19. A birdcage for a beautiful wife.
It’s a big deal.
I thought it is a big deal for my boundaries and reason to break down, as if they were being eroded by the warmth of Baloch…
“Ahh!”
Bianca tried to look away from Julie pouring out the tea leaves.
It was nice to be motivated and courageous, but Julie took it so far.
I expected her to be the perfect assistant because of her agile appearance and quick movements, but she was not like that at all.
Julie put her full of heart on her service, but she was clunky, often missing things, and making mistakes.
“Oh my.”
Oh my……?
No young lady would ever say something like that.
Feeling somewhat at a loss, Bianca looked into space and barely managed to open her mouth.
“How long has Julie been here?”
“Oh, yes, ma’am, one month.”
Bianca took a deep breath at Julie’s harsh tone.
She was nervous.
Although it wasn’t that long, Bianca had figured out a lot.
It was because she had become accustomed to holding her breath and watching for her whole life.
There were an overwhelming number of knights here in Baloch.
In the main castle, more than half of the people stationed there were knights.
It was probably unavoidable to deal with monsters, but perhaps that was why the people here behaved like knights even if they were not knights.
Especially when they are nervous.
I guess the only time they would get nervous would probably be when they encounter a monster.
All time, the words of the ‘knight’ were heard everywhere, so they must have been ingrained in one’s mouth without one’s knowledge.
Of course I understand.
But Julie was a maid.
I understand the uniqueness of the environment, but will everyone take Julie’s situation into consideration?
It was okay only in front of her.However, Julie was the Duke’s maid.
‘Wouldn’t it be easier for you to have another maid? I heard she is young.’
The child who claimed to be an adult by saying that she was not young was not recognised even by the owner of Baloch.
This however didn’t mean that she would dare to call herself the hostess of Baloch and teach the maids.
It was just her small wish to help this child gain recognition.
‘Is it difficult to straighten your little finger properly?’
The etiquette teacher beat young Bianca mercilessly with a thin cane to engrave ‘etiquette’ on her body, not her head.
Thanks to this, since her debutante, Bianca has never once been accused of lack of ‘etiquette’ in the capital’s social circles, which are known to be very picky.
Let’s do it.
Bianca took a deep breath and called out to Julie, who was busy sweeping up the scattered tea leaves.
“Julie, Can you prepare some tea for us?”
“Yes?”(informal)
“There’s a way I enjoy it, but it’s hard to explain in words. Bring it to me.”
Julie’s expression suddenly distorted at the friendly reply.
“I will do better.”
“Yes, I guess so. So take a close look, it’s pretty tricky.”
I know Julie didn’t means to be disrespectful.
However, Bianca responded naturally and waved her hand again.
“Hurry and bring it.”
Normally, I would not take any direct action such as lifting my hand.
But I couldn’t help it because I didn’t think Julie would know how to use a fan, or how to speak in a smooth manner.
Julie, who had been standing there as if holding on, finally seemed to give up at the gesture and came over with all the supplies.
For a moment, Bianca tried not to frown.
They should not be carried on a trolley, but on a tray!
There was more than one thing that needed to be taught.
“I’m ready.”
Rattling.
Bianca said as she heard the sound of the tray hitting the table.
“Again.”
Bianca spoke in a gentle but firm tone to Julie, who opened her eyes wide, not knowing what she meant.
“Put it down again.”
Rattling.
Bianca said as she heard the sound of the tray hitting the table.
“Again.”
Bianca spoke in a gentle but firm tone to Julie, who opened her eyes wide, not knowing what she meant.
“Put it down again.”
A white finger pointed to the tray.
Etiquette had to be learned until it became unconscious.
To do that, it was best to repeat it until you got used to it.
‘Again.’
Hailey’s hand, which was about to knock, stopped when she heard Bianca’s voice ringing beyond the thick wooden door.
‘Are you okay? It’s not easy in the first place.’
‘Sorry.’
What did she do wrong?
She didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but she felt like Julie was getting punished, so she slowed down.
Hailey unconsciously focused on the voices in the room, straining her ears.
‘It’s great for a first time. However, people will judge you without any consideration of the fact that it’s a first for you.’
‘Yes, ma’am.’
‘So try again. For now, let’s complete the task of putting down the teacup without making a sound.’
“Without making a sound…?”
Hailey, who was following Bianca’s words, immediately covered her mouth.
Unbelievable!
She forgot.
Julie was a knight of commoner origin.
How could Julie with a back ground like that know the etiquette of the social world?
She was so focused on attaching someone who would work both as a guard and maid to the wary Duchess that she overlooked something that was obvious.
It was a disaster.
‘Good. You’re good at it. However, it feels like the edge of the tray touches only one side sharply. If you do this, the tea will be shaken.’
It’s a big deal.
It was said that she was almost abandoned, but the person she was dealing with was a princess.
A princess who survived in the capital’s social scene where all kinds of trends bloom and fall.
She couldn’t believe she sent a maid who was a commoner and didn’t even know the rules of etiquette to take charge of such a person.
Hailey’s eyesight turned dark.
She really didn’t even think about it because she was born as the second daughter of Count Armor and took etiquette for granted.
