Chapter – 34
“How is it? Beautiful, isn’t it?”
Adèle felt even more embarrassed. Lucas was an incredibly handsome man.
His well-proportioned, handsome face, mysterious purple eyes, and long silver hair all came together to create a sight that was a feast for the eyes.
Hearing Madeline’s praise in front of such a person made her want to hide behind the partition right then and there.
As she stood there, unsure of what to do and looking down at the floor, she felt a gaze on her.
‘He’s looking at me.’
Adèle let out a deep breath. Well, anyway, once they had the engagement ceremony, she would have to stand in front of the guests wearing this dress.
What was the point of feeling shy now? She bravely lifted her head.
The owner of the gaze was, as expected, Lucas. He looked at Adèle with an unreadable expression, then finally spoke.
“It’s beautiful. It suits you very well.”
Her heart tingled.
‘No, it’s not like that. Don’t read into it.’
This wasn’t about sharing affection; it was business. She was doing this to protect her son, Ronchka, and Lucas was doing it to protect his disciple.
‘Don’t misunderstand.’
Adèle resolved to harden her heart.
“Then, I will change into the next dress.”
The seamstress’s apprentice and the lady’s maid helped her change into a new dress.
‘Now that I think about it, I need to resolve this issue too.’
It was the day the news of Adèle’s engagement spread through the mansion. Some congratulated her, but others showed their displeasure.
It was inevitable. Unlike Lucas, who was from a ducal family, Adèle was a commoner. And not just any commoner, but an insignificant woman with a child.
It was only natural that there was resentment, seeing how a woman who wouldn’t even have been allowed into the mansion without Lucas’s mercy was now set to become its mistress.
Moreover, among the maids, there were even daughters of noble families. Being suddenly told to serve a commoner woman inevitably bred discontent.
She needed to resolve this somehow, but she had been too busy with the engagement preparations to pay it any mind. And as a result, the negative repercussions were coming back to her.
The seamstress’s apprentice’s touch was careful. But the maid’s touch was somewhat rough. She was doing her job, but it felt unpleasant somehow.
‘What should I do about this?’
The female protagonists in novels would solve this neatly and satisfyingly, but Adèle wasn’t that kind of person.
‘I’m just an ordinary person, for heaven’s sake!’
It only gave her a bigger headache.
“This is the second dress.”
The second dress, to be worn during the ceremony, was pure white. The design, which emphasized purity with mesh and lace layered over luxuriously shimmering silk, somehow kept drawing her gaze.
“Wow, this dress is lovely too!”
Madeline had an excited expression. As for Lucas, his expression was still difficult to read.
“Yes, it suits you well.”
The third dress was a fresh green dress that reminded one of verdant leaves. This one also seemed to be a piece the seamstress had put her heart and soul into.
“The dresses are decided, so now we just need to match the accessories.”
“Don’t spare any expense.”
“Of course. How could I spare any? I plan to call the best jeweler.”
Madeline declared proudly.
At this point, it was a bit burdensome.
“Is it really necessary to go this far?”
She cautiously ventured the question, but was met with Madeline’s surprised expression.
“What do you mean, ‘this far’?”
“It seems like we’re spending too much money.”
“Oh my goodness, no! Sir Lucas is not poor. The mansion is small only because he wanted to live quietly; he originally has a lot of wealth!”
Madeline continued rapidly.
“This doesn’t even count as spending money, so don’t worry. No, Sir Lucas should have told you it was okay beforehand. Making his fiancée worry about money!”
“My mistake. I’m sorry, Adèle.”
‘Why are you apologizing *there*?’
Adèle was flustered by the sudden apology. Well, her counterpart was a man from a ducal family after all. Even if he had left his family, it was impossible for him not to have money.
After that, Adèle had to listen to Madeline explain at length about Lucas’s assets.
“So, rest assured. You don’t need to worry about anything, Lady Adèle.”
Lucas’s wealth was truly astronomical.
‘He left his family, so why does he have so much money?’
“His maternal grandmother was the previous Emperor’s sister. Before she passed, she left all her assets to Sir Lucas. So, the vast lands in the southern Furry region all belong to Sir Lucas.”
