Chapter 6

As per Evelyn’s plan, the mansion gradually underwent changes.

Since 200,000 dallian was not enough to renovate the entire mansion, they decided to fix the most bothersome parts first.

In the first month, with the leftover household budget, they repaired the creaky stairs. The creaking sound of the stairs was annoying every time someone went up or down.

Of course, with the wealth of the ducal family, building a brand-new mansion would not have been a daunting task.

However, the reason Evelyn carefully saved the household funds to gradually renovate the mansion was because of Rykal.

She did not want him to say anything behind her back.

She did not want to hear any comments about her spending too much money.

In reality, Rykal did not nag her about the household ledger or other household affairs.

‘No, he just couldn’t.’

Instead, Evelyn had reprimanded him.

With the house in such a mess, she asked Rykal how could he not have mentioned a word to Dyffrin about it.

Rykal had opened his mouth in a flustered expression, then promptly shut it like a clam.

Since then, he hadn’t looked at her with a watchful gaze.

“Rather, it seemed he avoided meeting my eyes…”

Evelyn sat on the chair at the table placed in the central hall, sipping tea while looking at the now neat stairs.

At that moment, she saw a carriage stopping outside the window. It was Dyffrin.

‘He’s back earlier than usual today.’

Normally, Dyffrin returned late in the evening and did not even bother to greet Evelyn.

So for the past month, they had hardly crossed paths or had any conversations.

Naturally, she had also failed to keep the promise of massaging him to relieve his headaches.

‘No… to be precise, I didn’t really break the promise.’

He came back so late that she didn’t have time.

Dyffrin had not yet inherited the ducal title, but he was already quite busy.

Evelyn had also been occupied with Rykal’s lessons and learning how the household was run, so she had naturally forgotten about the promise.

***

When Dyffrin entered through the front door, a maid approached and bowed her head. He handed his coat to the maid and then looked at Evelyn.

Evelyn, who was standing by the window in the first-floor hall, greeted him lightly.

“You’re home.”

Dyffrin stared at Evelyn silently without responding.

She blinked. She had expected a brief greeting before he left, but now he was simply gazing at her.

“Have you had your dinner yet?”

‘Huh?’ 

Evelyn found Dyffrin’s question puzzling.

“Not yet…”

“Then let’s have it together.”

Evelyn blinked her eyes and nodded.

“Okay.”

Dyffrin then turned away indifferently and stepped onto the stairs.

There were about 30 minutes left until dinner time, so it seemed he planned to rest in his room before coming down.

However, as he stepped onto the stairs, he suddenly stopped.

His gaze was fixed on the now neatly renovated stairs.

“…”

But he soon resumed his steps and ascended to the upper floor.

* * *

Evelyn also returned to her bedroom and spent time reading a book.

Knock, knock.

As the clock struck 6 o’clock, a knocking sound came from outside the door.

‘Right on time.’

Evelyn closed the book and opened the door.

Dyffrin was standing outside.

“Let’s go down.”

Evelyn nodded, and Dyffrin turned and headed downstairs first.

Dyffrin’s more-than-usual reticent demeanor was no longer surprising.

She was just a little curious.

She wondered why he suddenly suggested having a meal together.

Of course, there were times when Dyffrin would join her for meals when he finished his work early.

But back then, it was more like they happened to be in the same dining space, rather than actually dining together.

No words were exchanged over the dining table, and Dyffrin hadn’t explicitly invited her to have a meal together like today. It was more like going to the dining room because it was dinner time and running into him there.

‘What’s the reason for it today…’

Lost in her thoughts, Evelyn found herself in the dining room before she knew it.

She pulled out a chair and sat down, and Dyffrin took the seat opposite her.

A maid served a warm pumpkin soup as an appetizer.

“Please enjoy your meal.”

After the maid’s words, the dining room was enveloped in silence.

Evelyn was the first to pick up her spoon and brought it to her mouth. When her plate was about half empty, Dyffrin spoke up.

“The head maid has been replaced.”

As he said, Patricia had handed over her duties to the new head maid, Merrilyn, over the past month and had left the mansion this week.

Evelyn thought Rykal must have reported this to Dyffrin, so she didn’t need to mention it separately. 

“Rykal said you made the change.”

Evelyn had a feeling she now knew the reason Dyffrin wanted to have dinner together today.

He wanted to hear directly from her about the change in the head maid.

