Chapter 38 – On The Way Back To The Domus
In the carriage on the way back to Ashborne’s estate, Jade lay nearly flat against the cushioned seat, eyes closed, clearly unwilling to utter another word.
Josh was accustomed to this sight. Only after becoming Miss Jade’s apprentice had he realized how much the teacher struggled while preparing lessons. She would often scratch her head, mutter incomprehensive complaints under her breath, and then collapse onto her bed – or across her desk – for at least five minutes before straightening back and resuming her work.
It was a stack contrast to the way she drafted cake decorations on paper or adjusted recipes without even taking notes when she was in the bakehouse – swift, decisive, as though the idea flowed without resistance. From this, Josh had already concluded that one day she would resign from teaching at the ragged school, most likely at the end of the third semester she had planned.
Ashborne, however, had never seen her in such a state. Unaware of her fierce determination not to speak, he asked lightly, “Miss Jade, surely the storytelling was not so exhausting as to render you lifeless?”
“Extroverts…” Jade muttered.
Though her eyes remained shut, Ashborne could almost picture her rolling them. He struggled not to smile.
“It was a most agreeable activity,” he continued, watching her furrowed brow. “Many seemed to enjoy it greatly. Your suggestions to Mr. Raysmach were the very cherry atop the cake. The parlour was filled with joy and animation. I presume you, too, derived some enjoyment from it?”
“I enjoyed it. Partially,” Jade replied, her eyes still closed. “But my brain was stressed the entire time from guiding the game. So I definitely didn’t enjoy it the way you lot did.”
After a long moment of silence – during which she could feel an intense gaze from the side – she gave a weary sigh, understanding he would not permit her to lie there indefinitely without an explanation. With visible reluctance, she sat up and adopted the bare minimum posture of a responsible teacher. She lifted both hands into the air. “Now, imagine a spectrum–I mean, a scale. One end positive, one end negative. You can slide between the two. Still following?”
Holding her hands apart to indicate the opposite ends, she waited until Ashborne nodded.
“Right. Now, this end,” she said, wiggling her right hand, “is extrovert. That end, is introvert. An extrovert is someone like you. You like going out, being around people. You enjoy conversion. Staying indoors too long makes you restless. If you’re mentally tired from work, your way of relaxing is to go somewhere and talk to people. For others, I think they would prefer a clubhouse or somewhere like that. You, however, I’ve heard you wander through the parish chatting with your tenants. And apparently,” she glared at him, “your recent hobby is talking to me.”
Ashborne’s eyes widened slightly. “Remarkable. Your assessment is most precise. I confess, I do not frequent many gentlemen’s clubs. I find little pleasure in smoking or card-playing, and their topics rarely interest me. I prefer visiting my tenants – as you have observed – an agreeable means of relaxation, and a discreet way of ensuring my steward performs his duties.”
“Right,” Jade said, clearly too drained to analyse his explanation in detail. “Now, the other end. Introverts. They love staying indoors. They can be perfectly content without speaking for entire day. Not because they’re ill or antisocial,” she added quickly, over-explaning as usual. “They can talk just fine. They can even be very chatty with friends. But ideally, they’d grab a book, sit in a corner, and not interact with anyone. That’s relaxing. Doing their own thing quietly, without having to communicate.”
She paused to breathe. “And if they have to go out and mingle with lots of people, they feel exhausted. Like their energy’s been drained.” She gestured vaguely at herself. “Like me.”
Ashborne blinked as he processed this. “When you say ‘drained of energy’, do you mean you prefer to lie down and do nothing at all?”
“Yes.” Jade nodded, then – entirely unladylike – slumped back into the seat. She stretched out flat, hands folded over her abdomen, eyes closed once more, resembling a solemn corpse at repose. “Introverts like me can socialise perfectly well. But if given the choice, I’d rather not interact with people outside my comfort zone.”
Ashborne rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He had always known people like those Jade described, but this was the first time anyone had explained it with such clarity.
“And also,” Jade continued, her eyes too lazy to open, “in case you’re wondering – or interested in knowing – the main reason I dislike the idea of getting too close to your circle is that it feels troublesome. The second is that I dislike socialising with people I barely know and have no interest in knowing. I mean, I like having a friend like you. But you’d better not introduce me to your acquaintances. That sounds like trouble to me. Get it?”
“Ah, I understand perfectly now,” Ashborne nodded. He took a moment to digest her words, then let out a quiet chuckle. “Miss Jade, I have a joke to share with you. I trust you will tell no one?”
“I can promise that,” Jade said, opening one eye to peer at him. “But I can’t promise Josh and Mr. Trent will keep it secret, though.”
Mr. Trent, who had long appeared like a background fixture in the carriage, replied at once, “I have kept many of my Lord’s secrets and shall continue to do so, even beyond the end of my service.”
Hearing that, Josh raised his hand nervously. “I swear to the Light that I shall keep today’s conversation private until I am in my grave!”
Ashborne gave a small laugh. “I supposed it would not be a grand scandal even if it were to spread, but do keep it from others.”
“So, what is it?” Jade closed her eyes again, her wandering thoughts briefly wondering whether Mr. Rich Sponsor had made another stupid investment.
Ashborne studied her before saying, “Since we have become friends – which is, I admit, a rare statement – my dear sister suspects that you, Miss Jade, are attempting to join our family.”
“What? As your cook? Surely I won’t be a nanny or nurse.” That was the first thing that came to Jade’s mind. She had read enough serial stories – though she still got stuck on those verbs too fancy for her – to recognise how people in this era often spoke vaguely. So, she interpreted the statement “attempting to join a family” as “working for a noble household”.
