<Chapter 9>
“If this is also a gift for the Madam, please leave it over there. I will make sure it is delivered to her along with the proposal you brought.”
“That’s not what I—oh, come on.”
The old butler of the Daieren household was a man as rigid as a steel rod.
No matter what underhanded tricks members of the proposal parties tried to use while clinging desperately, it was useless.
He didn’t yield in the slightest, even when dealing with nobles.
Most of all, he strictly kept track of time, ensuring that no proposal party stayed in the mansion longer than allowed.
With such an endlessly long line, managing time efficiently was essential to process them quickly.
The problem was that even so, the line showed no sign of getting any shorter…
By the time the sun, once high in the sky, had begun to dip,
the old butler swallowed a worried sigh as he looked at the main hall, already piled high like a mountain with proposal gifts.
Even this amount alone would take days to sort through.
“I suppose I’ve come at a busy time.”
Just as another group of suitors was leaving the estate, a low, gentle voice entered the front hall with light footsteps.
Naturally assuming it was yet another proposal party, the butler turned—only for his eyes to widen in shock.
A handsome man with silver-white hair that looked as if it had been dusted with pearl powder, and ruby-like red eyes that curved softly into a gentle smile.
It was only the second time the butler had seen him today.
And yet, his breathtaking beauty was still enough to stop the heart.
Even to another man—an old one at that—it was enough to leave him stunned.
“I am Count Yusef Obreim Alperon. I had an appointment today with the Duchess of Daieren. May I wait in the drawing room?”
The butler, momentarily dazed, snapped back to his senses and looked puzzled.
There was a scheduled visitor. But it certainly wasn’t Count Alperon…
“Isn’t today the day Her Grace is meeting the new tutor she hired?”
“That’s correct, but…”
He had been told that a tutor arranged by Viscount Baden would be arriving.
“Yes. I am one of those tutors. I’ve already discussed employment matters verbally with Her Grace. So please deliver this.”
As he spoke, the count pulled out a silver envelope from inside his coat.
Sealed with red wax stamped with an unfamiliar crest—something resembling scales—it was quite thick.
“My résumé and letters of recommendation.”
With that dazzling smile, the butler found himself accepting the letter without thinking.
“Would you deliver it for me?”
“…Very well. Please wait.”
Since it had apparently been arranged beforehand, there was little he could do.
The butler headed upstairs with the letter.
Knock, knock.
“Madam, it seems the tutor has arrived.”
Even after entering the office and announcing it, Liselotte did not lift her eyes from the book she was reading.
Her expression made no effort to hide her fatigue.
“I expected as much, but it’s earlier than I thought. Viscount Baden is quite impatient. Tell them I’m busy and have them wait in the drawing room.”
“They also brought a résumé and recommendation letters. But Madam… I didn’t expect Count Alperon to be among the tutors arranged by Viscount Baden.”
“Sir Yusef?”
“The one who just arrived is Count Alperon.”
“…?”
At that, Liselotte immediately lifted her gaze and stood up.
Her pale violet eyes widened in surprise.
She snatched the envelope from the butler—and burst out laughing.
After barely managing to calm my laughter, I first wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes.
“Have Sir Yusef brought to my office. And serve refreshments immediately.”
“Right away, Madam? Should we not keep him waiting a bit longer?”
“It’s fine. He isn’t one of the tutors recommended by Viscount Baden.”
“Ah, I see!”
The deep worry lines on the old butler’s face quickly relaxed.
Even after he left, I spent quite some time examining Yusef’s résumé and letters of recommendation.
‘He really is an extraordinary person.’
At this point, whether Sir Yusef was a prophet or not didn’t matter much.
Or was it that he claimed to be a regressor?
Either way, what mattered was that he was far more capable and resourceful than I had expected.
‘To prepare qualifications this perfectly in just a month…’
Where should I even begin?
Right—the funeral.
Sir Yusef had said he would prove himself to be someone I could trust.
And indeed, thanks to his advice that day, dealing with my brother and Viscount Baden had become much easier.
Especially what he had said about Baden:
〈After a private meeting with the young duke, Viscount Baden will propose recommending a tutor under the pretense of educating the heir. Of course, his true intention is to plant a spy within the Daieren household.〉
He had also told me what would happen if I refused.
Moreover, he even suggested a way to turn the situation to my advantage.
〈Your Grace should hire one more tutor—someone who can monitor them, detect dangerous schemes in advance, and stop them. Someone who will never be bought. Your person.〉
〈That would certainly make it easier to counter Viscount Baden’s schemes.〉
〈And if necessary, you can use their weakness to drive them out.〉
Easy to say—but finding such a person was naturally difficult.
On top of that, the restriction of being unable to leave the estate for a month made things even harder.
As if reading my thoughts, Sir Yusef had said in a gentle voice:
〈It’s not difficult. That person is already standing before you.〉
Honestly, when I first heard that, I thought he was joking.
Wasn’t it obvious?
To tutor the heir of a ducal house, one needed not only high-level knowledge of imperial history, law, and etiquette, but also artistic refinement befitting high nobility.
Even if Sir Yusef was of noble birth, he had only arrived in the imperial capital a few days ago—a foreigner.
Naturally, everything about the empire would be unfamiliar to him, especially its history and culture.
To make such a man my son’s tutor? Unless I were completely bewitched by that face, it was absurd.
But when I pointed this out, he simply chuckled softly and replied calmly:
〈If, within a month—by the time the gates of the Daieren estate reopen—I can prove to you that I am qualified to teach the young duke, would that suffice?〉
I didn’t even bother asking how.
Because I was certain it was impossible.
Knock, knock.
“Madam, I have brought Count Alperon.”
“Show him in.”
At that moment, Yusef arrived.
I rose from my desk and moved to the tea table to receive him.
Soon, guided by the butler, he entered—and naturally took my hand, pressing a kiss to it in greeting.
“It has been a while, Duchess of Daieren. Have you been well this past month?”
“A bit stifled, but as you can see, I’m quite well. Though it seems you’ve had quite an eventful time in the capital’s social circles.”
“Haha.”
The dry expression he had worn at the funeral was gone, replaced by the same heart-stopping smile I had seen when we first met.
Honestly, had I seen that face ten years ago, my heart might have fluttered.
I invited him to sit. While we exchanged pleasantries, the refreshments I had ordered were served.
“So—how did you do it?”
After dismissing the servants, I placed his résumé and recommendation letters on the table and asked,
“Prestigious noble families, the head of the Imperial Academy, even a scholar of the Tower of Honor… It couldn’t have been easy to obtain these recommendations.”
Having spent over a decade in the capital’s social circles, I knew the families and individuals who had written these letters.
And I also knew they were not people who could be swayed by wealth—upright to a fault.
To receive such uniformly glowing recommendations from them, one had to be more than merely competent.
One would need to be at the level of a scholar capable of entering the Tower of Honor.
“You needn’t worry—I didn’t forge them.”
“…I don’t recall saying that.”
“Perhaps not. But your expression is full of doubt.”
This man really was perceptive.
Since I was going to ask anyway, I didn’t bother denying it further.
“Well… I understand that it has only been about a month since you arrived in the capital.”
Deliberately, I opened my fan halfway and covered my lips, making my suspicion clear.
“And yet you claim to possess a level of scholarship that even nobles born and raised in the empire take decades to achieve. Naturally, it’s difficult to believe.”
At that, the red eyes fixed on me narrowed slightly, forming a charming curve.
