Chapter 18
‘So that man is Baileon’s father, Count Beers?’
Marien couldn’t take her eyes off the middle-aged man, even as they entered the house.
The count, who had been wholly absorbed in examining plants, bent his waist politely when his gaze met hers. His gesture urging them to come inside was nothing short of that of a humble, elderly gardener.
Marien felt a bit confused.
“Didn’t you say the count’s hobby is acting? So, today’s character setting is gardener?”
“No, that’s not a role. Father genuinely loves tending plants.”
Baileon hesitated before adding,
“You know how they call people who are obsessed with something fanatics? Like a war fanatic. Father is…”
“The eldest insults his father! The eldest insults his father!”
Flap.
A large white parrot perched on a stand raised its voice.
“What a mess this household is in!”
Marien was dumbfounded. She hadn’t expected to run into a giant parrot at the count’s residence.
And even if it was a parrot, she never imagined hearing such brazen words inside Count Beers’ mansion.
‘Did that bird just say, “What a mess this household is in”? I didn’t mishear, right?’
Flap.
“When father dies, the culprit is you! The culprit is you!”
Someone must have taught that bird. But who in the house that produced Baileon Beers, the Empire’s Sun, would do such a thing?
Could it be that Baileon had some scheming half-brother who acted gentle on the outside but secretly hated him? Marien was on the verge of such wild speculation when—
“Detective, your deduction is a mess.”
A noblewoman with butter-colored hair pinned up appeared, clicking her tongue. Wearing round glasses, she addressed the parrot.
“Just because it cursed doesn’t mean you can accuse it of patricide. That’s too much of a leap.”
“Mother, I didn’t curse anyone.”
“Of course you didn’t.”
Her smile made it clear these two were mother and son. Their gentle expressions were identical.
“I am Lavinia Fonte Beers. Great-granddaughter of the marquis Fonte, who served as an imperial investigator, and current Countess Beers. And our guest’s name is?”
“Marien Didi. Uh… Third Secretary at the Chancellor’s Office.”
“My, such an easy-to-remember surname, and such a distinctive hair color.”
The countess narrowed her eyes.
“You must have drawn attention at school.”
“Perhaps so?”
“You’d be far too easy to identify. Hardly suited to be a culprit in any case… And yet, I hear you’ve provoked the wrath of Duke Blackwood and even received death threats?”
The countess was tall. Her husband, Count Beers, had also been tall. It seemed only natural their eldest son turned out tall as well.
Marien, who barely reached 160 cm even with heeled boots, had been trying not to stare as the towering countess kept leaning closer.
“How bold of you.”
The countess stopped just short of kissing Marien’s cheek. Her long butter-colored lashes fluttered.
“I like you very much.”
“Uh… thank you for thinking well of me.”
“Mother.”
Baileon wrapped his arm protectively around Marien’s shoulder, pulling her behind him.
“Secretary Didi has been under threat all day and sought refuge here at the count’s residence. Please let her rest in peace while she’s here.”
“There you go again.”
The countess straightened, pushing up her glasses with a finger.
“Overprotective.”
“How is this overprotective? I’m just helping my subordinate.”
Unfazed by her son’s protest, the countess spun around dramatically, her movements almost theatrical. Marien wondered if the count and countess shared the same hobby.
“Detective, shall I teach you a new phrase? This is what they call a fine-sounding excuse. A fine-sounding excuse.”
Flap-flap-flap.
“Repeat after me. Fine. Sounding. Excuse.”
Flap.
“Fine. Sounding. Excuse.”
“What a mess this household is in!”
After the parrot’s outburst, it flew off down the hallway.
Thankfully, before Marien could lose herself further, she was shown to the guest room.
The room, complete with a private bath, was so spacious and beautiful compared to her cramped secretary’s quarters that it almost brought her to tears. A maid told her she was free to use anything inside, including the dresses in the wardrobe.
“Would you like me to help unpack?”
“Oh, no, that’s fine. I only brought one trunk… By the way, what time is dinner?”
“Dinner is at seven. If you come downstairs then, I’ll guide you.”
Left alone, Marien opened the wardrobe and stifled a gasp. Dresses that looked like they were woven from fairy wings—light, smooth, shimmering—filled the space.
Three were clearly ball gowns, dazzling compared to the others.
Marien stared, spellbound, at a pale blue gown decorated with hundreds of tiny crystals arranged like snowflakes.
“Should I wear this to work tomorrow?”
As if the third secretary would ever be invited to a ball. If she didn’t wear it to the office, she might never get the chance.
Not that she was serious. Wearing it as office attire was out of the question—what if crystals fell off on the street?
“Maybe just in my room for fun… Good heavens, are these all real gems?”
