I Didn’t Tame The Beastly Duke!

It’s not as if people have already become lazy.

However, Zeppel had the impression that he had not yet made up his mind about anything. To be more specific, it seemed as though he was in the middle of a war, and then all of a sudden, he found himself in a world that was peaceful, and he was confused.

‘You can rest assured now.’

There was no longer any need to fear the midnight pursuer. The time has come when he can sleep deeply without a sword in his bed.

Zeppel went into the bathroom attached to the training field, took a shower, and changed his clothes. In fact, he had already known that he had become ‘safe’ under the protection of the Cardian family.

Leonis was not the type of leader who would behave towards his subordinates as though they were replaceable.

However, it would be inaccurate to say that Leonis was completely safe throughout the entire situation because there was a time when he had no control over the situation.

Because what they had to do was always accompanied by danger.

However, Leonis made them strong enough to survive on their own. Zeppel was confident that even though he was a civil servant, he was able to reach this level because he was close to Leonis.

“…….”

Zeppel turned his head to glance at the servant, who was inspecting his clothing. He was being waited on without much thought, but he seemed to be following him the whole time.

It was standard procedure for maids and servants to follow their master and serve him, but seeing as how this was the imperial palace, that protocol was not followed.

“Is this something that Her Majesty the Empress has instructed?”

“Her Majesty said for Marquis to avoid any inconvenience.”

Naturally, having to work will be part of this inconvenience. She gave the order for him to be monitored out of concern that Zeppel might sneak documents in and bury them in work without their knowledge.

Zeppel gave up trying to say something. Although he was a marquis and rose to the rank of prime minister, the servants in the imperial palace followed the orders of the empress and the emperor.

They were constantly concerned about Zeppel’s unfavourable appearance, and it appeared as though she was determined to stop him from engaging in any activities while he was staying at the imperial palace. Zeppel went outside, into the garden of the imperial palace, to get some fresh air and clear his head after leaving the building that housed the training hall.

Fortunately, the servants did not follow him there.

As Zeppel strolled through the garden, he was preoccupied with his own thoughts, feeling uncomfortable after a long absence. His mind was whirling with complicated thoughts and inquiries pertaining to the recently revised tax system.

It is true that things have become much easier thanks to the formulas and methods designed by Her Majesty the Empress for the preparation of documents, but when it comes to the empire, problems can be found wherever he looks.

Zeppel, who was feeling a weight in his head, turned his attention to the shrubs in the garden that had been trimmed and pruned to perfection. He could see the golden hair fluttering between the trees.

‘Huh?’

Judging by her outfit, she seemed to be a maid. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that her hair seemed to get caught in a tree. She made a grunting sound while her hair was pulled back into a neat bun, and then she yanked it down, possibly out of anger.

The light blue ribbon that was tying her hair fluttered in the wind. Every step of the way to Zeppel’s feet, who was still and staring at her.

It was only natural that Zeppel reflexively picked it up. The maid, who had a bunch of Kara flowers in her arms, was looking everywhere but couldn’t find her hair tie.

“This… Are you looking for this?”

The maid who was standing behind the bushes seemed to be startled as if she didn’t notice that there were other people there. Her gentle brown eyes, reminiscent of a deer hiding among the grass, caught Zeppel’s eye.

“Ah, ah, yes…”

When the maid realised that her opponent was Zeppel, she seemed embarrassed. He looked at her flushed cheeks, and Zeppel walked away from her.

Flowers were in full bloom in the imperial palace at any time, but the scent was especially strong that day. Zeppel reached out to the maid and held out the braids to her as he inhaled the breeze that carried the scent of the flowers.

His heart pounded.

✦ ✦ ✦

Nile was the one who was most happy to hear that Zeppel’s popularity was declining. Nile obviously thought he would come in first place, but it was Nicole who came in first place.

As soon as he returned from the mission as a diplomatic envoy, he immediately caught the attention of women.

Celia was taken aback when she learned that Zeppel was clocking fewer overtime hours and leaving work on time more frequently than in the past.

“Why…Why on earth happened to him….”

Seeing Nile slump over on the tea table in affliction, Miline was disdainfully eating her cake. Since she had recently learned that a lady whom she did not like was getting married to a duke from another kingdom, she had been binge-watching ever since she had heard the news.

“Look at the heart, not the face! The heart!”

“Damn, do I have to turn Nicole over to the competition so that I can win first place…?”

Nile shed silent tears as he took a cookie off the plate and put it in his mouth. Nile, who had become interested in desserts, was becoming quite an eater, and Celia would sometimes invite him over.

She seemed to have been rejected early on by the maid, who only followed Zeppel and did not even pay attention to Nile. His current anger also included his anger at being dumped.

A maid then walked up to Celia and whispered something. Doesn’t Celia have a happy smile and a slight frown on her face?

‘What is this?’

‘What’s going on?’

Nile and Mirine looked at them with curiosity, but Celia didn’t seem to have any intention of saying anything. Celia thought as she offered them more tea and cookies.

‘Since no one else on the Zeppel side is able to organise the wedding or engagement ceremony, you could say that the responsibility falls squarely on my shoulders, right?’

Among Leonis’ close associates, there was a family that claimed to be the guardian of Zeppel, but they also wanted to connect Zeppel to their own family through her marriage.

Some distant relatives of Celia or Leonis also showed similar signs, but they were cut off from the two.

After becoming empress, Celia had no idea she had so many relatives. Even when she was the daughter of the Marquess of Montague, an unknown person claimed to be from a collateral family on the frontier, but now it seems even more so.

