The butler looked down at the nanny, who had her head bowed, savoring his moment of triumph before opening his mouth in a tone that seemed to mock her.
“Well, I wonder. This matter far exceeds my authority. I’m not sure if I can simply let it slide.”
“I am willing to relinquish my authority over managing the vault.”
The butler’s mouth fell open as if he hadn’t anticipated those words.
“Not only that, but I will also step down from managing all matters, big or small, concerning the mansion. I will devote myself solely to serving the young miss and the young master.”
The butler blinked in surprise at her bold statement.
“Are you saying…?”
“From now on, Mr. Gerard, I will not interfere in any way with your exercise of authority as the butler. Therefore, I ask that you conclude this matter by simply dismissing Betty.”
“Hm, I’m not sure if I can handle such a significant issue on my own.”
Though he pretended to hesitate, the butler’s face was brimming with greedy satisfaction.
The nanny has truly made a monumental decision. If she gives up all her authority, she will be treated as no more than a common maid. Even so, she is taking this step to protect Betty, our dad, and us siblings.
After a long while of pretending to weigh the matter, the butler reluctantly nodded.
“I will do my best to keep the servants’ mouths shut.”
“Thank you.”
The nanny deeply bowed her head in deference to the butler once more, swallowing her humiliation. Only then did the butler leave my room.
Tears began to fall onto Betty’s knees, her head still bowed. Listening to the soft sobs, the nanny, looking fatigued, patted Betty’s shoulder.
“Think of it as a break and rest for a while.”
“I’m sorry, Nanny. I’m sorry, young miss. I acted recklessly again….”
“I’ve already heard everything from the other maids. It’s not your fault, so you don’t need to cry like that.”
“But they dared to repeat the same things they said during Madam’s funeral! I just couldn’t hold back!”
“I know.”
There was a fiery determination in the nanny’s eyes as she comforted Betty, gently patting her back.
“When the Master returns, everything will be resolved. So until then, go home and get plenty of rest.”
Despite the nanny’s comforting words, Betty couldn’t stop crying for a long time.
***
“Ah, this time, that jewelry store looks good. Let’s stop there for a moment.”
How many rounds of shopping is this now? Clothes, hats, shoes, and now jewelry.
Being dragged around all day by Yasmin left my feet swollen inside my shoes.
Even so, when the carriage stopped in front of the jewelry store, Yasmin half-forced me out of it.
“Your birthday is coming up, isn’t it? I’ll help you pick out a nice piece of jewelry today.”
Since the butler took over the nanny’s authority to manage the vault, the staff originally from the main house had been growing more and more radiant day by day.
Using my upcoming birthday and our dad’s return as excuses, I couldn’t even imagine how much money they were siphoning off.
If only Dietrich and I were a little older.
‘Or at least, if our eldest brother, Erich, were here with us, they wouldn’t dare treat our house like this.’
Yasmin pretended to care for me, positioning me in front of the display case and stroking my head with her cold hand.
‘She was so adamant about scolding Betty for touching the master’s body without permission.’
She doesn’t even consider me a proper master.
“Pick out a piece of jewelry you like.”
“I’m not very knowledgeable about jewelry…”
“I would expect as much. Still, at least make an effort. As the Duke’s granddaughter, you should cultivate a taste that’s not embarrassing.”
Though her tone was gentle, her words were razor-sharp.
Unable to resist Yasmin’s persistence, I reluctantly turned my head toward the display case.
‘Just endure this a little longer.’
Once dad returns, everything can be resolved.
“This one, the red one.”
“You’re already having a red dress tailored today, and now you want rubies to go with it? How tacky.”
Then why don’t you just pick something for me!
Even though I knew she was deliberately mocking and belittling me, I had no choice but to point at the emeralds again.
“Then how about this one?”
“You really have no eye for these things, do you?”
…Patience is a virtue.
As the old saying goes, writing the character for patience three times can even prevent murder.
“This one is the most sparkly and pretty. How about this one?”
Surely she wouldn’t dare criticize my taste for picking a diamond.
With that thought, I pointed at a radiant diamond necklace. Yasmin’s greedy eyes lit up briefly before she curled her lips.
