The Secretary of the Northern Grand Duchess Has Run Away

Chapter 3: First Test (2)

The quiet lobby of the Luton mansion.

In one corner stood a row of men dressed in suits.

“……”

Most of the candidates were simply waiting for the Duke’s children to arrive.

However, among them, there was one person who alone kept glaring at me.

It was Tobang Arman, who had sneered at me when I stumbled into the lobby in tatters.

“You managed to get up, I see.”

A man with green eyes, his golden hair parted neatly in half with pomade.

He looked to be about my age and seemed friendly with the candidates beside him.

Well, it was no wonder.

He was the youngest son of a prominent knightly family in the Empire at the time.

Though he wasn’t a noble, he owned wealth and fame that rivaled theirs.

The complete opposite of my father, who had lost everything after his defeat in the final stages of the war.

“But what will you do now—? You’ve already lost points—.”

Even though he was also a secretary candidate, his necktie was from the same shop frequented by nobles.

Along with that, he wore an elegant suit and well-polished leather shoes.

That even such an affluent family would volunteer to serve as a secretary proved how powerful the Grand Duke of the North truly was.

“Do you think you can face the young masters today looking like that—?”

He pointed out my wretched attire with a mocking laugh.

As if he hadn’t been the one who had made me look like this in the first place.

“……”

Yet I didn’t give him any answer.

I only quietly retraced how I had ended up beaten by this cunning bastard.

“You should have just handed that over when I asked nicely.”

That.

He jerked his chin at my torn jacket.

Come to think of it, I felt something inside the inner pocket.

I slowly took it out.

Afterward, I confirmed that it was a woman’s necklace.

‘Right, it’s starting to come back to me now…’

This ruby necklace was something I had probably picked up while commuting from the dormitory to the mansion.

Just at a glance, it was an expensive-looking design.

In the past, I had treasured it alone before eventually pawning it at a junk shop.

“Anyway, we found it in our area. Don’t you think it makes more sense for us to keep it than you?”

The area he meant was the back gate of the mansion’s garden, which us secretaries used.

He and his close friends often sneaked there to smoke.

Over such a petty reason, he claimed ownership of the necklace I had picked up.

When I refused, he had tried to snatch it from me in the restroom.

“Shut up and face forward.”

But in this life as well, he would never get his hands on the necklace.

Now that I knew its true value, there was no way I would hand it over.

“Just don’t lose more points while you’re at it.”

At my calm reply, his eyes widened, as though he couldn’t believe what he’d heard.

“Right. So you think you didn’t get beaten enough back in the restroom…?”

He lifted the white cloth he had draped over his arm for the reception.

And at the moment he was about to lunge at me—

――――――.

He froze at the sound of the tightly closed main door opening.

Elegant footsteps echoed from beyond the threshold.

“……”

When the door opened, I first saw the hem of a pure white skirt.

Then came a noble jacket draped over a shirt, and a lavish brooch that symbolized the dignity of her house.

The first to arrive at the main residence was the Grand Duke of the North’s eldest daughter, Freya.

“Oh my.”

Her hair, which resembled her mother’s side, was an elegant silver.

Yet she had also inherited her father’s wise golden eyes.

“Faces I’ve never seen before… Are you perhaps Debier’s replacements?”

At the eldest daughter’s appearance, the secretary candidates’ faces brightened all at once.

‘It makes sense.’

Among the Grand Duke’s children, Freya was one of the very few with a gentle disposition.

When I had become the chief secretary in the past, she had even told me to just call her “Ray” comfortably.

“That is correct, Lady Freya.”

Because of this, all my peers immediately started acting to catch her attention.

Since Freya would surely be generous with points.

“I am Tobang Arman, in charge of today’s reception until noon.”

“I’m Windsor Confield…!”

The brown-haired candidate who always followed him chimed in right after.

Thanks to them, two men ended up courting a single lady at the same time.

“……!!”

Just moments ago, these same comrades had been snickering together, mocking me.

Now they glared daggers at each other as if they were mortal enemies.

“How curious.”

As if to mediate between them, Ray gave a mature smile.

Holding a briefcase with her, she looked back and forth between the two men.

“To think such fine gentlemen would both offer to help me…”

Tobang glared at Windsor as though he would kill him for this betrayal.

