TSPGD 23

Chapter 23

“Give me everything from here to here.”

I casually swept my fingertip across the glittering display case of jewelry in front of me.

This was the kind of extravagant spending spree I would never have been able to experience in my entire life.

I said it as casually as I could, but in reality, my nostrils were practically flaring with excitement.

‘How much is all of this……?’

There was so much that I couldn’t even calculate the total properly.

Unlike my nervous self, the shopkeeper remained completely calm.

Marie also behaved naturally, as though she had witnessed this sort of thing many times before.

“Thank you very much! We’ll have everything delivered to Brüllhardt Castle!”

As the shopkeeper smiled brightly, Marie approached me and whispered,

“My lady. Is there any piece of jewelry you would like to wear right away?”

“Uh, what?”

Marie reached out and pointed at a transparent diamond.

“I think it would suit you very well. Since it’s already been crafted into a necklace, perhaps you could wear it now. What do you think?”

It was such an excellent suggestion that I immediately nodded.

“Yes. That sounds good.”

Less than ten minutes after I gave my permission, the diamond necklace was hanging around my neck.

“Thank you very much!”

As the sparkling diamond shimmered against my neck, the employees all came rushing out and gave me a booming greeting.

Looking like the leader of a gang, I hurriedly turned around.

Couldn’t they just bow elegantly?

Why did they have to be so enthusiastic? It was embarrassing……

“……Ahem. Shall we go?”

“Yes, my lady!”

If I went on another two shopping sprees like this, I felt like the employees would start bowing down before me.

‘Good grief. I’ll buy something else next time.’

I decided not to visit this jewelry store again for a while and left.

Jingle.

Once I stepped outside, the sun was still high in the sky.

I had bought dozens of pieces of jewelry in only a few minutes.

“My lady. Shall we look at dresses this time?”

I wanted to follow Marie’s suggestion and pick out enough dresses to make another fortune, but, as always, my stamina suddenly plummeted.

“……No, Marie. I want to go back.”

“What? Already?”

Marie stared at me with wide, disbelieving eyes.

But I had already used up every last bit of my energy.

“Yes. Let’s go back. Quickly.”

“Since we’re already out, it might be nice to look around a little more……”

All I wanted was to lie down on a soft bed as soon as possible.

I thought I should explain my poor stamina to Marie soon, since she still didn’t know much about it, and urged her on.

“Marie. I’m tired. Hurry.”

“Yes…… Then I’ll call the carriage right away.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Marie hid her disappointment, spoke to one of the escort knights nearby, and then quickly returned to my side.

“My goodness, my lady. Are you very tired?”

Feeling Marie’s worried yet curious gaze, I had no choice but to explain.

“Marie. My stamina is very poor.”

“Ah…… I did think you seemed that way.”

“It’s even worse than you think.”

“Yes! I’ll keep that in mind!”

“And I get motion sickness in carriages.”

“Ah…… So that’s why you were so quiet earlier.”

“Yes. So please understand.”

When I gave her an awkward smile, Marie actually smiled brightly.

“Understand? Of course! You’re someone I’m supposed to take care of.”

I was grateful for her words, but they also made me feel awkward, so I subtly looked away.

Marie was going to have to do a lot more work to compensate for my terrible stamina, and I felt sorry about that.

‘I should give her a bonus soon.’

If someone did a lot of work, they deserved appropriate compensation.

In my previous life, I hadn’t received such things properly.

‘I can’t become that kind of employer.’

I firmly resolved to make sure Marie received a proper bonus.

‘Especially overtime pay. I absolutely have to give her that.’

I had no idea how much I should pay her, but I decided to think about it after returning.

With an escort from the knight, I climbed into the carriage.

And then I returned to the Grand Duke’s castle while suffering through another journey into motion-sickness hell.

“Uaaah.”

After returning, I collapsed straight onto the bed without even changing my clothes.

“My stamina is seriously awful.”

The room was spinning before my eyes, and I couldn’t do anything at all.

So I simply lay there for a while, doing absolutely nothing.

“My lady…… Shall I call a doctor?”

Marie hovered beside me anxiously.

I gathered what little strength I had left to send her away.

“……No. I’m fine. You should go rest too.”

“I can’t do that when you’re sick.”

I didn’t even have enough energy left to answer her.

Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

When I eventually opened my eyes again, it was already pitch-black outside.

“Uh……”

I looked around.

Someone had changed my clothes, and Marie was dozing uncomfortably in a single-person chair.

‘Good heavens. Has she been beside me this whole time?’

Come to think of it, Marie seemed to always be on standby for me.

She had to come whenever I pulled the bell cord, so she probably couldn’t let her guard down.

‘Is Marie the only person assigned to serve me in this enormous Grand Duke’s castle?’