“Choosing such a mediocre setting… You still have much to learn.”
On the other hand, I thought, this means I’ve saved writing the character for patience three times by not committing murder.*
“I’m sorry. I actually wanted to give this to Yasmin as a gift…”
“What? You want to give me a diamond?”
When I dropped my eyebrows and acted as if I were a sulking child, Yasmin’s eyes widened in shock.
“But if Yasmin doesn’t like it, I guess it’s no good.”
“Oh, no, no. On second thought, it’s not so bad. It might actually be somewhat usable.”
As I looked at Yasmin’s face, glistening with greed, I slyly lifted the corners of my mouth.
“No, you know what? Diamonds don’t suit you, Yasmin. A diamond on a pig’s neck is still a diamond.”
“A diamond on a pig’s neck?”
“Yep. That’s what the servants said. Mariela has been learning a lot of words lately.”
It’s infuriating, right? Annoying enough to make you want to hit me, isn’t it?
‘Come on, why not just hit me?’
I calculated that if Yasmin physically attacked me in this public place, I could use it to turn the situation in my favor.
Unfortunately, Yasmin wasn’t foolish.
She glanced around, suppressing her anger, clenched and unclenched her fists a few times, and then lowered her voice.
“That’s exactly why you’re just the daughter of a commoner.”
Since my dad is the Duke’s eldest son, she must be referring to my mother when she says ‘commoner.’
Seeing the smile fade from my face seemed to satisfy Yasmin as she began to speak even more boldly.
“Shall I tell you what was said to Betty the other day?”
The words Betty had refused to repeat, even when facing execution to protect me, spilled so easily from Yasmin’s lips.
“Your mother was truly fortunate, wasn’t she? I mean, for such a lowly commoner to die in battle and gain the honor of being buried in the Duke’s family mausoleum?”
Stunned, I couldn’t even find the words to respond, but our coachman casually chimed into the conversation.
“The nanny is right. To take a body that could’ve been thrown to the beasts and honor it by placing it in the family mausoleum—it was a great mercy from the Duke.”
“And yet, the branch family seems to live as if they’ve forgotten the Duke’s grace.”
“Can’t you teach them that lesson properly, nanny?”
“I’d love to, but I hear the Master of the house is returning.”
“So what? Does a disgrace who abandoned his home over a commoner really matter? The nanny is someone trusted by the young lord, the future Duke—”
The coachman’s flattery was cut short.
Why? Because his fingertips, which had been busy gesturing as he spoke, suddenly began to dry out and shrivel like a mummy.
I froze as I witnessed the grotesque sight of a human body withering in real-time.
“Shall we hear it again, about whose body deserved to be thrown to the beasts?”
Amid the coachman’s belated, ear-piercing scream, a man slowly revealed himself.
Jet-black hair.
A black military uniform wrapping around his entire body.
Golden eyes—the only touch of color—blazing like fire.
The man, a predator casually gazing down at the coachman who now wheezed and rasped as even his breath seemed to falter.
I instinctively realized that this man was my dad.
“M-Master Leopord…!”
Yasmin, unconsciously calling out my dad’s name, clapped her hands over her mouth in shock and backed away slowly.
Dad’s indifferent gaze fell on her.
Terrified by that look, Yasmin screamed and bolted toward the jewelry store’s only exit.
Or at least, she tried.
A dozen icy blades embedded themselves into the ground right in front of her feet.
Between the shards of ice, Yasmin collapsed onto the floor.
“Well, since the other one seems incapable of answering, how about you tell me? Whose body deserved to be thrown to the beasts?”
With a bluish light swirling around his entire body, my Dad began to approach Yasmin. The sound of his military boots echoed, filling the jewelry store.
🍓; *Thinking that by choosing not to act violently (not committing murder), they’ve avoided the need to practice patience again and again. This connects to the old saying, ‘writing the character for patience three times can even prevent murder,’ which means that being patient can prevent you from making rash decisions. In other words, by staying calm and not giving in to anger, they have avoided the trouble of needing even more patience later, after making an impulsive choice.
