“Miss, the Madam mentioned earlier that she would be going to the shopping district. Is it alright if you go to the Ameron Ducal Family instead of accompanying her?”
“It’s fine.”
“Understood. Then let’s go.”

The maid climbed into the carriage without hesitation. Normally, one might expect her to try to dissuade me, warning that I might get scolded later by the Countess, but she didn’t.
“Wouldn’t most maids try harder to stop me?”
“Well, it’s you who will be scolded, Miss.”
At my question, the maid answered with a nonchalant expression. She was a completely different type of maid than the ones I had encountered before.
Her slightly bold yet rational response made me nod in agreement.
“You’re right. Just follow my orders. I’ll be the one to get scolded anyway. Not going to the shopping district and getting scolded is…”
“Oh.”
The maid opened her mouth in surprise, as though something unexpected had dawned on her.
“I thought you’d get scolded for going to the Ameron Ducal Family alone. Earlier, I saw Miss Rosette begging the Madam to arrange a marriage with the Ameron Ducal Family.”
“Oh, that. Don’t worry about it. Haren has no intention of marrying Rosette.”

In the novel, the two are never connected in any way. Moreover, Haren, who had enthusiastically joined in when Flaria mocked the Countess and Rosette at the prayer house, made it clear that there was almost no chance of anything happening between him and Rosette.
“I have some acquaintances among the maids at the Ameron Ducal Family, and from what I’ve heard, the young master there has no interest in women. They say he doesn’t even intend to get married, which has been a source of great concern for the Duchess.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. Before the social season begins, most families start testing the waters, don’t they? The Ameron Ducal Family has received countless marriage proposals, but young master Haren has rejected them all. Apparently, delivering rejection letters has become more exhausting than anything else.”
“Really? People are already preparing for the social season.”
“Yes. I imagine a few letters will arrive for you as well, Miss.”
“How do you know that?”

Her knowledge of such matters, which a typical maid wouldn’t have access to, made me suspicious for a moment. News like this usually stayed within a family and rarely leaked out. Yet, she seemed to know about letters that hadn’t even reached me yet.
“I have a wide network, Miss. I know at least one person in every noble family here in the capital.”
“Really?”

Seeing that I still hadn’t erased the doubt from my face, the maid pointed out the window.
“Over there, the second son of the Parkenen Count’s family is saying, ‘I must at least marry someone from a Count’s family!’ and is planning to propose to you, Miss. He’s currently pouring all his energy into practicing dance and musical instruments to stage a fateful meeting with you on the first day of the social season.”

Then, turning her head to the opposite side, she pointed to another mansion.
“And over there, Viscount Brunchen, who is nineteen years older than you and has already been married once, is planning to propose to you, Miss. He believes that if he can secure the Leon family’s wealth, his business will succeed.”
“Ugh…”
“You’re very popular among second sons and impoverished nobles who can’t inherit their families, Miss. After all, you have no fiancé, your family is wealthy, and you’re set to inherit the Count’s title.”
“Is there anyone decent?”

I had already let go of my suspicions about her and was now engrossed in the conversation. Since I had ended up in this world, I wanted to make my life interesting while avenging myself on the scammers.
“There are some, but their intentions can’t exactly be called pure.”
“I figured as much.”
“Oh, by the way, do you know anyone in the Kidne Count’s family?”
“Yes. A friend I worked with recently joined their household.”
“Do you know anything about them?”
“Not much. That family was on the verge of ruin, wasn’t it? But the current Count Kidne seems to be making a lot of money through some business. They’ve even hired more staff.”
“That’s all?”
“Yes. It’s said to be a very quiet household. Since the Count lives alone, there isn’t much work, and the staff seem to like it there.”
“Hmm… What was your friend’s name again?”
“Tonin.”
“Right, Tonin. Let me know if you hear anything else.”

I couldn’t trust everything the maid said, but there was no harm in gathering information.
Taking a 50-litas bill from my pocket, I handed it to her.
“Of course. Feel free to ask me anything you’re curious about.”

Receiving an amount equivalent to about half her monthly salary, the maid smiled brightly and quickly pocketed the money.
Meanwhile, the carriage arrived in front of the Ameron Ducal Family’s estate.

***

“Hah, unbelievable.”
Looking at Espin’s empty room, the Countess gritted her teeth.
“Exactly. If Mom told her to come shopping, she should’ve just followed without a word. Ugh, it’s so annoying. I was planning to buy clothes in her name.”

In noble households, each person usually had a set budget. While most of these internal finances were managed by the wives, this wasn’t the case for the Leon family.
The Count hadn’t entrusted financial control to the Countess. He had allocated budgets for the Countess, Rosette, and Espin, and only he and his administrators knew the exact amounts.

However, knowing that Espin’s budget was larger than theirs, the Countess and Rosette were always resentful about it.
But they didn’t have the courage to confront the Count about it.

So, their chosen method was to take Espin shopping and use her budget to pay for dresses and other extravagant items.
Today, too, they had planned to take Espin shopping to prepare for the upcoming social season, where Rosette would need outfits for every event.
Espin, happy to be included, would have paid for everything, allowing them to splurge on luxury goods…

“Where did Espin go?”
“I heard the young lady went to the Ameron Ducal Family.”

At the maid’s words, the Countess’s hand, which was gripping the doorknob, began to tremble. The maids, noticing this, slowly stepped back, afraid of being caught in the fallout.

“What is wrong with her? She knows I want to get along with Lord Haren, yet she goes to the Ameron Ducal Family alone. Mom, she’s so weird. She won’t even let me meet her friends because she’s afraid I’ll steal them.”

Rosette continued her endless complaints, clearly having even more to say.

“What’s so special about that childhood friend of hers that she sticks to him like glue? Would it kill her to introduce me to Lord Haren? If I had enough time to talk to him, I could win him over. This is all Espin’s fault.”

Hearing Rosette’s words, the Countess slammed Espin’s door shut and stormed off to her room.

“Ugh! What is wrong with that girl? Did she take some kind of potion? Why is she suddenly acting out?”

As soon as she entered her room, the Countess uncorked a hidden bottle of wine and began drinking heavily. The scent of alcohol filled the air.
“You’re right, Mom. Something’s wrong with her. Earlier, when you told her to change clothes, she ignored you. How much longer do we have to live with her?”

Forgetting that they were the outsiders who had married into the Leon family, they shamelessly wished to drive Espin out instead.
“I was planning to marry her off to some strange man, but…”

The fact that the Count had delayed Espin’s marriage made it clear that wouldn’t be easy. If the Count passed his title to the“strange man” Espin married, the Countess and Rosette would be left with nothing and would be kicked out of the family.

“It’s time to drive her out of this house.”

The Countess’s eyes gleamed with a menacing light.
Seeing her mother’s expression, Rosette finally smiled in relief. Her mother was always someone who got what she wanted, no matter the method.