Towards the Winter Cabin of Serenity and Madness, Cinderella Runs - Chapter 143
On the second day, Roel held Kyden’s hand as they explored the dining room, banquet hall, reception room, office, and garden. It took quite some time to see everything because the mansion was so large.
Whenever the staff saw the two of them, they would stop in their tracks and bow their heads. Each time, Roel tried to greet them, but Kyden instructed her to simply nod in acknowledgment.
He mentioned that as the Madam of the house, she would need to manage the mansion, but for several days, Kyden hadn’t shown her how to do any of it. He kept insisting that she could learn at her own pace, continuously postponing any real instruction.
‘I bet Kyden is worried I’ll go to bed early once I start working.’
Roel thought, making a fairly reasonable assumption.
Still, she kept herself busy. She observed the gardener tending to the garden, offering suggestions on how to shape the plants, tasted the food in the dining room, checked the inventory in the storage room, and searched every nook and cranny of the mansion for any signs of damage.
Kyden wanted her to relax until she adjusted, but Roel was not a noble lady raised in a greenhouse; she was hardworking and sought out tasks for herself. Furthermore, thinking of this place as her home allowed her to manage the mansion with even more enthusiasm.
However, each time Roel took the initiative, the staff rushed over from afar, panicking. When she tried to pull weeds, the gardener hurried over, saying,
“Madam! Let me do that. Please, stand up!”
As she stirred the soup with a ladle, the chef began to sweat, saying,
“Oh dear, Madam! We’ll take care of it!”
And when she bent down to lift some empty boxes scattered in the storage room, the steward turned pale, as if he might faint, exclaiming,
“It’s too heavy! Please put it down! What if you get hurt?”
Thanks to Kyden’s strict management, the staff treated Roel with utmost care. Kyden would go to great lengths to fulfill her requests, so they thought that if something happened to his precious wife, they would face severe repercussions, which made them all quite nervous.
‘The staff here are so diligent and kind.’
Unaware of the underlying reasons for their behavior, Roel simply thought everyone was wonderful.
Today, while Roel was inspecting the garden for pests in the bright afternoon sun, a maid approached her anxiously.
“Madam, it’s quite sunny; you should come inside. You might get heatstroke out here.”
“I’m fine… I’ll just go to the office then.”
“Yes, yes, please head inside quickly.”
The maid sighed in relief and shook her head. Though the staff was feeling worn down day by day, Roel’s bustling presence helped organize the mansion more each day.
Roel entered Kyden’s office.
He has been extremely busy lately. He needed to examine the remaining assets, annual taxes, and trade balances to ensure there were no gaps, organize the accounts, and then visit the main estate.
“Kyden, are you busy?”
“Hmm?”
Of course, that wasn’t the only reason he was busy. When Roel entered, Kyden quickly covered the documents, as if he was hiding something.
“What is it?”
“Nothing.”
“What is it?”
“Just something trivial.”
Even when she glared at him suspiciously, he remained tight-lipped, only raising his eyebrows slightly. It was challenging to get stubborn Kyden to open up, so Roel quickly gave up.
“But you said that couples shouldn’t hide anything from each other…”
Roel mumbled, feeling disgruntled. He simply smiled at her little pout, showing no intention of speaking.
Stubborn Kyden. Roel vowed to create a significant secret of her own just to tease him about it. However, that resolve melted away like snow in less than a day due to the secret engagement ceremony Kyden was preparing.
He was worried about the hasty, awkward confession he had made and wanted to prepare a grand and luxurious proposal this time.
That early evening, Roel got up to the banquet hall, completely unaware of what awaited her. She was stunned by the hall filled with flowers, sparkling lights, and a magnificent orchestra.
“Madam.”
Seeing Kyden walk down the flower-adorned path with a determined expression, she burst into laughter, shattering the atmosphere. Kyden, who had planned to kneel before her, scratched his temple in confusion.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Ky-Kyden is just so…”
Imagining him secretly organizing all of this made her feel he was incredibly cute, lovable, and funny. Kyden, who had envisioned her being moved to tears, felt deflated by her unexpected reaction.
Roel cupped his cheek, which had fallen into a frown.
“I couldn’t help but laugh at how adorable you look walking confidently down that flower path. Thank you so much. It must have taken a lot of time to prepare all this. I’m truly touched.”
Only then did the corners of his mouth begin to curve upward.
They started to dance to the orchestra’s music. He gently led her, holding her hands and waist, as she couldn’t quite dance.
“Don’t call me cute or adorable in front of others.”
“Why not?”
“Everyone will laugh. It’s embarrassing.”
Every time she said something like that, the curious gazes of onlookers followed them. He knew very well that he was far from being cute or adorable, and it was utterly mortifying.
But Roel looked at him with wide eyes, as if she couldn’t comprehend.
“It’s the truth. What’s embarrassing about that?”
“…”
“Kyden is really cute and adorable.”
“…Ahem.”
Despite claiming he didn’t like it, Kyden couldn’t help but feel his mouth curve up slightly.
