Chapter 24

“Milady? What’s wrong?” Rona asked in a puzzled tone.

“Rona, do you know?”

“What is it, Milady?”

“When a person suddenly acts differently, it means they’re about to die.”

This was why I shouldn’t be behaving so strangely. Look at how people were treating me now.

“Pardon?”

“If the present changes, the future can change as well.”

“What are you talking about, Milady?”

“It’s possible, you know.”

I’d always felt so suffocated at the very thought of the contract. As I took my first step out of this hopeless situation, I could imagine myself walking on a tightrope where one wrong move would fling me to the depths of damnation, yet success would also mean my survival.

Despite all this, there was still hope—it was there because I myself changed. Now, I just need to get divorced without a hitch and leave this house with my head intact…

“Ouch—”

As my thoughts strayed, I didn’t realize that I clenched my injured hand into a fist tightly. The pain prickled in a way that made my brows furrow.

“Milady, are you all right? I hope you get well soon… It must be very uncomfortable.”

“Not really.”

“Are you fine now?” She peered curiously.

“That’s not it either.”

The pain was still there, but that’s beside the point. Giving my hand a purposeful look, it dawned upon me how my injury would still prove to be useful in the future.

“You’ll feel better if you apply some medication on it and drink some painkillers,” the maid continued with a concerned tone.

I simply nodded in return as I shook my hand fervently.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s not good to rely on medicine too much.”

Well, to be honest, I didn’t really think that at all.

[ Did I do that? ]

[ …I’m sorry. ]

Since he didn’t know what to do at that time, Amoide had a complicated expression on his face as he held my hand.

‘Well, it’s obvious that you hate me, anyway.’

It was embarrassing that it weighed on my conscience to keep acting like this, but this hand wrapped in bandages was the only weapon available in my arsenal right now.

So, my hand, I ask that you don’t get better anytime soon.

At least, not in front of him…

* * *

“What do you think? I had all this prepared for you,” I said proudly as I took in the sight of a full meal on the table.

Amoide’s menu changed drastically in the last few days. Firstly, the number of dishes increased. In place of the bland porridge that was constantly served due to the notion that it’s the only thing a person with a weak constitution could consume, meat and fish were now on the table.

My eyes glistened with anticipation for Amoide’s reaction.

“To be perfectly blunt, I think I’ll have an upset stomach from this.”

…So, it was like that.

Not discouraged in the least, I retorted, “But if you were to speak honestly, it’s delicious, right? This new menu.”

“You can read all the reports about my physical condition that Raymond took down,” he said, changing the subject without answering whether or not he found the food to be palatable.

‘Nothing to say, huh?’

I thought as I hid my smile silently, then I smiled, “That’s right.”

“I guess my mother consented to this?”

“Yes.”

“Jean also changed the meal plan…”

Not missing a beat, with eyes that shone with persistence, I questioned him again. “How is it? It’s delicious, right?”

I heard from Jean that the best compliment that could be given to the chef was an empty plate at the end of the meal because that’s when you know the food was truly delicious.

Since I now ate together with Amoide, I also thought the food wasn’t bad at all, only that it wasn’t seasoned with the usual amount for normal people. With a discernible reluctance on his lips, he answered shortly, “I guess.”

He answered positively, but he was soon lost in thought moments after, so I asked, “What’s on your mind…?”

“Why do they all listen to you?”

“Is there something wrong with that?”

I responded flippantly, but it only fuelled the suspicion in his eyes further.

“You have something up your sleeve, don’t you? What did you say to those people that made them follow you?”

“What are you saying? Isn’t this all for the sake of your health?”

At my evasive response, he still held onto his suspicion as he insisted, “My condition has always been like this, so it makes no sense that people are suddenly worried now.”

“But you collapsed recently, so it’s especially worrying.” My answer was without any gaps, so he shouldn’t have any doubts left. “If you eat this healthy yet delicious food, your condition will also get better in no time. Now, please have a bite.”

“Isn’t this too much?”

He narrowed his eyes at the new dishes on the table, but I paid him no mind and opened the lid of the main dish.

