A fortune-telling princess

“Even though I said it was okay, she still brought it.”

Seeing the reactions of those people, Duke Sorpel clicked his tongue as if in annoyance. However, everyone present could see that the corner of his mouth was slightly raised.

“I envy you so much, my Duke.”

“This is why everyone thinks one must have a daughter, haha- I only have a son so I can’t have this much fun.”

“Even though I have a daughter, she has never made me a cup of tea, let alone a snack.”

“Same for our house.”

“Not all daughters are like Miss Camila.”

Listening to the words that everyone let out, Duke Sorpel slowly scooped up the sherbet and brought it to his mouth.

As usual, it tasted good today.

“This is amazing. Did she finally come to her senses after causing all that havoc?”

Stop!

At that time, a young vassal spoke in amazement, unable to take his eyes off the wine sorbet. Among the vassals, it was Viscount Ersha, the youngest.

“…….”

Duke Sorpel’s gaze turned to him.

“It looks like she was very sorry for the accident she caused at the party the other day. Seeing how she makes something like this and gives it to the Duke.”

Viscount Ersha failed to notice the people pointedly looking at Duke Sorpel’s increasingly chilly eyes.

“You.”

“Yes, my lord?”

“Didn’t you say you can’t drink wine?”

“Me, sire?”

“A dessert made with wine wouldn’t suit your taste.”

“No, I love wine greatly-…….”

“You’re right, you don’t like wine at all.”

When Viscount Ersha said no, he hadn’t said anything like that, Duke Sorpel sternly cut him off and gave the butler an order.

“I can’t ignore my daughter’s sincerity, so I’ll eat that. Bring it here.”

“Yes, Duke.”

“Oh, no…….”

Viscount Ersha couldn’t hide his bewildered expression as he saw his sherbet disappearing in front of his eyes in an instant.

At that moment, his gaze met Duke Sorpel’s, and he flinched.

It was only after seeing Duke Sorpel’s eyes as cold as ice that he realized it. He said he just did something very, very wrong.

‘…What did I do wrong?’

He tried asking for help from those around him, asking for an explanation of what had happened, but everyone just shook their head and turned away from him.

* * *

“What shall we make tomorrow?”

[There is a sauce that I’ve specially developed. I’m thinking of making a canapé with a little bit of that.]

Camila left the kitchen, shaking off the arm of the chef, Gelard, who was clinging to her and begging her to teach him the recipe.

‘Huh?’

Camila paused while talking with Ferrol, the ghost of the chef, about what to cook tomorrow. A familiar figure stood on one side of the hallway.

“What are you doing there?”

It was Ravi. She just wanted to pass by, but her eyes met his. What is he doing in the hallway alone at this late hour?

“…….”

He came close. Could it be that he was waiting for me?

“What are you doing?”

“What do you mean, what am I doing?”

Isn’t that what I should be saying? What are you doing, blocking the way and asking outrageous questions?

“What are you doing every night? Why are you doing something you hadn’t been doing all of a sudden?”

Seeing Ravi’s gaze glancing toward the kitchen, Camila only then understood what he was talking about.

“Making food? Why?”

At Camila’s question, Ravi’s eyebrows furrowed slightly.

“What are you hiding?”

“What am I hiding?”

“What are you doing all this all of a sudden?”

Watching Ravi ask the same question again, Camila clicked her tongue.

“None of your business.”

He sure likes to meddle in all sorts of ways.

Camila tried to walk right past him, but she couldn’t help but stop her steps again at his words that followed immediately.

“Do you think the duke will accept you as a family member if you act like that?”

Ravi’s voice was particularly rough. Should I say it was full of emotion? It wasn’t his usual cold look.

Have you been drinking? It doesn’t smell like alcohol?

“Do you think you can be recognized by that person just for something like that?”

Camila tilted her head as she looked at Ravi, who seemed pitiful and angry at her.

‘What’s your deal?’

What does it matter whether I make food for the Duke or not, whether or not I pick flowers and bring them to him?

‘Didn’t we originally live on our own lives?’

Such pointless meddling.

“They don’t approve of us.”

“…….”

Us?

‘You say us…….’

Camila didn’t say anything for a moment.

‘It looks like he’s talking to himself.’

Could it be that he, seeing Camila do her best to impress the Duke of Sorpel, saw a bit of himself too?

Such was the image of Ravi himself, who was always struggling to somehow catch the Duke’s eye.

“Don’t do anything stupid. It’s no use.”

“I know.”

“…You know?”

“Yeah, I know.”