When she opened the vanity drawer, Marien was shocked all over again. One whole compartment had been arranged like a jeweler’s display.
Necklaces gleamed on black velvet: a sapphire teardrop on a satin ribbon, a triple strand of pearls set with diamonds… It was dazzling.
“They’re just letting guests wear diamond necklaces?”
Flustered, Marien opened the next drawer—this one filled with brooches and bracelets. Then she noticed side compartments that opened outward, revealing hair ornaments.
She finally closed the drawers after seeing even a golden tiara set with peridot. Carefully, she pinched her own arm. Too carefully—she barely felt it. Maybe it really was a dream.
If so sweet a dream, she’d definitely oversleep. Wake up now, abracadabra.
“Ah!”
She pinched harder. The sharp pain made her yelp. Marien hopped in place. She couldn’t believe her luck was real.
‘I finally get to soak in a bathtub!’
At that moment, even her hatred toward the northerners softened. Beaming, Marien rushed toward the private bath.
◇ ◆ ◇
What would dinner at the count’s mansion be like? As a maid led her to the dining hall, Marien’s mind played out a melodramatic skit.
Of course, the genre was a juicy tearjerker.
The count’s family, who had been so friendly and welcoming earlier, would suddenly turn cold.
How could someone of your standing expect to dine with us? Miss Didi, I thought you had common sense. I’m so disappointed.
For some reason, Baileon, her supposed savior, would be nowhere in sight. The maid would lead her instead to a table fit for a low-born guest.
There, she’d find thin potato soup, hard bread, a few beans rolling on a plate, and a cold sausage.
Now you know your place. Break up with our son! The mother would slap a check onto the table.
Break up? Madam, I never dated him in the first place.
I only intend to see your son become the next emperor’s consort. But since you’re offering, I’ll accept this as activity funds.
Marien’s colorful fantasy ended the moment she entered the dining room.
“Secretary Didi, sit here.”
“Oh—yes.”
Baileon himself pulled out her chair. She was seated next to him. At the ends of the long table sat the count and countess. On one side were Baileon and Marien, and on the other, the three younger siblings.
All of Baileon’s siblings had brown hair, in varying shades.
It was quite the feast for the eyes.
“Let’s eat quickly, children. Our guest must be very hungry too.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Marien’s feast had only just begun. The meal was exquisite. Each new dish made her frown with delight.
“This is ten times better than the palace food…!”
“Our chef is quite skilled. But what do they serve at the palace?”
Gareth, the third son and owner of the white parrot, looked at his eldest brother.
“Chancellor, don’t you think you should do something about this? Employee welfare sounds awful.”
“Gareth, don’t exaggerate. The secretary may work under big brother, but she’s not the same as a clerk at some shop.”
Daisy, the youngest daughter and owner of the black cat, retorted.
“No matter how high-ranking our eldest brother is, he can’t control the palace kitchens.”
Gareth admitted he had only been joking, but Daisy raised her brows and asked seriously,
“But really, can’t anything be done? Food is important.”
If one ate like this every day, they’d never want to touch bland meals again.
After swallowing a piece of roast chicken smothered in rich sauce, Marien replied,
“No, it’s not that bad. We even get special meals on Wednesdays. It’s just that the Beers family’s standard is extraordinarily high.”
“Well, that’s a relief. Our eldest brother is already so buried in work he never comes home. If he also had to worry about palace food quality, I wouldn’t see him again for thirty years.”
No sooner had she spoken than Gareth scolded her for exaggerating. Clearly, the third son and the youngest daughter were especially close.
Their parrot and cat were said to be the same—constantly bickering, but secretly teaming up to cause mischief.
Then, for the first time, the second sibling, Cloise, who had been silent, spoke.
“By the way, Secretary Didi, how did you catch the Iron-Blooded Duke’s attention?”
Thankfully, her palace antics didn’t seem to have spread outside. Marien hurried to swallow before answering.
“The cold full moon of the north! That man whose heart is said to be made of ice—this is the first time he’s shown such passionate reactions. At least, as far as I know.”
Cloise’s phrasing was peculiar. Passionate? Well, running half-naked down a corridor with his eyes rolled back could, in a way, be called passionate.
“Cloise, that’s enough. Your brother’s secretary fled here because her life was in danger.”
The countess’s eyes gleamed sharply as she emphasized the words life-threatening danger. Then she added by way of apology:
“My second is just engrossed in a different genre than I am.”
“You must enjoy romance novels, Lady Cloise.”
“She’s obsessed with matchmaking.”
It seemed one needed to be fanatically devoted to something to belong in this family.
‘They’re more eccentric than I expected, but still a good family.’
So unlike the heartless imperial court. Marien imagined Odette, a little awkward yet not hating these people either.
The mere thought made her chest tingle, and a smile crept across her lips.
