The Softest And Cutest Of The Dukes - Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

Did I say something wrong?

Jenny clutched her stomach and burst into laughter. Oscar had a very sad expression, and the corners of Duke Panteur’s lips trembled and then stopped.

“Ahem, is playing with toys fun?”

“Yes.”

In truth, I wanted to bounce and play with it rather than just hold it, but there was no need to say that. I had to stay as inconspicuous as possible here.

With a chuckle, I nodded my head, and Duke Panteur came out and spoke, matching my eye level.

“From now on, your name will be Seraphina. Got it?”

“Sera… pina?”

Look at this pronunciation.

I knew I had to practice my pronunciation as soon as possible. Even though I thought about the words in my head, my tongue didn’t roll properly and made a short sound.

“It seems like you still can’t pronounce it. Hmm, Rafi… Yes. Let’s call you Rafi as a nickname, then.”

“Yes.”

“Rafi, stay here for a while. If you remember anything, tell me immediately.”

There was no reason to tell him if I remembered something. I nodded at Duke Panteur and held his hand. As befitting a hand that held a sword, his palm had calluses.

“Let’s play.”

“I don’t have time to play.”

“Hehe, let’s play.”

When I twisted my body and spoke, Duke Panteur looked slightly bewildered. I didn’t want to do this either, but it was inevitable if I wanted to survive in this household.

“My lord, please do as Miss Seraphina wishes. Children of this age like to play together.”

Oscar confidently spoke as if he knew something. Duke Panteur’s eyebrows wrinkled slightly and then smoothed out as he asked.

“What about children from other times?”

“They might not like it if you come close because it smells…”

How does he know about that? Even when my friends’ parents asked them to go on a trip as soon as they became middle school students, they never went.

Instead, they enjoyed eating snacks and instant noodles at home, playing games, or looking at their phones. And especially, they strongly disliked it when their dads came and rubbed their stubbly faces against their own.

Many of my friends told their parents not to come near them, saying they can’t stand the smell of men’s skincare. On the other hand, I lived with bruises because I was hit when I approached my father.

As I thought about the past, I became gloomy and let go of Duke Panteur’s hand. 

With my head lowered and my lips pushed out, I sulked, only staring at the floor. But then, a large hand grabbed mine.

“I don’t really have time, but if it’s just for a while, I’ll stay .”

“Wow! Big brother!”

“Yeah, seems like you have perceptive eyes. Calling me big brother, huh?”

“That’s probably just a flattery…”

“Let’s go, Rafi. Is this the puzzle?”

Interrupting Oscar’s words, Duke Panteur took my hand and walked towards where the puzzle was.

“It’s too difficult.”

As I warned that it was difficult, I placed jewel pieces that would turn into colorful strings on a puzzle board made of gold.

“No matter how difficult this is, I can do it quickly.”

Confidently, Duke Panteur immediately started fitting the jewel pieces. However, it seemed like it wasn’t as easy as it sounded from the beginning. Seeing that, I shook my head and pointed at the misplaced jewel piece with my hand.

“That’s not it.”

“No, it’s right here.”

“No, it’s here, here.”

As I pressed it firmly with my finger and spoke, Duke Panteur placed the jewel piece there. And just like that, it fits, as if it were a lie.

“Ahem. Seems like you’re smarter than I thought.”

“Hehe, Rafi is smart?”

“Yeah, you’re clever.”

“Rafi is smart!”

As Duke Panteur and I solved the jewel puzzle, the people around us clapped their hands.

“Oh my, our young lady is amazing.”

“You’re the best, Miss.”

Well, that’s about it.

After solving one puzzle, as if it were exhausting, I wiped my forehead with the back of my hand. Duke Panteur reached out his hand. I flinched for a moment and lowered my head, but Duke Panteur’s hand touched my head. Duke Panteur, who had been caressing my head for a while, spoke in a soft voice.

“No one will hurt you while you’re here.”

Does he know that I was abused? There are no bruises on my body. Even when I had bruises and shed blood in my previous life, everyone pretended not to know.

They never got involved, saying it was someone else’s family matter. 

But instead of Duke Panteur’s large hand hitting my head, it felt unfamiliar as he gently stroked it.

“Hehe, keep stroking, more gently.”

“Yeah, I can always do this much for you.”

With a bright smile, Duke Panteur said, and even he had a faint smile as he affectionately stroked my head, making it shiny. 

Even though it wasn’t blood, Duke Panteur’s touch was incredibly warm. It made tears well up in my eyes.

“Why are you like that? Your eyes look like you’re about to cry.”

“Because… it’s comforting… it feels warm.”

As I spoke, Duke Panteur gently stroked me but then stopped. He shook his head from side to side and let out a sigh.

“I’ll comfort you whenever you want, so come find me.”

“Thank you.”

Smiling at Duke Panteur, I immediately picked up another piece of the puzzle. I placed it in the correct spot, and he filled in the adjacent piece. Together, we completed the 200-piece puzzle, and I handed it over to Duke Panteur.

“We’re done.”

“Yes, well done.”

“Hehe.”

Duke Panteur, who had been gently stroking my head, stood up, saying he had something to do. I grabbed his hand and looked at him with pleading eyes.

“Thank you for comforting me.”

