Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Among the nobility, especially noblewomen, few wrote letters by hand. Tasks like writing letters, where ink might stain one’s hands and sleeves might wear out from using a stylus, were usually handled by maids.
Chloe dictated a list of ingredients to be ordered to Josephine. Josephine diligently wrote them down and sealed the letter with the ducal crest.
As Chloe had instructed, Josephine summoned someone and sent the letter to the grocery store.
“I’ve done as instructed, milady.”
“Well done, Josephine.”
Meanwhile, the messenger who received Chloe’s order list left the duchy at a gallop and headed into the city. But his destination wasn’t the Buckley Grocery. He descended under a bridge that connected two districts of the capital. There, someone was waiting for him.
“I brought what you requested.”
“Well done. Here’s your reward for the effort.”
A pouch full of clinking gold coins was handed to the messenger. The smile on his face stretched nearly ear to ear as he peeked into the pouch. Then, with a worried voice, he asked,
“But… Are you certain this won’t bring me any trouble? The lady is the duchess herself… I fear her.”
“Haven’t I told you? I swear upon my honor before the Almighty One, you’ll come to no harm.”
Only then did the messenger appear somewhat relieved.
“Now for the final task. Take this to the grocer. Be sure to say it’s from the duchess herself.”
In a low, sinister voice, the figure handed the messenger an envelope. It was identical to the letter Chloe had sent through Josephine.
The messenger received it with a bow and said,
“I will carry out your orders.”
He then mounted his horse and quickly rode off.
After the messenger departed, a figure emerged from the shadows beneath the bridge. It was Lady Coleen.
***
Time passed, and the final day of the five-day deadline arrived.
“Just get through today.”
If she could just get through today, Chloe would finally regain control of the household budget. It would be a step closer to becoming the ‘ordinary’ duchess she had longed to be.
Chloe mentally reviewed the work she had done over the past four days. Even upon checking again, she found no particular issues.
Then it happened.
“Milady! Milady!”
A flurry of knocks and an urgent voice came from the door.
Upon Chloe’s permission, a person entered her room…
“Excuse me, milady! I’m Ashley from the kitchen staff!”
“Ashley? What’s the matter?”
Noticing her alarmed expression, Chloe asked curiously. Ashley, looking pale, replied,
“The things you ordered from Buckley Grocery have arrived, milady.”
“And?”
“Well, um… I’m sorry to say this, but please come see for yourself. You have to see it with your own eyes!”
Sensing something was wrong, Chloe rose from her seat and followed Ashley down to the kitchen.
The ingredients, freshly delivered from Buckley Grocery based on her order, were being neatly stacked in the kitchen storeroom. But not only the maids, even the head chef and assistant cooks were crowding around, murmuring among themselves. Chloe asked,
“What’s all this commotion?”
“Milady!”
The kitchen maids called out to her. Seeing their bewilderment, Chloe pushed her way through. The staff parted for her like the Red Sea, clearing a path.
She looked into the kitchen storeroom.
“This is…!”
Chloe remembered every item she had ordered, she had double-checked them several times.
But the things that had arrived were not what she had ordered.
Instead, strange, useless ingredients were piled up: foreign herbs no one had heard of, pungent-smelling root vegetables, and so on.
Even the common ingredients like onions and tomatoes, which the duchy did use, were in terrible condition—half-rotten or spoiled beyond use.
“Wh-what do we do, milady?”
“We won’t be able to prepare dinner with this!”
The kitchen maids murmured.
Looking grimly into the storeroom, Chloe said,
“I’ll have to go to Buckley Grocery myself and find out what happened. Have the carriage prepared.”
Before long, the carriage was ready. Chloe rode it to the Buckley Wholesale and Retail Grocers.
Hearing that the duchess herself had arrived, the store owner, Matt Buckley, rushed out. Chloe explained the reason for her visit.
Buckley looked puzzled.
“Th-that’s impossible. I’m sure I sent exactly what you ordered, milady.”
“Exactly what I ordered?”
“Of course. It was an order from the House of Battenberg—how could I possibly make a mistake?”
He didn’t seem to be lying. After a moment of thought, Chloe asked:
“May I see the order I supposedly sent?”
“Certainly.”
Buckley soon brought out the order letter he had received. When Chloe saw it, she gasped.
‘This isn’t what I wrote.’
The order she had sent was missing, and in its place was another filled with unrelated items. What was more shocking was that the letter even bore the seal of the House of Battenberg.
‘Someone maliciously forged it.’
Biting her lip, Chloe forced herself not to show her realization. She composed her expression and said to Buckley,
“This is not the order I sent. These are items the household has no use for—could you exchange them?”
“P-pardon? But… These are hard-to-obtain items that we imported specifically for this order. If we refund it, we’ll suffer a huge loss.”
Chloe was at a loss.
This wasn’t Buckley’s fault. With the ducal seal on the order, he had no reason to doubt its authenticity.
Realistically, even if it meant a huge loss, Chloe could strong-arm him into a refund. She was a duchess from an immensely powerful house; what could a wealthy commoner like Buckley do?
But… Chloe wasn’t the type to be so heartless.
‘What do I do? If I give up here, I won’t get the budget authority back. The kitchen staff will also be in trouble.’
Chloe wracked her brain for a solution, but no idea came to mind. She excused herself, saying she needed time to think, and stepped out of the grocer’s shop to clear her head.
Though it was called a grocer, Buckley’s was the largest supplier of foodstuffs in the capital. They served not only the House of Battenberg but also noble households, the middle class, and even restaurants.
But they didn’t deal only in wholesale—they also did retail, which was a major part of their revenue.
As Chloe stepped outside to get some fresh air, she overheard a conversation near the entrance.
“…The cheese isn’t selling at all. If this keeps up, it’ll all go moldy.”
“Right? I thought it’d all be gone by Saint Sophia’s Day.”
“I didn’t expect butter prices to drop and ruin cheese sales…”
Chloe instinctively turned her head toward the voices. A couple of Buckley’s clerks were chatting nearby.
She began to approach them.
