When Lara nodded, Kartun turned and asked, “Where are the others?”
“Because of the lightning……”
The lightning and thunder had already stopped, and the sky that had been so dark was now clear.
She reported to Kartun in a slightly dazed voice, “The search party should be down there.”
“Let’s go.”
“…Yes.”
Lara tried to stand but couldn’t put weight on her ankle. As she began to tilt, Kartun caught her.
He looked at her swollen ankle and then hoisted her onto his shoulder. He leapt lightly across the large boulders as if crossing stepping stones and exited the valley.
And so Kartun returned safely.
The people of the grand duchy breathed sighs of relief, and the knights enthusiastically welcomed the Grand Duke who had returned after k*lling the manticore.
Lara received her formal knighthood before even completing her apprenticeship and was assigned to his personal guard. Senior knights and peers congratulated her profusely over this unprecedented promotion.
But not everyone felt the same. Lara was bewildered, not understanding why. She hadn’t done anything to deserve such treatment.
Eventually, she asked Kartun directly, “Why me……”
His answer was simple: “You were brave. Promoting talented people early is also a leader’s ability.”
Another person with complaints was the oldest knight from the search party—the one who had suggested withdrawing that day because something felt wrong.
From the day Kartun appeared covered in hardening blood, the knight had been drinking heavily. When intoxicated, he would constantly mutter the same thing: “It’s strange. He doesn’t seem human.”
When people asked what he meant, he would clamp his mouth shut. Then he would stare blankly at Lara as if to say, “Don’t you know?”
Not long after, he quit being a knight and returned to his hometown.
Thus, Kartun’s disappearance concluded as a heroic tale.
Although the old knight’s drunken mutterings bothered her, it was only for a moment. After that day, Lara received training directly from Kartun.
Her skills improved rapidly, and she earned his deep trust through her exceptional steadfastness and loyalty. She became Kartun’s shadow, always by his side.
She couldn’t help but be amazed by his judgments that seemed to foresee the future.
Once, he evacuated five villages at once, claiming a great flood would come. The next day, heavy rain fell as he predicted, causing a landslide that completely wiped out those villages.
That wasn’t all. Scouts investigating near the forest under Kartun’s orders discovered a cave with numerous monster corpses buried inside. Monster remains traded at high prices, greatly benefiting the grand duchy’s finances. Similar incidents happened repeatedly.
The most surprising was his decision not to invest in Marquis Werner’s trade venture. He even threatened the grand duchy’s nobles to prevent anyone from investing.
When Werner returned after abandoning the trade, it sent chills down her spine.
Lara recalled once more what the old knight had said: “It’s strange. He doesn’t seem human.”
⁕⁕⁕
Lara spent the entire night recalling and examining the past.
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
When Lara got up and opened it, a maid was standing there.
“The air gets dry around this time every year. So we need to start Miss Daphne’s skin care routine today.”
“And?”
When Lara questioned her, the maid frowned.
“Go to the cellar and select some wine.”
“Why wine?”
“My goodness, how did you become Miss’s personal maid without knowing even this?”
The maid openly sighed. But Lara wasn’t one to be flustered by such things. She simply looked at the maid with an expression that said, “So what?”
The maid who had picked the quarrel looked her up and down once before saying curtly, “Noble people traditionally wash their faces with wine to care for their skin. And selecting the appropriate one every morning is the duty of a personal maid.”
“Ah…. I see.”
Lara almost snorted. It was too absurd.
She knew they lived more luxuriously than the grand duchy, but each day brought new surprises. How could they use something meant for drinking—and precious wine that commoners might have once a month if they were lucky—to wash their faces?
‘D*mn….’
Lara cursed inwardly as she headed to the wine cellar.
The cellar, built in the basement of the mansion with thick stones arranged in a dome shape, was enormous. Inside, wines were neatly displayed in rows.
“But what is she supposed to wash with……”
Lara had no way of knowing.
“D*mn it…. I should have asked her!”
