Summoned by a Pretend Villainess

25. A visit to the stablehouse

Mona was stomping her foot deliberately while walking behind the Grand Duke. Her lips were pouted, enough to hang a pot on them. Annoyance was clearly visible on her face. The very reason was the Grand Duke currently leading her to the stable house.

The irritating man shows up just when her conversation with her maid is getting more interesting. And abruptly reminded her of her forgotten worries about staying on his territory. The path to the stable went beyond the training grounds, and the garden where she was earlier was on the opposite side of it. So obviously, the Grand Duke really went out of his way just to annoy her.

When they passed the knights practicing and doing their own stuff, the joyful atmosphere on them fell silent at their sight. It was only the captain, Sir Lionel, sitting leisurely on the ground, who nodded in her direction.

The same thing happened whenever they would bump into a servant. Instead of acknowledging the presence of their master, they were left speechless and too stunned to bow their head. Every time it would happen, Mona couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"If a bad wind blows, your eyes will be crossed forever."

She snickered at the words. And stomped her foot harder. His people were to blame if that happened since they were all so exaggerated.

What's so wrong with seeing their master with her?

When her limbs got tired from her deliberate heavy steps, she stopped being sulky and walked normally instead. But her face remains as it was.

"I'm fine being a maidservant. I'm not very good at handling horses." She replied to him.

The Grand Duke looked back at her and smirked.

"You rode one just fine before."

"Riding them and taking care of them are completely different things."

"I don't think so." He looked ahead. The path they were now threading had become rough and dust-covered. Luckily, her former white clothes were changed into a cotton floral dress reaching just below her knees paired with her strapped knee-high boots. "You have to take care of the horse, so they'll let you ride them."

At a distance, she can already see their destination. A large building was divided into separate stalls for individual horses, whose perimeter was surrounded by fences and wires.

Inside were a few horses walking languidly and eating their ground from time to time, while some were just sitting and chewing their food on their stalls. There are also a few horse grooms carrying buckets of water and brush to bathe some of the horses.

When they reached the fence, a burly man in his early thirties came rushing and greeted the Grand Duke. The man was wearing just a plain brown shirt and plaid trousers tucked inside his boots.

"Good day, my lord! Are you here to check on Frost?" The man inquired cheerfully. He failed to notice that his master just brought his probable future colleague.

"Yes. But I also want you to meet someone, Ed."

The Grand Duke looked at her and grinned, which she just answered with a frown. The man named Ed finally glanced her way and was astonished. His jaw dropped at the sight of the infamous woman of the capital, standing beside his master. The horse grooms from afar suddenly halted at their work and listened to them.

"W-Wha-at..."

"This is Mona. I think she might be helping you tend the horses in the future, Ed. So, make sure to get along well." The Grand Duke replied to the stuttering reaction of the stable master.

"Please to meet you, sir." Mona bowed despite being reluctant. She guessed she had no choice but to adhere to the Grand Duke's command if she wanted to remain in his land. She glanced at the wide meadow beyond the building and thought that it wouldn't be that bad to run horses there frequently.