MFTR 47

Chapter 47

 A Man You Simply Couldn’t Help but Like

‘No… or maybe, I already…’

“My lady, here you go. Please try this.”

It was then.

Larisa, having picked all the meat clean from the bone, piled the sliced pieces high onto Anette’s plate.

And it wasn’t just meat. In the meantime, she had gone around the long dining table, fetching warm bread and vegetables so they’d be easy for Anette to eat.

Anette met her gaze with a grateful smile, though inwardly she felt a bit embarrassed.

Larisa. Then you must have known the duke before… no, never mind. Forget it.

She recalled the question she hadn’t been able to bring herself to ask earlier.

Larisa knew Kardin before he went off to war.

She knew both the Kardin who had returned as a war hero, and the one who had been poisoned by the blood of demonic beasts and forced to wear a mask.

Back then… was he very discouraged? How much did he suffer?

As she thought about that, a pang of sympathy for Kardin welled up—mixed, to her own surprise, with a twinge of envy toward Larisa.

The thought that Larisa had seen sides of Kardin she herself never had left her strangely downhearted.

And just like in front of the ducal castle before, that same dull ache bloomed in one side of her chest again.

Her mind began spiraling with thoughts she couldn’t stop.

Did Larisa really feel only loyalty toward the man who had saved her life? Or… had deeper, fonder feelings taken root?

Especially when she had seen his face back in those beautiful days.

And more than that—he was the kind of kind-hearted man whose charm went far beyond appearances.

The sort of man you simply couldn’t help but like.

Without realizing it, Anette frowned, unaware that her judgment was laced with personal bias.

Suddenly, she imagined that there might be many other women around who had feelings for him.

No. That won’t do. He’s my fiancé.

And soon to be her husband.

It wasn’t as if she actually knew of any woman who liked him, or had seen someone confess or flirt with him.

But the thought alone made her feel an unexpectedly intense wave of displeasure.

Then, suddenly, she remembered the conversation she’d had when they first met.

“Don’t tell me you’re suggesting I take a mistress?”

“Pardon? Well… I didn’t exactly say that.”

“That’s exactly what you mean. That you wouldn’t mind if I took one.”

“Yes, I wouldn’t interfere. If you wished, I’d even acknowledge an illegitimate child as my own—”

How could he have said something so awful?

Anette still couldn’t believe it.

And she still couldn’t believe—

—that in just a matter of days, she herself had changed so much.

In any case, it was a blessing that day’s conversation had ended as nothing.

If Kardin had actually gone along with her suggestion, taken a mistress, and even fathered an illegitimate child…

CRACK—CLANG!

“Ah!”

“M-my lady?”

Lost in thought, Anette was brought back by the sudden commotion around her.

Everyone—Larisa, the attendants waiting in the dining room, even the head chef peeking in—was staring at her in shock. Or rather, staring at her left hand.

Only then did Anette glance down—and see that she was holding nothing but the broken handle of a fork, its head snapped clean off.

She awkwardly smiled as she loosened her thumb’s grip.

Perhaps it had just dawned on them that the delicate-looking young lady of eight years’ appearance was no ordinary person—several faces looked a bit pale.

“M-my lady, are you feeling unwell?”

“If there’s anything you’re dissatisfied with, please tell us without hesitation, my lady!”

Hilda, the housekeeper, was the first to recover, asking cautiously. Then Larisa followed, her tone steely and resolute—as if promising to eliminate, without mercy, anything that had displeased Anette.

Anette quickly shook her head.

“No, it’s not that… I think I just got a little excited because the food looks so delicious.”

“Ah!”

Even she thought it was an absurd excuse.

But Larisa’s tense face relaxed with relief, and Hilda and the others all exhaled audibly.

Seeing them take her words at face value made Anette’s cheeks grow warm with embarrassment.

Especially when she met Larisa’s eager, expectant gaze, urging her to try the food.

If Larisa really had any romantic interest in Kardin, she surely couldn’t treat his future wife with such genuine care.

So what on earth had she just been doing, making a scene like that?

It felt like her good sense had finally returned after wandering off.

And more than that—it had been Kardin himself who’d said they should be faithful in their marriage.

I have no intention of making my wife suffer the way my mother did.

Anette didn’t doubt the sincerity of those words.

Still… you could never know what might happen in people’s hearts.

