Chapter 24 of Let Me Take That Envelope of Money
Charles.
A gardener who had been working at the ducal estate for nearly twelve years now.
He was also secretly tasked by the grand madam’s maid with a mission and now loitered nervously near the plum tree fence.
“It’s not particularly dangerous. Just… if the future duchess tries to do something to the plum tree…”
“That plum tree’s already reached the end of its life. I’m sure of it.”
When the previous duke, the duke before that, and even Elkiers had tried everything to save the plum tree, every gardener—including Charles—had pitched in.
But they had all failed.
They pruned the withered branches and used all kinds of fertilizers, yet the plum tree kept withering day by day. It wasn’t due to disease or pests either.
Even a mage had been summoned, but he too had only shaken his head.
The tree hadn’t bloomed in a long time now, and only a few leaves remained. The plum tree would soon die.
“Yeah. I’m just slightly hastening the inevitable. Like the maid said—it’s not a big deal.”
Swallowing nervously, Charles snipped at the bushes near the fence, pretending to prune them meaninglessly.
Then finally—
Rattle, rattle.
A carriage marked with the iris emblem and a large wagon following behind approached.
“They’re here!”
Charles hurried over to the carriage and wagon as they stopped in front of the fence gate.
“The future duchess wishes to inspect the plum tree. Open the gate.”
“Ah, yes. I was informed, but…”
“Oh, my. Is that all fertilizer?”
The words the gatekeeper meant to say ended up spilling from Charles’s mouth instead.
He hadn’t intended to get close to the future duchess. But seeing the fertilizer bags piled high like a mountain in the wagon, the words escaped him.
“Why? Is there a problem?”
“Well, not exactly… But surely you’re not planning to use all that fertilizer at once?”
“That’s for the future duchess to decide.”
The maid responded curtly and ordered the gatekeepers to open the gate.
Though confused, they opened the fence gate wide while eyeing the wagon’s load.
“Please proceed.”
The carriage carrying the future duchess and the wagon full of fertilizer passed through the gate.
Charles seized the opportunity and spoke to the gatekeepers.
“I’m concerned the future duchess might use the fertilizer improperly. I’ll go in and offer some advice.”
“Go ahead.”
Since Charles had worked at the estate for a long time, he was on familiar terms with the gatekeepers.
Thanks to that, he was able to enter the fence area easily and watched the future duchess step out of the carriage and order her attendants to unload the fertilizer bags.
“Good day, future duchess. My name is Charles. I’ve been working as a gardener here for twelve years.”
Approaching Irene, Charles took off his hat and bowed politely, holding it to his chest.
“Hello, Mr. Charles. What brings you here?”
“I was trimming the nearby bushes and happened to see the wagon pass by. Forgive my meddling, but you’re not planning to use all that fertilizer at once, are you…?”
“Of course not. I bought various kinds because I’m not sure which one the plum tree would prefer.”
“Ah, I see. I spoke out of turn, failing to see your wisdom. Please forgive me.”
“No, it’s fine. Thank you for your concern.”
Even in a situation that could have been offensive, the future duchess smiled warmly at him. That made Charles feel a sting of guilt.
“Whew… If it weren’t for those gambling debts…”
“Well, since I’m here, please don’t hesitate to give me any tasks. I’m strong and can handle heavy labor.”
“Really? Thank you.”
Thanks to Irene not suspecting him in the slightest, Charles was able to approach the wagon piled high with fertilizer bags.
All he had to do now was slip the poison the maid had given him into one of the bags…
“But I need to know which fertilizer will be used first.”
If he put the poison into one that wasn’t going to be used, it would all be for nothing.
If there were only a few kinds, he could narrow it down, but there were too many unfamiliar brands. It was nearly impossible to guess Irene’s intentions.
“Guess I’ll just wait and see.”
Charles backed away to the rear of the wagon, away from everyone’s eyes, ready to reach into his pocket for the poison at any moment.
But then, Irene, standing before the plum tree, clasped her hands together and began to pray.
“Spirit of the plum tree, please give me a sign. Which fertilizer should I use to help you live again…?”
“What in the world is she doing?”
The spirit of the plum tree?
Well, the tree was several hundred years old—perhaps a spirit had settled within it.
But a tree with a spirit wouldn’t be dying like this, would it?
The other attendants also seemed a bit awkward, sharing similar thoughts.
“Is she just setting things up in advance? So that if anything goes wrong later, she can say she was just following the will of the plum tree spirit?”
A clever trick behind an innocent face. As Charles had that thought, Irene suddenly looked his way.
Startled, he fumbled with the wagon to look busy, but she wasn’t looking at him—she was scanning the fertilizer bags laid out in neat rows.
“That one, and that one… and that one… Huh?”
Blinking in surprise, Irene stared wide-eyed.
“…Huh? Seriously? That many…?”
Looking a bit troubled, she quickly summoned her attendants.
Then, she gave an absurd order.
“Open every single bag and mix them all together.”
“Pardon? You mean all the bags?”
“Yes. All of them.”
“Um… are you really planning to mix them and give it to the plum tree…?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
Not just Charles—every single attendant stood there, mouths agape.
The only one unfazed was the maid, Alicia.
“What are you all doing? Didn’t you hear what the future duchess said?”
“Ah, n-no, it’s just…”
The attendants turned to Charles, their eyes silently begging him: You’re the expert. Say something!
But Charles, who had planned to stop her, quickly shut his mouth. From his point of view, this worked out better.
“Now that I think about it, we’ve never tried giving the plum tree this much fertilizer before. The future duchess must have her reasons. I’ll follow her lead.”
Of course, what he really thought was:
“Now I won’t even need to sneak in the poison—what luck.”
It wasn’t just a few bags—it was dozens. To mix all of that and spread it around?
Even a non-gardener would be appalled. The attendants, unsure whether this was right or not, began ripping open the bags reluctantly.
“She’s going to ruin it herself. No need for me to feel guilty.”
With thoughts of collecting his payment from the maid without doing anything truly bad, Charles began humming happily.
He had no idea that beside Irene—unseen to anyone else—a girl with crimson hair was bouncing up and down in delight.
* * *
Back at the Iris Hall, after sending everyone out and returning to her bedroom, Alicia followed me in, wearing a worried expression.
“Are you sure it’s okay to use that much fertilizer?”
Though she had appeared unfazed in front of the plum tree and had urged the attendants to work faster, it seemed she had been just as concerned internally.
“Honestly, it’s only natural to be worried.”
Even I had wondered: Will this really be okay?
“It should be fine. The spirit of the plum tree asked me to do it.”
That last part—I hope—I kept to myself.
Thankfully, Alicia didn’t seem to notice my uncertainty and just let out a small sigh.
“But… does the plum tree really have a spirit? And you can see it?”
“I think so.”
Since we were alone in the room, I pulled the curtains and called Alicia over to the desk. From a secret drawer, I took something out.
“What’s that? A plum?”
“Right? It really looks like one, doesn’t it?”
I lifted the stone in my palm and examined it closely.
The size, the color…
It really did look just like a plum-shaped stone.
