TGDHC Chapter 41

Chapter 41. Spring Comes

The sweet scent filling the room made my mouth watery without me realizing it.

I had asked the head chef to come up with some desserts suitable for tea time, but…

Now I wondered if that request had been too much pressure, especially since he’d never even seen the new hostess in person.

I felt a little sorry about it.

“Did I ask too much?”

“What do you mean, Your Highness?”

The chef, Berni, looked excited, his face slightly flushed and eyes sparkling.

“This is the first time I’ve felt so motivated since coming to Blenheim. Finally, I have a chance to truly show what I can do…!”

“Show what you can do? But don’t you cook for me and the Duke daily?”

“Well, yes, but…”

He hesitated for a second, glanced at me, and then carefully spoke again.

“Other than regular meals, I haven’t had the chance to present any real dishes to you both. Since Your Highness arrived, I’ve started making full-course dinners, but when only the Duke was here, the meals were very simple.”

I recalled how the Duke behaved during our meals.

He always ate silently, expressionless, barely reacting to anything.

“Does the Duke not eat much?”

“No, it’s not that. He’s just not interested in food.”

Berni’s big jaw trembled slightly, as if holding back frustration.

“When I first got here and asked him what he liked, he said anything that he could eat quickly. I thought he was joking.”

“Watch your tone in front of the Duchess,” Whitley, who had brought him in, said firmly.

It wasn’t a scolding—more like a gentle reminder.

“It’s alright,” I said. “It sounds like it’s been tough for you.”

I could understand why the chef was upset.

“Anything I can eat quickly”? That’s the worst thing to say to a chef!

“I knew Your Highness would understand me!”

Like a dam breaking, Berni began to pour out his thoughts.

“The Duke almost never comes to the dining hall. He usually just eats sandwiches in his office. Even when we put our heart into preparing dishes, no one really appreciates them…”

The other kitchen staff behind him subtly nodded along, clearly sharing the same frustration.

‘Right, he didn’t even eat breakfast before I arrived.’

Whitley cleared his throat quietly, probably a signal to wrap it up.

Berni seemed to realize he’d gone too far and quickly composed himself.

“Still, since Your Highness arrived, the Duke has changed quite a bit. For the first time in three years, he gave the kitchen a direct order.”

“The Duke did?”

Berni looked surprised at my question.

“He told us to add more fruit to the desserts. I thought it was an order from Your Highness.”

“From me?”

Did I ever ask the Duke for that?

I tried to recall, and Whitley calmly added:

“You once said you like fruit. The Duke must have remembered and gave the order.”

‘He remembered that?’

—“Do you like cake?”

—“More than cake, I just really love strawberries. I’ve always liked fruit.”

Now I remembered the conversation.

Come to think of it, lately all the desserts had been loaded with fruit. I just assumed it was because of good supply from inland.

‘Why is he so sweet?’

Always doing cute things in secret like this. If it were me, I would’ve bragged a hundred times by now.

I smiled secretly, happy that my image as the Duchess was being boosted.

“Thanks to you, tea time has become a real pleasure.”

Berni’s eyes turned misty at the compliment.

“You have no idea how happy I was when I heard you were hosting a tea time!”

It made sense. He must have had high hopes when becoming the head chef of the Duke’s castle.

But here, there weren’t even proper parties for an entire year. 

And the Duke, the only guest, didn’t even care about food. From a chef’s perspective, it must have felt like being scammed.

“We’ll have more events in the future, so I’ll be counting on you.”

“I promise I won’t disappoint you!”

His cheerful tone didn’t match his bulky appearance, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Let’s make this tea time a success first. What dish do you recommend the most?”

With a bright expression, Berni began passionately explaining the menu.

“These go well with clear tea since they’re sweetened with syrup… The chocolate cake is small so it doesn’t get messy…”

To sum up, everything Berni brought looked and tasted amazing.

So much so that it was hard to narrow down the choices.

“These two cookies are good… Oh, but it’d be a shame to leave out this one too…”

Even after carefully picking and choosing, the table was still full.

