Private Tutor to the Duke's Daughter: Volume 6 (eBook)

Riku Nanano (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023
250 Seiten
J-Novel Club (Verlag)
978-1-7183-8608-2 (ISBN)

Infos

Lydia and Allen have always been a team. They can overcome any challenge together-so what happens when they're apart? Allen has gone missing in the midst of a bloody insurrection. Witnesses to the enterprising tutor's last stand fear the worst, while the plight of his beastfolk friends and family in the east grows more desperate by the day. Lydia wants nothing more than to rush to her partner's aid, but with rebels occupying the capital and the opportunistic League of Principalities encroaching on her family's lands, the Lady of the Sword will need to do the one thing she's never been good at-wait. Her sister Lynne watches with growing concern as uncertainty takes its toll on her. What lines will Lydia dare to cross in her desperation to end this latest Southern War?

Textauszug

Prologue

“Just a little farther, Miss Fosse,” I said. “We’ll pause for a short rest at the top of this hill, so please be patient a little while longer!”

“O-Of course. I’m sorry, Emma. Oh, if only I had more stamina,” Miss Felicia Fosse replied from behind me, her head drooping with shame. The head clerk of Allen & Co.—a joint business venture by the Ducal Houses of Leinster and Howard—was simply charming.

“Rebellion by reactionary nobles under Duke Algren!” read the unprecedented, urgent report that I—Emma, the Leinster Maid Corps’s number four—had received in the gray of this morning. Under my command, the maids stationed at Allen & Co. had repelled the rebel assault on our firm. At present, we were climbing a hill on the southern edge of the royal capital, guarding Miss Fosse as we fled the chaos of the city.

It had been a near thing. I shuddered to think what would have become of us if not for Mr. Allen’s letter asking us to keep an eye on the forces conducting maneuvers near the capital, just to be safe.

We needed to make good our escape and report to the Ducal House of Leinster in the southern capital as soon as possible. But Miss Fosse was rather frail, so, as leader of the Society for Covertly Smoothing the Way for Miss Fosse’s Romance, I was carrying her piggyback.

Ah, the perks of my job.

On the crown of the hill, I set Miss Fosse down on a small boulder. “Time for a breather,” I told the twenty-odd other maids. “Remain vigilant. That goes for those of you in service to the Howards as well.”

“Yes, ma’am!” they responded in unison and fell into a defensive formation around the visibly exhausted Miss Fosse. That done, one maid after another began to wait on her.

“Have some water, Miss Fosse!”

“Allow me to wipe away that sweat.”

“Do your feet hurt?”

“I’ll carry you next!”

“Your spectacles are dirty. Let me clean them.”

“I...I’m fine!” Miss Fosse cried, her face, which had been pale with fatigue, blushing bright red. “Jeez! I w-wish you wouldn’t baby me so much!” Her long pale-chestnut hair shook as she balled up her little fists and snapped at the maids, but their smiles remained unperturbed.

Oh, she looks simply precious. I could feel my morale surging. I swear I’ll deliver her safely to the southern capital!

A fair-skinned beauty with long white hair and gold-and-silver eyes—the Leinster Maid Corps’s number eight, Cordelia—approached me and whispered in my ear, “Emma, I got in touch with the Leinster mansion’s staff. It sounds like they all made it out in one piece.” We had joined up at the same time and spoke freely with each other.

“Understood. Thank goodness.” I breathed a sigh of relief.

Now, if we can only get clear of the city ourselves—

“Hm? Th-The palace!” Miss Fosse shrieked.

We all stared down at the same sight. Ribbons of smoke were rising from the royal palace. Broken spires attested to fierce fighting, which was apparently still ongoing. Intercepted magical communications revealed that the forces flooding into the palace included the cream of the rebel crop—the Violet Order, under the command of the grand knight Haag Harclay. The royal guard was formidable and the royal family’s personal bodyguards renowned, but they were vastly outnumbered. It was only a matter of time until the palace fell.

“Emma, ma’am, we’re being pursued,” Bella, a Leinster maid with short brown hair, reported. She had been dispatching little magical birds while standing guard. Taxing her mana since early morning had left her visibly fatigued—controlling magical creatures for extended periods of time was a grueling task, even for an expert sorceress. Not everyone could be Mr. Allen.

“How many soldiers, and how are they equipped?” I asked.

“About fifty light cavalry. No infantry or sorcerers. I suspect they’re organized for mobility.”

“Hm... Bella, recall your birds. Keeping them out any longer will be bad for your health.”

“No! I...I’m fine! I can still keep going!” the girl protested. At fifteen, she was the youngest maid here.

“None of that. Mr. Allen charged me to make all of your safety my top priority, and I don’t have the courage to take a scolding from him.”

After a tense silence, Bella finally said, “Yes, ma’am.”

