The Virtually Exiled Duke’s Daughter Is Troubled When Her Fiancé in a Neighboring Country Says, "I Will Never Love You" - Episode 28

An old man dressed in a butler’s uniform, his posture disciplined from head to fingertips, spoke calmly and gently to the boy.

“Tom, I understand how you feel, but you must not say such things. That is rude to Lady Deborah.”

“But, Mr. Swallow…”

“Watch your mouth.”

The old man’s words carried a firm weight. When Tom fell silent, he smiled once again.

“Do you know? The House of Mousy, Lady Deborah’s family, was against the war.”

“Huh…?”

“It was the Mammut royal family and generals who forced the war to begin. Lady Deborah came to this country of her own will to prevent further conflict between the two nations. Insulting her is the same as insulting the symbol of peace.”

“…”

Deborah’s face turned expressionless again. The first part was true, but saying she came here of her own will was a complete lie.

Still, in this situation, her blank expression fit well. Since she was a hostage, it was natural for her to either be insulted or praised as a symbol of peace. To others, she probably looked like she was struggling to decide how to react, choosing instead to keep her face neutral.

“…!”

Tom’s eyes glistened slightly with tears as he glared at Deborah. Then, he turned and ran off.

“Ah… Tom! Wait!”

Shelly’s voice didn’t stop him. The young butcher’s errand boy disappeared down the path.

“…Oh, Lady Deborah, I deeply apologize. Please allow me to take responsibility for this disrespect.”

The old man bowed deeply.

“No, it’s just the actions of a child. And I’m sure he must have suffered because of the war.”

“…”

At that moment, Deborah sensed a strange tension in the air.

Shelly and Peter both turned serious, and even Vito’s tight-lipped mouth pressed into a thin line. The old man also hesitated slightly before raising his head.

Deborah was confused but decided to change the subject. Just as she was about to speak, the old man lifted his head with the same gentle smile.

“Yes, he lost someone he loved dearly because of the war.”

“Oh… Then it’s only natural that he would resent me.”

Deborah felt a mix of emotions. Her gray eyes, like glass beads, reflected a complicated tangle of thoughts. She decided to process them later, in private. For now, she returned the old man’s polite smile.

“By the way, are you Mr. Swallow?”

“Oh my, what a mistake on my part! I haven’t introduced myself yet.”

He bowed once again.

“My name is Swallow, the former butler of this house. I apologize for my repeated rudeness. I am nothing but an old man who has retired from his position and grown forgetful of his manners. I hope you will kindly forgive me and laugh at my misfortune.”

“Oh my, you don’t seem like someone who has stepped away from duty at all. Besides, the Marquis said that I should rely on you for anything. I assume that means he still trusts you deeply.”

“That is an honor.”

“As you may already know, I am Deborah Mousy. I look forward to working with you, Mr. Swallow.”

“No, no, I am not worthy of such formalities. Please, just call me Swallow.”

“Then I shall do so.”

With a graceful smile, Deborah exchanged greetings with Swallow, who responded with an equally polished, natural-looking—but obviously practiced—smile.

Then—

“Chef, please take care of the matter from earlier.”

“Ah, I’ll make sure the meat is properly washed!”

“Well then, I will take my leave.”

After giving a small farewell, Deborah returned to her room with Shelly.

Once her figure had completely disappeared, Swallow turned around. Ashley stepped out from behind a pillar.

“As expected, Lady Deborah does not seem to know about that matter.”

“Indeed, no one in this mansion has mentioned it, and Lady Deborah has never asked about it. But is there a chance she is just pretending not to know?”

The former head butler shook his head slightly.

“There would be no benefit in doing so… Ah, Ashley, I must revise my opinion. That young lady is not lacking in intelligence. In fact, she is probably quite clever.”

“Huh?”

“She may not have known before, but… just now, she may have realized it.”

◆

“Shelly, could you bring me a strong cup of tea? I feel quite exhausted.”

“Oh! Yes! I’ll prepare it right away!”

As soon as they returned to the room, Deborah unexpectedly requested tea. Flustered, Shelly rushed out.

Normally, she would have asked another maid to bring it, or at least left a guard to watch Deborah before leaving.

However, because Lady Lauren was absent, and because Deborah seemed different than usual, she had acted without thinking.
…Of course, Deborah had hoped for this outcome when she asked for tea.

She had no intention of escaping or scheming anything. She simply wanted some time alone to think.

(Everyone’s expressions just now…)

The moment Deborah said, “He must have suffered because of the war,” everyone in the room had an indescribable look on their faces. Immediately after, Swallow had said that Tom lost someone he loved in the war.

That wasn’t a lie—but it probably wasn’t the whole truth either.

If it was just one person Tom loved who had died, it wouldn’t make sense for him to lash out at everyone in the Sisley household.

Of course, since he was just a child, his emotions could be irrational. But given the way he spoke and Swallow’s response afterward, that didn’t seem to be the case.

Most likely, not just Tom, but everyone in the Sisley territory had lost someone they loved.

Deborah had only been here for a short time. And because her father and the royal family had conspired to send her away at the last minute, she had arrived in Sisley with no prior knowledge about the region. It was dangerous to jump to conclusions with such little information.

Even so, she couldn’t shake off this thought—

It all made perfect sense if the person who had died in the war was Magdala, the former Marchioness of Sisley.