I Was Marked as the Grand Duke Male Lead’s Stepmother - Chapter 10

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 10

“So what you’re saying, Governess, is that you need one person to take charge of cookie making and one person to help, preferably one man and one woman each?”

“Yes. That’s right. Preferably people with kind faces. The young master is still a bit afraid of people who are tall or look intimidating.”

“Then how about one man and one woman with kind faces? Ah! Does age matter?”

“Age doesn’t matter much.”

“Hmm… In that case, I think Head Chef Jeffrey and Abilene would be good. What do you think, Porel?”

Head Maid Mary, who had a petite but full figure with gray hair scattered through her neatly pinned-up hair, asked Porel who was standing next to Marisselle for his opinion.

Mary clearly exuded experience at first glance.

“They seem perfect.”

Porel agreed with Mary’s opinion, saying it was a good idea.

“Jeffrey does have some build, but he’s not that big, he’s older, has a bit of a belly, and his eyebrows droop down so humbly that he has no threatening presence at all—just a gentle impression. His actual personality is like that too, and his baking skills go without saying. Abilene is also his head assistant, so they’ll work well together, and this girl is naturally bright and kind. They’ll be more than adequate to serve the young master.”

Mary explained in detail the reasons for recommending both people.

As Marisselle listened to Mary’s words, she felt like she could see those people right before her eyes.

They were exactly the people Marisselle wanted.

She needed a situation and people to help Fleur overcome his aversion to adult men.

Among those, what Marisselle had in mind was meeting a man who wasn’t threatening in a pleasant situation.

This perfectly met those requirements.

Marisselle felt like Mary was scratching an itch she couldn’t reach. So she felt excited.

“Wow, listening to the Head Maid makes me feel really excited for some reason.”

So Marisselle showed her honest feelings.

Mary was slightly flustered. She felt like she was receiving praise when she had just done her job.

She had never heard this kind of compliment before. Strangely, it felt better than hearing direct words of praise.

“I’m happy to hear that you’re excited, Governess.”

Mary’s voice trembled shyly along with her smile.

Cookie Day was decided for the time between lunch and dinner three days later.

“How did you come up with all these ideas, Governess Marisselle?”

“Does it seem like an unusual idea to you too, Butler?”

Marisselle smiled with her eyes crinkling as if she understood that feeling.

Since she wasn’t originally from this world, it was natural that her ideas would be unusual, wasn’t it?

She thought she might need to prepare a universal answer since she would face this kind of reaction quite often in the future.

* * *

“Young Master, it’s finally our cookie time. Shall we go down to the kitchen?”

Marisselle extended her hand to Fleur, and Fleur took her hand as if he was now accustomed to it.

Their joined hands, like mother and son, swayed gently along with their light steps.

“Aren’t you excited that we’re going to make cookies now? That soft, squishy texture of flour dough—ugh, just thinking about it makes me feel good! Young Master, look forward to it! We’ve brought in the Duke’s Household’s best baking expert as your teacher!”

Marisselle’s highly excited voice made Fleur feel even more excited.

Fleur’s joined hand tightened with strength, and his eyes shone with boundless anticipation.

“Here we are.”

Marisselle entered the kitchen holding Fleur’s hand.

“Welcome, Young Master, Governess.”

“I’m Head Chef Jeffrey.”

“I’m Assistant Abilene.”

As Mary had described, Jeffrey had drooping eyebrows and a somewhat large build, but perhaps because of his protruding belly, he looked warm and cozy with no threatening presence at all.

Abilene had brown hair, a youthful face, and looked clearly capable at first glance.

Jeffrey and Abilene stared blankly at Fleur for a moment when they saw him. They couldn’t help but be surprised.

He was more cute and adorable than they had imagined.

‘Ah. He’s so cute.’

Abilene clutched the collar of her dress.

Fleur looked so cute and adorable with his clear sky-blue eyes, plump cheeks on his fair face, silky black hair, and white shirt with suspender pants.

‘I really am lucky.’

Who would have thought that Jeffrey, at his age, would get to see the Duke’s heir making cookies for the first time in his life, and moreover, that he would be the baking teacher for a day. Jeffrey was moved.

“First, please put on this apron.”

