Chapter 52

"Kate, this is the dress you'll wear at the festival. Try it on."

"Yes, Ellie."

In the room where the dresses for Lady Delphine were lined up, Ellie and I were doing a fitting together.

"You don't need any alterations. It fits perfectly, as if 'they' chose it. Kate and Lady Delphine have the same build."

"Mike will bring a blonde wig, so from a distance, it should be hard to tell the difference."

"Your voice is a bit lower, but will it be okay? After announcing the start of the festival, there will be a speech from Her Royal Highness, the Crown Princess."

"Don't worry, Ellie. That's why I'm the shadow. Mimicking her voice and tone is part of my job."

"..."

Ellie's face clearly showed that she had seen something frightening.

"How is it?"

"I'm surprised. If I closed my eyes, I would have mistaken it for Lady Delphine. It's a different level from the previous shadow."

"I'm honored."

"I felt a chill."

"Thank you."

I noticed that the distance between Ellie and me was slightly greater than when we arrived, but it wasn't just my imagination.

(You really scared her,) I thought as I spoke to Ellie.

"How long have you been serving Lady Delphine?"

"Since she was ten years old. Perhaps because it was decided that she would marry Lord Conrad from birth, she was already very mature at ten."

"Ten years old... I see."

"Everything was expected of her, and she was required to behave like royalty from a young age. I imagine she never had a moment to rest. She endured such days to become the Lady Delphine she is today."

"You must have been a great support to her."

"Well, I'm not sure. But when I was poisoned, it was the first time I saw Lady Delphine lose her composure and cry."

"You're the one who tastes for poison, not the official taster?"

"Yes, I do for Lady Delphine. Fortunately, I didn't die. It was thanks to the poison tolerance training I had completed. Oh, by the way, from 9 PM to 2 AM, someone else will be on duty. You can sleep soundly."

"Thank you."

(I have a lot to investigate during that time.)

At 9 PM, I switched shifts with another maid and moved through the castle. The number of guards in the royal family's living area was surprisingly high, perhaps due to the attempted poisoning.

First, I went to the kitchen.

I didn't enter because the cooks were still there. I confirmed the route from the kitchen to the royal dining room where the food was served.

All the doors where someone could hide were visible to the guards. There was no place where I could secretly add poison without being noticed. Was it the same before the poisoning incident? I need to check with Mike.

During my break, Mike was waiting in the furniture storage room closest to the royal family's living area.

"I've been waiting for you, Victoria."

"Right away, I have a few things to ask Mike to investigate."

I asked Mike to look into a few things. Some of my requests made Mike raise an eyebrow, but I insisted he check them all.

"By the way, how is Nonna?"

"Yes, she's fine. She's currently being taken care of by Lady Brie at the Asher Earl's house."

"Lady Brie? Why?"

"I don't know the details."

"I see. Something must have happened. I hope she doesn't sneak into the castle."

Mike's eyes darted a bit, which was unusual for his usually expressionless face. Could Nonna have already sneaked into the castle? But if she was at the Earl's house, she hadn't been caught.

"I'll write a letter to Nonna. Can you deliver it to her? If she knows I'm safe, she won't do anything reckless."

"Sure."

Mike immediately handed me a notepad and pen, and I quickly wrote a short message on the table.

"To Nonna: I'm working in a safe place. When we get back home, let's train near the abandoned house. Please wait patiently until then. From Mom."

"Is that all?"

"Yes. This should get the message across. I'll be going now."

"Be careful. Here, this is what you asked for."

"Thanks."

I changed into the uniform of a lower-ranking maid that Mike had given me and headed to the dining room where the lower-ranking maids gathered. I had learned from the guards that this was the time when the maids had their dinner.

The dining room was crowded with loud laughter, chatter, and the clinking of dishes. The women, who usually worked in silence, were relaxed and speaking their minds freely.

I kept my head down as I moved forward and received a plate with soup, bread, and sliced boiled chicken with a brown sauce.

"The salt and vinegar are on the table. Help yourself. New here?"

"Yes, nice to meet you."

I sat down near a noisy group.

"Have you noticed there are more guards around lately? They keep staring, which makes it hard to relax."

"True, true. Even if you're not doing anything wrong, it makes you nervous."

"Hey, you there, pass the salt."

I hunched my shoulders and looked at her with a tense expression.

"Y-Yes, here you go."

"Thanks. You're new, right?"

"Yes, nice to meet you."

"Hmm? From the south? I can hear the accent."

"Yes, from the Duke's territory."

"Got it. Good luck."

"Thank you."

From that day on, I ate dinner in the lower-ranking maids' dining room every night. There were fewer upper-ranking maids, making it harder to blend in, and they didn't talk as openly.

