“What’s wrong, Madam?” Nicholas asked as he noticed Roseline staring at her backside for a prolonged period. Embarrassed, Rosaline quickly made an excuse.
“Nothing, just admiring the garden. The trees are planted at the perfect distance for viewing,” she replied.
“They were planned and planted that way from the beginning. There are exactly 2,000 trees in the garden and surrounding area,” Nicholas informed her.
Surprised by this revelation, Rosaline turned to look at Nicholas. “Really? Have you ever counted them all?” she asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.
Nicholas couldn’t help but smile at her naive question, but quickly regained his composure. “No, but I do know that all the trees in the garden were planted by human hands and not grown naturally. My family’s founder was responsible for the construction of the garden at the time, and records were kept,” he explained.
“I see, so Nicholas isn’t from the East,” Rosaline realized.
“Correct, my family moved to the East in my father’s generation,” Nicholas confirmed.
Roseline then noticed that Nicholas’ accent was not quite standard, but not heavily mixed with an Eastern dialect. She realized that there was much she didn’t know about Nicholas, as well as Melchor and the servants of the mansion.
Feeling embarrassed for not having paid more attention, Roseline quickly changed the subject.
Anyway, Melchor is my husband on paper, and Nicholas is my escort. From now on, I’ll have to study hard to understand everything better.
As the legal wife, even though it was a fake marriage, Rosaline knew she had to take her responsibilities as the “Grand Duchess of Postenmeyer” seriously. She decided to ask the butler to tell her the family’s history and practice thoroughly to avoid any mistakes.
****
“Sister.”
“Huh? Alfons.”
When she returned from a walk, her younger brother Alfons stood in front of the office on the second floor.
“You woke up early. Did you come to see me?”
Even though Roseline approached and greeted him warmly, Alfons hesitated and looked at something that was bothering him.
“What’s wrong, Alfons?”
“Sister, I have to go to the bathroom.”
The VIP room on the fourth floor was very spacious and pleasant, but Alfons, who is still a child, would be scared to stay alone. There was a lack of consideration. Roseline held her little brother’s hand out of pity.
“Do you want to go to the bathroom, Alfons? I’ll walk you there.”
Six years old is the right age to go to the bathroom alone, but this is not the home of Crimson Rose. In addition, since her mother was kicked out of the fight with her sister, it is possible that Alfons cannot do this alone because he is anxious. Roseline said, looking back at Nicholas.
“Nicolas, please go back to your seat. Alfons, let’s go.”
Fearing that the younger brother would be more frightened if the overbearing knight followed, Roseline returned to Nicholas and went up to the fourth floor with Alfons. As they left the stairwell and stood in the hallway on the fourth floor, Alfons, who confirmed that no one was there, pulled the hem of her sister’s clothes.
“Sister, I don’t have to go to the bathroom.”
“What?”
When she met him in front of the office earlier, he was in tears, but before she knew it, Alfons returned with his usual face and was looking at her.
“Are you okay? Do you want to go back to your room?”
“Sister, I… yesterday.”
Alfons looked around, double-checked that no one was there, and motioned toward Roseline. Does he have anything to say? As Roseline bent slightly to meet eye level, Alfons whispered.
“I heard the servants of this house mistreat you.”
“What?”
Alfons hesitated and looked around once more, then continued in a small voice.
“My sister pecked and kicked my mom out; it’s too much. It’s a mess because they were from a criminal family.” Alfons’ eyebrows twitched with a mixture of anxiety and anger. Roseline stiffened her expression.
“Alfons, where did you hear this? Who told you this?” Roseline asked in a firm tone, trying to hide her surprise and concern.
Alfons shook his head, “I-I can’t say. But, Sister, please be careful. They might hurt you too.”
Roseline’s heart ached for her little brother’s worry. She reassured him, “Alfons, don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself. But I’ll make sure to keep an eye out and report any mistreatment to the proper authorities.”
She hugged him tightly and promised to protect him and their mother.
“Come on, let’s go back to your room. I’ll stay with you for a while.”
Alfons nodded, and they walked back to his room together. Roseline couldn’t shake off the feeling of unease, but she knew she had to be strong for her brother and find out the truth about the supposed mistreatment.
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