Chapter 10
“Mel… what happens if she kills Father?”
Seeing Hermia ask with a dazed expression, Andy, who was tidying up the bedding, burst into a chuckle.
“It seems you’ve read ‘Stolen Lady.’ With those dark circles under your eyes, you probably haven’t slept well.”
Realizing that the sunlight was glaring down on her, Hermia jumped up from the vanity chair.
“Bell Graywood said she wouldn’t let Count Arno go. And if Mel is actually here… and…”
As she remained engulfed in confusion, Andy approached her, suppressing a laugh.
“Our lady is really immersed in this. It’s just a novel, after all. If it were real, wouldn’t we—who eat and sleep with Mel—be the first to notice?”
“Is that so…?”
Andy clicked her tongue in disapproval like the Countess and crossed her arms.
“I think Mel believes she’s really Bell ever since she read the novel. She sees herself as the protagonist, so she’s deluding herself into thinking the story is real.”
But why did Mel say she didn’t know about that novel?
Why did she cry when looking at Walter as if testing her? Hermia asked urgently.
“What did she say?”
“She did mention that she grew up in an orphanage and sometimes strange things come to her mind, but when she saw the master, she felt nothing at all. If the novel were true, he would be the enemy who killed her parents.”
“Did Mel say that?”
“Yes, and I secretly observed her a few times. I once overheard her muttering in the kitchen that there’s no way the master could’ve done such a thing, and then she started ruffling her hair. She’s definitely confusing the novel with reality.”
Andy spoke with conviction, and she didn’t seem to be lying at all.
Well, if Mel Greenwood had been acting suspiciously, the mansion wouldn’t be so peaceful.
Anyone who had closely observed Count Arnold would know he wasn’t the type to commit murder.
Thanks to the timid yet prideful Count, the maids in the mansion, including Andy, seemed to have a solid belief that the novel was fictional.
Still, Hermia couldn’t shake off her uneasy feelings.
‘What if my father is truly a murderer? Or… what if the Duke marries Mel Greenwood instead of me?’
No, in truth, she knew better than anyone why she felt this way.
The fear of being cast out as the daughter of a murderer and having her marriage fall through, leaving her penniless.
Hermia squeezed her eyes shut tightly as if trying to hold back tears. There could hardly be a worse ending than that.
“By the way, breakfast time has passed and no one has come to call us.”
Andy mumbled as she looked at the quiet doorway.
‘It seems the self-reflection order issued yesterday afternoon hasn’t ended yet.’
Hermia nodded calmly at this reality that wasn’t particularly surprising.
“You go ahead and eat breakfast. Don’t starve because of me.”
“I was going to! So you rest!”
What an ungrateful ally she was. Watching Andy hop out of the room, Hermia returned to bed. She needed to calm her mind for now.
As soon as she lay down her weary body, her empty stomach began to rumble loudly. Even amidst all this turmoil, her body was still honest about its hunger.
From past experiences, she knew that sleep was the best remedy for hunger. After tossing and turning all night, fortunately, drowsiness soon washed over her.
As she closed her eyes and took deep breaths without resistance, suddenly the door burst open again.
“Please knock next time…”
“Lady! You need to get up right now! A letter has arrived from the Duke’s household about setting a date for your engagement!”
Andy rushed in with an excited expression. At once, Hermia sprang up from bed.
“With whom? Me? Am I getting engaged? With the Duke?”
“Of course it’s you; do you think it would be Mel?”
Andy hurriedly brought a light dress from the dressing room and began helping Hermia put it on.
“If you knew the proposed date, you’d faint on the spot!”
As she awkwardly slipped her arms into the sleeves while stumbling around, Hermia hurriedly left her bedroom and headed toward the dining room. There awaited her were Count and Countess Vansen, already finished with their meal and enjoying dessert.
“Welcome. Are you hungry? You should eat breakfast.”
“Yes. Dieting is good but too much of anything can be harmful.”
Hermia hid her rapidly cooling expression as she sat down in a chair. It seemed her father had told them she was on a diet.
As soon as she sat down, warm food was laid out on the table. Although it amounted to little more than a plate of thin consommé and a round piece of bread.
Looking at her stepmother for confirmation on whether it was truly okay to eat this dish brought a gentle smile from her.
“You always liked this since you were little. Hurry up and eat before it gets cold.”
“That’s…”
Hermia instinctively closed her mouth out of habit.
The only food she could eat until full before coming to Vansen House was consommé cooked with as much broth as possible.
Other dishes were unfamiliar or made her feel self-conscious; thus, for months she had only polished off bowls of consommé while Count and Countess Vansen mistakenly believed that this was what she liked.
Still, seeing them prepare dishes they themselves didn’t enjoy indicated they must have been pleased by receiving word from Duke’s household regarding their engagement.
Engagements aside; first things first—she needed to fill her growling stomach. With an eager expression on her face, she picked up a spoon.
“Thank you for the meal.”
As soon as she sat before steaming food that smelled delightful, her appetite surged. Just as she was about to take a spoonful of warm broth into her mouth, Countess Vansen struck up a conversation at just the right moment.
“So what did you talk about when you met with the Duke yesterday? He seemed completely smitten with you!”
“Huh?”
