Sickly? Husband’s Contractual Wife

Chapter 21

“Y-yes?”

“Let’s go.” I kindly extended my hand.

“Where? To the kitchen?”

“Yeah.”

Rona tilted her head curiously at my answer. “Why is Milady going there?”

“Let’s go and see Jean in person.”

Rona’s voice suddenly rose. “The chef?”

“Yeah, why?” I was puzzled by Rona’s reaction. Her face was filled with an unknown fear. ‘What’s wrong with her?’

“Can’t we do that?” I asked carefully as I saw her face turning pale, as though she was about to face a scary ghost.

“It is not like that, but…but…”

“But?”

“The chef doesn’t like it when someone goes into the kitchen. The last time I went there was when I made the snacks a long time ago. Since then, I never stepped a foot inside the kitchen.”

‘Just what did he say to her that makes her shivered like a squirrel meeting a badger?’

“Well, the chef must’ve had his own pride.”

In the Efret mansion, the kitchen was a special space. Even the butler was not allowed to come and go there as he pleased. It was because that special space was fully under the supervision of the chef.

The nobles, who valued wealth and power, took pride in serving the unique and rare dishes to the guests. Thus, the chef of a family was chosen carefully and meticulously, and only those with exceptional skill would be hired. Jean was a cook from a foreign country that was hired with a particularly high salary. Being acknowledged by Camilla, who had a picky taste in food, his cooking skill must be outstanding.

“Well, although his skill is excellent enough that even Madam acknowledges it… He’s a bit scary…”

He was born in a region famous for its gastronomy. It was well-known that the chefs that originated there were able to cook the dishes of about twenty countries. Thus, without exception, Jean also mastered the high-level skill to handle all kinds of precious ingredients such as seafood, meat, and vegetables.

“Even Mrs. Greta couldn’t enter the kitchen.”

“Greta, too?”

‘Isn’t Greta the shadow power of this mansion?’ Greta’s words were treated as Camilla’s words, so no one would dare to defy her, including me. I was a little scared of her. When she greeted me with such a stiff and strict face, I often lowered my head to her unknowingly.

‘That Greta can’t even enter the kitchen? Wow, this is interesting. It makes me want to go there more. I can’t believe that I’m going to go to such a forbidden place. What a cliché thing for a short-lived character in this novel.’

“Being able to stop Greta from entering, he is really powerful.”

“Yes, he is like someone who is crazy about cooking.” Rona nodded like a broken doll.

Since Jean spent most of the day in the kitchen, it was very hard to see his face anywhere else. Even though I ate the meals he prepared every day, I never had a chance to talk to him properly. I only had seen him taking a break from afar. Thinking so, I remembered his hairy face and large body that resembled a cow.

“Plus… the kitchen is not a suitable place for Milady to go.”

“Why?” ‘Isn’t the kitchen a place to cook since old times? Can’t I, the duchess, go there?’

“Because it’s not such a good place to go.”

‘Why is it not a good place when it is a place where the specifically hired chefs work?’ I recalled my memory about the kitchen of a five-star hotel where I worked briefly as a kitchen assistant in my previous life.

Tableware, cooking utensils, and shining countertops. They were all clean and perfectly managed. Of course, it was like a battlefield during busy times. Well, the kitchen of this mansion might be larger and more complicated since it was used to prepare food for all residents of this big mansion.

“Well, I know that that place is not that elegant…” I nodded as I looked at Rona, “But telling me not to go there makes me want to go even more.”

“What does that mean…”

Actually, my excuse sounded a bit strange but I decided to shake it off with a smile. In fact, I had a valid reason to go there. The chef of the Efret mansion. The person in charge of the food preparation and the one who had the easiest access to Amoide’s meals. Thus, he was one of the primary suspects of Amoide’s poisoning.

“Let’s go.”

At my gesture, Rona reluctantly led me to the kitchen.

*****

“Cough-cough… So…this’s the kitchen?” I coughed heavily as soon as I entered the kitchen. The mansion’s kitchen was so different from what I imagined.

“Yes, cough-cough…” Rona, who answered briefly, also coughed.

The kitchen was located underground. The more I walked down the stairs, the harder it was to breathe properly. The kitchen was full of thick smoke. Ventilation was absolutely important in the kitchen due to food preparation processes such as baking, steaming, frying. However, this kitchen seemed to neglect its importance. Being located underground with small windows, the ventilation here was very poor.

