ATDTYSM 07

Chapter 7

There was a sound of a neat rupture. The necklace had been broken to pieces.

Jason belatedly grasped the situation and began to tremble with anger.

“Ashlyn Rosebell!”

Ashlyn swept up the remains of the necklace by hand.

“Oh, where did he get that diamond from?”

“Diamond?”

Ridicule erupted from the surroundings.

“A Diamond that can be broken by a stone table… I’ve never heard of such a thing, tch!”

They could hear audible laughter from the crowd. Jason looked around in a fit of fury and tried to find out the person it belonged to.

“You… ! Ashlyn!”

“Jason, I’m afraid I’ll not be able to accept your confession since it’s not the promised diamond.”

Tang! Jason banged his hand on the table.

“I can’t forgive you! How dare you humiliate me like this?”

His gray eyes were filled with rage. In the face of his madness, Ashlyn stepped back a little.

When she shrugged her small shoulders, Jason rushed over the table.

“Jason, stop it.”

A servant approached from somewhere and blocked him, as if sensing the strangeness of his actions. The buzz grew among the workers watching the scene.

“Ashlyn, are you all right? Let’s just go.”

Sophia took Ashlyn by the shoulder and led her outside the restaurant. Ann and Lena too, surrounded her as if to protect her.

“Do you think you’ll be able to live well in this mansion after this? Hey! Come here!”

Jason shouted in a bizarre way.

“Stop it, Jason.”

His hands flailed about even more when he was stopped.

Ashlyn left the table under the protection of the maids. The people watching made way for her.

“Do you think you’ll be fine?!”

The sound of something breaking came from behind her.

The voices of people saying ‘Oh, you’ve gone crazy!’ and ‘Stop it!’ were all she could hear as she left the building.

* * *

“Jason, that guy – his eyes looked so strange. He must be out of his mind.”

Sophia murmured angrily.

When they reached a place not very far from the cafeteria, Ashlyn stopped walking.

It was in the middle of the passageway that many workers used. The servants passing by stole a glance at Ashlyn’s face.

“Are you okay?”

Lena asked. She looked worried. Ashlyn sank to the spot, exhaling briefly.

“Ashlyn!”

The three people called her name in unison.

Sophia looked at Ashlyn’s complexion, her eyebrows drooping from the sight. Her pale face looked very pitiful.

Ashlyn wrapped her arms around herself and murmured softly.

“It’s alright, I’m alright. Actually.. I held it in and confronted Jason as best as I could, but truthfully, I got a little scared when he started shouting at me..”

“Ashlyn…”

Lena and Ann looked at Ashlyn as if they felt sorry for her. Sophia rubbed her back. Her body was extremely cold.

“Do you think he’ll try to harm me?”

asked Ashlyn with trembling lips.

The girl that had brazenly broken the diamond necklace was gone, and now she looked like a flower that could wither at any time.

So Sophia forgot the question in her mind.

How did Ashlyn know that it was a fake diamond just from a glance?

That’s what she’d been planning to ask.

“Don’t worry. We’ll protect you no matter what.”

Sophia said firmly.

“Yes, I won’t let that bastard even come near you!”

“Trust us, Ashlyn.”

Lena and Ann also added.

Ashlyn dropped her head. Her voice was somewhat shaky.

“Thank you, girls. I…”

“I can’t even count the number of times you’ve helped us, Ashlyn. Of course we should do at least this much.”

“Exactly! We are your friends. Besides, Jason was a weirdo from the start!”

“Yes. Never mind him.”

The three banded together to comfort Ashlyn. The busy servants kept looking at them as they passed by.

Ashlyn looked at the girls.

“Thank you…”

She closed her eyes when her friends embraced her in a hug.

Jason’s face,  as he was screaming like a demon, came to her mind.

‘The stupid bastard.’

Ashlyn laughed inwardly.

Jason Barron’s wasn’t good to begin with, and he still dared to create a scene at the cafeteria.

‘Should I use this opportunity to get rid of the trash?’

It wouldn’t be difficult. A small fire grows quicker if you add a little firewood.

There was still time before she left the Duchy, since the most troublesome character, the Duke himself, had declared that he would not bother her for the time being.

Then there was nothing left to consider.

Ashlyn’s eyes gleamed. It was time to get rid of the pest that was getting on her nerves.

* * *

“Ashlyn, I heard there was an incident with you at the cafeteria a few days ago.”

“Oh, chef.”

Ashlyn looked back at the chef.

A few days ago, she’d changed her job to a kitchen assistant maid. The main tasks were organizing ingredients, washing dishes, cleaning, and serving meals.

Tong! A large kitchen knife fell on the wooden cutting board. The chef swept his thick beard with his hands. His wrinkled eyes were filled with disapproval.

“Tsk tsk. I knew Jason would end up causing trouble.”

Ashlyn stopped separating the flour. She murmured quietly with her eyes slightly lowered.

“It’s all right. He hasn’t barged in anywhere after that or taken me away somewhere by force…”

“What? Did he used to force you to come with him?”

The middle-aged woman who was cutting vegetables next to her shouted. Her voice was loud enough to probably alert everyone in the mansion.

Soon all the attention in the kitchen was focused on her. Ashlyn wiggled her fingers.

“Oh, he used to follow me around…”

“Goodness! Jason, that terrible swine!”

The woman cursed violently and smacked the vegetable she was holding on the ground. Ashlyn could see the young maids and servants whispering to each other.

‘Today at the earliest, tomorrow morning at the latest?’

Ashlyn estimated the time when the rumor would spread.

