Spoils of War Duchess

SOWD

Chapter 59

“Oh dear, where is it?”

While organizing Rinia’s clothes, Idel glanced over at Rinia, who had been opening and closing the vanity drawers in search of something for quite some time.

“What are you looking for?”

“My pearl hairpin. I distinctly remember wearing it just last week, but now I can’t seem to find it.”

“If it’s the pearl hairpin, shouldn’t it be in the black velvet case where all the pearl accessories are kept?”

“That’s what I thought too, but it’s not there.”

Idel tilted her head in confusion and approached Rinia.

Rinia’s expression grew more severe as she opened one jewelry box after another.

“It’s not just the pearl hairpin that’s missing. There were several pairs of earrings here, and over there, three or four delicate gold necklaces.”

Strangely, the items that Rinia rarely used were the ones that had disappeared.

Idel and Rinia took out all the velvet boxes from the drawers and even removed the drawers themselves to search every corner, but the missing accessories were nowhere to be found.

“If it were just the pearl hairpin, I might have thought I dropped it somewhere, but with so many items gone, someone must have stolen them!”

Convinced it was theft, Rinia called for Marsha and shouted,

“How dare they think so little of me that they’d try to steal from my room? Call everyone here immediately!”

At her furious command, all the servants gathered in the lobby. It had been a while since they had seen Rinia this angry.

“There’s a thief in my room. Did you think I wouldn’t notice if you stole small items?”

The mention of the young mistress’s missing jewelry had everyone exchanging nervous glances. Rinia turned sharply to Marsha and barked,

“Marsha! Who among the maids has been entering my room?”

“Vivian, Gina, and May have taken turns cleaning, and aside from them, it’s just me and… Idel.”

“Is that so? Then take two maids and thoroughly search the rooms of those three maids.”

“Understood.”

Marsha immediately began searching the rooms of the maids who had cleaned Rinia’s room.

The rooms weren’t large, nor did they have much furniture, so the search didn’t take long.

Meanwhile, the gathered servants in the lobby were consumed with unease. With Rinia standing there, visibly fuming, no one dared to whisper among themselves.

After completing the search, Marsha returned to report.

“We searched the rooms of all three maids thoroughly, but none of your items were found, my lady.”

“Are you certain?”

“Would I dare lie to you? Besides, I wasn’t the only one searching.”

Just as Rinia was about to lash out in anger, Marsha quickly added,

“Should we search the other maids’ rooms as well? It’s possible they might have hidden the items for each other.”

“…Yes, that’s reasonable. Search all the maids’ rooms.”

Rinia sent Marsha off again and clicked her tongue in frustration. However, when she whispered to Idel, her face was calm and calculating, unlike the one she had shown Marsha earlier.

“They probably won’t find anything. They must have sold them off already.”

“They likely tried to get rid of the stolen items as quickly as possible.”

“But causing this uproar will at least prevent such incidents from happening again, don’t you think?”

Idel realized once again how clever Rinia was.

In truth, Rinia wasn’t particularly upset about the lost items. None of them were exceptionally valuable or cherished by her.

She was merely staging this act to ensure the servants wouldn’t underestimate her again.

“Smart and unafraid to assert control over the servants. If she’s properly taught, she could become quite impressive.”

Although many of her habits from her commoner days hadn’t been corrected, her fundamental attitude wasn’t bad.

Idel found herself imagining Rinia as a refined noblewoman when she saw Marsha rushing over with the maids.

“My lady! W-we’ve found it!”

Marsha approached, quickly alternating between walking and running, holding items in her hands that undoubtedly belonged to Rinia.

Rinia, who hadn’t truly expected the items to be found, was taken aback.

“They were really there? Where on earth?”

“Well, um… where exactly were they, Mina?”

At Marsha’s question, Mina responded with a deliberately grave expression.

“We found the hairpin and two pairs of earrings in Daisy’s room, and two necklaces and another pair of earrings in Celia and Lila’s rooms!”

