The blueberry juice hadn’t been cleaned up right away, and the corset had been stepped on and completely broken. The maids glared at the apprentice maid with open hostility, but since I defended her, saying it was my fault, they held their tongues and quietly collected the dress. The corset, however, was beyond saving.
“Miss, it’s a shame, but this corset can’t be fixed. You’ll have to throw it away.”
“A corset made of whalebone…do you know how much this costs? It’s such a waste, Miss.”
“It can’t be helped. Sigh…”
The moment I agreed to discard it, the apprentice maid turned pale, as though all the blood had drained from her face.
“Throw it out,” I said to the maids without even sparing the apprentice maid a glance.
“Do you have any idea how valuable that is?!”
“It’s a gift from the Royal family. Throwing it out won’t start a war, will it?”
“Hey! What did the lady do wrong here? The one at fault is that careless girl who stepped on it and fell.”
“True.”
I’d left the door wide open on purpose, and now their blunt conversation spilled in from the hallway.
Just then, Michelle burst into the room.
“Miss! What on earth happened here?”
Michelle shot a deadly glare at the apprentice maid.
“You! Just how careless do you have to be to make a mistake like this? Damaging a royal gift—do you know how disgraceful that is to the family?”
I watched silently as the apprentice maid was thoroughly scolded by Michelle.
The girl looked utterly dazed. She had probably never seen Michelle this angry before—likely because I rarely raised my voice around her. She clearly hadn’t realized how terrifying Michelle could be.
Tsk tsk. Underestimating people is such a terrible habit.
“Michelle, that’s enough.”
I knelt in front of the apprentice maid, who looked as though her spirit had been completely crushed, and made eye contact.
“Hey.”
“Y-Yes?”
“You’ll need to explain what happened today carefully.”
“P-Pardon? What do you mean…?”
She hadn’t even considered that I’d directly call out her tattling. Her teeth chattered slightly, making a faint clacking sound.
“I’m not trying to scare you.”
I gently dabbed her work uniform, stained with blueberry juice, using a handkerchief as I continued in a sweet voice.
“I just figured… if word gets out that the dress and corset were ruined because of your mistake, it might cause trouble for you too.”
“But… Miss, you left those things by the door…”
“If that’s what you think, then you can say that. But you know, don’t you? His Highness the Prince is… quite a ruthless man.”
Smiling softly, I added:
“He says he likes me, and yet he still keeps people like you around to spy. Do you really think he’ll believe your version of events?”
When our eyes met, the maid flinched and trembled.
“Everyone in this household will say it was your fault. So, think about it: between your claim that the dress and corset were placed at the door and my claim that you ruined them by mistake—who do you think he will believe?”
“M-Miss…”
I couldn’t believe how lightly she had taken me, joking around with Michelle like I was some pushover. This didn’t even count as a real threat, and yet the girl looked like she was about to burst into tears.
“You’re really… so naïve.”
I was born as the twin of Alessandro Roha. Anyone who says politics was born in human form would point to Sasha’s face. And I’d spent every day at his side—plenty of time to learn.
“If His Highness finds out, you’ll probably have to return all the bonuses you’ve received. And that’s if you’re lucky.”
I smiled as I gently held the maid’s chin and made her look me in the eyes.
“Some nobles treat commoner lives as if they were flies. Now imagine what the Royal family might be like. Ever thought about that?”
The apprentice maid let out a shrill gasp, and I decided that was enough.
As irritating as her spying had been, she was only a pawn—a powerless hired hand. The real villain here was the Prince who had ordered her to do it.
Just then, a maid rushed into the room.
“Miss, the doctor has arrived!”
“Really? Good, I’m glad he made it quickly. Now go and get treated. And think carefully about what we talked about. I’ll be looking forward to the choice you make.”
That was the end of our conversation. The apprentice maid, drained of all strength, left the room supported by the other maids.
Bang.
The door closed with a thud, signaling the end of the commotion.
I stretched and lay back on the bed. Michelle, who had been taking off my shoes, asked in a worried voice,
“Miss, what if that wicked girl tells the Prince everything?”
“She won’t. She’s already terrified just from realizing I found out she was his spy.”