“You’ve done well. Leave the rest to us.” I gave her a pat on the shoulder. We would never have gotten clear of the city so easily without her help. Then, I turned back to the young head clerk, who looked perfectly darling even when she was frantically gulping water from a flask. “Miss Fosse, there seem to be pursuers on our track. Hurry ahead with the rest of the maids; I’ll guard our rear. Cordelia, I temporarily transfer command to you.”

“Understood.”

“Emma?!” Miss Fosse’s eyes widened behind her glasses as she rose to her feet. “I...I won’t let you put yourself in danger like that!”

“I appreciate your concern, but I’ll be fine,” I said. “Despite appearances, I’m—”

“Have no fear, Miss Fosse,” a voice suddenly interrupted. “I’ll join her in the rear guard.”

“Sally?!” Miss Fosse exclaimed. “B-But...”

The nonchalant offer came from a maid in service to the Ducal House of Howard. Her blonde hair stopped at her ears, she wore spectacles, and she had a large bosom despite her petite figure. Her expression seemed unreadable at first glance, but she was far too stubborn to dissuade quickly.

There’s no sense fighting her.

“This is our best course of action now,” I said, clasping the lovely Miss Fosse’s hands. “Don’t worry on our account. We’ll catch up to you in no time.”

Her limpid eyes betrayed inner turmoil. I was a houseless immigrant from the southern isles, dark of hair and skin, yet this kind young lady harbored no prejudices against me. At last, she nodded. “I understand. But promise me that you’ll both catch up to us soon. I’m asking you as a friend, not as Allen & Co.’s head clerk!”

“We promise,” Sally and I answered in unison, smiling. Miss Fosse’s kindness warmed my heart.

“All right, then. Get ready, everyone!” I commanded the maids.

“Always stay on the move,” Sally added.

“Yes, ma’am!”

“Huh? What? Whaaat?! H-Hang on! Emma?! Sally?!” As four maids swiftly hoisted Miss Fosse onto their shoulders and broke into a run alongside the others, she looked back and shouted, “Please...Please catch up to us soon! We’ll be waiting for you up ahead! I promise we will!”

She truly is a gentle soul.

We nodded and waved to her.

Once Miss Fosse and the others were out of sight, I turned to the deadpan, bespectacled maid beside me and said, “What were you thinking, Sally? I hate to lighten Miss Fosse’s guard.”

“What did you expect?” she replied. “I can’t let you be the only one to show off.”

“Is that what they taught you in the Howard Maid Corps?”

“I believe his letter read, ‘If, by any chance, the worst should happen in the royal capital, I positively forbid you to act alone. That goes for you too, Emma, Sally.’”

I groaned. She had me there. Mr. Allen’s letters from the eastern capital had included several directions for us that Miss Fosse wasn’t to know about.

Sally appeared emotionless. She was merely toying with the arms of her spectacles. But I could tell—she was smirking! What an unpleasant person!

I sighed. “I always suspected that he was overprotective, but now I’m certain of it. And not even we are exempt.”

“I concur,” Sally said, folding her arms and nodding. “But I’m glad of it. I doubt there are many maids feebler than me, yet gentlemen all act frightened of me for some reason.” Her expression remained impassive, although she gave a quizzical tilt of her head. Was the way her posture emphasized her chest meant to antagonize me?

“As to you being feeble, I beg to differ,” I responded, feeling vexed after a glance at my own bosom, “but I appreciate his concern as much as you do. Especially as no one would ever mistake me for a native of this kingdom.”

“Your hair and skin are lovely,” Sally said, scrutinizing me with an expression that seemed to ask why I had bothered stating anything so obvious. She was always truthful at times like this.

“Thank you,” I responded, slightly embarrassed. “As a matter of fact, Mr. Allen complimented me on them just the other day.”

“Why, Emma, don’t tell me you’ve fallen for him.” The inexpressive young woman made a show of covering her mouth in surprise. “Oh my.”

“Don’t you ‘Oh my’ me!” I snapped. “Or at least try to put some feeling into it! I merely thought that Miss Fosse certainly has her work cut out for her. After all, she’ll need to contend with not only Lady Lydia, but also Lady Stella and— Is something the matter?”

Sally was staring northward into the distance with an inscrutable look on her face. “My pigheaded elder brother always fancied Lady Stella,” she said, adjusting her glasses. “And I hear he’s been made...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 19.1.2023
• Reihe/Serie: Private Tutor to the Duke's Daughter
• Reihe/Serie: Private Tutor to the Duke's Daughter
• Illustrationen: Cura
• Übersetzer: William Varteresian
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• Schlagworte: Academy • action • aristocrats • Comedy • Harem • Light Novel • Magic
• ISBN-10: 1-7183-8608-7 / 1718386087
• ISBN-13: 978-1-7183-8608-2 / 9781718386082