/
“Ha
”
But she heard a brief laugh and that was it. When she raised her head, the Grand Duke was looking down at her with a puzzled expression.
‘Why?’
She was bewildered as well. Obviously, the Grand Duke was a tight-fisted person, so she thought he would imprison her or accuse her of being a wicked witch.
‘But why such a reaction?’
“No matter how you look at it, it doesn’t seem like it.”
The Grand Duke looked at her uncomfortably and muttered something incomprehensible to himself. Then he suddenly cleared his throat, and he spoke in a solemn voice.
“Since you have made a big contribution, I will close my eyes to small mistakes. It should be taken into account that the situation was special and urgent.”
Once she had avoided being shackled, she burst into tears.
“By the way, Your Highness.”
“What?”
“I also have something to apologize for.”
As soon as the Grand Duke’s forehead straightened, he crumpled again.
“Actually, I suspected that His Highness was paranoid with delusions of grandeur.”
“
 So, are you apologizing for thinking I was a psychopath?”
“No, that’s too overprotective.”
He gave reasons for her misunderstanding and took out the work manual from her apron pocket.
“With such a thick rule book
 But yesterday’s misunderstanding was cleared up.”
When she told him that she had heard about what had happened from Luna that night so time ago and that she was surprised, the Archduke laughed bitterly.
“I’d rather be able to block a frontal attack like this one.”
What else was he talking about?
“Didn’t you hear the rumor that my parents didn’t actually get sick and die?”
“Yes?”
Having been possessed around the funeral of the former Grand Duke and his wife, she was busy adjusting to the new world and had no time to listen to rumors.
“He was found dead in Luca’s room, who was only one year old at the time.”
“Pardon? How come
”
The Grand Duke shook his head with a bitter face.
“He was so healthy that there was no reason for him to die suddenly. Rumors circulate that it was poisoned, but no poison was detected. I have been more paranoid towards my younger siblings because I still don’t know the cause of his death.”
“Then maybe
”
Before she could say her guess, the Grand Duke nodded his head.
“Whatever the cause, I think it was an assassination.”
“Oh my gosh
 Who the hell is doing this and why?”
The Grand Duke looked at her with his heavy sunken eyes

“I do not know.”
He shook his head slowly.
“I was only seventeen at the time and had been away from the mansion for a long time. My parents died before I had a chance to do anything like that, and I came back belatedly to investigate, but I couldn’t find the cause, evidence, or the person behind it.”
“Ah
”
“I was young then. But not now. Getting hit once is enough. Not twice.”
The Grand Duke spat out his resolve with a grin. It seemed like he was talking to himself, not her.
“Even if I get assassinated one day, I will hold out until Luka is big enough to become the head of the household. Of course, even after that, it’s okay to live, play, eat, and nag them.”
He joked around and laughed, as if trying to change the mood, but she couldn’t help but laugh. Saying that there was no way he could die. The Grand Duke valued the lives of his younger siblings more than his own.
He was only twenty-one. It was not a young age, but not an older one either. But still he was too young to become the head of the household. Even so, he had to protect and raise his younger siblings while protecting and managing this huge estate and mansion.
It was so sad.
“
Why are you crying again?”
“His Highness the Grand Duke, hehe, since you’re an adult, wouldn’t it be okay if I cried in front of you?”
“Isn’t that usually the opposite?”
He asked if she couldn’t cry in front of adults because she was embarrassed, so she shook her head, wiping away tears with her sleeve.
“Crying in front of children makes you anxious.”
The Grand Duke snorted and pointed at his face with his long index finger.
“Me? Should I be anxious? Wouldn’t it be troubling to be misunderstood if someone walks past me and a young woman crying in a room alone?”
At that moment, she burst into laughter without realizing it.
“Who would have such strange suspicions about a witch?”
The Grand Duke smiled and took out his handkerchief from his bosom and handed it to her.
“Then why were you crying?”
She accepted the handkerchief without hesitation and answered while wiping her eyes.
“Your Highness is also young, so I feel so sorry for you.”
“Me? Young?”
The Grand Duke muttered, narrowing his eyes as if it were absurd.
“Well, for a witch who has lived hundreds of years, I must look young.”
Actually she didn’t know the witch’s age. So, without replying, she folded the handkerchief neatly. Meanwhile, the Grand Duke, who was leaning against the door frame with his arms folded and staring at her, kept opening his lips as if he had something to say.
