Chapter 30.
Foreigner in the Frozen Land (5)
The butler Rolf—who had managed the Ruisenford Castle for over twenty years together with the head maid—was a viscount without land.
Before Peon arrived and elevated it into a grand ducal domain, this place had only been a mere county. With no actual count ruling it, the honorary title of viscount had simply been passed down through generations of butlers who managed it in the count’s absence.
But when Peon became Grand Duke, and vast lands and castles worthy of the title were incorporated into Ruisenford, Rolf and the head maid Doris found themselves strangely feeling as if they had become someone important.
Even if those lands were mostly frozen wastelands—trampled by the servants of the evil dragon, where not a blade of grass grew under the snow.
As the Emperor’s son and Grand Duke, Peon also received supplies and gold coins sent by the Empress herself. To him, it was a pitifully small amount. But to those fighting the dragon and the cold in this barren land, it was enormous. It was enough to make their shoulders lift with pride.
No matter how much people mocked Peon as a bastard, in Ruisenford he was precious blood—the Imperial Family itself.
“Did you call for me, Your Highness?”
Rolf had raised Peon alongside the dismissed head maid Doris. When the boy had fallen ill or been injured sparring with knights in the training yard, Rolf had stayed up all night caring for him. He celebrated his birthdays and rejoiced at every academic achievement.
Peon was not a man of Kraine—he was a man of Ruisenford. He had the northern spirit and strength.
And yet, he had suddenly married a southern noble princess.
“Where are the keys that should be held by the head maid?”
“I am temporarily holding them.”
“Bring them now.”
“Now…? Yes, understood.”
Of course, marrying a wealthy southern princess was something to be welcomed. When the new bride arrived in Ruisenford, her procession had been so grand it was honestly larger than the one when Peon himself had come of age.
But that was because Peon had been a child then.
Still, Rolf and Doris had hoped Peon would marry into a prestigious Ruisenford noble house. After all, he was the Grand Duke.
“Here they are, Your Highness.”
“Is this all of them?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
Rolf explained one by one which key belonged to which lock.
“There are quite a lot.”
“Yes. The head maid managed most of these responsibilities. It is a heavy duty.”
“A post with such heavy responsibility should not be entrusted to someone who treats their master’s words lightly.”
The Grand Duke was still furious.
Doris had been foolish—there was no other word for it. Rumor had it she was now confined in an old hunting lodge near the border, unable to move. How frustrating.
Her opponent was the Princess of Osterine. The future Duchess of Osterine.
If Peon had a child with her, that child would become both Grand Duke of Ruisenford and Duke of Osterine—an unbelievable position.
And yet she dared to lay hands on such a woman?
Rolf, who had quietly distanced himself from the incident, carefully erased the fact that he had once tacitly supported Doris. He also conveniently forgot that his silence had only encouraged her actions.
“As Your Highness commands.”
At the banquet, five nobles who had looked down on the young Grand Duchess alongside the head maid were dragged into the dungeons one after another. They were all executed without exception.
Rolf thought the Grand Duchess was far too naive. What good was sparing the head maid’s life? A miserable existence would follow—worse than death. In Ruisenford, such half-hearted mercy only bred resentment.
“From now on, all internal administration will be handled by the Grand Duchess. Transfer all duties under your authority that belong to her.”
Rolf flinched.
Peon’s violet eyes fixed on him without wavering.
“Take this incident as a lesson. Show an example. Prove that Ruisenford has people who are loyal and respectful toward their master.”
Yes. Viscount Butler Rolf Anderson was still, for now, such a loyal subject.
For now.
“Yes, Your Highness. I will do my utmost.”
Even as Rolf bowed and turned to leave, Peon did not take his eyes off him.
The physician Darinka, who had been unexpectedly assigned to treat the Grand Duchess, was a cheerful, stout woman—one of the few female doctors who traveled on house calls without marrying.
She had been ordered to remain until the Grand Duchess fully recovered. So she either commuted to the castle in the morning or stayed within it to monitor her condition.
“Would you like another blanket? It’s colder today.”
The Grand Duchess was quite beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that people likely grew used to saying so since childhood.
She had icy-clear blue eyes, a straight forehead, flawless skin, and pale blonde hair so light it seemed almost white under certain light. Even her eyebrows and eyelashes—closer to the roots—were darker and harmonized naturally.
Still… Lady Lavalet was prettier.
Yes. Much more lively. She smiled more.
Darinka had seen and heard many things while moving between the castle and the Duchess’s sickroom. Within the castle, where the head maid once held firm control, people openly expressed regret over her dismissal.
But even those same people, who had gossiped about Lady Lavalet’s identity and presence, were quiet and cautious by the next morning. Even laundry-room chatter about beauty comparisons had been strictly suppressed by the Grand Duke.
In Darinka’s eyes, the Grand Duke cared deeply for the young Duchess.
Of course, she was of far higher status than Lady Lavalet, but even so, it made no sense for him to stay by her side for three days while she hovered between life and death.
He never once took his eyes off her—but also never touched her.
He had even retrieved a rare medicine from the domain of the Evil Dragon, yet after she woke, he rarely came near her.
Is he suddenly acting distant out of propriety?
But the real issue was the Grand Duchess herself.
