Episode 52

Compared to the way he had harshly scolded the marquis as if he would beat him up at any moment, this was a generous treatment.

To end it with just an apology.

In fact, the Duke could have, if he wanted to, found any excuse to frame Marquis for trying to harm Joshua.

But I knew he wouldn’t go that far.

‘It must be because of Diana…’

Thinking it was a child’s mistake, he didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.

I still looked at Diana, who was sitting on my bed.

She was trembling with a frightened expression, looking like a completely harmless child to anyone who saw her.

Seeing that brought a slight bitterness to me.

As expected, there was no way to reveal that she had been involved in this incident and had personally eaten the pecan pie.

‘Even if I told them, it would be hard to believe…’

In the future, I would have to bear such things alone every time they happened.

The problem was that there would be countless such incidents.

Because Diana was the heroine, and I was the villainous character.

Just as I was about to suppress a sigh from feeling overwhelmed already.

The marquis, who had been rolling his eyes for a long time at the Duke’s demand for an apology, stammered.

“I never said it was poison…”

“Ha. So, that’s how you’re going to play it.”

“It’s not playing it, it’s the truth, Duke. Did anyone here hear me say it was poison and insult the Duke’s family?”

It was truly a sly and absurd response.

Not only the Duke, but everyone present had a grim expression.

At that moment.

“That maid thinks differently.”

Edwin, who had been quietly watching the situation, pointed at Diana’s maid.

“As soon as Diana collapsed, she asked Tara if it was poisoned.”

“Y-yes! You were yelling at our lady to hand over the antidote!”

Tara, who had been standing quietly behind, gathered her courage and spoke up.

“W-what! I didn’t go that far…!”

The maid, who had been suddenly pointed out, immediately turned pale.

She had not anticipated this outcome when she had spoken recklessly to me and Tara.

“…W-what could I do! Miss Diana’s condition looked strange to anyone…!”

“You foolish girl! Shut that mouth!”

The marquis hurriedly tried to cover the maid’s mouth, but it was already too late.

“I think we have enough witnesses now.”

The Duke surveyed the surroundings as he summarized the situation.

“Then, I will send the official complaint soon. You may leave now.”

“D-Duke!”

The marquis urgently called out to the Duke.

He had tried to wriggle out of it by claiming he never mentioned ‘poison,’ but he had been caught red-handed.

Desperately, he shouted as proof.

“I-I have nothing to do with it! I wasn’t the one who brought the cursed pecan pie, nor did I make the insult about poison!”

“But what can you do? The child your family sponsors brought it, and the maid your family employs insulted our family, so as the head of your house, you must take responsibility.”

The Duke explained kindly, as if teaching a stubborn child.

“So you should have managed your subordinates better.”

“Ugh…”

“Considering our past relationship, I won’t ask for a large settlement fee.”

Tap, tap.

The Duke patted the Marquis on the shoulder a couple of times as if to encourage him.

The Marquis’s face was filled with humiliation.

In disputes between nobles, the settlement amount wasn’t particularly important.

What mattered was whether one’s reputation was damaged or not.

In this world, even a small issue would follow you around like a label, so one always had to be cautious about their behavior.

Especially for a family like the Barelotte, which wasn’t of pure bloodline.

The Barelotte family’s ancestor was a famous arms dealer who had bought his title during the chaos of the religious wars a few hundred years ago.

In that sense, the maid’s careless mention of poison at the Duke’s house, which was almost like a noble family of pure lineage, was a great overstep.

Perhaps understanding this well, the Marquis suddenly shot forward like a bullet towards Diana’s maid.

And then.

Smack—!

“Ack!”

“How dare you run your mouth so recklessly here!”

The marquis’s hand, as large as a pot lid, struck the maid’s cheek hard.

I gaped at the unexpected action.

However, the Duke and Edwin merely observed the situation with indifferent expressions.

It seemed they had already anticipated the Marquis would act this way.

“Couldn’t even take care of a single girl and caused this mess? Do you think I pay you a high salary for this?!”

