Chapter : 04

‘It’s because of the way she usually behaves.’

The Duke of Sorffel, who had already closed his heart to his stepdaughter because she caused trouble everywhere she went and dragged the duchy’s honor through the mud, didn’t believe her either.

‘First…’

She needed to win over Duke Sorffel.

No matter what that bastard Ravi did, she had to make sure his mess didn’t splash onto her as well.

‘But how?’

He had probably already lost every bit of affection he had for her.

[Hey.]

‘She isn’t even his biological daughter.’

If his real daughter behaved like that, he would probably throw her out. And this was a stepdaughter who didn’t share a single drop of blood with him, yet she had been going around ruining the family’s reputation…

[Can you not hear my voice?]

‘I wouldn’t like her either.’

Why did she even have to grab other noble ladies by the hair and fight with them?

[Look at me, will you?]

‘And in a party where so many people were gathered, too.’

[Hey, you can hear me, right? You’re listening, aren’t you?]

‘Isn’t there some good way?’

Should she go and kneel before him and beg?

[We definitely made eye contact last time. You can see me, can’t you?]

“Damn it! So what? What are you going to do if I can see you?”

Her mind was already chaotic enough!

Camilla finally reacted to the old man who had been coming to find her and talking to her nonstop for the past few days.

‘I was going to ignore him until the very end!’

She already had too much to think about, and the old man kept following her around and chattering beside her. She couldn’t ignore him any longer.

[Y-You really can!]

The old man dressed as a chef, Perol, trembled as if he had received an enormous shock.

“I don’t do anything.”

Seeing Perol looking at her with deeply moved eyes, Camilla immediately drew a clear line.

There was absolutely nothing good about listening to beings like him.

“I don’t pass on messages for you, solve problems for you, or help you fulfill your lingering regrets. I don’t do that. I can’t.”

‘Why would I ask for trouble?’

Trying to fulfill ghosts’ wishes by using her brain as much as possible without being called a crazy bitch was mentally and physically exhausting.

It was best to simply ignore them whenever possible.

[Y-You can really see me?]

“I don’t do it. I can’t.”

[How fascinating! Amazing! You can really see me! And you can hear my voice too?]

He’s not listening.

Camilla gently shook her head as she watched the old man become excited all by himself without even pretending to listen to what she said.

‘This isn’t the time for this.’

Camilla immediately stopped paying attention to him.

At this rate, she might soon end up wandering the world as a ghost like him.

She had to somehow win Duke Sorffel’s heart…

“Argh! How am I supposed to know what the Duke likes or dislikes? I don’t know anything, so what am I supposed to do?”

Camilla didn’t have many interactions with the Duke.

The only time they properly faced each other was usually when she caused trouble and got scolded.

Naturally, she had no idea what he liked or what pleased him.

[What does the Duke like?]

At that moment, Perol’s voice sounded again.

He had somehow moved close to Camilla and was smiling warmly.

[I know very well what the Duke likes.]

“……!”

[I’ve worked here ever since our Duke was a baby.]

Camilla, who had been sitting limply, immediately jumped to her feet.

“Sir!”

Chapter. Let’s Survive First

“Hmm.”

Early in the morning, Duke Sorffel went for a walk for the first time in a long while.

Recently, he had been so busy with official duties that he had hardly had any free time. So today, he decided to fully enjoy the rare leisure he had been given.

‘It’s been a long time since I came here too.’

He headed toward a garden filled with baby’s breath flowers.

The vast field of white flowers spreading out like a mist-covered landscape was truly magnificent.

‘Hm?’

Just then, as he slowly walked while admiring the baby’s breath damp with morning dew, his eyes widened slightly.

‘Camilla?’

He saw a familiar figure in the distance.

Camilla was standing in the middle of the baby’s breath garden, apparently doing something.

Duke Sorffel’s brow immediately furrowed deeply.

‘Don’t tell me that girl is causing trouble again…!’

Something like this had happened before.

Camilla had dug up a perfectly healthy rose garden here and there, leaving it in complete disorder.

As always, Camilla had kept her mouth tightly shut and offered no explanation whatsoever.

He had assumed she had done it for no particular reason.

Back then, he could simply let it go.

A rose garden could always be restored.

But this place was different.

This baby’s breath garden held a different meaning.

“Camilla!”

Duke Sorffel called out to her in a somewhat harsh voice and quickly approached.

Then he firmly grabbed the shoulder of Camilla, who was repeatedly bending down and standing back up.

Rustle.

“……!”

Something Camilla had been holding fell to the ground because of his sudden action.

Baby’s breath flowers.

“Ah…”

Camilla looked at Duke Sorffel with a slightly surprised expression.

Then she looked regretfully at the baby’s breath flowers that had fallen to the ground.

Soon, she bent down and carefully began picking up every single flower.

“What are you doing here?”

“I was picking flowers.”

“Flowers?”

After gathering all the baby’s breath flowers, Camilla stood up.

A faint smile appeared on the girl’s face as she faced Duke Sorffel, who was looking at her with confusion.

“I wanted to decorate your room, Father.”

“My room?”

