Let’s Just Make a Child, Your Grace - Chapter 9 Part 3

“Your words are most just. But is that enough? Someone dared to touch the Duchess’s belongings? What about the Duchess’s dignity? You mustn’t become a worthless mistress who keeps thieving servants. Isn’t that right, Duchess?”

Taken aback by Arne’s demeanor, the Duchess faltered. Every time she cut off Arne’s limbs, Arne would bow her head. She would prostrate herself and beg for forgiveness.

But today, Arne was taking the lead instead. An uneasy sense of dissonance overlapped, but what could Arne possibly do?

“Duchess, it’s not here. It seems we’ll have to search the maid’s quarters to find the culprit.”

“Let’s go.”

The Duchess glared at Arne as she turned around. Arne noticed Betty’s empty spot, which had disappeared at some point.

* * *

Everyone followed the Duchess down to the maid’s quarters. At some point, Betty had returned to the Duchess’s side, catching her breath.

Originally, Betty was supposed to distract everyone while Agatha secretly placed it in Penny’s drawer.

But for some reason, Agatha was nowhere to be seen. It had been a bit of trouble because of that, but everyone knew that all the maids here were on the Duchess’s side anyway.

Betty gave a signal with her eyes, and Bianca’s dedicated maid nodded. They began to search the quarters thoroughly.

Penny, with a tearful face, spoke to Arne.

“My lady, I really didn’t do it. I really didn’t steal it. Please believe me!”

“I know. Don’t tremble.”

Hearing their conversation, Betty approached Penny’s drawer with a sneer. She opened the drawer with a clatter.

“Duchess! Here, here……”

Betty’s confident voice calling the Duchess faded.

‘It should be here, right?’

Betty shook Penny’s drawer thoroughly. She even pulled it out and turned it upside down, dropping a few pieces of old underwear and a comb.

“There’s underwear and a comb here. Is there anything else, Betty?”

At Arne’s sharp question, silence fell over the room. Arne’s lips rose slowly and elegantly.

She had asked Rein for a crystal ball magic tool in the shape of a pearl necklace. It had three functions. Two of them had been activated. It would always return to Arne’s hand and could disguise itself as a pearl necklace.

Thanks to Betty drawing everyone’s attention properly while opening Penny’s drawer, that pearl necklace was now in someone else’s drawer.

“What are you doing? We should continue to find the culprit.”

Seeing the flustered Duchess, Arne leisurely began to overturn each drawer, starting with Bianca’s dedicated maid’s.

The last one left was Betty’s drawer. A tense atmosphere flowed through the maid’s quarters. Everyone’s heads turned towards Betty.

Even though she knew it couldn’t be, Betty’s hands trembled. Arne opened the drawer while looking at such a Betty.

Thud.

It was the pearl necklace.

A chilling silence flowed. Arne stared intently at Betty, who couldn’t close her mouth in disbelief.

Countless times, Betty had handed Arne teacups containing mana perfume. Arne would grab Betty’s skirt hem at her feet, clutching her throat in pain and begging for water almost like a beggar.

She had never forgotten the strange satisfaction in Betty’s eyes as she held out the water glass.

‘I thought I had seen wrong then. Because I couldn’t understand at all why she was enjoying it.’

However, the moment she met Betty’s eyes, who had framed an innocent maid who had only been kind to Arne and broken her wrist, she was certain.

It was clearly pleasure. She rejoiced in the moments when Arne was thoroughly isolated, suffering and clinging.

‘I was curious about the reason at least once. Why you hated me so much when I hadn’t done anything to you.’

“Why did you do it?”

At Arne’s voice, so cold that not even a breath could be heard, Betty pressed her trembling hands firmly, but the shaking wouldn’t stop.

“I didn’t steal it! This shouldn’t have come out of here, how……”

“You speak as if you had decided exactly where it should be. How dare you, after stealing the Duchess’s pearl necklace.”

Betty drew in a sharp breath. She looked at the Duchess and the group of maids, asking for help, but they kept their mouths shut.

Arne let out a chuckle, and her cold eyes slowly turned to the Duchess.

“Mother.”

As expected, the Duchess’s face contorted at the word ‘mother’. Arne’s voice continued elegantly.

“She dared to steal the Duchess’s pearl necklace. You should beat her severely. And drive her out so she can never set foot in the ducal residence again.”

The Duchess’s bewildered face, gradually hardening, was quite satisfying.

“Go ahead.”

