episode_0173

So much happened. Even if the family head was poisoned, the family would be devastated. After the head of the family was poisoned, the duchess who temporarily assumed the position of head of the family and the princess, who was first in line to succeed, collapsed.

If it were an ordinary family, it would not have been surprising if it collapsed immediately, but the Rochelle family only stumbled greatly and did not collapse.

actually… … . Just because it was a Rochelle family with a long history did not mean it would not fall apart.

If you look at it calmly, it wouldn’t have been surprising if it collapsed at any time, but the iron-like loyalty of the knights, maids, and butlers who had served the Duke of Rochelle for a long time, and the fact that it had only been a short time since the incident occurred. The fact that the duchess and princess were still alive was what kept the Rochelle family going, even if it was precarious.

If even one of these had been missing, it would have collapsed like a building with a collapsed foundation, regardless of whether it was a family with a long history, and the nobles who inherited the blood from the collateral would have been left to pick up the remains.

… … And the reason things turned out this way is because of me. With trembling hands, Priscilla poured the potion into the mouth of Charlotte, who was lying dead, and swallowed dry saliva.

After confirming that Charlotte was swallowing the potion normally, Priscilla dropped the empty potion bottle from Charlotte’s mouth and wiped the potion off her lips.

“… … It’ll be okay now.”

At Priscilla’s words, the maids standing behind sighed in relief and began to utter one word at a time.

“Ah, thank goodness… … .”

“Thank you for helping the lady. Priscilla.”

Despite the maids’ thanks, Priscilla stood up without saying a word.

Someone like me doesn’t deserve to be thanked. So please don’t look at me like that. Don’t even say thank you. please.

Priscilla swallowed the words that were welling up in her throat and quietly left the room.

“Phew… … .”

And in the room after Priscilla left, one of the maids who had been guarding Charlotte’s side sighed heavily.

“Why are you sighing all of a sudden?”

“I know that, but… … . It’s so sad… … .”

The maid who said that in a weak voice approached Charlotte who was lying down and carefully wiped her body with a clean wet towel.

“These people have no reason to go through something like this… … . They are all good people and deserve respect… … . Why does this happen… … .”

“Mary… … .”

The maid, called Mary, began to whimper and cry without even finishing her sentence.

Another maid who was watching Mary go up to her and wipe her tears.

“Mary, I understand your feelings. But you have to smile in front of her. I have to tell her only good things. Only then will you have the strength to wake up.”

“Yes… … . If you keep crying like this, you’ll lose your strength… … .”

The maid, wiping away her tears with her sleeve, quietly stood up after confirming that Charlotte’s body was clean.

“Lady, I hope you get well… … .”

“Rest in peace, lady.”

After saying that, the two maids quietly bowed their heads and left the room.

Since it was already a while after dinner time, the two headed to a restaurant exclusively for employees to fill their empty stomachs.

Of the two people who were walking quietly, the one who spoke first was none other than the maid named Mary.

“Raine, that… … . Hey. It’s about you… … .”

Seeing Mary speaking cautiously, Laine looked at Mary and shook her head.

“Mary. I kind of know what you’re trying to say. Not here.”

“Ah, yes… … .”

As Raine said, the Rochelle mansion was so quiet that her own footsteps could be heard as loud as usual, unlike the usual noises from everyday life. Talking here wasn’t a good choice.

Especially if the story is very secret. Laine reminded Mary of that fact, and Mary nodded slowly.

After finishing their meal at the restaurant for employees, the two returned to their room and prepared for the end of the day.

“So Mary, what were you trying to talk about earlier?”

Laine, who was tidying up the bedding, looked at Mary tying her hair and asked that question. Mary, who was tying her hair, sighed and put down her arms.

“You know what, young master… … . Why aren’t you coming out of your room? … ?”

“That’s… … .”

Laine was speechless at Mary’s question and was unable to give any answer.

Until now, I didn’t feel anything strange because I didn’t have time to think about such things, nor did I have the time to do so, but after hearing this, something was definitely strange.

“It’s strange. Even if a worker living in the same mansion dies, it’s normal for them to come out at least once. But, but the master… … .”

“Mary. Stop.”

