Chapter 78
Paula spent the entire carriage ride recalling what she thought was a perfect night.
Viscount Quendel. His dignified manner, his warm smile, his kind voice.
The suit, the watch, the shoes—everything was extremely expensive. He only wore handcrafted pieces even a count would struggle to obtain.
The rumors about his estate being fertile and him having inherited great wealth seemed to be true.
But Paula’s elated expression shattered completely by the time the carriage reached the white front gates of the count’s residence.
“What the—?!”
Every single room in the mansion was lit. And on top of that, the servants and maids who should have been asleep were running about busily.
Paula’s face turned ashen.
Don’t tell me… did that damn count drag out Madam Becker the moment he returned?
Her leg trembled with nervousness as she quickly opened the window and called to the gatekeeper.
“Gatekeeper, has the master returned?”
“What’s it to you if he has?”
The tall gatekeepers the countess had once hired were beaten up by Fernand and then dismissed. After that, since the countess lost her authority to appoint staff, the current gatekeeper had been hired by Madam Becker.
Yet for the past two weeks, because it seemed Madam Becker was about to be driven out, he had been constantly bowing and scraping to Paula.
And now, suddenly his attitude has flipped so drastically—right after the ball?
Paula was convinced. Madam Becker must have been released from the underground prison.
As if to confirm her suspicion, the gatekeeper sneered at her.
“Hey, your reign’s over. The master just freed Madam Becker and gathered all the servants, declaring he won’t let the person who framed her off the hook!”
Haa… seriously.
“He’s just waiting for you and the countess to return. He looks ready to tear you apart, so good luck with that.”
The back of Paula’s neck stiffened.
Without even hearing the countess’s side, the count had declared it was a ‘false charge’? That was as good as publicly taking Madam Becker’s side.
He’s going to humiliate my mother again… strip away her authority and hand it to Madam Becker, isn’t he?
Paula had no clear idea why both the count and Fernand favored Madam Becker so much.
…What use is it to elevate Mother’s maid over her? Unless he just enjoys my mother’s humiliation, there’s no other explanation!
And so she concluded that this was simply the method the count had chosen to torment his wife.
By undermining her decisions like this, what is he trying to prove? …This time, Mother’s dignity will truly be crushed to the ground.
Feeling suffocated, she turned and noticed Odette sitting opposite her.
…Then I won’t ever be able to reclaim my position as disciplinary maid either, will I?
If the count humiliated her mother again tonight, then her mother was bound to lose more authority.
And if the young master stripped even the role of disciplinary maid from her…
Just imagining losing forever the right to strike Odette made her heart sink.
That’s the only pleasure I have in this mansion…!
Surely Madam Becker would act even more arrogantly from now on. If that was the case, she had to relieve her stress one last time.
Paula gave a sharp order.
“Coachman, take us to the pond near the annex.”
“…Pardon?”
“Now!”
She spoke in a blind spot where the gatekeeper couldn’t see, so only the coachman heard.
Conveniently, there was a vial of sleeping incense prepared in the carriage.
It had been meant to ease the countess’s nerves. Ever since being betrayed by her son, she had suffered constant headaches, and the incense was to help her rest.
Not a single thing strays from what I predicted.
Watching the carriage head toward the annex pond, I smiled faintly.
The only unpredictable factor tonight had been Paula’s whims.
I had worried she might choose to torment me here and now… but seeing her take us toward the pond, clearly that wasn’t something I needed to worry about.
The annex pond was a place rarely visited, surrounded by tall irises and reeds. It was the perfect spot to do anything without being caught.
And it even had a flat stone—just the kind of place Paula loved to drag me to and beat me.
How many times has she struck me there?
Until I turned fifteen—back when I could have been disowned at any moment—it was routine to be hauled to that pond.
…But really, sleeping incense? Paula, you’re reckless as always.
A blend of lavender and other herbs. I pretended not to notice and breathed it in calmly.
How kind of you to use lavender.
Lavender, often used in sleeping incense, also happened to enhance the effects of Aqua Mint.
Normally, Aqua Mint let me stay clear-headed for about an hour. With lavender, that stretched to at least four hours. And instead of simply sobering me from alcohol, it now rendered me immune to all drugs and incenses.
So for me, the incense only heightened my alertness.
What incredible luck… No, more like thanks to Viktor’s uncanny intuition for giving me the mint at just the right moment.
His intuition was disturbingly accurate at times—finding the best answer even when he knew nothing.
That same intuition had caused me so much hardship in my past life.
So in the end, this has no effect on me. If anything, you’ll be more dazed than I am.
I barely restrained myself from laughing at Paula, who was holding a handkerchief to her nose and trying not to breathe the fumes.
Paula, your choices are always so foolish and impulsive.
No doubt it was the result of her mother’s teaching. That woman had never once taught her child patience.
As the carriage rolled past the annex pond, I checked the hostility meter.
[ ‘Karl’ is not within the 20-quezeta range. ]
[ Hostility cannot be measured. ]
The status window glowed faintly pink.
Just as I thought—Lize handled it well.
The status window only displayed people within a 20-meter radius. If Karl were still in the underground prison, I would have been able to see his hostility.
Then Paula’s hairpin must still be down there too.
With Father back, I was planning to properly clean out this mansion.
Paula being as impulsive as I’d hoped was perfect. The bigger the scene, the better.
I leaned back comfortably against the carriage seat. Paula, mistaking my relaxed posture as me succumbing to the incense, smiled in satisfaction.
The steady slowing of the horses’ hooves finally ceased as the carriage stopped at the annex pond.
“Milady maid, we’ve arrived. But… why did you ask me to stop here?”
The coachman asked, but Paula silently pressed the handkerchief over her nose, got out, and yanked Odette down by the wrist.
“Coachman, you go back to the mansion first.”
“…What?”
“I said, go on to the main house!”
Arrogant Paula shouted at the top of her lungs.
So proud of herself, isn’t she? She thinks this coachman belongs to her mother, so she treats him like dirt.
He only called her “milady maid” out of courtesy, and because he always turned a blind eye to her secrets.
Like how she secretly dragged me to the annex pond to beat me. Or how she wore expensive jewels and dresses and went out pretending to be a lady.
He’s just quick-witted and tight-lipped, that’s all.
In truth, the coachman wasn’t her mother’s man at all.
He kept Madam Becker’s secrets just as faithfully. Didn’t Paula know this was the only carriage Father and Madam Becker used for their private outings?
“Today’s not a good idea, milady maid. It’s too late at night to leave just you and the young lady here. Especially since his lordship returned early—”
“When did I ever say you could give me advice? That’s for me to decide. Just go already.”
“But, milady maid—”
“What are you waiting for? Didn’t you hear me? Get lost!”
When someone is both quick-witted and silent, it usually means only one thing: fear.
He simply hated being dragged into serious trouble.
Look at him sweating—pitiful, really.
He had noticed the incense leaking from the carriage. He had ignored countless incidents at the count’s mansion, but now his instincts told him that leaving us here would bring real disaster.
That was why he stalled, refusing to leave.
“Didn’t I say go?!”
At Paula’s furious shout, the coachman reluctantly climbed back onto the driver’s seat.
“Hyah…”
He cracked the whip half-heartedly, so feebly it had no strength at all.
He’s too frightened to actually leave quickly.
Meanwhile, Paula dragged my unsteady body toward the pond, forcing me to kneel in the very spot she had always used when tormenting me.
