CH 18

‘So that’s Vileon’s father, Count Byers?’

Marienne didn’t take her eyes off the middle-aged man until they were inside the house.

The Earl, who had been frantically looking at his plants, stooped when his eyes met hers. His gesture of inviting her to enter was like that of an old labourer.

Marienne was somewhat confused.

“You said the Count’s hobby is acting, so does that mean his character for today is a gardener?”

“No, that’s not a setting, my father actually likes to take care of plants.”

Vileon hesitated, then explained.

“You know how you say someone is a fanatic about something, like a madman. My father is a…”

“The first one curses his father! The first one swears at the father!”

Pudeok.

A large white parrot perched on a torch raised its voice.

“All is well at home!”

Marienne was dumbfounded. She hadn’t expected to face a giant parrot in a county.

And she hadn’t expected to hear such a frivolous sound inside the Byers’ mansion, even if it was a parrot.

‘Didn’t he just say that the bird keeps the house in order, or did I mishear him?’

Pudeok.

“If your father dies, you’re the culprit! You’re the culprit!”

Someone must have taught that bird to speak. Who in the family that spawned Vileon Byers, Sun of the Empire?

Perhaps there was a dark half-brother, outwardly mild, who ostracised Vileon. Marienne was about to indulge in such thoughts when she was interrupted.

“Detective, your reasoning is poor.”

An elderly woman with butter-coloured hair clicked her tongue. She wore round glasses and spoke to the parrot.

“To accuse him of murdering his father for simply swearing is a leap of faith.”

“Mother, I didn’t swear.”

“Of course you didn’t.”

She laughed, and it became clear that they were related. The soft smile was identical.

“I am Lavinia Ponte Byers. Great-granddaughter of the Marquis of Ponte, a former imperial investigator, and current Countess of Byers. What is the name of our guest?”

“Marienne Didi. She’s, uh… third aide from the Minister of Finance.”

“Well. An easy surname to remember, and a distinctive hair colour.”

The Countess narrowed her eyes.

“You must have attracted some attention at school.”

“You probably did, didn’t you?”

“Too easy to be identified. It would be hard for a young lady to be the culprit in any case… And yet you incurred the wrath of the Duke of Blackwood and received death threats?”

The countess stood tall. Her husband, the Earl of Byers, had been tall, too. A tall couple with a tall son.

Marienne, on the other hand, who was barely five-foot-two1160cm in her heeled boots, was looking away as the Countess continued to close the distance between them.

“How daring.”

The Countess stopped her approach only when she was almost on the verge of kissing Marienne’s cheek. Her rich, butter-coloured lashes fluttered.

“I like it very much.”

“Yes, I do… Thank you for looking at it so favourably.”

“Mother.”

Vileon put an arm around Marienne’s shoulders and tucked her behind him.

“Aide Didi has been threatened all day and has taken refuge in the Count’s mansion, so please help her to relax here.”

“There you go again.”

The Countess straightened her posture and pushed her glasses up.

“Overprotective.”

“Don’t tell me this is overprotective. I’m only trying to help my subordinate.”

The Countess twirled her body, unperturbed by her son’s protestations, and there was something very theatrical about the way she moved. Marienne wondered if the Count and Countess shared the same hobby.

“Do you want me to teach you a new phrase, detective? It’s called flimsy excuse. A lame excuse.”

Pudeok.

“Repeat after me. Flim-sy-excuse.”

Pudeok.

“Flim-sy-excuse.”

“The house is in good hands!”

The parrot quipped, then flew off down the corridor.

Fortunately, Marienne was shown to her guest room before she could lose her mind any further.

The room, with its private bathroom, was tearfully spacious and beautiful compared to the cramped aide’s quarters. The maid said she was free to use everything, including the dresses in the wardrobe.

“Would you like me to help you unpack?”

“Oh, no thanks, I only have one luggage… More than that, what time is dinner?”

“Dinner is at seven o’clock, so come down to the first floor and I’ll show you around.”

Left alone, Marienne opened the wardrobe and her mouth dropped open. It was filled with dresses that looked as if they had been constructed from fairy wings, light and smooth, with an ethereal sheen.

Three of them were ball gowns, noticeably more ornate than the others.

Marienne gazed in awe at a light blue dress with hundreds of crystals, each one a snowflake.

“Shall I wear it to work tomorrow?”

There’s no way the third aide would be invited to a ball. She’d never wear it to work.

In fact, she had no intention of wearing it as work attire. What if she dropped a crystal while moving around?

“I just want to feel good in my room… Oh my God, these must be real jewellery, right?”

Opening the drawer of her dressing table, Marienne was surprised for a second time. The entire drawer was decorated like a jeweller’s display case.

An assortment of necklaces on black velvet caught Marienne’s eye.

A teardrop sapphire at the end of a satin ribbon, a diamond between three rows of pearl necklaces – it was dazzling.

“They’re giving a guest a diamond necklace to just wear?”

