ASDEF 16

Chapter 16

Instead of a floor reeking of mildew, I buried my head in a soft, fragrant bed and shouted.

“That’s it. First things first! I’ve finally escaped the shackles of that wretched poverty, Sophie!”

Then, the events from earlier suddenly flashed through my mind.

*’Isn’t that right, dear?’*

The sensation that had touched the tip of my lips.

I touched my lips with my fingers, as if to relive it.

It must have had no emotion or meaning, so why had my heart pounded so violently?

“Snap out of it. That bastard is a villain and a sunflower. It was all just a calculated move!”

Daniel’s sudden action seemed to have bewildered Briana, who just stared blankly at our faces. It also had the added effect of capturing everyone’s attention.

Well, at least it helped us more definitively escape the Duke’s suspicions.

“As expected of a villain, he was certainly bold… but stealing a kiss on the lips just to dispel my father’s doubts? That’s going too far! You bastard, just try touching even the tip of my finger next time.”

After all, it was my first kiss, in a way!

As I rolled up my sleeves, puffing out my chest, I noticed the splendid accessories around me and carefully rolled my sleeves back down.

“…Money heals all wounds.”

Just as I was muttering to myself, a knock suddenly came from the door.

“My lady, I am Abigail Jones, the head maid. May I come in for a moment?”

I calmed my excited heart, slowly rose from the bed, and said,

“Come in.”

Soon, the door opened and the head maid entered, carrying a clinking wine bottle and two wine glasses.

“A small gift from His Grace for my lady, who must be exhausted from the busy schedule.”

Wine sent by Duke Benson. That meant it was top-quality wine.

It’s been so long since I’ve had wine!

“Please tell His Grace I’m grateful.”

As I fiddled with the wine with a pleased expression, the head maid, watching me, called out to someone through the open door crack.

“Come in.”

At her words, two maids entered.

“Do your best to ensure the young lady’s bath time is enjoyable.”

“Yes, Head Maid.”

I appreciate the thoughtfulness, but why do I need four people just for a bath? Is this just how noble life is?

“Head Maid, I appreciate the sentiment, but I can manage on my own…”

“On your own, my lady? Today is the very day of your grand wedding. To prepare for the wedding night, you will need the help of the maids.”

“W-Wedding night?!”

“My lady, the wedding night is a sacred ritual that all married couples naturally go through. There is absolutely no need to be shy.”

Oh no.

Only after facing the head maid’s unwavering gaze did I realize why she was here.

I slowly leaned my head back.

“I-I’m not ready yet…”

“Preparation is our job. Please relax and leave it to us.”

Gone was the gentle smile from before. She suddenly gave the maids sharp orders.

“Hurry and prepare. You know well how much the young master hates tardiness, don’t you?”

“Yes, Head Maid. We’ll prepare quickly.”

As the maids half-forcibly led me to the bathroom, I frantically turned my head left and right, shouting.

“The young master and I have already discussed the wedding night! We agreed to rest comfortably tonight!”

“What bizarre talk is that. The young master specifically ordered us to attend to you properly.”

Daniel, you bastard… You instructed the kiss and now the wedding night too? Are you insane?! This wasn’t in the contract, and there was never a single word about it!

Oblivious to my feelings, the maids were busy bickering with me.

“My lady, please stop and let go of your clothes! Isabel, hold my lady’s arm properly.”

“While we wash the lady, you go get the towels.”

“Okay, got it.”

As one maid stepped away, the maid named Isabel, with a determined look, finally snatched my clothes away.

I curled up with a despondent expression.

The warm, full bathtub, the fragrant bath salts, and the array of bath supplies were all wonderful, but it was my first time being completely naked and attended to during a bath.

The maid, who was washing my body here and there, stopped her busy hands in surprise upon seeing the large scar on my thigh.

“Oh my!”

Well, I understood that reaction. Even I still flinch when I see this scar.

It was a mark that had shriveled the skin, impossible to get used to.

Father had told me it was a glorious scar of survival, incurred when he was caught under a pillar of fire while fleeing in a hurry during the war, but to me, who couldn’t recover Sophie’s memories, it was just a strange and hideous scar.

I had to give an awkward explanation to the maid, who couldn’t take her eyes off it.

“Th-This is a scar from being burned as a child. I don’t even remember it.”

“My lady, surely… Is that why you refused our help?”

“We… Huh?”

“I am so sorry for being disrespectful without knowing your feelings. Please punish me!”

She might have been disrespectful, but did she really need to be punished…?

“No, it’s fine. Th-That can happen.”

“I only thought you were just shy and refusing… Going against a superior’s mood here is a grave offense, my lady.”

“I said it’s okay.”

“Even if you say that, my lady, if this gets to His Grace’s ears through the Head Maid…”

She trailed off, shaking her head as if she didn’t even want to imagine it. The rest was obvious without hearing it.

In fact, I had experienced a similar situation before.

When I first started working at a restaurant that became famous after a TV appearance, I was constantly on edge because of the strict hierarchy there.

The head chef had assigned one of his confidants to watch over me, a lowly newbie. It was so he could mercilessly cut me loose the moment I made a mistake.

Then, on a day the head chef was away, the incident finally happened.

A regular customer who came to the restaurant was served a pre-meal course of turbot with raspberry crumble and olive oil powder.

That dish didn’t take into account the regular’s fish allergy at all.

The regular, of course, complained, and the head chef, upon returning, was furious and immediately sought out the person responsible.

He raged at me, saying the cause was my failure to properly check the regular’s name, but the one who actually made the mistake was that very confidant he had assigned to watch me.

The confidant, to evaluate my cooking skills, had told me to prepare that day’s pre-meal course, and he had taken it upon himself to check on the customer in my stead.

I was wronged, but I ended up staying quiet. Because the startled confidant had calmed the head chef down, and the situation was smoothed over.

What happened after that?

After that day, the confidant treated me as if nothing had happened, but even when I made mistakes, he mostly turned a blind eye.

It was probably to ease his own guilt for having made me take the blame.

Thanks to that, I gradually settled in and rose to the position of sous chef.

So I know this well. That this situation could also be an opportunity.

I thought, perhaps if I could handle this maid well, she might become useful to me.

‘Yes. Let’s be the kindest master possible. There must have been no one like that in the Benson household.’

Putting on a kind expression and even making my eyes look as innocent as possible, I spoke to her.

“If you’re really worried, we can just keep it a secret between us.”

“A-A secret?”

“Yes. Then the Head Maid won’t know, and His Grace won’t know either.”

“So you’re really forgiving me…?”

“Of course. So don’t worry.”

I quietly nodded toward her, whose eyes were trembling.

Just then, the maid who had gone to get the towels returned.

“Isabel, you haven’t finished washing her yet, have you? I’ll help…”

“It’s done!”

Isabel raised her voice and blocked the approaching maid’s path.

The flustered maid asked back.

“Already?”

“Yes. Give me that towel and go prepare the clothes for the young lady to wear.”

At Isabel’s firm words, the maid, looking bewildered, handed over the towel and whispered quietly.

“Isabel, did you check? What the Head Maid mentioned. If there’s anything wrong with the young lady’s body…”

“How could that be? You saw her with your own eyes, didn’t you? She’s perfectly healthy.”

“Th-That’s true.”

“Hurry up and go.”

The maid, tilting her head, couldn’t resist Isabel’s fierce glare and left.

Isabel quickly wrapped my shivering body in a towel, as the water was getting cold.

“My lady, please put on your robe quickly.”

I gave a satisfied smile toward her, who had prevented a crisis that could have almost let word of my scar reach the Duke’s ears.