“I-I’m sorry! I-I misspoke! I’m sorry, sob!”

The maid, holding her cheek and looking shocked, kept bowing her head.

“What good is apologizing to me! Apologize to the Duke right now!”

“I-I’m sorry, Your Grace! I’m sorry, Lady Belze… I-I spoke recklessly because I’m an ignorant girl!”

The woman twisted her body and deeply bowed in the direction where the Duke was standing.

Drip, drip.

Large tears rolled down her red and swollen face.

It was a typical move to escape immediate anger by harshly reprimanding a subordinate.

Though the maid had participated in the scheme against me, seeing her bowing her head didn’t make me feel particularly satisfied.

‘It was probably all the Marquis’s doing anyway…’

As expected, the Marquis immediately cut her off.

“The Duke is right. It is all my fault for not properly educating my subordinates, so I ask for your leniency with a generous heart…”

“…..”

The Duke said nothing.

But having created such a commotion by slapping the maid, it would be ridiculous to continue being angry and not forgive her here.

I looked at Diana, who was at the center of the incident, with calm eyes.

‘Children can be conveniently used at times like this.’

Just by looking frightened and tearful, she could easily evade suspicion.

Although she was likely used by the Marquis as well…

Why?

“Actually, this is the first time I’ve eaten so much.”

“M-my body feels strange… I-I can’t breathe… Gah!”

The sight of her stuffing a large piece of pecan pie into her mouth.

Even while choking, she had subtly smiled.

The memory of her face kept sending chills down my spine.

“D-Duke…”

The Duke’s silence dragged on.

The impatient Marquis was about to speak again with a nervous expression.

Suddenly, Diana’s face, which I had been staring at, turned bright red.

“Waaaah…!”

In the quiet room, the sound of a child’s crying echoed loudly.

“I-I’m sorry! Please forgive me!”

Diana cried, big gem-like tears falling from her eyes.

“Sniff, I just bought it because Belze said she wanted to eat it…”

Her next words momentarily froze my thoughts.

“What…?”

“I really didn’t know there were apricots in the pecan pie. I promise I won’t buy it again! So please, forgive me this once, Duke…”

After dropping a bombshell, the person in question burst into sorrowful tears.

“Ha…”

I let out a small laugh, forgetting that the Duke was present.

When something is too outrageous, your mind goes blank – this must be what that feels like.

I took a step towards Diana, who was sitting dejectedly on my bed, and asked.

“When did I…?”

“Sniff…”

“When did I say that, Diana?”

“When we were at the temple, and the Marquis gave only me the pecan pie…”

Diana responded, wiping her tears with her small hands.

Whether it was because her nose was blocked or intentional, she was now speaking in a babyish tone.

“You said you wanted to try it. So I… Sniff! That’s why I bought it…”

“…..”

“When it was just the two of us, you thanked me and said you were annoyed that the Duke’s house never gave you such things, and asked me to bring it again… Sniff.”

“What! Is that true?!”

Upon hearing Diana’s words, the Marquis immediately glared at me viciously.

I looked at Diana, who was sobbing uncontrollably, in utter shock.

It was obviously a lie.

I knew better than anyone that she was lying without batting an eye.

‘But…’

There was no way to prove that it was a lie.

She had cleverly mentioned the time when Tara was not around, so there was no one to support my side.

If I recklessly accused her of lying here, I might end up looking like the weird one.

Because I was the most notorious troublemaker in the temple.

Whereas Diana, who was known as a model student, was currently crying with a face full of genuine grief.

‘…What should I do? Just take the blame and move on? Or, should I cry too?’

While I bit my lip and searched for a way to break through the situation, the Marquis, now looking cheerful, shouted.

“If that was the case, you should have said so earlier, Diana!”

“But I didn’t want to get Belze in trouble…”

“What trouble! Duke, did you hear that? The reason she brought the pecan pie was all because of that girl! So our Diana is not at fault at all…!”

At that moment.

Clatter! Bang!

With the sound of a sliding door opening, someone burst out of the dressing room and shouted.

“It’s all lies!”