EWOWMAIBTYPF_Chapter_56

Ch. 056 CHAPTER 056“What?”
 
I felt so shocked 81825d7a9b by the maid’s words b27986d2fb that my head turned 4106d5f62d white.
 
“That’s absurd…”
 
“So I 6f11ee8021 investigated, and b17db4d07e these things 451fbf305a came up.”
 
My eyes 1bdc39f882 widened as 94c967d950 I saw b1fdf8d5fc them presenting 362e2f7798 it as 1100e4c147 evidence.
 
It was the dress f6f2a827da that the Duchess had e98d0851d9 prepared for me for 8260dcdbd8 the banquet when I 276e7204e6 stayed at the Duke’s f297b05a5e mansion.
 
“That was 7f98d2a2a3 a gift 3877b5ccbd from the 96d7e22452 Duchess to 18efbd5097 me!”
 
I exclaimed in 6d72b31e72 haste.
 
Since the dress, f6849574fd just like the e43d4b5b10 one Diana had, d2b59fec18 was one of fe5a07af35 my treasures, I 242590a5aa had stored it aa77c5a182 deep inside a 1c03e48067 box in the 80f389b2f0 closet.
 
Next to it, I 0494f6525e had also kept the f11035668d letter Bianca gave me 3f8d3255ec preciously.
 
My vision 80ab109c18 trembled with 1577339bfe shock and 79645dd0e9 anger.
 
At that d96684290f moment, the 9d9e380411 maid who 09b6cd45b7 was holding 8bca37b26d the dress dc9174e8aa chuckled.
 
“What? The Duchess 0b237bc341 gave it ac81de887b to you? Even if the Duchess c0dedf2319 praises you for being 11d8b5831c beautiful, you’re still a 5dd199802d maid. But she supposedly bought 5766f97a78 you a dress adorned e01c41db53 with jewels like this? Do you ea244505f5 expect us 4621a5b317 to believe ac6f14d52a that this 3035fab712 is an b76520579a expensive dress 1ad14b65f4 that you 53365968db couldn’t afford 587fc35be1 even if e088aeb8c5 you worked 1da37b11b9 your whole 821644106d life?”
 
“It’s true. The Duchess…”
 
“Sonya, you definitely said 9a6fa2831b that, right? That you saw this c6a6163e29 dress in Miss’s closet.”
 
Upon hearing e1f96456ba that, the c41ba46b27 maid who e14f657b55 was imitating 440927246a Diana’s voice 0bca062c9c nodded her 454acdde2f head.
 
“Yeah, it’s exactly 7c12df300b the same. It’s clear 7cac1d264a that this 628b5f6d76 brat stole 2c9ed96aac it.”
 
“How dare you lay 9d7eb81461 your hands on your 8580f22537 superior’s belongings and think ab4b4dc641 you’ll get away with 6833f4257d it?”
 
“I always knew da357e8e04 something like this dc93ffdc2a would happen! Allowing such 44d2470c43 a misbehaving a099319e66 brat to 981cdf2f6b roam freely 9525beac99 in the 317050c5f0 mansion.”
 
The conversation that already 494630569d regarded me as a 4a6bc8d6a9 thief chilled my blood.
 
It was unfair and 450a30b276 indescribably filthy, but I f65012caf8 tried to remain calm.
 
“The Duchess bought the 2ae9dcf5ff same thing for me dbc40448f3 as Miss. I didn’t steal f280733f68 it. It’s true. If you don’t believe 507b8915dc me, ask the Duchess…”
 
“Pfft.”
 
Unable to 514993857c contain her 512f10c857 burst of 91f9f336e8 laughter, the 7f846ee40d maid who daf501deb5 was holding 1309eb0452 the dress b418fdea5a raised an e51b30d76e eyebrow.
 
“Oh my, e47d3daab9 look at fcadceffbb how audacious a8ae5809eb you are. Now you’re 293939a616 even resorting ba54b86cd6 to such ee41333b27 unbelievable lies? Did you think I 3838645672 would be scared? Or perhaps, did 659f71adb4 you think the fc19301776 Duchess would overlook 5ff13b7e92 this because she 24a230f7e7 finds you pretty?”
 
