Chapter 33
July 3, 2024
If I had to pick the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard recently, I wouldn’t hesitate for even a second — it would be what Vice Commander Kalt said.
[Hahaha! You came all the way here because you were worried about Young Lord Dietrich? Oh dear, Heidi. Don’t tell me you’ve fallen for him?]
That I’m in love with Dietrich?
Ha! That old man Kalt clearly has no idea what my type is.
Even thinking about it again now, it’s absolutely absurd.
But the nonsense I just heard now might be even worse than that.
Thinking I must’ve misheard, I rubbed my ear.
However, the maid didn’t stop and went on to deliver something even more shocking.
“Look at you all pretending you don’t know. We can talk freely among ourselves, can’t we? Everyone in the mansion already knows about it — it’s not like it’s a secret anymore.”
At that, another maid finally spoke up.
“That’s true. And honestly, it sounds believable. The young master’s never shown interest in any lady before, right? He’s always been strangely indifferent toward women.”
Dietrich… is into men?
Dietrich is into men?!
The words were so ridiculous I couldn’t help but let out a short laugh.
Ah, if only Dietrich himself had heard this!
I could’ve watched that handsome, cold, emotionless face of his finally crack — that would’ve been hilarious.
As I snickered to myself, Mary, who was beside me, asked,
“Why are you laughing, Heidi?”
“Oh, it’s just… I can’t believe anyone would think the young master’s into men.”
I could stake my life on it — Dietrich was definitely not into men.
After all, he was the male lead of the popular romance novel “The End of Salvation.”
There’s a clearly established female protagonist, so it’s literally impossible for Dietrich to be gay.
But the maid who started this rumor seemed to believe her words with absolute conviction.
“I heard the madam’s been feeling unwell lately — apparently she’s been shocked ever since finding out Young Master Dietrich’s a sodomite.”
“But what does his being away from the mansion so often have to do with that?”
One maid tilted her head in confusion — an excellent question, actually.
I was wondering the same thing myself.
If anyone would know about Dietrich’s absences, it would be me — he was hardly ever at the mansion these days.
“Ah, that’s the main part of the story. But you have to promise to keep it a secret. If anyone finds out who told you this, we’ll all lose our heads.”
“We promise!”
“Come on, hurry up and tell us already!”
After glancing around to make sure no one else was listening, the maid leaned in closer, dropping her voice to a whisper so faint we had to put our heads together to hear.
“Apparently… the person Young Master Dietrich’s fallen for is…”
“Is…?”
“Marquis Nocturne Frey’s son.”
…What?
I blinked blankly.
Did I just hear that right?
While I sat there dumbfounded, the other maids clapped their hands or gasped.
“No way! That Nocturne Frey?”
“Isn’t he the young master’s friend?”
“Well, love starts from friendship, doesn’t it? But if the young master’s really into men, his chances of inheriting the dukedom are over!”
“Honestly, I’ve always preferred Master Julian anyway. Lord Dietrich is just too scary. If someone like him became the duke, no one in this mansion would be able to breathe easily! One mistake, and he’d chop our heads off.”
“Yeah, he’s famous for being ruthless. I’ve worked here all this time and never even dared to look him in the eyes.”
Their dangerous gossip seemed to go on endlessly.
Meanwhile, my mind was still reeling from the rumor.
Dietrich and Nocturne are in love?
Where in the world did such a ridiculous rumor even start?
I had planned to tease Dietrich later — tell him, “Hey, I heard you’re in love with Nocturne!” — just to see his reaction.
But now I realized the situation was far more serious.
This isn’t just gossip — it’s a deliberate smear campaign.
If word spread that Dietrich was a sodomite, his right to inherit the dukedom would be in grave danger.
And the person who would benefit most from that…
“The Duchess, Lady Lerianna.”
Even the claim that the duchess was ill from shock sounded suspicious.
I downed the rest of my raspberry juice in one go, my irritation boiling over.
How cowardly!
Spreading false rumors like this, taking advantage of how gullible the maids could be — what a cheap tactic.
Negative gossip about Dietrich, who wasn’t exactly popular in the mansion, would spread like wildfire without the duchess even trying.
“Master Julian may be young, but he’s not heartless.”
“Yeah, unlike that rumor about how Lord Dietrich cut off a maid’s hand when she lost one of his favorite jewels.”
