Her Non-Blood-Related Daughter

After checking on his daughter, who was supposedly sleeping peacefully, the duke left the room without a single criticism or complaint upon his departure.

'Elisabeth couldn't possibly have completed all her work like that. That isn't like her character. Perhaps, she inherited the magical ability from Marianne? That couldn't be. Why hasn't she ever used it in the past?'

The magicless man monitored his children for any signs of emanating mana development from the day they were born. Lately, he hadn't bothered to do any surveillance for magic activity. It was unlike him, a person who favored details to the floating particle of dust. The fuel for work had faded away, and the duke felt lethargic upon his daily wakening.

The mere atmosphere of such serenity in Elisabeth's room was unfathomable. His reckless and delinquent daughter laid on her bed with her chest slowly rising and sinking. It reminded him of the days where Elisabeth was an adorable infant with chubby and rosy cheeks. She would giggle with delight whenever you tickled her. Those days, she seldom ever did anything besides dozing away.

Duke Carabell refused to believe he reminisced of the past like those buffoons he worked alongside. He was typically a man of the present and future, thinking only of what could benefit him now and forever onwards. Having two children was an expensive investment that had severely backfired on him. Now, he yearned to return to a period where he lacked the assets to live as much as he did today. The Carabell family may have been established in Whitensen for a few centuries. However, the Grenada Era was currently the peak of the Carabells' glory.

Why should he want to return to such a time where they were only known as some average noble family?

The exhaustion, frustration, and depletion of motivation wore him away. Grenada Carabell has finally succumbed to the limits of the weak and fragile human body and mind.

In his present frail state of consciousness, a thought had popped in his head to remind him of his earlier argument. 'Marianne must have noticed my shift in behavior.'

Then, there it was again⎯that nagging feeling. 'I should apologize.' The distinguished duke groaned with exasperation.

- Meanwhile, Duchess Carabell was making arrangements in another area of the estate -

The maids sat down upon the cold marble ground with their legs crisscrossed. The kitchen workers were also invited, along with those that attended to the gardens. The duchess's audience was nearly the entire staff of servants within the Carabell Estate. There was the exclusion of one particular maid, and the madam of the house made sure it was so.

"Now, my soldiers⎯"

"Yes, ma'am!" the maid with the cropped burgundy hair and piercing dark eyes shouted, bringing her hand up for a uniform salute. Her voice was bold amongst the silence of the servants around her.

The mage chuckled. "That is the standard of enthusiasm all of you should pursue." The duchess paced back and forth, her flowing vermilion dress trailing behind her. "I have ordered my son to return home."

Her arsenal of employees flashed glances at one another. However, the maids serving under Elisabeth remained unphased. They were purposely hired by her husband for their monotonous reactions and iron-strong mentality. The sight aggravated the duchess.

"The heir is returning home, and you're as stoic as ever. Pathetic." Duchess Carabell scoffed at them. "You will only smile if I ask that you do. You will only laugh if I ask that you do. Where is the fun in that?" The same maid with the short hair rose her hand. The duchess narrowed her eyes at the brazen girl's action. "Go on, Karolina. What do you have to say?" she questioned her.

The soldier maid proceeded to rise to her feet and face the duchess. "We were hired to work, not to smile or laugh. There is no fun in work. I don't understand why you're concerned about something that does not pertain to the announcement you are making."

"Oh? And what announcement am I making?" the powerful woman asked the audacious girl. The duchess waited for her answer with a mocking sneer.

'Go on. Tell me.'

"You have not completed your announcement. I cannot answer that," Karolina said matter-of-factly.

'Ah, I love the sound of that.'

"That is exactly right! Good job!" the duchess sarcastically praised the maid. Marianne Carabell clasped her hands together in false glee.

The military-like maid responded with, "Thank you, ma'am." This time, Duchess Carabell sent a threatening glare. She had enough of the girl's military attitude.

"Karolina, have you no discipline?" The mage approached the girl, her heels clicking with every step. "This is not an army camp, this is the Carabell Estate, and I am not your commander. You will refer to me as 'madam' and nothing else."

"Discipline, madam? I have discipline⎯"

Smack!

The sound resonated within the enormous room, echoing around the other servants. A red mark appeared on Karolina's cheek. Some gasped, and others didn't react. The kitchen workers were usually kept separate from any of the nobles. None of the Carabells ever went within the proximity of the kitchen, so the workers never witnessed what could happen if someone were to cross any of them.

Without changing her unemotional expression, Karolina said, "I apologize, madam." With that, Marianne was satisfied.

"As I was saying," the duchess moving away from the maid, "the heir to the Carabell family will be returning home."

Some servants cheered. Others remained as stone-cold as ever. Whichever way, the staff of the Carabell Estate paid close attention to what came out of the duchess's mouth.

"I want all of you⎯" She directed her finger to the crowd. "⎯to be on your best behavior." There were some nods of acknowledgment within the audience. "I want to see all of you sending him a warm welcome. We have to create a magnificent dinner for him. We have tonight and tomorrow morning to prepare. Don't worry about informing the duke, leave that in my hands."

The next day, Duke Carabell laid awake in his bed. His wife was missing from beside him. The man barely had a wink of sleep. As soon as dawn had reached and the birds started chirping outside his window, he called for a maid. After dressing up, bags under his eyes, and facial expression weary, the woman appeared at the door of his room.

"Duke," the lady with the slightly loose bun greeted him with a curtsy. "What would you like me to do for you?"