If he ever broke that trust…

Her gaze flicked to the mangled fork, and she hastily pushed the thought away before her emotions could boil over again.

Instead, she calmed herself, nodded in thanks to Larisa for replacing her fork, and speared a piece of meat.

Everyone was watching her intently, eager for her to try it—she couldn’t keep them waiting.

And when she took her first bite—

“…!”

Anette’s eyes flew wide open.

The meat was so tender it fell apart the instant her teeth touched it, and the sweet-savory sauce was so perfectly balanced it was almost heavenly.

“It’s… really delicious.”

At her words, the head chef, who had been tense as a bowstring, lit up—along with Hilda and the maids.

Delighted, Larisa began carving more meat for her, and Anette didn’t refuse.

In truth, after her years with the knights, living on tough, dried jerky until she was sick of it, she’d come to think she didn’t care much for meat.

But this… this was nothing like the meat she’d known.

I had no idea meat could be this tender!

Even the bread Larisa offered alongside was a revelation—soft and warm, a far cry from the dry, heavy loaves that always left her throat parched.

She’d always been wary of unfamiliar food, perhaps because she’d been given far too many “pranked” meals as a child.

But tonight’s dinner shattered all her preconceptions.

The palace meals had been delicious too, but back then she’d been too nervous to properly taste them.

“This is truly the best…”

Anette happily sampled everything Larisa set before her: asparagus, mashed potatoes, cheesy eggplant gratin, roast duck, creamy pasta—praising the chef’s skill with every bite.

But as she was chewing, she suddenly noticed the long dining table’s empty seat across from her.

“…”

Her busy mouth began to slow.

Her stomach was filling more and more with each bite, yet it felt as if everything except her stomach was slowly being emptied out.

It was a strange, inexplicable feeling.

“My lady, you must be tired. When you return to your room, I’ll make sure your bed is ready so you can sleep soundly.”

Just as Larisa said, after a thorough wash and a hearty dinner, Anette felt as if she could leap straight into bed.

Looks like… my body really is that of a child now.

She admitted it bitterly.

No matter how exhausting the carriage ride had been, it was still early evening—and yet her eyelids were already drooping.

Back in the day, I could pull all-nighters easily. I could fight demonic beasts for two days straight and still be fine.

Anette was trudging up the stairs, musing on her “good old days” in her small body, when Larisa—walking anxiously beside her in case she tripped—suddenly looked troubled.

Devoted to serving her mistress, Larisa had noticed the subtle shift in Anette’s mood since midway through dinner.

Why does she seem so downhearted?

After some anxious thought, Larisa decided not to pry into her lady’s delicate feelings, but to try and cheer her up instead.

As always, Larisa’s secret weapon was something prepared for the future young heir or heiress of the house.

I don’t know if it’ll work on my lady, but…

In a slightly tentative voice, she asked,

“Um, my lady… if you’re not too sleepy, would you like me to bring you a warm cup of hot chocolate before bed?”

“…Hm?”

Anette, staring blankly ahead, stopped and turned her head.

“Hot chocolate?”

It was as if Larisa had uttered a magic word—Anette felt a sudden rush of craving.

So that’s why I’ve felt a bit empty even after dinner.

She had eaten a slice of pumpkin pie instead of cake earlier, but for someone like her—already hopelessly addicted to sweetness—that “healthy” treat hadn’t quite hit the spot.

Apparently, her body was missing sugar, leaving her feeling vaguely unsatisfied.

But more importantly—

Larisa doesn’t know yet!

She didn’t know the humiliating fact that Anette had a strict ration on snacks!

Of course, it made sense—Larisa had been sent off to work as soon as the duke arrived, so she hadn’t been told.

The thought of experiencing once again the blissful sweetness she’d tasted during tea with the Empress Dowager made Anette’s heart race.

Just as she was about to nod eagerly—

“You’re not seriously thinking of drinking that, are you?”

A sudden voice made her heart drop to her stomach.

She slowly turned her head toward the stair landing—and there, leaning casually against the railing, stood a man.

“Your Grace?”

Was this… like being caught red-handed in the middle of a crime?

Was that why her heart was pounding so hard?

Though startled, Anette felt a rush of gladness at seeing him, and without much thought, she trotted toward him.

“What brings you here? Are you done with work already?”