The Grand Duke's Maid Writes a Consultation Log Today - Chapter 32

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Grand Ducal House Maid Writes a Counseling Log Today as Well – Chapter 032
“It’s too hard…….”
Joshua groaned as he stared down at the chessboard.
Sitting across from him, Sheila looked fresh and clean after finishing her bath.
Whether Sheila was purposely letting him win or not, she was pointing at Joshua’s pieces, guiding him on where to move them.
Though she had been worried, both children seemed to be in a pretty good mood.
Joshua had been completely hooked on chess ever since he discovered the board in Sheila’s room.
Come to think of it, they had played a two-on-one match yesterday too.
Of course, the result was a total defeat for both Joshua and Elysia against Sheila.
While Elysia was lost in these thoughts, Sheila left the focused Joshua behind and approached her.
[You’re going to see Yulias, right?]
Elysia couldn’t bring herself to look Sheila properly in the eye.
After gazing at her intently, Sheila gestured with her hand as if telling her to go.
However, she couldn’t easily bring herself to take a step, as the conversation the two children had shared kept weighing on her mind.
Sheila turned away before Elysia could even reply.
Right on cue, Joshua, who had just moved a chess piece, greeted her cheerfully.
“Sheila! I made my move, so take a look and see if it’s good! Do you think I’m gonna win?! Oh, sister! Do you want to play too?”
“I’m in the middle of working, so I’m going to visit the Grand Duke for a moment.”
“Come back quickly!”
Elysia maintained her smile until the very end as she left the room.

