The Military Doctor Excels at Being a Contracted Duchess - Chapter 23

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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 23】

“I see.”

“His name is Louis Pasteur. The problem is that he’s from France.”

“We’ll need to bring him before the war breaks out. I understand.”

No, the bigger problem is that he’ll collapse from a brain hemorrhage in 1868.

He’ll continue his research, but he won’t have the strength to come all the way to this remote Bayern estate.

‘If I change Dr. Pasteur’s environment, I might be able to help him avoid becoming paralyzed.’

Victor waited silently until Ebel finished her contemplation. It was true that he was tired from not sleeping much, but strangely, looking at her face didn’t make him feel quite so exhausted.

He wanted to hold onto this time a little longer.

A moment when he could steal glances at her alone, with no one else around.

Ebel, lost in thought, paid no attention to who was around her, and he liked that.

Call it excessive self-consciousness if you will. Victor had typically received the same treatment wherever he went. People were overly conscious of him, overly concerned, and overly cautious around him.

The only ones who didn’t act this way were those of similar status to him.

Even among them, there were hardly any gazes filled with pure goodwill.

‘Perhaps only Lucas.’

Everyone else was either wary or envious—one of the two.

It was equally tiresome.

But Ebel didn’t act that way.

She was the only one who made him wait before his death, and she was the only one who made him wait after coming back to life.

“I need many rosemary pots. I haven’t started managing domestic affairs yet, but could you approve this?”

Seeing her return to her previous stiff military tone, she must be deep in thought.

He didn’t know what she was thinking, but Victor welcomed any change to this stifling manor, so there was no reason not to grant her request.

“Do as you please.”

“Thank you.”

Should I try using jimsonweed? But it’s too toxic. If I refine it well, no. Still, it wouldn’t be safe for a child…

Muttering to herself as she walked ahead, Ebel suddenly stopped.

She realized she had left Victor behind and come out first.

“Ah, Victor.”

“I’m fine. Please go ahead.”

“Ah, um, then…”

Victor chuckled softly as he watched Ebel’s retreating figure, hesitating slightly before turning away briskly.

Being abandoned by a lady was also a first in his life.

* * *

When Ebel had grown accustomed to the Bayern manor, she finally got to visit the Eberstain family.

On a day when summer rain gently moistened the earth, she stepped down from the carriage and widened her eyes slightly upon spotting two figures who had come out to the entrance.

“Come, come in. My daughter. The weather is so dreary… I should have told you to come tomorrow instead. Wasn’t the journey too difficult?”

Colonel Konrad von Eberstain’s wife.

Mrs. Eberstain was an extremely kind-looking person.

Her eyes drooped at the corners, and her plump figure immediately inspired affection.

Ebel showed a gentle smile toward the girlish face that was holding her hands tightly, not knowing what to do.

“There was no problem at all. Thank you for welcoming me so warmly.”

“No, no. Thank you for becoming my daughter. I wondered if it would be humid and hot because of the weather, or perhaps a bit cold because of the rain. I couldn’t tell, so I prepared two drawing rooms at different temperatures.”

She had heard about this, but she hadn’t expected such thoughtful hospitality.

‘They said she lost her daughter in an accident and suffered from depression and nervous breakdown.’

She repeatedly wiped her moistening eyes until one handkerchief became unusable. Seeing this, Ebel silently offered her own handkerchief.

She might not be able to act as affectionately as a real daughter, but she could do this much.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be like this… I’m just so happy.”

“It’s alright.”

After sniffling a bit more, the lady began asking about this and that in a bright voice.

“Do you like ginger cookies? How about butter cookies? You’re a grown young lady, so maybe you don’t like sweet things? What kind of pie do you prefer? I can make meat pie quite skillfully. You must try some later. It’s in the oven right now.”

“I will. As for cookies… I barely remember eating them, but I like them.”

“My goodness! How could that be! Marie! Hurry and bring some cookies!”

Mrs. Eberstain showed three emotions.

Joy, bitterness, and a desire not to be disliked.

You could see how much she had been waiting for her, being anxious about every single word.

‘Is this what it would feel like to have a mother who loves me?’

It was something she would never know in her lifetime.

The mother in her memories was always drunk, rambling nonsense before collapsing—that was her daily routine.

‘Well, I won’t have to see her anymore anyway.’

If possible, she never wanted to see her again for the rest of her life.

Crunching on bear-shaped ginger cookies, Ebel continued various conversations. What color she liked most, what flowers she preferred, and so on.

Colonel Konrad, unable to join the ladies’ conversation and fidgeting restlessly, had gone out to play cricket with Victor at some point.

The lady, who had been glaring at her husband with her eyes, held Ebel’s hand tightly with a beaming face.

“My daughter. If you ever have a marital quarrel, please come here. Do you understand?”

“I will.”

“Don’t stay somewhere cold or hot, precious one. If you feel frustrated with nowhere to vent, come to Eberstain. I can make at least one daughter like you live happily, no matter what it takes.”

A frost briefly crossed the girlish face that spoke so gently.

It was a coldness that suggested she wouldn’t forgive anyone who dared make Ebel unhappy, even if it were Victor.

‘Well, how could she have dominated the social circles here if she were truly just gentle?’

The conversation that followed was about wedding dresses and the venue.

“The wedding will be held at the Bayern manor, and may I help decorate it?”

“Please do help. It would be difficult for me to prepare such a large-scale party by myself.”

The lady, who had even brought out paper and a fountain pen, began drawing this and that with cheerful laughter. Since she was also skilled at drawing, Ebel leisurely watched and simply nodded affirmatively to each question.

It was a fake marriage anyway, and whatever she wanted, it had to proceed in a manner befitting Bayern’s status. So it was better to have someone knowledgeable take charge.

If Mrs. Eberstain led instead of Genevieve, Victor’s desired ‘establishing family discipline’ would be no problem either.

Whatever they did, they would proceed with her at the forefront.

“I’m curious about something. By any chance, has anyone in the Eberstain family had a coughing illness?”

“No, there has been no such thing in Eberstain.”

“Then, could I perhaps know what building materials you used?”

The lady looked slightly surprised, as if the question was unexpected.

“Um, granite, I think. I’m not sure, so let me call my husband. Marie! Go call the master.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Cricket takes at least five or six hours per game, no matter how short. But Colonel Konrad immediately stopped the game and appeared at his wife’s call.

“Oh my, look how soaked you are. It’s even raining, so why insist on playing cricket? I don’t understand why men act like that.”

The two men who appeared completely drenched said they would go wash up and disappeared again. Thus, it was an hour later that Ebel learned about the materials of the Eberstain manor.

“The Eberstain family manor was built using a mixture of limestone, sandstone, and granite. Most of the wood used was oak.”

“Hmm.”

Victor also spoke quietly toward the contemplating Ebel.

“The same goes for the Bayern manor. They were built around the same time. However.”

“However…?”

“If there’s one difference, the Bayern manor later added fire-resistant materials imported from the Roman Empire to the inner walls of the second floor. We couldn’t cover everything, so we only used it in the bedrooms of family members and places where fire would be dangerous.”

This was the first time she was hearing this. Imported fire-resistant materials?

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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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