Chapter 72
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 72
Madame Toten's voice trailed off, choked with emotion. She cleared her throat and lifted her head with her usual elegant composure, as if nothing had happened.
"You have practically saved my son's life. And yet, all you want is to escape being a laundry maid?"
"Yes…"
"Then I will make you the head maid."
"Me? The head maid?"
It was a shocking appointment. Only after dispensing all the rewards and punishments did Madame Toten dismiss the crowd of servants. Then, accompanied only by the still-dazed maid named Weather, she headed to the powder room.
The moment the door closed, Madame Toten collapsed. Before I could even move, Weather caught her.
"Madame!"
"Weather… You saw Ryder die and come back to life, yet you ask nothing."
Melek, currently possessing Ryder's body, hid behind me with a sheepish look. Melek, I’m the one who made you do it. You don’t need to feel guilty.
"Don't you find me dreadful for asking you to look after a dead child?"
"Not at all, Madame. In the village where I was born, there was an old woman who carried a doll on her back. Her son went to war decades ago and was never heard from again. She had dementia and remembered only her son's name, so she raised that doll as if it were her child. And… that woman was my grandmother. Everyone in the village called her a crazy old woman, but I understood her. So, I don't think you're strange at all."
"…Thank you."
Weather comforted Madame Toten by sharing her own past. Seriously, why is every kid's backstory in this romance fantasy novel so dark? Daisy's trusted director turned out to be a slave trader, Canna was kidnapped by some weirdo and nearly died, and now Weather, who just appeared, comes with a tear-jerking, melodramatic history.
Come to think of it, it wasn't just the maids. Even Madame Toten and Gabriel had gloomy, dark, and depressing backstories. This was all because the setting was a dark RoFan.
Madame Toten, looking somewhat relieved, turned toward me.
"Thank you, Lady Rohanson."
"I'm glad I could be of help."
"And, what should I call you? …Melek?"
The next person she thanked was Melek. Peeking his head out from behind me, Melek spoke.
"That was the name of my previous body. The name Lady Rohanson gave me is Mer—!"
I quickly slapped a hand over his mouth before he could say something ridiculous. Don't you dare say Meringue! Giving a ghost such a cute name makes me look like a total weirdo! Would she understand if I explained it was like giving a typhoon a childish name? No, probably not!
Melek met my eyes and seemed to get the hint, giving a small nod. I took my hand away.
"Please, call me Melek."
"Alright. Melek, thank you for your help."
"No, it's… I-I'm sorry. For taking your son's body…"
"That was my choice. You are a better person than I thought."
Perhaps because the body he was using belonged to Ryder, Madame Toten's gaze was incredibly warm, as if she were looking at her own son. Melek seemed relieved by her reaction.
I felt a faint sense of camaraderie, as if we had all overcome a great ordeal together. I wanted to sniffle at the heartwarming scene, but Hena checked the time and broke the mood.
"My Lady, I think you need to leave now."
Really? I glanced at the clock. Oh my god, there's only an hour left? We had to leave right now if we didn't want to be late. But we couldn't just walk out and leave Madame Toten in such a state. As a quick fix, Hena and Weather decided to help her get ready. Fortunately, Hena's makeup skills were top-notch, impressive enough to be acknowledged even by Misha.
"Then, please excuse me."
Under Hena's touch, Madame Toten gradually regained her usual appearance. Her damp, flat hair was neatly pinned up.
"Do you like it?"
"Yes… Thank you."
With a touch of color on her lips, she finally looked alive again. Madame Toten wanted to keep her shoes on, so we only picked out a dress. The dark green gown suited her unusually calm demeanor today.
"Your maid is very skilled, My Lady."
"Isn't she?"
I straightened proudly at the praise for Hena. And it wasn't just Hena who was good; the kids back home were all top-tier. Seeing my people get recognized by others made the corners of my mouth twitch upward.
"Shall we go now that we're ready?"
Alright, let's go! I thought, getting to my feet, but then my eyes fell on Melek possessing Ryder.
"What about Melek?"
"Indeed. We locked up the butler and Dies, so nothing major should happen… but we can't take him to the banquet."
