He seemed utterly unconvinced.

“Just with these few words……”

“Of course, not everything is resolved with just a few words.”

I quickly reassured Duke Baniche.

“Eric has been working hard at my cafe all this time. Honestly, without Eric, it would have been difficult to succeed so quickly.”

Duke Baniche replied with a disgruntled face.

“But that doesn’t erase the hurt Miss Bertin received.”

“It wasn’t a hurt to begin with.”

I answered firmly.

“If I were to be hurt by just a few words, how could I have set up and run a cafe?”

“That’s fortunate for Eric, then.”

Duke Baniche glared at Eric.

“Because Miss Bertin is a strong person.”

“Well, I am quite generous.”

“That’s true as well.”

As Duke Baniche nodded, Eric alternately glanced at him and me.

“Is… is this really okay?”

“That depends on Miss Bertin.”

I pondered for a moment. What would be the best choice for me and Elodie?

Thanks to Duke Baniche’s meticulous preparation, it wasn’t difficult to manage both living and working at the cafe. It could even be said to be a more comfortable life than my original home.

But Elodie is Duke Baniche’s only heir. Would it really be right to keep Elodie, who will someday inherit the duchy, away from the Duke’s mansion?

‘No, it wouldn’t.’

I took a deep breath.

“Starting from this evening, I’ll return to the Duke’s mansion with Elodie.”

“……!”

Eric’s eyes widened to the point of nearly popping out. While Duke Baniche’s reaction wasn’t quite as extreme, he too turned to look at me with a surprised and unexpected expression.

Could it be that these people thought I was short-sighted enough to hinder Elodie’s future just because of my pride?

I continued speaking to Eric.

“You don’t need to come to the cafe anymore. Thank you for your hard work until now.”

Seeing Eric roll his eyes slightly, it seemed he was contemplating saying something in his own way.

“I… I will continue to come.”

“What?”

I doubted my ears for a moment.

“I’ve learned a lot personally while assisting Miss Bertin. And……”

His gaze fell on Elodie.

“It’s also an opportunity to serve Miss Elodie closely.”

“But you’re busy, aren’t you?”

“I am competent.”

Eric started to return to his stiff and unpleasant tone.

“Working just three hours in the morning won’t interfere with my duties as Head Butler.”

There seemed to be no reason to refuse if he insisted this much.

“Alright. But if you ever don’t want to, you can stop coming anytime.”

“I appreciate your consider……”

Eric’s words of gratitude were cut off by the sudden opening of the door. Thinking it might be an impatient customer, I turned to look at the shop door and was startled. A group of people with notepads was barging into the store.

If it were my first time experiencing this, I might have thought they were just an unusual group of customers. However, having endured countless harassments from local reporters in my home village, I instantly recognized their true identity.

“Elodie, go to your room.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Your Grace, would you please go to the room with Elodie?”

“I dislike Uncle Duke even more!”

I made a shushing sound and put my finger to my lips towards the shouting Elodie.

“It’ll only be for a moment.”

Ian had taught me well enough how to drive away reporters who were after Elodie. If I were to imitate him and mention business disruption while telling them to get lost…

“Everyone, what’s the matter?”

But I didn’t even get the chance to imitate Ian. Duke Baniche immediately approached the reporters.

“Your Grace!”

Seeing the reporters’ faces light up disgustingly made me feel nauseous.

“When did you return from your inspection tour?”

“That’s confidential.”

“That means you just returned. Did you come back to see the young lady? Ah, right! I heard that the lady owner here and the young lady are quite close…”

“No, I just saw everything through the window. It seems you’re quite close with His Grace as well, aren’t you?”

“From what I heard, the owner is quite intimate with an employee here?”

I frowned as much as I could. Excuse me. Could you not talk like that when the person in question is right here?

Of course, if I had said this out loud, the spotlight would have immediately turned to me, so I kept my mouth shut. Fortunately, Duke Baniche also seemed to know how to handle reporters well.

“I’m not sure what you’re all talking about.”

He slowly opened his mouth.

“But since you’ve come all this way, you’ll need something for your article, so I’ll give you one. Make sure to write it down well.”

“Yes!”

The reporters immediately grasped their pens and prepared to take notes.

“Miss Aria Bertin is a benefactor who saved and cared for my daughter, Elodie, when she had nowhere to go.”

I took a breath. I had naturally thought he would talk about Elodie or himself, but it was about me. Duke Baniche continued speaking, regardless of my agitation.

“She is now Elodie’s official guardian, so anyone who is disrespectful to Miss Bertin should know that they are also harming my daughter, and by extension, me. That is all.”

The Duke closed his mouth as if he had said everything he wanted to, but the reporters were unlikely to be satisfied with just this.

“Your Grace, but what about the young lady…!”

“Then are you saying there’s no connection with that employee?”

“If you wish to bother me further, submit an official request for an audience at the Duke’s mansion.”

The Duke’s eyes narrowed.

“Whether I accept it or not will depend on your behavior.”

The reporters immediately became as quiet as mice. Honestly, I couldn’t help but be impressed.

‘He really… handles them well.’

Instead of just driving the reporters away, he teased them by almost giving them what they wanted. I smiled at the Duke as soon as the reporters left with polite farewells.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

Duke Baniche’s eyes remained hard.

“If they come again, send them to the Duke’s mansion.”

“Won’t that be troublesome for you, Your Grace?”

“You think I’ll deal with them personally?”

The Duke snorted. Well. Of course not.

“Elodie.”

Suddenly, the Duke put his hands on his knees and bent down to look at Elodie.

“I’m sorry. I was in such a hurry to return that I couldn’t buy you a gift.”

“……”

“Instead, I’ll have your favorite dishes prepared for dinner tonight.”

I blinked. Come to think of it, we would be staying at the Duke’s mansion from tonight. How would Elodie respond?

The child ate almost everything well, but there were still a few foods she disliked. Maybe she would say she wanted to eat the food I made. It wouldn’t be a big deal. Borrowing the Duke’s mansion’s kitchen for a while shouldn’t be an issue.

But a moment later. The answer that flowed from Elodie’s mouth was completely unexpected.

“I want to eat Aria’s favorite food.”

“Miss Bertin’s?”

The Duke seemed surprised but accepted the child’s words readily. The problem was me.

“Elodie, you should eat what you want to eat.”

“I often eat what I want. Aria makes it for me every day. Elodie wants to eat what Aria wants to eat.”

I stammered in confusion.

“No, I… I don’t particularly have any food I want to eat?”

“That’s a lie.”

Elodie frowned.

“Aria likes spicy food. The spicier, the better, she says.”

My eyes widened involuntarily. I had never told Elodie that I particularly liked spicy food. I always adjusted all the flavors to suit Elodie, so I thought there was no way she could have noticed…

“Spicy food, is it.”

The Duke fell into thought.

“I’ll have to tell the chef that. Thank you, Elodie.”

“Are you alright with that, Your Grace?”

I asked, a bit surprised. Elodie didn’t like spicy food as much as I did, but she still ate it well. However, considering the taste of people here, I didn’t think the Duke would particularly prefer spicy food.

“Why wouldn’t I be alright with it?”

“That’s right.”

Elodie nodded.

“And Aria always makes only the food I like. I want to eat the food Aria likes too!”

“…Thank you.”

My chest area spontaneously warmed up. I could fully understand Elodie’s intentions.

‘She’s being considerate of me.’

Of course, raising Elodie wasn’t an easy task.