Living as a Butler to the Northern Duke chapter 5

‘…By the way, is there still no word today?’

Back in his room, Ed craned his neck, looking out the window.

If there’s no word today either, I’ll have to step in.

Ronen had a secret about his birth.

The truth was, he was born of royal blood, and his elder brother, the Grand Duke Asnel Linden in the North, was a war hero who always returned victorious, no matter how dire the situation.

‘If only this elder brother would appear, Ronen’s path would be paved with flowers… When is he going to show up, and why is there still no word?’

Ed sighed softly and shrugged his shoulders.

There was no choice then.

He couldn’t just stand by and watch Ronen fall victim to the poison, so he would have to consume the poison Elisa prepared today himself.

In the original story, Ronen didn’t reunite with his elder brother until he was eighteen.

By then, Ronen had become distrustful of people, scarred by years of abuse at the Count Herins household. He had grown thorns in his heart.

When his elder brother was framed and killed, Ronen turned dark, destroying and overturning the world before claiming the throne.

And he became a tyrant.

As a reader, it was thrilling to see Ronen ruthlessly eliminate his obstacles.

But not now. The thorny path Ronen was destined to walk in the story was one of tears and hardships. He didn’t have to go down that road.

Ed was determined to remove every obstacle from Ronen’s path.

He planned to pave the way for Ronen to meet the Grand Duke in the North as soon as possible, prevent the Grand Duke’s death, and ensure Ronen’s future was filled with nothing but flowers…

That’s why Ed had written to the Grand Duke, but there had been no reply.

It seemed that Jaynon, one of the Grand Duke’s close aides, had intercepted the letter.

According to the weekly news, just a week ago, the Grand Duke of the North had crushed the enemy forces daring to challenge the northern border.

The enemy fled, waving white flags after just two days, and the imperial court offered him appropriate praise.

This happened two weeks ago when the Grand Duke returned from a campaign ordered by the imperial court, barely having time to unpack.

Although the Grand Duke must have realized it, the enemy forces that tested the northern defenses were soldiers from a neighboring country colluding with the imperial court.

They wanted to gauge the strength of the northern forces after the war.

The weekly news article concluded with this:

The imperial court has decided to hold a celebratory banquet to honor the efforts of Grand Duke Asnel Linden.

The Grand Duke, a loyal servant of the empire, gratefully accepted the emperor’s invitation and boarded the carriage sent by the imperial court.

Ed, placing the weekly news by the window, scratched his forehead.

If the Grand Duke’s personality was the same as in the original story, he wouldn’t care about the imperial court’s celebratory banquet or anything of the sort.

But if it was a chance to catch a clue about Ronen, lost during the northern invasion, he would follow even the most disadvantageous imperial order.

Jaynon wasn’t happy about this. He wanted to stop Grand Duke Asnel from walking into what was clearly a trap, all because of his lost brother.

However, it was difficult to do so, so he would often hide information about the “Grand Duke’s lost brother” that came from the orphanage or other sources.

As a result, he would occasionally get scolded.

Ed was an orphan. So, whenever he went on vacation or visited Count Herins’ estate, he would stop by the orphanage.

He would put a letter in an envelope with the orphanage’s seal and send it directly to a contact connected to the Grand Duke.

This was because the Grand Duke was focusing on the orphanages in his search for Ronen.

There was a nine-year-old boy named Ronenkeaz Linden, who had two blue spots on his right thigh and a small ginkgo leaf-shaped scar behind his left ear, who had been adopted into the southern Count Herins’ estate.

He even attached a portrait to ensure the message was perfect, fearing that they might be suspicious.

Yet, there was still no word from the Grand Duke. It was already the eighth letter he had sent.

“If letters don’t work, maybe I should inform someone close to the Grand Duke about Ronen’s existence, or perhaps even capture one of those northern carrier birds they use for communication.”

Ed scratched his forehead as he looked up at the sky. Just then, he heard the sound of a carriage outside.

It would be great if they arrived before Ronen fell victim to the poison, but instead of the northern Grand Duke, it was Lady Elisa who had arrived.

