10 — What I Spied in the Garden

The next day, I worked enthusiastically around the manor in uniform as well. I don’t mean to brag, but I was starting to become more of a maid myself than an ‘elite aristocratic lady.’

But I did it because it was fun!

Then, I went out to the garden with Dahlia to get some fresh flowers for decorations.

We went to the greenhouse to find Bellis and ask what flower would be most suitable, but since he was nowhere to be found, we roamed all around the vast garden until we suddenly stumbled upon a spot we had never been to before.

It was undeniable—the duke’s garden was positively sprawling. We were terrified by the thought that we might have gotten lost.

Whenever I would leave for the gardens alone, I felt like it would seriously be a good idea to have someone prepare some emergency food for me, should worst come to worst! It was such a big garden, in fact, that it would be impossible to really see everything in even a week, at best.

In this immense garden, there was a little corner hidden away by a grove of trees, conveniently invisible from the main house.

“Jeez, this place is like stepping into a forest.”

“Er, Madam, that’s...”

“Huh? What?”

Wondering what Dahlia meant, I pushed aside a bit of thicket, revealing a little pond, on the bank of which was a small but elegant building. The pond had a water wheel and a stream flowing out of it as well. The building appeared to be a villa. You could even call it a little country house.

Nevertheless, it was even more beautiful than the manor, and I was moved to tears.

From the garden, this place just looked like a forest, but apparently all of that was there to hide this little villa. Once you passed through the trees, the area was surprisingly bright with sunlight streaming in from above.

The structure had a wooden deck overhanging the pond, on which were a parasol and some patio furniture.

It was there that I spotted the shape of a person.

Dahlia and I hid behind some low bushes so as not to be seen. I picked up a leafy branch that had fallen and, using it for cover, stealthily peeked over the bush.

That’s Mr. Fisalis, no doubt about it! And the other person is a woman.

“It’s like we’re spies or something!” I said to Dahlia in an excited whisper.

“Or perhaps a peeping Tom?” she whispered back.

I’m gonna pretend I didn’t hear that.

“So, that structure is the cottage, and that woman Miss Calendula?” I quietly asked Dahlia, who now also brandished a branch of her own.

“That’s correct.”

Like earlier when she had spoken of Mr. Fisalis and Calendula, I felt a chill coming off of Dahlia. She was so terrifying I didn’t want to look at her!

The two of us observed Mr. Fisalis and his girlfriend, camouflaging our faces with branches. Or rather, I was watching with rapt attention, while Dahlia hated every minute of it.

Mr. Fisalis and Calendula were flirting like lovebirds, completely unaware of us watching them.

“That Calendula is bewitchingly beautiful, isn’t she? How does that saying go? Little in the middle but big... everywhere else? I’m totally jealous. Her face is gorgeous, too.”

“Goodness, Master has laid his head on her lap!”

“He’s just like a dog. A large breed dog, hehehe.”

“See how Miss Calendula coddles him? Oh! She’s combing his hair now!”

I felt like a reporter covering a breaking news story.

“His companion is about four years older than him, so she treats Master something like a little brother,” Dahlia quipped offhandedly.

Dahlia seemed to be on a different page than me... just kidding. I totally wanted to know more, so I broke off my observation to turn and look at her.

“Oh, she’s his elder then?”

“Yes. If I recall correctly, she just turned twenty-eight.”

“I see. So Mr. Fisalis’ type is older women.”

“Who can say? Before he met her, he saw all kinds of women.” Dahlia was letting things slip again.

If he likes older women, then he must think I’m a little kid at six years younger. Not to mention I’m about as far as you can get from her body type. She’s in a league all her own! Who knows what kind of women he liked before, but she sure seems like his type now.

I chatted quietly with Dahlia as we watched the two of them from afar.

“He does have dog-like attributes, doesn’t he?”

“Pardon?”

“He comes right back to the person who takes care of him after he goes out,” I thought out loud, the image of a large dog forming in my mind. How fascinating.

