Chapter 7
After hesitating for a long while, the butler continued.
“I’ve served His Grace for over twenty years, but this is the first time I’ve seen him smile since he was born.”
“……”
“Perhaps His Grace is afraid. The sight of someone who lost their love was so utterly wretched. If my words have burdened you, please forget them, Madam.”
“……”
“To me, your happiness is just as important as His Grace’s.”
Understanding the sincerity in the butler’s words, Helena offered a small smile.
“Thank you, Butler. I’m glad you’re by His Grace’s side.”
“Those are words far too kind for me, Madam.”
“By the way, the servants who worked here back then must all know this story.”
“No, only the head maid and I do.”
“That can’t be… Ah.”
“……”
“So something else happened after that.”
“Yes… But I’m afraid I can’t speak more on it. I’m sorry, Madam.”
“It’s alright. What I’ve heard already is more than enough.”
A heavy silence flowed between Helena and the butler.
It was a past so weighty she hadn’t dared to imagine it. Helena belatedly regretted asking the butler about Kavil’s childhood.
Pity and compassion for the stolen glimpses of Kavil’s past. Yet, separate from that, the lingering resentment and sense of injustice toward him stirred a tumult of emotions, confusing her heart.
Helena swallowed a sigh and rose from the sofa.
“Thank you for sharing such a difficult story, Butler.”
“Not at all, Madam.”
“But it might be best to pretend I didn’t hear today’s tale. That would be safer for you as well… Come to think of it, I should have asked His Grace directly. I wonder if I’ve put you in an awkward position unnecessarily.”
“No, Madam. Telling you was entirely my own choice. If His Grace punishes me later, it’s only right that I bear it all.”
At that moment, a knock sounded. Helena and the butler’s heads turned toward the door simultaneously.
“Madam, are you in there? It’s Marian.”
Once Helena gave permission, the door opened, and Marian entered. With a face full of discomfort, Marian spoke.
“Um, Madam…”
“What’s the matter?”
“Lady Bianca has arrived.”
“……”
The butler, standing beside Helena, widened his eyes in surprise. Bianca was Helena’s second older sister, and the half-sisters were not on good terms.
Helena’s lips hardened stiffly. Marian hesitated before continuing.
“I told her you couldn’t see her without an appointment, but…”
“She must have caused a scene. Right?”
Marian nodded slightly. Closing her eyes tightly against a faint headache before opening them, Helena suddenly scrutinized Marian’s face carefully.
Bianca was someone who treated others harshly. Helena couldn’t be certain that the slaps once directed only at her hadn’t turned toward Marian.
Confirming that, fortunately, Marian bore no injuries, Helena let out a small sigh and said,
“I suppose I need to go see my sister.”
Helena hurried her steps toward the annex garden. Even from afar, she could see maids streaming in with various desserts in hand.
As soon as she entered the garden entrance, a shrill voice pierced her ears.
“Hey! Does what I’m saying not sound like words to you? Eat it, quickly!”
“I-I’m sorry. P-Please forgive me just this once…”
“You’re making me repeat myself? Eat it, now! Or should I shove it in your mouth myself? Huh?”
At Bianca’s feet, amid scattered cookie crumbs, a maid lay prostrate. With a flushed, huffing face, Bianca lifted her teacup.
“A maid who doesn’t listen needs to be punished.”
The moment the tea was about to pour over the prostrate maid’s head. Thwack! Helena swiftly approached and struck down Bianca’s hand holding the teacup.
The tea that failed to spill on the maid’s head rolled across the ground along with the cup. At Helena’s signal, Marian quickly helped the prostrate maid up and hid her behind herself.
Blinking at the sudden intruder’s interference, Bianca slowly turned her head. Confirming it was Helena who had slapped her hand away, Bianca’s eyes narrowed.
“Well, if it isn’t our little youngest?”
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“What? Educating her, of course. A maid daring to talk back like that. Her manners are all wrong.”
“……”
“How can the servants’ education be this messed up? You need to manage them properly before outsiders catch on. This is special advice from your big sister.”
Bianca said haughtily, full of herself. Letting out a hollow laugh, Helena hardened her lips and stepped forward toward Bianca.
“Before you lecture on servants’ education, you should retrain yourself in etiquette first.”
“What?”
“A mere count’s daughter… daring to discuss the ducal household’s servants’ education in front of the duchess.”
“……”
“You must not have received proper etiquette training. Or are you just naturally lacking in common sense?”
Helena deliberately tilted her head slightly. Her gentle but ruthless critique twisted Bianca’s face in an instant.
“Hey, are you crazy? Can’t tell what you should and shouldn’t say?”
“You should be the one minding your words. The person before you isn’t your little sister, but the Duchess of Destrian.”
“……”
“If you don’t want to be dragged out by the knights and make the front page of the newspaper, watch your mouth from now on.”
With an incredulous expression, Bianca widened her eyes before bursting into loud laughter.
Helena gazed at Bianca, who laughed until tears welled up, with sunken eyes. As if she’d never laughed, Bianca glared at Helena with a straight face and said,
“You’ve grown up a lot, little one. Not long ago, you couldn’t even meet my eyes. They say the position makes the person, and you’re exactly that.”
“It’s the person who makes the position.”
“Same thing. Anyway, you’re still the same. Rudely interrupting your sister…”
“Marian.”
