Chapter 06
“Ughh.”
Serden covered his mouth and let out a laugh as he listened to the report from his aide. He couldn’t hide the laughter that came out naturally.
Serden spoke in a voice full of amusement.
“So Lady Roselina worked hard playing hide-and-seek and then left?”
Mortega answered with an uncomfortable expression. This was an insult to Roselina. She had come to help Serden.
“…Your Highness, this cannot be overlooked. Even if she is the Crown Princess-to-be, how could this happen to Lady Roselina… Have you forgotten what kind of man her father is…?”
“Ah, you.”
The aide, who had been defending Roselina, closed his mouth tightly and clenched his fist. His expression showed he knew he had made a mistake.
“It seems he’s not my aide but Roselina’s defender. And he seems more afraid of Lady Roselina’s father, Count Karma, than me. Hah. A count above the Crown Prince.”
“Th-That’s not what I meant, Your Highness!”
“Listen, Mortega.”
Serden called Mortega in a cold voice.
Mortega swallowed and raised his head. Serden’s eyes, almost transparent in their coldness, stared at him. Mortega’s lips trembled.
“If you’re that worried, you should stay by Lady Roselina’s side.”
“Ah, no! I just… I was worried that Your Highness hit Lady Roselina…”
“It was just a game. Something children would enjoy.”
Serden smiled. Mortega swallowed nervously and watched Serden with tightly pressed lips.
“The Count I know would not make a problem out of this. And neither would Lady Roselina.”
Roselina would hide her true feelings and wait for the right moment. She would pretend to be kind while keeping her plan inside.
Even though he was smiling, Serden wasn’t sure if he felt good or bad. He moved his lips.
“Is she pretending to be a child, or is she really a child?”
“…What?”
“Which do you think?”
Mortega thought of Evelyn.
Evelyn drooling in Serden’s hands, eating candy like a child, teasing the maids even though she could do nothing else, and now even playing tricks on Roselina!
‘Are you really suspecting that foolish girl?’
He had no reason to think that way. Mortega swallowed.
“I don’t know, Your Highness.”
Serden lifted his lips. His wife was a very interesting person.
“Watch her closely. See what she does and who she meets.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Rosy and Cherina rubbed their swollen foreheads with eggs, sighing heavily. The workday had already ended.
Walking around at this late hour would cause misunderstandings.
“Huff… What should we do? The Duke will be waiting, won’t he?”
Cherina muttered, upset.
“We have to do something. We can’t let that crazy Evelyn ruin everything. If this goes wrong, we’re both dead.”
Rosy gritted her teeth. She had been hit so much that she was full of frustration.
“I’ll go out, you stay here.”
“What are you going to do?”
“There’s a small side door near the kitchen for the staff. We can use that.”
Despite being harassed by Evelyn, they had learned the castle well. This side door could be used to leave secretly even at this late hour.
“If we go out now, it will be hard to get back in!”
“We’ll hide outside and come back when the staff arrive in the morning.”
Rosy said firmly. She needed time to meet their helper, learn the guard’s shift, and hide in the garden.
“…Are you sure?”
“Yes. You just watch that girl carefully here. I’ll return safely.”
Rosy took a deep breath and pressed her bonnet tightly. There were few permanent staff, so avoiding their eyes was enough.
The castle had Spellman’s spies and the Crown Prince’s spies. Rosy held Cherina’s hand and let go.
“I’ll be back.”
Cherina reluctantly nodded.
At Count Karma’s mansion, Roselina swallowed her anger. Yesterday she had been caught off guard, but from now on, she would never be. Being beaten by that child was humiliating.
She had spent the whole night calming her swollen forehead.
‘Just wait. I’ll show how perfect I am as the next Crown Princess.’
Count Karma’s wife looked at her daughter with worried eyes. She sighed at the still red forehead.
“Really… will you leave her with that crazy girl? And the Crown Prince is too much. Not only did he break the engagement, but now he humiliates Roselina like this?”
“Quiet. Do you think this was really His Highness’s intention? You always say things that make me annoyed, even when you know better.”
Count Karma clicked his tongue unhappily. His wife pouted. He gave Roselina a stern look.
Beautiful like her mother, smart like her father, raised to be the most noble woman. She had been given the best education and upbringing.
“Do you want me to do something for you? Go complain to the Crown Prince and ask for compensation?”
“No, Father.”
Roselina smiled brightly.
“If you do that, I won’t go higher. I haven’t given up yet. If I watch carefully, I can bring that girl down. I can wait as long as I need for that moment.”
Count Karma smiled in satisfaction.
“That’s my daughter.”
“I’ll do as you taught me, Father. Trust me and wait.”
Count Karma nodded. Ignoring his wife’s worried eyes, Roselina stood up.
“I should go to the palace now. I am Your Highness’s maid, after all.”
This time, she would not be defeated like yesterday. She would teach that wild child and make her act according to her will.
Roselina gritted her teeth and went to the Crown Princess’s palace.
But her determination lasted only a few hours.
“Oh, today you’re going for a walk?”
Cherina, Rosy, and Roselina looked at me with pale faces.
I nodded. At this point, I needed to take a quick look around. Since I had decided to secretly help Serden, I wanted to do it properly.
Think about it. Serden was responsible for my food, clothing, and shelter. Of course, I had to look good. He was like my household head in Korea. My one and only husband.
My peace is linked to Serden’s peace.
In the novel, whenever Serden’s position was threatened, Evelyn was blamed too. And there was a rumor that Serden’s illness came from me being nearby.
It was nonsense, but Serden was very useful as my shield.
“Where to for a walk… Are we playing hide-and-seek again today?”
Roselina asked politely.
She ran a lot yesterday and looks fine. Her forehead, hit by my flick yesterday, is fine too. She seems to have a perfectionist side.
But she might break soon.
“Not hide-and-seek today. I want to play something else!”
“Something else…?”
“Treasure hunt!”
“Treasure hunt?” Cherina murmured.
I knew the castle had marks left by assassins. Spies and assassins left signs around the castle.
Some of these marks were in the garden. I didn’t know exactly where, so I had to search.
There would be information leading to Spellman in my garden.
In the novel, Spellman had used me, and the garden had been set up to look like it had something. Whatever it was, it could harm Serden, so I planned to remove it.
This is my own treasure hunt.
The sunlight was beautiful that day.