The exhausted man paused to sort out his thoughts. Then, he finally said, "Scold Elisabeth if she does not prepare for the debutante. Also, have Elisabeth join me for breakfast." The order made the maid's mouth drop, but she instantly closed it, thinking it was rude. Teresa simply couldn't contain her astonishment. She quickly curtsied once more.

"Yes, yes, of course, your grace," she responded happily.

The duke had all night to figure out how he was going to repair his family, and one of the options he came up with was to start with his youngest and work his way up for their favor. He believed it was a foolproof plan. However, upon sitting at the dining table, he waited for an hour for his daughter to come, and she never did. He felt his hands tremble with rage.

Smash!

The duke tossed his plate of toast, some eggs, and strips of pork to the ground. The breakfast plate fell and shattered into pieces on the polished marble. He strode forward to his butler, having the urge to pummel him in place of Elisabeth.

"My wife...my son...and my daughter." He wanted to cry, the loneliness becoming evident in the way he sauntered over to his butler for comfort. The fact that no one was responding to him made him shrink back into his seat at the dining table. He propped his elbows on the table and clenched his head.

- In Duchess Carabell's personal study room after Duke Carabell's breakdown -

"Was he sobbing?" she asked lazily. Her maids nodded, and she flashed a grin. "That's good. If he doesn't show a single sign of remorse after boldly saying he didn't want our family, I will just leave him. If he's not crying now, he will be crying later."

The maids swiftly curtsied and left Marianne alone with her mind. Shortly after their exit, there were three knocks on the door. A smile spread across the woman's face. She excitedly went to open the door, knowing who it was. The duchess swung it open abruptly.

"Madam!" Teresa exclaimed, jumping back. "You shouldn't go to open the door for me!"

The duchess couldn't care less for what Teresa had to say, but she invited her in. The area was filled with spellbooks and magical tools. There was a ginormous telescope that pointed towards the glass dome roof. Some medicinal plants were growing in the direct sunlight, and the aroma of the place was floral. Teresa loved the calm atmosphere of this area of the estate, so she often visited the duchess. Marianne cherished Teresa's company, thinking of her as a younger sister. Eventually, they developed a close bond.

The debt Teresa had was for the duke, not for the duchess. Therefore, the unmanageable mage did as she pleased, spoiling the maid as if she were her own daughter, a daughter that she accepted.

"Madam, you must know why I am here," the maid said to the duchess. "This dress…" Teresa held out the lilac tulle gown for the mage to see. "I would like to kindly request a favor from you."

The domineering woman sat down on a floating orb. "Yes, yes, go on."

"I would like you to alter this dress, preferably keeping its original aura," Teresa requested. "In exchange, I will retrieve some materials for your magic development."

The duchess reached out for the gown, and Teresa freely handed it to her. "This dress...it has that Whitensen prince's touch. So this is the dress Caydel wanted to give to the Lancasters' daughter?"

The maid nodded.

"Then, is this for...her?" The disgust appeared on the duchess's face immediately after realizing it.

Marianne couldn't bear to speak her daughter's name. When she gave birth to the cute and seemingly innocent child, she thought the name was beautiful. However, the tip of the name on her tongue made her want to gag. She would never do anything for Elisabeth, even if her dearest friend Teresa had asked her.

On the other hand, Teresa shook her head. "No, this is actually for me, madam."

The sentence made the mage narrow her eyes.

'Surely that wretched girl wouldn't have allowed Teresa to simply take the dress and bring it to her own dreadful mother.'

Without thinking about it a moment longer, the duchess whispered a chant. "Daploceti." The dress diverged into two copies. Duchess Carabell held one in her right hand and one in the other. "Can you guess which is the original, Teresa?"

The maid didn't bother to strain her mind to search for any discrepancies between the two gowns. "They're exactly the same."

"Not exactly. In the copied version, I have removed the crown prince's trace. The Whitensens have always rubbed me the wrong way. I would rather you not wear a dress tainted with their aura," the mage informed Teresa. "Return the original to the Lancasters. Do not tell that girl about this until after it has been sent off. I will take a few moments to change up this gown. Now, why has that girl given you this gown?"

The question made Teresa avert her eyes to her feet. "Well… I told my lady that I desired to wear the dress, so she gave it to me. She truly did!" she added, trying to convince the duchess.

"How peculiar. Is that girl being generous to you now?" Marianne probed further out of curiosity.

"Yes. Yes, my lady is," Teresa answered without a hint of hesitation.

The duchess had changed the color to light blue by now. She chanted a couple more spells. "Edde hydrengiesat medi ufag leci. Meki thosat gumno sperkli." The blue tulle dress was engulfed in a cloud of ashy magic. As soon as the haze dispersed, the final product was a glittering light blue gown with lace hydrangeas running down the skirt.

"That's amazing, madam!" the mage's audience of one praised her.

Marianne presented the dress to Teresa to touch. "Has that girl chosen her dress yet?" The inquiry made the maid freeze.

Teresa retracted her hands. "Yes, she has."

"I'm sure she won't mind if I take it, no?"

"Excuse me, madam?"

The mage swirled her hand. "Don't worry." The statement didn't help to ease Teresa's uneasiness. "Brongah mi Elosebith'sat dibatenti drissat." Within a flash, a simple golden gown appeared in her hands.

"What an odd choice for that girl." The duchess scrutinized the ball gown. "This style would suit her elegant features better. To think she used to like dresses that displayed her bust." Marianne let out a hearty laugh.