NBTC 06

Chapter 06

It was a family of very few words.

At the large banquet table, the small family of three took their seats, but no one spoke first.

The Duke, seeing his grown son Karl after a long time, offered a handshake and smiled, patting his shoulder. His mother, who rarely had reason to smile, also gave a faint smile.

But that was all.

It was a quiet meal, with no sound other than the clinking of cutlery and the violin melody flowing from the gramophone in the banquet hall.

Norman, the butler standing at attention by the door, saw that Karl’s glass was empty and came over to pour him some wine.

“Master Karl. This is wine from Mount Konrad. Does it suit your palate?”

“Thank you. The finish is good.”

“If you’re starting university in September, you must be busy with preparations. For now, rest and recover from your journey here. Shall I prepare a hunt for tomorrow?”

Norman spoke gently, hoping to break the usual silence and cold atmosphere of the evening.

Everyone in Heitzrind knew that things between the two of them were beyond help, so he addressed Karl, who had some room for conversation.

“Well, I was thinking of taking a ride on horseback. If I do go, let Boris know.”

“Yes, understood. It’ll be nice to hear gunfire in the Heitzrind forest again after so long.”

Norman said with a smile, then glanced at Duke Clausen.

Catching his signal, the Duke set down the whiskey glass he had been drinking from. He hadn’t touched his food at all, only downing glass after glass of strong whiskey.

“Is your studies in Schütz going well?”

“Yes, I found it enjoyable.”

“Good. When do you plan to leave for Regenshen?”

“I’m planning to leave around August.”

The chandelier light flickered in the summer night breeze.

The rich scent of roses drifted in through the banquet hall windows, and the violin melody continued calmly and unhurriedly.

The pink four-season roses, red peonies, and crimson carnations adorning the table shimmered under the chandelier light, each petal displaying its beauty.

Thanks to Karl’s earlier-than-expected arrival, the kitchen had moved busily and served excellent dishes without a hitch.

It was a night lacking nothing.

His parents, as always, silent. The grand manor, peaceful to the point of monotony. The kind and diligent servants.

Nothing here ever changed.

As he idly recalled the slow, heavy atmosphere of Heitzrind, he thought of the strange little girl he had met that morning.

Her neatly cut short blonde hair and eyes the deep green of a summer forest.

“By the way, I saw a girl today I hadn’t seen before.”

A pebble thrown into the unchanging Heitzrind.

Karl brought up the little girl he had met in the garden, trying to shift the attention and change the atmosphere.

In an instant, the slow, peaceful air of the banquet hall shifted.

Daniela’s blue eyes darted restlessly, and Dana, waiting on her behind, was also visibly tense. Even the seasoned Norman’s shoulders stiffened.

“Yes, Karl. You’ve already met her. I was meaning to introduce her anyway. Since it’s come up, it’s best we exchange greetings. Norman, go bring Miss Adel.”

The Duke said, raising his glass again.

The Duchess’s hand, gripping her knife and fork tightly, trembled violently.

“Today is a family meal, with Karl coming down for the first time in a while. I don’t wish to ruin a pleasant evening.”

“Daniela. I have had it notarized that I will fulfill my role as guardian until the child comes of age. If she is a guest staying here, she ought to be introduced to the future master of Heitzrind.”

A girl whose guardian was her father.

Karl quietly took a sip of the wine before him and recalled the surname ‘Baden’ he had heard from her today.

It was not an uncommon surname, though not particularly common either. It seemed he had heard it somewhere recently as well.

However, seeing his mother’s neurosis flaring up again, it seemed the events to come would not be pleasant.

“It’s alright, Father. I already met her and exchanged greetings in the garden today. As Mother says, today is the first time the three of us are together in a while, so let’s have tea and greet each other properly another time.”

Karl neatly wrapped it up, and the Duke nodded as well.

For about a week, the Duke had deliberately not sought out the girl.

He knew that Daniela was enduring as much as she possibly could.

Though a few days earlier, when the notarized document naming him as Adelheid Baden’s guardian arrived from the lawyer, she had smashed the furniture in her study.

“You probably know this already. Adelheid’s father is Michael Baden. He died a few months ago from an endemic disease in the southern country. His business failures made his name quite prominent in the Erwin newspapers. I wasn’t one of his investors, but I did receive help from him once before regarding a railway project. I had some stake in the construction of a cargo railway connecting Pforzheim and Karlsruhe. It seems even that has been lost in this latest failure.”

Only then did Karl recall where he had heard the name Baden.

It had certainly been mentioned by his classmates at Schütz.

