TFCMD~07

Chapter 7

Life at the ducal estate continued peacefully.

Calvin, the butler, along with Anna and Lize—who attended closely to her every day—carefully ensured that Lorren lacked nothing. She worked comfortably with Letty, the duke’s aide, whose temperament matched hers well. Even Aster, whom she had worried might dislike her presence, listened to her opinions and followed her suggestions.

As if the cold voice that had once spoken only of secrets had never existed.

Sometimes Letty guided her around the estate.

At first, Lorren had thought the enormous ducal mansion would take days to fully explore, but much of it was unused, making it easier than expected.

“Beyond here is a restricted area.”

Whenever Letty said that, he would quietly turn away.

She wanted to ask why.

But whenever he spoke those words, his expression hardened.

Usually, Letty was gentle and quick to smile—but in those moments, his face carried the sharpness of someone who had survived brutal battlefields.

Following behind him, Lorren glanced down the darkened corridors.

For a mansion this large, there should have been a grand dining hall, banquet rooms, galleries displaying generations of ducal portraits and treasured artworks.

Yet none of them existed within the areas they used.

They must all be beyond those unlit halls.

But why?

Lorren couldn’t understand.

There was something else she couldn’t understand.

There were too few servants.

As duchess, Lorren wasn’t merely helping with Aster’s work—she was also responsible for overseeing the household itself.

If Letty worked beside the duke, then Calvin worked beside the duchess.

When Lorren took over the responsibilities Calvin had handled until now, she immediately frowned.

The restricted areas Letty had shown her made up more than half the estate.

But even with much of the mansion closed off, this was still a ducal residence.

To manage it properly, they needed at least twice the current number of servants.

Naturally, she pointed this out.

Calvin only smiled bitterly.

He said nothing.

Even though he surely knew better than anyone how much strain understaffing placed on the workers.

Eventually, Lorren brought it up directly to Aster.

“What about hiring more servants?”

Though Aster usually told her to do as she wished, this time he shook his head.

“No.”

She couldn’t ask why.

Not after seeing the cold look in his eyes before, when he had dismissed her questions with one word:

Confidential.

So Lorren swallowed her questions.

When she glanced sideways at him, his expression had already hardened.

She said nothing more.

Besides—

There was too much work to dwell on it.

The mountain of document boxes waiting for review was endless.

Letty wasn’t good at making reports visually organized.

But the information itself was thorough.

A little guidance would fix the rest.

When she mentioned this, Letty immediately brightened.

Though originally a soldier, he said he wanted to do his best as an aide as well.

His blue eyes sparkled.

Aster gave a short laugh and nodded.

Starting the next day, Lorren began teaching Letty how to organize paperwork clearly and efficiently.

He was a surprisingly diligent student.

Teaching him became enjoyable.

Sometimes while explaining documents across the desk, she would feel eyes on her.

Looking up, she would find Aster lounging on the long sofa with one leg draped over the armrest, reading something.

His expressionless face looked cold.

Then his lips would tilt slightly.

Anyone else making that expression might have looked mocking.

But somehow—

Aster never did.

Maybe because, behind that faint crooked smile, she kept seeing traces of the bright smile he once wore as a boy.

Whenever that thought surfaced, Lorren forced herself to shake it away.

The clothes from Jasmine Aloria’s atelier arrived just as she began settling into this routine.

She had only ordered clothing.

So why—

Why was her room suddenly overflowing with hats, shoes, jewelry cases, and accessory boxes?

Just looking at them exhausted her.

Anna and Lize, however, were far more excited than she was.

Lorren simply sat at the table drinking tea while they busied themselves opening boxes and arranging items inside the dressing room.

Every opened package brought fresh gasps and laughter.

“My lady, aren’t you excited?” Anna asked carefully.

“You haven’t even tried them on…”

Lorren set down her teacup.

“I don’t really care much about clothes. But seeing you two so happy makes me happy too.”

One major change over the past few days was how casually she now spoke to them.

