Chapter 17

* * *

The atmosphere in the courtyard froze.

Rachel's face turned pale, and she stiffened.

The servants were at a loss, and the soldiers...

"Has she gone mad?"

"I've heard all sorts of nonsense in my life, but this is something else."

"Mrs. Rachel was like that? It's giving me the creeps."

"Miss, are you alright?"

The last words were from Enzo.

He ran to me, who was being held by Heidi and Betty.

After carefully examining me, he looked at my father.

"She's not hurt."

At his words, Rachel flinched. She extended her trembling hand toward my father and hurriedly tried to explain.

"Sir, this, that is... If you hear me out, you'll understand..."

"Your mouth─"

Bang!

It felt like a mountain was pressing down on us.

Father had activated his aura.

The vases in every corner of the courtyard cracked with a creaking sound.

"─Shut it."

Rachel, the servants, and the soldiers all froze as if rooted to the ground.

Father slowly walked past Rachel and extended his hand toward me.

'Me, me? He wants me to hug him?'

What if I tear apart under the influence of that aura!

I remembered the monsters that were disintegrated by Father's aura on the Hadeks Mountain, and my heart pounded.

It was a calculated move, but I was terrified.

But it wouldn't do to avoid this situation.

I hesitantly hugged Father.

"Tell me in your own words. What happened?"

At this, Mrs. Rachel's face turned pale.

"Sir─"

"It's Mrs. Rachel. She bullied the maids. The maids. They were nice to me. Mrs. Rachel got angry."

"So?"

"I saved the maids. Because I'm the mistress. But then, Mrs. Rachel said bad things."

"..."

"She called me dirty blood!"

I stretched out my finger and pointed at Mrs. Rachel.

"..."

Mrs. Rachel was flustered, her mouth opening and closing.

The soldiers burst into laughter.

"She really is crazy."

This was said by the giant man, Mosko.

Enzo glared at him.

"To think that you don't appreciate the general's mercy in taking you in as a butler, considering your late husband's service, and dare to speak to the young lady like that."

"I, I... General, I─!"

A thin, model-like man chuckled.

"The general's eyes were different when he looked at you."

Mosko snorted.

"From what I remember, he had that look even when he was killing people on the battlefield."

The soldiers and officials murmured.

"Indeed, her mind is..."

"How dare she, without any sense of propriety..."

"It's giving me the creeps..."

Mrs. Rachel's face flushed with anger at the murmurs. She looked like she wanted to hide in a mouse hole.

Father said,

"I permit the opening of the punishment room."

"Sir─!"

"Teach her to respect my daughter deeply."

"Please, spare me! Please, sir! I'll beg! For the sake of my late husband... Sir! Sir!"

The maids dragged her away.

‘Oh...’

I clung to Father's neck and watched Mrs. Rachel, who was screaming at the top of her lungs.

The punishment room is a space opened when a servant has caused significant harm to the household.

The master does not participate; only the servants judge and punish.

‘She won't come out unscathed after all the whippings she's given the servants.’

It was karma.

I secretly waved at Mrs. Rachel, who was screaming in agony.

‘Goodbye!’

* * *

Night.

After dinner, I found a prepared medicine in my room.

"What's this?"

When I asked Heidi, she laughed and said,

"The master told me to prepare it. He seems to be worried that you were frightened by today's incident."

"..."

I stroked the packaging of the medicine.

‘Father is a good person, it seems. Maybe... Huh.’

What am I thinking!

I slapped my cheeks with both hands.

"Goodness, Miss! Why are you hitting your precious cheeks!"

"Rather, hit Sir Enzo!"

"Right!"

While the maids were fussing, I thought,

‘Trying to hope for family affection again. I almost became a fool with no learning ability.’

The moment you hope for unconditional love, you become a tail-wagging dog.

Didn't I experience this when I hoped that my mother and stepfather would love me as much as their biological daughter?

‘And during my illness...’

"Our Hye-min, how are you feeling? I feel like I made you suffer so much. It's all my fault."

