I Refuse To Be A Character In A Novel - Chapter 43

Although the master has always stayed faithful to the madam, the capital is a dangerous place.

What if, like Betty, another woman attempts to sway his heart?

How could you not have considered that?!

Unable to utter the words aloud, Mielle scolded Erna silently in her mind.

Her eyes on the other hand burned with reprehension as she asked Erna to sit down.

“…”

Oblivious to Mielle’s worries, Erna shrugged her shoulders as she sat back in her seat.

While Mielle placed a beautiful pearl necklace around her neck, she then spoke again after some thought.

“Come to think of it, isn’t it about time you got married as well?”

“What? Why all of a sudden?”

“It’s not sudden, it just pains me to see you spend your youth serving me.”

‘You don’t look very troubled… Wait! Is she-’

When she noticed the mischievous smile lingering around Erna’s lips, Mielle soon realized her intentions.

‘-Threatening to fire me again?’

She then sulked her lips, making a puppy-like expression, leaving no trace of the scolding attitude she had a few moments ago.

“I wish to serve the madam for a long time, so I absolutely have no intention of getting married yet.”

Erna laughed contentedly at her response.

‘She’s so fun to tease.’

“Are you sure about that? You’ll be past the age of marriage in a few years.”

“Yes. I’m absolutely sure! And commoners like me don’t usually marry at an early age, so despite being two years older than the madam, I’m still considered very young.”

After being all set, Erna stood up from her seat and brushed Mielle’s shoulder with care.

“Alright. But if there is someone you find to be worthy of you, then I truly wish for you to have your own family one day.”

Feeling the sincerity in her words, Mielle’s eyes became watery with tears.

“Madam~”

Her emotional call was immediately followed by strict words.

“I still think you should try to get along better with the Duke.”

“Mielle.”

“..Are you going to fire me?”

“I’m seriously starting to consider it now.”

Why is she being so persistent?! She mentioned something similar the last time as well.

Well, it’s true that Zachary is incredibly handsome. He’s very tall and sturdy, he has an attractive face and-!

What am I thinking!

There is only one person I need to get along with, and that is my son.

…Especially after that strange dream.

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As soon as Jonas had turned 6 years old, his schedule went through a drastic change.

The heir of the Argentine Dukedom now started his day a little while after dawn.

After a brief warm-up, he had his swordsmanship training under Sir. Thomas’ guidance.

Although he had been excited when he first found out that his instructor was his father’s right-hand man and a well known sword-master, the training which Jonas had looked forward to, had turned out to be a lot more disappointing than he initially thought.

For more than half a year, all he did was work on his stance and stamina.

Swinging a light wooden sword, Jonas sometimes wondered if Thomas wasn’t training him seriously.

When asked, his father reassured him otherwise and told him about the importance of his current training before moving on to other strenuous exercises.

Pleased by his father’s words, Jonas was once again encouraged to follow his teacher’s instructions.

Luckily, it was the only training in which he had slow progress, as he excelled in other areas such as archery, horse riding, and even magic.

✰✰✰✰✰

After his training, Jonas had a series of scheduled classes to attend.

History, geology, economics and several other subjects to study all day long.

A few months ago, however, his mother casually told him that she had cut off most of his afternoon classes, leaving only etiquette and common knowledge classes for him to attend.

Hearing her words, Jonas immediately persuaded her into changing her mind.

It was one thing that he wanted to meet the expectations set out for him, but at that moment, he was more afraid of his father’s reaction to the news.

Although the Duke was lenient in most matters, he was not one to tolerate people going against his words.

His mother should have known better, yet she still acted without his consent.

Perhaps she was a lot braver than he thought.

Or simply too ignorant to think of the consequences.

Surprisingly, she effortlessly convinced his strict father to give his approval during dinner time.

The two of them agreed that his less important classes could be postponed until next year, giving Jonas a lighter schedule and more time to focus on the more important subjects.

Silently observing their conversation, Jonas realized something.

It wasn’t his mother who was too brave or ignorant.

Instead, it was his father who was acting strange.

After that day, Jonas started taking piano lessons as per his mother’s suggestion.

Unlike what he initially thought, the lessons were quite fun, and Jean Vusterch was a competent instructor.

So competent that even his father had asked about him.

Very persistently actually.

Ignorant of the reason why his father had inquired about the man, Jonas praised his piano instructor accordingly.

✰✰✰✰✰

Day by day, as his skills were getting better by the lesson, Jonas patiently waited for his mother to join him.

Today.

The next day.

The next week.

Months had passed since her promise to play the piano together with him, but his mother never brought up the subject again.

When his expectations turned into disappointment, the lessons were no longer enjoyable.