“Still…”
“There’s no need to worry. Anyway, Michelle, help me choose something to wear for the investiture ceremony. That gift won’t do—its base color is too light, and the juice stains won’t come out.”
Michelle looked like she still couldn’t shake her anxiety as she opened her mouth a few more times to speak. But I calmly reassured her.
“It’s fine. What’s done is done, and it’s not like I can undo it. Worrying won’t change anything.”
“Do you… have a plan?”
“No, not really. But I’m sure I’ll figure something out.”
I said it with a cheerful smile, but inside, I was just as anxious. Still, one thing was clear: I would rather die than attend that ceremony in the gold dress so clearly sent by the palace.
“I’ll figure something out.”
I pretended to be composed in front of my family and Michelle, but I was reaching my limit.
They had me by the throat, so I couldn’t just overturn the game. But being dragged along at their whim while watching every move I made? I’ve had enough.
* * *
The next day.
I worried something might happen, but time passed peacefully.
“Miss.”
“Hm?”
“That girl… she quit her job as a maid today.”
“Did she?”
The maid who had been the Prince’s pawn apparently quit on her own. It seemed she had come to the capital from the countryside to earn money, and it wasn’t hard to imagine how tempting the Prince’s offer must have sounded, especially with no roots or connections in this place. Nor how terrifying it must’ve been to fall out of favor with someone like that.
Michelle also mentioned that the butler, unaware of the full situation, gave her a bit of severance pay.
On the surface, it had been handled as her taking responsibility for a careless mistake. Normally, someone wouldn’t be dismissed over something like this, but considering the item involved, the butler probably hadn’t been able to brush it off so easily.
“Then we don’t need to worry about the Prince’s side anymore.”
Apparently, she had admitted it was her own fault when she quit, so that version of the story must have reached the Prince as well.
“R-right… I guess?”
Ever timid, Michelle still couldn’t shake her anxiety.
Last night, the laundry maids had come to my room in a panic, saying the stains on the dress wouldn’t come out no matter what they tried.
I told them repeatedly not to worry, but when I insisted it couldn’t be helped, they looked so apologetic that I felt a twinge of guilt. While they were fretting, the truth was, I had been more concerned that some laundry genius might actually restore the dress.
I told Michelle to set aside some compensation for the maids who had worked hard on the laundry. I wanted to do something to make up for the trouble they’d gone through today.
Now that I had successfully ruined the dress sent by Prince Zeta as planned, it was time for the next step.
“Michelle, can you take out the dress we picked yesterday one more time?”
“Miss, I’m really worried about this.”
“I told you, it’s fine.”
Michelle hesitated, clearly reluctant, but eventually brought the dress over.
It was a somewhat extravagant dress I liked and had never worn. The green dress made for me by Madame Dewey.
“All right, just leave it here for now.”
“Then… if not this one, how about this one, Miss?”
Michelle and I began going through dresses. Black satin, purple, burgundy, ivory—dresses in all sorts of beautiful colors were laid out, but none of them caught my eye.
Eventually, the dress for the appointment ceremony was chosen. It was the very first one we had taken out—the one that matched Armin’s.
It had been designed for warmer weather than now, so the fabric was far too light. Michelle was horrified and said absolutely not, but I refused to budge.
“Miss, you do know this outfit is completely inappropriate, right?”
“I don’t mind.”
I thought I had no more tears left, but suddenly my eyes burned and filled with warmth.
I remembered the day I wore that dress. That morning, I’d thought I’d see Sasha and Armin again soon—they’d left, saying they were busy with work.
If I hadn’t met Prince Zeta, who appeared like a fairytale Prince after I’d been soaked by Lady Rose at the ball—if I hadn’t let him persuade me to change into a different dress—then that matching outfit with Armin would have become an unofficial symbol of our relationship in front of everyone.
I thought I’d been holding up well, but a wave of aching longing for Armin hit me like a flood.
“Miss… please don’t cry.”
Tears were brimming in Michelle’s eyes as she looked at me. I quickly wiped my own and spoke resolutely.
“Why would I cry?”
I didn’t want this damned, hopeless situation to feel any darker or heavier than it already did. When I thought about Armin, I didn’t want to do anything that felt ominous.