“What…?”

It was Idel who asked in astonishment.

Daisy, Celia, and Lila, who were standing among the other servants listening, were equally stunned.

“W-what are you talking about?”

“You found them in my room?”

“That’s ridiculous!”

Before the bewildered Rinia could respond, Marsha ordered the other maids in a stern voice.

“Drag them out!”

The maids who followed Marsha pulled Daisy, Celia, and Lila forward and made them kneel before Rinia.

However, doubts remained.

“This is a setup, my lady! How could we possibly steal from you?”

“I don’t even know what your room looks like! I’ve never stepped foot inside!”

“My lady, it’s not true. This is all a misunderstanding!”

As the three maids insisted, it became apparent that they had never been in Rinia’s room and wouldn’t know where her jewelry was kept.

“That is strange,” Rinia murmured, tilting her head.

Marsha, watching Rinia carefully, added cautiously, as if hesitant to speak.

“Coincidentally, all three of them are close to Idel, my lady. And they’re all struggling financially as well.”

At her words, all eyes turned to Idel.

But Idel, even before Marsha’s insinuation, had already pieced together what was happening.

‘So, she’s trying to frame me by dragging innocent maids into this mess?’

If Marsha had accused her directly, Idel wouldn’t have been this furious.

But the fact that hardworking maids—who had endured the toughest jobs and remained diligent—were being used as scapegoats simply because of their connection to her was something she couldn’t tolerate.

Thankfully, Rinia, who had benefited greatly from Idel’s advice in the past, didn’t immediately suspect her.

“Are you saying Idel stole these and gave them to the maids? That’s impossible.”

“But, my lady, there’s no other explanation for how they could have stolen these items.”

“Hmm…”

Rinia alternated her gaze between the kneeling maids and Idel before making a decision.

“For now, let the three of them continue working. I need to have a word with Idel.”

Rinia’s choice to talk with Idel first, despite the suspicious circumstances, left Marsha stunned.

When Marsha had been Rinia’s personal maid, she had never been trusted this much. The fact that Idel, who had only been Rinia’s maid for two months, had earned such trust deeply wounded Marsha’s pride.

“V-very well, my lady. However, you must ensure proper punishment for this theft. Otherwise, it’ll set a poor precedent for the other servants.”

Unable to express her anger openly, Marsha feigned impartiality.

Regardless of Marsha’s remarks, it was clear the situation needed resolution. Since Rinia had summoned all the servants to witness this, any vague conclusion would make them believe Idel was receiving special treatment.

“Do you think I’m so naive that I need your advice? Understood. Everyone, return to your work. I’ll announce my decision soon enough.”

The servants, exchanging glances, dispersed quietly. Some of their expressions clearly conveyed discontent over Idel not being immediately punished.

Back in Rinia’s room, she stared at the recovered accessories for a moment before asking Idel,

“You have something to say, don’t you?”

“As you suspect, my lady.”

“And how would you know what I suspect?”

“You believe I couldn’t have done something like this.”

It was obvious since Rinia had declared as much in front of the servants. Still, that didn’t quell her curiosity.

When the three maids had been brought forward, Idel hadn’t uttered a single word in her defense.

“If you’re innocent, shouldn’t you have immediately shouted as much? Or… is that not something a proper duchess does?”

“I am no longer a duchess. And earlier, I wasn’t so much indignant as…”

Idel hesitated briefly before continuing.

“I simply thought, ‘The time has come.’”

“The time? What do you mean?”

“My lady.”

Idel lifted her gaze to meet Rinia’s.

“This matter, I believe, requires a discussion with the count as well.”

“You’re going to involve my brother? Are you confident you can prove your innocence?”

Rinia asked, her tone a mix of doubt and concern.

 

4o

Comment

  1. Dia says:

    wow Rinia has grown so much! I’m so proud of her! also finally the to kick Marsha has finally come

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