“Aren’t you bored, staying in the mansion every day?”
“No, not at all. Right now, I’m walking around looking at the entire garden, and it’s a lot of fun.”
Lately, I’ve been heading out to the garden, and as expected of a Duke’s residence, it’s huge.
There’s a gazebo and a fountain. There are also weird statues. Why are statues like that almost half-naked, anyway?
“I heard you carried fertilizer instead of the gardener who hurt his back?”
“Oh dear, older sister. You already knew about that? How embarrassing.”
I only helped a little because the veteran gardener grandfather hurt his back, but it’s already reached older sister’s ears. As expected of the Duke’s favorite. She’s the very image of a lady of the house.
Today, the Duke wasn’t going out, so I had planned to stay in my room, but older sister invited me for tea, so I happily came out to the salon.
Older sister is wearing a red dress today, too. Does she like red? Could it be the Duke’s preference? If so, I’ll make sure not to wear red.
“Aren’t you getting invitations to tea parties?”
“Ah, now that you mention it, they did come. Maybe I should go to a few, but I’m an invisible wife. If older sister is going, it’s better for me not to go.”
“I’m not going to tea parties. Even if I go, it’ll just be evening parties of other noble houses. I don’t even go to the castle’s evening parties. After all, I’m not a noble or anything.”
“Then, since I also want to promote my parents’ home’s specialty products, I’ll pick a few and attend.”
“Do you have a dress?”
“I brought some from my parents’ home.”
“No good. You have to buy something trendy or have one made. Glen gives you money, doesn’t he?”
Hmm, does this mean I should waste money on dresses?
Or does it mean, “I’m not going to tea parties, so I’m leaving that side of things to you. I won’t forgive you if you do a half-assed job”?
Right now, it’s a bit hard to grasp the meaning of older sister’s actions. Though I’ve never felt any hostility from her.
“He did, but I was hoping to use that for investments or supporting my parents’ home.”
Older sister wrinkles her brow a little.
Even looking like that, she’s beautiful.
While I was drinking black tea, the Duke walked into the salon.
Other than “I will never love you,” this is the first time I’ve seen him at such a close distance.
“Iris, were you here?”
“Yes, the Duchess has been keeping me company.”
The Duke walked straight up to older sister, and without looking at me at all, started talking to her at a terribly close distance.
This is it! The distance of a favorite!
“It’s about the evening parties during the social season.”
“My, Glen, you’re married now, so you should just go with the Duchess.”
Oops, I almost spat out my tea. Close, close.
As I thought, the Duke’s name is Glen, and the person older sister was talking about was the Duke. It’s not too early for the Duke (age twenty-five) to read Landry’s poems, yes.
“I want to go with Iris.”
“No, people will talk behind our backs.”
“I won’t let them.”
Whoa! Duke!
While saying “I will never love you,” you can say things like that, too!
No wonder women squeal over a love with a difference in status! This is nice! Saying things like, “I won’t let anyone speak ill of you”!
Aha, I see. Coming all the way to the salon to have this kind of conversation means he’s testing my invisible-wife skills. Though he could just do it when they’re alone. Could he possibly think I’m biting my handkerchief in jealousy?
There’s no way I’d do something like that.
Hee-hee, since I’m getting money, it wouldn’t do to underestimate my invisible-wife skills.
Older sister and the Duke chatted or flirted for about fifteen minutes by my feeling, but I stuck to being air and drank my tea without interrupting at all. It would be rude to older sister to just stand up and leave, too.
Naturally, since I had nothing to do, I ended up eating the sweets, though.
When the Duke finally left the salon, I let out the breath I had been holding.
Older sister brushes back her hair.
“Sorry to keep you while you were keeping me company. Glen is a bit of a spoiled brat, so even in the middle of work he makes up errands to come see me.”
As I thought, is the Duke three years old? Does he go, “Mama~” or “Older sister~”?
What’s with that? I’m envious. Since older sister always carries herself with such poise, I can understand wanting to act spoiled.
“I understand very well.”
“Eh? What do you mean? You haven’t even met Glen, have you?”
Oops, no, no. If I keep this up, I’ll stir up older sister’s jealousy.
“No, I understand wanting to do that kind of play with older sister.”
“…Pardon? Play?”
“Older sister has such a wonderful, encompassing warmth that makes you want to act spoiled, so you’d want her to give you a lap pillow, right? I get it.”
“…Well, I suppose so…”
Too bad, I was a bit curious about the details of the play, but it seems she won’t tell me.
I had heard the knights of the Blanchard family talking about various things. There’s baby play and stuff, right? Naturally, I couldn’t ask, “Does the Duke engage in baby play with older sister?” Just imagining that Duke going “gugoo-gaga” almost made me spit out my tea.
“I’m an invisible wife, and I have zero intention of barging into the relationship between older sister and the Duke, or of having myself taken to social gatherings as a partner, so you really don’t need to worry so much!”
“You mean you’re not attracted to Glen at all?”
“Um, it’s not that I’m trying to pick a fight with older sister, but, well, where is the part of the Duke that’s attractive?”
Older sister covered her mouth and started shaking slightly.
Uh-oh, did I anger her by speaking ill of the person she likes?
“O-of course, I’m not trying to deny older sister’s sensibilities or preferences! Older sister has all the time you’ve shared with the Duke, after all! I just don’t feel anything in particular~ like that! Only that the money is appreciated~”
I only view him as a cash cow.
So, please don’t worry! I won’t take the Duke away from older sister, I can’t, and I don’t even have the intention to.
Ah, even so, even such a beautiful older sister would do things to test me. Is this jealousy? It’s jealousy, right?
As expected, the position of a mistress is no good. It’s bad because the Duke won’t give her a firm status. Not that I’m one to talk, having been blinded by money and gotten a royal decree.
After that, older sister didn’t get angry, and somehow tea time came to an end.
Though I was a bit bothered by how older sister covered her mouth with her hand and shook every time she looked at my face and her face was red, too. Let’s wait a bit until the heat of her anger cools down.
“Say, Rosa. Could you ask the Duke if it’s okay for me to attend this tea party?”
“Understood… um, you could have just asked in the salon, but you didn’t.”
“Because I’m an invisible wife, you see? It would be scary and wrong if the air started talking. In front of the Duke, I’m a perfect invisible wife. But you know, for my parents’ home, I want to attend a few tea parties. This young lady of the Marquis Abernethy family is sending invitations very eagerly. I’ve been turning them down until now, but I wonder if she holds tea parties every week?”
“I don’t think there are tea parties every week. She probably just really wants the Duchess to come.”
Rosa looked at me with eyes like she was looking at something rare, but she said she would check with the Duke for me.