Chapter 13 – Part 5

After returning to the mansion, Kristin checked once more for the tasks she needed to accomplish before the next morning.

While doing so, she received a bouquet from a maid, which had been sent by Raphael.

The bouquet, composed of red roses and lilies, was hard to come by in early autumn.

The maid explained that the flowers were grown in a specialized glass garden within the Empire.

Although these flowers were typically available only in spring or summer, cultivating them like this was no small feat.

Kristin had often heard from Lenci that her brother found growing flowers quite troublesome and that it was difficult to maintain the right temperature.

However, since nobles wanted to decorate their homes with flowers year-round, Oliver had gone into significant debt to acquire a small glass garden.

It was a modest 10-pyeong glass garden, while Raphael’s was said to be nearly 100-pyeong in size. The flowers grown in that glass garden were hard to obtain unless one was quite wealthy.

Looking at the bouquet delivered to her, Kristin considered sending it back but decided to keep it in a corner of her room for the time being.

Even if she returned it to Raphael, he would surely refuse to accept it.

Kristin sighed lightly as she looked at the bouquet and hurried to prepare for her outing.

“Are you going out again today? ”Lenci asked Kristin.

“Yes, I am. I have quite a few places to go today. I need to meet Lady Beatrice Charlotte and a doctor the day after tomorrow.”

As Kristin spoke to Lenci, she suddenly paused, sensing that someone might be outside the door.

Since returning from her outing yesterday, her father has been persistently questioning her about his meetings with Princess Selena, which have been quite exhausting.

She couldn’t forget the glances Elena and Rose directed at her while she was with her father, making her cautious even about speaking in her room.

Seeing the door shake intermittently while she spoke to Lenci made her hesitate further.

If someone outside was listening, it would likely be maid Cindy or Elena, so Kristin intentionally continued speaking.

“I plan to meet Lady Beatrice Charlotte to look for dresses, and since I haven’t been feeling well lately, I’m planning to see a doctor.”

“My Lady?”

As Kristin spoke, she gestured for Lenci to be quiet, placing a finger on her lips and pointing toward the door.

Lenci seemed to understand Kristin’s gesture and nodded in response.“I’ve noticed you haven’t been well lately. I’ve been so worried.”

*Cough*

“It seems I’ve been feeling worse since I fainted at the debutante ball.” After finishing her statement, Kristin gathered her pouch and whispered to Lenci.

“I plan to ask Lady Beatrice Charlotte for my mother’s inheritance and use the money for the injured miners at the Levi Mine. After that, I’ll return home to observe my father and stepmother’s reactions. If they’ve seen the obituary published in the newspaper, they will probably be in a good mood.”

“I’ve been curious about that too. I wondered why you published the obituary in the newspaper.”

Lenci, who had been curious about the person named Finn Declan since yesterday, spoke in a cautious tone, and Kristin lowered her voice to respond.

“As you know from visiting Lady Beatrice Charlotte’s boutique, I had no choice but to do it this way to meet him. If I were to seek him out directly, my father and stepmother would suspect me. They would try to keep the doctor away from me.”

“That makes sense,” Lenci replied, looking a bit startled.

“If someone reads their obituary, they’d find it odd and wonder who published it. My best option now is to act without arousing suspicion.”

After hearing Kristin’s words, Lenci’s eyes widened.

The lady she knew was not the type to speak of someone else’s death lightly.

After listening to Kristin, Lenci felt she understood her intentions.

If Vernon and his wife were connected to the previous viscountess’s death, they would want to keep that fact hidden. If they learned that the doctor associated with that death had died, they would be the happiest of all.

“I think I understand what you mean, my Lady. Anyway, I’ll prepare the carriage for you today.”

“Alright. I’ll be out shortly, so please wait outside for a moment.”

After finishing her words, as Lenci turned the doorknob to leave, they heard the sound of someone quickly running away outside the door. Kristin felt relieved that the soundproofing in the house wasn’t perfect.

“Lenci?”

“Yes, my Lady.”

As Lenci opened the door, Kristin spoke to her.”Thank you for being helpful.”

“Oh, it’s nothing, my Lady.”

“Once things are settled, I’ll send you to the academy. Just wait a little longer until then.”

At the mention of the academy, Lenci’s face flushed instantly.

Perhaps she was imagining herself attending the academy, as a smile remained on her face.

Seeing this, Kristin couldn’t help but smile back at Lenci.

“I’m the one who should be grateful for thinking of a maid like me. Anyway, I’ll go prepare the carriage.”

After replying, Lenci headed downstairs. As Kristin was about to leave her room, she caught sight of her mother’s photo. Locking eyes with her mother in the picture, Kristin spoke.

“Mother, I’ll take care of everything. Rest assured.”

—As Kristin was about to leave the mansion, Elena and Rose deliberately avoided speaking to her. They had already heard from Cindy about where Kristin was going today.

They thought Kristin was quite foolish for not being careful while talking in her room. Although she had changed compared to before, there were still noticeable gaps in her actions.

Moreover, Elena was annoyed by the large bouquet Kristin received from Raphael. She wanted to throw it to the ground and stomp on it, but it was a gift from a Duke, something she couldn’t just dismiss.

Elena could only watch, but her mother, Rose, who understood her feelings well, spoke first.

“Elena?”

“Yes, Mother.”

“Your goal is still to become the duchess, isn’t it?”

Rose asked while sitting in the living room chair, looking out the window. Elena frowned, wondering why her mother was asking something so obvious. Rose continued a slight smile on her lips.

“I’ve thought of an amusing way to get Kristin out of this mansion. I’m curious about your opinion.”

“What, Mother?”

Elena’s eyes lit up with excitement as she smiled in response.

“What interesting method do you have? Is there a way to get rid of her? She’s so insufferable.”

“Haha, seeing Kristin still running around without knowing her place reminds me of the late Viscountess Elesia. If she had just died in that accident, I wouldn’t have had to bring poison. The Viscount wouldn’t have had to face any embarrassment either.”

“Uh, Mother? Poison? What do you mean? ”

When Elena asked in confusion, Rose placed her teacup on the table and replied slowly, maintaining a nonchalant expression.

“I merely got rid of a little pest that was bothering me, dear. Don’t worry about it. I think it’s time for me to take action.”

Rose felt it was time to execute her plan.“Goodbye, Kristin.”

Her heart was filled with anger directed at Kristin.

“If we can’t kill her, we can at least make sure she’s out of sight, Elena.”

Elena smiled brightly at her mother’s words.