Kha! The chef drew his knife back with a dry cough of disapproval.

“I’m glad you came to the kitchen. It’s far from the garden. Don’t worry, if he comes here, I’ll scold him!”

“Yes, thank you.”

The big-bodied chef was truly reliable.

Ashlyn turned his head again and divided the flour. It would be better not to say anything more. The person in charge always throws the seeds.

It was the role of the people around them to water them and make them bear fruit.

“Ashlyn is so strong for being brave even after going through that!”

It was enough to maintain that image.

“Gosh, it’s already time for the Lord’s meal!”

The chef glanced inside and shouted.

“You guys! Stop chatting and move quicker!”

When the scolding fell, all dispersed quickly like mice hit by a broom.

“…….”

Ashlyn also shook the flour off her hands. After arranging her clothes a bit more neatly, she pushed the trolley. The steaming meal was full of layers.

It was Ashlyn’s turn to bring the duke his meal today.

After that day, the duke really cut all his attention off of Ashlyn. She couldn’t even see a strand of his hair these days since he didn’t seek her out first.

‘This is for the best.’

Ashlyn smiled briefly and pushed the trolley.

“I brought the Lord’s meal.”

As she stood in front of the dining room and declared, the housekeeper raised an eyebrow at her and then said,

“Go in.”

The Duke was sitting at a very large and very wide rectangular table. The mountain of documents on the table almost made her mistake this place for an office.

The housekeeper went to him and said,

“I will prepare your meal, my lord.”

No reply was returned. He seemed busy looking into the papers with a nonchalant face. Flap, flap. Only the soft sounds of paper turning filled the room.

The landlord gave a short nod. Ashlyn, along with the other maids, starting placing the plates on the table with the velvet cover..

“…….”

The duke, who’d been engrossed in his document, suddenly glanced up. Ashlyn, quietly setting the food on the table, could feel his gaze on her from the corner of her eye.

“Housekeeper. Is everything going on fine in the mansion these days?”

The question was asked in a low voice. His hand holding the document strained a little.

“There’s nothing to worry about.”

The housekeeper replied politely.

Ashlyn placed the last plate and quickly bowed after. Only then did the gaze that had been stuck to her like a knife fall off.

It was a suffocating time, as usual.

* * *

In the afternoon, she went to the food warehouse for an errand given by the chef.

“Why is he here right now?”

On her way back, she saw an unwelcome character and frowned.

“Hey!”

Jason seemed to have rushed over while working on the garden, since he held a pair of bush-trimming scissors in his hands.

‘I thought Hugo was in charge of the western garden today.’

She clicked her tongue. She’d taken the long way back to avoid him, but it was all for nothing.

“Do you still have something to say to me?”

She asked with a slant.

Looking closely, Jason’s face looked very damaged. His lips were white, his eyes too murky… he didn’t look good at all.

“Of course. I have so much to say to you. I even swapped shifts for this.”

“That’s a lot of effort on your part.”

“Why are you treating me like a dog?”

“If you don’t want to be humiliated again, stop coming to me. You’re not worthy enough to go against me.”

Ashlyn folded her arms. Jason gritted his teeth and took a step closer.

“Do you know how my reputation is these days because of you?”

He spoke in a suppressed voice.

“The guys in the manor don’t even look at me now. To them, I’ve become some idiot who doesn’t know how to take a hint!”

She was sure he was speaking the truth. Because she’d made it that way.

Ashlyn swallowed her words and curled her lips.

“Thank you for introducing yourself to me again.”

“Ashlyn!”

“Stop calling my name. If anyone sees us, they’ll think you’re bothering me again. Are you sure that’s fine for you?”

Ashlyn tilted her head as if it was a pitiful situation, and Jaosn scoffed.

“Argh! Seriously!”

He stomped his feet and glared at Ashlyn.

“I can’t even talk to you properly.”

Ashlyn knew at least twenty more people who were better at fighting than Jason.

For her, whose daily routine was scheming and conspiracy, Jason’s response was honestly cute.

“If you have nothing more to say, I’ll be going”

After a brief change of mood, Ashlyn smiled lightly and passed Jason by.

“Damn it! Won’t you stand still?”

It was then that his angry eyes suddenly fell cold.

Ashlyn frowned.

“…”

He heard a short groan. His eyes glanced down slowly.

“Huh? Oh, no. I was just…”

A bewildered voice escaped him.

“I was just trying to catch you…”

Why were those scissors over there? And there was b-blood on them…

The moment her mind registered the situation, pain flooded in her right leg.

Ashlyn, who was a princess, hadn’t understood something yet.

The difference between Jason and the men she’d dealt with so far.

Ashlyn couldn’t understand why he’d use the scissors in his hands just to show his anger.

She couldn’t, at all. Why on earth would he do something that clearly showed he was the culprit?

The arts of murder she knew about included things like swapping out a vial of medicine with poison, sticking a poisoned needle in the back of someone’s neck, or framing someone to send them to the gallows…

“Oh My God! Ashlyn!”

“Jason Barron! What the hell have you done to her?!”

She heard the voices of the maid. The faces of the girls who she’d helped a couple times came into her view.

Ashlyn breathed heavily. Her body collapsed to the floor. She turned her head to find her long skirt had been torn by the blade.

In between, she could see a long horizontally open wound.

Crimson blood streamed down her pale calves, drenching the floor. At that moment, Ashlyn had to reassure herself that she wasn’t bleeding from her mouth as well.

Fortunately, nothing was escaping from her lips.

“Ashlyn!”

She was glad she hadn’t drunk poison again.

But why was she so dizzy then……?