‘No, no.’

It might still be at the level of likeability, but it was already impossible to step forward.

However, Celia knew that she had been waiting for Zeppel after he finished work early these days, and that he was coming home from work with a maid.

Even though it was Zeppel, where the power of the empire was concentrated under the chancellor, she was the empress. No matter how hard Zeppel tried to hide it, there were many people who passed on her news to Celia.

Celia knew the maid who had a meeting with Zeppel.

She was the second daughter of a count, and she was treated poorly because her appearance was inferior to that of her older sister or younger brother.

Many people wanted her to be the Empress’s maid, but it was a position she could not get through her power alone.

Family was the foundation, and character was the most important thing.

The head maid cut her in line because she knew what kind of people Celia liked. But she can’t even get close to the empress. With her power, she might be able to work as a maid in the imperial palace.

Unless that person is exactly the kind of person Celia likes.

Celia basically preferred people who were kind and honest to some extent. Among the noble daughters, she was the opposite of the one who overlooked even the cunning ones because she was quick-witted.

Of course, this alone did not make her her exclusive maid.

That’s the basics, and of course, she had to be smart or quick-witted to have the qualifications to have her empress by her side.

The maid that Zeppel was meeting was nice, but she was not quick-witted or clever enough to be the empress’s maid. Therefore, she was unable to serve Celia closely.

But Celia liked her, and she was sometimes called to wait on her.

Her family seemed to treat her better than before because they let her be close, even though the Empress didn’t choose her to be her personal maid.

‘They’d be more different if I knew you were dating Zeppel.’

The person who tried to take each other from a prominent family was Zeppel. Not only was she highly trusted by Emperor Leonis, but it was natural that the Empress also cared about him.

If Zeppel marries the maid, Celia and Leonis will act as her guardians. The age difference is about the same as that of an older brother and an older sister, but their positions as emperor and empress made it possible.

Celia had a smile on her face, as if she were looking forward to that day.

✦ ✦ ✦

‘It seems that Her Majesty the Empress has noticed.’

Zeppel blushed as he waited for Marianne in the carriage. She said that love was something he could not hide, but she seemed to have noticed.

He was meeting with her in secret because he knew that many women were interested in marrying him. If you were ever going to go out on a date in public, you might as well just get engaged.

People might pick on her because she’s dating him.

‘What should I do…’

He thought it was funny, but as soon as he picked up the sky blue hair tie, he knew he was going to marry this woman.

That was something Zeppel never thought would happen. Even after hearing that his lord, Leonis, had made the decision to marry Celia, he did not believe it.

But when Leonis met Celia and helped him lift the curse, he began to think differently about fate.

Of course, he had no idea that something like this would happen to him.

‘After Marianne marries me, there is a good chance she will still want to work. It seems that the Empress is giving some thought to giving Marianne some light training and continuing to have her by her side…’

So he had to make it clear how she felt. If she’s not going to get married, she should stay away from him right away.

“Marquis, you are coming.”

The attendant sitting in the coach seat quickly noticed. Zeppel, who had been immersed in his own worries, hurriedly raised his head.

Zeppel jumped down from the carriage and walked towards Marian. Marianne had her hair up neatly, unlike when he first met her. Hers was the default hair style for the imperial palace’s maids.

“Are you leaving work right now?”

“Yes…”

Marianne’s cheeks turned red with joy. Even as she was leaving work, she was looking forward to whether Zeppel would be waiting for her again today.

The start was because her brother had used the family carriage and there was no carriage to ride after work, but now she was always riding this carriage.

‘It’s already been over a month…’

“Do you mind if I come to you?”

“Me… That’s alright.”

The large eyes were seen trembling, unable to meet Zeppel’s face. Zeppel held his breath as he felt his face heat up.

“My dear lady, I have something very important to discuss with you today. That…Therefore, I’m considering going to the park first; would that be all right with you?”

“…….”

At that moment, big brown eyes looked at Zeppel. She saw Zeppel’s very nervous face and his hands rubbing his pants as if he was sweating due to her nervousness.

Marian’s heart thumps as she senses something! And he knelt down.

The park on the way home had a beautiful sunset. The empress told Marianne about the park as she approached to change the vase’s flowers.

She heard it’s a good place to propose. She had also heard the maids blossom with stories about the park.

‘Oh, I guess not? Probably not. What can a person like me…’

However, she could not help but feel excited about it. When did he start taking her around in the carriage? Hasn’t it been over a month since he started doing that?

Marianne always got off first near her house, fearing that her family might have false expectations and spread rumours about Zeppel and herself.

Then, Zeppel gets off the carriage with her and walks her to the front door of her house.

Because that time always felt like a dream. Marianne’s heart was shaking so much that she could not look Zeppel in the eyes. It was difficult for her to think about what clothes she was wearing or what expression she was making.

When she entered the imperial palace, she changed into her maid’s attire, but when she left, it was her own clothes.

“Do you not like it?”

Zeppel’s eyes seemed to tremble with worry. Marianne lifted her head in surprise. Even though she could see through his glasses, she thought Zeppel’s eyes were beautiful.

“No way! This…”

Zeppel looked at Marian as if she were shocked by how quickly she responded. Marianne said, putting her head down in embarrassment.

“Good.”

In the carriage, a servant with a happy expression opened the door of the carriage and was waiting for the two. Zeppel wheezed as he coughed.

And he reached out to Marianne. Because she was shy, Marianne had to lower her eyes and put her hand on his palm.