Chapter 104
A luxurious, enormous door painted in blue exuded a tremendous presence. The silver hinges added even more splendor.
“Thank you for showing me around.”
The room used by the winner of the Athena Island hunting competition was second only to the rooms used by the Emperor, Empress, and Crown Prince in the summer palace.
It was a guest room used when foreign kings visited. When the door opened, the sea visible through the balcony windows was breathtakingly beautiful.
The room was huge, cool, and opulent—a sight to satisfy anyone.
“Wow, this room really doesn’t suit you, Miss.”
If only Dory’s sarcasm could be ignored.
There it goes again. That nerve-grating habit of hers.
She had a talent for scraping at one’s nerves along a fine line, slowly cracking mental stability as the conversation continued.
She’s already rifling through my trunk and drawers on her own, isn’t she?
And the moment I lose my temper, she would twist the story to make herself look innocent and me the unreasonable one.
She’s always been good at spreading rumors, after all.
I ignored Dory’s words and actions as if she were invisible and sank into the sofa.
Flustered, Dory quickly followed and sat across from me. She toyed with an expensive teacup to show off, saying:
“Even the little things here are all ridiculously expensive, ‘real’ luxury items. Whoever prepared this room must be sad. The fake lady wouldn’t even know how to use any of this.”
It seemed the incident earlier in the greenhouse garden had left a significant impact on her.
Judging by how quickly she retaliated,
She probably wants me to feel hurt as much as she did.
I glanced at Mrs. Becker. She was simply standing by the door, watching the situation with a sense of amusement.
She can’t confront me directly, so she enjoys this little show, huh?
“You’re remarkably empathetic, Dory.”
I considered indulging her curiosity, even for her sake, but unfortunately, Dory was far too inexperienced.
“Why not use that empathy for the person who prepared the Athena cream? How sad must they have felt? Who would have known a mere maid would confidently spread the Emperor’s special delicacy over jam?”
If you want to anger someone, you should smile lightly, not act grave.
Reminding her of her warm, humiliating little anecdote, Dory immediately fell silent.
Just as I thought. Amateur.
Thanks to my younger sister in a past life, I was very accustomed to such sarcasm. Hangsongi had an overwhelming talent for irritating people—smiling sweetly while subtly scratching at nerves.
“Unnie, why are you like this? Did it bother you when I said I only graduated high school? Come on, who here even has a university degree? We’re all high school grads for the next couple of years anyway.”
Dory bit her nails in frustration. Finally, some peace and quiet.
I turned my gaze to the sea visible from the sofa. The moonlit ocean was hypnotically beautiful.
After kneeling for two hours, my legs, which had gone numb, were gradually relaxing.
The struggle of dragging my aching legs here just to avoid collapsing in front of these people was real.
Sending the apothecary to the summer palace was definitely the right call.
I had already switched the drugs meant for Karl to sleeping pills using Damian, so the supposed effects of the brainwashing medicine were all lies.
The apothecary who came looking for my father earlier was the same one who had handled Gisela’s son—a shady pharmacist who sold expired, spoiled herbs.
Threats are more effective than reports.
Using that as leverage, I scared him into prison, and he promised to obey any command, crying about how scary the prison was.
At first, I intended to extort money for Gisela, but… the phrase “I’ll do anything you say” essentially means “Please, make me do anything.”
A cowardly, petty criminal with vile tendencies proved very useful.
Bold and unpredictable individuals are hard to handle, but these petty criminals are convenient—they won’t argue about any strange order.
For instance, tasks like “Find the weed seeds that resemble the precious seeds” or “Stay in the summer palace” were simple to assign.
The herbs my father bought looked just like the precious seeds but were, in fact, weeds.
To pick out the weeds that most resembled the rare seeds, I had to study dozens of thick plant encyclopedias and examine hundreds of thousands of weed seeds.
It was exhausting. Of course, not for my eyes, but for the eyes of that rat of an apothecary.
He may have lost his conscience, but he was a master at spot-the-difference.
All I did was secretly plant Damian among the lab staff and spread a rumor that a farmer handled only expensive seeds.
Knowing Fernand’s personality, it was obvious he would fetch the trickster I had prepared without proper verification.
Making him the summer palace apothecary was even easier.
I had predicted every possible test question for the apothecary selection exam.
There was even an episode in <Danguwon> where Charlotte studied previous exam questions while applying for the “Imperial Palace Apothecary Exam.”
I’m thankful to Gisela for providing such a useful rat. She must have wanted to throw her rotten herbs at her son and put him in prison immediately, yet she willingly handed him over to me.
To hide my involvement, Gisela even relayed commands to the useless apothecary.
Thoughtful Gisela. Out of respect for her kindness, I planned to use this rat effectively before discarding him.
The astronomical sum my father spent on the seeds was safely stored through Goetz.
Now that I think about it, I should check the inventory function too.
If it’s like <Danguwon>, the inventory might have functions related to money.
But I couldn’t access it immediately—Dory was speaking with a determined expression.
“Now I see that you are quite a cunning person, Miss.”
“Cunning?”
Odette was taken aback by the word.
“I’ve been so naïve. I thought you were simple-minded, yet here you are.”
Dory continued, her face full of indignation.
“Tricking me with the watering in the greenhouse garden… that was your plan, wasn’t it? Aren’t you ashamed? A superior should care for those below, not humiliate them.”
Dory’s barrage of words drew an incredulous smile from Odette.
“Your plan, is it? What an amusing delusion.”
“Miss—”
“There’s no such thing as a trivial plan to spread cream on bread. And if such a plan worked, that would be even more ridiculous.”
Odette was mocking Dory for not knowing the basic etiquette a maid should possess.
“Have you said all you wanted to say?”
“If spreading cream counts as a plan, then you are the true strategist. You’re the only one who failed to instill basic knowledge in a maid.”
Dory’s voice rose even higher in anger.
“If you hadn’t asked me to spread the cream, I wouldn’t have been mocked! You humiliated me, Miss!”
“Me? Blaming others every time you’re corrected or embarrassed? Now I understand why you lack the basics.”
“How dare you say such harsh words over a few simple basics—”
“Basics aren’t called ‘basics’ because they’re easy—they’re called basics because they are the most important. Seeing you call them trivial reveals your true nature and the limits of your future.”
Dory didn’t know that Hansuwan had grown up watching Hangsongi. Odette was several steps ahead, smiling sweetly while subtly irritating others.
Breathing in frustration, Dory finally shouted:
“Miss, you think you’re the real lady now, don’t you? …You’re a fake! Your bloodline is fake, your ‘Purifier’ title is fake! Just because others don’t know you’re fake doesn’t make you real!”
“……”
“If I step outside and call you an orphan, Miss, you’d become a laughingstock instantly, you know?”
Odette didn’t respond further.
I won.
Dory, intoxicated with her perceived victory, didn’t notice Odette’s teal eyes gleaming with delight.
I’ve been waiting, Dory. Waiting for this exact moment when you threaten me with your own words.
From the moment Dory entered the room and started subtly scratching at her, Odette had already sensed that Dory sought something from her agitation.
The count must have strengthened the surveillance. She must have told Dory: report at the first sign of anything unusual.
Thus, Dory wanted Odette to get angry—for a reason to report to the Count.
If you want something, you shouldn’t be swayed by emotions, Dory.
Now, Odette had no reason to hold back.
“Then why don’t you go out and say it? That I’m not the real lady, but a fake.”
Odette rose and walked to the door, throwing it wide open.
As the door opened, palace maids passing through the corridor subtly peeked inside.
Dory’s face turned pale white.