Even though Rykal had reported the reason for the change, he was asking her anyway.

“Patricia was embezzling the household funds.”

Evelyn put down her spoon and lightly wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“That’s why this mansion, except for a few areas, was mostly in disarray.”

Her eyes, subtly filled with reproach, turned to Dyffrin.

“Weren’t you aware of this fact?”

“I was aware.”

“Then why didn’t you take any action?”

“I didn’t consider it particularly important.”

Dyffrin’s gaze drifted toward the doorway.

“I don’t like bringing guests to the ducal mansion, and even if I do, I don’t take them beyond the reception room. A bit of disarray wouldn’t have been a big problem.”

“Then what about you? Didn’t you mind living in this unmanaged mansion?”

Dyffrin was silent for a moment.

After a while, he responded.

“Well, saying it didn’t matter would be a lie. But I had to choose the option with the lower opportunity cost.”

‘Still, what an indifferent man.’

“Did you also know Patricia was embezzling money?”

“Roughly. I was aware that a lot of money was being spent compared to the state of the mansion.”

Yet he said nothing. That was quite remarkable. No wonder Patricia’s guts grew bolder.

“I didn’t mind Patricia skimming money as long as it wasn’t a significant amount. As I said, it’s much more beneficial for me to spend my time on other matters than finding faults in the household accounts.”

Evelyn gave up on saying anything more to Dyffrin.

Right. Time was limited, and he was already overwhelmed with other important matters, so there was nothing more to say.

Similarly, Evelyn also thought it would be more efficient to enjoy the warm soup than to stare at Dyffrin disapprovingly.

Just as she was about to bring the spoon to her mouth, Dyffrin spoke up again. 

“I noticed earlier that the stairs have been fixed.”

“Yes. I plan to gradually renovate the mansion and replace the old furnishings.”

Evelyn quickly placed the spoonful of the sweet pumpkin soup in her mouth after finishing her words.

The luscious soup seemed to soothe her mind.

Meanwhile, Dyffrin appeared uninterested in the soup and simply continued to gaze intently at her.

“Then the household expenses will be higher for a while.” 

‘Had Rykal not fully reported?’

She had clearly told Rykal that she would use 100,000 dallians to increase the wages of the remaining maids, and the other 200,000 dallians to renovate the old mansion.

Evelyn gave up on eating the now-cooling soup and put her spoon down on the table.

“The expenses will be the same as before. I plan to maintain the previous household budget and use the money saved from cutting unnecessary expenses for the necessary ones.”

Dyffrin seemed to have heard her but made no response. 

Then, with a slow movement, he picked up his spoon.

“…There’s no need to go that far. Rykal asked you to check the household accounts to reduce unnecessary expenses, not spend it on the necessary ones.”

Dyffrin likely did not care how much was spent on this mansion, but Rykal would.

If Evelyn spent a large sum on renovations, Rykal would surely find fault with it behind her back.

He would claim that she was extravagant or that she spent money recklessly without considering the budget.

“It’s alright. I don’t want to frivolously spend the hard-earned money of you and the duchy’s subjects.”

Evelyn couldn’t outright criticize Rykal here, so she responded diplomatically.

“…”

Dyffrin had a peculiar expression on his face. Frankly, he looked a bit dumbfounded.

At that moment, a maid brought in the main course – a lamb steak with a salad of lettuce and roasted tomatoes.

“Enjoy your meal.”

Evelyn gave a slight smile and quickly picked up her knife and fork before Dyffrin could say anything else.

Contrary to her concerns, Dyffrin also began eating his meal.

Though it might have been her imagination, Dyffrin seemed deep in thought throughout the quiet meal.

After the quiet meal, Dyffrin put his hand in his pocket and took out a small glass bottle.

The bottle contained some pills.

Seeing the headache medication, Evelyn slowly rose from her seat.

‘This is perfect timing.’

Since she couldn’t meet Dyffrin often, now was the ideal opportunity to seize the chance for future compensation in the guise of a massage.

Dyffrin’s gaze followed Evelyn’s movements, a flicker of curiosity in his sharp eyes.

Ignoring his questioning look, Evelyn walked over and stood before him. His teacup was conveniently empty. 

“You’re going upstairs, right?” 

“……” 

Dyffrin did not respond, but Evelyn actively grabbed his arm and began to pull him to lead him upstairs. 

“Let’s go up together.”