11. It was a scheme aimed at me from the beginning.

“What? Annie stole something?”

The Grand Duchess Eleonora, who was enjoying afternoon tea, hurriedly set down her teacup upon hearing the news from the head maid.

“Yes. I truly apologize, Your Grace. Annie is imprisoned in the underground dungeon for the crime of stealing Your Grace’s jewels.”

“What jewels are you talking about?”

“It’s the pearl necklace you received as an engagement gift. She was caught trying to hide it in a vase.”

At the head maid’s explanation, the Grand Duchess’s complexion turned pale. The atmosphere in the sunroom quickly dampened.

The maids, who had been doing embroidery or sorting mail, fell silent and merely fidgeted with their hands. Hailey also listened attentively without speaking.

“I heard that her family’s circumstances are quite dire. She has four younger siblings and sick parents to care for, and she was having a very hard time…”

“If that was the case, she should have been honest and asked me for help.”

The Grand Duchess wore an expression of pity. However, Baroness Darmang, the head maid, remained firm.

“Please don’t say that, Your Grace. That pearl necklace is a royal gift bestowed by His Majesty the Emperor. By laying her hands on such a precious jewel, Annie has committed an unforgivable crime.”

The head maid unusually spoke sternly to her mistress, but the Grand Duchess slowly shook her head.

“There’s still no definitive proof, is there?”

“She was caught in the act—what clearer proof could there be?”

Yet, the Duchess remained steadfast.

“The underground dungeon is a harsh and cold place. It’s not suitable for a young lady to endure, so we need to get her out first and hear the circumstances.”

The Grand Duchess stood up and commanded the maids.

“I will head to the Empress Dowager’s palace immediately, so prepare yourselves.”

“Are you going to see Her Majesty the Empress Dowager?”

Knowing that the Empress Dowager had been treating the Grand Duchess coldly, the head maid asked with an unwilling expression. Noticing the anxiety behind her words, the Grand Duchess replied firmly.

“The Empress Dowager is the highest authority in the palace. Surely, she will understand the unjust circumstances of the maidservants.”

However… that was a delusion of the Duchess Eleonora.

“How is the Duchess managing her subordinates?”

The angry voice of the Empress Dowager resonated throughout the audience chamber.

“To think someone dared to lay hands on the Imperial Palace’s tribute… How appalling. That shameless maid should be executed at once to restore order in the palace.”

This incident was a golden opportunity for the Empress Dowager, who wanted to tighten the palace’s regulations. The Duchess, who had come to the Empress Dowager’s residence to save a mere maidservant from the Detached Palace, had no choice but to return empty-handed.

***

The dining hall was filled with a gloomy atmosphere.

“So what kind of punishment will Annie get?”

“We don’t know yet. But it won’t be light.”

“Back during the former emperor’s time, if a maid or servant stole something, they would have their wrists cut off.”

“Oh my god, does that mean Annie’s wrist will be cut off too?”

Up to this point, there was sympathy for the motive.

“But I never thought Annie would be like that.”

“No matter how bad her situation is, stealing is still stealing.”

“So all that time she acted shy and sweet—it was all just an act?”

As the malicious gossip continued, Hailey silently chewed on her bread. The buttered, toasted bread felt bitter like mud today.

“By the way, wasn’t that vase supposed to be carried by Hailey?”

“Now that you mention it, that’s true.”

Feigning ignorance, Hailey chose not to respond, but the gossip continued.

“This is why commoners shouldn’t be chosen as maidservants.”

“Exactly, stealing? There’s a limit to how much one can disgrace the Duchess.”

The group occupying the noble table had already concluded that Annie and Hailey were thieves. And their leader, Olga…

“Your colleague committed such a crime, and you have nothing to say?”

She took the chance to pick a fight, looking Hailey straight in the eye.

“What do you want to hear?”

“Well, I doubt Annie planned this all by herself. So I was wondering if you might know something.”

Olga’s cunning eyes gleamed openly.

Tap.

Hailey set the spoon she was holding down on the table.

“Since you brought it up—am I Annie’s only close friend?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re trying to suggest there was an accomplice. Well then, I hope you realize that everyone in this dining hall could be seen as an accomplice.”

“……..”

“Oh, and who knows? Maybe this entire class of trainees will be expelled from the palace.”

At that remark, the trainee maidservants who were eating froze in their seats.

“Wha… what? Expelled?”

“If the Duchess handles this matter severely, then yes. Dismissing all of us who trained with Annie might be the best way to preserve her reputation.”