“Earlier this morning at daybreak, Jean took special care to win the bid for this fish at the auction.”

It was a large fish, carefully cut and seasoned with a sauce that Jean made himself.

“Smells good, doesn’t it? And it looks good, too, so it’ll surely taste amazing. Jean grilled this with a special sauce.”

“Special sauce?”

When Jean was asked what the sauce was made of, he immediately divulged the recipe, and I took it straight to Raymond. The doctor smiled with satisfaction after taking a close look at each vegetable and spice that went into the sauce.

[ It’s a great combination to energize the Duke. ]

Raymond picked up his quill and drew a big circle on the recipe.

[ Approved. ]

At that, I smiled widely and held the recipe to my chest.

With reservations against the dish still in place, Amoide stated, “The fish bones weren’t removed.”

I replied, without missing a beat. “You know, bones have calcium… Still, anyway, this is good for your bones, too, for your limbs to get stronger. That’s why you should eat a lot, Amoide.”

Despite my soft urging, he retaliated with a glare.

“What the hell did you add in that sauce?”

“The fish is already dead, you don’t need to glare at it so hard,” I laughed as I took a portion of the fish and placed it on a plate. The flesh was tender, so it was easy to do this with only my left hand.

I could feel his heated gaze on my right hand the whole time.

“Let me do it for you, Milady.”

Emma, who was standing behind my chair at my beck and call, approached my plate. However, before she could take it, I stopped her.

“No, it’s all right. I’ll do it.”

We went through this over and over again, like parrots repeating each other’s words, so I eventually left Emma alone and let her do as she pleased. She didn’t follow my instructions because, I assume, she wanted me and my husband to have a nice meal as a couple.

[ It’s my duty to stand beside my master. ]

“Pardon me, Milady.”

Emma brought out a long, thin silver apparatus. Confused by her actions, I called out to her with a calm voice, “Emma, What are you doing?”

Rona, who was standing from afar, widened her eyes.

“When eating new kinds of food,” Emma said, “there is a need to undergo a poison test.”

Rona interrupted, “But the Duchess already had a bite earlier.”

As the younger maid mentioned, I tasted the food in advance, yet Emma still insisted that there might be poison in our food. Of course, it was easy for anyone to make the excuse of tasting the food before serving it, but…

Since it wasn’t an excuse, I would have already been poisoned, and I’d really be dead by now.

It was actually difficult now for anyone who’d try to poison Amoide because I, now, taste everything first. Regardless, after going through all that, I merely smiled at the resolute Emma.

“It’s fine. Stop it, Rona.”

I added gently. “This poison test is a necessity, after all.”

“Still, Milady, these dishes… you already tasted everything…” Rona continued anyway, her lips betraying a stubborn frown.

“Yes, but this way, Amoide wouldn’t have any trouble eating,” I said, then took a quick glance at Emma. “It’s wonderful that you have such a strong sense of duty, Emma. Don’t lose that spirit.”

“…”

It was an honest compliment, but Emma obviously took it as a backhanded one.

‘I really am complimenting you, though…’

There was never any harm in testing the food for poison. This way, we could even stop Amoide’s untimely demise. If a poison test would stop my supposed future self from putting Amoide’s life in danger, then this was rather good.

“Then, please excuse me.”

Saying so, Emma lifted the silver rod.

“Don’t bother, let’s just eat.”

At Amoide’s sudden interjection, my gaze shifted to him. A look of annoyance was pasted on his features as he stared at me and Emma, and the pressure from his calm blue eyes somehow gave me a stomachache.

“No, you should continue with the test,”

I interjected, shaking my head.

“You only want to make sure, don’t you, Emma?”

“Yes, thank you for understanding.”

Speaking with the characteristic disinterest of a parrot once more, Emma proceeded to do the poison test. She used the silver rod to poke at the food, repeatedly sticking it into the finely chopped meat, the thick steaming stew, and the fish I sliced just now.

I trained my eyes on the silver rod’s tip every time it was taken out of the food. I wanted to see if it would turn black.

Observing the poison test as it was administered made me feel strange.

I realized how people of a high enough stature would constantly be exposed to poison like this.