Chapter 29
“What do you mean… misunderstanding?”
“I-I… you looked at me harshly, and then…”
Mrs. Howard hesitated for a long time before finishing in a pitiful voice.
“You threw dirty water on me…”
“Milena did?!”
The Duchess raised her voice in shock.
It was true that Milena had done it.
But there was no proof—she was never confirmed as the culprit.
Even so, Mrs. Howard did not hesitate to blame Milena.
“I was worried that maybe… because of that incident, she feels uncomfortable around me.”
“T-that can’t be…”
“I didn’t tell you before because I didn’t want to trouble you. But I was afraid our relationship would keep getting worse…”
Mrs. Howard trailed off sadly.
But the Duchess still looked doubtful.
“I understand your concern. But did Milena really do such a thing?”
“…Pardon?”
“I don’t remember hearing any report about that from the baron’s estate.”
The Duchess frowned slightly.
“Milena was a maid there. If there had been a problem between her and you, I would have heard about it.”
How unnecessarily sharp.
Mrs. Howard clicked her tongue inwardly but kept a sad expression.
“…I asked them to keep it a secret.”
“You did?”
“Yes. Lady Cecilia was there as well, and the Baroness is your close friend…”
Mrs. Howard lowered her eyes as if she felt guilty.
“I was worried it might become a bigger issue, so I hid it. I’m sorry if that caused discomfort.”
The Duchess’s expression softened a little.
Mrs. Howard did not miss the chance and continued.
“I only want to serve both young ladies well. If there is a misunderstanding, I want to clear it.”
“Yes, of course. I know your sincerity.”
The Duchess nodded seriously.
“Don’t worry too much. I’ll talk to her myself, alright?”
“Madam…!”
Mrs. Howard grabbed onto her emotionally.
“You are the only one I have. Thank you so much, Madam.”
“Oh my, don’t say such things. I know how loyal you are.”
The Duchess smiled warmly.
There was not a trace of doubt in her gentle smile.
“Yes… thanks to you, I feel much more at ease…”
Mrs. Howard kept bowing her head as she spoke.
Because of that—
the Duchess did not see the sly smile on Mrs. Howard’s lips.
I lay stretched out on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
‘Ugh… I’m dying…’
Seriously, I only changed a few dresses—
I didn’t think it would be this exhausting.
But soon, a small smile formed on my lips.
‘Still… today wasn’t that bad.’
First of all, it was encouraging that Cecilia and the Duchess had a somewhat normal mother-daughter conversation.
Well… the Duchess was still a bit careless at times.
‘Did she really have to bring up the parentage test right there?’
I pouted for a moment, then thought back to Cecilia’s reactions today.
Her serious face while choosing my accessories.
The way she finally laughed when I teased her with the ribbon.
And when I called her “unni”…
‘She didn’t look like she hated it.’
Overall, today was at least an 80 out of 100.
‘Good. I just need to keep getting closer to her like this!’
I clenched my fists with determination.
But then, I frowned slightly.
There was one thing bothering me.
‘The maids’ attitude.’
Just yesterday, they were friendly toward me.
But today, they were clearly avoiding me.
Such a sudden change.
Could it be Mrs. Howard’s influence?
I didn’t think otherwise.
‘Then I need to create a safety net too.’
I quickly got up from the bed.
And that “safety net” was—
A quiet storage room at the edge of the Lucerte townhouse.
Inside, where even sunlight barely reached, a maid was cleaning alone.
After wiping the floor for a long time, she finally straightened her back.
“Ah… my back…”
Just as she groaned and rubbed it—
“Hello?”
A bright voice greeted her.
“Eek!”
Startled, the maid quickly turned around.
Her face stiffened immediately.
Because the person in front of her was—
Milena, the newly arrived young lady of the Ducal House.
The rumored “real daughter.”
“G-greetings, Lady Milena.”
The maid quickly lowered her head.
Milena smiled warmly.
“Nice to meet you. I’ve been here for a few days, but… I think this is my first time seeing you?”
“……”
Fear filled the young maid’s face.
It couldn’t be helped.
Mrs. Howard had already warned her not to interact with Milena.
“What’s your name?”
“M-my name is Mathilde.”
The maid answered, trying to stay calm.
But her body betrayed her.
She kept nervously twisting her apron.
Milena watched her for a moment with soft eyes, then casually looked around.
“You’re cleaning alone? That must be hard.”
“N-no, it’s not hard.”
“Really?”
Milena narrowed her eyes slightly.
“To clean a place this big alone, you’d have to work until evening. Are you really not tired?”
“……”
“Normally, at least two people would be assigned, right?”
Mathilde suddenly felt emotional.
Because normally, she wouldn’t be alone.
But—
“You can handle this much, right?”
The other maids had pushed all the work onto her.
“Don’t cause trouble. Understood?”
Mrs. Howard always pressured her with cold eyes.
All of this started because she had simply spoken to Cecilia once.
‘I should say I’m not tired…’
Mathilde swallowed nervously.
If she said she was tired—
who knew what punishment would come?
What if she got thrown out and had to beg on the streets again…
But she couldn’t open her mouth.
Just as she stood there anxiously—
“L-Lady?!”
Her eyes widened in shock.
Milena had suddenly grabbed both her hands.
“It’s okay if you don’t want to say it. But, Mathilde.”
Milena’s clear green eyes looked straight into hers.
Then she spoke firmly.
“I want to listen to what you have to say.”
“……”
At that moment—
a cold voice echoed in Mathilde’s mind.
“Do you really think someone important would listen to you?”
This was the first time.
The first time someone said they would listen to her.
Tears slowly rolled down Mathilde’s cheeks.
“S-actually…”
