novelCalen Castle, Part XXIII
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Chapter 62. Calen Castle, Part XXIII
Translator: Khan
Editor: Aelryinth
"I've seen you for the first time, Your Excellency. Did you call me?" Julietta bowed politely to the sharp-faced silver-haired gentleman.
"Yes, it looks like you're going out of the castle. Get in. It'll take a long time to walk."
She hesitated for a moment at the kindness of the nobleman she had seen for the first time. She always thought, 'Let's be careful about kindness without a price', but it seemed that it would be easier to get out of the gate in the Duke's carriage than to give a lame excuse about walking away.
Julietta stopped agonizing, thanked him, and got into the carriage.
Kiellini observed the girl sitting carefully in the chair opposite him. It was amazing that she disguised herself to protect herself, but she was no ordinary child to take up the position of a private maid of the Prince just months after she had started as a maid.
Today, the Prince had left the castle with all his aides to inspect the hunting grounds. They would not have let a maid who had first visited Bertino outside of the castle on an errand, and even so, there was no way to walk out of the castle without a carriage.
He didn't know what was going on, but the Duke somehow thought he shouldn't miss the current opportunity. He smiled awkwardly and spoke to the girl sitting uncomfortably across from him, "I had something to tell you now, and I think it's a special fate that we're meeting like this."
"Do you know me?" Julietta's eyes were drawn to the wonder of what the Duke had to say to her.
"I've heard from Maribel about you." Julietta blushed as soon as the Duke finished speaking.
'I'm paying off my debts, but she still hasn't given up the idea of selling me out?'
Kiellini spoke calmly to the frightened girl, who looked as if she would jump out of the carriage at any moment, "I don't know what you're thinking, but you shouldn't be so scared, so rest assured."
He was a sharp-looking man with grayish silver hair and green eyes, neatly combed back. Julietta thought that he was not a lascivious man, seeing the Duke clicking his tongue in disapproval.
"Do you have anything to say to me?"
"I'm going to offer you a job. It's far beyond the maid you're working as."
Julieta's head tilted slowly to one side at the sudden job offer. As soon as she got out of Ricaren, she would try to take off her disguise and get a job, but a job just rolled in by itself. However, she did not know what it was like to be, incomparable to a maid?
The Duke went straight to the point when Julietta showed interest in what he said."I have a daughter who is set to make her social debut this year. She's my successor. But the problem is that it's hard for her to come forward and do an overall event to receive the title of the Duke, because she's very weak."
Kiellini shut his mouth and looked out the window for a moment.
'If I could take away the girl's health right in front of me, and give it to Iris, how happy I would be! Even if it goes according to the plan, after this year, the child will have to hide herself as a ghost as if she were dead inside the Territory. '
It was so sad, so pitiful and so unfair.
He could do everything for her, but the only thing he could not do was the health of his daughter. He couldn't give it to her, so he wanted to take someone else's health and hold her place.
Kiellini turned back to the maid looking at him without a word. When the Duke's gaze returned to her, Julietta opened her mouth, "I understand. Are you saying that your daughter has all the authority as a de facto successor, but she's weak, so I have to do external activities as a substitute?"
"That's right. You understand fast. No one knows that my daughter, Iris, is in poor health. Naturally, they would think the next successor will come out of the other collateral line. Therefore, it is necessary to warn them that Iris is not seriously ill and that they should not even think about succession, while you complete my daughter's social debut at the coming-of-age ceremony as a substitute. That way, they won't make any unnecessary noise, even if my daughter confines herself in the Territory after that."
"How long do I have to work as a substitute? No matter how much money you give me, I can't continue to be a scarecrow."
It was a great opportunity. From Julietta's point of view, taking off her disguise was more of a cover-up, so the offer to wash her identity and receiving some money was a real good chance. However, since she didn't want to live her entire life as a part of someone else's character, she had to figure out exactly when that period was.
"Only during this summer`s social season. If you finish your debut party safely and get everyone's recognition as the successor to the family of Kiellini, your role will end."
'Iris is weak, and unable to marry or have children. We will look for a young man who can form a political alliance or share this secret. It would be nice if he has a child outside, and if he doesn't, she could adopt a suitable one. In any case, she will show that there is no problem as a successor, go to the Territory for a change of air and spend her entire life there. Then the rest of Iris' life will be kept safe. '
"But I think I missed one thing. Do your daughter and I resemble each other a lot?"
Julietta tilted her head, thinking, "I don't think the daughter of the gentleman like that would have had brick hair and dark skin. I heard from Maribel that you were the illegitimate child of the Marquis. He is Iris' uncle."
Kiellini nodded as Julietta was apparently embarrassed by the relationship of the family registry he mentioned all of a sudden.
"She has blond hair and green eyes. Of course, she is a lighter blonde than the Marquis, and her eyes are a green closer to blue, but since she was young, she's gone down to the land and confined herself there, so you don't have to worry about it because only a few people would remember Iris except for an image of when she was young."
At the mention of the Duke, Julietta recalled Marquis Anais, who she had seen in the theater. He had vivid green eyes reminiscent of a budding sprout, with bright blond hair that had a lighter pink color than herself. Perhaps no one would doubt that she was his niece.
The Duke gazed out of the window, watching Julietta, who seemed to be thinking carefully. They would soon arrive at the gate. When negotiating, however, it was a loss to those who would express their feelings first. He told her the amount to be paid after the work was done and looked outside in a leisurely manner.
Unlike him, Julietta could not help but be astonished. Ten thousand terns! The amount was enough to repay Maribel's debts and open a store!
'Good luck comes to those who want to grab it. I'm not going to be frightened beforehand and run away. '
Many things were on her mind, but Julietta didn't mean to miss the opportunity that came to her.
"Please fill out a contract stating the exact length of time and the amount to be paid to me and the provision that you will not do any harm to me after the work is done."
Julietta smiled broadly at the silver-haired gentleman in front of her, taking off her wig and glasses she had been wearing.
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