The Merdelia Ducal House
Holy crap…
The moment I first laid eyes on the Merdelia Ducal House where Viviana lived, the thought that hit me hardest was that anyone with a terrible sense of direction would never survive in a place like this.
The estate was so vast I could barely tell whether it was a mansion or a full-blown castle. Even standing far outside the main gates, staring up at it from a distance, I could feel the sheer weight of the ducal house’s prestige seeping straight into my bones.
"Aren't you coming in, Lady Bland?"
Viviana looked at me with a faintly puzzled expression.
I couldn't keep standing there gawking forever. Pushing the dazed feeling aside, I put on a bright smile and stepped closer to her.
"The mansion is enormous, My Lady."
"The other ducal houses are about this size as well."
The only catch being that there are only four of them in the entire empire…
It was deep into the night, the heavy darkness settled thick around us, when I arrived at Viviana’s estate. When I had asked if I could hear her play the piano, she had hesitated for only a moment before offering to play for me right away and inviting me back to the mansion with her.
I had asked to be invited, yes… but I had expected a formal invitation to arrive later. I never imagined she would simply tell me to come over at this late hour.
Leaving the final night of the banquet behind, I had arrived here. I had already sent word to Mother that Lady Viviana had invited me, so it should be fine. I had even enclosed a letter bearing Viviana’s own seal, so she wouldn’t worry too much.
Swallowing the quiet disappointment that I wouldn’t be able to nestle into Mother’s warm arms tonight, I offered Viviana a soft smile.
"It looks at least ten times bigger than our house… As expected of you, My Lady. You’re truly amazing."
"This is the achievement of the previous duke. I had nothing to do with it."
"That doesn’t change the fact that you’re an incredible person, Viviana. And modest on top of it."
I naturally pressed myself against her side and slipped my arm through hers. Viviana glanced down at me with those calm eyes of hers, but thankfully she didn’t pull away.
Good. Viviana’s no different from the rest.
Back in the Korea I used to live in, linking arms between girls was just a casual sign of friendship. I had wondered whether that would work in this medieval-fantasy world, so I had tested it a few times.
The result? If anything, the range of acceptable skinship between women here was even broader. Between men it would have been nauseating enough to make someone gag, but whether in Korea or here, there seemed to be a peculiar atmosphere that only existed between women.
I had tried linking arms, intertwining fingers, clinging with my whole body in a tight hug, using a lap as a pillow, stroking hair, nuzzling faces together, even licking fingers… and so far, not a single young lady had disliked my coquettish clinging.
And now that I realized Viviana was no different from the others, I was certain she would like it too.
"Are you always this quick to cling to people, Lady Bland?"
"Ah, was it uncomfortable…? Your scent is so nice I found myself sticking to you without thinking."
"…Just don’t overdo it. I don’t particularly enjoy having my skin touch others as a rule."
See?
Even Viviana, who was so cold and distant in the original story, was putting up with it and pretending to accept it. In the end, her fundamental desires weren’t any different from an ordinary person’s.
"Yes! If you tell me to stop, My Lady, I’ll stop right away."
"…"
Arm in arm with Viviana, we walked through the main gates of the mansion. A throng of servants waiting inside immediately bowed their heads before us.
"Welcome home, My Lady."
A man who seemed to represent the household staff approached Viviana with a kindly smile. The pure white hair crowning his head spoke of advanced age, yet the dignity he carried was impossible to ignore.
"You’ve worked hard. Attending three banquets in a row… His Grace would be quite astonished if he knew."
"Nothing happened while I was gone?"
"No, My Lady. However, it appears something has happened on your end."
The old man’s sharp black eyes fixed on me. Under that seasoned, piercing gaze I felt as though I had been stripped bare. Still, a look like this was nothing. I beamed at the elderly man and spoke up.
"Hello. I’m Tina Bland."
"Oh… I see. A pleasure to meet you. I am Alphonse Fredo, head butler overseeing the household."
The head butler of a ducal house was a figure of considerable standing. Chances were high he came from a family more powerful than mine. I gently lowered one knee and offered him a polite, proper greeting.
"It’s an honor to meet you. May you remain in peace under the Goddess’s protection."
