Episode 19

I muttered to myself as I stared at the empty desk.

“No wonder it was so quiet.”

I forced myself to ignore the small pain I felt in my chest. I had been through too much to let something like this make me emotional or break down.

But I couldn’t help the words that came out like a lament.

“I should have kept a few maids around.”

If I had known this would happen, I would have refrained from sending all the maids away. If even one had stayed, they might have been able to prevent this.

‘But it wasn’t my maids who did this.’

Judging by their reactions earlier, they wouldn’t have done something like this after learning their lesson.

‘It must have been a servant or maid favorable to Aria.’

There were still many people in this house who hated me, the fake princess. Especially after the recent banquet incident, many thought I had ruined Aria’s first social event.

‘The odds are high that they hold a grudge over that.’

Just to be sure, I checked the place where I had hidden the necklace and herbs. They were safe. I sighed in relief.

‘What should I do?’

Even though lemons weren’t my favorite fruit, the fact that Chris had given them to me made it significant.

For some reason, I didn’t want to lose this gift.

Although it was an emotion I felt alone, it was a gift from someone dear to me.

…Moreover, it was the first gift I had ever received.

Even if I didn’t eat them, I had planned to look at and cherish them every day until they rotted away. That would have been enough for me.

‘Where could they have hidden it?’

I thought about it, still able to smell the lemon scent lingering in the room.

‘They might have thrown it in the yard, or into the kitchen’s waste bin.’

All were possible.

‘If they did that, they could easily feign ignorance.’

But throwing away a gift from the Grand Duke could have serious consequences… They probably just hid it somewhere.

I was pondering this as I slowly walked out of the room. In the hallway, I saw Marie approaching, her face pale. She was walking quickly toward me.

“…Miss Mindia.”

“What’s wrong, Marie?”

“I told them it was your gift, but…”

Marie wrung her hands and started to stammer. She must have seen something.

“The garden…”

I nodded at her words and headed to the garden. The fresh scent of lemons immediately hit me.

I stiffened momentarily at the scent, then walked through the blooming flowers. At the tea table in a corner of the garden, I saw Aria.

Servi was sitting beside her, engaging in a friendly conversation with a few books stacked next to him.

And there were already sliced lemons and lemon tea.

“The new stuff is quite nice.”

“Yes, it’s from the north. It’s freshly made tea. How did they know I like lemons? I’ve never even met them.”

“Even that haughty person can’t resist you.”

“Oh, brother, you’re too much.”

Laughter filled the air. When I approached, Aria looked at me.

“Mindia, come over here.”

Aria smiled brightly. The maids standing behind Aria also smiled slyly. So that’s how it was.

‘This is the best way to anger me.’

Marie was still fidgeting, looking between us. I gave her a look to indicate I would handle it. She hesitated before leaving.

Servi looked at me and spoke with obvious irritation.

“What are you doing here?”

Aria continued in a sweet voice.

“Are you feeling better from the last time you fainted? Come sit with us.”

“……”

“The Grand Duke sent us these lemons.”

I tilted my head slightly and spoke.

“How did you know the Grand Duke sent it?”

“Oh. It was just left in the kitchen with a card, and it had the Grand Duke’s name on it…”

“That’s strange. The gift I received has gone missing, and I was just looking for it.”

“What?”

“Did you see it? It was in a purple box with a card embroidered in gold.”

Aria made a small, surprised sound. At that moment, Servi cut in sharply.

“How dare you interrogate Aria?”

“What about it, Aria? What was written on the card?”

“Miss Mindia! That’s too much!”

“Miss Aria kindly invited you to join us!”

Protests immediately came from all sides. The one who spoke up most vehemently was Lady Ellie, who had been quietly standing in the corner.

She had raised Servi and Seth and now personally looked after Aria.

‘She was struggling with a cold for a while. It seems she’s recovered.’

Despite having been ill, Lady Ellie shouted fiercely.

“How can you do this!”

“Nanny, don’t be upset. It will strain you…”

“No! I must say something!”

Lady Ellie, who was always too beautiful to be anyone’s nanny, was someone I stared at openly.

