Chapter 92
“Please come in. Today we have prepared desserts from the limited edition Blue Bird Bakery. Marsha! Can you make tea?”
"Yes, ma'am."
Marsha obediently answered and pushed the cart that one of the maids had prepared beforehand, and cautiously approached the guests to place the cups of tea in front of them.
As she was about to pour the last drops of hot tea, the Baron's wife spoke as usual.
“Marsha, today’s guests have some questions for you.”
"Questions for me? What could they possibly know about someone like me?"
Marsha shrank back, feigning shyness and fear, whereupon one of the ladies greeted her with a kind smile and asked:
"We heard that you know a lot about the Count Crisis family, don't you?"
“Oh, the Count Crisis family… Yes, I worked there as the head maid since the family was founded.”
The lady asked her again gently:
"Have you heard that their housekeeper is Adele Lancaster, or as she is now known, just Adele?"
"I heard the rumors. Ah… they're truly terrifying!"
Marsha shook her head as if recalling a bad memory, which made the ladies exchange glances.
The lady continued gently.
"Terrifying? What do you mean by that?"
“She does things that someone like me wouldn’t even dare to think about. She’s different from the noble ladies I know.”
"how?"
“I am afraid that if I say something wrong, I will find myself beheaded by order of Count Crisis. The Count must value her very much.”
“That’s right. He seems to trust her a lot.”
At that moment, Marsha felt grateful to Idil and Lazlo for unintentionally boosting her credibility.
'Perhaps they are already very close now? Hmph! I knew it from the start.'
While she was secretly mocking, Baron Owen's wife encouraged the conversation to continue.
“You are only talking about what you saw and felt. Who would dare criticize you? If Count Chrysos were to get angry over something so trivial, he would become a laughingstock to everyone.”
“Do you think so…?”
“The guests are interested, so just tell them a few things.”
Marsha exchanged glances with the Baron's wife before shaking her head pretending she couldn't refuse.
“From the moment the Count brought that woman to the palace, he seemed to be bewitched by her. She seems to have a talent for seducing men.”
Then, the lady who had started the conversation asked with a narrowed look.
"Really? What made you think that?"
“When they arrived at the palace, she was wearing the Count’s cloak. Her clothes were clearly in a bit of a mess. I didn’t take a close look, the scene was too embarrassing…”
The women frowned, while Marsha seized the opportunity to reinforce her lies.
“I also heard a rumor that she experienced terrible things during the journey from the Duchy to the capital. Nevertheless, she managed to seduce the Count. I don’t know if those things happened to her or if she caused them.”
“I’ve never heard of those rumors before…”
“Do you expect such filthy rumors to reach the ears of noble ladies? Such talk spreads among the soldiers who accompanied her and only reached us servants.”
The women drank their tea in silence, appearing thoughtful. After a moment, Marsha continued.
“Ah, I wonder how Miss Linnea is doing… Once that woman settled into the palace, she became Miss Linnea’s personal maid at the Count’s insistence. I am worried that the innocent young lady may have fallen under her control and become weak.”
"Did Miss Crisis hate her?"
“At first, she hated her intensely. Perhaps it was an instinctive feeling. But after that woman seized power in the palace, the young lady began to say what she was told to say.”
Marsha remembered how Linnea, who had once been under her control and brought her money, had changed. Marsha gritted her teeth tightly.
'Lenia was a major financial resource for me, and if I had acted against Edel at the time, I wouldn't have lost all of this. It is my kindness that brought me this loss.'
As Marsha was lost in her self-pity, one of the ladies asked her in a mysterious tone.
"Do you mean that Idèle is nothing more than Count Crisis's mistress and not the housekeeper of the palace?"
Marsha did not realize the sly tone in the question, and laughed dismissively and nodded.
“Of course. Do you expect a pampered duchess, who lived her life like a flower in a greenhouse, to be able to run the palace? Impossible! I think she is just a temporary mistress of the Count, and he will leave her later.”
"It doesn't seem that way."
"What?"
At that moment, Marsha realized that the guests' looks towards her had become cold and sharp.
“Mrs. Angela and I, as well as all the women present here, have heard your words before. Mrs. Angela and I recently attended Miss Linnea’s tea party.”
"So that's how it is...?"
“Edil was a highly trusted housekeeper in that palace. Miss Linnea held her in high regard. Edil… it’s hard to believe she was like this before, given her modesty and carefulness.”
Marsha interrupted eagerly:
“That’s because she’s taking advantage of Miss Linnea! I told you before, she’s manipulating her to say what she wants.”
But another woman responded sarcastically:
“Enough nonsense! Do you know what I went through because of your lies?”
"What? What are you talking about?"
“At one of the parties, I was treated as if I were spreading ridiculous rumors. Everyone knows that Idell is not Count Crisis’s mistress! I was told that these claims are dangerous and lack any evidence.”
The other woman sitting next to her spoke up, looking uncomfortable.
“I heard that the Emperor himself issued strict instructions to ensure that no problems occurred during the transfer of the prisoners from the Duchy. Count Crisis was directly responsible for that convoy. So where did you hear those rumors from?”
“That’s right. How could such lies come out? Count Crisis is known to severely punish any soldier who comes into contact with female prisoners.”
The First Lady joined the conversation again.
“You said that Edel was wicked and greedy, but we saw the exact opposite. We heard that she gave her rewards as housekeeper as interest-free loans to needy servants. Even Miss Linnea complained that she didn’t demand enough.”
“I heard from the head maid at the palace that you embezzled huge sums of money from the Crisis family and were fired for it. It is said that you used that money to buy a luxurious house.”
“With this amount of embezzlement, Count Crisis could have executed you without anyone objecting. How dare you spread such wicked lies?”
Marsha was stunned by the barrage of accusations, but she couldn't control her anger when they mentioned the house she had lost.
“Embezzlement?! All I ever got were small bonuses from Miss Linnea, plus my salary and some of my savings, which I used to buy that house!”
The woman smiled coldly.
“If you are so wronged, I will report you to the security office to investigate the matter. It will be of interest to them to ascertain whether Nabil has seized your property.”
“No… no, there’s no need for that! How can I face Count Crisis?”
“The Security Bureau now deals fairly with disputes between nobles and commoners. Since the Emperor ascended the throne, everything has changed. By the way, my uncle is the head of the Security Bureau.”
Marsha's face turned completely pale and she began to tremble noticeably after hearing those words.
Mrs. Owen, who had invited the guests, was also astonished by the turn of events.
“Oh… ladies! There seems to be a misunderstanding…”
One of the women interrupted her sharply.
“A misunderstanding? I don’t think so. You’d better take a clear stance. Count Crisis has declared that he will severely punish anyone who spreads rumors.”
“What?! I was just looking after Marsha at the request of a friend…”
Mrs. Owen suddenly stopped talking, remembering the threat she had received from the second son of the Milton family, who were the main source of funding for the Owen family.
“Do not reveal that whoever planted this woman here is one of our people… under any circumstances.”
She still remembered his calm smile and gentle tone as he clearly threatened her.
Mrs. Owen stammered before declaring her confusion.
"Anyway, I think we should end our tea session for today. I'll check the details myself."
“Yes, you should do that.”
Mrs. Owen's face turned red with embarrassment and anger.
As for the women who originally came to expose Marsha’s lies and refute what she said, they left the place without any objection.
Many of them had been embarrassed, or nearly so, by the false information Marsha had spread. For this reason, they had no positive feelings toward Marsha or toward Mrs. Owen herself.