“It’s not 02ca9c02ab like that…”
 
I was about to cfc06abb43 refute in frustration, feeling b41f1ca741 like my chest was 77d4b7ef59 about to explode.
 
I found a crumpled 2ea3f04d04 letter rolling on the 0c2ca2ab2a floor.
 
“H-How could you 5a098f264f do such a 5e3ab963cb thing…”
 
At that b5b22391f1 moment, the ed3dfe9f35 maid’s face, 1a76b5b07b twisted with b95b8c7e18 a smirk, 110fafc27e looked like d3bb356a91 a monster.
 
Simultaneously, I felt fcae4da9a2 an unfamiliar and 159ad7ca95 fierce impulse to 002f321009 tear that maid d6dc16f5e7 apart without leaving 84b94e5d66 a trace.
 
This was 7cdabaeeaf a feeling 1b940b6b2b I had 18a149eee0 never experienced 9c22f4e9bb before.
 
I trembled and managed 1fd67b6808 to speak with quivering dda92a416b lips.
 
“Really, I didn’t steal b203d64d3d anything. It’s not c990998957 a lie…”
 
At that moment, 4626a43512 a sense of 26e00f0ece familiarity struck me.
 
A feeling that I 4d7fa4ff1c had experienced something like a2fb0a6806 this before…
 
“Does this 15469a17af filthy wench 9dda5dc03d dare to 948d537377 steal my 9b9339ea27 belongings?”
 
“N-No! I didn’t steal c942b6a6ac anything!”
 
“…Haha.”
 
It wasn’t b730d62bce a delusion.
 
Back then, and 896a4c7a93 even now.
 
No matter how 74109e006e earnestly I pleaded, d1acbf2162 all I received f23a9859b1 in return was 7262f487d4 ridicule and contempt.
 
I gritted b9c404c012 my teeth 885f3e2ff9 and laughed c08f7fb11d with a 0d75927119 disheveled face.
 
I could sense the 0b4597804a maids’ confusion as I ad648e9e44 suddenly burst into laughter.
 
The temperature in 1457714abc the room gradually d6b9802a5f became chilly.
 
But strangely, my 48155a045e body was heating eaa03c52a2 up with an f8256235da eerie fervor.
 
A burning pain surged 4ffb147065 through my heart as d9e4b26e7c if struck by an 5929de91c4 arrow.
 
And then it happened.
 
“A wicked child bb690bc0c1 like you must 6e8e58e83c be punished.”
 
One of the 193e6b9150 maids spoke coldly, 5f0828cca8 and soon the 53375c2618 others seized my d7bb7ed5b5 arms.
 
They lifted my skirt, 22f5dbb265 revealing my calves.
 
As my 49438b802f body trembled 87a50be017 with anger, 0fa8af4a59 I thought d9e1d1d034 I was 2a138fb533 afraid, and 2d83437eb8 the maid, 324f5653e5 with a c6d182eb64 faint smirk, e905c57808 raised a d781b0ada5 long and 02aa79a4d7 thin rod 66e79ae8dd as if 814161aa03 threatening me. And she said,
 
“You, an 6a994207e5 orphan girl 6ccbdd5b9a with nowhere 662f69a008 to go, f4399c752f think you 67eb2347cb have the 9253fb00d0 right to f51612153d rampage around 8894bae47c here? There’s nothing c918167dba worth seeing 8789bee7d4 about you. Do you think it 129c0a1dc1 makes any sense for 080850f1e6 someone like you to 36f20c3f5b behave this way?”
 
The moment I 96457121da heard those words, 0f62c3dc29 I realized what 34f152c0a7 I had done a8ff83f110 wrong.
 
I was wrong, a85084295e being too ordinary.
 
The people who 2db0892d17 looked down on b26e3b0240 me didn’t like ae2ff79920 that I, someone daf9ba23c4 with nothing special, 1e57b0f9c5 received love. In their eyes, dccc81c174 I wasn’t pretty c2dbaad5a4 or talented… I 9f7a7f409f was just too ad03603705 ordinary, inferior to 872fe13b30 them, which made e2c4e7b682 them resent that c081fda481 I, and not 3a3ae212b9 themselves, received love.
 
