Chapter 7
‘Wait, when did he…?’
I gawked, staring back and forth between the wide-open office door and the Duke.
Even more surprising was how familiar Benjamin and Joan seemed with the situation.
“Benjamin Cooper. It looks like you’ve just decided to show up late without notice from now on.”
The Duke held the tray in one hand at an angle, as if to express his irritation, and shot a glare at his aide.
“You’re getting bolder by the day.”
“Well, when you serve a superior who jumps out of windows in front of your eyes, it tends to grow your nerve.”
“Honestly, I need to sew that mouth shut one of these days.”
Duke Bastion clicked his tongue and turned around.
As he strode into the office, Benjamin followed, and I naturally tagged along behind them.
Thankfully, no one stopped me.
Thud.
Joan closed the door behind me and disappeared.
In the meantime, I quickly glanced around the office. It was cold and uninviting.
The room was as large as the Duke’s bedroom, but only two polished desks occupied the space. The rest was just mountains of paperwork.
Piles of documents stacked from desks to the floor were enough to make one feel dizzy just by looking.
‘No wonder Benjamin’s lungs are failing.’
The Duke, sleeves rolled up to his elbows despite being dressed formally, roughly cleared a corner of his desk and made a spot.
He precariously placed the tray on the empty space, then looked me up and down and said,
“So you think this is my type?”
“Gasp.”
“Looks like I discovered a preference I never even knew I had.”
Isn’t this guy a ghost, not a devil?!
Terrified, I squinted at the office door.
The walls and door looked thick enough to be soundproofed, so how did he hear me?
‘Wait—so he heard the part after that, too…?’
I cautiously looked up at him. He chuckled, lifting just one corner of his mouth.
‘He heard. He definitely heard. The bride training nonsense, trying to seduce him—he heard it all.’
In that case, I might as well save face. Maybe a wink will help.
“…Do you have something in your eye?”
“That was my cute face.”
“And why is your mouth open?”
“You can’t wink without opening your mouth, obviously.”
Oof. That look of disgust really hurts.
I’ve never managed a closed-mouth wink in my entire life. Even in Asha’s body, it was no different.
So unfair. Of all the things to inherit, why this?
‘Still, when I winked like this, the aunties always swooned. If I threw in a finger heart and double finger guns, it was game over.’
But our dear Duke Bastion looked thoroughly unprepared for my antics.
Such a shame. This kind of silliness is delicious. People hesitate at first but end up loving it.
Pouting, I felt a pang of anxiety.
You can’t just hope for things to work out. If it drags on, the opportunity is lost.
‘This is when someone needs a good shove into the deep end.’
So, I’ve come prepared—with a trusty ally to do the pushing!
In hard games, your party’s support is crucial.
Especially if your ally already has the target’s trust, things become much easier.
‘Go, Benjamin. I choose you!’
I signaled with my eyes, and Benjamin solemnly nodded.
He turned to the Duke and began the performance of a lifetime.
“H-ha-ha. S-so c-cute. Hahaha.”
It was the worst acting I’ve ever seen.
“R-really. A-adorable. Hahaha.”
What kind of troll behavior is this?! He’s just making the Duke more annoyed and ruining the whole strategy!
Horrified, I made a slicing motion across my neck.
‘One more slip-up and no more dad jokes for you!’
Understanding my threat, Benjamin quickly dropped the awkward pauses.
“Whoever marries her will be the luckiest person on the continent! Hahaha!”
The tone improved, but his clumsy gestures remained the same.
More importantly, it was too late. The moment had passed.
Duke Bastion squinted at both of us, suspicion clear in his eyes. “She’s already roped in another one?”
No! I mean—yes, but no! I want to pretend I don’t know him right now!
“Get to work.”
“…Yes, sir.”
The Duke’s icy voice silenced Benjamin, who slunk back to his desk, deflated.
‘Wait, what about me? Should I leave?’
I rolled my eyes around, but neither of them seemed to mind my presence.
Assuming it was fine, I just stood there awkwardly next to the Duke.
Then I noticed something: he kept writing the same set of letters at the bottom of a document.
‘A signature? A name? What does that say?’
The products of the temple, including Asha, had no access to basic education. High Priest William only taught children obedience, submission, and surrender.
That way, whether they stayed in the temple or were sold off, they’d remain quietly tucked away.
He didn’t even teach them letters, claiming that illiterate ones sold better.
So Asha had no choice but to pick up bits and pieces by watching priests write.
Using that piecemeal knowledge, I tried to decipher the Duke’s signature.
“Bo… bon?”
As I mumbled, the Duke’s long finger casually tapped one of the letters.
Oh, right. That is read as “bon.” Then…
“Wolf?”