Though noble-born, Lorren came from a minor baron family.

Speaking casually to others never felt natural.

But Anna and Lize had nearly protested in outrage.

“A lady speaking formally to servants makes no sense!”

Half forced, half naturally, she had adapted.

At first she constantly mixed formal and casual speech.

Now it came easier.

Strange.

Thinking about it made her smile.

“Honestly, I prefer cookies and cakes over clothes.”

Lorren placed a small cookie into her mouth and smiled softly.

They said sweetness was addictive.

That had to be true.

This—

This must be what happiness tasted like.

At the baron estate, sweets had been rare.

Wheat and milk were common enough in the countryside.

Sugar and chocolate were not.

Her father had earned a respectable salary from his work at the imperial palace.

Most of it had gone toward supporting their people.

Taxes were low.

And even those taxes returned to the citizens through welfare.

That had been her father’s belief.

In truth—

Her life hadn’t changed that much.

Before, she reviewed paperwork for her father.

Now, she reviewed paperwork for Aster.

The biggest differences were simple:

More people cared for her.

And now—

She could eat sweets whenever she wanted.

“The chef says he’s very happy because you enjoy everything you eat, my lady.”

Lize smiled while checking accessory lists against delivery receipts.

“He’s even making desserts he hasn’t made in over ten years!”

Anna called out from inside the dressing room.

Then suddenly—

Silence.

Ah.

Lorren clicked her tongue internally.

Aster had inherited the duchy around ten years ago.

And like her—

He had suddenly lost both parents.

Only younger.

Much younger.

Every servant she had reviewed records for had worked here for over a decade.

Ten years without desserts.

For them too—

Those years must have hurt.

“Because Aster doesn’t like sweets?”

The room quieted again.

Lorren deliberately spoke lightly.

Lize finally looked up.

Her brown eyes trembled slightly.

“…Yes.”

Her smile looked much like Lorren’s own.

“We checked everything from the atelier. I’ll put these away.”

As Lize carried the accessory box into the dressing room, Lorren leaned deeper into the armchair.

The mountain of boxes had somehow disappeared.

From beyond the open door, she heard Lize scolding Anna for saying unnecessary things.

It wasn’t Anna’s fault though.

Suddenly tired, Lorren rubbed her eyes.

Then—

At the edge of her blurred vision—

She noticed it.

A single red box.

Sitting alone in the corner of the table.

Did Lize forget it?

But unlike the other deliveries—

This one had no Aloria Atelier crest.

Maybe someone’s belongings had gotten mixed in?

Still—

Wouldn’t they have returned it immediately?

Jewelry boxes usually held expensive things.

Whoever lost this must be worried sick.

Maybe the owner’s family crest was inside.

That would help identify them.

Lorren reached over and pulled the red velvet box toward herself.

Smooth velvet reflected the light.

Touching someone else’s belongings felt strangely wrong.

She inhaled deeply.

I’m not opening this because I want it.

I’m just trying to find the owner.

She repeated the excuse to herself.

Then she opened it.

And froze.

Lavender eyes slowly swept over the contents.

A delicate ruby bracelet decorated with deep garnet drops.

Pearl earrings woven with pale amethysts.

A necklace engraved with her name, decorated with jewels inherited from the grandmother she had loved dearly.

Birthday gifts.

Anniversary gifts.

Treasures from her parents.

Everything inside that red box—

Was hers.

Lorren covered her mouth with trembling hands.

How?

How had they found them?

The things she had sold to survive sparkled before her once more.

The box had arrived among items from Aloria Atelier.

No matter how talented Jasmine Aloria was—

She would never personally gather these for Lorren.

Which meant—

Aster had arranged it.

Lorren’s exhale shook.

Slowly, carefully, she closed the lid.

Then lowered herself until her forehead rested against the soft velvet.

The fabric brushed gently against her skin.

She had believed these treasures were lost forever.

Now they had returned.

Tears threatened to spill.

Lorren squeezed her eyes shut.

She needed to thank Aster.