However, a few seconds of silence with no response, another thought slipped into her mind, causing her to jolt uptight and glare at him with widened eyes. “Wait. Did you just say–? Dang! I do not want to marry you! How did she come to that conclusion? Did you explain that to your sister?”
“I did,” Ashborne replied with a shrug. “She remains unconvinced.”
“That’s it. You are not welcome for the entire winter. Go find somewhere else to play.” Jade rubbed her temple, visibly disturbed.
Before she could continue ranting about how absurd the notion was, the came to an abrupt halt. The sudden stop cut her off mid-sentence. She turned toward the window instinctively.
Noticing Jade’s curiosity, Ashborne tapped the roof lightly with his walking stick. The small hatch behind Josh and Mr. Trent slid open.
“Yes, my Lord?” The coachman called.
“What has happened? I heard some commotion,” Ashborne asked. The noise from outside was becoming increasingly audible.
“A carriage wheel has come loose and injured an elderly lady,” The coachman explained. “The vehicle is skewed and unable to proceed. It is blocking the centre of the bridge. The passengers appear to be the owners, and they are most displeased with the situation. It will take some time before the road is cleared, my Lord.”
Ashborne fell silent, contemplating how best to handle the situation.
“Huh,” Jade muttered. “And here I thought people wealthy enough to own a carriage would be the polite upper class who never lose their temper in public… Fine, my bias and prejudice again.”
“It is a one-horse light brougham, Miss Lysmere,” The coachman added helpfully.
Jade blinked and turned toward Ashborne and Mr. Trent. “What’s a brougham?”
She did not bother asking Josh. According to her understanding, carriages were like the luxury sports cars of her previous life – those with the interest or the wealth to indulge in them could list every specification, compare models year by year, and distinguish which was more luxurious at a mere glimpse. Most people, however, would simply classify them as “a fancy vehicle worth an apartment” and not bother investigating which cost more, since they could only afford a basic car. It was only natural that a commoner like Josh would simply differentiate between “the grand carriage Lord Ashborne arrived in” and “the fancy carriage used by another nobleman”. He wouldn’t know the difference between them; he would care more about the fare when renting a public hackney.
Ashborne gave a light chuckle before explaining what a light brougham was, even describing the distinctions between various types of carriages.
Jade listened with interest, but said frankly, “Good to gain extra knowledge. Though I sincerely doubt I’ll remember any of it after a while.”
“Why? You memorised the entire guest list Trent gave you this morning,” Ashborne tilted his head. His initial intention had merely been for her to recognise a few notable names, yet he had been genuinely surprised when his secretary informed him she had committed the whole list to memory. “It should be fairly easy for you to remember the differences between carriages.”
“That only works for short-term memory,” Jade shrugged. “If I don’t reinforce it in the following days, it’ll fade. I’ll retain only vague fragments… unless it’s something very unique, which I consider hard to forget.”
“And what would Miss Jade consider unique?” Ashborne asked.
Jade thought for a moment. “Mr. Romanolf Robert Raysmach. His initials are three Rs. That’s memorable. I probably won’t recall his full name after today, but I’ll always remember that I once assisted a Game Master whose name was 3Rs.”
Ashborne laughed outright. Josh, too, felt oddly reassured, having discovered yet another similarity between himself and his Sensei.
Meanwhile, Mr. Trent – quiet and efficient as ever – had already spoken with the coachman and arranged for their carriage to move aside.
“My Lord,” he reported, “it appears the dispute will take some time. They are summoning men to remove the damaged carriage. I fear Miss Jade and Mr. Brickville may miss their dinner.”
“Dinner? Oh, you mean supper.” Jade paused briefly, mentally adjusting the terminology.
For some historical reasons Jade had no desire to investigate, meal names differed between classes. Those with comfortable incomes still used “breakfast, lunch, dinner, supper”, much like in her previous life. But among poorer households – such as the domus where she lived – the pattern was “breakfast, dinner, supper”, with “dinner” referring to the midday meal and “supper” replacing what she would consider dinner.
After several months in the domus, she had nearly adapted to the local usage. Mr. Trent’s phrasing had momentarily confused her, as she had been anticipating her usual “supper” upon returning.
“Don’t worry,” Jade waved dismissively. “Josh and I had some refreshments at the Silver Acorn earlier. We can wait a while. But it does feel like wasted time just sitting here. I usually have something to work on after I finish recharging myself. Or at least something to read.”
“Hm.” Ashborne rubbed his chin, then slid open the window. “You there–yes, lad. What newspaper do you have?... Very well, give me that one. And that one as well.”
Without a word, Mr. Trent retrieved the small purse reserved for Ashborne’s daily expenses, opened his side of the window, paid the newsboys, and accepted two folded newspapers.
“Keep the change,” he said calmly.
“Thank you, good sir!” Jade heard the newsboy call out.
“Here. Something to read.” Ashborne tilted his head toward Jade. Mr. Trent handed the papers to her.
“Thanks–” Jade unfolded the top one and froze.
[Another Nobleman Falls for the Famous Opera Singer! Will She Be His Final Destination?]
A very sharp and bold headline indeed.
She slowly lifted her gaze and narrowed her eyes at Ashborne. “Seriously? A tabloid full of gossip, rumours, and scandals?”
Ashborne shrugged. “I have observed that many ladies find such things fascinating. I thought you might be interested.”
And Jade responded with a long, unimpressed eye roll.