“He wasn’t always like that, though...” Dahlia whispered with a far-off look in her eyes.

“Oh, he was different before?”

“Yes. As the only son, he will be responsible for the Fisalis family in the years to come, so from the time he was a small boy, he has studied earnestly under the previous generation. The previous generation was raised just as rigidly, too.”

“So the same old story of growing up an aristocrat, huh?”

“And so by the time he was a young man, everyone expected him to be a reliable successor.”

“Hmm...”

“But since meeting his current companion, he’s become a spineless fool.”

Mr. Fisalis got hit with the stupid stick. Pffft.

I covered my mouth to keep from bursting out in laughter, while pressing Dahlia for more details with my gaze.

“Until then, he had never depended on anyone and had never been spoiled; I suppose, as the head of the family, he had hardened his heart. When he’s with her, though, she treats him not as the heir to the dukedom, but as just Cercis. He came to know the joys of depending on someone else, as people his age normally do, without having to conduct himself so formally. But now he’s drowned in it.”

“Ahh.” I nodded. The part of him that was brutally kept in line rebelled with a vengeance. Cercis the boy (er, the young man?) has lost himself in his elder’s over tolerance!

“Now, if only he would just use his head a bit.”

Dahlia continued on to say that it was unfortunate he lost his sense of self and let himself be pulled under.

So, is that what happened?

“Wasn’t he popular with women in society for his good looks?” I asked.

I mean, look how many jealous women were glaring daggers at me at the wedding.

“Goodness, he did grow up to be very handsome, did he not? After he debuted all the way up until he met her, I understand that he did see other girls, in a fashion.”

“So you mean he would have been better off if he hadn’t met her, then.”

“Yes. Then again, no matter which lady it was, they only cared about his looks and status.”

Ah, Dahlia’s face is tight with displeasure yet again.

“That is disappointing, isn’t it? It’s not uncommon for people to behave like that, but it’s not a proper way to act!”

“His companion was once a traveling dancing girl. She tells him all sorts of charming stories. She has been through a lot and has seen many things, so capturing the heart of an inexperienced, naive young man was no hard task.”

Considering the kind of family he comes from, I’m sure he wanted to get to know her inside and out!

Dahlia, I can’t believe I just said that.

“And just look at them now,” I said. “He’s been like this for a while, huh? How long has it been? Six years? You know, with a bit of experience, he could just as easily fall out of love with her as he fell in.”

“The more that people around them reject their relationship, though, the higher it fans their flame, perhaps.”

“Totally. By all appearances, they seem to be very close, though, so let’s leave them alone for now.”

“What!? Do you really want to do that, Madam!?” Dahlia’s eyes widened in shock at my indifference.

“It’s been like this from the start, and I don’t feel any particular way about Mr. Fisalis, either.”

That’s the important part.

We didn’t become husband and wife because we loved each other—we just signed a contract!

“I knew it... did he get something out of this after all? He still lives with his companion in the cottage, and there’s been no sign that he cares about me, his wife, in any particular way. Really, what was I thinking...”

Dahlia knit her brows in frustration when I spoke.

“So, didn’t he just want to protect her? If that’s the case, don’t you think that’s a good enough reason?” I said, trying to de-escalate the situation.

“Madam...” Dahlia looked up at me, her eyes flashing.

Hey, no, don’t worry!

“Oh, we’ll make sure to maintain our image in public, so don’t worry, okay? He even told me I don’t have to socialize. More importantly, I’ve had such a good time living with all of you that I don’t mind that he’s not here,” I said, to try to comfort her.

“I have a feeling you’re missing the point, Madam...” Dahlia said with a forced smile.

“It’s fine, really! Let’s get back to looking for Bellis. Enough dawdling.”

We crouched down to conceal ourselves as we pushed our way through the underbrush away from the cottage.

There was such a huge difference between the Mr. Fisalis I had seen today, and the Mr. Fisalis I knew (completely secondhand)! Could it be that I was attracted to that difference?