Chapter 12
“Thank you for graciously overlooking that. And thank you for allowing me to stay here at the Duke’s residence. Duchess, Madam Quillian.”
Lady Meltain greeted Alice first, right to the end.
Alice thought it better to keep her mouth shut and stay quiet.
Madam Quillian, seeming to think Lady Meltain was not to be taken lightly, smiled deeply and said, “Not at all. The Meltain Barony has long been loyal to the Dukedom, so this is hardly difficult. If you need anything or have any inconveniences while staying here, please don’t hesitate to let us know.”
“Ah, then may I make one request?”
“What is it?”
“I visited the Duke’s residence once when I was young, and this is my first time back, so I don’t remember the layout very well. If it’s alright, could the Duchess give me a tour? I’d like to see the mansion while chatting with you.”
“Pardon?”
Alice, who had been feeling drained from the tension between the two women, widened her eyes in surprise at being addressed.
Why does she keep latching onto me?
Alice found Lady Meltain’s behavior very perplexing. She hadn’t expected Lady Meltain to approach her first. And this kind of approach was certainly not beneficial to Alice. It felt like her lifeline was being cut bit by bit.
“Why not? Alice!” Madam Quillian called out to Alice in a sharp voice.
“…Yes, Mother.”
“Show Lady Meltain around the mansion. We must treat our guest who has come to the Duke’s residence after so long properly, shouldn’t we?”
“…I understand, Mother.”
“Well then, I’m tired so I’ll be going now. Lady Meltain, I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Yes, Madam Quillian.”
As Madam Quillian returned to her room, Alice faced Lady Meltain, who showed no signs of being fazed.
“Then… shall we go together, Lady Meltain?”
“Yes, Duchess.”
Lady Meltain smiled brightly. Somehow that smile seemed eerie, and Alice walked together with Lady Meltain, wearing an uncomfortable smile.
* * *
“Wow, the flowers are really beautiful.”
Lady Meltain’s clear voice resonated through the garden.
After touring the entire mansion, Alice was now walking through the Duke’s garden with Lady Meltain.
She had planned to just show her around the mansion briefly and then part ways, but Lady Meltain suddenly grabbed her arm while looking out the window.
‘The weather is so nice, would you like to walk in the garden with me? Just the two of us.’
Her gentle smile was as beautiful as the goddess of roses, but Alice noticed that Lady Meltain had other intentions. Wanting to walk just the two of them meant she wanted to get rid of Maris, who was sticking close like a watchdog.
What does she want to say to me?
Even after walking through the garden for quite a while, she was only admiring the beauty of the flowers.
As Alice was swallowing her words and giving a faint smile, Lady Meltain’s pace slowed.
“I heard that the Duchess’s family is from the Fordley County.”
Is she finally getting to the point?
Alice tensed up as Lady Meltain mentioned her family background.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“I was so glad to hear that we’re both from the West. I was worried about not knowing anyone in the capital, but to think the Duchess is from the West too – it feels like I’ve met a friend in a foreign land. I’m so happy.”
Hearing the excited voice, Alice replied with an awkward smile.
“…Haha, I see.”
“If it’s alright with you, Duchess, I’d like to chat and become close friends from now on… Am I making too bold a request?”
Lady Meltain didn’t beat around the bush.
At that, Alice stopped walking and turned to face Lady Meltain.
Lady Meltain was smiling brightly. Her smile was full of apparent fondness for Alice.
Even though they had just met today.
If she were the naive and ordinary Alice Fordley from before, she might have fallen helplessly for Lady Meltain, who was showing such kind affection.
But the current Alice was someone who had been through thick and thin.
To show fondness to someone she just met, especially to Alice who was essentially a subordinate of her adversary Madam Quillian…
There was absolutely no way that could be genuine.
Alice stared into Lady Meltain’s green eyes.
They were so beautifully sparkling that it seemed like she had received some kind of protagonist buff, but the sharp glint that showed through at moments was unmistakable.
As if she were sizing Alice up.
Lady Meltain would probably try to get information about Madam Quillian by pretending to be friends with Alice.
She might even try to use her to set a trap for Madam Quillian.
Alice pondered for a moment.