Lower-ranking maids didn't interact with the Crown Princess, but rumors spread unexpectedly. Useful information could be hidden in seemingly trivial conversations.

I visited the dining room every night without any leads.

One night, more than two weeks after I started eating with the lower-ranking maids, I overheard a conversation.

"Hey, Marin, you had some fancy cosmetics. Did you buy them?"

"Oh, those? I just found empty bottles and refilled them with horse oil. But it's amazing that someone would throw away such fancy bottles. The castle really is something."

"Really, just horse oil? But you found a good thing. Where?"

"In the trash. I was collecting leaves to throw away, and the bottle was peeking out from under the leaves. The wind must have blown the top layer away."

"Wow. Lucky you. If you find more, can I have them?"

"Sure. If I find more, I'll give them to you."

I memorized the face of the lower-ranking maid who found the empty bottles and returned to my room that night.

The next day, during my break, I waited for her to come out of her room while adding oil to the lamps on her floor. No one paid attention to me on the ladder.

This task was usually done during the day, but people often overlooked someone on a ladder adding oil to the lamps.

The maid who found the empty bottles came out. I noted the location of her room and waited for all the maids to leave. They were supposed to eat at different times, so if I lingered, maids from other rooms would return.

I quickly opened the lock to her room, entered, and searched the drawers.

I found the glass bottle I was looking for right away. It was a small, thin, and clear bottle. Cheap glass usually had bubbles and wasn't this thin. I opened the lid and smelled the contents, which were indeed horse oil. I also checked the inside of the lid before putting the bottle back.

As I was about to leave, I heard footsteps and the sound of a key turning. They were back too soon!

"It's been busy tonight."

"It was crowded."

I dove under the bed before the door opened. This was a problem. If I was caught, it would cause a commotion. I had no choice but to stay hidden under the bed and hold my breath.

The two maids chatted while sitting on the bed, saying things like "I wanted to take my time" and "There were so many people waiting, I had to eat quickly."

I waited for about two hours until they started snoring lightly before leaving the room. I had to get back to my room and go to sleep quickly.

※...※...※

"Wow! Mom's handwriting! Thank you, Mike."

"Victoria was worried about you."

"Really? I'm being a good girl."

"Is that so?"

Mike knew that Nonna had tried to sneak into the castle to seek help from the former Countess Yolana. He resisted the urge to smile and nodded expressionlessly.

"Mike, are you free?"

"I'm not, but what is it?"

"Come watch me and Grandma play. It's fun."

"Hmm. I'll watch."

Despite being busy, Mike thought (I should observe this child as part of my job) and followed Nonna to the sunroom where Courtney was.

Courtney, who was sitting on the sofa, smiled gracefully when she saw Nonna and Mike enter.

"Oh, Nonna, you have a guest?"

"Yes, my friend."

When Nonna called Mike a friend, Mike glanced at her. Nonna was looking at Courtney with a happy face. (Well, it's fine,) Mike thought and greeted her warmly.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Mike, Nonna's friend."

Mike had been told by his boss, Edward, that (Mother's memory goes back and forth between the present and the past), but Courtney didn't seem that way at the moment.

"Grandma, I brought Mike to watch us play!"

"Hehe, that's fine."

"Okay, let's start!"

"Sure, go ahead."

Nonna brought a ball. It was a large ball made by wrapping a feather pillow in thin string, about twice the size of an adult's head.

"Here we go! Let's start with a cat!"

Nonna held the ball with both hands and threw it to Courtney in a mountain shape from below. Mike was startled, but Courtney, still sitting in her chair, caught the ball easily and threw it back to Nonna after a moment's thought. She threw it quite far from Nonna.

"Here it comes, Nonna, a rabbit!"

"Hmm, hmm, a frog!"

"Let's see, a grasshopper!"

"Cucumber!"

"Spinach!"

"How about it, Mike? Do you understand the rules?"

"You return something with a common point?"

"Exactly. This is a game I used to play with Mom a lot when I was little! The ball we used back then was about this size."

About the size of an apple.

Courtney deliberately threw the ball far from Nonna each time, but Nonna would dive to catch it, kick it up with her foot before it hit the ground, and catch it with her hand. Sometimes she would spin on the floor after catching it and stand up quickly.

(Interesting, the former Hagar's top agent raised her child playing such games,) Mike thought. Courtney spoke to him in a gentle voice.

"Before Nonna came, I didn't move much or use my brain. Playing with such an energetic child like Nonna is a good stimulus. Now I play with Nonna during the day and sleep well at night."

"That's great. Nonna, Lady Courtney, I have work to do, so I'll take my leave."

As Mike walked back to the castle, he smiled.

"I really think Victoria should be an instructor. Too bad, huh?"