Judging by the situation, it seemed like all the work had been dumped on her, which made me feel uneasy.

“……Marie.”

“Umm……”

“Marie, wake up.”

“Ah! My lady!”

Marie woke with a start, rubbed her bloodshot eyes, and hurried over to me.

“Have you been sitting like this all this time?”

“What? Yes, my lady. Are you hungry?”

“……Did you eat?”

“What?”

“Did you eat and get some rest?”

“Yes…… Yes?”

Marie froze as though I had just said something completely unimaginable.

“Judging by the look of you, you haven’t eaten either. Go get some rest.”

“……!”

“I’ll eat in the dining hall. Just tell them I’m going there.”

“M-my lady. I’ve never met someone like you before.”

Marie blinked in surprise, and I was actually the one who became startled.

“Really? But I don’t know what you mean by ‘someone like me.’”

“You’re actually concerned about a servant’s meals…… I’ve never met a lady like you before.”

“Hm?”

Marie’s round eyes began to glisten with emotion.

Looking into her eyes, I finally remembered what kind of place this was.

‘That’s right. This is a society based on social class.’

Nobles rarely cared for people beneath them—people of lower status who served them.

‘Most of them probably just think of servants as disposable tools.’

In a place where human rights were practically nonexistent, my simple words seemed to have deeply shocked Marie.

‘Well, social status or not, with my memories of the modern world, I just can’t let this slide.’

Making someone work without even feeding them was crossing the line.

“Haa…… It’s not such a big deal. Marie, from now on, whenever you’re with me, make sure you eat three proper meals a day.”

“Gasp. M-my lady.”

Marie’s eyes trembled with emotion as she clasped my hand tightly.

“My lady. You really are such a wonderful person. I’ll do my very best to serve you for as long as I’m here.”

And that night.

Ella didn’t believe that there would actually be any contact between Jurgen and Arina.

But you never knew what might happen.

So she remained on high alert, pacing around Arina’s bedroom.

However, even as the night grew deeper, Arina showed no sign of movement.

‘Hmph. Just as I thought.’

Ella snorted and decided that she would have to correct Arina’s habit of brazenly lying sooner rather than later.

Thanks to Marie’s devoted care, I ate well and slept well, so I woke up feeling refreshed the next morning.

“Uaaah.”

I was pleased with how good I felt.

I immediately got out of bed, washed my face, and put on the dress I had chosen for the day.

‘I have quite a lot to do today.’

First, I needed to meet Jurgen in the morning and coordinate our schedule going forward.

Knock, knock.

I had just finished putting on my wig and getting ready when I heard a knock at the door.

“My lady, it’s Marie.”

“Yes. Come in.”

Marie opened the door and immediately widened her eyes when she saw that I was already fully dressed.

“My lady? D-did you get ready completely by yourself?”

“Why are you so surprised? If I couldn’t even do this much by myself, there would have to be something wrong with my intelligence.”

Marie once again looked as though she had been deeply moved by my words.

But honestly, this was for my own sake too.

‘I’m not going to remain the Brüllhardt Grand Duke’s mistress forever.’

At most, I would be here for one month.

If I became accustomed to a comfortable life during that month, returning to my original life afterward would be difficult.

“Marie. While I’m meeting His Grace, could you prepare some more modest clothes for me?”

“What? Modest clothes?”

“Yes. Clothes that commoners wear.”

Marie seemed to think about my request for a moment.

“Yes! I’ll have them prepared!”

“All right. Thank you.”

I didn’t know what she had been thinking, but fortunately, she didn’t ask why I wanted commoner’s clothes.

“Shall we go, then?”

“Yes.”

With Marie guiding me, I headed toward Jurgen’s study.

The door to Jurgen’s study was made of dark, massive oak.

‘It feels intimidating every time I see it.’

Was this what the office of a corporate chairman looked like?

Whenever I stood in front of Jurgen’s study, I felt an inexplicable sense of pressure.

As I approached the door, Aaron, who had been waiting outside, announced,

“Your Grace. Lady Arina has arrived.”

“Come in.”

With that brief reply, Aaron opened the door, and I entered the study alone.

“Good morning, Your Grace.”

I greeted him politely, but Jurgen didn’t lift his eyes from the documents in front of him.

‘……His arrogance reaches the heavens.’

Still, I assumed he was holding a grudge over the way I had teased him yesterday, so I decided to let it slide.

“Sit.”

“Yes, yes.”

Fragrant tea and refreshments had already been prepared.

But I didn’t touch either the snacks or the tea.

‘Hmph. Who knows what he might have put in them?’

After drinking the confession tea when I first arrived here, I had decided never to touch anything Jurgen prepared for me again.

Tap.

Perhaps he had been watching me, because Jurgen put down his pen and gave a derisive snort.

“There’s nothing in it. Drink it.”