~Chapter 135~
Julie tried to hide her discomfort by pretending she had lots of housework.
“My mother hurt her leg. I must have looked worried because I’m worried about leaving my little brother alone with her.”
“Your mother is hurt? Then you should go home quickly.”
“No, I have too much work to do.”
“We can share the work. I’ll ask the butler and Sir Arthur to help you.”
“No, this is a maid’s job.”
Julie refused strongly, making Ancia suddenly fully awake.
“Then I’ll do it. From the start, you’ve done work that the duchess should do.”
It wasn’t totally right, but it wasn’t wrong either. While Julie hesitated, Ancia smiled kindly and took out a small pouch from the drawer. She opened it in front of Julie and took out a handful of gold coins. When Ancia held out her hand, Julie quickly put out her hands. Gold coins dropped into Julie’s palms.
“Take this and go home. Will a week be enough? Or maybe two weeks?”
“Use it for your mother’s treatment and for your brother’s school or snacks.”
“But…”
“Julie, do you know how much you’ve done for me? You deserve this much.”
Even though Julie was nervous, Ancia looked calm. When Julie didn’t leave, Ancia started looking around for more things to give her.
“If your mother’s injury is bad, I’ll give you a healing stone.”
“No! Really, that’s not necessary.”
Julie tried to step back in surprise, but Ancia gently held her hand so she couldn’t leave.
“Julie, I’m sorry I didn’t notice earlier. You must have been really worried about your mother. Go right away. We’ll handle things here.”
“My lady…”
Actually, Julie’s mother just had a light sprain. Julie had only made it sound worse, but Ancia’s kindness made Julie’s heart feel even heavier.
“Ellie, are you outside?”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Julie needs to go out now. Will you go with her?”
Ancia called Ellie to see Julie off, worried Julie might try to stay and work.
Thanks to Julie’s small excuse, her holiday was quickly approved.
Julie was still surprised as she got ready to leave with Ellie.
Ancia was always pure and kind. She didn’t know Julie had helped put her in danger, but she was still kind and gave her gifts with a bright, clear smile.
‘I don’t want her to find out.’
For the first time, Julie was ashamed of being the crown prince’s spy.
Julie finished only the urgent tasks and packed quickly because Ellie hurried her. She didn’t want to miss the last shared carriage to her village. She also didn’t want to waste the gold coins she received.
Julie’s home was not in the Gwinted lands. It wasn’t deep in the mountains like Bianca’s, but it still took a full day on the carriage. Julie had told Ancia she’d be gone two or three days, but in reality, she’d only stay one night at home.
Before leaving the mansion, Julie told Ellie the important things to do while she was gone. Ellie watched her with a smile, and before Julie left, Ellie handed her a small pouch.
“You didn’t have to do this.”
With both Ancia and Ellie being so nice, Julie felt warm and also sorry. As a maid, she always sent her money home, so she wondered why they were giving her more.
“You know I’m poor. The lady asked me to give this to you.”
“Huh? She already gave me something.”
“This is special. Don’t lose it. Keep it safe.”
Before Julie could ask more, Ellie waved and went back inside. Julie opened the pouch in the staff carriage. Inside was a bright, white healing stone.
Usually, servants never received healing stones. Even the previous duchess was kind, but she never gave one to a servant. Even sending a noble doctor was considered a big favor.
It was just a simple excuse, but Ancia really worried about Julie’s mother.
Julie felt so sorry and guilty, it was hard to breathe.
After many investigations and questioning, the duke’s house became much safer.
All suspicious people were sent away, and after that, Ancia still stayed in the tower.
Almost every night, Richard came to the tower to sleep with Ancia. He worried about her and suggested they return to the couple’s bedroom, but she answered in a surprising way.
“Honey, I don’t trust anyone except you and Bianca.”
Richard was shocked by Ancia’s sudden confession. She was always trusting, so he was surprised to hear she trusted no one.
Ancia smiled at his shocked face.
“I heard that when I disappeared, many people thought I had run away with my old fiancé.”
“That’s…”
“Of course, you were the same, but you tried hard to trust me. The others didn’t.”
Even Ellie, who had cried and admitted her doubts, would often explain the other servants’ reactions out of guilt.
“Just to be clear, when I say ‘trust,’ I mean people who won’t betray us even if the crown prince or emperor tries to trick or threaten them.”
“If it’s like that, you can trust Sir Arthur.”
“Yes, you’re right. Sir Arthur would tell us right away if the royals tried anything.”
Seeing Richard’s worried face, Ancia added,
“Don’t misunderstand. I like Ellie, Anna, Harmon—all of them. I want to get along and want everyone to be happy. But everyone has their own families and reasons.”
Finally, Richard looked a little relieved.
Ancia gently touched Richard’s face and continued,
“Even though letters and messengers arrived from my brother, I still disappeared inside the mansion. Luckily, Julie found one letter, but we never found the rest.”
“We should have tortured the spies…”
“No, even if you catch one spy, another will just replace them.”
Richard nodded, agreeing. Ancia whispered quietly in his ear,
“So, I’m going to set a trap.”
“A trap?”
“Yes. I want everyone to believe that you doubt me. Then someone will surely report it to the royal family.”
Even after all Richard’s efforts to remove spies, Ancia said she only trusted a few people. Richard understood her plan.
Ancia smiled and gently rubbed her big belly.
“For this child’s safety, I can’t just ignore this. I want to use this chance to weaken the crown prince’s power.”
“…Will you tell me your plan?”
“Of course, honey. Please listen to it.”
Their conversation went on late into the night.
Ancia’s belly became so big anyone could see she was about to give birth.
The doctor and midwife thought she would give birth in summer, but now they thought it might happen even sooner, so they hurried to get ready.
By spring, just as Ancia had said, her belly was so big she couldn’t even think about going down the stairs.
As the late northern spring arrived and warm winds blew, it had been nearly half a year since Ancia started living in the tower.
With Ancia’s first birth coming soon, all staff were restricted from entering the tower. When signs of labor began last night, everyone became tense.
All the staff watched the tower closely, praying even if they couldn’t see it.
The magic stone manager brought healing stones to the annex again and again, and the knights stopped hunting monsters to guard the mansion closely.
The main house was busy, but the tower was calm.
Some knights, sensitive to sound, couldn’t bear to hear Ancia’s screams during labor and left their posts looking relieved but worried. They could listen to monsters’ screams for days, but not a woman’s cries.
The steward came with urgent business but only circled the area before leaving. No one dared disturb the duke during this sensitive time.
Richard hurt his own hands and lips, trying to hold back from rushing into the room again and again.
He was so scared something would happen to Ancia, he didn’t even care what color the baby’s hair would be. All he wanted was for Ancia to be safe.
Ancia’s screams faded, and not long after, the doctor came out of the room.
