Chapter Fourteen
Settling In
“You said that you’ve been instructed to treat me as if I were the Grand Duchess already,” I continued. “I was informed before leaving Vermillion House that I would be allowed to choose more maids, but I wasn’t aware of the other positions you mentioned.”
He bobbed his head. “Yes, my lady. The Grand Duke made it clear to us all that your engagement is merely a formality, and you will be married as soon as possible.”
Yeah.
We’d see about that.
“I’d like to hear more about the staff.”
“Your Ladyship was correct regarding your attendants. You will be able to choose four further attendants from the staff here at the castle—two will be become your ladies-in-waiting under Bella, and a further two will be your personal maids alongside the young lady, Annie.”
Six people seemed excessive. What could I possibly need that many for? I’d survived this long with only Bella. Wouldn’t they all just end up tripping over each other?
“I hope there will be no offense if I take my time in choosing,” I replied as there was a knock at the door. “Come in.”
Helen pushed a tray into the room. “Your tea, my lady.”
“Thank you.” I turned back to Ark. “It was only recently that Annie became my personal maid, so having more attendants will take some adjusting to. I’m certain that Ingrid can choose maids who can be put on rotation until I’m able to select them.”
“Of course, my lady. I will pass the message on to the Head Maid that your maids should be switched out on a weekly basis unless you say otherwise. Would you be amenable to providing a weekly report to her during the selection process?”
I paused, picking up the teacup Helen had just poured for me. “Yes, that should be fine. Please have her only send maids willing to attend to me.”
It would be more than fine.
I wasn’t so trusting that I’d choose just anyone or allow my closest attendants to be chosen for me. I was in a foreign land with people who may not like me, so I had to weed out those who weren’t interested in serving me.
Not that any maid worth her salt would turn down the opportunity to personally attend to the future Grand Duchess, mind you.
“Please explain further about the other positions available to me.”
Ark cleared his throat. “You will be assigned a personal aide who will fulfil a similar role to you that Sir Hayes does to the Grand Duke. They will work personally with your attendants to coordinate your schedule and will assist you with your duties.”
So, a personal assistant. “Will that be my choice?”
“Yes, my lady. We will set up interviews for qualified persons when you’re ready.”
“What about a personal knight?”
“You will be protected by the Stein Knightage, of course, but His Highness has decided that you should have a personal knight to be with you at all times.” He coughed into his fist before taking a drink. “Would you like to trial them in the same method as your attendants?”
“No need.” I sipped my tea and gently set the teacup back down on the saucer. “Ark, there was a young lady with the knights who came to greet me today at the magic circles, but I wasn’t able to get her name.”
He raised his eyebrows in what I imagined was his version of surprise before quickly cooling his expression again. “Do you know what she looks like, my lady?”
“I do. She has blue eyes and long silvery-blonde hair that was tied up in a ponytail.”
Ark paused, and something flashed through his eyes. “I will enquire with the knightage and have someone report back to you.”
Hmm.
What was with his reaction?
I was from House Vermillion, the Sword of the Empire, a noble house that produced a great many Imperial Knights—I knew a talented swordsperson when I saw one.
There was something about that young woman, and it wasn’t just how she looked at me. She held herself in a way that screamed powerful, and I needed powerful.
“No need. I would like to visit the training grounds tomorrow to observe their training. Would that be possible?”
“Yes, my lady. I will arrange it.”
“Perfect. Thank you so much, Ark.” I set my teacup on the table. “I’ll rest now. I’d like to have my dinner in my room tonight.”
He got to his feet, and Pippa and Helen followed. “Of course, Madam. Would you like to bathe before or after you eat?”
“After. Please send Bella and Annie for that.”
They all left after Ark confirmed he would, and it wasn’t until the door clicked shut that I dropped down on the sofa and sighed.
As I’d suspected, I wasn’t mentally prepared for how crazy this role would be. It wasn’t even one I wanted, yet I’d been learning my staff positions for what seemed like hours.