Abilene handed the apron to Marisselle.

Fleur’s apron had a small baby bear embroidered on it, making it adorable.

‘When did she prepare all this?’

Marisselle inwardly admired Mary’s preparedness.

Fleur seemed a bit hesitant when first entering, but quickly adapted with Marisselle’s help.

And when they put the adorable apron that Abilene had handed over on Fleur, it was so charming that she worried whether the daily lesson would proceed properly, as they’d be too busy admiring Fleur instead of making cookies.

Marisselle clapped her hands twice. Clap. Clap.

“Now then, since we’re all ready, shall we start making cookies?”

Fleur’s nervous eyes sparkled as he stood on the footstool adjusted to match the cooking table’s height.

“Then let’s begin. First, please put this much butter into the mixing bowl. Then press and mash it like this until it becomes paste.”

Jeffrey led them easily and enjoyably, matching Fleur’s eye level as if teaching his grandchild.

Both Fleur and Marisselle enthusiastically mashed the butter following Jeffrey.

“Are you all done? Then shall we crack eggs into another bowl?”

Jeffrey skillfully led the group and displayed his witty speaking skills.

“Everyone is doing very well. I’m getting so curious about today’s cookies. Next, we put the flour into the sieve like this and shake it to strain it finely.”

Fleur also used a cup with his small fern-like hands to transfer it to the mixing bowl and shook the sieve with all his might.

Fleur’s eyes watching the flour settle down like white snow already looked like they were in a white snowfield in midwinter.

Affection was dripping from Marisselle’s eyes as she watched Fleur.

After going through several more steps, Jeffrey introduced his own final mixing process.

“Now, we’ll add the healthy and savory pure white milk provided by the cows from our Duke’s Ranch to make the dough.”

But here’s where a problem arose.

As Fleur was mixing vigorously, unmixed milk splashed right onto Marisselle’s face.

Marisselle froze in surprise for a moment and stopped what she was doing. Then Fleur stiffened and his complexion immediately darkened.

Just then.

“Hey. I can’t forgive a water gun attack.”

Marisselle smiled brightly with a playful expression and rubbed flour on Fleur’s nose.

For a moment, Fleur couldn’t grasp the situation and stood there dazed, then finally realized it was a joke from Marisselle’s bright smile and laughed along.

“Please wipe it off for me, young master.”

When Marisselle leaned her face toward Fleur, he naturally wiped it with his dough-covered hand.

Far from wiping off the milk, the thin flour dough created a white horn mustache on Marisselle’s left cheek.

“Pfft. Ah, hahahahahaha.”

Abilene couldn’t help but burst into loud laughter at the sight.

“Kuhp, hahahahahaha.”

Jeffrey also couldn’t hold back and joined in the hearty laughter.

“Ah… Governess, ah, sor, ry. Too.”

“I, I’m also, sorry, I-“

The two of them couldn’t stop laughing even while trying to apologize, unable to get their words out.

Evelyn quickly brought a mirror from a corner of the kitchen and handed it to Maricel.

My face reflected in the mirror I was handed looked exactly like a snotty kindergartener with white snot blown by the wind and stuck to my left cheek.

In short, it looked extremely ridiculous. Even Maricel herself couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.

Maricel laughed heartily. The kitchen was once again filled with laughter.

Maricel felt mischievous. She dabbed some of the thin batter from Fler’s mixing bowl right onto Fler’s forehead and showed her the mirror.

A white horn like a baby unicorn’s sprouted from his forehead. Fler’s lips twitched at the corners, then he broke into a bright smile. There seemed to be a little sound too.

“Yes~!”

Marisselle answered like a child.

Laughter bloomed once again.

Finally, the dough was completed and it was time to cut out the cookies.

“You can use this mold to press down like this and pull it out to make them, or you can make them directly by hand. I’ll make a cat shape like this-“

Following Jeffrey’s guidance, they made some using molds and shaped others by hand into desired forms.

That’s when it happened.

Fleur stopped his hands and looked at Marisselle pitifully, his eyes brimming with tears that seemed ready to spill at any moment.

Fler stopped her hands and looked at Maricel pitifully, her eyes brimming with tears that seemed ready to spill over at any moment.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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