Chapter 5 (Part 3)

While Sellakia was idly killing time sitting on the sofa, Tenus asked an unexpected question.

“Do you know when Aldrich started treating me with respect?”

Sellakia tilted her head in curiosity.

“Did he ever look down on you? From what I see now, it doesn’t seem like he ever did.”

Sellakia answered after seriously pondering.

“Hmm… Was it when you were announced as the heir?”

“No. It was before that, precisely when I was 15.”

“When you were 15? Why?”

“At that time, I had a sudden growth spurt. It was then that I surpassed Aldrich’s height.”

Height? Leaving the bewildered Sellakia, Tenus stood up as if he had finished his business.

“You should go now.”

Sellakia reluctantly got up from her seat.

In her mind, she pictured a young Tenus, who had just surpassed Aldrich in height, looking up at him awkwardly.

The current Tenus was a head taller than Aldrich. It was hard to imagine him being shorter than Aldrich.

Height, height…

As Sellakia opened the door and came out, Roberta greeted her with a pocket watch in one hand. And Nancy…

“Oh my. Nancy. Are you okay? Look at this sweat. Have you been doing this the whole time?”

“Y-yes. Huff. I’m f-fine… Oh dear.”

“Nancy, your posture is off. Well, since Madam is out now, shall we call it a day?”

Nancy, who had been half-squatting with her arms stretched forward, let out a groan and straightened her legs. Sellakia wiped the beads of sweat from Nancy’s forehead with the edge of her sleeve.

At that moment, she felt a prickling sensation at the back of her head. Turning around, she saw Dominic looking at them with a strange expression from a step away.

“…I’m done with my business, so you can go back in, Dominic.”

“What? Oh… Yes, I understand.”

Dominic glanced back at Nancy and Roberta with curiosity as he grabbed the doorknob of the office.

Sellakia awkwardly waved at Dominic. As soon as he disappeared into the office, she spoke to Nancy.

“Nancy, bring me the highest shoes I have. Right now.”

* * *

Wobbling, Sellakia walked with unsteady steps as Nancy watched her with a worried face. Roberta, who kept twitching her hands, seemed ready to catch her if she fell.

The heels hidden under her skirt were almost a handspan high. Sellakia laughed awkwardly as she walked with a precarious gait, like walking on waves.

“Well, I’m off.”

“Madam, this won’t do. Let me at least accompany you to Lord Logue’s office. What if you fall?”

“It’s right next door. If we make a fuss in the hallway like earlier, we’ll draw attention, so continue your stamina training here.”

“But…”

“Then, I’m off. Don’t overdo it, Nancy.”

Before Nancy and Roberta could hold her back any longer, Sellakia hurriedly left the Duchess’s office. She had just taken a moment there to get accustomed to the shoes.

As she continued walking, although not as gracefully as a swan, she managed to walk at a passable level. Seeing her reflection in the glass of the corridor, Sellakia took solace in the fact that she didn’t look like a waddling hermit crab.

“Hah.”

A laugh, akin to a sigh, escaped her lips. She felt ridiculous for seeking out high heels she had never worn just to avoid being underestimated by Aldrich.

She knew well enough that Tenus wasn’t simply talking about physical ‘height.’ It was a hint at how shallow and base Aldrich was. His attitude towards Tenus and the servants was enough to deduce his vile nature.

She just needed something to stabilize her mind. If her increased height could have any effect, that would be good. If not, the sharp heel of the shoe could serve as an excellent weapon.

“…”

Sellakia’s steps slowed as she walked down the corridor.

Between the Duchess’s office and the Duke’s deputy’s office was the Duke’s office.

As she passed by the office where Tenus would be, she glanced back at the heavy door.

Tenus knew where she was going.

Somehow, that fact felt like a reassuring ally. Sellakia’s hesitant steps became more confident. It didn’t take long to reach Aldrich’s office.

Knock, knock, she heard Aldrich’s voice after knocking. She adjusted her posture once and confidently opened the door.

“…What brings you here?”

Even from a distance, Aldrich’s displeased expression was evident. His phlegmy voice was quite unpleasant compared to the low voice of Tenus she had heard earlier.

Sellakia forced herself to suppress the frown forming on her forehead. Instead, she maintained a relaxed smile, recalling Tenus’s demeanor, and made a polite bow.

“I came to get the ledger.”