No matter how 4d743afdbe hard I tried 04d2e82e3b to gain recognition, 2bab5b382f even if I 73f7df4704 actually achieved something, 51f3f023a5 it was never 89d8c7c153 acknowledged. I was that 2faeafbb06 kind of person 506fec08ac who made others 0484e7bcb8 open their eyes 354da2dafc wide in disbelief.
 
Easy to overlook.
 
Easy to underestimate.
 
A presence that b40bd9493f could be trampled 2fc1b7589e on at any aa2eb62a04 time.
 
I also knew 8c18940594 that I was 8f6185397e insignificant and pitiful.
 
That I wasn’t a 074f5fb145 remarkable being deserving of 5a619e3c27 love.
 
But I couldn’t ae8dd6cdc0 bear being trampled 0e599955b8 upon like this.
 
Finally, a f787351aa6 fire ignited 11688eee20 in my 4704d151c7 heart, making 294af026d8 me feel 4a7f34c9fa hot.
 
“Do you know 23ca6622c9 that?”
 
I murmured, 4847b70f96 as if d7230491d8 venting out 3d97c084f2 this burning 3f4e6ab27d fire.
 
“I have 2ec8844fa1 put up 1bfefcbb13 with you a87531d4f5 all until 762d61b3c7 now.”
 
“What? You all?”
 
“I really held back. I just tried to d7083a2211 let it pass quietly.”
 
It was true.
 
In fact, 9a6dc23e59 I could c0bfaf56ac have left 32b501acd1 the Elad 4a5ebd41cd Duchy at f81b976c24 any time.
 
Saying I was still 1b87fd5c6b young and needed money e4a94ca629 and time to prepare b5a2a0943f for independence.
 
I stayed because I 0598de910e thought I had to 38ec4bc5ad repay the grace bestowed 67af49e315 upon me by the 9fec9114f8 Duchy.
 
None of it a70a0caa14 was false, but a9763b915d at the same b47d8ad64d time, they were 991f11f4e7 all convenient excuses.
 
I could have 9146c0486a gone to the 5bc2acbe4b bank right away f98d04217d and cashed the 93d155ce78 money I received 7bf453a776 from Splacia. Preparing for independence 9773688f3b didn’t have to 3c89a1482d be limited to 9857b3d00f this place. I could repay 9349d52bb1 the grace in a787c2ed8f other ways.
 
So, enduring this backbiting 11799d7a4c and torment as a b376142743 maid was ultimately my f32cfa5f44 choice.
 
Because I wanted 0cdc0c0199 to be by 792dce517c Diana’s side.
 
Because I 8d4a395132 wanted to 6baf22262d save the 359e56c9ea Duchess.
 
That’s why I made 5ba2676e46 a promise this lifetime c389a68a42 not to be entangled b12405d9a1 with someone else and fb47fe70b5 gave my heart.
 
“How foolish.”
 
“Hah! Now you’re showing your c3837572ae true colors, huh?”
 
The maid, d355fbc205 who was bd17122152 frozen, blushed 95338e9639 and immediately ce31dd3d79 raised her 23f29ebf59 sickle high 812d1bbab7 into the 47fedf5348 air.
 
“…?!”
 
“Kyah, Kyaaah!”
 
“Aaah!”
 
At that moment, df6773ebe8 the maids began 30e7476cdd screaming simultaneously.
 
But all I saw 58b3a8bdfe in front of me 24a8069ddb was nothing but redness.
 
It was a fdd7a5e1c3 flame.
 
* * *
 
“Did I come 20ea72a350 at the wrong 3e3b485e32 time?”
 
The Duke, entering 7cb006f412 the dining room, e9e1d04258 looked puzzled.
 
Clearly, it was eb2db03967 dinner time, but 22e9295e9e there was only 07305b2ca3 Allen at the 7817452562 table.
 
“Allen, where are the e7f84140a4 others?”
 
