~Chapter 37~
At that loud shout—
everything became silent.
Not only the servants,
even the Duchess looked stunned.
But the most shocked person—
was Cecilia.
At the same time,
Milena suddenly turned toward her.
She looked so angry—
her dark green eyes seemed to burn.
“Sister, don’t listen to that nonsense.”
Milena spoke angrily.
“Since the day we first met at Transie’s estate, I have never once disliked you.”
Cecilia’s teal eyes shook violently.
That’s right.
While everyone else only gave cheap curiosity
to the “fake daughter of the Lucert family”—
Milena was the only one
who approached her sincerely.
Through Milena,
she learned what a “friend” truly was.
She even owed her life to her.
…Why had she forgotten that until now?
“Milena… I…”
“I understand that you felt pressured because of me until now. So if something is hard for you, please tell me directly.”
Milena spoke again, still angry.
“I really hate it when you misunderstand me because of such nonsense!!”
“….”
Cecilia blinked blankly.
This was only the second time
she had seen Milena this angry.
The first time was—
‘The day she threw dirty water at Mrs. Howard.’
Thinking about it—
Milena only got truly angry
when it was about her.
That meant—
‘Does that mean… she takes our relationship seriously too?’
Slowly,
light returned to Cecilia’s eyes.
That light was—
hope.
“And about that claim that I ordered Sister Cecilia’s dress to be ruined…”
After calming down a little,
Milena turned to Mathilde.
Maybe because she was scared—
even though she was angry,
she tried to speak calmly.
“Is that true, Mathilde?”
“M-my lady…”
“Did I tell you to ruin Sister Cecilia’s dress?”
“….”
Mathilde bit her lip so hard it turned pale.
Milena continued gently,
“You can speak honestly. Do you remember the promise I made before?”
“….”
At those words,
Mrs. Howard’s face turned pale.
A promise?
Did they meet before?!
‘Don’t say anything nonsense. Got it?!’
Mrs. Howard glared at Mathilde secretly.
Under all that pressure,
Mathilde tightly grabbed her apron.
Her whole body trembled.
‘…I’m scared.’
The first thing that came to her mind—
was Mrs. Howard’s mocking voice.
“If not for me, who would take care of someone like you?”
It was true.
Until now,
no one had ever listened to her—
an orphan with nowhere to go.
But Milena was different.
“Hello, how was your day today?”
Since the first day they met,
Milena always checked on her.
Sometimes,
they shared snacks together.
When work became too much—
Milena helped her skillfully.
“Wow, my lady, you shouldn’t do that…!”
When Mathilde panicked and tried to stop her,
Milena just winked playfully
while cleaning the window.
“I’m really good at cleaning, right?”
Even her warm whisper—
“It’s a secret… I used to be a maid too.”
“…My lady.”
“I’m sorry. I want to change your work, but I’m not confirmed as the real daughter yet…”
Maybe that’s why—
at some point,
Mathilde started looking forward to the days Milena came.
In her cold life—
Milena was the first person
to treat her kindly.
And the words Milena always told her were—
“I want to listen carefully to what you say.”
Mathilde swallowed dryly.
Of course she was scared.
Mrs. Howard’s sharp gaze made her legs tremble.
…but still.
“L-Lady Milena did not order me.”
Her trembling voice came out.
‘That girl?!’
Mrs. Howard’s eyes widened.
Mathilde tightened her grip on her skirt and continued,
“The one who ordered me to ruin the dress… was Mrs. Howard.”
“That’s a lie!”
Mrs. Howard shouted sharply.
Mathilde flinched like she was struck.
“H-how could you do this to me? I treated you like my own daughter…”
Mrs. Howard looked at her with teary eyes,
then cried out painfully,
“Mathilde, why are you telling such lies?”
“I-it’s not a lie! I…”
“I cared for you like my own child. I know you must be afraid of something. But this kind of accusation is too much…”
She glanced at Milena.
That look was very effective—
as if she was afraid of Milena silencing her.
“It’s not too late. Lying to the Duchess is a bigger crime, understand?”
Mrs. Howard cleverly pulled the Duchess into this.
Mathilde became even more afraid,
while Milena looked shocked.
The Duchess looked confused,
glancing between the three.
‘Good.’
Mrs. Howard’s eyes shone.
Even if Mathilde spoke—
the Duchess would still trust her.
‘How dare you go against me?’
She glared at Mathilde.
‘After this, I’ll make sure to teach her a lesson.’
Just then—
“Nanny, how long are you going to keep bullying an innocent maid and Milena?”
A sharp voice cut in.
The person who broke the situation—
was—
“Y-Young Duke?!”
It was Elias.
The Duchess looked at her son in shock.
“Elias? What do you mean?”
“Y-Young Duke, what are you saying? Bullying…?”
Mrs. Howard tried to stop him.
But Elias looked straight at her.
“You were the one who ordered that maid to ruin Cecilia’s dress from the beginning, weren’t you?”
“….”
“….”
Everyone was shocked.
Elias continued coldly,
“Don’t try to deny it. There is someone who saw you giving the order.”
What?!
Mrs. Howard couldn’t believe it.
At the same time,
Elias remembered a conversation from a few days ago.
“I have something important to tell you, Young Duke.”
“What is it?”
“You told me to keep an eye on Mrs. Howard… and about that…”
What the butler said—
was shocking.
Mrs. Howard had ordered Mathilde
to ruin Cecilia’s dress.
And even told her
to blame it on Milena.
“Are you sure you heard correctly?”
Elias asked sharply.
“Did she really say that herself?”
But the butler only lowered his head seriously.
Only then—
Elias realized.
Mrs. Howard was truly trying to frame Milena.