“Is it like this everywhere else, too?”

“Yes, I guess so- cough.”

The kitchen where the food was cooked was located in a remote area, as far as possible from the main building, to ensure that the smell and smoke from the food wouldn’t reach the residential mansion.

Moreover, as the duchess, there wouldn’t be any occasion that required me to cook on my own. Since I married Amoide, I never set a foot inside the kitchen. So, I didn’t even know what the kitchen would look like.

‘Even if it’s like that… I don’t expect the kitchen of a duke’s mansion to look like this…’ It was difficult to even find the entrance because smokes from the cooking process accumulated inside and hindered our sight. My nose was stuffy and my head felt dizzy.

“Who is it?” A loud voice belonging to a big man was heard from the thick smoke.

“Ahhh!” Rona screamed and hid behind me. Turning back, I saw something black appear through the smoke.

“Ahhh!” I started screaming as well.

A man, who was as big as a bear, suddenly appeared from the thick smoke. He stared at us alternately and slowly raised his hand. At that moment, something flashed in his hand.

“W-what’s that?”

He had a sharp knife in his hand. It seemed to be too large, hard, and sharp for a kitchen knife.

“Ahh! Ahhh!” Rona screamed and backed away. Actually, I was about to scream as well, but I missed the timing due to Rona’s scream.

“Milady, milady!”

I hugged Rona, who jumped in panic. The two eyes that glistened in the smoke were still watching us screaming and panicking.

“…Jean?” I called his name carefully. ‘I hope it’s Jean. It must be Jean. No, it should be Jean. Wait, isn’t it even scarier if it’s not Jean?”

“…Hick.”

“Who is it?” A low, deep voice was heard again. There was a hint of wariness in that voice.

“I- I’m…” ‘What should I say?’ My head went blank for a moment. ‘…The mistress of this mansion? Or the Duchess of Efret?’

“Milady is Master’s wife!” Rona, who was still in my arms, squealed. ‘Child, he got a knife.’ I want to say that but these words just stuck in my mouth.

“What did you say?” That person looked in disbelief at Rona’s words. It seemed that he thought she was lying to him.

“Jean, Rona is telling the truth.” I managed to free myself from Rona’s cling. ‘Phew, she almost strangled me.’ “I just want to come and look around.”

Jean looked suspiciously at me. I felt like he was gazing at me as if I’m the ingredient for today’s lunch instead of his mistress. That look sent shivers down my spine.

“…Is it true?”

Usually, the maids and servants were the ones responsible for delivering the meals to the main residence. The chef literally stayed in the kitchen all the time and only focused on the cooking process. So, it was understandable that he didn’t recognize me, the duchess, although we live in the same mansion.

“So, is there anything I can do to help Milady?” Looking at me, the duchess that suddenly appeared in the kitchen, Jean asked warily.

Well, if I was in his shoes, I would become wary, too. A duchess personally visiting the kitchen wasn’t a common occurrence. “Um… Actually, I came to see Jean.”

“Milady wants to see me?” His vigilance seemed to be at its peak. With a body as large as a bear and a kitchen knife in his hand, the aura he exuded was quite blood-curdling. I tried to smile when I saw him full of repellence.

“Jean…” I pointed at his right hand. “That knife…put it down first.”

“Ah…” Only then, Jean realized that he was still holding a heavy knife in his hand. He immediately placed it gently on the chopping board. The atmosphere instantly became less tense as soon as the knife was put down.

“Oh, by the way…” Jean immediately got to the point, “What brings Milady here?”

Only then, I remembered my purpose of visiting here. “Jean, actually…”

*****

“Hmm…” I read through the paper containing the details of Amoide’s diet for the past month. With a serious face, I checked all the meals he ate, including breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.

Jean stood beside me with a nervous look. As the chief in charge of Amoide’s meals, he seemed to be wondering if he had made a mistake. He looked like a scary bear, so I thought he would be angry and went into rage at my request. Ironically, he seemed to be quite wary of other people.

I combed through the information about Amoide’s diet brought by Jean. The diet was made up of the common foods served for bedridden patients.

“Jean, I think your cooking skill is superb.”

Easy-to-digest soup, bread and vegetables, et cetera. There was nothing wrong with Amoide’s diet.

Except for one thing.