NRAL | Chapter 32

~Chapter 32~

Initial “R” 

Smack! Nora roughly slapped Eleanor’s hand away.

“Throwing a tantrum?”

Eleanor chuckled and took a step back. The provocation was enough. Having decided so, she passed by Nora and Damian without hesitation.

“But Nora, why do you keep someone so stupid around? I didn’t know your judgment of people was that bad.”

“What? This crazy… Hey! Don’t walk away!”

Damian, enraged by the passing remark, began to shout. But it was just bluster. After being scolded by his father earlier, he couldn’t actually chase after Eleanor. He just stood there, shaking his fist in frustration.

“Damn it, who is she calling stupid? She didn’t even attend the Academy! Nora, don’t let that awful woman get to you. She’s just acting out because she thinks she got through this. She’s nothing but a fake anyway!”

Damian raised his voice, pretending nothing was wrong, trying to console Nora. Nora wanted to tell him to shut his mouth because it was so loud. After all, it was his fault that her debutante ball was now in Eleanor’s hands, and yet he had the nerve to offer her comfort.

Of all the things Eleanor had said, the one truth was that Damian really was an idiot.

But there was something she absolutely couldn’t agree with.

“Do you think I’ll just let this go? Watch and see…!”

Eleanor had called Damian useless, but in reality, it’s the foolish ones who are often the most useful.

“Damian, do you have another plan? I knew you had something else in mind. You’re amazing!”

Nora quickly put on an innocent expression, gasping in admiration. Her reaction was so charming that Damian cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Well, of course! You think I wouldn’t have another way to bring her down?”

“I’m scared to use harsh methods, but… I can’t forgive her either. How could she insult you, the heir of Astria? Eleanor needs to be properly taught a lesson to realize her place. If we let this go, she’ll treat you like that again.”

If her hands were tied until her debutante, she could just use someone else. And foolish, eager men were always the easiest to manipulate.

“Yeah, you’re right… If we don’t do something, she’ll act all high and mighty again.”

Predictably, Damian was easily swayed by Nora’s words and resolved to get revenge. He started rambling on about how to repay today’s humiliation with his fiery voice. Of course, none of his ideas were helpful.

“That could work, but… how about this?”

Nora whispered a dangerous and rough plan into his ear.

Isn’t this too much? She added, but her voice was devoid of any sincerity.

***

After everything had ended, Eleanor and Hilda walked calmly through the halls as if nothing had happened. Their steps toward the room were neither hurried nor slow but confident.

The chatter of the servants echoed around them; though the words were unclear, it was evident that the atmosphere was favorable toward Eleanor.

Soon, Eleanor and Hilda returned to the room.

Click. As soon as the door closed, Hilda burst into the air like she had been waiting for this moment.

“Hahaha! Miss, did you see their faces just now? And did you see Nora gritting her teeth? Haha!”

Unlike her elegant demeanor earlier, she was now hopping up and down in excitement, as gleeful as a child.

Eleanor, watching her, laughed brightly. The smile on her face was much more genuine than the one she had shown in front of others.

“Ah! That was so satisfying, Miss! I feel like a weight has been lifted from my chest after ten years! Did you see their faces when the real earrings came out of the box? They looked like they were chewing on something disgusting; it was so funny!”

“Chewing on something disgusting?” It was a phrase Eleanor had never heard before. But she imagined that someone chewing something awful would indeed make such a face.

“Thank you, Hilda. It went smoothly, thanks to you.”

“What do you mean? I didn’t do anything! It was all you, Miss.”

“Nothing? You were the one who found the old box, and you showed up at the perfect time to surprise Nora.”

“That’s only because you instructed me to, Miss…”

“Still, you did a great job, Hilda. Oh, and I’m sorry. I should’ve warned you that I’d mention the theft. I said it was because I sent you off on another task, so it shouldn’t be a problem. But just in case, I’ll take care of anything that comes up.”

“Please, don’t apologize! I’m just happy you thought of me during such an urgent situation. Even if there is an issue, it was my fault for not managing the items properly in the first place.”

Hilda beamed with a bashful smile, like a girl confessing her first love.

Watching her, Eleanor felt the same.

‘Why does she follow me so loyally when I’ve done so little for her?’

It was overwhelming with gratitude but also filled her with a slight sense of fear.

She had been betrayed by people she trusted more than once, so this time, she thought she shouldn’t trust anyone or be fooled. Yet, she couldn’t help but give more of her heart than she had planned, and she felt foolish for it.

“I have to be careful,” Eleanor thought as she watched Hilda’s bright smile and tried to steady her wavering heart. She didn’t know if she was doing it properly, but she made an effort to at least try.

“But, Miss, did you know this would happen? Did you predict that Nora would claim she was falsely accused?”

“I wasn’t sure. But I figured that just stealing the earrings wouldn’t be enough to get me kicked out, so I thought Nora would plan something more.”