Was it because it’s hard to say go now that the contract is over?
“Then I must go. I’ll wash this and return it.”
It was the moment she put the handkerchief in his pocket. The Grand Duke finally opened his mouth.
“To be honest, I still don’t trust Miss Hazel.”
“It could be. Still, I was happy that you left me the children for a while. I met a lot of nice people here. Even Mr. Harold decided to bake a cake and come to my cabin to play someday.”
The Grand Duke’s eyes narrowed as he heard her farewell. She wondered if she shouldn’t have talked about Mr. Harold.
“Anyway, thanks to you, I don’t think I’ll be as lonely as before. Thank you so much. If your Highness needs my help, please send someone to the cabin at any time. I will be happy to help.”
The Grand Duke, who had been staring at her, suddenly muttered.
“This is really nonsense
”
She tilted her head at what he was saying, but the Grand Duke didn’t say anything and just looked at her strangely.
“I
 By the way.”
She kept hesitating and finally asked.
“Can I see the chestnuts sometimes?”
“No.”
She became sullen at the stern answer that came immediately, but she nodded her head courageously on the outside.
“Miss Hazel, the temporary babysitting contract is over.”
“Yes, I know.”
She lifted the hem of her skirt, slightly bent her knees to say good-bye, and turned around. That was the moment she headed to the closet.
“Uh
?”
When she turned around at the feeling of the sleeves of her blouse being pulled, she was startled. Because she almost put her nose in the archduke’s chest. When the hell did he stride across the room?
“Why is that?”
They were so close that in order to see the tall Grand Duke’s eyes, she had to bend her neck painfully back.
“I mean, let’s sign a new contract.”
“Pardon?”
Unable to believe her ears, he took the work manual from the pocket of her apron and headed for his desk. Soon after, the Grand Duke, who had opened the rule book and scribbled something with the tip of a quill dipped in ink, murmured:
“Damn it
”
Surprised by the harsh sound, the Grand Duke beckoned her to come. As she approached, he turned the last page of the manual toward her.
There was the contract.
Her mouth dropped open as soon as she saw the large letters at the top of the last page, which should have been blank.
Was it real?
She realized for the first time that even when she was so happy, she couldn’t say anything. She lowered her eyes to the text of the contract, but there was not much to read. The last contract was ten sheets of parchment, tightly packed with clauses.
This time, there was only one clause, the length of the contract. That too

“Until the Grand Duchy no longer needs a nanny?”
‘Oh my gosh! What unconventional conditions were those! Exciting, too exciting!’
She danced in her heart, but the Grand Duke, who had finished signing first, urged her by holding out a quill.
“Sign.”
Receiving a quill, she filled in the weak contract terms before signing.
♡ I will give them lots of love ♡
♡ I will raise them well and protect them well ♡
When the Grand Duke saw it, he sighed disapprovingly.
“Who put hearts on the contract
?”
“Heh heh
”
As she smiled and signed with her signature very carefully and beautifully, the Grand Duke looked down at her as if she were a creature from a legend.
“I still don’t understand. How can you love my younger siblings this much?”
* * *
“Such a stupid thing!”
The emperor’s cry echoed through the high ceiling of the inner chamber of the imperial palace.
“To do things on your own without a word of advice, and in the most ignorant and reckless way. Did you go crazy!”
The face of the prince standing in front of the emperor turned red. Grinding his teeth was more of a resentful face than a reflection of anyone who saw it.
“Albert, my love. Gerald also reflected
”
The empress, who could not bear to see the death of her only child whom she cherished, was about to take the side of the crown prince, Gerald.
“Father, don’t be too angry.”
The princess, who was leisurely drinking tea in front of the window, hit her head.
“How could that kid not want to be smart too?”
Then it is. There was no way the princess, who hated her stepmother, the empress, and her half-brother, would take her side.
“There are things that cannot be done no matter how hard you try. How difficult would that child be right now?”
At the subtle encouragement of the princess, Regina, the empress, as always, easily fell for it and scolded her son even more.
“Gerald, do you think you are in more trouble than your father!”
“I never said anything like that
”
“Where are you talking back! The unfortunate person is your father, who is being criticized throughout the empire for your poor thinking, so how dare you show a sad face?”
Bang.
The Emperor’s fist hit the table.