Camila’s answer was very short and curt, to the point of embarrassing herself.

“I have no intention of becoming their family.”

“What?”

Family? That’s not important. There is only one reason she was doing this now.

“Because I don’t want to die.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I want to live.”

“What do you mean!”

“That’s all.”

“Ugh.”

With that said, Camila passed him by again.

She could feel Ravi’s gaze looking at her with confused eyes, but she just pretended not to know.

‘Yeah, that’s everything there is to it.’

Family?

‘Screw that.’

Chapter. I Have To Give Back What I Got

“The weather sure is nice today.”

[…….]

[…….]

“Would be perfect for a cup of coffee.”

[…….]

[…….]

“Shall we go for a walk?”

[…….]

[…….]

“…….”

…All right. I got it.

“Why? What is it? Why are you doing this all along? If you have something to say, do it quickly.”

Sitting in her chair by the window, enjoying her long-awaited relaxing time, Camila couldn’t help but look at the two ghosts staring at her, Ferrol and Darrin.

[What did you mean yesterday?]

“Yesterday?”

Camila asked back, pretending she didn’t know.

[You told that person yesterday that you wanted to live.]

[What does that mean?]

Having seemingly already heard the whole situation from Ferrol, Derrin carefully continued his words, having erased any signs of his usual characteristic smile.

[Are you sick by any chance?]

[You want to live. What does that mean?]

They’re talking about the conversation I had with Ravi last night. How can I explain this?

“Everyone living wants to stay alive. That’s all there is to it.”

Camila replied lightly, as if it was no big deal. You can’t tell them everything about your situation.

What if I said that I know the future and I’m doing all this just to survive?

‘Both of them might leave, thinking they can’t help a crazy bitch.’

Still receiving their questioning eyes, Camila looked out the window again.

While looking at the scenery outside the window in full bloom, something came to mind.

“I have a question for you too.”

[……? Ask anything.]

“The Flower Field Incident.”

Wouldn’t the people who wander around the duke’s house know about it?

[Flower garden? Ah……!]

* * *

“It is wide.”

Looking at the scale of the endless rose garden, Camila could feel the might of the Duke.

What kind of a person’s garden is this big?

“Is it here?”

[Yes, it is here.]

As the butler’s ghost Derrin answered, Camila stared at her own feet.

Before she was completely possessed by this place, there was a minor… no, there was a very upsetting incident.

A few months ago, Duke Sorpel had received a report in a hurry. It was a report that Camila was digging up and making a mess of the rose garden.

Duke Sorpel would click his tongue and call out to her. He didn’t even need to hear the reason. As always, it would have been because she couldn’t hold back her anger and went about destroying her surroundings. Still, he called her and asked her why she did that.

However, Camila would always keep her mouth shut in response to the Duke Sorpel’s questions. She wouldn’t even make eye contact.

‘Frustrating little brat!’

This incident was one of those things that happen every time in her repeated lives, and the result was always the same.

‘I get so angry every time I see it!’

I felt like going crazy.

The whole story was like this. Camila’s maid servant and several of her attendants, who hated her, had stolen one of her precious jewels. It was none other than a memento of her deceased mother.

The ladies-in-waiting who stole and hid the ring with a small red ruby in it took turns speaking as if playing a fun game.

‘I hid it in the rose garden over there, so find it.’

‘Oh? Are you going to hit us again?’

‘Have you already forgotten what the Duke said? He said he would lock you up in a room if you mess with us one more time or cause a commotion.’

‘Would the Duke believe the lady? Or would he believe us?’

‘Aren’t we really good at cry-acting now?’

‘It’s enough to say that we’ve never seen a ring like that before.’

‘No. It’s better if we tell him the lady had lost the ring and she’s taking out her anger on us.’

In the end, Camila had to search the rose garden alone to find her mother’s ring.

She searched and searched, forgetting that the rose thorns had turned her hands into a mess, but in the end, she got nothing.

After messing up the garden, she was summoned by the Duke Sorpel who heard the news, and the incident ended with Camila being scolded.

And through the help of her butler, the ghost Derrin, who watched the day’s events by her side, Camila was able to pinpoint where her maids had hidden her ring.

Dig!

Camila dug the ground with the small shovel she had brought with her.

And it wasn’t long before she was able to find her ring where Derrin had pointed out to her.

“…….”

Clutching her soiled ring, Camila looked at her own hand. There are still minor scars visible. It was a wound from being pricked and scratched by a rose thorn while rummaging through this place the other day.

“You guys did this.”

This is what you people had started first.

Camila’s eyes flashed as she secured her ring.