Of course, Hailey was confident that the benevolent Duchess Eleonora wouldn’t do such a ruthless thing, but her fellow trainees were not so sure.

“I worked so hard to get into the palace, and now I might be expelled…”

“I can’t let that happen. If my parents find out, I’m dead!”

Gasps of horror mixed with disbelief echoed around, but Hailey didn’t care and turned to the noble members this time.

“And even if we aren’t expelled, the stain of having a thief as a colleague will remain. Even if we are assigned to another palace later, that stain won’t be erased.”

This time, the faces of Olga’s group twisted in confusion.

‘I was planning to leave this shabby Detached Palace for another palace, but to be branded as an accomplice to a thief!’

No one had thought that far.

“Of course, it’s not something you precious daughters of noble families need to worry about. Anyway, enjoy your dinner!”

With a sweet smile, Hailey cheerfully walked out of the dining hall.

‘It was a scheme aimed at me from the start.’

Originally, Hailey was supposed to carry out that errand, but she handed it over to Annie out of consideration.

‘Who would have thought there would be stolen goods in the vase in the basket?’

If she had known, she would never have let Annie carry the vase. The moment the guards appeared and found the necklace in the vase seemed suspicious too.

‘It feels like everything is falling into place.’

Because of that, Annie now bore a false accusation and was standing at the edge between life and death. The problem was that there was no one to clear this ridiculous suspicion.

‘Unfortunately, the Duchess Eleonora doesn’t have that kind of power.’

And the powerful Empress Dowager was using this incident as an excuse to tighten the discipline within the palace. It was unlikely that other nobles would step in to help a mere maid.

‘If this continues, Annie will really face severe punishment.’

The palace servants are not protected by imperial law. It’s entirely possible for someone to lose their hand simply on the charge of theft.

‘Annie’s family situation is not good, so they can’t step in to rescue her.’

Hailey’s mind became complicated. She felt human compassion for her timid and simple-minded colleague, but the problem was that her own situation wasn’t exactly easy either.

‘We’re colleagues, but we’re not as close as Linda, and she won’t be much help to me in the future.’

If she just pretended not to know, that would be it.

Even though she was wrongfully accused, such things were not uncommon in this original world. A trainee maid’s life was worth less than a tadpole in a pond.

She could just ignore it and act like she didn’t see or know anything. But…

“The money from the safe has disappeared. Was it you, Lia?”

“Why are you being accused? Well, you have no parents, and your family situation is poor, right?”

“Poor kids tend to have sticky fingers. I’ll let this one slide, so just be honest.”

Painful memories that she had buried deep within her heart flickered through Hailey’s mind.

“Ha… seriously. I told myself I’d live a good life this time around.”

Hailey laughed incredulously as she brushed her bangs aside.

“But everyone around me really isn’t cooperating.”

The conflict that had arisen earlier completely vanished from Hailey’s face.

***

In the Crown Prince’s residence, there were several areas where the entry of ordinary servants was prohibited. One of them was the underground hot spring, where only the most trusted aides were allowed entry for safety reasons.

“Hmm….”

Leaning against a warm bench heated by the hot spring, Kincaid murmured quietly as he read the documents he had picked up. They contained confidential information regarding the ongoing standoff with the Duchy of Valora.

“This is a headache.”

Kincaid frowned as he read the line stating that the Duke of Valora had recently tripled the military strength of his knights. Feeling uneasy, he lifted his cup, only to find it empty.

Clink.

Pulling the cord hanging on the wall, Kincaid directed his request into the air.

“Bring me a glass of lemon water filled with ice.”

A cold drink was essential for enjoying the hot and humid bath. His muscular body, stripped of its shirt, was damp with sweat. Despite being the empire’s most beautiful prince, Kincaid bore several scars on his body that could not be imagined from his handsome face.

These were the marks left from directly executing traitors.

Stabs, cuts, and scratches…

These scars testified to Kincaid’s struggle to survive, despite his noble status as a prince.

“Your Highness, the cold drink you requested has arrived.”

A maid in a dark blue uniform set an ice-filled glass in front of Kincaid.

Still focused on the documents, Kincaid nodded as if to acknowledge her presence, but the maid did not move from her spot.

“Do you have something to say?”

Kincaid raised his head, carelessly uttering the words, and was momentarily startled. The maid standing before him was not the familiar attendant from the hot spring.

No, she was much smaller, thinner… and above all, that shiny red hair was familiar to his eyes.

“You are… the maid from the Detached Palace back then!”