Chapter 15
Of course, if that happened, Isabella had intended to give her enough money that she would never need to work as a maid again. From Sarah’s perspective, remarriage was common among commoners anyway, so it would not be a devastating loss. Since she was originally from another country, she could always return to her homeland.
Even if Ekian somehow came back… she seems like the sort of girl who would step aside reasonably.
But there was no longer any need to think about Sarah.
Isabella set down her fork.
The fewer people who knew about this matter, the better. Since Judith already knew about her plan, it made sense for her to handle it. Besides, Isabella had already taken a liking to Judith.
“Then, Karl, finish your dessert before you go upstairs. I need to go to the garden and prepare to receive a guest.”
“A guest?”
“Yes. I’ll introduce you later.”
Judith would be entering the household as Ekian’s wife, and for several months she and Karl would live as family. Of course, Karl was still too young, so Isabella had no intention of telling him the truth.
When Isabella postponed the explanation, Karl replied with an indifferent expression, showing little interest.
“Okay.”
After watching Karl begin eating his dessert, Isabella rose lightly from her seat and headed toward the garden.
Since Judith had mentioned that the roses in the garden were beautiful, Isabella planned to have tea set up near them.
The servants could handle the smaller tasks, but choosing where the table would be placed was something she wanted to do herself.
As Isabella examined a lovely rose-covered trellis in the gardenā
“Madam!”
A woman came running across the garden, clutching her skirts.
It was Judith, her wavy red hair tied high with a plain cloth. She wore a simple beige dress and somewhat worn shoes.
Isabella frowned.
“…Judith?”
Although they had arranged to meet, it was still far too early for tea. Lunch had only just ended.
Judith had always been calm and composed. She had never seemed like the sort of person to act so impulsively.
Isabella stared at the suddenly appearing Judith with startled eyes.
* * *
Karl finished every last bite of dessert in front of the butler before getting up.
His desire not to worry the duchess was sincere.
Afterward, he headed to the back garden.
“Young Master.”
Sarah, who had been waiting for him on a bench, greeted him with a bright smile among the flowers.
“Did you enjoy your meal?”
“Yeah.”
“Her Grace must have been very pleased.”
Karl nodded.
“She was. But we couldn’t eat together until the end.”
“Oh? Why not?”
“Mother said she had to go to the garden to prepare for a guest.”
Sarah’s lips curved gently.
In truth, she already knew the reason. She was only asking to confirm it.
As expected, the duchess and the other maids would all be in the garden. It matched the information she had obtained that morning.
Sarah quietly watched Karl hop onto the swing installed in the garden.
For a moment, the silhouette of a young man who used to stand behind him and push the swing appeared like a phantom in her mind.
There had once been a time when she believed without question that the warm gaze directed at Karl would someday be turned toward her as well.
Five years ago…
Ekian, Karl, and herself.
Whenever the three of them were together, she felt as though she were flying through the sky.
No other maid spent as much time with the young masters as she did.
That fact lifted her heart even higher than the swing Karl now sat upon.
Only I, Sarah Orton, could do that.
Everyone envied her and was jealous of her.
At the same time, they admitted that if it was Sarah, it made sense.
Sarah was the prettiest among the maids and exceptionally intelligent.
Even without a teacher, she had learned to read quickly, and she was fluent in foreign languages as well.
There’s no way someone like me is destined to remain an ordinary maid.
The envy directed toward her only made her more arrogant.
Eventually, it even allowed her to justify her desire to become something different from all the other maids.
Countless servants in the ducal estate had crushes on her, but she had never paid attention to a single one of them.
Sarah intended to marry Ekian.
A marriage between a maid and a young duke was certainly rare, but it wasn’t unheard of.
There were plenty of stories like that in fairy tales.
Even royalty sometimes married commoners for love.
Sure, those marriages often ended badly, but royal weddings had happened nonetheless.
I grew up with Lord Ekian.
It didn’t matter that Ekian kept his distance and drew clear boundaries.
Every night, Sarah sat on the swing Karl now occupied and kicked her feet hard as she dreamed.
If I stay close to Karl and enough time passes, Lord Ekian will eventually open his heart to me.
I’m beautiful. I’m intelligent.
I may have been born to the wrong parents, but I’m someone who should be living as a noble.
I’ll command all these maids beneath me and become part of House Mayus.
I’m not an ordinary commoner. I’m a commoner closer to nobility.
Lord Ekian and I are a perfect match.
He’s the only man worthy of me.
So when Ekian disappeared, she could not accept that her dream had been destroyed.
Returning to life as an ordinary maid was a devastating blow.
She had never possessed noble status, yet it felt as though someone had stolen it from herāalong with the love she had nurtured for so long.
Perhaps that was why she felt a thrill in tormenting Karl.
If she could not feel that she still held power over the life she had once imagined for herself, she thought she would not be able to endure it.
See? Young Master Karl listens only to me.
Karl, the child everyone called a genius, depended on her.
Destroying the sole remaining heir was equivalent to destroying the ducal family itself.
This entire house is ultimately in my hands. I’m different from the other maids!
The duchess was absent.
No one else was watching.
Sarah took a small bottle from her pocket.
“Young Master, this is it. The potion that makes you throw up everything you’ve eaten. I went into town last night and barely managed to get it.”
Delight flickered in Karl’s eyes.
Snatching the bottle eagerly, he asked with shining eyes,
“Really…? If I become a sickly child who doesn’t grow properly and is always ill, will my brother come back?”
“Of course.”
“Like you told me, I got rid of my tutor and said I wouldn’t continue my knight training.”
Holding the bottle tightly, Karl continued,
“If I’m doing well, then that’s wrong, isn’t it? Receiving heir education as if everything is fine really does seem thoughtless, just like you said. Thanks for telling me.”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
Sarah smiled sweetly and stroked his hair.
“I also wish Lord Ekian would return soon… I miss the times when the three of us were together so much…”
At that moment, a leaf moved within the large ancient tree behind her.
Neither of them noticed.
The tree was so thick and lush that it could easily conceal a person.
Though there was no wind, a large leaf fluttered down.
Even a branch shifted slightly.
A bird resting atop the tree was startled and flew away with a frantic flap of wings.
“If Young Master Karl seems too happy and healthy,” Sarah said gently with her back to the tree, “people will misunderstand.”
“Ah…”
“They’ll think you’re glad Lord Ekian disappeared.”
“You’re right.”
Karl’s face darkened as he held the bottle.
Even the sunlight filtering through the leaves could not brighten the boy’s gloomy expression.
“They say Brother is going to be declared dead soon. For five years there hasn’t been a single sign that he’s alive…”
He lowered his head.
“So it doesn’t make sense for me to be doing well.”
“Exactly.”
Sarah sighed and nodded, matching his sorrowful expression.
“Of course, the Duke and Duchess want you to be healthy because they care about you. But you have to think about how outsiders will see it too. And if Lord Ekian comes back because he’s worried about you, that would be even better.”
“Right.”
“Then hurry and drink it. It’s the best thing you can do for Lord Ekian.”
Sarah dabbed at her eyes as if wiping away tears.
Then, using her long white fingers, she opened the bottle and said,
“Young Master, from now on I’ll bring this medicine after every meal. That way, without worrying the Duke and Duchessā”
At that momentā
“No!”
A shrill scream rang through the garden.
Someone came running at incredible speed.
The bottle in Karl’s hand was knocked away in an instant.
