Chapter 12
Rachel froze in surprise.
She was about to ask what was going on when Sian put the index finger of his other hand to his lips. “Shh.”
Holding her breath quietly, she could hear voices from outside.
“……It’s unacceptable!”
“Ah, ah! Ahhh! Mother…!”
It was Berengela and Theodore. Their voices grew louder as they walked down the corridor.
“Stop whining and come with me! Today, we will settle this once and for all!”
“I-I was truly wrong!”
“You married a mere commoner, just for that! And now look at this mess because of something so trivial!”
“Mother, she’s not just a commoner. I truly love Jane… ah!”
“Love? Don’t speak of love. How many arranged marriages overflow with ‘love,’ do you think? Do you imagine that all those people commit adultery as shamelessly as you? And at the Crown Prince’s birthday banquet, no less?”
It was refreshing to hear.
Berengela, strict and often scolding Rachel, felt reassuring in that moment, like an ally.
“What will you do now? The rumors have spread everywhere. You won’t be able to return to the mansion today!”
“Return? Why should I be ashamed? As long as I am confident, that’s enough… ah, ah!”
“…Count, please shut your mouth before I cut off your most important part.”
“M-Mother, please… not that…”
“Lead the way. I heard you arranged a separate lodging near the palace. You’ll have to stay there for now.”
“Y-Yes! I’ll escort you immediately! It’s a townhouse not far from here… surely you will like it too… ugh!”
Their voices gradually faded.
Rachel moved to relax and pull her hand away from her lips, but Sian didn’t move.
“…Not yet.”
She pricked up her ears but heard nothing.
Perhaps he could hear better than others because of his work as a guild informant?
Rachel blinked quietly in the stillness.
Sian stared into the distance, then glanced at Rachel, then at the ground. His finger, which had touched her lips, slowly moved away.
“…It’s safe now. We should move through a side path to avoid being seen.”
“You are really considerate in so many ways. I don’t know how to repay this kindness.”
“I’m only doing this because I feel guilty for putting you in a difficult situation. Don’t worry about it.”
Their eyes met, and Sian gave a small smile. Bending slightly, he offered Rachel the cufflinks.
“These were too valuable to give to someone like him.”
From the beginning.
Rachel quietly looked at the cufflinks and shook her head.
“You said you wanted them. I’ll give them to Your Highness. I don’t need them anymore.”
“Are you sure? According to guild rules, I cannot refund payment once received.”
“It’s fine.”
Sian stared at the cufflinks in his palm for a moment, then clenched his fist.
As Berengela predicted, from the moment the banquet ended, the area in front of the Ellosa mansion was buzzing. It wasn’t crowded, but eyes and rumors streamed from the alleys, through windows, and even passing carriages.
“The Count committed adultery?”
“At the Crown Prince’s birthday banquet, no less!”
“No wonder he wasn’t often home. He was up to this.”
“The Countess loved her husband dearly… she must feel terrible.”
Regardless, Rachel paid no mind and enjoyed a morning without Theodore or Berengela. Today, even Karl, who usually pestered her with questions, wasn’t around.
“Ta-da! Look, Graham! Mom has a present for you!”
Rachel held out a finely wrapped gift, and Graham’s eyes widened.
“Uh? What’s this? Is it my birthday today?”
“Not your birthday, but I wanted to give it to you!”
It was a gift prepared following Sian’s advice. Even if there was an intention behind it, it was absurd to give gifts only to someone you disliked while ignoring the one you loved!
Graham took the gift, long and thin, bigger than his torso.
“What is it? Can I open it now, Mom?”
“Of course!”
He carefully unwrapped it and saw what was inside, shouting with joy.
“Wow! A wooden practice sword? This is exactly what I wanted!”
He neatly folded the wrapping and placed it on the floor, then awkwardly swung the sword. Though his movements were clumsy, each swing made a whoosh sound through the air.
“This is fun! I’ll protect you with this now, Mom!”
“Do you like it?”
“Yes! I love it! So much!”
“Wait, Graham, be careful!”
“Ah!”
He swung it too enthusiastically, and the sword slipped from his hands, flying through the air. By chance, it hit a passing maid on the head.
Thwack!
“Ugh!”
Graham’s face turned pale. He quickly hid behind Rachel’s skirt and muttered,
“I-I’m sorry…”
“…It’s fine.”
Her expression said otherwise. The short, plump maid glared at Graham as if ready to devour him. Without Rachel, she would surely have scolded him severely.
