Early the next morning, Pesha woke up and, with the maids’ help, washed her face, changed her clothes, and headed to the dining room for breakfast.
The building had already been old when Owen was first granted his title.
Even if it had been renovated, that fact did not change.
Cracked windows here and there along the way, faded still-life paintings in plain frames, and wooden stairs that had sunk slightly and creaked every time she stepped on them all made her head spin, but Pesha deliberately pretended not to notice.
When she opened the dining room door and entered, Owen Namoi, who had arrived earlier, was sitting at the far end of the long dining table covered with a white tablecloth, drinking tea and reading the newspaper.
In the gloomy dining room, without even a single chandelier, the only things that drew the eye were the unusually white tablecloth and Owen’s striking appearance.
Was this really all right for a count’s castle?
“Ahem.”
Pesha gave a short cough and sat down in her chair. Owen folded the newspaper he had been reading and handed it to the butler.
“You’re up early.”
Saying that while he himself had arrived even earlier and was leisurely reading the newspaper made the pleasantry feel rather pointless.
“Was there anything uncomfortable about your sleeping arrangements?”
Anything uncomfortable? Of course there was.
The nights of early spring, before winter had completely retreated, were chilly from the very air itself.
Perhaps because it was the lady of the house’s room, it seemed to have been furnished at least a little, but because it had not been properly kept warm throughout the night, Pesha felt cold and as though her fatigue had not been relieved at all.
The opening of the fireplace had been completely patched over with wooden boards, but Pesha was still being cautious about everything in this castle, so she could not bring herself to have a maid remove them.
‘Maybe they just happened to run out of dry firewood, or perhaps they stop heating as soon as winter ends in the east. I don’t want to become someone who makes a fuss over everything.’
Even if she became a person who complained about everything from the very beginning, nothing would change. Pesha simply shook her head.
“No. The room was clean and quiet, so I was very comfortable.”
Being a little cold at night would be fine once the weather warmed up in a few days, and she could think about the heating problem that would come with the next winter when the time came.
When Pesha casually brushed off his question, Owen raised one eyebrow as though surprised, then took a sip of tea.
“That’s a relief.”
In the meantime, the butler, who had been stealing suspicious glances at Pesha, ordered the servants to bring out the food.
The door at the back of the dining room opened, and the servants began bringing out the dishes.
Pesha, who had not eaten a proper meal since the day before the wedding, was secretly looking forward to breakfast.
Having personally experienced how unusual this castle was, she had nevertheless let her judgment become clouded for a moment when it came to food.
When one thought of breakfast, one naturally imagined golden croissants steaming with warmth, sweet raspberry jam, fresh milk, or fragrant seasonal fruit, but the food the servants brought out surpassed all her expectations.
Potatoes.
They were potatoes.
Roasted potatoes served with green beans, mashed boiled potatoes mixed with paprika, stir-fried cabbage and potatoes, potato pancakes…….
Anyway, it was all potatoes.
Did I marry into the potato kingdom?
No matter how delicious spring potatoes might be…….
Despite the bewildering potato appetizers, Owen looked completely unfazed, as though he were accustomed to them.
“Then, let’s eat.”
He lifted his cutlery and began eating so casually that Pesha missed her chance to ask about the potatoes.
Fortunately, by the middle of the meal, things other than potatoes began to appear, such as thick stew and meat pies. But even then, all the meat used as the main ingredient had been salted or dried for long-term storage, making it terribly salty and tough.
‘This is serious…….’
They must have taken care with this because it was the first breakfast welcoming the lady of the house, yet if it was like this, she felt she could tell what entertaining guests here would be like without even seeing it.
Even if she gave the lord every possible benefit of the doubt and assumed he was frugal enough to eat nothing but potatoes, carrots, and cabbage in his daily life, when guests came, they should still be served an abundant meal.
Food was the foundation of entertaining guests, and depending on how guests were treated and sent home after visiting, one’s reputation in high society could vary drastically.
Even if it seemed like empty formalities, those very formalities were the driving force that kept noble society running.
Pesha chewed vigorously on an undercooked carrot from the vegetable stew as she carefully observed Owen.
‘How am I supposed to explain this to him?’
That the food at his castle was terrible?
That would be even more discourteous than the terrible food itself.
‘Rather than pointing out little things one by one, I should first look into the overall state of this castle.’
It did not seem as though the problem was limited to the meals.
As Pesha became lost in thought and barely ate, Owen, who had been eating silently, spoke to her.
“……It’s your first day in Swapro. Do you have any plans arranged?”
“Plans?”
She had been thinking of looking around the entire castle first.
But there was no way she could say that so honestly.
Pesha rolled her eyes before answering awkwardly.
“Um…… sightseeing……?”
“Then I’ll have someone accompany you.”
“Ah, it’s fine. I can take my maid with me.”
“You won’t know your way around. And…… there are many dangerous places in Swapro.”
“Dangerous places?”
Pesha had not intended to go outside right away, but at the mention of danger, her eyes widened.
Owen flinched at that, then denied it with a frown.
“I don’t mean dangerous districts. It’s just that a noblewoman like you will be a target wherever you go.”
“I’m planning to look around inside the castle today.”
“The castle…… doesn’t have much to see.”
Deep lines formed between Owen’s brows.
It seemed he was not unaware of how desolate this castle was either.
“It’s fine. I just want to walk around and get used to the place.”
After a brief silence, Owen spoke.
“……Do as you please.”
With those words, he finished his meal and stood up first, saying he had work to do.
Even though they were a politically arranged married couple, it was an exceptionally cold way to leave.
Pesha suddenly lost her appetite, put down her utensils, and rose from her seat.
After leaving the dining room, Pesha slowly toured the count’s castle, starting from the basement.
After looking over the places that were visible at a glance or seemed important, she could not help but be shocked.
‘How on earth has this man been managing his household?’
There were unmistakable signs of construction having been abandoned halfway all over the castle, and because the number of servants was far too small for such a huge castle, even the cleaning had not been properly done.
And what about the food supplies? She had thought the meals were absurdly frugal, and sure enough, the stored provisions consisted mostly of crude, everyday vegetables that commoners would eat.
In this state, if a guest were to visit, they would have difficulty even preparing food to serve them.
The same went for alcohol. It could be used as medicine in an emergency, and to get through the coming winter, alcohol was essential for warming the body, yet the wine cellar was practically empty.
The garden was so overgrown that it looked as though it had been abandoned for about ten years. When she asked about it, she was told there was no gardener because the wages were too expensive.
In short, the household was an absolute mess.
“Why on earth does a household with both a butler and a head maid not have a gardener?”
She desperately wanted to barge into Owen’s room right away and ask how much the count’s castle operated on for its annual budget, but as a newlywed bride who had only been married for a day, this was not something she could easily interfere in.
Besides, he might easily take it as an insult.
“This is difficult.”
In fact, when you think about it, managing the household was the responsibility of the lady of the house or senior servants.
‘And even more so when you consider that man’s circumstances, having been summoned here and there by the war for such a long time.’
If so, there was only one person she needed to meet now.
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