“…It was the Grandir Duchy…?”
A gate so tall you have to look up, and sturdy walls stretching to the end of the alley.
The white-potted mansion, where magnificent conifers that do not wither even in the winter sky soar high, was the townhouse of the Grandir Duchy—an even greater aristocratic house than my former employer, the Albright Duchy.
“So, a tragedy meant that…”
The Grandir Duchy changed its head of the house a year ago.
The previous Duke passed away suddenly in an accident, and the heir, who had just turned twenty, took over.
The current head of the house, Lawrence, is busy handling his work and is apparently not present at the mansion right now.
(Lawrence… A name related to laurel trees. Such a pleasant sound…)
I feel somewhat happy that the young master I have yet to meet has a name related to plants.
The previous Duchess, who is the Duke’s mother, has reportedly retired to a country house on their estate ever since the previous Duke passed away.
Many servants followed the country house to comfort the Duchess, who became a widow, and this townhouse is apparently short on staff. The Duchess must be a very well-liked person.
With both the Duchess and the Duke absent, the person who conducted my interview was the steward.
The steward is the head of all the servants. Even though he hesitated upon hearing that I am, for all intents and purposes, a baron’s daughter, he somehow managed to hire me.
“Please let me start working right away!”
I made that request to the steward and stepped out into the garden with enthusiasm.
“My…!”
At the back of the mansion, a vast garden spread out.
Flower beds arranged in symmetry. A circular pond surrounded by marble.
Blown by the chilly, withered winter wind, the silver-gray leaves of the blue stars are swaying. Pure white snowdrops bloom with lovely flowers like raindrops, inviting a spring we have yet to see.
A splendid greenhouse also stood in a corner of the garden. Pathways paved with white gravel connected the greenhouse and the gazebo with graceful, winding curves.
“What a wonderful garden…!”
I trembled with emotion.
The sky is a murky leaden color, but heath stretches its stems sturdily along the pathway, and crocuses are peeping their buds out slightly from the frost-covered flower beds.
“My, my, to think you are such a young lady…”
The elderly gardener who took off his hat to greet me went by the name of Howard Gray.
“I am Sarah Berry. Nice to meet you!”
Howard has apparently been entrusted with taking care of this garden for many years. His sun-tanned skin and well-worn work clothes give off the exact aura of a veteran gardener.
“Well, but for a baron’s daughter to do garden work.”
“It’s fine. People say our estate only grows weeds, but weeds do grow after all!”
With me puffing out my chest in full confidence, Howard deepened the wrinkles on his face and smiled.
“That’s a relief. Lately, I can’t beat the passing of the years, and I haven’t been able to keep up with everything, you know.”
Just as Howard said, the hedges of oak or boxwood that should have been neatly trimmed were overgrown in various places.
I immediately worked hard to help with the trimming. Pruning the endless hedges is quite a chore, but the harder I work, the cleaner they get, so it is very rewarding.
Even after that, I found work on my own and moved around busily.
Scraping moss clinging to the bricks of the flower beds, picking up fallen leaves floating on the pond’s surface, wiping away dust accumulated on the greenhouse glass—as I worked tirelessly on all these tasks, Howard stroked his white beard and looked impressed.
“My. Sarah, you are very used to this.”
“Thank you very much!”
“Baron,” meaning a title of nobility, comes from “Barony,” meaning an estate.
Perhaps because of that, being born into a baron’s family, I have been familiar with tending to gardens since I was a little girl. I am not knowledgeable about dresses or jewelry, but I am good at handling plants.
“I am so happy to be able to work in such a wonderful garden!”
“I’m glad to hear you say that.”
Alongside the gentle Howard, I spent my days enjoying garden work warmly and peacefully.
Winter has few flowers, but there is always plenty to do, such as cleaning up dead leaves, preparing fertilizer for spring planting, and growing flower seedlings inside the greenhouse.
“This house has not only flowers, but many herbs planted as well.”
The Albright Duchy, where I was previously employed, boasted a splendid rose garden.
The main attraction of this Grandir Duchy’s garden is also roses, but simple herbs are planted in abundance as well, and as a “weed young lady,” I cannot help feeling a sense of affinity.
Thyme with cute white flowers. Dill bearing yellow flowers. Artemisia, charming with its silver-green leaves.
None of them are flashy, but they have a cuteness that sets the heart at ease.
“Howard-san. Would it be alright if I make a tuzzy-mussie using these herbs?”
A tuzzy-mussie is a bouquet made using herbs.
It is a mysterious word that sounds like a spell, but it is nothing suspicious.
A tuzzy-mussie can not only be displayed as a bouquet, but because of the refreshing fragrance of the herbs, it also serves as an air freshener when placed indoors.
“This mansion is very grand, but it’s as quiet as if the fire has gone out. I feel like having flowers would heal that.”
Howard smiled with a face that perfectly fit the expression of a benevolent old man.
“Ah, that’s fine. I’m sure the people of the mansion will be delighted, too.”
I immediately went out to the garden and picked several kinds of flowers and plants.
I filled a bowl with water and soaked the cut ends of the stems. Cutting the stems underwater draws up the water and makes the flowers last longer.
I chose snowdrops for the center flower. Adding the green of rosemary, arranging the leaves of sage and marjoram, I gathered everything into a neat, round shape.
Finally, tying it with hemp string and wrapping the stems in dampened paper completes the tuzzy-mussie.
When I made tuzzy-mussies using various plants on a daily rotation and placed them in the hallway or hung them on the walls, I felt as though the gloomy atmosphere inside the mansion had softened up just a little bit.