But soon enough, Freya’s warm aura washed over him, and he held his breath.

“Hm. What a delightful dilemma.”

The Grand Duke’s eldest daughter raised her lips into a gentle smile.

Then she began to slip off the jacket draped over her shoulders.

“Let’s do this, then.”

Ray handed the removed jacket to Tobang.

And she entrusted the briefcase she’d been carrying to Windsor.

In the end, she had managed to claim the help of two men at once.

“Is Father on the second floor?”

With her hands now free, Freya asked, and Tobang stepped forward first.

The venomous gaze he had shown me before was long gone.

He smiled tenderly, the way he must have treated women his age.

“Yes, I will guide you right away.”

“This way, please.”

The two young candidates led the Grand Duke’s daughter in bright voices.

The silver-haired lady quietly watched them for a moment, then softly spoke.

“Thank you.”

Freya followed them as they took the lead, slowly passing by the rest of the candidates.

She seemed curious about who would be coming in as Debier’s replacement, taking her time to learn each of our faces.

Sensing this, the remaining two candidates quickly introduced themselves, as if eager to leave an impression on her.

“It is an honor to meet you, Lady Freya. I am Lucun.”

“I am Brook, second son of the Lockheed family.”

Freya graciously acknowledged each of their introductions.

She met everyone’s eyes and responded with a gentle, benevolent smile.

Then, just as she was about to ascend the stairs after passing everyone—

She suddenly stopped before me, who alone stood in tatters unlike my well-groomed peers.

“Oh my, how did you end up hurt like that?”

The Grand Duke’s golden eyes stared fixedly at my split lip.

But I did not answer her question.

I only lowered my head lightly to hide my face.

It was an unspoken gesture to show that she shouldn’t let me disrupt her schedule.

After all, a secretary must never trouble their master’s mind.

“……”

Providing service in a way that feels both present and invisible at the same time—

That was one of the virtues my father used to say made a person ‘indispensable’ to the upper class.

“Ha… Don’t mind that fellow, my lady. He slipped in the restroom.”

Perhaps annoyed by Freya’s interest in me, Tobang answered in my stead.

However, his words soon returned to him as retribution.

“Oh dear… There must have been water on the floor. I’ll have to speak to Debier about it.”

“Ah… No, my lady, you shouldn’t trouble yourself with such a trivial matter…”

“We will tell him ourselves!”

Freya offered them a serene smile in response to their shameless lies.

Then, after giving me a brief nod of farewell, she calmly climbed the stairs.

“You have fine colleagues. They might be your rivals, yet here they are.”

“No matter if we are rivals, once we have entered the Luton family, I believe we are all one family.”

All the way up the stairs, the voices of the men and the Grand Duke’s daughter did not cease.

“Tobang, you are truly kind. Thanks to dependable colleagues like you both, the atmosphere must be very harmonious.”

“I am only grateful to hear you say so.”

After the two candidates went up the stairs with her—

“Tobang… To think he’d run out there so fast…”

“We should have been the ones standing out on the day when all the young masters and ladies gather…”

The other secretary candidates, each with a clean white cloth draped over their arms, stood perfectly straight.

They only stared intently at the main door, quietly resolving to seize the next opportunity.

Meanwhile, I watched them with cool eyes, as sharp as a fox’s.

They, at least, had been spared by not following after Freya.

Most lackeys feared a master with a temper the most.

But truly, the most frightening ruler was the one who never lost their smile, no matter what happened.

They would never show any sign of what you had done wrong to them.

They would only judge you coldly in their hearts.

11:40 a.m.

From far away, the sound of cold men’s shoes could be heard.

At this, everyone who had been resting with a leg propped up immediately stood in perfect posture.

“……”

Just from the footsteps alone, everyone knew exactly who this visitor was.

―――――.

When the door opened, the first thing I saw was a pair of polished brown shoes.

Then came a man with black hair brushed back from his forehead and eyes as fierce as a predator’s.

“……”

His mere appearance made it feel as if the temperature in the mansion had dropped.

Even the candidates who had been grumbling gulped hard all at once.

Edward Luton.

The Grand Duke’s second son and the businessman who controlled all weapons distribution in the Empire’s northern region.

He was the steadfast partner of Eric, the man who had driven me to take my own life.