“Look at this, Your Grace. The pattern is so beautiful, isn’t it? It’s Ruisenford’s traditional embroidery.”
No matter what the maids brought her, she only offered a brief polite smile.
Perhaps it was because she had suffered something so severe immediately after marriage.
Darinka’s earlier concerns were becoming clearer.
“You’ve recovered very quickly. Truly fortunate.”
“It’s thanks to your efforts.”
The Grand Duchess, who even remembered to thank her subordinates, was objectively a good mistress.
“I did nothing. The medicine was brought by His Highness.”
Darinka, of course, did not reveal where that medicine had come from. Only the doctor, the Grand Duke, the Duchess, and her maids knew.
“You were the one who prescribed what was needed.”
The Duchess already carried herself like a Grand Duchess—and it felt entirely natural.
“Thank you. You may resume daily life now, but carefully. Be especially cautious with food, and even in this cold, you should still take light walks.”
Patients usually welcomed such words. No one disliked being told they had recovered.
But the Duchess did not look pleased. She accepted the praise, but something deeper remained.
“You must not overwork yourself either. Rest appropriately. That will stabilize your body and calm your condition.”
“Understood.”
Kaela nodded.
Honestly, even without the doctor’s insistence, she was currently living the laziest life she had ever known. Or rather, she had no will to live differently.
She already knew exactly what would happen next. Nothing was new. Reliving it was worse than before.
But her past experience as a competent Grand Duchess still made her body act on its own.
I’ll probably have to meet the nobles again… but the head maid would’ve handled that anyway. Why should I?
Wasn’t she always treated as a young, ignorant noble girl?
The humiliation surfaced briefly—then she suddenly realized.
The head maid is gone.
Gone. Then maybe she could move more freely?
Her shoulders lifted slightly—then sank again.
So what. Even without the head maid, others would take her place. The butler was still here. They would just appoint someone else based on their interests. Kaela, as an “outsider,” had no role in it.
“Please do just one important thing, Your Grace, then rest again.”
“Yes… I suppose so.”
“You can watch embroidery, or enjoy the snow. Ruisenford has so much snow—it’s fascinating.”
Ruisenford was not a place worth investing effort in.
In a few years, the Grand Duke would inevitably be accused of treason by the Emperor, and Ruisenford would be trampled by imperial forces.
Before that, I should send these innocent maids south.
Every time she looked at them, she reaffirmed it.
This time, she would ensure all three of them escaped war.
That was the only goal of her powerless life.
So once again, Kaela decided to do nothing.
She had neither motivation nor the ability to play any meaningful role in this predetermined stage.
“The head maid should be chosen by the Grand Duchess.”
Peon said clearly as he looked at Kaela.
“It is best to resolve personnel matters first. The more people you can rely on, the easier it will be.”
She stared at her husband blankly, slightly annoyed.
In the past, she would have carefully controlled every expression and gesture in front of him. Now she did not bother hiding anything.
“Do you have anyone in mind, Your Highness?”
She assumed the next head maid had already been decided and she was only being asked to pretend.
“…In mind?”
Peon looked at her in genuine confusion.
He seemed slightly flustered.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know much about this. I’ll leave everything to you. Please choose whoever you think is best. It’s your domain.”
Kaela thought for a moment.
“Then should I consult the butler?”
“That would also be fine.”
He paused, then looked directly at her.
“I trust your judgment. I believe you will find someone more capable than the butler—someone whose talents Ruisenford has overlooked.”
Who are you?
Kaela stared at him as if he were a stranger.
Had God, feeling pity for her, placed someone else inside Peon’s body this time?
“This is your authority. Please decide directly.”
“You must choose your people.”
People who would become her hands and eyes in this cold, lonely place.
“This may be a good thing. You could choose the head maid yourself and begin anew.”
“A new beginning?”
“A beginning in Ruisenford.”
Kaela was skeptical. How much could changing one person really change anything?
Soon, she heard of a gathering where Ruisenford noblewomen would come to meet the new Grand Duchess.
A formal, expected event. A place to greet her, pledge cooperation, and present loyalty.
“It will proceed in a completely proper and safe manner.”
Peon’s tone was calm and firm. Not cold, not threatening—but absolute.
That was his way.
Within Ruisenford, everything ultimately moved according to his will.
“Since you will preside over it, it will be safe.”
He had an unyielding will.
He would break before he bent. That was why she had once fallen into him so helplessly in her previous life.
But that was long ago.
Kaela, who had already given up on life, watched him as if observing something irrelevant.
Then he reached out a box.
“This is the item I previously showed you as a raw stone. I apologize for the delay in finishing it. I hope you like it.”
Inside was a dazzling ring—water-drop shaped, large enough to fill an entire joint of her finger.
Kaela realized belatedly that it was crafted from the smallest of the twelve diamonds mined from the Kerban mine.
“How is it?”
If she disliked it, he would remake it. He only wanted her happiness.
But Kaela suddenly looked around in confusion.
“Excuse me. One moment.”
She rummaged through a locked drawer in her vanity and returned with a box.
“Is this mine?”
“Yes, of course.”
“Then I’ll return this.”
With a blank expression, Kaela handed him back the empress’s ring—the engagement ring she had received at marriage—as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