“I’d like to serve everything I picked… but will we have enough space on the table?”

“They’ll only be eating small portions, so we can reduce the amount and increase the variety,” Berni replied.

Then he asked,

“How many guests will be attending?”

“Including me, nine.”

“That’s quite a few.”

“We should prepare at least two plates of each item,” Whitley added.

“It’s a long table. One plate per item wouldn’t be enough for everyone to reach.”

“That’s not ideal.”

It was already going to be an awkward setting.

Just imagining the noble ladies awkwardly standing up to reach food across the table made me uncomfortable.

Everyone knew this tea time was basically a screening.

It was never going to be a cozy atmosphere, but at least I wanted them to enjoy the food without stress.

I remembered how uncomfortable meals with the boss were during job interviews.

At least we had individual lunchboxes back then, so we didn’t have to worry about reaching for food.

Wait a second!

Who says we have to share the food at tea time?

Suddenly, an idea popped into my head and I clapped my hands.

“Let’s do individual tea sets.”

“Individual sets?”

Berni and Whitley looked at me, puzzled by the sudden idea.

***

It was the day of an administrative meeting.

As Perel was walking down the outer hallway with the Grand Duke Loic, he suddenly realized he had forgotten an important document. He smacked his forehead.

“Oh no! Your Grace, I forgot the trade permit.”

Perel confessed in a small voice, feeling guilty.

The Grand Duke didn’t usually scold in situations like this.

He just gave a look so disappointing that it made you feel ashamed of yourself.

But strangely, when Perel looked up, Loic wasn’t looking at him. He was gazing past the hallway toward the courtyard.

“Your Grace?”

Was someone in the courtyard?

Then, he spoke in a calm voice.

“Go on.”

“…Sorry?”

There was no hint of scolding—his voice was even kind. Perel flinched, surprised.

“I said go. I’ll wait here.”

Loic still had his gaze fixed on the courtyard.

“N-no, Your Grace.”

This sudden kindness from his lord was terrifying.

“If you go ahead, I’ll quickly—”

“It’s fine.”

Finally, Loic turned to Perel and spoke in a commanding voice.

“Take your time.”

“I-I’ll be quick!”

As Loic gently waved his hand, Perel rushed back to the office.

‘Is it in the drawer?’

In a hurry, he fumbled through the drawers and accidentally opened the bottom one.

It was where the Grand Duke kept personal items.

As soon as he opened it, a sweet scent filled the air.

Then Perel saw something surprising.

Everything that was previously inside was gone. Instead, neatly stored were a white gift wrap, a ribbon, and a name card. 

‘What is this?’

Perel stared in shock.

Did he get it from the Grand Duchess?

‘He even kept the ribbon so carefully.’

Perel had noticed that recently, the Grand Duke was visiting his wife more often.

Especially after she had collapsed, he seemed to care for her more.

It didn’t seem to be just for political reasons—he was being very attentive.

Well, the Grand Duchess was definitely someone anyone would come to care for.

With a strange feeling, Perel returned to the hallway.

But the Grand Duke, who said he’d wait, was nowhere to be seen.

“Your Grace?”

Had he gone to the meeting room ahead of him?

Just as Perel was about to hurry there, he heard a cheerful voice from the courtyard.

“Did you really say that to the chef?”

‘No way…?’

Perel slowly walked toward the voice.

In the small garden courtyard, the Grand Duchess was sitting at a table having tea.

And sitting across from her was the large figure of the Grand Duke.

“You said you wanted food that’s quick to eat? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Well, I can’t quite remember…”

“The knights also said so. That you eat anything like you’re chewing on tree branches.”

“I just don’t have many preferences.”

“Then what food do you really like?”

“I guess… I like fruit.”

“Really?”

Perel stood there, staring in disbelief.

His lord, calmly talking with the Grand Duchess, looked like a different person.

‘Has the Grand Duke ever listened to someone so kindly before?’

Loic was even looking at his wife as if she were the most precious thing in the world.

It was unmistakably the look of a man in love.