Whether to reveal to Lady Meltain that she wasn’t as foolish as she appeared.
But the moment of deliberation was brief.
Alice smiled brightly and said, “I’m so happy that you said that, Lady Meltain. Actually, I’ve been feeling bad, wondering if I spoke too harshly to you earlier in the lobby because I was conscious of my mother’s gaze.”
Alice feigned a timid expression, lowering the corners of her eyes.
At that, the slightly sharp look in Lady Meltain’s green eyes softened.
Lady Meltain would now think that Alice wasn’t someone she needed to pay special attention to.
She would consider her to be the kind of person she had expected – timid and easy to manipulate.
That was better.
It would be less dangerous than attracting the female protagonist’s attention by carelessly revealing trivial information about Madam Quillian.
“Not at all. I was the one who was rude earlier. Let’s chat like this often from now on, Duchess.”
“Yes, Lady Meltain. Oh, but I think I have to go now. It’s almost time for me to attend to the Duke.”
“Ah… Does the Duchess personally attend to the Duke?”
“Yes. Since the Duke’s health is poor, my mother is uneasy about relying on others’ hands. So I’ve been doing it myself.”
Lady Meltain, who had looked surprised for a moment, soon comforted Alice with a sympathetic gaze.
“It must be hard for you. Please tell me anytime if you have any troubles. Even if I don’t have any special abilities, I can at least listen to your concerns.”
It was truly a kind voice that was hard not to be swayed by.
But it wasn’t sincere.
Meltain Sienna, while righteous and kind, was only so towards her own people.
Alice knew well how merciless she could be to her enemies.
“Then… I’ll be going now, Lady Meltain.”
Lifting the corners of her mouth slightly, Alice bid farewell and quickly left the garden.
* * *
“Haa… So draining.”
As soon as she arrived at Kylus’s bedroom, Alice’s tension dissipated and she sank into the sofa, as if melting.
Lady Meltain.
She knew she had a sharp and bold personality, but she didn’t expect her to confront Madam Quillian as soon as they met.
And to use her, no less.
“Lady Meltain… she’s like a racehorse with blinders on, only looking straight ahead…”
It was practically a declaration of war from the moment they met, so the psychological warfare between the two would likely intensify from now on.
No, it wouldn’t end with just psychological warfare.
When the real fight begins, it was clear that something big would happen in the Duke’s household.
After all, Lady Meltain wasn’t someone who would just pass through the Dearrut Dukedom without incident.
Whether Madam Quillian gets driven out of the Dearrut Dukedom, or Madam Quillian dies.
In the book, it wasn’t exactly Lady Meltain who dealt with Madam Quillian, but it was true that Madam Quillian’s downfall was hastened because of her.
So Alice didn’t assume Lady Meltain would lose.
Even if the flow of events had accelerated, the protagonist of the book wouldn’t have changed.
Especially seeing how she was preparing to confront Madam Quillian as soon as she arrived at the Duke’s residence, Alice was even more certain.
Certain that Lady Meltain would bring great turmoil to the Duke’s household.
“…So I need to leave before things go wrong…”
After hearing the news that Lady Meltain was coming to the Duke’s residence, Alice had made up her mind.
To leave the Duke’s household as soon as possible.
At first, she had racked her brains worrying that future events might get tangled up due to the suddenly changed flow.
So she had tried to organize the events one by one and figure out how to survive among them.
But then she suddenly realized.
That there was no need for such efforts.
From the beginning, Alice’s goal was to leave the Duke’s household and survive.
So even if Lady Meltain appeared earlier, nothing would change.
The person most closely related to her life was Kylus, not Lady Meltain.
And Kylus… couldn’t wake up.
The problem was finding a safe way to escape Madam Quillian’s grasp, but fortunately, she had gained a special ability.
Namely, holy power.
Alice had searched for books about the temple in the Duke’s library, and there she finally found a way to escape from Madam Quillian.
It was to become a priestess.
There was a special law in the Empire stating that if one became a priestess under the protection of the temple, they couldn’t be touched even if they were of noble birth.
Only the Pope could judge a priestess.
In other words, if she became a priestess, even Madam Quillian couldn’t touch her.
“…The problem is that I’m married.”