Striding without a single stumble, she stood tall before Aldrich. His head tilted slightly as he looked up at her from his seated position. Sellakia maintained her expression, inwardly satisfied with the favorable eye level.

“Ledger?”

“Yes. I heard it was originally my responsibility. Now that I’ve recovered, I want to resume my duties.”

“Ahem.”

Aldrich, who had been coughing uncomfortably, raised his hand. Out of habit, he stroked the gold ladybug on his desk. The delicate wing patterns of the ladybug were polished smooth, likely from frequent handling.

“I’ve already obtained permission from the Duke.”

Sellakia subtly, but carefully, adjusted the angle of her chin to avoid appearing unpleasantly arrogant. Aldrich’s hand movements became rougher as he stroked the ladybug.

“You intend to personally manage the Seidon Ducal ledger.”

“I can’t neglect the role of the household’s mistress forever. Everyone is diligently fulfilling their responsibilities, and I must do my part as well.”

“Role.”

Aldrich sneered with a bitter smile.

“You probably don’t even know how to write in the ledger.”

“That’s not a problem. The Duke will personally teach me.”

“…Tenus himself?”

Aldrich was visibly shaken by Sellakia’s brazen lie. His wrinkled eyes trembled. His upward-tilted eyes were quite fierce.

Aldrich no longer bothered to act as the benevolent Duke’s proxy. Perhaps he had lost the composure to hide his true colors due to the series of situations not going his way.

Or it might be a simple change in attitude due to the presence or absence of Tenus.

Fixing his glaring eyes on Sellakia, Aldrich pulled out three thick ledgers from the drawer.

Thud, thud, thud.

Each time he placed them on the desk, a dull sound resonated weightily in the office. Then, with an unpleasant screech, Aldrich pushed back his chair and stood up.

“Sellakia Lensch.”

In an instant, the eye level changed.

No matter how high the heels were, she couldn’t surpass Aldrich’s height. Instead of obediently looking up at him, Sellakia focused solely on the ledgers on the desk.

When she reached out to pull them over, they were predictably heavy. Trying to lift them with one hand could have easily sprained her wrist.

As she struggled to hold the three ledgers in her arms, her body swayed. Aldrich roughly grabbed her shoulder.

“Know your place and don’t act recklessly.”

“Pardon? I don’t understand what you’re suddenly saying.”

Ignoring the pain from her shoulder, Sellakia blinked her eyes.

“Did I do something wrong to you in the past that I don’t remember, Lord Logue?”

“Shut that mouth!”

Aldrich shouted in a loud voice. It was hard to believe such a voice came from his gaunt body.

“Don’t speak carelessly. Remember that your usefulness ends with Tenus’s succession to the dukedom. Your role is only that.”

The grip on her shoulder tightened. Sellakia jerked back, shaking off his hand. Aldrich let her go without resistance.

Standing a step away, she saw Aldrich’s face head-on. It was a face twisted like a demon, one she had never seen when with Tenus.

Sellakia faced that expression with a bright smile. Hiding her trembling hands under the ledgers, she appeared as if she didn’t know fear at all.

“A piece of advice from an elder, I see. But I think it would suit us better to be good friends, Lord Logue.”

“…What?”

“They say there’s nothing like a sense of camaraderie to make friends.”

Aldrich seemed to not understand immediately, looking dumbfounded. Sellakia thought she understood why Tenus couldn’t comfortably entrust him with the Duke’s affairs. She furrowed her brows slightly, then kindly added the reason, as if she were explaining to a child.

“Because you and I are in the same situation, Lord Logue.”

The Duke’s proxy would be just as useless once the Duke succeeded to the title. If my usefulness is only that much, then so is yours.

“Soon, someone from the Imperial Family will come, and the Duke’s proxy ‘role’ will soon end.”

“…”

“Just like mine.”

Aldrich remained silent, his dark green eyes flashing. She hoped he realized something, even a little.

However, Aldrich, with his lips trembling in anger, didn’t seem to have repented at all.

“That’s why I want to get along with you, Lord Logue.”

Since she didn’t intend to provoke him, Sellakia smiled to lighten the heavy atmosphere.

“After all, we don’t have much time left, do we?”

I’ll disappear soon enough, so please.

Debating whether to add the last words or not, Sellakia bit her tongue gently.

She couldn’t grovel in the face of hostility she didn’t even understand. Regardless of her fear, she still had that much pride left.

After meeting his gaze for a long time, Sellakia was the first to turn her back.