The conversation didn’t last long. Kieran sent Kanut away in less than five minutes.
Now, with just the two of them left in the quiet dining room, Kieran let out a small sigh.
He had been quite tense, but now that the matter was successfully settled, he felt a bit relieved.
Although he had appeared composed, Kieran didn’t actually have any great plan.
Alyssa had overly praised his words, but in reality, he was just an ordinary person.
He didn’t have the ability to deceive Kanut with eloquent speech, nor did he possess the sharp mind needed to solve complex situations.
“There’s no need to go on an expedition. The castle has plenty of food stored.”
So, Kieran simply did what he could.
“I’ll make sure the servants properly distribute relief aid again. I apologize for the trouble caused by my oversight.”
Calmly, he explained the current situation and offered the solution he was capable of providing.
It wasn’t a particularly grand gesture, but it was enough to calm Kanut, who had been ready to drag Alyssa straight into battle.
“I heard they were distributing the food, but I guess that wasn’t the case,” Kieran muttered quietly, though it wasn’t meant for Kanut to hear.
“…Pardon?”
“No, it’s nothing. How could I blame them? I’m the one at fault for not managing the servants properly as the head of the household tasks.”
When Kanut, having overheard, asked again, Kieran had no choice but to reply.
He thought it would be ideal if this caused Kanut to start questioning the castle servants.
“…Really?”
Kieran’s goal was more or less achieved. Kanut face changed completely as he muttered.
“So that’s how it was… I see… I understand.”
With that, Kanut bowed at a sharp angle to each of them and then stormed out of the dining hall in the blink of an eye.
Though Kanut’s anger hadn’t fully subsided, it was clear that his fury was no longer directed at Kieran or Alyssa.
“Shall I tell the knights to stand by, since you mentioned needing them?” Alyssa asked cautiously, worried that Kanut’s blunt behavior might have offended Kieran.
Kieran quietly shook his head. It was still too soon.
The knights had rushed here due to the news about the people not getting food within the castle walls. He couldn’t be certain that the servants inside the castle had no ties to the knights.
It would be unwise to order them to act against their own kin without hesitation. It was better to wait—at least until the suspicion that it was those very servants who had starved their families began to spread.
Despite his initial concern that he might have been too indirect, it seemed that Kanut understood immediately.
‘By now, he must be discussing with his comrades.’
For now, that level of agitation was sufficient. Kieran gave a rare, relaxed smile.
He had no idea where Kanut had gone after storming out of the dining hall.
In the underground prison of the Château de Benoît, the guard, James, was leaning against the iron bars with a gruff expression.
Normally, he would be drinking heavily and playing cards at this time, or lying in bed for an afternoon nap.
While technically he was performing his duties as a guard, James was displeased as his previously laid-back routine had been disrupted.
“The Duchess is suddenly losing her mind, tsk.”
Lately, the atmosphere in the castle had been tense, thanks to the Duchess’s sudden change in behavior.
The people who had lived indulgently while ignoring Alyssa all this time knew well that their freedom came from her indifference and tacit approval.
She was the Duchess, capable of dealing with them whenever she wished. Her recent imprisonment of the head maid felt like a warning, signaling that she would no longer overlook their laziness.
The servants of the castle were frightened into doing their jobs, but resentment simmered within them.
“Why’s she making a fuss now after not saying anything all this time?” grumbled a stablehand during a drinking session the previous night. James and the others around him nodded in agreement.
Lax work habits had become the norm for them. After all, wasn’t she that Duchess? Though they feared her strength, Alyssa herself was an unsettling and unpleasant presence in their eyes.
Forced to follow her orders, it was only natural that a sense of rebellion spread like wildfire among the servants.
“Yeah, we need to set things right,” a voice suddenly rang in James’s mind, making him flinch. He scratched his head, uneasily staring at the keys hanging from his belt.
“Ugh, damn it. That old hag really had to go and spout nonsense.”
Despite his grumbling, James couldn’t take his eyes off the long, dimly lit corridor in front of him.