Madeline continued.
“Moreover, Sir Lucas has a talent for multiplying money, too.”
She reassured Adèle again, saying the wealth known to the public was only a fraction. So Adèle decided to be grateful but let go of her excessive sense of burden.
“By the way, there haven’t been any particular incidents lately?”
“What do you mean?”
“Never mind, if there aren’t any.”
Madeline shook her head and replied.
Although she pretended not to know, she had a rough idea of what Adèle was implying.
It seemed Madeline also knew about the maids’ murmuring. Well, as the head maid, it would be strange if she didn’t know.
“I’m being as careful as I can, but if anything happens, please be sure to tell me.”
“Yes. Thank you, Madeline.”
“Not at all, I’m the one who should be thankful.”
Madeline beamed at her.
The incident occurred a few days later.
—
‘How childish.’
Adèle had done some investigating of her own during that time. As a result, she found out that a woman named Laya, the third daughter of a baron, was the ringleader.
They were talking behind her back so loudly it was impossible not to hear. At first, they at least pretended to be cautious, but now they were talking openly as if they wanted her to hear.
She felt like grabbing them by the hair, but she couldn’t.
‘Anyway, I’m someone who will leave eventually.’
She wasn’t sure if restraining the maids was the right thing to do.
‘Besides, it’s still at a tolerable level.’
Let’s endure a little more. If they go this far, let’s give them a piece of my mind then. Thinking that, she let the maids’ petty spitefulness slide.
Then, Laya was assigned as Adèle’s personal maid. It was Lucas’s way of being considerate.
Tiring days followed after that. Laya made constant small mistakes, which led to Adèle’s discomfort. Not only that, but things started disappearing too.
Among them was something Ronchka had given to Adèle.
“Have you seen the stone that was here?”
“Haven’t seen it.”
“That can’t be. Weren’t you the one who cleaned today, Laya?”
“It’s true I cleaned, but I only threw away useless things.”
Laya answered boldly. At that point, Adèle felt she no longer needed to endure.
“Laya.”
This time, she didn’t even answer. She just smiled sweetly and looked straight at Adèle.
“I heard Laya was good at her work, but it seems that’s not the case. Unless that’s a lie, why do you show such foolish behavior, making mistakes and losing things every day?”
Adèle also smiled sweetly and pointed out her faults outright.
“I’m doing my job perfectly. It seems you’re just not familiar with the lifestyle of the nobility yet, Lady Adèle.”
“Since when did the meaning of the word ‘perfect’ change? And Laya, you seem to be misunderstanding something.”
“What do you mean?”
Her constant backtalk was extremely irritating.
“What I mean is, no matter what you do, reality won’t change. *I* am Sir Lucas’s fiancée. That means *I* will be the one managing this mansion later.”
“So?”
“You still don’t understand? When that time comes, I can kick you out. And I can write plenty of bad things on your letter of recommendation too.”
No matter what, throwing away something Ronchka had given her as a gift had crossed the line. Because of that, Adèle broke the resolution she had been holding onto.
If she was this kind of person, she would likely cause harm to Lucas’s future lover whenever she appeared. Thinking that, her words came out a bit harsher than intended.
Laya lifted her head, then lowered it, her hands clutching her skirt trembling. Was she scared?
Letters of recommendation were that important to the maids. Even though she was a baron’s daughter, that baron family was insignificant. She heard it was almost ruined, and their lifestyle was no different from commoners.
‘She’s still young, were my words a bit too harsh?’
Adèle sighed and gestured.
“You may go now. Don’t do any more foolish things.”
Without a word, Laya turned around sharply and went out.
After that, it was quiet for a while. Adèle thought the threat had worked and immersed herself back into the engagement preparations.
Then, one afternoon…
Adèle and Lucas had gradually been increasing the time they spent having meals together. Leon and Ronchka joined them too, so it wasn’t exactly just the two of them, but it was quite enjoyable.
For that time, Adèle stood at the top of the stairs, about to go downstairs. Just then, she saw Ronchka returning after finishing his training.