He was an aggressive businessman who had been enjoying a string of successes, and many in the upper circles of Schütz had invested in him.

He dealt in southern teas and mineral mining, and many questioned how his thriving business could have collapsed in an instant.

Now he understood why the girl he met today had trembled but never looked away from him.

She must have been a child who never learned to bow her head until her father died.

“I see. If Father has decided, I have no objection.”

The veins on the Duchess’s hand gripping her wine glass bulged.

The Duke of Clausen was not in his right mind.

She had known this already, but for him to declare he would care for her until she came of age.

Bringing his former lover’s child here to Heitzrind to raise her—she could not understand his insane idea.

That capricious Renée von Eduard.

Her soot was embedded everywhere in the Heitzrind manor.

The soot could not be erased, and it moved and lived in every place touched by the Duke’s gaze, constantly comparing her to the other woman.

She could no longer bear it, not even for a moment.

Even in death, Eduard still controlled her husband, and she too was made into a puppet. And now, that woman’s daughter.

Her head began to throb again.

The banquet hall sank back into silence, just as before. No one there spoke again.

“Master Karl, it’s Dana. May I have a word with you?”

Though the evening banquet had ended earlier than expected, the summer night had still grown quite deep.

Karl found it curious as he heard Dana knocking on his door.

Dana, who had grown up as his mother’s playmate since childhood, was a loyal servant who would go to hell and back if his mother commanded.

She had been brought to Heitzrind deliberately after his mother married into the family, becoming her indispensable right hand.

“Come in.”

Karl, who had been reading in comfortable clothes after his bath, adjusted his robe and told her to enter.

Dana stepped into the room without a sound. Without meeting his eyes, she bowed her head and continued.

“I’m terribly sorry to disturb you when you must be tired, Master Karl. I’ve taken the liberty of coming to see you at this hour because there’s something I wished to discuss with you in advance.”

“Speak.”

Knowing Karl’s dislike for long-winded talk, she quickly got to the point.

“It’s about Adelheid Baden, whom you met today, Master Karl. She is the child of Renée von Eduard and Michael Baden. You may not know much about Michael Baden, but you’ve likely heard of the Eduard family.”

Karl furrowed one brow and pressed his left hand to his temple.

Now he understood why his mother’s face had darkened so much.

He didn’t know much about his parents’ relationship, but after he had grown somewhat, that name was frequently mentioned whenever the two of them argued.

‘Renée.’

She was said to be his father Levin von Clausen’s first love and first fiancée.

Karl could not understand his father’s fixation on a relationship that was already in the past. Nor could he understand why his mother, who had long since established herself as the lady of Clausen, was so anxious.

He suspected that his father’s cynical treatment of his mother might have something to do with her own paranoid possessiveness.

Dana continued, still not raising her head.

“I know what I’m saying is terribly presumptuous. But please, consider my lady’s feelings. Since the master brought that child here, Lady Daniela has not been sleeping properly. I ask that you refrain from mentioning that child as much as possible, and keep your distance from her.”

Karl’s brow began to furrow as he listened.

“I’m well aware that it is disrespectful to speak of the master’s affairs in this manner. Please take pity on your mother and me, and remember my plea while you remain at Heitzrind…”

It was an impertinent remark, unbefitting her polite demeanor.

Karl snapped the book on his knee shut and stood up.

“Dana. I understand what you’re saying. I already noticed Mother’s displeasure at dinner tonight, and I know you have served her for so long that you regard her more as family than her own kin. However, your actions right now are deeply displeasing. This is overstepping.”

Karl’s voice was low and dry, but he could not hide the anger beneath it.

“Mentioning the personal affairs of the two of them is highly impertinent in itself, but I do not think my mother is foolish enough to drag past history onto a young child. I cannot comprehend why you would come at this late hour to say such things. I’ve heard what you had to say, so leave now.”

As Karl looked at her with eyes as blue as his mistress’s, filled with anger and disdain, Dana bowed her head even lower.

Master Karl, too, is a person of the House of Clausen.

Clearly, he found her transgression deeply offensive at this moment.

“I’m sorry, Master Karl. Please forgive my overstepping and rudeness.”

Leaving Karl, who gave no further reply, Dana quickly exited his room.

She had not been entirely unprepared for such a response from Karl.

Even so, she had to put as much distance as possible between that vulgar child and the House of Clausen. Surely that intelligent young master would understand as well.

Dana left Karl’s room and headed to the kitchen.

She decided to bring a cup of warm tea up for the Duchess, who had endured a difficult day.

She hoped tonight her mistress would sleep soundly, without any dreams.