CHAPTER 59…………………………………
“The empire’s etiquette can be rigid and dull. But if you look closely and understand its deeper meaning, there’s nothing more enjoyable. And with me, it’ll be even more fun.”
Rose lifted her tea cup with elegant poise, sitting straight, and took a sip, a soft smile playing on her lips.
Wow—what a naturally graceful display.
Even as a woman, I found Rose beautiful.
Suddenly, I pictured men around her.
‘Ah! That’s right! Rose was incredibly popular, wasn’t she?’
I remembered how, after her divorce from the Duke, she had countless male admirers.
She was a woman who enjoyed free-spirited relationships.
Perhaps that’s why she didn’t quite fit with the Kerais family.
Yet the Duke had chosen his ex-wife to be my private tutor.
‘I see why he made that choice.’
Given her marriage into the Kerais family, she must have come from a distinguished lineage and received excellent education.
He knew her well from their marriage, so it was probably hard to find a better tutor.
We enjoyed a long and pleasant conversation.
Rose, looking slightly reluctant to part, accompanied me out.
“Since we meet twice a week, I’ll look forward to our next session, Miss Delve.”
“Yes, Mother. I’ll see you then!”
A mother-in-law like this would always be welcome.
Of course, I had no intention of marrying Shevard.
Strolling through a garden full of blooming roses, Rose struggled to hide her soft, constant smile.
“What a delightful young lady she is.”
“Are you talking about Miss Delve?”
Her fourth boyfriend, Burthar, guided her to a garden chair.
His smooth, well-groomed appearance made the maids trailing behind them pause and give space.
Burthar gently rubbed his face against Rose’s hand.
“I thought I was the only thief to capture Rose’s heart, but it seems I was wrong. I’m jealous of Miss Delve.”
“Tch, jealous of a child?”
Rose frowned and withdrew her hand.
Burthar, disappointed, wet his lips with a small motion.
“When I heard that the esteemed Rose of the Marquess family would act as a private tutor, I was briefly jealous. I wondered, who exactly is this young lady?”
“It’s my first time teaching anyone too. My family even opposed it at first.”
“May I ask why you accepted the proposal?”
“I was curious. That extraordinary Getre brought a daughter-in-law himself. And not only does he give Miss Delve all sorts of gifts, now he comes to me for a tutor. It’s quite amusing.”
“……”
Burthar frowned slightly.
Rose’s face had a hint of redness while talking about her ex-husband.
Yet she continued, unfazed.
“It seems Getre really did choose a good daughter-in-law. At first, people complained about a humble family, but Miss Delve has proven otherwise herself.”
Rose recalled a letter from a few days ago, delivered via her informant.
An unplanned agenda had come up at a Kerais family meeting concerning land that Getre had given Miss Delve.
At the meeting, Rynes and others seemed pleased.
Yet a few days later, the situation reversed—the land deed had an added clause.
“A garden open to all empire citizens, except one person—Rynes. Heh, how clever.”
Surely this idea hadn’t come from Getre.
He knew how to confront someone directly, not to torment them subtly behind the scenes.
Maryanne Delve—it seemed she was the one behind it.
And she liked that very much.
Back at the Duke’s residence in the evening, we gathered for dinner.
The Duke usually ate out or had a simple meal while working in his study.
So I often dined with Krimu alone.
Today, however, we were all together for the first time in a while.
“Krimu, is it good?”
“It’s really tasty!”
Seeing Krimu raise his tiny hands in delight made me laugh.
When the Duke gestured, a maid stepped forward to wipe the soup off Krimu’s mouth.
Yet Krimu eagerly returned to eating, making even the Duke chuckle.
“Nom nom.”
Krimu’s belly was starting to round nicely.
“We’ll have to get a private tutor for Krimu soon as well.”
Krimu frowned seriously at the Duke’s comment.
I poked his cheek gently to console him.
“The teacher is coming to help you grow up strong and wonderful.”
“Wonderful?”
“Yes, exactly.”
“Then I like it.”
As Krimu happily ate dessert, I finished my own meal.
I noticed the Duke’s gaze constantly flicking toward me.
Why is he staring?
I turned at the right moment, our eyes met, and I raised an eyebrow.
It was a silent way of asking him to speak if curious.
Clearing his throat, the Duke finally spoke.
“How was your meeting earlier today?”
“Ah, meeting with Mother?”
“Mother?”
His expression instantly tightened, eyes sharp.
“Mother? Did Rose tell you to call her that?”
“No, it just happened. She was fine with it too.”
“……”
The Duke drained his glass of water, perhaps out of nervousness.
“Shall I tell you how the lesson went? Mother treated me so well…”
“No, that’s enough.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
I was puzzled. Just a moment ago, he looked so curious, and now he pretended not to care.
Ah, this must be the typical ex-husband and ex-wife dynamic: curious yet distant.
‘Hmm, I see.’
Then I wouldn’t mention anything either.
No matter how close we were, he’s the Duke and she’s Mother.
I couldn’t possibly report every detail of my private time with her.
So I kept quiet, finishing my meal, ignoring the Duke who looked a little disappointed.
Learning lady’s etiquette was fun.
Thanks to my tutor, Rose.
From tea drinking to table manners, I tried to imitate her every graceful movement.
“Mother, I ate all the cake without spilling a bit this time!”
“You truly are my first student.”
“Hehe, thank you, Mother.”
“Initially, I found ‘Mother’ awkward and asked you to call me Teacher, but now you’ve grown used to calling me Mother, haven’t you?”
Rose’s blue eyes smiled gently at me.
I hadn’t expected myself to say “Mother” so naturally.
It felt different from calling Duke Kerais “Father.”
Rose was simply Rose—my graceful future mother-in-law.
We passed through the parlor and headed to Rose’s private room.
Usually, people don’t reveal their personal rooms to outsiders, especially those they’ve met only a few times.
So this gesture made me realize how considerate she was.
“Come in. It’s not as elaborate as Miss Delve’s room, but I’ve decorated it with care.”
The room was filled with luxurious furniture and decor, perfectly complementing her beauty.
“No, this is far better than my room.”
While exploring, my eyes fell upon something.
“That’s…”
“You noticed, Miss Delve. It’s a dress I just managed to acquire recently.”
The dress, purple with sparkling jewels, was likely from a boutique run by the Kerais family.
It must have been expensive.
I never expected to meet my client here.
As I admired the dress, Rose’s next words almost made me choke.
“I wanted to negotiate with the Beljour trading company, but they’ve refused me several times.”
“…!”
I had ordered all letters from the trading company to be discarded without reading.
I hadn’t realized one of Rose’s letters was among them.
“She has such business acumen; I really want to meet that company owner.”
“Mother, you’re interested in business too?”
“Of course. I handle all the popular clothing and jewelry in the western regions.”
Rose instructed a maid to open the wardrobe and drawers.
Inside were countless business items: shoes from last season, bracelets, and more.
One item immediately caught my eye.
“Wow! This is my favorite hat!”
“Oh really? I designed it myself. Unlike other items, it never sold well. I was upset, but seeing you like it, Miss Delve, fills my empty heart.”
The wings on either side of the hat swayed.
I had wanted to reward the designer—who was Rose herself.
I imagined Ron looking cute in this hat and admired the colorful collection.
I thought to myself:
‘I should seriously consider Mother as a business partner.’