“Is Father on the second floor.”

The voice of this thirty-year-old man carried the lion-like spirit that was the Luton family’s emblem.

Unlike Freya, he showed no interest whatsoever in the candidates before him.

He simply pursued his ambition in silence.

My peers shrank under the weight of his presence.

Indeed, to the candidates, Edward was a figure of fear.

Yet even in that atmosphere, one person stepped forward boldly.

“Yes, that is correct.”

Lucun Fern, the only one who hadn’t joined in beating me.

At nearly one meter ninety tall, he faced Edward’s equally imposing figure head-on.

“I am Lucun Fern, tasked today with attending to the young masters until noon.”

He must have been nervous, meeting the gaze of such a formidable lion of a man.

However, shining in his brown hair, his blue eyes glimmered—

With the same ambition I once held when I aimed for the chief secretary’s position.

“I see. It is about time Debier needed a successor.”

Edward absently stroked his sharp jawline.

Then, staring silently at the huge boy before him…

“Father is in his office, isn’t he.”

He brushed past Lucun as if he were invisible.

“Yes… If you permit me, I will guide you.”

His tone was modest and unintrusive—an appropriate choice of words for a secretary.

However—

“No need. It is my father’s house. Why would I require a guide.”

Lucun had chosen the wrong opponent.

“I will go alone.”

Edward, who was always mindful of his position in the succession race, never easily allowed anyone but his own people near him.

Approaching one of the strongest candidates for the Grand Duke’s succession had been a fine attempt, but Lucun had lacked preparation.

“Serves you right.”

One of Tobang’s friends, left alone in the center of the lobby, chuckled quietly at Lucun standing there by himself.

And so, the second chance slipped steadily farther away.

“……”

All the while, I had quietly closed my eyes alone.

And I simply waited in silence for the next guest, who had yet to arrive.

11:50 a.m.

It was nearly noon, but there was still no sign of the next heir’s footsteps.

The remaining candidates began to grow visibly anxious.

“Damn it… This means only the two most intimidating ones are left…”

“The eldest, Eric, is away. So really, it’s just one.”

Brook and Lucun’s expressions grew darker and darker.

It seemed the last of the siblings was someone everyone preferred to avoid.

“We don’t have a choice. I heard other distinguished guests are visiting the reception room today.”

“I know. It’s the only relief we have.”

As they said, today it wasn’t only the Grand Duke’s children who could evaluate us.

If the heirs refused to accept our service, like earlier—

We could always appeal to the other guests visiting the mansion.

Yet we all knew the truth.

If you aspired to the secretary’s position in the Luton family, the most important thing was to assist the household directly and be noticed.

Even so, Brook gave up his last chance.

Instead, he loitered near the corridor to the reception room, hoping a less imposing noble lady might appear.

Lucun sank into thought alone when his plan fell through.

And so, I became the only candidate still waiting in front of the main door.

“……”

I continued staring in a single direction.

Because the person I wished to meet was precisely the one everyone else avoided.

12 o’clock sharp.

In the distance, the dull thud of military boots echoed.

The steps were so rough that even those peeking around the reception room could hear them clearly.

“Don’t tell me… it’s her…?”

They say you can judge a person’s character by the sound of their footsteps.

And as if to prove it, the moment the door swung open—

――――――.

A pair of black military boots appeared, worn so long they were scuffed bare.

They were caked in dust and had not a trace of shine.

Above them came the sight of black stockings torn in places and a white uniform.

“She’s here… She’s really here…”

“Don’t look her in the eyes. Today of all days, it’s dangerous.”

All the other candidates immediately lowered their heads.

Everyone knew exactly who this woman was.

But I alone held my posture calmly.

And I simply watched her as she drew closer without hesitation.

Echina Luton.

The second daughter of the Black Lion family.

The only one among the Grand Duke’s children who had chosen the path of the knight—this twenty-one-year-old woman came into view.

But her presence was nothing like that of other young ladies who had just reached adulthood.

The wide-open door, the many students waiting in the mansion’s entry—

All of them were cadets from the academy who followed the Northern Grand Duchess’s daughter, Echina.

“Remain here at the entrance for a moment.”

From within her disheveled hair, golden eyes gleamed, just like her father’s.

Like a knight returned from the battlefield.