* * *
Elysia stood in front of the Office, agonizing for a long time.
What should she even say first?
Should she ask him to clearly explain how he had known about her situation and come to her rescue?
Or should she bring up again how certain it was that Princess Aresina was ostracizing Sheila?
If not that, should she ask if the mark on Sheila’s back was simply a birthmark, or else…….
Going even further, she wondered how he had managed to run over and protect her.
As her personal thoughts tangled up in a mess, her head felt like it was about to explode.
After hesitating in front of the door for a good while, Elysia knocked resolutely.
“Come in.”
As if he already knew it was her, the response came the exact moment she knocked.
When she slowly opened the door and entered the Office, Yulias was unexpectedly sitting on the sofa rather than at his desk.
There were even refreshments placed on the table, making it look as though he had been waiting for her.
Yulias gestured with his chin for her to come and sit down.
Understanding the gesture, Elysia took a seat across from him.
“…….”
As silence fell over the room, Yulias poured the tea himself and broke the ice first.
“It’s herbal tea. The Head Maid prepared it, saying it helps relieve tension.”
“Thank you.”
Elysia stared down at the steaming teacup.
Carefully lifting the cup to catch the aroma, she took a sip of the warm herbal tea.
The moment the herbal scent brushed her nose and the warm liquid traveled down her throat, the tension that had stiffened her shoulders dissolved away.
“You look like you have a lot on your mind.”
“Ah, is it that obvious?”
“It’s written all over your face.”
Elysia laughed awkwardly, scratching her cheek.
Gazing at her intently, Yulias intentionally pushed the plate of cookies closer to her side.
“Take your time speaking. We have plenty of it.”
Setting her teacup down, Elysia hesitated for a brief second before asking the question she was most curious about.
“……First of all, I’d like to ask you about what happened in the Small Garden. I’m curious as to how you found out and came over, and also…….”
“And also?”
“Because the Grand Duke I know is…… not someone who would lie, so I was surprised.”
“…….”
Instead of a verbal answer, Yulias took a sip of his tea as if in agreement.
By now, even if he didn’t put it into words, she could roughly read the atmosphere of whether he agreed or disagreed.
The same went for Sheila.
She couldn’t help but think that the siblings truly resembled each other.
Elysia pictured both Sheila’s and Yulias’s faces at the same time, then chuckled softly at the expressionless face of Sheila that popped up first.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Pardon? Ah! I just thought that the two of you really resemble each other.”
“The two of us? Surely you don’t mean the Princess and me?”
“No! I mean Lady Sheila and you, Grand Duke.”
“…….”
Yulias lowered the teacup he was holding.
He then watched Elysia, who was smiling comfortably now that her tension had eased, and continued the conversation.
“Sheila and Joshua came to find me.”
Just as she thought.
“From the Office, you can only see up to the Garden. The place with a clear view of the Small Garden is Sheila’s room.”
“……Then, the ones who saw my entire situation must have been the Lady and Joshua.”
“Yes.”
“…….”
A dark cloud settled over Elysia’s face.
The good mood she had felt just a moment ago vanished, and her thoughts grew complicated once again.
Had Joshua cried and begged Sheila for help?
And so, having no choice, had Sheila gone to find the Grand Duke and…….
Watching her face change by the second, Yulias continued speaking before any greater misunderstanding could form.
“Joshua said he would leave the judgment up to Sheila and me.”
“……!”
“Saying that he couldn’t interfere in a situation his older sister was facing.”
Elysia’s mouth parted at Yulias’s words, and she closed it again as she listened intently.
“Joshua doesn’t know exactly what kind of situation you’re in, but he said he trusts his sister. He also knows that crying won’t make things go his way, and he said he knows his place.”
Knowing his place.
Elysia felt happy at her brother’s words of trust in her, but on the other hand, her heart ached as she pictured Joshua displaying an attitude far too mature for his age.
“He looks like he might cry if you just poke him, yet he speaks so clearly and articulately. Looking at that, you two siblings really resemble each other as well.”
“Is, is that so…….”
Elysia laughed, sniffing hard to suppress the stinging sensation in her nose.
“The one who made a reckless request was Sheila.”
Yulias pulled a piece of paper from his vest pocket, unfolded it, and held it out to her.
[Please help.]
[I will properly entertain the guests during the visit a week from now.]
[I don’t want to see my maid get hurt.]
[You can do it, Yulias.]
Perhaps because it was written in a rush, the handwriting was scribbled, but anyone could tell it belonged to Sheila.
For some reason, her eyes felt like they were going to well up with tears, so she squeezed them tight.
‘My maid.’
It felt as though she had been recognized by Sheila as ‘her person.’
Even though I haven’t even contributed anything major for Sheila’s sake yet…….
Above all, the words asking Yulias for help and saying that he could do it weighed heavily on her heart.
Those two sentences felt like proof that Sheila trusted him.
“……Thank you.”
“It’s only right that you express your gratitude to those two.”
“No, I am grateful to you as well, Grand Duke.”
Yulias’s hand, which had been reaching for his teacup, paused mid-air.
Elysia forced a smile, sniffing her throbbing nose repeatedly.
Though she was smiling, she was in a state where she really looked like she might burst into tears at the slightest touch.
“You came out there yourself. Just like…… a protagonist in a novel. The moment I saw your face, I felt relieved.”
“……Why?”
“Pardon?”
“Why did you feel relieved?”
When Yulias unexpectedly questioned her back, Elysia blinked a few times, her voice trailing off with an “Uh-.”
“I trusted that you would protect me, and you also came running just for me, and then…….”
“And then.”
Why was he asking so persistently?
The overwhelming emotion she had felt settled down before she knew it, replaced instead by a ticklish, embarrassing sensation that seemed to wrap around her body like creeping vines.
Elysia subtly hid her face behind the paper and gave an ambiguous answer.
“Because you smiled at me, Grand Duke. I think that’s why I felt relieved. It made me feel like everything was going to be resolved…….”
It was the truth.
The moment Yulias had shielded her, out of all people, refused to leave her mind.
The face she had encountered lasted for only a very brief moment, but the exact second he smiled—
The moment that smile sparkled in the sunlight right before her eyes was vividly engraved in her mind.
Had she spoken with too much personal feelings mixed in?
But with a face like Yulias’s, anyone would likely feel their heart flutter from just a single smile.
So, she could only explain this as a fluttering of the heart born from feeling relieved by a smile witnessed in a dramatic situation.
When Yulias offered no response, Elysia subtly lowered the paper just enough to show her eyes.
Yet, before she knew it, Yulias, who had been sitting across from her, was nowhere to be seen.
In that instant, sensing a presence close by, she turned her head to find him standing right next to her.
As the distance between them narrowed, Elysia caught her breath.
Slowly reaching his hand out toward her face, Yulias called her name in a whisper.
“Elysia. Look at me.”

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