Chapter 9

Chapter 9

A day had passed. Unlike the day before, Catherine entered her room right on time.

After finishing a long three-hour morning reading session with Catherine, Diana received a report from Shane that the hiring of the new staff had been completed.

“It’s all ready, Your Highness.”

“Thank you, Shane.”

This would be enough to completely replace the staff loyal to Alicia with her own people. Diana asked Shane to gather them all in one place.

Then she made her way to where the staff had assembled.

“Hello.”

Diana slowly scanned the maids and servants standing before her, then greeted them with a gentle voice.

At her respectful greeting, their shoulders flinched in surprise.

The nobles they knew were usually arrogant, haughty, or used feigned politeness as a mask for their pride.

But Diana was different. Wearing a gentle smile and speaking in a clear, serene voice like flowing spring water, she even gave a small bow.

Such courtesy toward maids and servants was unheard of. Flustered, they bowed deeply in response.

Still smiling, Diana spoke again.

“Would you all please show me your palms?”

They had thought their employment was confirmed — but was it not? Nervously, they extended their hands.

Since they had come from various jobs, their palms were rough and dirty.

Diana took out several prepared pouches. She then personally placed one in each person’s hand, holding their hands gently.

Startled by the unexpected pouches and the sound of something clinking inside, the staff didn’t dare open them at first and just exchanged confused glances.

“Please, open them.”

Diana said brightly. Only then did they begin untying the strings with hurried fingers.

Inside were small, colorful gems.

Everyone gasped and murmured in astonishment. It was easily worth a year’s salary — perhaps even three.

“This is your one-month salary.”

The staff’s jaws dropped in disbelief. That much money for just one month? It was hard to believe.

But Diana continued, her voice calm and full of authority.

“While you work in this estate, I will treat each of you with the utmost respect. Just like those gems inside your pouches.”

Their eyes trembled. Never before had any noble said something like this to them.

“I will not treat you like beasts just because you are maids or servants, like so many other nobles do.”

Without money or noble titles, they were treated no better than lowly animals.

“To me, what matters most is your character and your hearts.”

And yet, the woman who would now be their mistress was telling them that what mattered was their integrity — their hearts.

“There may come a time when hardships leave you vulnerable, and you’re tempted by an offer.”

Diana was sure that even if she replaced all the staff, Alicia would eventually reach out again with her influence.

Money was all Alicia had to offer. These people must not be swayed by a few gold coins.

“If… ‘someone’ offers you money and tries to get you to do ‘something’…”

Her veiled eyes gleamed sharply.

“Then come to me. I will give you more than they offer.”

Their expressions stiffened. They didn’t know everything about her yet.

But one thing was clear — her voice carried an undeniable weight of trust.

Satisfied by the expressions she saw, Diana raised the corners of her mouth.

“I need people who are truly mine. I sincerely hope none of you will lose your hearts over mere gold coins.”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

Each one of them replied firmly, their eyes brimming with new hope. Diana clapped her hands, the sound sharp and cheerful.

“Well then, let’s all go unpack. The current staff is still here for the rest of the day, so let’s meet again tomorrow.”

It was time to get rid of Alicia’s staff.

“Let’s return to the quarters, Shane.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Pretending not to see, Diana took Shane’s arm and headed to the servants’ quarters. As ordered, the current staff were slowly packing their things.

“Gasp—Your Highness!”

The maids who were packing dropped to their knees when they saw Diana and clutched at the hem of her dress, sobbing.

Diana looked down at them coldly.

“What is the meaning of this display?”

“What did we do wrong to be dismissed like this…!”

What did they do wrong? Diana nearly laughed in disbelief.

They had turned their backs on her and tried to harm her, all for a few coins. Their audacity was beyond reason.

“What did you do wrong?”

As Diana asked in a frigid tone, their sobs gradually died down. They couldn’t deny it.

“Why are you asking me?”

She wanted so badly to spell it out, but she couldn’t. If she revealed what they had done, they would surely run straight to Alicia.

At her cold response, they finally gave up begging and left, dragging their packed belongings behind them.

“Your Highness, what should we do about Julia?”

Shane, who had checked that the others were gone, came to ask.

Julia hadn’t packed yet — perhaps because she had stepped out or gone to see Alicia.

“Leave her for now.”

“Yes, understood.”

Head maid, Julia. While the other servants might not know much, she undoubtedly was aware of Alicia’s schemes.