He was standing on the lowest level of the underground prison, where the most dangerous criminals were kept. This wasn’t his usual post. Normally, he would check that everything was in order and head back upstairs, but something the head maid had whispered to him earlier kept nagging at him.
“Isn’t it hard? You used to strut around like you were the mistress of the house, and now look at you. Huh?”
Her fall from grace amused James, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t still upset about the Duchess’s sudden change in attitude. The two things were unrelated.
James had expected the head maid, Masa, to lash out in anger, humiliated by her situation. Instead, she just let out a small laugh.
“Who’s worse off? You have to work during your nap time.”
That single remark had sparked James’s temper, and he was ready to strike the bars of her cell. But before he could, Masa spoke again.
“Don’t take it the wrong way. I’m not saying I’m happy about this. I get it. You must be frustrated. After all, guarding an empty prison wasn’t necessary, but now the Duchess has dumped this job on you.”
Masa, who had once been an authoritative head maid, now spoke in a soft, almost kind tone, like a frail old woman, trying to coax James.
“It’s wrong, isn’t it? I’m sure others feel the same way as you… If I weren’t locked up in here, I’d have a word with Her Grace myself.”
James, who had been listening absentmindedly, snapped back to reality at those words. He scoffed and gripped the keys on his belt tightly.
“So what, you want the key? If I did that, that monster of a woman would have my head!”
“Such a coward. Is that what passes for a man nowadays?“
Masa retorted sharply, as if disgusted by his hesitation. Then, in a low whisper, she added:
“So, are you just going to live in fear of the Duchess forever? Don’t you want to have your old life back?”
In the darkness, the old woman’s eyes gleamed ominously as she tapped the iron bars.
“You pathetic fool. If I weren’t locked up here, I’d have gathered people and gone straight to the Duchess by now!”
“And you think that would persuade her…?”
“There’s no need to persuade her.”
What could possibly be done to oppose that monster of a woman? As James had that thought, Masa smiled confidently.
“If everyone in the castle stands united, not even the Duchess could do anything about it, could she?”
That conversation had taken place just yesterday. James had stormed out of the prison, dismissing it as madness, but Masa’s words kept resurfacing in his mind.
It was no different from suggesting gathering the people of the castle to overthrow the Duchess. In the past, James would have laughed it off as nonsense, but now the resentment the servants held toward the Duchess was at its peak.
“Honestly, there’s nothing to lose even if it fails.”
James pulled the ruby earring from his pocket. The housekeeper had given it to him the day before.
“The other one is in a place only I know. If I get out of here, I’ll find it and give it to you.”
It was a precious gem that Masa had cherished, claiming it was the only piece of jewelry she had received from the late Duke.
James had no intention of joining Masa’s plan. Sure, the Duchess was just a person who could die if struck by a sword, but James didn’t want to risk losing his one and only life by getting involved in something unnecessary.
But… would it really hurt to just hand over a single key?
If they succeeded, he could return to the life he had been living. And if they failed, he could quietly slip away while the castle was in chaos.
“I’ll just say I lost the key… just in case.”
Finally making up his mind, James started walking further inside. His heart pounded with the feeling of committing something serious.
Whether from nerves or imagination, James glanced down and saw his shadow flicker as if there were two of him. To calm himself, he looked again at the ruby earring in his hand.
Even in the dim underground light, the red ruby shimmered brilliantly. Just the sight of it made him grin.
“This one’s gotta fetch at least five hundred gold. If I get the other one, how much money would that be?”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s that jewel the old hag would always brag about. Said it was a pure ruby worth—”
James froze mid-sentence. There shouldn’t be anyone else here but him… right?
“Ah, so you were planning to trade it for the key, weren’t you?”
The thick, low voice continued, sending a wave of fear through him.
Thud, thud.
The sound of short footsteps ceased, and under the flickering light, a red-haired man with a menacing expression emerged.
“This bastard’s been taking bribes while sitting comfortably in the castle….”
It was Kanut, who had rushed to the underground prison the moment he heard Kieran’s explanation.
