IWIAHC Chapter 7

When she opened the side door for her morning shift, the ghost was there, as always.

[Good morning, Lily.]

Ever since she'd shown him which side door she primarily used, the duke had taken to waiting for her there.

The first time—opening the door to find a translucent soul immediately before her—she'd been so startled she'd forgotten to breathe.

After several repetitions, however, she now opened the door mentally prepared for his presence.

"Did you pass the night peacefully?"

[Thanks to you.]

A full week had passed since Lily Dienta had become the duke's attendant, interpreter, conversational companion, and general manipulator of the duchy's governing information—quite the impressive promotion.

In contrast to the office, which had become unrecognizably bright, the situation regarding the duke remained grim. Neither the cardinal nor the chief physician had even noticed the duke's out-of-body condition.

[I wasn't expecting an easy solution.]

The duke spoke with composure, but his distress was obvious.

Four weeks had already passed since his collapse. Rumors circulated that the body on the bed had grown considerably weakened, accompanied by concerns that he might soon draw his last breath.

Since Duke Aiden Casimir had neither heir nor even a fiancée, the ducal castle would need to welcome a new master should that occur.

Wish-promises reduced to worthless paper, uncertain reemployment prospects, the unnerving fact of having spent her final moments with a dying man's soul...

Lily wielded her feather duster with vigor, hoping to dispel the disquieting thoughts.

Shortly after she finished cleaning, Wolfram arrived for work. After greeting the duke, he presented Lily with a covered silver tray.

Lily set aside her previous gloom and accepted it with obvious pleasure. When she lifted the lid, a tart with a gleaming black surface was revealed.

'This can't be. Chocolate. I've never even tasted it before!'

Filled with excitement, she transferred the contents to the dish she'd prepared in advance.

All of this was thanks to instructions the duke had given Wolfram through Lily on her first day as office attendant.

'Since I miss the sweetness I experienced when human, procure a different type of dessert daily for the office.'

The aristocratic waste of money was remarkably inventive—ordering daily preparations of food he couldn't even eat, simply because he wished to look at it.

However, when Wolfram actually brought the desserts, the ghost would glance at them once, declare himself satisfied, then urge Lily to eat them rather than let them go to waste.

Only then had she realized the desserts had been intended for her from the beginning.

These days, upon waking each morning, her first thought was anticipation of what treat Wolfram might bring. It would be far too wasteful to abandon such daily pleasures simply because work circumstances were proving frustrating!

Lily moved the dish to her desk with an eager expression. The ghost watched with satisfaction, then turned his head at the sound of Wolfram's voice.

"The information broker has sent correspondence declining to accept this case."

The bleak news made a mockery of her dessert-induced excitement.

[Even though I said I'd pay whatever price necessary?]

"Even though he said he'd pay whatever price necessary?"

They had established several signals for convenience. For instance, if Lily used informal speech with Wolfram, it meant she was conveying the duke's words without altering a single syllable.

"Yes. However, as an apology, he offered advice: beware of friends."

The duke's friend could only be Emperor Julius Scheiwartz. Given the duke's symptoms, this was clearly the work of heretics—but was the emperor involved as well?

Lily found it almost impossible to believe. Even before ordering Duke Casimir to eliminate the heretics, the emperor had been working to eradicate them.

She had another reason for disbelief. Unconsciously, she voiced her own opinion.

"But why would His Majesty? He and Your Grace are such close friends. They say Her Majesty the Empress grows jealous of your bond."

[On the surface.]

"It's not your concern."

A cold rebuke overlapped the duke's brief response. Wolfram continued without even glancing at her.

"Under these circumstances, we have no choice but to investigate using only personnel from within the household. Since this must proceed as quietly as possible, it will require considerable time, but..."

Ultimately, without significant progress and with only a promise to investigate further, they moved on to routine business.

Today's prepared documents weren't numerous. With luck, she'd only need to remain in the office through the morning and could enjoy an unusually long afternoon break outside the main building.