Putting down her spoon and looking up revealed an excited face close by. With only blinking eyes, Hermia answered honestly,
“I don’t think we really talked about anything specific…”
“It’s her looks! Se takes after me; she’s blessed with good looks.”
Count Arnold, with chocolate smeared all over his face while eating an éclair, alternated pointing his fork between his and his daughter’s face.
Countess wiped her husband’s mouth with a linen cloth and calmly remarked,
“That’s true. If Hermia didn’t look exactly like you, I probably wouldn’t have been able to love this child so much.”
“That’s something to be thankful for. Waang.”
“……”
Despite their daily bickering, the couple seemed to have a good relationship. While I consciously turned my gaze away and placed a piece of meat on my spoon, the Countess clapped her hands.
Ah. Was she doing that on purpose? It seemed like a reasonable suspicion.
“The Duke wants to hold the engagement ceremony next week to coincide with my birthday party.”
“Next week?”
“Yes. He even suggested our house as the venue! The wedding will be at the cathedral, so he wants to have the engagement ceremony at our place.”
“But… that day is my mother’s birthday.”
If both the birthday party and engagement ceremony were held simultaneously, it would be hard for her to get any attention. I couldn’t easily understand the Countess’s cheerful demeanor.
“Dear, it’s a golden opportunity for the guests of Duke Rockford to visit our home!”
That made sense. I almost misjudged my stepmother.
“Of course, the Duke’s military academy classmates will attend as well? Oh my! They are all from elite families in the capital!”
“Then will some senators come too?”
“I need to reply immediately asking for the guest list!”
Count Arnold’s eyes sparkled with excitement, stained with remnants of his meal. Hermia, who had just started eating, had long been forgotten in their conversation.
As she quietly sipped her consommé, she felt her heart calm down after having raced when coming down the stairs.
Seeing the couple excited about how all costs for the birthday party and engagement would be covered by the Duke’s family made her own excitement fade away.
After that, plans for hiring a new pastry chef and gardener and decorating the parlor for use as a lounge continued for quite some time.
Taking advantage of her parents’ distraction, Hermia handed an empty plate to the kitchen maid. “Just one more serving…”
After glancing around cautiously and whispering, the maid quickly took away the plate. Thanks to a letter from the Duke’s family, she was enjoying this luxury after a long time.
‘Walter Rockford, are you perhaps an angel sent from heaven?’
—
In just a few days, Countess Vansen’s residence became far more extravagant than before.
Since all expenses would be covered by the Duke’s family upon presenting receipts, the Countess and her husband replaced even furniture unrelated to the party with brand new items.
First, they changed the curtains and sofas; the next day, they installed a crystal chandelier twice as large.
Even though it wasn’t fireplace season, they replaced bricks surrounding the fireplace with new ones and changed out tools for ones adorned with angel decorations.
When she saw that the red carpet covering the floor had suddenly turned blue overnight, she couldn’t help but chuckle.
‘If they’re going to do this, they might as well buy a new house.’
Hermia returned to her room while cynically surveying their mansion. Then her expression darkened at the noise coming from outside.
The couple’s ambitious remodeling plans extended beyond just inside their home; they were also renovating outside.
Currently, construction was underway in their garden. They were building a fountain!
Workers who had dug up earth and connected waterways were now stacking stones in a circular shape to form its base.
Could a fountain even fit in such a cramped garden? And such a large one at that!
‘This is so out of place!’
Frowning deeply, Hermia closed the terrace door. The loud noises at night were unbearable and made it impossible for her to sleep.
Given that construction continued until dawn, she imagined that overtime pay would also be considerable; however, it was unthinkable for her parents—who usually deducted any damages caused by staff from their wages—to even consider such expenses now that it was someone else’s money.
“This is all possible because it’s someone else’s money. Damn it.”
“Pardon…?”
Lucy entered carrying bath salts and towels, tilting her head in confusion.
“It’s nothing.”
“I sometimes think you talk to yourself quite a bit…”
Yes indeed; she always had something to say in her soft voice.
As Hermia scratched her head inwardly mocking Lucy’s observation while stepping into the bathroom, she suddenly remembered something curious and asked,
“By the way, how has Mel been doing lately? I haven’t seen her around much in the mansion.”
“Mel? She’s just like usual… breaking dishes while washing them… ruining clothes while doing laundry…”
She must not be very competent at all.
“I mean anything unusual or strange happening?”
As Lucy poured bath oil into the tub and stirred it around lazily shaking her head, she said,
“She used to act strangely a few times but has been quiet lately… Was it after visiting Doctor Isaac?”
Hermia’s eyes widened at those words.
“Mel went to see a doctor?”
“Yes… She doesn’t have much money since she spends most of her salary on repaying debts… but I heard she’s been to see him twice already…”
The common doctor whom Mel visited was supported by Hermia’s father’s half-brother who had died in an accident—Jack Vansen—recorded as having lost his life unexpectedly.
What if that doctor recognized Mel? It was too unsettling; everything felt like an unsolvable mystery looming over her mind.
“Please stop asking questions and hurry up and wash. I’m busy these days…”
“Oh right. Okay.”
With complex feelings swirling within her mind, Hermia dipped her feet into lukewarm water.
