Chapter 6
As usual, Bella had buried herself in the study early in the morning. For a duchess, she was dressed rather plainly.
Her shoulders had recently begun to ache from constantly hunching over documents and writing. So unless she was meeting guests, she had decided to wear simple, unadorned dresses.
The maids often eyed her with longing, wishing to add at least one more frill or accessory, but Bella’s firm refusals always left them quietly sighing in disappointment.
In the past, Bella had hardly spoken to the maids. During her early days managing the duchy, when everything felt unfamiliar, she often made mistakes and would spiral into self-blame. Speaking first felt impossible.
Even though the maids never showed it on the surface, she was certain they thought her pitiful behind closed doors.
It was the same with the rest of the staff.
She’d been so overwhelmed with the fear of failing as the Duchess of Dylan that she couldn’t even bear to look at the people around her. But now… things had changed.
“All right. That’s the last of it.”
Wearing lighter clothes made the work feel less exhausting. She’d also gotten much quicker and more efficient with paperwork—far better than on her first day. Seeing the duchy’s seal stamped neatly on the final document gave her a sense of pride.
With the urgent paperwork now completed and stacked to one side, Bella finally allowed herself to drift into other thoughts.
The only reason she’d been able to work in peace like this was because things had been unusually quiet around the duchy lately.
Come to think of it, the usual troublemakers, Haldeir and Reina, had been awfully silent.
“Is it because of that night?”
Bella recalled the recent dinner that had ended in chaos. It had been a week and three days since Haldeir and Reina stormed off in the middle of the meal.
Tap, tap.
She drummed her fingers on the desk and spun her chair around slowly.
What could Kaelan have said to them? What kind of scolding had left them this quiet?
It must have been the first time they’d ever been scolded by him. Maybe it hit them harder than she thought.
And Reina, of all people, subdued for over a week? That was impressive.
“He’s never been one to show mercy when it comes to duchy matters.”
Bella knew better than anyone how seriously Kaelan had taken the affairs of the house since the Duke had gone missing.
That same child, who once seemed so indifferent to her, had no tolerance for mistakes when it came to duchy matters.
Ugh, no—
Bella shook her head quickly to banish the terrible memories trying to surface.
She could easily imagine how harsh Kaelan’s words had been toward Reina and Haldeir when the documents had been messed up.
The next day, Reina’s eyes had been swollen, and she hadn’t left her room until right before dinner.
Bella leaned back into her chair, turning toward the sunlit window. The sunlight cast the shadow of the window frame onto the floor, glowing with warm, golden light.
The sun was beginning to set.
Soon, it would be dinnertime.
Since she hadn’t spoken to the children outside of work, their meals had been quiet affairs filled with nothing but silence.
“It’s been kind of nice, actually.”
Aside from the occasional provocation from Anna, there hadn’t been any major incidents.
Before her regression, the scorn and ridicule she’d endured from them had stemmed from her own efforts to draw closer to the children.
Now, after the regression, she had stopped approaching them—and as a result, the abuse had ceased.
“Oh, right. I got a letter.”
As she idly wondered what tonight’s dinner would bring, she remembered the letter that had arrived at the duchy around lunchtime.
It probably contained news that would stir up the dinner table, but regardless, Bella felt oddly pleased just thinking about it.
As soon as she remembered, she opened the drawer and pulled out the letter she’d tucked away.
She quickly broke the seal, hoping it contained good news, and began to read it carefully.
Just as I thought. The Viscountess of Masen hasn’t changed one bit.
A small, satisfied smile appeared on Bella’s face midway through reading.
“Perfect.”
She folded the letter and returned it to the envelope, placing it back in the drawer.
Then she pulled out two sheets of stationery and began writing—faster than she had when handling official paperwork.
“All done.”
She sealed the letter, dripped red wax onto the envelope, and pressed the family seal into it. After confirming the stamp was clear, she set it aside on the desk.
Bella had once gone so far as to neglect her duties in an effort to get close to the children.
But the harder she tried, the more they pulled away—and the more she lost the trust of the staff.
She couldn’t do anything about the children right now, but the others… well, that was different.
Tonight, she planned to tell the children they could freely enter the study again.
And she had one more surprise to reveal.
It would no doubt cause a stir at the dinner table—but Bella wasn’t worried.
“If anything, I’m looking forward to it.”
She smiled softly and gathered the two letters before leaving the study.
“My lady! You’ve finished work already?”
“Yes. I’ve handled all the urgent papers for now.”
“You seem to be in a good mood.”
“Do I?”
Since Bella usually returned just before dinner, her maid Jenna looked surprised to see her arrive early. She was tidying Bella’s room when she cheerfully greeted her.
Jenna’s bright, bubbly energy had a way of making even small talk enjoyable.
Unlike before the regression, Bella had started speaking to the staff casually during her free time, and now they felt much more comfortable around her.