Layne jumped up from her seat and covered Mary’s mouth. Mary blinked and looked at Laine’s sudden action.

Laine sighed at Mary’s dumbfounded face and took her hand away from her mouth. She opened the door, looked into the hallway, and closed the door again.

“Mary. I say this as an old friend. Don’t talk about him out loud.”

“But, strange is strange.”

“I know that. But no matter how much we mention him, it’s just like strangling him with our own hands.”

Laine’s words were correct.

No matter how much they said they were maids who inherited the blood of nobles, their opponent was the kingdom’s leading noble, a duke who could establish a new principality if he wanted to.

The reality was that if you thought the other person was strange or suspicious, you didn’t know what would happen if you made a joke.

“But are you going to stay still like this? Now that even Master Genea and Lady Charlotte have collapsed?”

“Now that the two of you have collapsed, you need to stay even more still. Who do you think has the most power in the mansion right now?”

“… … You are a master.”

“Okay. So put those doubts aside for a moment. All we can do now is to take good care of our Lady Charlotte so that nothing happens to her.”

Mary closed her mouth and nodded at Laine’s words, and Laine harbored doubts about Arcienne La Rochelle in her heart at Mary’s words.

* * *

“Deacon, what do you think?”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about. Riev, the head maid.”

In a parlor filled with the scent of black tea, the head butler and the chief maid sat facing each other in front of a small tea table prepared in a corner of the parlor, quietly putting down the tea and looking at each other.

“If you are looking at the current situation properly, you will know what I am going to say.”

“Indeed. When you talk like that this late in the evening, you’re talking about rebelling against the Duke family, right?”

“It’s a ridiculous leap. Don’t say things like that, even as a joke. Are you trying to insult me, who has served the Rochelle family since I was a toddler?”

“When I look at the current situation properly, these are the only words that come to mind.”

The head maid was glaring at the head butler with sharp eyes, and the head butler accepted the gaze with a calm face.

“Let’s stop with the puns and get straight to the point. The Rochelle family is currently in a very dangerous state. Do you agree?”

“Aren’t we supporting it and preventing it from collapsing? The Rochelle family will be able to stand on its feet even without our help.”

“Even if you build a support for a rotten tree, the tree that has already rotted cannot grow.”

“I think you are the one who needs to watch your mouth, not me. Does the Duke of Rochelle look funny?”

“Then let me ask you this, Deacon Dave. Do you think the current situation is normal?”

“It is extremely natural for fights to arise over power. Our job is to serve the Rochelle family, not to interfere with their affairs. Therefore, it is not right to get involved any further than this.”

“For the future of the family, you must not only look at the family, but also serve the right monarch and advise on that monarch’s actions.”

“Then this conversation will always be parallel.”

They were spitting out sharp words as if they were threatening to stab each other to death, but contrary to the content of their words, their tone was very calm.

After a brief lull, the two people who quenched their thirst by drinking black tea put down their tea cups again and opened their mouths.

“Chief Maid Liev, you probably know what you just said.”

“If I wasn’t planning on taking responsibility for what I said, I wouldn’t have said it in the first place.”

“I am worried. I was worried that I might be doing things wrong by moving based on my imagination without any solid physical evidence.”

“I’m even more worried that if we hesitate like that, we end up in a situation where we can’t do anything about it.”

The head butler sighed quietly at the words of the maid, looked at the teacup on the floor, and slowly stood up.

“I respect your opinion, but please do not cause further confusion in the family.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. I also have no intention of moving right now.”

“Then please excuse me. Now that the matriarch is away, there is a mountain of work to be done.”

“I will clean up my seat and follow you soon.”

The two people talked with calm faces, as if they had never argued before.

Even the head butler and the head maid are confused enough to have this conversation, so how can anyone else be so clueless?

―Has Master Arsien come out of his room yet?

-I think you’re a little strange.

―No matter how much you think about it, something seems wrong?

―It’s not good to doubt, but… … .

The seeds sown based on the poisoned former head of the family sprouted splendidly through the water and sunlight of the duchess and princess.

Once it sprouted, it began to grow surprisingly quickly.

― Didn’t Master Arcien make you two and the princess like that?

So much so that a flower called doubt blooms in just one night.