I relied on my mother, who was hugging me and sobbing.

I also relied on my stepfather, who always took me to the hospital on weekends.

‘Maybe I was in their hearts.’

I thought that being sick wasn't always a bad thing.

"So, how many life insurance policies did you take out?"

"Let's talk about that in the car."

"A sick child is still a sick child, and important matters need to be discussed clearly. How much has our family's fortune declined since I started my business? We can't even send Se-eun to study abroad."

"It seems you took out quite a few. How thorough you are."

—Until I overheard their conversation.

I don't know how much I cried when I heard that.

‘Out of anger.’

After that, I canceled all the life insurance policies.

Naturally, my mother and stepfather were shocked.

"How can someone be so heartless!"

"Die with me? Really? Dying will make you feel better? The living must live!"

"Sister, you're really heartless."

I was so numb that their words didn't hurt me at all.

So I waved a wad of bills and said,

"Done talking? The door is that way."

—And I pushed their buttons.

Anyway, I don't believe the story that parents unconditionally love their children.

It was a realization born from experience.

‘I need to work hard to maintain a good relationship with Father.’

I clenched my fist, the size of a rice cake, and resolved.

"Miss."

Just then, Heidi spoke.

I looked at her and said, "Hmm?"

"Mrs. Rachel has been dismissed. It's all thanks to you. I'm really, really grateful."

"Yes, Miss! She embezzled a lot of money from the household funds. The general has made her pay back every last penny."

"She also suffered a lot in the punishment room, right?"

"She got what she deserved for hitting people so much."

I nodded at their words.

"Who will be the new butler now?"

"I don't know... Maybe the servant with the longest tenure will take over."

Betty shook her head.

"If it's Mr. Morris, he just left crying. All of Mrs. Rachel's cronies seem to have been dismissed."

"Then half of them will be gone."

"Half is better than nothing. It will get busy."

"Yes, it will."

But Heidi and Betty were smiling.

They said being busy was better than being idle.

‘Butler...’

It won't be easy to find a new one.

With so many servants being dismissed, the handover won't be smooth.

‘Unless they have considerable ability... Ah!’

I had a good idea.

I giggled as I looked at the garden.

* * *

The next day.

I came out to the garden early in the morning and looked around.

‘Not here?’

I was looking around when I saw an old man carrying a broom in the distance.

‘It's Michelan.’

I ran to him.

"Hi!"

"Hello, Miss."

Michelan greeted me with a kind smile.

"Grandpa, you're here. I'm so relieved!"

"Huh?"

"The servants. Many have left. You can't leave either."

Michelan's eyes widened slightly, but he laughed and said, "Thank you."

‘Does he know something?’

Michelan is not a formal servant of this province.

He's a temporary worker from outside.

He doesn't seem to be close to the servants, but does he already know what's happening in the mansion?

"Grandpa, do you know?"

When I asked, Michelan smiled and said,

"No, I haven't heard anything yet."

"But how do you know so many servants have left?"

"Look over there."

I turned to where Michelan was pointing.

There were drag marks on the floor.

"Judging by the size and shape, it looks like a suitcase was dragged."

"Uh-huh."

"Someone must have left yesterday. It's unlikely to be a noble. A servant wouldn't manage a noble's luggage like that. So it must have been a servant leaving..."

"Uh-huh."

"Since it wouldn't be good for the master to see such marks, they should have been removed quickly. But they're still here even after the sun has risen."

"..."

"That's why I thought the staff was short. Many servants have been dismissed."

I almost opened my mouth in surprise.

A detective, indeed.

This is something I only see in animated shows about shooting tranquilizer darts.

‘No wonder he was the favorite attendant of the late empress!’

With such quick perception, he could have outmaneuvered the empress dowager when she tried to find fault with the late empress.

‘He's the perfect talent for this province.’

Someone needed in times of chaos.

Loyal and highly capable.

A flawless candidate for the position of chief butler.

‘Should I hint at it?’