"And you as well. As a precious guest Lady Viviana herself has brought home, there is no need for you to lower yourself before me, Lady Bland."
The way he phrased it almost sounded like, If you weren’t Viviana’s guest, you would be expected to bow your head this instant. Of course, he might not have meant it that way.
"Not at all. How could I hold my head high before someone who has devoted himself to the Merdelia Ducal House?"
"Haha… Your heart is as lovely as your appearance. Allow me to escort you inside."
"Yes! Please do."
Guided by Alphonse, we walked deeper into the mansion. I had thought it looked enormous from the outside, but once inside I realized the exterior size had been nothing.
The vast corridors were adorned with lavish ornaments and exquisite interiors. Even the banquet halls of the imperial palace couldn’t compare; the scale of the ducal mansion was on an entirely different level.
"Waaah…"
"Keep staring like that and you’ll get lost."
At Viviana’s words I quickly fell into step behind her. We climbed a staircase so high it left me winded, crossed another sprawling hallway, and finally arrived at a study that, while free of flashy decoration, radiated an air of quiet nobility.
"What shall we do about dinner?"
"Have it prepared."
When Alphonse asked with perfect courtesy, Viviana handed him her coat and answered briefly. Once the butler withdrew with his orders, only Viviana and I remained in the study.
She sat in her chair, casually took a cigarette from the desk, and lit it. The sight of her long lashes lowering as she smoked was a scene I had seen countless times in the game.
Viviana and cigarettes were inseparable. In a life where playing the piano had been her only joy, she had never once set a cigarette down.
Still… I’ve never been fond of people who smoke, but watching Viviana do it somehow looks a little sexy—
"*Cough, cough.*"
The acrid smoke drifted into my nose. A stinging dryness seized my throat and a fit of coughing burst out. I covered my mouth trying to stop it, but one cough wasn’t the end of it.
"*Hack! Cough! Cough!*"
The coughing showed no sign of stopping. My breathing grew tighter and tears welled at the corners of my eyes. Just how frail was this body that a single wisp of cigarette smoke could leave me unable to hold myself together?
Viviana’s eyes widened in alarm. She immediately snuffed out the cigarette, hurried to open the window, and pressed a glass of water from the desk into my hands.
"Drink."
"*Cough… hah…*"
"I lit it out of habit without thinking… I’m sorry, Lady Bland."
The cool water slid down and soothed my throat. Once I could breathe a little easier, I wiped the tears from my eyes with the handkerchief Viviana offered and gave her an awkward smile.
"I’m the one who should apologize, My Lady…"
"It was my mistake. Why are you apologizing?"
Come to think of it…
She put out the cigarette.
In all the times I had played the game, I had never seen Viviana abandon a cigarette halfway through. Yet she had discarded it without the slightest hesitation the moment she saw my condition. It left me with a strangely unfamiliar feeling.
"Ah… I’m fine now. You can smoke if you want."
I cleared my throat a few times, put on my usual smile, and spoke, but Viviana still slid the cigarette back into the drawer beneath the desk.
"No. I’m not so addicted that I would smoke in front of a frail young lady."
"Mmm…"
I felt a little guilty that she was holding back because of me, yet the fact that that Viviana had given up her cigarette out of concern for me left me feeling oddly pleased.
Before the atmosphere could turn awkward, I looked around for something to talk about and spotted the mountain of documents piled high on Viviana’s desk.
"You’re incredibly busy… Are all of these things you have to handle yourself, Viviana?"
"More or less. Most of them only need a signature, though, so they don’t take long."
"I want to watch you work too! I’m sure you’d look incredibly cool."
"…"
Whether my words had flustered her or not, Viviana stared at me in silence for a long moment before letting out a short sigh and brushing her hair back with one hand.
"Isn’t there something else you should be looking at, Lady Bland?"
"Pardon?"
I tilted my head, not immediately understanding. When I failed to answer right away, Viviana seemed to grow impatient; she turned her face aside and spoke briefly.
"The piano performance. You said you wanted to hear it."
"…Ah!"
Her head turned shyly away.
The faint flush rising along the edge of her ear.
And the bashful tone of her voice.
I broke into a wide, blooming smile.