Chapter 3

To begin with, it was right after I had just ascended to the castle that I, who had been loyal to the royal family, fell in love with Ian, who seemed rather irresponsible.

I was still just a young maid, barely able to keep up with the head maid's instructions every day.

Ian, at that time, was also just a simple knight.

Then, one day, an incident occurred at a party held in the castle where a brooch worn by one of the attendees was stolen.

The brooch, adorned with a large gemstone, was easily imagined to be extremely valuable, even from my perspective.

The owner had been showing off the gemstone to everyone in the venue, so many people remembered it.

It was then that the enraged owner, turning bright red, pointed at me.

"This woman stole it!"

The venue was in an uproar.

This was before Julius had started his service.

My parents were not attending the party, and no one was there to stand up for me.

Why did the man suspect me?

I had a hunch.

It was because I had stopped one of the maids from being forcibly taken away by the man.

At parties, many guest rooms were prepared for guests to rest.

Many of these rooms were used not only for their intended purpose but also as places for lovers to be intimate. Furthermore, it was not uncommon for female servants to be mistreated by arrogant nobles.

I immediately understood the man's true intentions as a form of retaliation.

"N-no, I didn't do such a thing."

"onsense, you must have stolen it! If you didn't, prove it by taking off your clothes here and showing that you don't have it!"

I couldn't understand why I was being subjected to such cruelty.

The audience was in a commotion, but no one said a word to defend me.

I felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness, as if I were the only person in the world.

Just as I was about to give up and take off my clothes in a fit of desperation,

"Lord Rosmer, please refrain from such slanderous remarks."

The one who spoke out loudly was Ian, who at the time still had long bangs but no beard.

He was in charge of the party's security and was in the venue in his knight's uniform.

"What? A mere knight thinks he can speak to me like that!"

The man shouted, turning red.

The small man's head only reached Ian's chest, and from the outside, they looked like an adult and a child.

"Lord, do you know where we are? This is before His Majesty!"

At Ian's words, the man looked at the king, who was seated at the head of the table.

The atmosphere in the venue changed instantly.

I could feel the shift in attention from the suspicious glances at me to the people looking to the king for judgment.

The venue fell silent, and the king, after clearing his throat, spoke in a low voice.

"Bring that maid and Lord Rosmer to a separate room and search their belongings. If the maid has the gemstone, she will be punished according to the law. If she doesn't... you know what to do, right?"

The king said this, glaring at the man—Lord Rosmer.

He probably didn't expect this to happen. The man suddenly panicked.

"Your Majesty! Surely you don't mean to treat a mere maid and a marquis like me equally!?"

The man's face, which had been red, turned pale, and he started sweating profusely.

He must have known I didn't have the gemstone; it was evident from his attitude.

"What's the problem? Checking belongings is a quick process. Or is there a reason you can't?"

At the king's words, Lord Rosmer fell silent.

I was then proven innocent through the search, and the gemstone was found in Lord Rosmer's belongings.

The marquis had apparently considered hiding it somewhere, but the gemstone was too valuable to do so.

The marquis was forced into retirement for causing a disturbance at a party hosted by the king, and his title was passed to his son.

After that, I threw myself into my work to avoid being framed or underestimated.

I thought this was my way of showing loyalty to the king who had saved me, and at the same time, I felt ashamed of myself for being unable to say anything in such a situation.

It was more than a year later that I realized I had developed a crush on Ian, who had saved me from a dire situation.

However, it was impossible for me to make a move.

I was the daughter of a viscount, and Ian, to my surprise, was the son of a duke. Although not the heir, the difference in our social status was too great to even hope for a relationship.

Since then, I have remained stagnant.

Perhaps my clinging to the palace under the pretext of work is also due to this unrequited love.

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