Chapter 54
“It’s probably that way, isn’t it?”
Hermia said, and even the naive Mel fully agreed.
Hermia looked at her for a moment before speaking:
“The property your father hid belongs to you, so you decide what to do.”
Mel hesitated, seriously locking eyes with Hermia, and then waved her hands in a fluster.
“No, no I’ll just do what you say, miss. That seems better.”
“Alright. We’ll just take the cash. We won’t touch the Countess’s jewelry. This isn’t ours.”
“Yes, understood!”
Mel nodded firmly.
“Okay. Can you bring some empty bags from the Countess’s bedroom? They should be in the dressing room.”
“Yes I’ll get them right away!”
Mel turned around with a quicker motion than a soldier. Hermia sat on a wine box, silently watching Mel’s back as she left the storage room.
“She really isn’t greedy.”
If it were me, I wouldn’t be able to give it up.
As her excitement subsided, a face came to mind. Who else but Walter Rockford, the man who wouldn’t listen no matter what I said
“Hmm…”
Three hundred million and the Duke. The Duke and three million. In other words, marriage and freedom.
The scales that had leaned towards Walter until Mel found the safe now balanced again.
Am I really that materialistic?
“Yes, that’s right. I was born this way. What can I do about it?”
She acknowledged this helplessly, and her fingers, which were crossed, began to fidget restlessly. Marrying Walter and giving Mel the title of Countess didn’t seem so bad…
But seeing the three hundred million in front of her made her waver.
Choosing between a wealthy but thorny married life and a peaceful commoner’s life was too difficult.
“I’m going crazy.”
Hermia bit her thumbnail and let out a deep sigh.
A little later, Mel returned with large suitcases and small bags. Hermia started packing the cash into the suitcases.
As Mel helped enthusiastically, she noticed a flat box and opened it out of curiosity, tapping Hermia’s back.
“What about this?”
Hermia stopped organizing the money and turned her head.
Inside the box, which had the logo of Madame Sophia’s shop, was a familiar necklace that shone brightly.
“So, this is where it was kept.”
The intricately crafted blue diamond sparkled in her eyes.
It was the engagement gift she had exchanged for a sandwich and danced with Walter while wearing it.
The memory felt like it belonged to a distant past.
“It’s a pity, but I should return this.”
Simply keeping a letter and holding onto a valuable necklace were not on the same level.
“…Hey, Mel. Can you really give up all this gold?”
Hermia asked cautiously after a while. Mel hesitated, then smiled wryly in agreement.
“Let’s use it to buy our freedom.”
“How?”
“If we want to make the Duke give up his marriage, this is the only way.”
“Ah!”
For once, Mel understood immediately and covered her face with both hands. After a while, she removed them, looking determined.
“If we give him the gold… will he leave us alone?”
“Maybe.”
There was no certainty, but they had to believe it. If they just broke off the engagement and ran, the Duke would surely chase them.
But seeing the enormous amount of gold on the floor, would he still do that? By any standard, taking the gold was the obvious choice.
“I doubt even my father knew about this. If he had, he would’ve sold it long ago and lived a flashy life.”
“Exactly. That lady—not the madam, just that woman—would’ve caused an even bigger fuss.”
“Rather than giving the gold to those two, wouldn’t it be better to give it to the Duke and gain our freedom?”
“Well…”
Mel’s voice trailed off, her face on the verge of tears. It was unfair to use her father’s legacy this way, but they had no other choice.
“Yeah, you’re right. I could never stand to see that woman win.”
Hermia found some courage in Mel’s words and said:
“Or I could marry the Duke, and you could legally inherit this gold. Then you’d become incredibly rich.”
Mel burst into tears at the suggestion.
“No! I said no! What if Walter takes the gold and kills us?!”
“Okay, okay.”
There it was again—the theory that Walter was some kind of villain. Hermia sighed as she tried to calm the panicked Mel.
‘What a shame.’
She also regretted leaving the buried treasure. If Mel had agreed to the last proposal, things might have turned out differently. However, in the end, they decided on a peaceful commoner’s life.
Unlike when they first found the money, Hermia’s heart felt heavy. Her mood changed dozens of times a day, more volatile now than during her turbulent teenage years.
