“Ma, Madam.”
Emily ran towards Eleanor, as if about to collapse, and knelt before her.
“Madam, no. I was just cleaning, and I found it by accident, really by accident, and I thought I should return it to you, but…”
“…….”
“Please, forgive me!”
Emily lay flat on the floor. Tears were already soaking her cheeks.
“I can’t be kicked out of here. My mother is sick. Without me, there’s no one to earn money. Please, I beg you. Please forgive me just this once, Madam. Madam…!”
While she was bowing her head to the floor and repeatedly apologizing, Eleanor grabbed Emily’s shoulder and helped her up.
“Emily. It’s okay, calm down.”
“Ma, Madam. Please, please.”
“It’s okay. You’re not getting kicked out. You will never be kicked out. So calm down, okay?”
Emily blinked her eyes and looked up at Eleanor. Eleanor took out a handkerchief and wiped Emily’s tears.
“You were just cleaning and found something that had fallen, right? It’s okay, it’s nothing.”
Eleanor looked at Emily and smiled warmly. Emily hung her head in despair.
Eleanor took Emily to the sofa and sat her down. Then she handed her a handkerchief.
“Have you calmed down a bit?”
After a while, Emily nodded quietly in response to Eleanor’s question.
“Your mother is sick?”
“……”
“So that’s why you’ve been working so hard at such a young age.”
With a faint voice, a teardrop fell again from Emily’s eyes.
Emily confessed her family situation to Eleanor. Her father passed away early. Her brother had an accident and had been living like a disabled person. And because of that, they always struggled with living expenses, everything.
In fact, she didn’t intend to talk about such trivial things. But as Eleanor quietly listened and asked one question at a time, she found herself pouring out everything. And she didn’t know how much she had cried. The handkerchief that Eleanor gave her was soaked.
After listening to Emily’s story, Eleanor gently stroked the back of her hand and stood up.
“Rest enough and then go back.”
“…Madam, I…”
“It’s okay. I told you. It’s nothing. So don’t worry.”
“…Thank you, Madam…”
Emily’s voice was choked with tears again. Eleanor left Emily in the Hibiscus Room and left the room.
She walked down the hallway, lost in thought for a moment. Soon, a maid came from the opposite side. The maid saw Eleanor, but tried to pass by without greeting.
“Mary.”
The maid who was called by her name looked up in surprise. She was surprised that Eleanor knew her name.
“Where is the head maid now?”
“…Ah, that. She, she’s probably in the office now.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
After showing a small smile, Eleanor passed by Mary. Mary was staring blankly at Eleanor’s back with wide eyes.
A while later, Eleanor, who arrived at Matilda’s office, knocked on the door.
“Yes.”
Eleanor opened the door and entered. Matilda, who was sitting at the desk, glanced at her indifferently, then widened her eyes and stood up from her seat.
“How did you get here…”
“Hello, Ms. Norton.”
Matilda seemed flustered and rolled her eyes around, then guided Eleanor to a chair across the desk.
“…If you had something to see me about, you could have called me through a maid.”
“Did I interrupt you?”
“No, not at all.”
Eleanor sat in the chair and lightly folded her hands on her lap. She was just sitting quietly with a very calm expression, but there was a strange sense of pressure. Was it just her imagination?
“I came because I have something to ask.”
“…Please speak.”
It wasn’t just one or two things that were bothering her, and she was sweating coldly.
[You might want to remember this. I’m the one who’s going to be the mistress of this mansion in a month, and that it’s you who started the fight.]
Eleanor’s warning came back vividly. That warning was a big reason why Matilda had been avoiding direct contact with Eleanor since that day.
No matter how much she had the backing of Layla, the real power holder of this mansion was Daryl alone. And no matter what happened, Eleanor was his wife. She couldn’t shake off the anxiety that there might be a reason why Eleanor came out so confidently. Moreover, even Layla didn’t seem to be as hostile to Eleanor as she was at first.
She had a bad feeling. Matilda swallowed quietly, trying not to show it.
“I want to ask about Emily.”
At those words, she felt a chill run up her spine.
“…What did that child do?”
“Huh? No.”
Eleanor blinked her eyes in surprise.
“I heard that Emily’s family situation is very difficult. I want to hear what Ms. Norton knows about it.”
“Ah…”
She felt as if the strength was draining from her body, perhaps due to the relief. Matilda took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She could feel that the inside of her clothes was damp.
“Yes. She lost her father early, and it seems her mother is also in poor health. I heard that her only brother became disabled due to an accident and cannot work. Because of that, she has asked several times for an advance on her salary. She made the same request today.”
“…I see.”
It was the same content she heard from Emily. Eleanor looked down for a moment, then looked at Matilda again.
“So, did you give her the advance?”
“Huh? No…”
A look of surprise crossed Matilda’s face again.
“…No. I’ve already given it several times… I rejected it today, judging that it would be against the rules and fairness.”
“…”
“Of course, if the Duchess wishes, it’s a problem that can be easily solved…”
As Eleanor didn’t respond, Matilda hurriedly added.
“No, it’s not necessary.”
“…Is that so?”
“Yes. As you said, rules are important.”
With that, Eleanor stood up from her seat.
“I understand. Thank you.”
Matilda quickly came out from behind the desk and escorted Eleanor to the door.
“If you need anything or have any orders, please call me anytime. I will come to you, so you don’t have to come in person.”
At Matilda’s words, Eleanor looked at her with a quiet gaze for a moment.
“…Do you have anything else to say…”
“No, nothing. Then I’ll go.”
“Ah, yes. Duchess.”
The door closed. Feeling dizzy, Matilda staggered back to her desk and slumped into her seat.
***
When Eleanor returned to the Hibiscus Room, Emily was nowhere to be seen. The brooch that Emily had picked up earlier was on the desk. Eleanor looked at it for a moment, then opened the drawer and took out some stationery and a quill pen.
Eleanor wrote two letters. One was addressed to Harold, the butler of the mansion in Loud, and the other was a letter to Emily’s brother, Jack Baker.
A few hours later, when the handbell rang, Emily rushed into the Hibiscus Room. She knocked on the door, entered, and bowed so low that the top of her hat was visible.
“Did you call me, Madam?”
“Yes, Emily. Come closer.”
Emily cautiously approached Eleanor. Her green eyes were wandering anxiously.
Eleanor handed Emily a letter.
“This is…”
Emily hesitated and took the letter.
“It’s a letter to my parent’s house. Deliver it to the butler so it can arrive safely.”
Emily let out a sigh of relief. Eleanor regularly exchanged letters with a maid from her parent’s house. Today’s letter was probably the same.
But then Eleanor took out another letter.
“And this is a letter to your brother.”
“…What?”
Emily was surprised and her eyes widened.
“Why would Madam… to my brother…”
“Your brother has been unable to find a job for a long time because of his disability. So, I’m trying to find him a job.”
“What…?”
[Although his leg is disabled, I believe he can be useful somewhere. Whether it’s an assistant gardener or other odd jobs, it doesn’t matter. Please give him a job. Determine his salary based on his work. If his work attitude is poor or causes problems, please contact me immediately.]
That was the content of the letter to Harold.