“It’s me who should be thanking you. Let’s meet again sometime.”

With a fleeting gaze, the Duke tousled my hair and left. Then Oscar, who had come with him, ran up to me, held my cheeks, stretched them, and caressed them.

“My name is Oscar Leslie. Miss Seraphina, from now on, please call me Oscar.”

“Yes.”

“Oh, why are you so adorable? Well then, I’ll be going now.”

Oscar smiled brightly and quickly left. Seeing this, Jenny approached me and suggested that we frame the puzzle that Duke Panteur and I had completed. I quickly nodded, signaling her not to rush. I couldn’t let my little source of income be trapped.

“By the way, it seems like our Miss Seraphina has caught the eye of the butler as well.”

“Butler?”

“Yes, Oscar Leslie. He’s the butler of this estate. He was told to retire and rest, but he strongly refused and became the butler.”

“Oh, really?”

Perhaps this is the true job creation for the elderly in this era. Unable to make a living on just a pension, Oscar found reemployment after retirement. I thought of his kind eyes and nodded approvingly. 

Although I didn’t quite understand, I felt like I should do well for him.

“Now that we’ve finished the puzzle, shall we have our snack?”

“Yes.”

Snacks. Snacks.

As I wondered what kind of snacks this country had, the people who had been stiffly stuck to the walls, took all of my money and left. With a regretful gaze, I watched for a while until the jewel puzzle and the doll with embedded jewels remained securely in my possession.

After a while, someone brought something on a tray. A beautiful lady smiled at me and lifted the lid. Inside were cakes of various colors that made my mouth water just looking at them.

“Oh my, look at our little Miss Seraphina drooling.”

I felt like I’d made a fool of myself again. I quickly wiped the corner of my mouth with my sleeve, but Jenny handed me a cloth. Although I wanted to say that I’m too old for this, against my will, saliva continued to flow, so I obediently sat down.

“Jenny, can I eat this too?”

“You don’t need permission to eat anything from now on, miss. Oh, you little lady.”

Every time there was something delicious in front of me, I would ask if I could eat it. I wanted to eat it, but I felt like I would get scolded if I ate without permission, as if my father were watching.

“Seraphina, let me feed you the cake. Oh! My name is Agape.”

Agape, with soft coffee-colored hair and eyes, smiled and picked up a fork.

“Agape, this area is mine, so get lost in your area.”

“Oh my, Jenny! It seems like you’re supporting the lady these days. I’m sorry. I also want to feed her. So this time, you should yield.”

Suddenly, the two of them started a showdown with me in the middle. Whether they spoke or not, I approached and extended my hand. I dipped my finger into the cake cream and put it in my mouth. In an instant, my body felt like it was melting along with the sweet milk cream inside my mouth.

As they stared at each other with forks in hand, I picked up the cake with my fingers and ate it. If there were no utensils, you had to eat with your hands.

I tried not to make any noise while eating, but a humming sound involuntarily escaped from my mouth. Agape and Jenny, who had been arguing, had an astonished expressions on their faces as they witnessed the bare-handed feast unfolding below.

“Oh, miss, were you that hungry? Goodness. Jenny, you didn’t properly feed our lady.”

“It’s because of you that our lady couldn’t resist using her hands to eat the cake. Miss, I will clean it up for you.”

Jenny wiped the mess of cream and cake crumbs from my hands and around my mouth with a towel. Then she used a fork to scoop up the remaining cake and placed it in front of me. If there was a problem, Agape was also waiting with a fork, ready to let me eat the cake.

Blinking my eyes, I hesitated on which one to eat first. Then Agape smiled and said,

“Miss, I made this. Hohoho.”

Before she finished speaking, I took a bite of the cake on Agape’s fork. Jenny looked a bit gloomy and lowered her head slightly.

“How is it? Delicious, right?”

“Yes, I like it. Can I have more?”

“Oh, of course. If our lady wants it, I’ll make it for you every day. How wonderful. Our young master didn’t eat much, but from now on, I’ll make lots and lots of new products for you.”

“Hehe. I like Agape.”

As I made munching sounds while eating, Agape happily fed me the cake with her fork and wiped it around my mouth. As soon as I finished a slice of cake, Jenny brought something else.

“This is an apple drink. Since you had something rich, have a refreshing and sweet beverage.”

“Hehe, I like Jenny too.”

“Right? You like me too, don’t you? Oh my, how fair it is to shower me with so much love… It feels like I’m meeting that person.”

As I inserted a straw into the apple juice and took sips, I noticed the two of them looking at me with surprise. I smiled broadly. Then both of them covered their mouths, and a muffled sound escaped through their fingers.

Ah, how should I handle this deadly smile of mine?

I wouldn’t be kicked out of this house immediately, but I never knew when it would happen. 

That’s why I thought it was important to present myself well not only to the landlord but also to the people around me.

After having a slice of cake and a glass of apple juice, I felt drowsy, and Jenny handed me something. It looked like a squishy, transparent jelly with a single leaf inside. Were they deliberately trying to surprise and startle children?

“If you bite on this, you can brush your teeth more comfortably.”

“What’s this?”

Brushing teeth with this? I couldn’t understand, so I tilted my head in confusion. Jenny smiled mischievously and said,

“This is the spirit of water.”

“Kek!”