Marienne asked, puzzled, and opened the second drawer.

Yes, somehow there weren’t only necklaces. This time there were brooches and bracelets. She hadn’t noticed the drawers on either side, so she opened them as well, and there were headdresses.

Marienne looked down to a golden tiara with peridots and closed the drawer. Carefully, she pinched her forearm. Maybe she was being too careful, but she couldn’t feel it. Maybe it was because it was a dream.

If it’s such a sweet dream, I’m definitely going to be late. Wake up quickly, yup.

“Ah!”

She pinched herself hard enough to make it pop. Marienne bounced in place. She couldn’t believe her good fortune.

‘I can soak in the tub now!’

For a moment, her hatred for the northerner faded. Marienne grinned and ran towards her private bathroom.

◇ ◆ ◇

As she was escorted by her maid to the dining room, an interlude played out in Marienne’s mind.

The genre is naturally stimulating.

The countess with whom she had laughed and chatted earlier would turn on her.

How can we dine with them when we are so far apart in status? Miss Didi, I thought you had common sense. I’m very disappointed in you.

For some reason, her saviour, Vileon, is nowhere to be seen. The maid will take Marienne to a dining room befitting a guest of lesser status.

They arrive to find watery potato soup, hard bread, beans rolling around on plates, and cold sausages on a worn table in the corner of the kitchen.

‘Now you’ve got your theme, I’d be interested to see you hand over the cheque and say: Break up with my son!’

‘What do you mean break up, ma’am.. We never had a relationship in the first place.’

I’m trying to make your son the next Empress’ consort, but since you’re giving it to me, I’ll take it as a requirement activity fee.

And Marienne’s colourful interlude ended the moment she entered the dining room.

“Aide Didi, have a seat over here.”

“Oh, yes.”

Vileon pulled out a chair for her. Marienne took the seat next to him. The Count and Countess sat at each end of the table, Vileon and Marienne on one side and the three siblings on the other.

All of Vileon’s siblings have brown hair, some darker, some lighter, but all brown.

This is what we call eye candy.

“Come on, kids, let’s eat. We have a lot of guests.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Marienne’s prosperity was just beginning. The meal tasted like honey. With each new bite, Marienne made an impression and marvelled.

“This is ten times better than the food at the Imperial Palace…!”

“I know our chef is good, but what the hell do they serve at the palace?”

Garrett, the third of the family and the owner of the white parrot, looked at his eldest brother.

“Chancellor, shouldn’t you be doing something about it? The staff welfare is a mess.”

“Brother Garrett, you have put words in my mouth. The aide may work for Big Brother, but she’s not the same as an employee in a normal shopping centre.”

Daisy, the youngest daughter and owner of the black cat, spat.

“Big Brother may be a chancellor, but he can’t control the quality of the palace cafeteria.”

When Garrett, who had actually spoken up, retorted that he was just trying to be nice, Daisy raised her brown eyebrows.

“But what can you really do about it?”

The fourteen-year-old looked very serious.

“Eating is important.”

When you’re eating something this good every day, you really don’t want to eat anything that isn’t gourmet.

Marienne chewed and swallowed hard on a piece of grilled chicken with a rich sauce before speaking.

“No, it’s nothing serious enough to warrant action, they even have specials on Wednesdays, it’s just that Count Byers has a high standard.”

“I’m glad to hear that, because my Big Brother is still buried in work and never comes home.”

If Vileon had to worry about restaurant menus, they’d probably be able to see their older brother’s face in thirty years.

Before the youngest could finish, Garrett scolded him for exaggerating. In this house, the eldest and youngest seemed particularly close.

It is said that the relationship between the big parrots and cats they raise also resembles that of their owners. They may usually be hostile to each other, but when the humans aren’t looking, they share a meal.

Chloise, the second of the Byers, who had been silent until now, spoke up for the first time.

“By the way, Aide Didi, how did you come to attract the attention of the Iron-Blooded Duke?”

Apparently, word of her escapades had spread outside the palace. Marienne swallowed hard and tried to answer.

“The cold moon of the North! It’s the first time I’ve seen someone who supposedly has a heart made of ice show such an energetic reaction. As far as I know, that is.”

Chloise’s nuances were strange. Energetic? I suppose sprinting down the corridor in a half-flip could be considered energetic.

“Chloise, moderation, please. Your brother’s aide has taken refuge in our home because she feels threatened for her life.”

The eyes of the countess lit up emphatically as she emphasized that she had even received death threats. Then, as if asking for forgiveness, the countess continued.

“My second daughter is into a completely different genre than I am.”

“I think the lady likes romance novels.”

“She’s crazy about matchmaking.”

I guess you have to be fanatically immersed in anything to be a member of this house.

‘It’s more unique than I thought, but it’s still a nice house.’

So different from the bloodless, tearless imperial family. Marienne imagined Odette, who would find them a little difficult to deal with, but not hateful.

The thought tickled a part of her, and a smile crept across her face.