“Keriah, are you okay?”
“Yes. Really, I’m fine.”
Keriah quickly stepped aside when Rachel spoke.
Rachel sighed deeply.
It was because of Marsha. The household staff had ignored Graham because the nanny had neglected him.
Karl had warned her, but it seemed pointless after all.
Graham, still hiding behind her skirt, whimpered.
“Mom, I’m sorry… I was wrong…”
“It’s okay. You didn’t do it on purpose. I’ll apologize to Keriah, but next time, watch your surroundings and only swing the sword when necessary, alright?”
“Yes! I’ll be careful. I’ll hold it with both hands!”
“Good boy, our Graham.”
“Ehehe. Mom, I’ll take the wrapping to that room!”
“Huh? The wrapping?”
“Because it’s from you!”
Graham picked up the wrapping from the floor and scurried away.
Once Graham left, Rachel followed Keriah outside to the garden.
The maids, including Keriah, had gathered near the entrance, gossiping about Graham and Rachel.
“Ah, it really hurt! Such a troublesome young master!”
“Ugh, looks like a bruise?”
“Good! That way we can bill them for medical costs.”
“I know a doctor. I’ll have them inflate the bill!”
Good grief.
Rachel, arms crossed, leaned casually on a stone railing.
The maids chatted obliviously to her presence.
“They say birds of a feather flock together. The family is all the same.”
“Right? The Ellosa household has no decent people. A cheating husband, a wife who let him cheat, and a childish son.”
A wife who let her husband cheat? How dare they.
The affair was Theodore’s doing. Rachel had done nothing wrong. She married as her parents arranged and lived faithfully.
Besides, Graham was just four years old—six in Korean age. Can you blame a child for being immature? Her intention to apologize properly and cover medical costs evaporated.
The maids giggled among themselves.
“Countess Rachel was pretty but foolish. No wonder. If someone followed such a silly woman, they wouldn’t even want to be intimate with her.”
“Exactly. The Countess was obsessed. I’d have cheated too.”
“Jake, who works in the barn, says he’d have hated living married to her too! He wouldn’t even notice his property slipping away while she’s the lady of the house! Hahaha!”
Rachel was about to scold them when suddenly a rider on a black horse crossed the garden and stopped at the entrance. The postal emblem was on the saddle.
The maids, following the rider’s eyes, spotted Rachel at the entrance and bowed in shock.
They exchanged worried glances, afraid Rachel might have overheard their gossip.
How absurd that they talked so loudly yet acted so cautious.
The rider dismounted and respectfully addressed Rachel.
“Good day. Are you Countess Ellosa?”
“Yes.”
Rachel showed the noble seal hanging at her waist, and the rider nodded.
“I’ve come to deliver a letter and package.”
“Who sent it?”
“Someone named Marsha.”
Ah, this coincided with the date Rachel had ordered compensation. Perfect timing to punish the maids.
The rider handed over the package tied behind the horse, along with a letter addressed to Rachel from Marsha.
[Enclosed is the compensation you requested. Had it not been for your kindness, I would have starved in the countryside with my family while preparing this money. I will live quietly and avoid being seen by you again.
–Marsha]
Rachel checked the letter and package, then nodded.
“Thank you. I’ll send a reply later.”
“Always at your service.”
The rider tipped his hat and remounted.
Rachel turned and placed the package on a nearby table. She untied the strings and pulled out the documents, smiling as she read them.
When Rachel smiled, the maids relaxed, dropping their tense shoulders.
Relaxing for what?
“Keriah.”
The maid who had glared at Graham stiffened in surprise.
“Yes, m-my lady?”
“You were hurt by Graham earlier, right? Here. For your medical expenses.”
Rachel tossed Marsha’s money pouch to Keriah.
Keriah’s face lit up in disbelief. The medical fee was 3 copper coins, but the pouch contained 30,000 copper, or 3 gold coins.
“Th-thank you, my lady!”
“No need to thank me.”
“……Pardon?”
“Because you’ll probably need all of it soon.”
“What do you mean…?”
Rachel smiled.
“The compensation you owe the Ellosa family is 450 gold coins.”
The maids, including Keriah, turned pale.
Generous Rachel paid all her staff 1 gold per month—the second highest salary after the palace. To demand 450 gold in compensation, which would take over 37 years to save without spending a single coin, was naturally shocking.