I looked at him with bright eyes.

"Grandpa, you'd make a great butler."

"Huh?"

"You know noble language. You're smart. You're handsome."

"Thank you for the kind words."

‘Not very interested in the butler position, it seems.’

But his appearance suggested he needed a job.

"Do you want to be a butler?"

"Miss, may I speak freely?"

"Sure."

"Poor people are not suitable. When they need money urgently, they tend to be greedy."

It seemed he couldn't work because of the risk of becoming greedy.

But I liked Michelan even more for it.

‘Straightforward, straightforward!’

Look at this beautiful loyalty.

With someone like him, I could leave the province with peace of mind.

I blinked like a child.

"Poor...?"

"It means poor."

"Why?"

"That's..."

Michelan's eyes clouded for a moment, but he soon wore his kind expression again.

"Sorry, Miss. I'm busy, so I must go now."

"Okay..."

"Have a good day."

He bowed perfectly and left.

I watched Michelan's back and thought.

He doesn't seem to dislike the butler position.

Instead of saying he likes or dislikes it, he advised against hiring a poor person.

‘Then I just need to remove his worries.’

I grinned and went straight to the inner castle, running to the dining room.

When I arrived at the dining room on the first floor, I saw Father eating with Enzo.

"Good morning."

As I greeted and entered, Enzo bowed.

"Good morning, Miss. You're up early."

I nodded and sat down. A servant hurried over.

"Shall I bring your meal?"

"..."

I stared at the servant. He said, "Um..." and looked at me.

"Yes. Bring it."

The servant quickly went to the kitchen.

‘He's incredibly polite.’

He was almost trembling.

He must be worried that he'll be dismissed like the others.

Now that I think about it, the servants I met in the morning all turned pale and ran to me.

"Good, good morning, Miss."

"Is there anything you need!"

It was worth dismissing Mrs. Rachel.

‘All I need is a good butler here.’

If it's Michelan, he can help recruit good staff to fill the gaps.

Father, who was reading the newspaper, glanced at me.

"Where have you been this morning?"

"In the garden."

"What for?"

The conversation was starting to go in the direction I wanted.

I pretended to be an innocent child and said,

"In the garden. There's a working grandpa."

But Father suddenly fell silent.

I blinked, and Enzo called, "General?"

Father frowned and said,

"I don't like the word 'grandpa.' I don't like the word 'duke' either."

"..."

"..."

It seems Father's dislike of fathers is stronger than his dislike of humans.

"Then, not grandpa. Michelan!"

"Michelan?"

"Yes! The old man in the garden is Michelan. He knows noble language. He's smart. And he's really good at greetings!"

Enzo said, "Greetings?" and I thought, 'This is it,' and stood up.

I placed one arm between my chest and stomach and stepped back.

"Like this!"

Enzo looked puzzled.

"What kind of greeting is that?"

As a soldier, Enzo might not know. I was about to answer when Father's eyes narrowed.

"It's a greeting for the nobility. Now, only old nobles and the royal family use it."

"How does a garden worker know such a greeting?"

"Michelan."

Yes, Michelan, the former attendant of the late empress.

‘Father will recognize him.’

Just then, my meal arrived, so I pretended to know nothing and picked up the spoon.

Father thought for a while.

Then he chuckled.

"If it's the real Michelan, it seems there's a gold mine in my castle."

"Huh?"

Enzo repeated, but I chuckled inside.

Right.

If it's Michelan, he's capable and has inside information about the royal palace.

If he becomes the butler of this castle, it's like having a versatile joker card in hand.

"You go to the garden and─"

But then it happened.

"Ugh."

A wave of nausea hit me.

I quickly covered my mouth, but something dripped through my fingers.

‘Blood...’

The liquid that soaked my clothes was bright red blood.

I hadn't been feeling well for days.

"Erilott?"

"Ah, I─"

I wanted to say something, but the world flipped.

"Erilott!"

I fell off the chair.

The last thing I saw was Father shouting.