Chapter 54
The housekeeper and the head maid stood behind the countess as if they had been waiting for this day.
“Search that woman’s room from top to bottom!”
“Madam! This is truly too much! You’re jealous of the authority the young master gave me and are taking revenge in this way!”
The commotion drew all the servants and maids, who came running out to watch.
“Madam! Just because the young master and the count aren’t home doesn’t mean you can act so recklessly! I was legitimately entrusted with this authority! How can you persecute an innocent woman like this?”
Lady Becker wept dramatically, clearly aware of the servants watching.
“No matter how much you’re the lady of the house, the foundation of authority here lies with the master! You can’t strip me of the authority he entrusted to me just because of your jealousy!”
Her appeal drew sympathetic looks from the onlookers. After all, if a servant carrying out legitimately granted authority could be harassed like this, what servant could ever trust their master?
But the countess merely gave a small, cold laugh.
“Lady Becker, do you really think I’m doing this out of jealousy of the likes of you?”
Then she pulled out a stiff letter, deliberately showing it to everyone.
“You claim I’m oppressing you without cause? Then who could have sent me this anonymous accusation?”
She cleared her throat and read the letter aloud, making sure every servant and maid in the vicinity could hear.
“Dear Madam,
I cannot in good conscience ignore the truth, so I must report this. Do you know where your missing garnet earrings and nephrite necklace are? I have witnessed them in Lady Becker’s room.”
Lady Becker’s face turned ashen.
That’s…
‘Then I’ll tell Mother right away. I’ll ask if she knows where her cherished garnet earrings and nephrite necklace are.’
It was exactly the same thing Odette had once said when she threatened her.
Odette had planned to move the stolen items into Lise’s room before tattling to the madam, but so many things had happened afterward that she’d put it off.
Hadn’t the countess locked Odette in the basement prison, only for Odette to defy her, breaking their relationship completely?
That’s why I didn’t feel the need to rush—!
And the stolen jewelry wasn’t limited to those two pieces. She had pilfered quite a number of jewels over the years. Digging them all out one by one was a tedious job.
But Odette can’t even write. How could she have sent this letter?
Overwhelmed, Lady Becker forgot to weep and didn’t even think to make excuses. Looking around, she saw the sympathy in the servants’ eyes slowly shift into suspicion.
“Judging from your reaction, it seems the letter’s contents are true, aren’t they?”
The countess’s lips curled.
“If I hadn’t taken you in as a lady’s maid, you’d be nothing more than a widowed woman! And yet you had the audacity to covet your mistress’s belongings and steal them?”
“Th-that…”
“Strutting around as if you were the mistress yourself! Daring to wear a dress similar to mine! First you stole my authority over the household and the staff, now you’re copying my dresses and stealing my jewels? How is that any different from trying to steal my very place?”
It was clear the countess had resolved to drive Lady Becker out.
If I’m branded a thief like this, she really will throw me out.
And that wasn’t the worst of it. Since she had stolen from a noble, the countess, as mistress, could even have her hands cut off.
Maybe it would be better to confess and beg for mercy rather than feign ignorance…
She was just about to cry, “Madam, I was wrong!” when she caught sight of Odette among the maids.
Odette slipped naturally into the group, staring at Lady Becker before shaking her head lightly.
Then she raised her index finger to her lips, a gesture to keep quiet.
What is she up to?
Just then—
“Madam! We didn’t find the necklace in any of the drawers!”
“Search the bed, wardrobe, and every chest! Break them if you have to—find that necklace and those earrings!”
Lady Becker instantly realized that Odette had done something behind the scenes.
Instead of confessing, she chose to stay silent.
“Take that thief away and lock her in the basement prison! Don’t give her even a drop of water!”
Before she was dragged away, Odette turned and quietly left the noisy scene.
No one noticed her in the chaos of the countess’s rage, but Lady Becker’s eyes stayed fixed on her.
Dressed in pajamas and a robe, her graceful movements seemed more noble than any lady’s.
From that dawn until evening, Mother had ransacked Lady Becker’s room without pause. By 9 p.m., she collapsed from exhaustion and fell asleep.
The servants and maids, who had been running about under her pressure, also drifted into slumber.
The moment I confirmed it, I headed for the basement prison in the main building.
I sure have a lot of reasons to come down here lately.
In recent days, I had been coming often to bring Karl his meals.
Still, I managed to lower his resentment by another 20 points, so it was worth it. That clears all the extra resentment I got when I branded him.
When I arrived, I found Lady Becker groaning.
“Ugh… Please, someone, get me out of here. What did I do wrong? Ugh… I’m scared. Get away from me!”
To me, who had been locked up here since I was six, it was an almost laughable sight.
Hadn’t she once told me to stop whining? She was worse than my six-year-old self now.
“Lady Becker.”
At my voice, she rushed to the bars, clinging to them desperately.
“Miss, please get me out of here! The smell of blood is revolting, it’s freezing cold, and the sharp spikes on the bars mean I can’t even lean anywhere.”
“Stop whining—it’s annoying.”
I threw back at her the very words she had once said to me, and she promptly shut her mouth.
She looked pitiful, but clearly knew exactly where the power lay in this situation.
I held up twelve black-and-white photographs and waved them in front of her.
“With skill like this, Lady Becker, maybe you should consider changing careers—you seem to have a natural talent for thievery.”
“M-Miss…”
“You sure stole bit by bit very well. Do you know how much trouble it was to dig out all the jewels you had hidden in your room? Taking these photos was a job in itself. Twelve items—how bold of you. Printing them was extra work too, you know.”
Of course, it was Goetz who had done the printing, not me.
“But it was worth it. The pictures came out beautifully—you can clearly see it’s your room, and every type of jewel is identifiable.”
Her face went pale.
“Don’t worry. I’ve stored the jewels safely. As long as you stay in my good graces, they’ll never end up in Mother’s hands.”
“Wh-what do you want, Miss?”
Her voice, once sharp when protesting to me, had turned pleasingly meek.
“I can’t hide in my own home forever, can I? You happen to have authority over staff, so I thought I might borrow some of it. I want to replace the gatekeeper, the coachman, and a few maids.”
She swallowed hard.
“O-of course! Please do! No—Miss, you can take full control of all staffing decisions. I’ll just stamp the seal when you tell me to.”
Her agreement came instantly. Her expression made it clear she was already plotting how to wriggle free from this situation.
I can see right through you. The moment I keep my mouth shut and this blows over as if you’re innocent, you’ll wipe your hands clean. You might even use these photos to claim I framed you.
Once she got her authority back, she’d never repay me—only flap her mouth when it suited her.
“Can you really keep that promise?”
“Of c-course! I’ll hire whoever you want.”
“Then you won’t mind if I put this bracelet on your wrist.”
I dangled a small, thin string bracelet before her—its silver sheen marked it as a magical device.
In truth, my claim about keeping the nephrite necklace and ruby earrings was a lie.
If I was going to use her, it would be better to dispose of her neatly from the estate later. I’d already had Goetz sell them off and bought this magical device instead.
“You know what this is, don’t you?”
She swallowed again. It was a well-known artifact, its function widely recognized even among those who weren’t magicians.