Just then, Weather spoke up hesitantly.
"Madame, I will stay by the Young Master's side."
"You? Weather, you saw everything. You know this child… is no longer Ryder. Will you still be alright with that?"
"I'm fine with it."
At Weather's unhesitating reply, Madame Toten looked taken aback.
"Why…?"
"If my father had returned like Young Master Ryder, even in this way, my grandmother would have been so happy. Isn't that better than a doll?"
Madame Toten offered a faint smile.
"Thank you. I'm counting on you."
It was decided that Weather would look after Melek while we attended the banquet. Madame Toten was relieved, but my dilemma remained.
If Melek stays at the Marquis's estate, who's going to be my coachman?
I'd gotten so used to Melek driving that I felt like I'd get motion sickness in any other carriage. Am I doomed to travel in a rattling, nausea-inducing box from now on, enduring a sore butt? I hate that!
Besides, what about my carriage? Do I have to go to the Imperial Palace in Madame Toten's? How do I get home? As I walked out, filled with worry, an unexpected figure was waiting for us.
Ah! It was the beastkin coachman who shared those memories with Jelly and Daisy!
"Use him as you please."
I'd wondered where Jelly had vanished to after bringing Melek, but it turned out he had the sense to bring a coachman. What a good kid! Today, you're as cute as Pudding! (But let's keep that a secret from Pudding!)
Melek, on the other hand, was deeply saddened to see his spot taken. Even though his soul was Melek, his appearance was Ryder's, so when his eyes welled up with tears, I felt an urge to comfort him.
"Being the coachman is my job…"
"It is. He's just filling in until you return."
"Right? Gamigiiin… My Lady, you must take good care of Gamigin until I get back."
Melek bid a tearful farewell to the horse. Since he had to remain in Ryder's body until the Marquisate stabilized, he seemed sorrowful that there was no telling when he could return.
"When can I go back?"
"Once the Marchioness's position is secure. Just stay until she can stand on her own, even without Ryder."
"Yes, I will… Oh, by the way, My Lady. What about my meals?"
Ah. Right. There was the issue of meals. But why is his first priority the horse, and only then does he think of food? Isn't it usually the other way around?
Is it because he's a ghost that his priorities are backward? You know, like how they say ghosts clap with the backs of their hands or wrap lettuce inside the meat instead of the other way around. A meat-wrapped ssam sounds tempting, but Melek wouldn't be able to eat it anyway.
But wasn't Melek originally a cow beastkin? Doesn't he need flowers? Does his appetite not change even when possessing a different body? For now, while Melek stays at the Marquis's estate, I'll probably have to pluck flower petals and send them to Madame Toten. Geez, there were so many things to sort out.
Since we needed to discuss how to handle things on the way, Madame Toten decided to ride with me in my carriage. Jelly took off, saying he was tired. I had only brought him because I was worried something might happen at the Marquis's estate, and since he'd even brought a coachman, he had faithfully fulfilled his role. He was free to go.
"Then I'll go home first."
Jelly vanished with a teleport. I'm so jealous. I'll probably never be able to learn magic. My spirit affinity is at rock bottom, so my magical talent is bound to be nonexistent.
Madame Toten stood blankly, seemingly shocked by Jelly's sudden disappearance. Ah. I forgot. Maybe I should have hidden it, but after seeing Melek possess Ryder's body, Jelly suddenly vanishing was nothing… I pretended it was normal and gestured for Madame Toten to get into the carriage.
*
Andras returned to the Rohanson mansion, letting out a wide yawn. As he begged Daisy for snacks and rolled around on Evangeline's bed, Flauros scratched him with bared claws. Andras shrieked at the sharp pain and writhed on the floor.
"Don't get dog hair on Lady Evangeline's bed."
"Ah! Pudding, this is animal abuse, you cat bastard! Stop the discrimination! You get to purr on Master's lap like a housecat, but I can't even lie on the bed?"
Flauros ignored him and sat primly on the edge of the bed. Perhaps because Evangeline was away, he had taken human form for the first time in a long while. He was so dazzling that Andras frowned automatically at the scattered light.