For now, she was still a useful card. To Diana, Julia was like a vault of secrets that needed to be broken into.

Having sorted her thoughts to some extent, Diana stretched and said,

“Well then, shall we go meet my teacher?”

“Your teacher?”

“Yes.”

Diana glanced at Shane and smiled. Today was her first lesson with Rueri, as promised.

She recalled the day they first met—his fiery red hair fluttering under the dazzling starlight and night sky.

When the memory of his sweet voice, which tickled her ears, came to mind, Diana couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle.

Belinda, who had been quietly watching her, spoke calmly.

“I’ll stand guard at the entrance, Your Highness.”

“Thank you, Belinda.”

Before she realized it, Belinda had finished her personal training and had come to her side. Diana headed to the garden that was directly visible from the terrace of her room.

Before entering the rose garden, there was a fairly large open space in front of the terrace. It was the perfect spot to learn magic.

Upon arriving in the garden, Diana lifted her gold watch. This time, she promised herself she wouldn’t be surprised. She swallowed nervously.

And the moment both the long and short hands pointed exactly to twelve, Rueri appeared in a flash before her eyes.

“Hi, Diana!”

“Hello, Rueri.”

He wore the same cheerful smile as before. No—it was closer to the look of someone absolutely overjoyed.

What’s gotten him so excited? It seemed he was genuinely looking forward to their lesson too.

“I’ve been waiting for today.”

As if he had read her thoughts, Rueri gave her a playful wink.

“Huh? What?”

“You’re my first student ever. Isn’t that an honor?”

Diana burst into laughter at his cheeky grin. It was probably the first time she had laughed so freely since her return.

“Well, that’s quite the honor.”

She responded with a bright smile to his lighthearted comment.

“Alright then, let’s get started. What have you learned so far?”

Diana rubbed her chin, deep in thought. It had been so long since she last used magic, she felt embarrassed to even say she’d learned anything.

“…I think I need to start from the beginning.”

She replied sheepishly, clearly a little flustered. Rueri noticed her shoulders shrinking in embarrassment.

He flashed a big grin and gently patted her shoulder.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. We’ll just start now. Come on. Straighten up!”

“…Okay.”

Still lacking confidence, Diana obeyed and straightened her back.

“Let’s begin by releasing your mana. It’s super easy.”

Rueri opened his palm. A small flame, the same red as his hair, flickered.

A glow of red mana flared, and the flame danced beautifully above his hand.

“You know each mana has its own attribute, right? Mine’s fire, as you can tell.”

Magicians were rare in the empire. Very few were born with the talent for magic.

Each person’s mana had a natural attribute, and they could only cast magic related to that attribute.

Diana recalled memories from her past. The attribute of the mana she had released as a child was ice.

Now that she thought about it, the icy attribute suited her well—cold and full of unspoken grief.

As she remained silent in thought, she realized Rueri was staring at her and jumped in surprise, replying in a very small voice.

“Ah, yes. Mine was… ice.”

“Alright. Let’s try it out.”

Diana took a deep breath. It had been so long, she wasn’t sure she’d succeed.

With a nervous heart, she opened her palm wide and closed her eyes.

She felt a ripple within her. And in that moment, her eyes flew open.

“Huh?”

A tiny piece of ice, no bigger than a child’s fingernail, plopped onto her palm.

“…Ha.”

She hadn’t expected it to go that poorly. Her cheeks turned red in an instant—like blazing apples.

“Hmm. Okay. Let me see your hand.”

Rueri tilted his head this way and that before gently taking her outstretched hand and opening her palm.

“Just relax your hand like now, and when you feel the energy gather, release it with a snap! You get what I mean?”

He demonstrated with his own hand after opening hers.

She started to understand the feeling he described. With a serious expression, Diana nodded.

She closed her eyes again and focused on the mana in her body. The moment she felt it rising, she sharply extended her palm.

“Ohhh! You did it!”

A crystal-like column of ice burst from her hand. Blue mana surrounded it with a shimmering glow.

The ice crystal that bloomed above her palm shone with a beautiful blue hue—just like Rueri’s eyes.

Rueri grinned as if he had succeeded himself. Overjoyed, Diana instinctively grabbed both of his hands and shook them up and down.

“…Lady.”

Still holding Rueri’s hands, Diana turned her head toward the source of the voice.

Standing there was Calypso—his face painted with disbelief.