When Penelope returned to her office, Ahwin was lounging on the sofa. Strangely enough, the Duke was also present, likely curious about the commotion in the castle.
Ahwin, ever impatient, jumped straight to the point.
“So, is the child you were waiting for here?”
“His name is Sain,” Penelope replied. “He’s a distant relative of Baron Halo. His parents passed away, and he grew up in an orphanage.”
“And? You plan to raise him?”
Penelope nodded without hesitation. Sain looked much younger than his twelve years and appeared frail. Whether or not he would eventually become her heir, it was clear he needed someone to care for him.
“For now, I’ll be his patron,” she said.
Ahwin’s expression shifted into something unreadable, while the Duke seemed visibly intrigued. The idea of adopting a distant relative to resolve the succession issue was not a new plan.
“Does the boy show any promise of becoming a lord?” the Duke asked.
“Well... I can’t say for sure yet. Nothing’s been decided at this point,” Penelope admitted.
Ahwin pressed further.
“And if he doesn’t have what it takes to manage the estate, then what will you do?”
“I’ll deal with that when the time comes. Right now, I’m focusing on feeding him and helping him gain some weight. The poor thing is far too skinny,” Penelope replied.
At her nonchalant answer, Ahwin raised an eyebrow, his expression almost shouting, How can you be so unprepared?
Penelope turned to him with a firm tone.
“He’s timid and delicate, so please treat him kindly. And absolutely no frowning around him.”
“When did I ever—” Ahwin started but abruptly stopped, clamping his mouth shut as if remembering how he had treated Penelope when they first met.
Penelope smirked slightly, though she quickly glanced at Lianel to check his reaction. She realized she had started relaxing her expressions more freely in his presence.
‘I must be getting too comfortable with Lianel. I need to manage my expressions better.’
At that moment, Lianel spoke politely.
“If you have time, shall we finalize the contract discussions now?”
“Oh, of course. I was about to bring that up myself,” Penelope said. Between the potion regimen and her other tasks, she hadn’t had much time to discuss it properly with him.
“Ahwin, could you step out for a moment?” she asked.
Ahwin’s eyes instantly sharpened, clearly displeased with being excluded.
Penelope picked up the contract as if to emphasize her point.
“As you can see, this is official business.”
“...”
Ahwin glared at Lianel silently before turning on his heel and storming out, slamming the door behind him.
‘Oh, how embarrassing. He’s openly jealous now,’ Penelope thought, suppressing the urge to sigh. She forced herself to keep a neutral expression, unwilling to give the Duke any more fodder.
“Shall we begin discussing the contract now?” she asked.
“By any chance, has the mage confessed his feelings to you?” Lianel asked suddenly.
“...!” Penelope inhaled sharply, caught completely off guard. Lianel, however, maintained his calm demeanor, his gaze steady on her.
‘H-how does he know?’ Penelope thought, her mind racing.
She quickly adjusted her expression, raising the corners of her lips into a composed smile.
“What did you just say?”
“There’s no need to hide it. From Ahwin’s demeanor alone, it’s obvious he sees me as a rival. And truthfully, I’ve known about his feelings for you from the very beginning,” Lianel said with a disarming calmness.
“...”
Penelope felt her cheeks flush with heat. To think the Duke had been aware of Ahwin’s feelings all along...
‘How blatant has Ahwin been about this outside? This is so embarrassing,’ she thought, her mortification growing.
Lianel’s next question was straightforward.
“Will you accept his feelings?”
“Well... I don’t think that’s something I need to discuss with you, Lianel,” she replied curtly.
“So, you don’t intend to accept him just yet. Interesting,” Lianel said, a slight smirk tugging at his lips.
Penelope’s heart sank.
‘How does he know? Is he some kind of mind-reading expert?’ she wondered, her unease growing.
Lianel effortlessly pierced through Penelope’s thoughts with just a few words. If Ahwin was perceptive, then the Duke was a master at reading people.
‘Seriously, do I really need to have this kind of conversation with the Duke? It’s so uncomfortable!’