“Oh, right! I heard she not only lost her hand but her tongue too, and got thrown out of the mansion.”
Once my anger cooled a little, I could finally focus on their words.
Ah, that story — I knew the truth behind it.
That maid who “lost” Dietrich’s cherished jewel was actually a spy planted by the duchess.
She’d pretended to clean his room but tried to steal a replica necklace that once belonged to his late mother.
Dietrich caught her red-handed.
She had begged desperately for her life, returned the necklace, and though furious, he had ultimately spared her.
It wasn’t Dietrich who cut off her hands or tongue — it was the duchess herself, afraid the maid would expose her.
But of course, none of the maids here knew the truth.
The misunderstandings just kept piling up.
It’s a miracle he’s put up with this for so long without saying anything.
If something’s false, you should correct it!
Then again, maybe he had tried. Maybe Dietrich had once attempted to defend himself, but by that point, the duchess’s schemes to isolate him had already taken root too deeply.
With his mother gone, Dietrich had no one left — it was only a matter of time before loneliness consumed him.
No wonder he’d stopped caring about the rumors.
Still, it made me furious just thinking about it.
I can’t just sit back and let this happen!
There was no way I’d let Dietrich continue to be misunderstood like this.
And if the rumors damaged his chance at succession, that would be a huge problem.
So really — I was doing this for his sake. For the sake of his smooth succession as duke.
That’s what I told myself, anyway, though the truth was my anger had already reached the boiling point.
I forced myself to breathe deeply to calm down, but all that came out was a sharp puff of air through my nose.
Getting angry here wouldn’t help. I needed to be smart about this.
These people wouldn’t be convinced by emotion — I had to show them the truth.
The best strategy was to plant a seed of doubt — hint that Dietrich wasn’t as terrifying as people thought, and certainly not into men.
I slipped quietly back into the circle of gossiping maids, nodding along as if listening intently. Then, out of nowhere, I said,
“Come to think of it… have any of you ever actually talked to Young Master Dietrich?”
“Huh?”
Ignoring their confused looks, I pressed on.
“It’s just odd, isn’t it? If he’s as scary as people say, then isn’t it strange that he’s staying silent about all these rumors? Wouldn’t someone like that punish the ones spreading them?”
“Well… maybe he’s staying quiet because he’s guilty? Besides, how would he even find out who started it?”
I shrugged innocently.
“Maybe. But weren’t we just now the ones talking about him being into men?”
A heavy silence fell.
Realizing that they themselves were the ones spreading the gossip, the maids’ faces went pale.
I continued, voice calm but pointed.
“Maybe he does know — but he’s pretending not to. If the rumor’s already spread through the whole mansion, he must’ve heard it. Maybe he’s choosing not to punish anyone because he doesn’t want to waste time blaming people for believing lies.”
The maids exchanged uneasy glances.
I could tell they were starting to feel uncertain, questioning their own assumptions.
“Are you saying I’m the one spreading false rumors?”
the maid who’d started the gossip snapped defensively.
“Oh, no! Not necessarily. It could still be true,”
I said quickly, softening my tone to avoid offending her.
“But still, I’d rather not believe anything until I hear it directly from Young Master Dietrich himself.”
I finished firmly, letting my conviction shine in my eyes.
The maid flinched, clearly unsettled by my unwavering confidence — maybe even afraid of being labeled the one responsible for the rumor.
After a moment’s hesitation, she muttered,
“I… guess that’s fair.”
That was all it took for the others to start agreeing.
“Yeah, that makes sense.”
“Come to think of it, Heidi — didn’t you tell Clara once that you knew a bit about the young master?”
“Oh, right! You said he’s not as cold as he looks!”
“Then maybe these rumors really are false.”
Just like that, their attitudes completely shifted.
I smiled, satisfied, dusted off my hands, and stood up.
It wasn’t much — I’d only stopped the spread of one small rumor — but still, it felt like a victory.
I’ll have to tell Dietrich about this later, I thought.
It wouldn’t do to let this nonsense keep circulating.
All in all, I could feel proud — I’d worked hard today for the sake of his future as duke.
As I turned to head back toward the kitchen, waving lightly, Robert quietly fell into step beside me.
He’d been unusually silent all this time, and now, matching my pace, he finally spoke.
“Hey… Heidi, what would you do if Young Master Dietrich really were into men?”