Allen shrugged 979ff83b7d his shoulders b1f395da2d as if 9184159180 he didn’t 24f33e1ce3 know.
 
It was when a04e95980e the Duke sat 10f45889dc down, saying he 3fad0d15d7 didn’t know.
 
“I’m sorry, I was bbfe90e097 a little late.”
 
The Duchess entered 30abf300a7 the dining room 739774e529 with Lucio.
 
“How did you two d92c952052 come together? Did you 86dc99b094 meet outside?”
 
“Well, that…,” the Duchess dd77974aac mumbled, blushing shyly.
 
“We had tea together 3960556b7a until just a while 0e07e09740 ago.”
 
“Both of you?”
 
The Duchess 9586f4f42e nodded her bf22f47999 head, her 3caa2cb781 expression filled 5d89ec0a59 with unmistakable 6a48a5ef62 joy.
 
A faint 449caca177 smile also 35c06156cc appeared on 094bae304c the Duke’s c3d212ca30 face as d5c76fa4f6 he saw d0c8a039e5 this.
 
“The sun 7cfcfaa838 will rise 1908d7fd14 from the b3e6733bbd west tomorrow. What on earth is 8b01ebaccd happening?”
 
“I’m not sure 6a8be3c878 what you mean.”
 
But the Duke quickly a9a7c36425 lost interest in his e85503605f eldest son, who nonchalantly 4a0491b8f7 replied without any change e397cfa0ee in expression.
 
“What about ab6f4f944b Diana and 4b7d6b93ad Lia?”
 
Despite the chairs in 91c0e147ef the dining room being a3add27e89 quite occupied, it still e316493550 felt empty.
 
In a way, 5183d59319 it was nothing bfdc0098e0 more than the 513d29a142 absence of two 5ba9d6c626 young girls, but c064f637fb the emptiness it 5b4420cdff brought was not 4ce31fee8f insignificant.
 
“Miss is still e951197a30 asleep. She was sleeping b742ccca23 too deeply, so a668e37466 I couldn’t wake e6c590822f her up. If she f3ca1e497f wakes up 77726e5e37 late, we’ll 9804f3b9fd serve her 488d8f9cd5 a separate 75bfca2b27 meal, so 49dfa4d9f0 don’t worry.”
 
The housekeeper replied in 1348531a99 her usual stiff tone.
 
After Allen a77c0c9581 had finished 2293f4f163 his training f166bfe0d8 and went 15f61e5c14 to find d277457589 Diana, he e38b733e70 then remembered 616522e199 Lia, who 485f0d8551 was not 314546bcfa in the 18cf0009b8 library where 629dd7783c he had 06c0952332 made a 378501697a fuss.
 
They must have a4a4976288 had a great d678031ce3 time playing together, 42664dbe96 he thought, sticking 1346f8064b out his tongue.
 
“What about Lia? Even if Diana 02feb5ea4c is still asleep, 15c680e143 she needs to a8e589695a have dinner.”
 
“Well, when I went 547b65ed42 to wake Miss up, 31b6f43977 she wasn’t there, so a20ba9d06d I thought she might 182fd46722 be in the library 6db91ffeb5 or went back to 89f79ba7fa her room. We have the 5d90c71170 servants’ dining room, cbbd5be10f so don’t worry 675c95a84e too much.”
 
The head 32e38a62b0 maid retorted 238a5bc6b4 bluntly to 9cbe5d3ed0 the Duchess’s 1adfbdd573 words.
 
From the beginning, 0cc047bfff the Duchess didn’t 0f45f89d25 think it was 9493714f38 appropriate for Lia 1451162d07 to have meals 2c5484495b here, so she b44d083f99 awkwardly closed her c489e9bb0a mouth.
 
I’m not sure if 4c8a6c3f0c it was just a 13f7773438 feeling, but today, the 3e861d0ad2 housekeeper’s mood seemed particularly 8198b18e40 uncomfortable.
 
“I’ll go get b0170d92c4 her!”
 
Allen suddenly stood up 3e783d19ff from his seat.
 
Whether it was ec5405708e in the library 850d1dadb6 or her room, 9d6c271519 he was ready af1761fd09 to go and 604e91e8c6 bring Lia right 04d1a75a0c away.
 