Clearing her throat, Penelope put on a deliberately cold expression.
“Well, let’s set aside small talk and focus on reviewing the contract.”
Lianel nodded smoothly.
“I’ll accept the terms exactly as you proposed.”
“...Excuse me?”
Penelope’s face went completely blank with disbelief.
“W-what did you just say?”
“I said I’ll sign the contract with the terms you suggested. I owe you a considerable debt, don’t I? Since I haven’t properly repaid it yet, let’s consider this as settling it.”
“B-but how do you even know what I was going to propose?”
“I trust that the terms you’ve prepared will be fair to both parties.”
“...”
Penelope barely managed to keep her jaw from dropping.
She hadn’t delayed the contract discussions with Lianel just to push things through in a haphazard way.
The reason she hadn’t brought it up earlier was because she wanted to be in the best condition possible to negotiate properly. She’d been too preoccupied with the physical discomfort from the potions, the visits from Baron Halo’s relatives, and the preparations for Sain’s arrival.
‘I was waiting for the perfect moment, and he just blindsides me like this?’
Grinding her teeth, Penelope noticed Lianel watching her quietly.
‘This man is a formidable opponent.’
Once again, she realized the Duke was not an ordinary person.
‘This sly fox! He knows I won’t demand unreasonable terms, even if he pulls a stunt like this!’
Lianel had accurately calculated that Penelope wouldn’t push for excessive demands at the risk of souring relations between Halo and his duchy.
And he was right.
It wasn’t in Penelope’s best interest to jeopardize her position with an unfair contract.
‘So this is how you negotiate—avoiding tedious discussions while steering things exactly where you want them.’
Though she grudgingly admired his strategy, she felt no joy in the lesson learned.
“Fine, I’ll adjust the contract accordingly,” she said, barely concealing her annoyance.
“Please do. My assistant will coordinate with you regarding the details.”
“You might regret leaving things like this, Lianel.”
The Duke stood, his smile never wavering.
“I doubt that. Oh, by the way, may I call you Penelope? I think we’re close enough to be on a first-name basis now.”
“No. You may not.”
“Ah, how unfortunate.”
His voice didn’t hold the slightest trace of disappointment as he gave his farewell. That perfection only irritated Penelope further.
‘So this is what it feels like to be utterly unable to read someone.’
The Duke was, without question, a baffling and enigmatic man.
The next day, Sain slept in until morning. He didn’t even ring the bell for food, seemingly unbothered by hunger. He must have been utterly exhausted from his journey from the orphanage to Halo Territory.
When morning came, the bell finally rang, and the maids eagerly went to his room.
“Good morning, young master,” one greeted him cheerfully.
Blushing, Sain hesitantly responded, “The Lady said to ring the bell when I woke up, so... um...”
Noticing his nervousness, one of the maids smiled warmly.
“You did exactly the right thing. Now, let us prepare your bath.”
“O-okay...”
“Young master, we’re your attendants. There’s no need to speak so formally with us.”
“Ah... um, okay...”
After a moment of hesitation, Sain responded in a timid voice.
The maids quickly filled the tub with warm water, thanks to the convenience of the castle’s heated plumbing system. It wasn’t long before the bath was ready.
Sain, watching the preparations with wide-eyed curiosity, suddenly flinched as one of the maids reached to help him undress.
“I-I can do it myself! And I can bathe alone too!”
Despite his youthful appearance, Sain was twelve years old—an age when he was beginning to develop an acute awareness of such matters.
The maids exchanged amused glances before nodding with understanding.
“Very well. We’ll leave your clothes here. Once you’re done, you can get dressed and come out.”
“Okay,” Sain replied softly.
Later, Sain emerged from his room, looking far cleaner than the day before, and went to meet Penelope.
“Good morning, Sain,” she greeted him warmly.
“G-good morning, my lady,” he replied, bowing his head slightly.
Penelope stared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter.
The sourc𝗲 of this content is frёeωebɳovel.com.
‘Goodness, he gets cuter every time I see him.’