A Mad Lady’s Confession - Chapter 62

Perhaps sensing Eleanor’s curious gaze, Mrs. Melissa quickly smiled again and continued, “There’s a saying in Gammelstad. That the god of the sea grants fertility.”

When Mrs. Melissa winked meaningfully, Eleanor’s face flushed for no reason.

“Compared to other regions, people here are generally well-off, and His Grace has established many systems for children, so there isn’t a single house in Gammelstad where you don’t hear the sound of children crying.”

“…Is that so?”

It was a little unexpected. He didn’t seem like someone who liked children at all.

At Eleanor’s question, Mrs. Melissa nodded and spread out the cookie dough.

“He seems blunt and cold, doesn’t he? He was born into a noble status and grew up exceptional even among the exceptional, so it’s only natural that he would look down on everything. That can’t be helped. This is Nielsen we’re talking about.”

Even if he’s arrogant to the bone, it can’t be helped. He is Nielsen.

“But still, at least the lord I’ve seen is not someone who turns away from the weak.”

“…”

“He’s always been that way.”

Mrs. Melissa’s face softened as if recalling the past.

“…I think so too.”

At the quiet addition from beside her, Mrs. Melissa turned with widened eyes to look at Eleanor. Holding a basket of finely chopped chocolate, Eleanor continued, “…I know that he’s actually a warm and good person.”

She knew that the kindness and gentle side he had shown her were the reason.

It felt a little sad, but that made it better.

To the point where she wanted to pretend not to see the truth coming into view. To the point where, for the first time, she wanted to ignore Del’s voice.

“Madam, if I may be so bold as to say something?”

Eleanor lifted her head and looked at Mrs. Melissa. She nodded toward the gentle woman with kind eyes.

“Please stay by his side… for a long, long time.”

“….”

“I can’t say it to him directly, but that’s probably what he wants most. No one has ever done that for him.”

Even though he was born as the sole heir of a great noble house, no one had ever remained by Matthias Nielsen’s side. Because he never allowed it. Even his own parents, who gave birth to him, were no exception.

Perhaps the life of a noble was, in truth, unbearably lonely and empty. Mrs. Melissa had once thought that while watching the young boy Matthias Nielsen.

Eleanor couldn’t find the words to answer. She herself had only been given a mere 365 days. And now, she wasn’t even sure she could fill that time completely.

“Oh dear, I must be rambling in my old age. Please don’t take it as impertinent, madam.”

“No! …Not at all.”

She truly didn’t think so. Knowing that there was someone by Matthias’s side who carefully watched over him and worried for him made her feel reassured.

Who was she to feel such reassurance? Perhaps she was the one being presumptuous.

“Well then, shall we sprinkle the chocolate now, madam?”

Eleanor quickly came back to her senses and scattered the finely chopped chocolate pieces over the rolled-out dough.

As Mrs. Melissa took out a box of cookie cutters, Eleanor also opened her mouth to lighten the mood.

“The children will love this. Chocolate cookies.”

Chocolate was something precious. For cookies meant to be distributed to the people of the territory, both the quantity and the quality were quite high.

“That’s right. It’s something they can only eat during festivals around this time. …At least, in Gammelstad, we hope there won’t be a single child who hasn’t tasted chocolate cookies.”

Doesn’t he dislike chocolate? Eleanor blinked, unable to understand.

“Would you like to make the shapes a bit special and give some to His Grace as well? Of course, made by you personally, madam.”

“…Yes?”

Eleanor lowered her head in embarrassment, her cheeks turning slightly red.

A few maids at the dough table burst into curious laughter as they watched her shy reaction. Eleanor, uncharacteristically, only cleared her throat awkwardly.

By afternoon, the baked cookies and sacks of flour were loaded onto carts. Eleanor, Mrs. Melissa, and several maids, all prepared to go out, climbed into separate carriages, and the horses stamped their hooves energetically.

At a Nielsen-owned shop in the square, a long line had already formed. Outside, sacks of flour were handed out one by one, and inside the shop, freshly baked cookies were given to the children.

It was an event that took place every year, but today’s anticipation was somewhat different. The rumor had already spread by word of mouth that the gentle, beautiful lady with pink hair handing out cookies inside was the new duchess.

They said she smelled wonderful, that her face shone as if it were glowing, that her smile was like that of an angel. Such words quickly spread and grew as they passed from person to person.