He didn’t respond. That must be correct.
I continued, slowly piecing it together.
“Wolf… gang… Wolfgang! Wolfgang Bastion! That’s right!”
As if confirming my answer, the paper flipped over to the next sheet.
So his name is Wolfgang! The Duke’s name is Wolfgang!
As I celebrated, the Duke—Wolfgang—handed me a cookie from the tea tray without looking up.
It felt like a reward for a job well done.
Gratefully, I accepted it with both hands and munched on it happily. Sweet victory indeed.
After a moment, he handed me another. Crunch. And then another. Crunch.
Like a broken vending machine, cookies kept dropping into my hands. I kept eating.
Then I heard a stifled laugh by my ear.
Who was it? Who laughed while I was enjoying my cookies?
Was it the Duke? The aide?
The answer: both of them.
Feeling like their toy, I pouted grumpily—and then another cookie fell into my hands.
This time, instead of eating it, I tugged on Wolfgang’s sleeve to make him look at me.
“It’s no fun eating alone.”
“So?”
“Say ah~.”
Then I shoved the cookie into his mouth.
He reluctantly accepted it, but his face while chewing made it seem like he was chewing on livestock feed.
‘Even cow feed would look more appetizing than that face.’
I tilted my head and asked,
“Do you not like sweets?”
“…Not really.”
“Then do you like them?”
“Not really.”
So do you dislike them or like them?
Then Wolfgang washed it down with strong black tea.
Didn’t seem like he liked it… but didn’t hate it either…
‘Ugh. You’re confusing even with this?’
When in doubt, repeat study—just like learning letters.
“Dear future father-in-law, I’ve finally found something I can do for you.”
“What?” he asked, puzzled.
I gave him a bright smile.
“Say ah~!”
Open up. Another cookie coming in.
Scene Transition
“…So what’s the deal? Does he like them or not?”
I grumbled, walking down the corridor with an empty tray on my head.
The tray that had been filled with tea snacks was now spotless—plates and cups all cleared.
Wolfgang had eaten every cookie I fed him and then immediately chased them with bitter tea, frowning all the while.
It wasn’t quite dislike, but it didn’t seem like he liked them either.
‘It wasn’t a total rejection. But it wasn’t fondness, either.’
Ugh. Knowing someone’s tastes helps earn points, but nothing’s simple with this guy.
Just then, someone who surely knew Wolfgang’s heart best appeared like a ray of light—old butler Hugo.
“Grandpa Hugo!”
“Young lady.”
“Oh come on, just call me Asha.”
I was supposedly a future daughter-in-law, but still just a maid-in-training. Being treated like nobility made me uncomfortable.
Still, Hugo only smiled gently and kept treating me with utmost courtesy—like I was truly a noble lady.
Anyway, Grandpa, if you’re watching—give me the right answer.
“Say, Grandpa Hugo… about the Duke. Does he dislike sweets?”
I whispered, and Hugo glanced at the empty tray before answering clearly.
“He dislikes sweet things—but enjoys eating them.”
…What?
Like saying “I drink alcohol but don’t drive drunk”?
I blinked, completely confused.
Without explaining further, Hugo took the tray from my head and disappeared into the kitchen.
Hey! You can’t just drop a riddle and walk away!
Thud!
“Ow.”
I suddenly found myself on the floor.
Oof, my knees. Good thing I’m young or I’d be injured for sure.
Turning around, I saw what I’d crashed into—three young maids laughing down at me.
They looked no older than twelve or thirteen.
They were likely low-ranking maids tasked with small errands around the mansion.
“Oh my, sorry.”
“You’re so tiny, we didn’t see you.”
“Be more careful.”
They were pretending to be concerned, but really meant stay out of our way.
I didn’t cry. Just stared blankly up at them, which wasn’t the reaction they wanted.
Frowning, they stomped on my apron hem and walked off.
Only after they were gone did I dust off the muddy footprint and stand up.
“…Tsk. It’s been a while since I’ve seen such obvious turf wars.”
A little girl handpicked by Duke Wolfgang.
That alone was enough for most of the staff to treat me well. But for a small few, it sparked resistance.
Especially those younger maids around my own age.
‘Some brat falls from the sky, flirts her way into favor, and now even senior staff like her? Of course they hate it.’
They wouldn’t understand why the employer favors me.
I’m not a noble. I’m just another girl in a maid’s outfit. So why the special treatment?
‘At that sensitive age, it must feel so unfair.’
And honestly, it is unfair.
I have no status here, yet I’m treated like something special.
But what can I do? Asha is cute, kind, and soon to be part of the family.
Which means…
“I’ll show them what’s what.”
Hehehe.
I smiled wickedly in the direction the maids had gone.