But this was clearly her own mistake. Hailey immediately knocked on the door.
Knock.
“Who is that?”
Before long, the door opened and Julie’s face came out.
In the blink of an eye, Hailey quickly checked the Duchess through Julie’s expression and the small gap in the door.
There was no tense atmosphere anywhere.
“Julie, please ask the Duchess if I could ask her something for a moment.”
She was a little surprised because the atmosphere was different from what she expected, but that didn’t make my mistake go away.
She should apologize sincerely and offer to wait on her instead of Julie.
Hailey waited outside the door and gathered her thoughts until permission was given.
However, the waiting time was considerably longer than expected.
It was somehow strange. Just as Hailey was about to knock again, the door opened.
“Please come in.”
Julie’s cheeks were red as she opened the door.
‘What’s going on?’
I asked using a mouth gesture, but Julie just shook her head and didn’t answer.
What was it?
Hailey, who was feeling a little nervous as she walked, flinched at the sight of the bedroom being cleaned up in an instant.
There wasn’t a single tea set in sight that had been piled up just moments ago.
There were countless tea cups and tea leaves as well.
However everything disappeared as if evaporating.
“Hello, my lady.”
Although she seemed calm on the outside, Hailey felt dazed.
Wasn’t she given a scolding?
“Welcome, Head Maid.”
“I came because I have something to tell you.”
“Then, would you like to sit down for a moment? I was just about to drink tea.”
“I will do it..”
“Sit, Head maid.”
When Hailey took a step still having a strange feeling, the Duchess stopped her with a smile but firmly.
“Sit down please. I have a maid in charge, so why would you do the serving? Julie, could you prepare some tea for us? I want to see it in person today.”
“Yes, madam.”
Hailey, who politely responded to the Duchess’ words and sat down, had very complicated feelings.
It would be better if the Duchess was angry.
This was a little worse than just being scolded.
It’s a classic practice to embarrass someone by showing their clumsiness, but it’s also a common tactic used in social circles when bullying young ladies.
Out of the corner of her eye, Hailey saw Julie picking up a teacup.
Her cheeks are red and she was smiling, looking so excited without even knowing what the situation was.
“Well, madam…”
“It would be best to take a short break until the tea is ready.”
Feeling that she couldn’t let Julie be embarrassed, Hailey cautiously called Bianca, but was rejected.
If the other person was a duke, if she was acting as a knight only.
She would have knelt down without hesitation and begged for Julie’s forgiveness.
However, the other person was the Duchess, who was a princess, and she was now the ‘Head Maid.’
The conversation between noble ladies was different from that between knights, so Hailey had to keep her mouth shut.
‘Why go this far?’
Contrary to her expectations, the Duchess’s ruthless attitude made Hailey feel a tingle in her throat.
However, that thought was dashed the moment Julie prepared the teacup.
The sight of Julie quietly putting down her empty glass and along with Bianca’s and making tea herself while waiting on them was enough to give the impression of an elegant duchess and her dedicated maid.
“I prefer for her to do it herself.”
Hailey finally realized that she had misunderstood Bianca’s words when she handed her the tea.
She just asked her maid to accompany her at tea time.
All Julie did was serve the Duchess according to her instructions.
However, the series of actions of putting down the empty glass and heating the water were elegant, like that of a cultured lady.
The fingers holding the teapot were straight, and there was no noise when the teacup was put down.
As if she had received proper etiquette training.
‘Today, let’s just do it to the extent of not making any noise.’
If I hadn’t heard that conversation, I would have passed it on without realizing it.
Even though I was paying close attention to Julie’s movements, they were so natural and thorough that I couldn’t feel any dissatisfaction.
Indeed…
Hailey was silently amazed.
It was true that she was a princess who was loved even in the hellish social world where everyone was sly, calling her ‘the most beautiful woman in the empire’.
She is not harsh or fierce, but it’s not that soft either.
Should I say she is a gentle ruler?
Giving orders naturally but surely, like water seeping through.
“So, what did you have to say?”
Hailey raised her head in response to the question directed at her.
“The Duke invited me to lunch?”
“Yes, Madam. The work on the first floor is not yet complete, so if you allow, he would like to meet you in the reception room on the second floor.”
Jillian came to mind along with the thought, ‘Is it because of what happened in the morning that I misunderstood as being locked up?’
‘There’s no way I’m locking you up.‘
The man had a dark smile that could only be described as dangerous.
‘If I were to imprison you, I would give you a world so huge that you wouldn’t even feel like it was a cage. Do not worry.’
Even thinking about it again, it really sounds amazing.
Lock me up!
No cage is needed.
For some reason, I felt ashamed and felt heat rushing to my cheeks.
Since I didn’t have a fan, I couldn’t hide my flushed cheeks.
Bianca was embarrassed and was trying to change her thought process, so she opened her mouth as soon as anything came to her mind.
“Then can I go to the Duke now?”
“There’s still time until lunch… Oh, would you like me to show you around? It would be perfect after you had a cup of tea.”
“No, no, no.”
Surprised, Bianca’s eyes widened and she waved her hand.
It was then that Hailey, who had been stiff but upright, broke down her expression and burst into laughter.