Because of that, aside from the children receiving cookies, the area in front of the shop became crowded with people trying to peer inside.

Completely unaware of all this, Eleanor could only blush in embarrassment at the unexpected words spoken to her inside the shop. It was because she had just received an unexpected confession of love.

From a very, very young boy, one Matthias wouldn’t even be able to get angry at if he saw it.

Perhaps six years old. The boy tugged at his mother’s skirt and glanced shyly at Eleanor. His flushed cheeks made him look incredibly adorable.

“Jeremy, why don’t you tell her yourself?”

At a nudge from the woman who seemed to be his mother, the child named Jeremy twisted his body and stepped forward shyly.

“Uh… um… you really… look like a flower….”

“Yes?”

“You look like… the cyclamen blooming in our garden, madam.”

“Oh my.”

The maid beside her and Mrs. Melissa laughed softly at his words. Eleanor smiled as well, then lowered her posture to look at the child.

“Thank you. I’ve never heard that before….”

“C-could I… propose to you later?”

“Yes?”

At the adorable remark, laughter burst out from all around. Unfazed, the boy’s eyes sparkled with earnest seriousness as he looked at Eleanor. She gently stroked his cheek and handed him a cookie.

“Yes, of course. I’ll be waiting.”

“Wah….”

Delighted, the boy bounced on his feet before quickly burying himself in his mother’s skirt.

Eleanor watched his back as he left the shop, waving his hand for a long time.

Handing out cookies was quite a rewarding task. Freshly baked cookies felt like gifts, and they had the power to lift the mood of both the one giving and the one receiving them.

The people of the territory all showed goodwill toward Eleanor. She thought it was because Matthias was a good lord, and that they extended that same regard to her as his wife, but in truth, they were struck by how sincere and unpretentious she was.

Rather than merely ordering those beneath her around, she rolled up her sleeves and even wore a small apron, which made the lady of the house seem approachable and pleasant.

Mrs. Melissa and the maids felt the same. They had thought she might be less bound by strict formality than expected of a great noblewoman, but they hadn’t imagined she would help so earnestly.

Even in her smiles and simple greetings, there was not a trace of pretense. Though none of them said it aloud, they were grateful. That the new mistress they had finally received was a good person.

The cookies they had brought were gone in two hours. Since they had prepared plenty so no one would leave empty-handed, there was no one left waiting once only empty baskets remained.

Eleanor estimated the amount of dough still left from today’s preparation and asked, “There’s still quite a lot of cookie dough left at the estate. Will that be baked and distributed tomorrow as well?”

“Ah, that is….”

Mrs. Melissa hesitated for a moment, then continued as if it were nothing.

“It’s for the children when we visit the orphanage the day after tomorrow.”

“There’s an orphanage here as well?”

“They exist everywhere. Children who have lost love.”

Children who have lost love. Eleanor repeated Mrs. Melissa’s words to herself before speaking.

“May I come along as well? That is… when you hand out the cookies to the children.”

It was not unusual for noblewomen to visit orphanages or homes for the elderly as a form of charity.

There was nothing particularly remarkable about it, yet Mrs. Melissa hesitated for some reason. But soon she nodded.

“Of course, madam.”

The return to the estate was still in broad daylight. It was just past lunchtime, so Mrs. Melissa urged them to hurry, saying that they should have a meal as soon as they arrived.

When the carriage came to a stop in front of Solvikviche, Mrs. Melissa quickly spoke to Eleanor.

“Madam!”

As Eleanor turned her head, Mrs. Melissa lowered her voice and continued, “The cookies you made for His Grace… I set them aside separately here.”

With a playful wink, she placed a pretty bag of cookies into Eleanor’s hands.

Eleanor stared down at the softly rustling bag in her hands. It wasn’t as if he was someone who particularly liked cookies…. Even so, she held it carefully.

As her foot touched the carriage step, an unexpected hand reached out to escort her. When she lifted her head while holding it, Matthias was standing there.

Is he trying to reconcile? But Matthias’s face was slightly stiff.

There was no trace of the childish expression from when they had bickered over their age difference. With a serious face, he looked at Eleanor.

“…Your Grace?”

“Do you remember what you asked me before?”

“….”

“I’ve found out where Young Lady Düsseldorf is.”