Helena cut off Bianca mid-sentence. Confirming the table piled high with desserts and the maid behind Marian, Helena said,
“Take that girl away and let her rest. And we won’t need more desserts, so you can stop bringing them.”
“Yes, Madam.”
“The conversation will end soon, so prepare the carriage in advance.”
“Understood, Madam.”
“Who said you could? I’m not leaving anytime soon.”
Bianca quickly sat in a chair and popped a macaron into her mouth. Helena looked down at her pitifully, swallowing a sigh, and sat across from her.
“Why are you here? Without notice.”
“Wow, that’s hurtful. Can’t a sister just visit? Why so interrogative?”
“……”
“Oh, look at that face. Afraid I’ll hit you? Father sent me. He’s really worried about you.”
“……”
“It’s been almost two years since you married, and no pregnancy news? Tell me honestly, just between us. Are you and the duke getting along? No, right? You’re just pretending?”
Helena slowly sipped her tea, gazing at Bianca with a cold stare.
“Neither the duke nor I are thinking of children yet… Oh, and tell Father: instead of worrying about the ducal heir, he should worry about you squandering all his money.”
It was then that the color drained from Bianca’s face. Her eyes shook wildly with panic and anxiety.
Stammering, Bianca asked,
“…H-How do you know that?”
“How? I saw the article about the business you bragged about investing in going bankrupt. It’ll reach Father’s ears soon, so you’d better handle it quickly.”
“……”
“I’ve said all I need to. I’ll be going.”
Leaving the bewildered, blinking Bianca behind, Helena rose from her seat. Just as she was about to instruct the knights to escort Bianca out.
“Does the duke know? That you’re defective!”
Helena halted at the voice from behind.
As Helena turned, the corner of Bianca’s mouth twisted upward. She intended to crush Helena, who dared threaten her without knowing her place, with all her might.
Barely suppressing the corners of her mouth that wanted to rise in excitement, Bianca sneered.
“He doesn’t know yet, right? Of course. If he did, he wouldn’t still be married to you.”
“……”
“You’d better watch your mouth in front of Father too. The day I tell him what you just said, you won’t even keep your sham duchess position.”
Bianca’s eyes, bundled with hostility, flashed sharply.
“Who would take a defective girl like you? If the duke divorces you, who’ll be left by your side? Only family. So think carefully. Who your allies are.”
Finishing her words, Bianca lifted her chin with a relieved expression.
Having said all she wanted, now she just needed to watch Helena’s eyes fill with hurt and fear. It was one of Bianca’s long-time pleasures.
Expecting Helena’s eyes to waver and distort, Bianca wore an anticipatory expression.
But contrary to Bianca’s prediction, Helena’s face was impassive. Her gaze was indifferent, as if looking at a pebble underfoot.
Then suddenly,
“Pfft.”
Helena elegantly covered her mouth and burst into laughter.
Her laughter, blooming like a flower bud, so endearing, hardened Bianca’s lips stiffly. Blinking in confusion, wondering if she’d misheard.
With a smile still lingering on her lips, Helena said,
“I’ve realized one thing for sure.”
“What?”
“That you’re definitely not on my side.”
“……”
“It’s unfortunate for you, but I won’t be divorcing the duke. And as for the defective talk, tell him or don’t—I don’t care. Do as you please.”
“What? You, you…”
At the unexpected reaction, Bianca opened her mouth with a flustered expression. Helena signaled the waiting knights.
“The conversation is over, so please escort Lady Florence out.”
“Yes, Madam.”
At Helena’s command, the knights lifted and restrained Bianca.
“What? Let go. I said let go! Hey, what do you think you’re doing! How dare you touch me?”
Helena stepped close to the huffing Bianca. The earlier laughter had vanished without a trace, her eyes coldly set.
In a firm, chilling voice, Helena whispered deliberately.
“Sister. This is the last time. If you lay a hand on my people once more, I’ll repay you dozens of times over. Even someone as foolish as you can understand that, right?”
“What? You crazy…”
“Take her out.”
“Yes, Madam.”
Even after being led out of the annex garden by the knights, Bianca’s thrashing screams echoed like reverberations for quite a while.
Releasing her tightly clenched fists, Helena collapsed into the chair as if crumbling. The maids, who had been waiting nearby, rushed over and dabbed her cold-sweat-dampened forehead with handkerchiefs.
“Madam, are you alright? Every time Lady Bianca comes, it’s always like this. It’s so frustrating, really.”
“I should have stood up to my sister like this long ago… I must have been too cowardly all this time.”
“Madam…”
“Marian. Is that maid from earlier okay? She must have been so frightened.”
“Yes, Madam. She’s fine, so don’t worry. More importantly, I’ve prepared bathwater, so you should head inside now.”
“Thank you, Marian. And everyone, you worked hard.”
“Not at all, Madam.”
As soon as she returned to her room, Helena immersed herself in the bathwater Marian had prepared.
Sinking deep into the tub, she hugged her knees. The events of the day flashed through her mind one by one.
Kavil breaking their lunch promise, his childhood, and Bianca’s visit.
It was a long while later when Helena emerged from the bathroom. Having stayed in the tub until her pale cheeks flushed pink, the maids hurried to her side.
Seated at the vanity and entrusting herself to the maids, Helena suddenly opened a drawer and pulled out a letter.
The unfolded letter contained unexpected contents.