Though her voice was gentle, her eyes were utterly cold. The Duchess sensed that she had fallen into the trap she herself had set.

Somehow, Arne had turned the tables on her instead. As she finally emerged from the shock, anger welled up at the thought that things had gone wrong.

‘Why did Betty make things turn out like this! What was she thinking, letting the necklace be found in her own drawer!’

If the Duchess personally searched the maid’s quarters and found the culprit but didn’t punish her properly, she would become the laughingstock of high society.

‘This is all Betty’s fault for making things turn out this way. She should have done her job properly. To make me fall for Arne’s scheme!’

What really angered her was that after all this, there was no gain.

‘Perhaps it’s for the best. I was worried that someone might call Betty as a witness to investigate Bianca’s misdeeds, but now I can get rid of her.’

Who would believe the words of a maid who stole from her master? They would think it was just slander or revenge for being expelled.

‘I wonder if she’ll even be able to stay in the capital in the first place.’

Having changed her mind, the Duchess calmly ordered the head maid.

“Punish severely the maid who dared to lay hands on the Duchess’s belongings.”

“Madam!”

A desperate cry escaped Betty’s lips.

“You can’t do this! I only did what Lady Bianca and Madam ordered……”

Slap. Betty’s words couldn’t continue. A long red wound appeared where the Duchess’s ring had scratched her as she struck her cheek.

“To even attempt slander, your crime is grave. Beat her severely.”

The standing maids hesitated, exchanging glances. Betty was a colleague. Moreover, she had been the most loyal among Bianca’s confidants.

At that moment, the head maid ordered Bianca’s dedicated maid.

“Bring the whip.”

“He-Head maid! Why are you doing this? It’s me, Betty!”

The head maid grabbed Betty by the collar and whispered.

“That’s why you should have done your job well. You’ve brought shame to the Duchess.”

“I did do it well. Surely in Penny’s……”

At that moment, the head maid shoved Betty hard, causing her to tumble to the floor.

“How foolish. Keeping your mouth shut would have meant fewer lashes.”

“Head maid! Aaagh!”

The head maid’s fierce whipping continued. The maids silently watched as Betty’s back turned red through her torn clothes.

Arne carefully observed the maids’ faces as they gradually turned ashen.

Those faces, gripped by fear as they directly witnessed the fate of Betty, who had followed the Duchess and Bianca.

Finally, to Betty who could barely walk, the Duchess spat out one last word.

“Drive her out. I can’t stand the sight of her.”

“Madam! If I’m driven out of the Ronia ducal residence like this, no one in the capital will hire me. Please, not that! La-Lady Bianca!”

Betty, her mind already hazy, dragged her feet and grabbed onto Bianca’s skirt, but Bianca irritably kicked her away.

“So annoying. Because of you, ugh.”

Bianca glared at Penny and Arne, then coldheartedly kicked away Betty who was clinging to her again, disgusted.

The Duchess frowned and said to Bianca.

“Let’s go.”

At that moment, Arne stopped the Duchess.

“Is this enough? She dared to lay hands on the Duchess’s precious pearl necklace. Why isn’t it like Julia before? Didn’t you break that maid’s wrist?”

As the Duchess turned around, Arne stood in front of Betty. Arne’s heel slowly and firmly pressed down on Betty’s wrist.

Looking down at Betty’s trembling eyes, Arne said.

“Are you scared? Betty, you broke Julia’s wrist yourself.”

“L-Lady Arne, I’m sorry.”

“Why are you apologizing to me? It was Julia’s wrist that was broken.”

“The Duchess ordered it! I didn’t mean to do it!”

“Then what about putting mana perfume in my tea and giving it to me? Did you think I wouldn’t know?”

“That too was all because Lady Bianca ordered me to! Please save me, Lady Arne!”

At that moment, the Duchess’s eyes completely changed.

‘Foolish Betty, you’re digging your own grave.’

What the Duchess feared most was the revelation of Bianca’s misdeeds all this time. And now she’s spilling everything so easily. If only she had kept her mouth shut, it would have ended here. But she probably doesn’t have the presence of mind for that.

Finally, a stern voice flowed from the Duchess’s lips.

“Head maid, dispose of Betty so that she can never steal or slander again.”

“Du-Duchess! La-Lady Arne, please save me! I really only did what I was told!”

In her desperation, Betty even grabbed onto Arne’s skirt. Arne bent down and slowly lifted Betty’s chin.