“…”
Mel gazed at Hermia’s profile, her hands moving but her mind elsewhere.
It seemed that her cousin didn’t quite believe what she was saying. That was understandable.
‘I think the miss likes Walter. But that’s not good. It’s really dangerous.’
As Hermia turned around, feeling Mel’s gaze, Mel quickly looked down and handed her the bundle of cash.
* * *
The two of them cleaned up the messy floor and left the basement, each carrying a suitcase full of money and a few pieces of dried meat.
Seeing the heavy suitcase swinging in Mel’s hand made Hermia’s restless mind calm down a bit.
“s long as we don’t lose the bags, we won’t have to worry about robbers.”
“You don’t have to worry! Anyone who tries to come close, I’ll turn them into mush!”
Mel’s confident expression had a solid basis. It was probably why she had been able to roam the streets safely as a girl.
Believing it wasn’t true, Hermia decided to ask anyway.
“Have you ever actually beaten someone up that badly? You didn’t… kill anyone, did you?”
“Huh? No! Probably… they didn’t die… I think?”
“…Right.”
It seemed something had happened. Hermia didn’t pry further and quietly distanced herself, shaking off the image of the crushed safe from her mind.
Anyway, since they had unexpectedly gained a large sum of money, it was time to make concrete plans. Even if Walter gave up, another problem remained.
Would the Count and his wife just let their illegitimate child disappear with 300 million persos? It was laughable.
They would probably claim she was kidnapped by thieves rather than admit she stole the money and ran away.
“Maybe we should go abroad…”
It would be better if they could stay in the country, but if they were wanted, it would be only a matter of time before they were caught, given their noticeable appearance.
Hermia decided to gather information with Mel. They fetched newspapers from beside the firewood and began rummaging through the Count’s study.
* * *
Since Walter’s men had left behind plenty of food supplies, there was no need to sneak out. Days passed with them holed up in the mansion, buried under piles of books.
“I think the Delphion Republic sounds like a good place! They don’t have a king there, and—Miss?”
Mel, who had been reading a book titled International Society – Northern Continent Edition, called out to Hermia.
“Huh? What did you say?”
Hermia asked, turning her head without moving from her position.
The newspaper she was holding had been open to the same page for a while.
“Did you hear what I said?”
“Uh… you said something about the Ainos Kingdom, didn’t you?”
“That’s on the Southern Continent. We already ruled it out because we don’t speak the language.”
“Ah, right. Where was it again?”
“…Nothing. It’s late today, so let’s stop here and look again tomorrow.”
Mel smiled awkwardly, put down the book, and stood up. Hermia got up from the sofa and headed towards the stairs.
“Goodnight, Mel. I mean, Melissa.”
“Goodnight.”
Mel watched Hermia’s back as she walked away, then lay down in the same spot where Hermia had been. She tilted her head, wondering what Hermia was thinking.
What’s up there? Is there something on the ceiling?
The ceiling had paintings of mythological heroes and angels. Why did Hermia keep staring at such ordinary ceiling art?
Mel couldn’t understand Hermia at all.
* * *
“I love you, Hermia.”
Walter leaned in, his head bowed, ready for a kiss. This was definitely a kiss. She had to do it properly this time. And the Duke was handsome even in her dreams…
Wait, a dream?
“Miss! Miss!”
Hermia woke up to her body being shaken, just like the day before, with Mel’s face right in front of her. She was tired of being startled.
“Get up!”
“Are you hungry again? I made consommé for dinner. You can heat it up…”
“I already ate that. Look at this!”
Mel pulled Hermia’s nightgown, which was stretched out.
“Someone from the royal family came and gave this to me. They didn’t even send it by mail; they delivered it personally!”
Still half-asleep, Hermia groggily took the item in Mel’s hands.
“What is this?”
“It’s an invitation from the Queen!”
“…What?”
The sudden noise woke Hermia up completely. She lifted the golden card in her hand.
“What is this? A ball?”
She rubbed her eyes and read it again. The high-quality card with the royal seal was familiar, but the content, written in elegant handwriting, was even more ominous than before.
[Chamberlain Steward Johan Hennesy, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen, invites ‘Hermia Vansen, daughter of the Count to a ball at Bridget Palace.]
