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Chapter 6
Just then, the young lady happened to glance at the necklace and responded dryly.
“Just looking at it, it doesn’t seem all that expensive. You keep it. If Father wanted to brag, he should’ve made it bigger or added more emeralds. It’s too plain like this.”
Her tone was almost mocking.
It was clear she had no real interest in the gift.
But explaining that this emerald necklace might actually hold deeper meaning and sentiment was too awkward.
“So, you keep the necklace.”
“…Are you sure? What if His Grace says something?”
“I’ll just say I lost it.”
Vivian wrinkled her delicate nose and added,
“He’s not so shameless as to blame you for that. Don’t worry.”
Every so often, the lady would unexpectedly show this strangely humane side of her.
As if to draw a line and say: I know what kind of person you expect me to be based on public opinion, but that’s not who I am.
“Thank you.”
Even as Betty bowed politely, Vivian merely waved her off without so much as a glance, signaling her to leave.
Unable to reject this nonchalant kindness, Betty left the room, fiddling with the necklace in her hand.
Like the lady, she couldn’t treat it carelessly.
“I guess I’ll just wear it for now.”
She was still unsure what to do with the ruby ring either, and had simply kept it stored away.
But this necklace might truly be something precious—a memento with sentimental value to the Duke.
So perhaps, at some point, she should find a chance to return it through the young lady.
That thought made her all the more cautious. She couldn’t let something like this get lost or stolen.
Betty fastened the silver chain around her neck, checked how it looked, and then tucked it carefully beneath her clothes.
From then on, Betty began sending letters regularly, filled with small, mundane updates from her daily life.
Folding the letter paper neatly, placing it in an envelope, sealing it with wax—it all came naturally now.
“I shouldn’t expect a reply… should I?”
No responses came.
Perhaps something had happened. Or maybe he was just too busy.
From the way he’d answered past letters, it was clear he only wrote to get the point across.
So maybe he simply didn’t know how to respond to a never-ending stream of idle chatter.
“Still…”
It didn’t bother her quite as much anymore.
She was certain now—that he was still reading them.
Maybe it was presumptuous to think so.
But just knowing there was one more person in the world who truly cared for his well-being… that was enough.
“Get a grip, Betty. He’s the Grand Duke. You’re just writing on someone else’s behalf.”
Her rational side would often nag her like this.
But since the lady herself hadn’t read any of the recent letters in a while, that rational voice was frequently drowned out by her growing sincerity.
Even as she assisted the lady preparing for an imperial banquet, Betty’s mind was preoccupied with what to write in her next letter.
“Which one do you think looks better?”
“I think this one brings out your beauty more, my lady.”
“I believe the pearls look more elegant, my lady.”
Getting dressed, doing her makeup, fixing her hair—Betty couldn’t manage all of that alone. So the room was crowded with other maids.
Lady Sharate waved them all away with a simple hand gesture.
Then, tilting her chin toward Betty, she asked,
“And you?”
Betty had been absentmindedly arranging the lady’s hair while composing lines in her head like, “Do you know how tiring it is to prepare for a ball? We have to rise at dawn just to present perfection by evening.” Startled by the sudden question, she jumped slightly.
“…Everything suits you so well, I don’t think I can choose, my lady.”
Today, the lady had chosen a gown in a soft, bluish hue.
Holding a sapphire earring in one hand and a pearl in the other, her brows rose in discontent.
Betty quickly added,
“But since Her Majesty the Empress mentioned she’ll be wearing pearls, wouldn’t the sapphire be more appropriate?”
“Ah, good point. It’d be awkward to match accessories with Her Majesty.”
Smiling with satisfaction, Vivian Sharate chose the sapphire earrings.
Betty sighed in quiet relief.
All those hours spent listening to the young lady drone on about luncheons with noble daughters and duchesses had finally paid off.
But sure enough, the other maids’ gazes turned cold.
It seemed impossible to both excel at your job and avoid others’ jealousy.
At least she was managing one of the two, which was something. Even if it didn’t make the bitterness easier to shake off.
Wanting to get out of the room for a bit, Betty offered,
“You must be hungry. I’ll go fetch some tea and light refreshments from the kitchen.”
“Go ahead.”
Leaning back in her chair, Lady Sharate responded absently.
Betty stepped out into the hallway to escape the stifling atmosphere—only to nearly collide with someone.
Her vision was filled with fine, expensive fabric.
And as she caught sight of golden hair falling to the nape of the neck, she hurriedly bowed her head.
“You lack caution.”
A firm hand grasped her arm—perhaps that’s what made her skin crawl.
“I’m sorry, my lord. Please forgive my rudeness.”
As Betty quickly stepped back, Felix Sharate let his hand fall, his gaze lingering on her.
Unlike his precisely tailored appearance, he leaned lazily against the wall with arms crossed, exuding a relaxed air.
“If you’re that sorry, answer me this. What’s Vivian been up to lately?”
“…Pardon?”
It was an ordinary question, but she still flinched.
Because Lady Sharate had definitely been hiding something these days.
Not that Betty had any intention of spilling that secret.
Pushing aside her discomfort, she responded matter-of-factly.
“She regularly attends tea parties with noble ladies and occasionally hosts her own.”
The lady’s schedule wasn’t exactly a secret, so there was no harm in saying this much.
But the man leaned in, his voice dropping lower.
“Nothing else? Nothing she’s hiding?”
He was so close she could feel his breath, and Betty froze.
She could move back, but the moment she met those piercing blue eyes, she couldn’t.
She now understood why the other maids never stopped gushing about his looks.
And yet, it only made her uncomfortable—like she was standing on the edge of a very obvious trap.
Snapping out of it, Betty kept her tone formal.
“…There’s nothing.”
“Oh, really?”
His face was so close now, if she lifted her heels even slightly, their lips might’ve touched.
Startled, Betty instinctively took a step back.
“He’s doing this on purpose—how unpleasant.”
Did he think she’d fall for him just because he had status and good looks?
Maybe some other maid would have, but to her, it was all too calculated—too gross.
Felix glanced down at her expression, clearly annoyed, then let out a breathy chuckle.
“Maybe my eyes are going bad. You haven’t reacted once—not like last time. What a bore.”
Yet despite his words, his eyes glimmered with interest.
“Is there something you want from me?” she asked.
“Actually, I should be asking you that. If you don’t want me, then what is it you want?”
A not-so-subtle jab at how other maids usually fawned over him.
The lazy smile on Felix Sharate’s lips felt ominous.
“I don’t want anything. I’m not greedy.”
“Everyone wants something. Even the emperor.”
That unwavering confidence—like someone who’d never faced defeat—reeked of arrogance.
“If you’re hoping to learn something about the young lady from me, I only know as much as you do.”
“Then I’ll just find out for myself.”
So that was it.
That was why Felix Sharate had taken such an interest in Betty.