Having been knocked to the floor, Andras had no choice but to turn back into a human. If he couldn't leave hair, he had to be human. But wasn't a human lying on the bed even more inappropriate? Just as he was about to jump onto it, Flauros stopped him and pointed to the sofa.
"Your place is over there."
"You should have just said so. You just didn't want me on the bed at all."
Having no choice, Andras slumped onto the sofa, which was practically his designated seat, and leaned back. I'm the nice one, so I'll let it slide. Just in time to cheer him up, Daisy brought some sherbet. Taking a bite, he felt all the stress in the world melt away.
"Where is Lady Evangeline?"
"She left straight for the Imperial Palace."
Flauros began to share what he was seeing through the eyes he had placed around Evangeline.
"Ugh. What a stalker," Jelly clicked his tongue.
"Ah, speaking of stalkers, there were an unusually large number of people lurking near the Marquis's estate. But get this, most of them were priests."
"Priests?"
The scenery, which had been rushing by from the carriage's perspective, finally stopped upon arriving at the Imperial Palace. Flauros felt a faint sense of unease from the palace visible through his remote vision. He couldn't pinpoint exactly what was wrong, but it was a subtle, unsettling feeling.
"Andras. Why is there a rotting smell?"
"From me?"
Andras lifted his arm and sniffed, but there was only the scent of a well-groomed, high-class indoor dog.
"From the Imperial Palace. I feel uneasy… I think I should go to Lady Evangeline myself."
Flauros replicated the exact clothes worn by the Imperial Palace servants he could see. It was an outfit that didn't suit his curly blonde hair or his pale, slender fingers, which had never seen a callus, but he didn't care.
"Master probably likes you better as a cat. Wait, what if she doesn't even recognize you?"
Andras giggled, only to get swatted once more. Even so, he proudly managed to protect his sherbet.
*
"Where shall I take you?"
"To the Imperial Palace."
I stated our destination and got into the carriage. No matter how skilled the coachman was, he was no match for Melek. The carriage began to roll, rattling along. I stared out the window to stave off motion sickness and noticed that the rain had stopped. The clouds had cleared, and the moon revealed its soft glow. Madame Toten stared blankly at the sky.
"The rain has stopped."
The rainy season that had been pouring for days had finally passed. The moon was ridiculously beautiful.
"Madame Toten. Do you know today's date?"
"Yes. Of course."
She looked puzzled, as if I were bringing up something completely random. I had hesitated to say this, but I decided to just go ahead.
"Never forget today. We took death away from Ryder. We robbed him of his chance to be mourned and stole his eternal rest. So, let's at least be the ones to remember the anniversary of his passing."
I took a flower made of gems out of my pocket and handed it to her. It was a crystal flower I had received as a bonus from Misha, who said it was a practice piece from when she crafted my ruby flower. It didn't really match my debutante dress, so I had packed it, thinking of giving it to Gabriel.
I never thought it would be used for this. This was my tribute to Ryder.
Madame Toten accepted the crystal flower. Then, clutching the gem as if it were the most precious thing in the world, she burst into tears. She sobbed like a child.
Weeping sorrowfully, she poured out everything that had happened—how Ryder had been sick for five days and how he had finally passed away today. From Ryder's last words to how she had sought me out, clutching at straws.
"I will never forget today. It's the Crown Prince's birthday, so I couldn't forget it even if I tried."
Madame Toten promised me, her eyes red and swollen. By the time she finished her story, we had almost reached the Imperial Palace.
"We're almost there."
Having unburdened herself, she looked much more at ease.
Since the rain had stopped, I opened the window and looked outside. Whoa, the Imperial Palace is across the river. After crossing a massive suspension bridge, an incredibly imposing main gate came into view. That was a gate? My jaw dropped.
Imperial guards stood before it, inspecting each carriage one by one.
"They are checking the guest list to see if we are authorized to enter," Madame Toten, who was once again the perfect noblewoman save for her red-rimmed eyes, explained why the carriage had stopped. The inspection was incredibly strict, even though we weren't crossing a border. Well, it was the Imperial Palace; they had to be careful about assassins. After inspecting each carriage, it was finally our turn.
"Please show me your invitation… Ah! This person—his neck is twisted…!"