One thing was for sure—Stein Castle was just like any other noble household. Politics were heavily at play, and there were those here who weren’t happy with my presence.
Sir Hayes couldn’t be the only one.
If I was going to survive with my sanity intact, I needed to know more about the people who worked here.
I’d read more than enough novels in my past life to know that there was always one disgruntled employee looking to poison the main character.
I wasn’t the main character in this world, but I was in my life.
And for me, that was more than enough to suspect everyone in this castle.
Even those who were nice to me.
***
The next week passed smoothly.
Bella and Annie quickly adapted to life at Stein Castle, and I busied myself with learning about the operations of the castle.
I spent a lot of time visiting with the staff so I could memorise their names, and my sincere compliments to the kitchen staff had resulted in the head chef apparently crying with happiness in the pantry.
Not only that, but I also made a point to visit the knights’ training ground every day to observe them.
I wasn’t sure what else I could do without Kalon being here. I didn’t know what authority, if any, had been granted to me in terms of the household, but I was also wary of exerting such a thing without him present.
Not that I cared if he were here or not. My escape plan was still my focus—I had every intention of delaying the wedding under the guise of me learning my role, and I was going to drag that education out as long as humanly possible.
That didn’t mean I wouldn’t collect allies along the way.
The maids had been informed of my intention to rotate them weekly to choose suitable attendants, and they’d been nothing but sweet to me during my explorations of the castle.
It almost as felt as if some of them would personally put on a suit of armour to catch me a dragon if I requested it, and I didn’t even know if dragons existed in this world.
Even the Stein Knights had put on their best efforts when they’d seen me observing them.
Presumably because they weren’t just showing up for the lady of the house, but for a lady of House Vermillion at the same time.
Never mind that I couldn’t wield a sword to save my life—I was a fan of archery in my past life, but I hadn’t quite built up the confidence to use the archery range yet.
But somehow, I’d built up a rapport with the knights.
They were always happy to see me and greeted me with gusto, although that might have been because I’d exploited the head chef’s happiness to bring them treats.
Nevertheless, I’d truly enjoyed watching them push themselves to their limits, but nobody in the knightage had captured my attention like the silver-haired lady had.
Dame Alexandrina Draper.
The third child and only daughter of Count Draper, one of the noble houses that had survived Stein’s surrender and assisted with the empire’s conquering of the land.
Unlike the empire, Stein placed little restrictions on who could be admitted to the knightage, but that didn’t mean the knights were awash with women.
They were few and far between with many women, especially noblewomen, choosing to follow the path of marrying well and bearing children to better their households. Many even married into the empire with the hopes of their children marrying up.
Stein’s people were progressive, but the patriarchal society of the empire was still prevalent here.
It was still better than in Sada, though. After all, Blair was only able to practice her swordsmanship because she was a member of House Rainforth. When it came down to it, Blair’s dream of becoming an Imperial Knight would never be recognised because the laws simply didn’t allow it.
Maybe that was why I was drawn to Dame Alexandrina.
In her, I saw my friend.
I saw the dream my friend wished to have for herself.
But there was also something about her—something magical. She was the only female in the First Order, and I’d watched daily as she’d held her own against the others, even beating some on occasion.
And unlike our first meeting, she was one of the few who paid me little attention during my visits to the training ground. Gone was the shy woman who’d blushed at some mere eye contact. It was almost as if she entered another level of consciousness when she had her sword drawn.
The more I watched her, the more I knew she had to be my personal knight.
Nobody else would do.
It was a shame I couldn’t finalise appointments until a certain someone returned from his monster slaying trip.
If I were a cynical woman, I’d think he was deliberately delaying his return.
Unfortunately, I knew little about fighting monsters, so I couldn’t say for sure.
“Sir Otto,” I said, beckoning one of the young knights over.
“How can I help you, my lady?” He bowed.
“Have a seat.” I motioned to the chair opposite me. “I won’t bite,” I added when he hesitated.
Reluctantly, he drew out the chair and sat down.
I propped my chin up on my hands and looked at him expectantly. “Can you tell me about monsters?”