“You mean she would try to use the earrings to bring you down?”

“Exactly. And when people come up with schemes, they usually think of methods they’re familiar with.”

Eleanor could predict this incident because she had experienced something similar before. A few weeks ago, Nora had hit herself in the face and tried to blame Eleanor for it. Not only that, but when she was a maid, she had also tried to blame others for her mistakes.

Taking the good things for herself and passing the bad things onto others—that was probably Nora’s favorite method.

“She’s fallen into her own trap,” Hilda giggled. “In any case, she’ll be too scared to mess with your jewelry box again, right?”

“Well, she might hold off for a while, but I doubt it will last.”

“Huh?” Hilda blinked, not understanding. How could Nora, after being humiliated so badly, try something similar again?

“I’ve seen a lot of people with sticky fingers before,” Eleanor said, recalling memories from ten years ago. Perhaps it was because it had been the happiest time of her life, but those memories were still vivid, even after so many years.

“Some people do change right away after deciding to, but most of the time, even if they say they’ll stop, they end up stealing again. Once they’ve experienced how easy it is to get good things without effort, they don’t want to try hard anymore. Habits are scary that way.”

Nora would likely be one of those people. In fact, Eleanor was sure that Nora wouldn’t even try to change. She would only work harder to steal something even more valuable.

Eleanor was certain of this because she had observed Nora for a long time.

“So, shall we move on to the next step?”

Hilda’s mouth dropped open. We. She had said we.

‘She’s including me in this “we”!’ Hilda was so moved she felt like crying. She decided that today would be her day of celebration. It was such a historic moment for her.

Unaware of Hilda’s feelings, Eleanor took out some papers from a drawer that listed the names of the servants.

“To start the plan, I think we’ll need another maid. Have you ever talked to Courtney?”

“What? Am I not enough for you…?”

Courtney is dead, Hilda thought, instantly filled with murderous intent.

“You are more than enough. But this time, I need someone for a different role.”

Ah, for that. Relieved, Hilda nodded, sparing 21-year-old maid Courtney from her death.

“It says here that she talks too much and is easily swayed. She’s not fully on Nora’s side yet, but she’s leaning that way. Is that right?”

“Yes, that’s true. Since you’ve gained a good reputation, she’s been wavering. But if the other side makes her an offer, she’ll probably switch sides easily. She’s more about personal gain than loyalty.”

“Then could you drop a hint to her? Let her know that I might need one more maid.”

“Yes. I’ll make sure she’s placed somewhere where she can overhear your conversations and observe you, but not right beside you like me.”

“Exactly.”

Eleanor smiled approvingly and nodded. Hilda was sharp and quick to understand. It made things so much easier.

Not only that, Hilda also worked fast. The next morning, the gray-haired maid Courtney came by to introduce herself, saying she would be serving Eleanor from now on. Eleanor was surprised at how quickly it had all happened and looked at Hilda, who simply shrugged as if it was no big deal.

If only everyone could work as efficiently as she does.

Unfortunately, there were more slow-moving people in the world than quick ones. One prime example was Viscount Cunningham.

“The ball is only two weeks away, and he still hasn’t sent any gifts. What is he doing?”

Was he onto her plan, and had he decided not to send any gifts?

No, that couldn’t be it. Eleanor had clearly seen the anticipation on his face. He had foolishly hoped that he could marry the Duchess of Astria.

The Viscount was merely delaying things. He was probably trying to give Nora as little time as possible to think things through so she wouldn’t make a rational decision after too much thought.

‘He tries to act smart, but deep down, he’s worried about losing to Arlo.’

The letter I wasn’t expecting came so quickly, though.

Eleanor sighed softly and stared at the letter on the table. The envelope bore no family crest, no decoration at all. It only had her name and the initial “R.”

There was no doubt about who “R” referred to. It was Grand Duke Royster. He had sent the letter.

Luckily, Eleanor had warned Hilda about it in advance. Otherwise, it could have been mistaken for something suspicious and ended up in the hands of the Duke of Astria.

‘Even if Father had seen it, he probably wouldn’t have been too suspicious.’

The content of the letter from  Karshian was very simple. There were no greetings or flowery language, just one short sentence:

“Is there anything you need my help with?”

At first glance, it seemed like a letter from a tailor, waiting eagerly to serve a customer, which made Eleanor laugh.

In return for making her smile, she wrote a quick reply:

“No, Madam. I’m fine for now. I’ll contact you when I need a dress.”

It seemed a bit harsh to turn the mighty Grand Duke into a dressmaker, but it was necessary to prevent the letter from being stolen.

‘Now that Courtney will be around, I’ll have to be more careful.’

So please, don’t contact me unless it’s really necessary, she thought to herself as she handed the folded letter to Hilda.

She had no idea that a situation requiring a “dress” would come much sooner than she expected.