Chapter 8 – Part 6

Eliana instructed the maid Doris to carefully monitor any letters arriving at the household, particularly from the Venrose Academy.

‘Yes, my lady. I’ll do that.’

Doris mentioned that Matilda had exchanged letters with the academy thrice so far. It was pretty frequent for such a short period.

‘At this rate, there’s a possibility they might be plotting to send me there before Father returns.’

Eliana had no intention of letting that happen. She wrote a letter to her father, asking when he planned to return.

– I plan to return home on the 13th.

‘The 13th, huh.’

As Count Austin’s absence stretched longer, the household’s discipline, which usually centered around his orders, visibly started to loosen.

Matilda acted like she was the head of the family, and Paul, despite causing a massive financial loss, was becoming more reckless. His once-ashen face had looked much healthier over the past few days.

Sylvia was no different.

‘Father needs to recover quickly and return to the family soon.’

Though she only pretended to be concerned about her father, Sylvia was too preoccupied with indulging in luxuries to notice much else.

Unlike in her previous life, the variable of her father’s injury had appeared. This variable seemed to have significantly contributed to the moral decay of the remaining family members.

Eliana observed the three’s misdeeds. She didn’t do this alone; she also instructed her three trusted maids, Mila, Doris, and Becky, to monitor their actions closely.

“Hilda has been acting suspiciously lately, my lady. She seems to be meeting with Master Paul more often.”

“With Paul?”

Becky had informed Eliana to pay special attention to the maid, Hilda.

Hilda was originally a maid favored by Matilda, and as such, she had also been quite close to Paul. It was unusual to see a nobleman so frequently in the company of a maid, raising suspicion. They certainly didn’t seem to have a normal relationship.

“I’ve seen them talking alone multiple times. On top of that, Hilda sneaks into the Count’s room at night, even when he isn’t there.”

Becky whispered her observations.

‘Why would a maid enter the master’s room when he’s not there?’

Eliana began focusing on their movements at night and soon discovered something.

“What you asked for, My Lord…”

Late one night, Eliana overheard Hilda and Paul’s conversation.

It didn’t take long for her to realize they were trying to uncover the safe combination in her father’s room.

‘So it’s about money.’

This was the period when Paul lost his investment in the deal with the Kingdom of Tempton, and Matilda helped cover it up. Despite the money Matilda brought in to resolve the situation, Paul was once again looking for another source of funds.

‘What’s he planning to do with the money?‘

Eliana’s blue eyes gleamed in the dark. She quietly returned to her room.

The following day, Eliana discreetly hired someone to investigate what Paul had been doing in town lately.

After the conversation about the safe’s combination, Paul and Hilda no longer spent as much time together. It was strange, given how often they had been seen together before. Eliana noticed Hilda walking with a basket full of laundry. Her face looked troubled.

‘Something’s up.’

Unaware that Eliana followed her, Hilda trudged to her spot to start doing the laundry. Lost in thought, she didn’t notice when someone approached. Eliana quietly sat down in front of her.

“Hilda.”

Hearing her name, Hilda jumped in surprise.

“Lady Eliana! What brings you here…?”

Eliana stared intently at Hilda, who looked absent-minded and drained.

“Why, what’s wrong?”

Caught off guard by Eliana’s gaze, Hilda was at a loss for what to do. Since entering the Count of Leiberte’s household, she had always been by Matilda’s side and wasn’t close to Eliana. Moreover, Hilda had joined Matilda several times to speak ill of Eliana.

“Hilda, something seems to be bothering you. You don’t look well.”

“Oh, no, My Lady,” Hilda stammered.

“Don’t lie. It seems things aren’t going well with Paul, are they?”

At the mention of Paul’s name, Hilda’s face flinched.

“What’s the problem?“

“It’s not… like that. There’s no problem at all.”

She waved her hands frantically.

“Has he stopped taking care of you after using you all this time?“

“…!“

“He’s taken everything from you.“

Hilda’s face turned ashen, and her lips trembled faintly. She seemed to want to say something, but the words wouldn’t come out quickly.

“No!”

Suddenly, she must have decided she couldn’t hold back and raised her voice in denial. But Eliana wasn’t convinced. Looking at Hilda’s expression, she could tell she was covering something up.

