The Virtually Exiled Duke’s Daughter Is Troubled When Her Fiancé in a Neighboring Country Says, "I Will Never Love You" - Episode 11

In the past few days, the Marquis de Sisley has had breakfast with Deborah several times. Until then, they hardly ever saw each other during the day, let alone at breakfast, but now they have started to exchange a few casual words while having breakfast. And today, their conversation increased a bit more. The trigger was drinking turnip soup.

In the warm, salty soup with gently rising steam, translucent, tenderly simmered turnips floated. As Deborah drank the soup and let out a small sigh of contentment at the gentle sensation settling in her stomach, the marquis smiled gently.

“Did you find it satisfactory?”

“!”

A faint blush of embarrassment appeared on Deborah’s cheeks. However, the light coming into the dining hall was shining on her from behind, creating a backlight, and it seemed that the Marquis did not notice.

“Such disgraceful behavior… I am utterly ashamed.”

“No, no. In the countryside like this, it’s customary to honestly say when something is delicious. Since we can only serve country dishes, there probably won’t be many things that suit Miss Deborah’s taste.”

Deborah shakes her head slightly.

“That’s not true at all. We are always grateful for the very delicious meals we receive.”

When Deborah became engaged to Prince Aaron and her training as a princess began, she moved from the ducal estate to the mansion in the royal capital. Furthermore, after he became the crown prince, she became a target of strict protection. Naturally, almost all the food she ate was tasted for poison, and she was not allowed to eat until it was confirmed that there were no abnormalities after a period of time. Warm soup would cool down, cold dishes would become lukewarm, and fresh vegetables would dry up.

She placed her hand on the plate and gazed at the turnip soup inside. Simple as it was, the gentle and warm taste of the soup was a feast for Deborah.

It seems that Marquis Sisley took Deborah’s praise for the food at face value.

“I see. If you were praised by the crown prince’s fiancée in the Mammut Kingdom, our head chef will surely be pleased.”

Deborah’s mind conjured the image of the seemingly stubborn head chef. On her second day living at the Sisley residence, she had greeted all the servants in the house, but the head chef had merely nodded slightly without saying a word. It was clear that Deborah, who was not welcomed, would not bring him joy even if she thanked him directly. Deborah smiled and informed the marquis.

“Yes, please do let them know. Oh, and also, this is delicious.”

“Which one could it be?”

“This salad is so fresh. It feels like it was just picked.”

“……”

At that moment, Deborah was startled.

It has been a little over a week since I arrived here. Although I have only met Marquis Sisley a handful of times, he has always been a kind and composed man. However, at this moment, the marquis showed a tense expression for the first time.

However, in the next moment, he regained his usual smile and spoke to Deborah.

“Ah, it’s really fresh. We pick the vegetables grown in the garden of this mansion every morning and make a salad.”
“Well, is that so? That’s wonderful.”

Deborah acted as if she hadn’t noticed the marquis’s change. She felt intuitively that it was something she shouldn’t touch upon.

(Is that… sadness? Or…?)

Deborah couldn’t quite decipher the meaning of the marquis’s expression, but she would soon learn half of it. This happened when she returned to her room after finishing breakfast.

“Hey, the vegetables I had for breakfast were delicious, and I heard from the marquis that they were grown in this garden. Do you know where in the garden they are?”

Deborah brought up the topic with the maid Shelly, thinking it would be just small talk. Recently, Shelly had become more relaxed around Deborah and had even started responding to casual chatter. However, this time, she frowned slightly and spoke.

“Lady Deborah, I think it would be better if you didn’t go near the fields and the greenhouse.”

“Why?”

“…because my husband doesn’t like to let people get too close.”

A shadow falls over Shelley’s usually bright face. Deborah recalls a possibility. The words of Marquis Sisley from the day they first came to this mansion come to mind.

“Besides, I only love my late wife.”

“……Could it be that the previous mistress was managing the fields and the greenhouse?”

Shelly shrugged slightly and, after a moment, opened her mouth to speak.

“Yes. For you, sir… no, for everyone in this mansion, it is a place filled with memories of the lady.”

Deborah had always thought that the reason the mansion’s servants were distant with her was simply because she was from an enemy country, but she wondered if being the second wife was also one of the reasons.

Later, I would come to know that it was a mistake.

“……I see. Your wife was a very wonderful person.”

When Deborah said that, Shelly showed a complex expression that seemed both troubled and smiling, and nodded slightly.