“It was odd from the start that the box was in Miss Mindia’s room!”

Though called a nanny, she was essentially a stepmother.

‘To be exact, she was the mistress the Duke brought in after the Duchess’s death.’

Originally, she was said to be from a baron’s family abroad.

‘I used to think she was a good person because the original story didn’t mention this.’

In reality, only I knew this. The Duke had even deceived Seth and Servi. He had been so meticulous that I only realized she was his mistress in my previous life when I was dying.

‘If I saw evidence of treason, it was because I witnessed Miss Mindia meeting a suspicious man in the Duke’s room at dawn and exchanging documents.’

In her excitement, she had said that while framing me for treason.

Everyone present had realized something was off with her statement. However, since it was an affair involving a high-ranking noble, and the person who should have questioned it, the Duchess, had died long ago, it was brushed off.

Everyone assumed it was just a matter of infidelity and soon focused on questioning and torturing me, quickly forgetting the incident.

In the original story from Aria’s perspective, Lady Ellie was a staunch ally for Aria.

Naturally, she was my arch-nemesis.

“She’s probably claiming Aria’s items as her own!”

At that exclamation, all eyes turned to me once again.

“It was strange from the beginning. When you say Lady Reinhardt, it usually means Miss Aria.”

“……”

That was true, usually. Instead of responding to Lady Ellie, I stared intently at Aria.

“But I am also Lady Reinhardt. Isn’t that right, Aria?”

“……!”

“Miss Mindia, you…”

“Have you forgotten my name? I am also Mindia Reinhardt.”

“…….”

“Or do you think it’s okay to arbitrarily strip away the name given to me directly by the Duke?”

Everyone looked flustered as I invoked the Duke’s authority instead of just stubbornly insisting.

It would be troublesome if this kept happening, so I needed to establish some discipline now.

‘At least they should understand that messing with me will be bothersome or troublesome.’

So, I didn’t back down. Servi, who had been observing, stepped in.

“You.”

I looked directly at Servi as he stood up and spoke.

“Sir Servi, as the young master, please say something. How can they take away the name the Duke himself bestowed? It’s a matter of the Duke’s authority.”

Servi’s lips twitched.

By invoking his father’s authority, contradicting me would mean denying the Duke’s power, something the young master should never do.

‘And.’

The Duke was not in a position to be angry at me for using his name. He had already reaffirmed my status as a member of the Duke’s household in the carriage.

While Servi hesitated, Aria slowly spoke up.

“…That’s right. You’re also Lady Reinhardt.”

“You don’t have to say that, Miss!”

“…Miss Mindia! Why are you dragging Miss Aria into this?”

Well, they were the ones who dragged Aria into it first. Whether they genuinely believed the gift was meant for Aria or not, the moment they brought my lemons to Aria, the matter was settled.

“Lady, as a fellow lady, I asked Aria. Is it right for you to interrupt here?”

Lowering my voice and staring at her, Lady Ellie visibly recoiled. She had the same fearful expression Seth had when he was scared of me.

I turned my gaze back to Aria.

“Aria, what was written on the card?”

“…Wishing Lady Reinhardt good health. Take care until we meet again.”

“I see, ‘until we meet again.’ Aria, did you see the Grand Duke at the banquet?”

Of course not. In the original story, Aria and Chris had little interaction.

‘This was mainly a story about the Crown Prince and Aria.’

Meeting the Crown Prince was a much more significant event at the banquet. Besides, Chris had spent almost all his time with me during the banquet.

Clasping my hands lightly, I spoke.

“The Grand Duke must have thought you were beautiful to care about your health.”

“……”

“He’s worried about you instead of me, even though I was the one who fainted.”

“I…”

Listening quietly, Aria’s face turned red. It seemed she realized there was no reason for her to receive this gift.

“So, where was the box originally?”

“…The kitchen.”

Aria likely had no malice in thinking the gift was hers. She naturally assumed ‘Lady Reinhardt’ referred to her.

“I…”

Just as Aria began to speak, a sharp slap landed on my cheek.

The sudden sting left my cheek burning.