Especially Jenna, who cleaned Bella’s bedroom. With her brown hair in braided pigtails and a face sprinkled with cute freckles, Jenna was a charming girl—and easy to get along with.
“Jenna, could you bring me some ilang tea? No snacks needed.”
“Yes, my lady!”
“And call the butler, too.”
“Right away!”
Bella sat by her favorite window. Before long, a knock sounded and both Jenna and the butler entered the room.
“You called, my lady?”
Jenna placed the tea on the table, and Bella handed the letters to the butler.
“This one is for the Viscountess of Masen. The other is for Countess Cassandra.”
“…Understood.”
The butler paused slightly at the mention of Cassandra, but took the letters without comment.
“Oh, and send some Laeren flowers with the one for Viscountess Masen.”
She was fond of them, after all.
Now that the urgent duchy paperwork was nearly cleared, Bella turned her attention to the children.
From this point on, the long battle of wills would begin.
She sipped the now-lukewarm ilang tea, gazing quietly out the window.
Then came dinner.
As expected, the children ate in silence or whispered among themselves.
Bella waited until they’d eaten about half their meals. She didn’t want to kill their appetites with news right off the bat.
“I’ve finished the urgent work for now, so you’re free to visit the study again. Also—”
This was the moment.
“Your new etiquette teacher will be arriving soon.”
“…What?”
“What did you just say?!”
As expected, Reina and Haldeir looked at her in utter shock.
It made sense. The etiquette teacher assigned to them from the beginning was suddenly being dismissed.
“You can’t just fire our etiquette teacher!”
“Reina’s right! Countess Cassandra was the one Father personally chose for us!”
Before her regression, Bella had tolerated Countess Cassandra’s insolence for that one reason—because she was the teacher their father had appointed.
“Is this because Father isn’t here anymore? So you think you can do whatever you want?”
“Reina, that’s enough.”
“Then tell me! Why are you replacing her without even asking us?!”
Reina was furious—completely expected, of course.
She and Cassandra had always been close. Bonded, probably, over their mutual dislike for Bella.
“Reina’s right. Isn’t this just the duchess making a unilateral decision without considering the children’s wishes?”
“Oh, Anna, don’t you think that’s a bit much?”
“How else should we take it? We’re being told to accept it without question.”
“You think I’d replace your teacher without a reason? I always act in your best interest.”
They stared at her, unconvinced. Anna openly scoffed.
[Welcome, Countess.]
[Thank you. Though I must ask—what exactly did the duchess call me for today?]
[Let’s have some tea and talk—]
[I’m sorry, but I’m a bit busy. And I’m sure you have just as much work to do, Duchess.]
Cassandra’s words were always laced with subtle disrespect—but Bella could never call her out on it.
If she did, the children would only grow more distant.
[I just wanted to ask how the children were doing.]
[They’re progressing well. No need to worry.]
[And… do you still come by outside the agreed days—]
[I did mention I was busy, Duchess. From what I’m hearing, it doesn’t sound like this conversation is very important. Can we do this another time?]
[Oh, I… Sure.]
[Then I’ll be going.]
Cassandra left without answering a single question properly.
It was frustrating, but Bella had let her go.
She felt pathetic.
So the very first task she tackled after clearing the duchy work was to remove that arrogant woman once and for all.
“I won’t allow it! Cancel everything! Tell the Viscountess of Masen not to come and bring back Countess Cassandra!”
“Reina.”
Reina had slammed her hands on the table, but immediately quieted when Kaelan called her name.
Since being summoned to Kaelan’s room, she’d clearly started watching her words around him more carefully.
Still, she couldn’t hide her displeasure.
“Please take it back. Don’t replace our etiquette teacher.”
“I can’t. The Viscountess of Masen already agreed, and the letter dismissing Countess Cassandra has been sent.”
“Then send another letter! Say it was a mistake!”
“We’ve already made the arrangements. We can’t change things last minute.”
“But—!”
Bella cut her off before the conversation could go in circles.
“I know it must feel sudden. But as the acting head of the house, I can’t keep a problematic teacher around the two of you.”
“Why did you do it? This feels way too abrupt.”
“Normally, your opinions would be crucial. But this time, it had to be done. I hope you understand.”
“Expecting us to understand without explaining anything—isn’t that just disrespectful?”
“If it felt that way, I’m sorry. But I think only Kaelan should hear the details of this decision. It’s not something you two need to know.”
“What do you mean—”
“That’s fine.”
Reina was about to object again but clamped her mouth shut the moment Kaelan spoke.
Bella had intentionally drawn Kaelan into this argument.
Though he spoke little with anyone—not even the children—he had a way of diffusing situations with a single comment, especially when Reina or Anna got worked up.
At this point, Bella didn’t care what the children had to say. Continuing the conversation was simply a waste of time.
This second chance she’d been given—she wasn’t going to waste it.
Kaelan might be the hardest one to deal with, but ironically, he was also the most useful.
Especially on days like this.