While the duke sat in his chair reading documents, Lily brewed tea and distributed it to Wolfram.

Sufficient time passed that he should have signaled completion of his reading, yet the duke remained silent.

Perhaps the content was complex. Lily had just set down her pen and was reaching for the dessert plate when—

[Lily, ask Wolfram about the progress on securing a Solmon language translator.]

Come to think of it, there was that matter.

"Excuse me, Lord Wolfram, His Grace is asking about the progress on securing a Solmon language translator."

Wolfram raised his head from where it had been buried in documents. He glanced briefly at Lily, then addressed the center of the desk.

"We have too few applicants, so we're waiting to see if more come forward."

[How many?]

"How many?"

Wolfram's gaze on her lasted even longer this time.

"One."

Even considering they weren't in the capital, it was far too few, just as Wolfram said.

Solmon. Beyond the sea to the east, the mysterious nation where the sun rises.

Despite the vast ocean lying between the continent and Solmon, individuals whose blood stirred at foreign cultures existed in every era, whether for scholarly or commercial purposes.

Through considerable effort, the two nations had maintained exchanges at intervals of several years, and knowledge of the foreign language and culture was even considered a mark of aristocratic refinement.

However, due to the current heretic problem, people were extremely reluctant to associate with anything Solmon-related. That was undoubtedly why there were so few applicants.

[I'd prefer to expedite this as much as possible.]

The duke murmured.

Lily searched her memory. There had been no news yet of capturing remnants of the Solmon Church. Then why was a translator already needed?

If one was absolutely necessary by any means, she knew someone worth recommending.

She asked carefully.

"Your Grace, why do you need a Solmon language translator?"

"It's not your concern."

Wolfram interjected with alacrity. He still found sharing information with Lily distasteful and preferred maintaining security whenever circumstances didn't absolutely require otherwise.

Since the duke and she moved as one body, he was essentially creating his own stress.

[You'll learn of it eventually anyway.]

See? Whether Wolfram wished it or not, the duke was on her side.

[I intend to commission interpretation of forbidden texts.]

"Forbidden texts?!"

[We managed to pilfer several volumes from the cult leader's possessions. Since we may never locate the sorcerer, I want to conduct our own research.]

Lily's mouth fell open at this staggering revelation. Wolfram, reading the situation from her expression, lamented.

"Your Grace, to tell a maid such things..."

[Wolfram has always been suspicious by nature.]

The ghost spoke without even glancing at Wolfram.

[But I trust you. We both have what we want from each other, and moreover, you're doing your utmost to help me.]

Accompanied by a pretty smile, these were the most comforting words imaginable. His contract-first principles remained consistent, which made him trustworthy.

However, Wolfram's expression went beyond what could be described with merely the word "suspicious." Beyond his look of dismay lay obvious calculation regarding what should be done about her now that she knew confidential information.

Lily clung desperately to her only ally.

"Absolutely! I want to handle everything only in ways that benefit Your Grace. Please continue trusting me. If it makes you uncomfortable, I won't concern myself with the translator matter any further."

When Lily retreated a step, Wolfram also ceased staring at her and addressed the duke.

"If there are no additional applicants by two days from now, I'll summon that one person."

[Do so.]

"Do so."

They returned to their respective work. However, Lily's head remained in turmoil.

Pilfering forbidden texts was surprising enough, but allowing an outsider to read them was absolutely unconscionable.

She wanted to ask aloud, "Is there some security measure in place? What if the translator harbors ulterior motives?"

But even to Lily, that seemed a question far overstepping her bounds.

The duke's kindness sometimes made her forget, but Lily was ultimately merely a maid. Wolfram's hostility toward her involvement was perfectly natural.

To begin with, the duke had only asked her to help him communicate with the outside world, not to solve his problems.

Therefore, she shouldn't become so invested in the entire process of the duke returning to his body. No matter how much she wanted to add her thoughts...

[Your expression doesn't look good. What's wrong?]

Since the duke asked first, speaking now was guilt-free!