She regretted it too late.
“I guess it wouldn’t be red wine?”
It seemed unlikely someone would put that red liquid on their face. Just as she ventured deeper into the cellar looking for white wine…
CLANK!
The sound of the cellar door closing echoed.
Lara ran to the door like lightning. The thick iron-barred door was not only firmly shut but also secured with a large padlock and chain.
Outside stood the maid who had told her to select wine, dangling the key teasingly.
“What are you doing? Open it now.”
Lara spoke quietly. A sharp, chilling k*lling intent spread around her. But the maid just shrugged her shoulders smugly.
“Sorry, I’d like to. But I received orders from someone higher than you. I’d help if I could, but my hands are tied.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Well…. I have no reason to tell you. We’re both maids, after all. And before you came, the position of Miss Daphne’s personal maid was mine.”
The maid smiled slyly, dangled the key in front of Lara’s face, and turned away.
“I can’t believe how confident she is when she’s just a stone that rolled in.”
She didn’t forget to grumble as she left.
The “embedded stone” maid went straight to Daphne and respectfully presented the key.
“Good work.”
Daphne tore a page from the checkbook Zenos had given her, wrote an amount, and handed it to the maid.
“Oh, Miss! This is too much!”
“Not at all. You must have suffered emotionally because of Lara. I need to give you at least this much to ease my conscience.”
The maid tearfully accepted the check that was practically forced into her hands and put it in her pocket.
“Would you help me prepare to go out?”
“Yes, Miss!”
The maid moved quickly with excitement.
⁕⁕⁕
Lara spent the entire night trying to calm her troubled mind. Normally, she could go three days without sleep without issue.
But perhaps because her mind was so complex, Lara had left her room with only the dagger she always carried like a part of her body, and ended up trapped in the wine cellar.
The thick stone walls were impenetrable, and the iron bars, built to protect expensive wine, were sturdier than those of most prisons.
At this point, even Lara had no options. She gripped the bars and shouted until her throat was raw, but being so deep underground, it was useless.
Having successfully gotten rid of Lara, Daphne left the house before government offices even opened. The maid, who had received a generous amount of gold coins, headed somewhere else instead of following Daphne.
Christine felt conflicted.
After the family dinner had ended so disastrously, the household atmosphere had grown even more somber.
Werner drank alcohol every day as if blaming himself. When she discreetly asked his aide and Anton about it, they only replied that they didn’t know.
Ludwig told Stephanie they should go home, but she insisted on staying. Eventually, he left in irritation.
Zenos left saying they didn’t need to serve truffles anymore and to never put them on the table again.
After that, Fabian hardly stayed at home. Daphne locked herself in her room and wouldn’t come out. Only Stephanie kept her company.
But even that had its limits.
Although her daughter-in-law was bright and affectionate, she was somehow demanding. It was as if she tried to reign over others like a superior.
Christine heaved a long sigh.
‘It’s always been like this.’
A foreign princess, a wicked woman who carried another man’s seed and deceived the Marquis. Rumors that she would be a wicked stepmother, even that she would drive out the children from the previous marriage and pass the family headship to Fabian.
Whenever she suffered from these absurd rumors, she worked even harder. She cared for Ludwig and Zenos more attentively than her own child and became the perfect example of a noblewoman in social circles.
She also put her heart into welcoming guests. Though Anton prepared most things, she personally took care of small details like the napkins for the table.
Focusing like that helped her forget the groundless accusations directed at her. And she found satisfaction in the praise guests offered for her flawless hospitality.
‘Yes, I’ll continue as I have been. Eventually, he will change his mind too.’
Translator
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bluemoon238
Instead of looking at what going on around her she listens only to strangers that know nothing about her family or care to? This is a whole another level of stupid. Go against the lord of the land, her husband, and the only reason she can be even remotely treated kindly. Go against the Emperor command, etc. When is she going to be stripped of all authority? Feels like her stupidity even rubbed off onto her stepson… sigh.