“Yes.”

“…….”

“I noticed before that your office looked too empty.”

Duke Sorffel looked at Camilla with an extremely complicated expression.

She had been picking flowers to decorate his office?

What was she suddenly thinking?

She was absolutely not the kind of child who would do something like this.

“Is that not allowed?”

Camilla held the baby’s breath flowers tightly in her arms and looked at him cautiously.

Duke Sorffel couldn’t say anything for quite some time.

And eventually…

“Do as you wish.”

He gave her his brief permission.

“Thank you!”

Camilla’s face immediately brightened.

Duke Sorffel’s expression became even stranger as he watched her.

“I’ll put them in a vase and bring them to you soon!”

With those words, Camilla left.

Her smile grew wider as she walked out of the flower garden.

“Is it really true that the Duke likes baby’s breath?”

Camilla muttered quietly.

Someone answered her.

[Yes, Lady Camilla.]

It was Derin, the ghost of a butler who had a body so agile that it was hard to think of him as an old man.

Not long after Camilla had spoken with the ghost chef Perol, Derin had come to find her as well.

Having already heard everything from Perol, Derin readily offered to help her.

He had decided to tell her useful information that he knew.

He said there was no reason not to help when Camilla, who had always been isolated within the duchy, was trying to gain her father’s favor.

The first piece of information Derin gave her was about these baby’s breath flowers.

[The late Dowager Duchess loved baby’s breath very much. She personally took care of this flower garden as well.]

The Dowager Duchess was the mother of the current Duke Sorffel, who had passed away a long time ago.

[Because of that, the Duke also considers baby’s breath very special.]

Camilla gently nodded as she listened to Derin.

His words didn’t seem to be false.

Earlier, Duke Sorffel had definitely looked at her differently from usual.

The fact that she had caused even the smallest ripple in his normally indifferent eyes whenever he looked at Camilla was extremely important.

‘At least I’ve opened the way.’

Shall I move on to the next step?

“No.”

The moment Camilla entered the kitchen, Gelard stepped in front of her and blocked her way.

Camilla clicked her tongue.

It reminded her once again of how the previous Camilla had been treated in this place.

She was still a young lady of the duchy.

Even if they weren’t related by blood, she was still the Duke’s daughter.

‘Shouldn’t he at least pretend to think about it?’

Chef Gelard immediately shook his head without even hesitating for a second when Camilla said she wanted to use the kitchen.

The fire burning in his eyes made it obvious that he still held a grudge because she had criticized his food and thrown him out before.

“Why?”

“It’s dangerous.”

“What is?”

“There are many dangerous things in the kitchen. If oil splashes on you, you could be burned immediately. This is not a place where you should be.”

He claimed that she couldn’t enter because it was dangerous, but his eyes clearly said:

How dare someone like you come in here?

He simply didn’t want someone who didn’t know the first thing about food coming into the kitchen he considered his sacred territory and meddling around.

So he kept repeating himself.

“I need to use it.”

“It’s dangerous.”

“I have a dish I absolutely need to make. Move.”

“If you tell me what it is, I will make it for you.”

“It’s something you don’t know how to make.”

“What?”

Gelard’s relaxed face instantly turned red.

As if he couldn’t believe what he had heard, he simply opened and closed his mouth for a moment before finally speaking again.

“You’re saying that you can make something that I can’t?”

“Yeah.”

“Ha…”

Gelard now openly sneered at her.

There couldn’t possibly be a dish in this world that he was unable to make.

No.

Even if such a dish existed, there was no way Camilla could make it.

‘No, wait.’

There were trash-like foods eaten by commoners that he couldn’t make.

Was she trying to make something she had eaten when she lived in that countryside village long ago?

“I see.”

After coming up with his own explanation, Gelard casually stepped aside from the kitchen entrance.

He had no idea what Camilla intended to make, but he was planning to laugh at her as much as he wanted.

“Then go ahead.”

As he led her toward an area filled with cutting boards and knives, Gelard gave everyone around them a warning look.

It was a silent command not to help her with anything.

Could she even properly find the ingredients in this huge kitchen without their help?

Then again, even without such a warning, there probably wasn’t anyone willing to help Camilla.

“…….”

Camilla carefully examined one of the knives lying beside a cutting board.

Then she picked it up.

The blade was sharp, and she liked it very much.

Swish.

“This one’s pretty good.”

“Then that’s fortunate… Why are you coming over here?”

Gelard flinched when he saw Camilla walking toward him with the knife in her hand.

Was she planning to threaten him with that knife?

Could she possibly stab him?

Considering the way she normally behaved, it wouldn’t be surprising if she—

Bang!

“……!”

Contrary to Gelard’s expectations, Camilla threw the knife down into a nearby wooden board as if stabbing it into place.

Then she looked at Gelard, who had frozen in surprise at the loud sound, and spoke.

“Make a bet with me.”

“A-A bet?”

“Yeah. Let’s bet on whether I can make a dish that you would want to learn how to make.”

“Lady Camilla, you?”

Gelard was only surprised for a moment before a mocking smile appeared on his face.

Was she seriously saying that?