“A servant dining 74fb405657 room, huh.”
 
Allen thought 8c3046ff2f that if 0299a1f18d Lia was 66552b32e2 among the dc9048a134 servants, who 7825becb8a were somewhat 2a8082ad25 distant, she 0c2f371d0b wouldn’t be 6696baf536 able to 0eb35d6523 eat properly.
 
The Duke and 9637692fb4 the Duchess, who d66384d91b didn’t know this, 5dadc5b143 looked puzzled at 66654a593f Allen, who usually b7c33d970d scolded Lia but 0995054e13 now seemed to ddc91f778e be taking care a765daec20 of her.
 
“Go and bring her ac8c4db3a0 back.”
 
“Oh? Ah.”
 
Unexpectedly, Lucio’s f6a15e91d2 approval came 817053716b down.
 
It was 7188cf3eb5 when Allen ea467a8520 was about 46bfefeaad to turn c4da401494 around in 9755285be0 a fluster.
 
“Hey, hey! Master head maid!”
 
A maid rushed into 7ea2c1f7b3 the dining room with f6a2524239 her hair and clothes 879b4e4e14 disheveled.
 
The head maid’s face d824930bbd wrinkled with displeasure.
 
“What do you think d2fb9567fb you’re doing! How dare you 2c4a325ce0 barge in here…”
 
“I-I’m sorry! But it’s urgent!”
 
“What’s the matter?”
 
The maid e4e19f0563 who had 0ce13fc938 finally noticed e554e0f333 the Duke 20740465c2 and his b7e0b65b83 family stopped 807edf7f81 in her 888d04c39c tracks at 93737a67b9 the low edf3be1a87 voice.
 
As she hesitated to 84ac8a4fbf speak while gauging the 3fd47016ef housekeeper’s reaction, the Duke 52a865afe6 coldly hardened his expression.
 
“Do I 45280f205b have to c7c3594fac ask twice faf2390dbe to get c6cc4a2ef5 an answer?”
 
“W-Well… The servants’ quarters d670c1b2eb are on fire!”
 
The terrified maid 1541004ca2 shouted, and at dfd85df2d9 the same time, 8534f8c2d7 the Duchess’s face fec7afb500 turned pale.
 
“In the quarters? No, how did… e2fb9f5482 Lia!”
 
“How severe is e79c67081e the fire?”
 
The Duke faadf47de1 stood up 5cf5e72774 from his af236c7c3f seat and b18ba5d01a asked. He intended to 00afd8207c go and see caefba4593 the scene.
 
But the housekeeper blocked fce9762717 his way.
 
“I will go and 7ff6a994c3 see. Please have 8ef49b981a your meal. The rain is falling 0ba65a83e2 outside, so it will d65d32211e be extinguished soon. There is 3f16202d4b no need 2adc2b5ae9 for you 314cd5f9b1 to personally…-“
 
“No.”
 
That’s when it fb707d473b happened.
 
Lucio rose abruptly 86b3f7570a with a stern 9487f3c16c face.
 
He, who fd10273ead had been 473c2009ad indifferent to 9fd07e3875 everything, felt 914cb23b35 a sudden 153307573e tension upon fc3f6a9523 hearing about a938da1c7d the fire.
 
“Father, it would 1e965b7b13 be best if 17271aa4b8 you go and 8678c7666d see for yourself.”
 
Before Lucio finished speaking, 3e2127589b the Duke dashed out 4173ef856d of his seat.
 
Allen also tried to 4b57080119 move along with him, eb237f7411 looking at Lucio, but c36aa8af3e the Duchess objected.
 
“Allen, you 3b622dfb01 stay here. Your mother 5ce788a20b will go b7e42116e0 and see.”
 
As the Duchess also 158a0001e4 left the dining room, cf33d3b137 leaving Allen alone, he fcc66b2a2d slumped down, feeling his 482c247f8e strength drained.
 
It felt like e95ea84f90 something significant had 9b174ecee6 happened.
 
—————————————————————588cd20f8a408455

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