The Art of a Brilliant Political Marriage - Chapter 11

“Oh, welcome home, my Lord.”

Staring at the door that had suddenly swung open, Cielin tilted her head while sipping her tea. At the moment, she was alone in the room; Litte had gone to the kitchen to search for some snacks that would pair well with the tea. Saves, appearing for the first time in a week, directed his usual handsome face toward her. However, for some reason, he stood frozen with his sharp eyes wide open.

Cielin was currently wearing the servant uniform she had brought from her father’s house, which might have played a part in his surprise, but she chose to ignore that.

“Is something the matter?”

She tilted her head and offered what she thought was a lovely smile, but he only flinched. The situation was definitely strange, but she was determined to play it cool. Saves looked more than just confused. He looked utterly bewildered which was quite a rude reaction. Still, she decided it would be best to just win him over. As she watched her husband while maintaining her smile, he finally opened his mouth.

“W-what are you doing…?”

“I was enjoying some tea after my meal.”

“After your meal? I was told that no food has been delivered to this room at all.”

So, as soon as he returned, someone told him his wife hadn’t been eating. Cielin briefly wondered who in this house would go out of their way to share such information. She didn’t know who it was, but since they didn’t interact with her directly, she guessed it was a high-ranking servant like the butler. Someone who follows the master’s orders but still keeps track of everything in the house. However, she wasn’t grateful. If anything, she was annoyed by the unnecessary meddling.

“Were you worried about me? Please don’t be; I naturally eat very little, so even one meal a day is no problem. Besides, I am not forbidden from going out, so I can ask the person I brought with me to buy things from town. And you have given me such a lovely room. As long as there is water, a person can usually manage to live, you know?”

There was no way she could confess that they were actually stealing various things from the kitchen. It was also true that they were getting supplies from outside. Cielin went to buy things herself, and since Litte went with her, she wasn’t lying.

Cielin smiled calmly. She had received a proper education in lady-like behavior. Her “wicked moneylender” father was incredibly wealthy, so he used his money to hire a daughter of a fallen high-ranking noble to be Cielin’s tutor. She had been told her manners were perfect. However, no matter how much she polished her surface, it didn’t change the fact that Cielin was a commoner at heart.

There was an undeniable sense of silliness to it all. Cielin knew this herself. Therefore, she didn’t care what opinion Saves had of the woman he made his wife, nor would she worry about him. He didn’t need to show her any consideration, either.

She held up the teapot to show him, though of course, even this hot water had been “borrowed” from the kitchen. A trivial matter.

“Water?”

“Oh, this is tea, of course. Would you like a cup, my Lord?”

“Uh… yes.”

For some reason, Saves walked into the room in a daze and sat in the empty seat across from Cielin. She hadn’t actually expected him to drink with her, but since she was the one who invited him, she poured tea into the empty cup. Incidentally, the extra cup was meant for Litte and was still unused. This set had also been borrowed from the kitchen. Saves picked up the cup and took a sip in silence. He swallowed slowly, as if savoring the flavor.

“It’s delicious! The tea leaves are different from the ones I usually drink.”

“You can tell? I bought these today because they were on sale, but they have quite a full-bodied flavor, don’t they? There’s a secret to how you brew it.”

Cielin couldn’t help but lean forward and explain with great enthusiasm.