madam’.

It wasn’t just being called young madam.

Everyone I ran into was eager to do something for me. 

As if I was truly a young madam.

“What’s with them? Seriously.”

In the end, I sighed at them.

I was more upset rather than mad. I felt as if I was being teased when I became serious.

“I’m not getting married. Stop messing around, I’m being serious.”

The firm words brought all the noise to a halt.

“Oh my, oh my!”

“Did it seem like we were teasing the young madam? Goodness, I apologise! I never meant to do that. How could I!”

Was it the silence just before the storm?

My head was dizzy from the word ‘Madam’ being echoed.

I was distraught for a moment but soon noticed their sincere expression.

……Did they really think that Shuel and I were going to get married?

“Yes, since the master seemed serious……?”

“Certainly. Where else can you find such sincereness?”

“And above all……I can serve you better…”

“Be quiet, Lia. That’s enough.”

Maybe I muttered the words out of my mouth without realising, and the people standing in front of me responded one by one.

They appeared really sincere so I let out a small sigh.

“By the way……Young madam, a good quality ink just arrived. Would you like to take a look?”

I thought it had died down a little, but the word ‘young madam’ appeared again.

However, when I saw them looking at me timidly, my heart felt weak for some reason.

“We’re not even engaged. If you call me that carelessly, the duke and duchess will scold you severely.”

“Oh, that can’t be! If anything, wouldn’t I get a reward instead of being scolded?”

I don’t think so…

I gave a vague smile.

It was fortunate that Marie and Derick weren’t very angry, but that didn’t mean that they allowed their son, a noble bloodline, to be engaged to a daughter of a lowly viscount.

Of course, they wouldn’t slap me harshly or kick me out without a letter of recommendation, but I’m sure they’ll declare something.

“I’ll sing a little so that you don’t feel pressured, okay?”

“We’ll spread the word that the young madam feels pressured!”

“Seriously…Can you not?”

Really, though. It was very hard to give a cold answer to such an earnest request.

The people I grew up with since I was nine clasped their hands with their eyes sparkled. I slowly avoided their gazes.

“You still may not.”

“Madam!”

“Emily. I’m not the madam. And I won’t be in the future.”

At my resolute words, their expression visibly dampened.

I felt bad to see them upset, but it was still not possible.

“What’s wrong with everyone? If anything, you should blame Shuel too.”

“But, miss, he’s an adult. I’m sure he’s aware of everything…….”

“He’s only a fresh academy graduate. A kid who hasn’t even made his social debut, and had just become an adult.”

“The duke and duchess didn’t say anything either! No, in fact, they insisted!”

“I guess it’s because they knew I wouldn’t accept it. Shuel has been chasing after me so long, so they just told him to give it a try.”

“But, miss……”

“Shuel thought he could do whatever he wanted since it was his marriage. He doesn’t understand it, but you do.”

The servants working the dukedom were those who have worked for aristocrats for more than 10 years and were well aware of the aristocrats’ mindsets.

At the same time, I was a little upset that they teased me by calling me a young madam, so I smiled faintly and said.

“How could I be a duchess?”

At those words, everyone shut their mouth. They appeared puzzled to respond.

I opened my mouth first instead of waiting for their reply.

“I will speak to the Duke and Duchess. Can you inform them that I’ll be visiting?”

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Please do not repost. Read only at Dropped Inks.

As soon as Kendrick heard that I was coming, he replied that I was welcome.

Since it was a holiday today, Marius was supposed to be with him, but due to an inevitable event, she had to go to the palace and so I only met Kendrick.

I stood in front of his parlour, took a deep breath, and then knocked lightly. In an instant, the door swung open.

“Rwen! Come on in.”

Kendrick greeted me with a smile.

He quickly placed me in my seat before I could even say hello, and refused my offer to help as he busied his hand in brewing tea and cutting the cake.

But he didn’t forget to talk to me.

“I didn’t prepare much since you said you’ll be coming all of a sudden. Do you still like lemon cake? When was the last time we had tea together? We barely had the chance since you’ve been so busy.”

“Oh, yes. I like it.”

“That’s a relief! You’ve lost a lot of weight because you’ve been struggling a lot lately. Isn’t working in the Imperial Palace very difficult?”

“It’s hard, but…….”

“If you’re having a hard time, just quit! The duke’s seat is always empty.”

Before I knew it, a teacup and cake were placed in front of me.

It was my favourite lemon cake, but Derick’s last words caught my throat and I couldn’t touch it easily.

Derick became puzzled at my appearance and urged me to eat.

I gave a faint smile and picked up the teacup.

I picked it up because I didn’t dare to eat the cake, but when I took a sip, a strong floral scent spread.

Hmm, it’s delicious as always……

“So, why did our Rwen want to see me?”

My mood instantly flipped.

I was fully enjoying the refreshments as I had felt uneasy for a while, but I came back to my senses in vain at those words.

Oh, yeah. Right. I came here to tell him something.

“Your Grace.”

“Uncle.”

“…….Your Grace.”

“Uncle.”

I wanted to be formal when I talked about important things, but Kendrick had a solemn voice every time I addressed his title.

I finally sighed and opened my mouth again.

“Uncle, I want to ask you a favour.”

“Yes, our Rwen! Say anything. What’s your request? What do you want?”

“I’ll reject Shuel’s proposal. So–”

Crack!

The moment the sentence ended, a sharp crack echoed.

When I looked up in surprise, I saw Kendrick with only a coaster.

“Did you get hurt?!”

“Ah, oh……I’m fine, darling.”

Kendrick, whose hands were shaking, ignored his hands and smiled.

“Did I hear you wrong? Re…ject, no…R-Re…You said something about reject……”

“……No, you heard it right.”

Cha-krak!

Derick dropped the coaster he was barely holding.

My eyes widened in astonishment at the sight of him dropping what he held in his hand twice.

“Uncle. Are you okay? Your hand……”

“N-Nothing. I’m fine. My hands are shaking because I gripped scissors while pruning yesterday.”

Derick often took care of the roses in the garden by himself.

I’m glad it’s not an illness, but I was still worried when someone who was normally fine even after cleaning up the entire duke’s large garden suddenly hurt his hands.

“This……is a difficult request.”

Derick made a move to drink tea and was startled when he realised his hands were empty.

He paused as he moved his hand towards the teapot and sighed loudly while looking around tensely.

After a brief silence, Derick finally opened his mouth.

“Why…Why don’t you go to Marie instead of me? I don’t have the right to decide……”

He hid his trembling hands and smiled weakly. The sight looked very pathetic.

I bit my lips gently.

Most noble spouses were only able to handle internal affairs, but their decisions did not exceed the head of the family’s order.

Derick and Marie got along so well that I thought such a thing didn’t matter, but I guess that’s not the case.

He doesn’t have the power to handle even a simple task.

“Okay, I will……”

“Alright. Goodbye.”

Derick smiled weakly as he bid me with a hidden regret. That day, Derick’s shoulders seemed unusually droopy.

I hugged Derick tightly and left the parlour without saying a word.

Not forgetting to inform the maid who was waiting by the door to clean up the broken tea cup.