“…In that case, I suppose it’s time to act.”

In the original story, Ronen suffered greatly after eating the cookies given to him by Elisa.

The baron’s daughter had used an excessive amount of poison, unaware of what was appropriate.

The poison scraped his esophagus, rendering him unable to speak for a while, and it damaged his stomach so badly that it caused an eating disorder.

This eventually became a chronic illness that tormented him even into adulthood, and only the heroine could soothe him.

Though today’s events were meant to lead to Ronen acquiring a sickly, tragic beauty, Ed couldn’t just stand by knowing what was to come.

He couldn’t ignore the lifetime of suffering Ronen would endure.

Ed looked out the window, then picked up a tray with a teapot on it.

The reason Ed, who was on Ronen’s hit list, didn’t die peacefully was minor, but it was because he possessed the power of healing.

So today, he planned to eat the poisoned cookies in Ronen’s place.

Ed left the room and quickly surveyed his surroundings. It was the main building of Count Herins’ estate.

The estate was vast and full of formalities, but it was understaffed to maintain it. As a result, there were gaps in the security throughout the mansion.

Today, it was even worse because Elisa was visiting.

Wealthy and naive, she preferred to have only him people around even at the Count’s estate. So she brought along a host of servants, maids, and knights.

Each time she moved, the number of people involved was substantial, and the expenses were no joke.

Along with carriages and horses, she even brought a special chef because she didn’t like the food at the Count’s estate.

But today was different.

She only brought one maid and two knights when he visited the Count’s estate. She also traveled with the bare minimum of luggage and carriages.

It made sense.

After all, she had brought poisoned cookies. The more eyes there were, the higher the chances of the crime being discovered.

To please Elisa, the Count had dismissed the servants.

This made it easier for Ed to move around. Crossing the quiet hallway, he stood in front of the reception room door and took a deep breath.

Knock, knock.

Normally, the knights who guarded Elisa would have been stationed at the door, but today there was no one. She had sent them away.

Knights were good at sniffing out plots, and if they sensed that Elisa was up to something, things could get noisy.

“What is it?”

As he opened the door and entered the reception room, Elisa’s maid spoke to Ed.

“I’ve brought tea.”

Ed presented the teapot and gave Ronen a small nod.

Ronen, who had been looking down slightly, lifted his head and gave a faint smile.

“Tea has already been served.”

“Oh, my apologies, Lady Elisa. There was a mix-up. The wrong tea was sent, so I’ve brought the correct one.”

“A mix-up, you say?”

“You requested hot tea, but the kitchen mistakenly sent out a lukewarm brew. I sincerely apologize.”

Elisa demanded boiling hot tea. This was so that when Ronen dipped the cookies in the tea, the poison would be fully released.

The kitchen had indeed sent out hot tea, but Elisa hadn’t checked the teapot. She was likely afraid that touching the poison-coated cookies might cause her harm, so she kept her gloves on and didn’t move a finger.

As Elisa looked at the teapot on the table, she asked Ed,

“Is this tea hot?”

“Yes, Lady Elisa.”

“Put it down here.”

“Yes, as you wish.”

Ed moved closer to the table, bowing deeply in apology.

“I sincerely apologize for the mistake. I’ll take the other teapot away.”

“Fine, just hurry up and leave.”

“Yes, thank you, Lady Elisa.”

Ed placed the new teapot on the tray and, while picking up the old one from the table, deliberately dropped it as if by accident.

Water splashed from the teapot, soaking the cookies on the table.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

Elisa shouted angrily as he stood up.

Ed quickly apologized.

“I-I’m so sorry, Lady Elisa. I-I’m new to the Count’s estate and made a terrible mistake. I’m truly sorry. I’ll clean up the cookies myself.”

Neither Elisa nor her maid touched the cookies that had become soggy. They seemed to be afraid of even accidentally coming into contact with the poison.

As Ed picked up the package of cookies, which had been conspicuously opened for eating, Elisa’s gaze followed him closely.

‘She’s nervous.’

Since the poison was supposed to be activated by water, she must have been worried about how quickly it would take effect if it touched her skin, and how severe the effects might be.