“Well, it’s not surprising, after all. This was bound to happen. Now, all that’s left is for you to be kicked out of this house, Hilda.“

“Why would I be kicked out?“

“Because the Count will be arriving soon, and I will tell him everything—that you and Paul conspired to sneak into my father’s room. You even tried to open the safe, didn’t you?”

Hilda’s dark eyes wavered.

“No, My Lady! I… I didn’t take a single penny. I swear! We couldn’t even open the safe.”

Her wide eyes glistened as if scorched by fire.

“Really? Hmm, I see.”

Eliana murmured in a tone that conveyed disbelief, rising from her seat. In desperation, Hilda grabbed her arm.

“Please, keep it a secret, My Lady. I beg you.“

“No, I can’t. How could I?“

“Please, I gained nothing from this. I only believed it when Paul told me that if I followed Oliver, the butler, and learned the safe’s combination, he would care for me forever.“

‘Take care of her, as a woman?‘ Eliana thought, finding it pathetic that Hilda had been naive enough to believe such words. Paul was not the type to take responsibility for anything, no matter what he did.

“My Lady, please forget this ever happened.“

“I can’t. Now that I know.”

Hilda pleaded desperately, clinging to her. Eliana turned and stood facing her squarely.

“Why should I trust someone sneaking into the Count’s room?”

“I wouldn’t have done it if it weren’t for Paul! Never!” Hilda’s eyes filled with tears.

“Then, let me make you a proposal.“

“What is it?”

Hilda asked, her voice full of desperation.

“Cooperate with me, and I’ll ensure the worst doesn’t happen to you. Of course, the worst would be Paul using you and then leaving you with nothing. If the Leiberte family judges you poorly, no other household will accept you as a maid. You’ll be left with nowhere to go. You know what happens when you’re kicked out of a decent noble house, right?”

Hilda couldn’t immediately agree or refuse. Her dark eyes flickered with internal conflict as if she were ready to run to Paul and reveal everything.

Eliana shrugged her shoulders.

“Do what you want. I don’t care either way. I’m going to tell the Count the truth. All that’s left is whether I ask him to show you mercy.”

***

“The Count has arrived!”

The butler’s voice broke the silence. Eliana immediately closed her book and stood up.

As soon as her conversation with Hilda ended, she wrote a letter to her father, inquiring about his health and mentioning an issue in the household.

– It seems Paul’s business is not going well. I don’t know why, but he’s been sneaking into your room, which concerns me. I believe you should come quickly to check it out. –

She wrote down everything, including Paul’s attempt to access the safe. There was no way her father would tolerate someone meddling with his safe. If he was curious, he would have no choice but to come in person.

And just as Eliana had predicted, her father came to the estate, arriving a day earlier than expected.

As she stepped outside her room, she saw Count Austin.

“I apologize, Count. I should have come to greet you earlier.”

Oliver, the butler, was apologizing for not being able to greet the Count upon his unexpected arrival.

“It’s only natural since I came without notifying anyone. Don’t worry about it, Oliver.”

The Count said this as he locked eyes with Eliana, who was the first to come out and greet him.

“Father, you’re here.“

“Yes. How have you been? I’ve read your letters.”

Thanks to the progress of his treatment, the Count didn’t look unwell.

“How’s your health?“

“I’m recovering well. Though my energy isn’t quite what it used to be.”

Hearing that the Count of Austin had arrived, the other three family members came out.

“Oh my, Count! You should have sent word before coming.”

Matilda raised her voice in a fuss.

“Have you eaten?”

Matilda asked the Count, to which he shook his head.

“I should.“

“Then, let’s start with dinner, Count. I’ll have it prepared right away.”

During the meal, they talked about what had happened during their time apart. The main topics were the Count’s treatment and what had occurred while Matilda managed the household in his place.

Throughout the conversation, the Count’s expression remained somewhat stiff while Matilda continued to speak in a high-pitched tone. Their wavelengths seemed out of sync, making the atmosphere feel more awkward.

‘She’s acting even brighter than usual. I guess she feels guilty about whatever she did.’

After dinner, the Count immediately gathered the whole family. Everyone sat around a table in the center.

“As the head of this house, I was curious to see how things were going while I was away. Even though I’ve been far, I’ve always had you all in my thoughts and heard various news. Listening to all that, I thought it was time to visit home.”

The Count of Austin said this while scanning his three children.

“Paul, as I asked last time, how’s the business going?”

TL NOTE: A more advanced chapter of this story is already up on the site. Visit dusk blossoms for more advanced chapters and stories.