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Chapter – 04
“Miss, you mustn’t behave so insolently.”
Eleanor looked up at Head Maid Ann with her deep eyes. Her lips moved slightly.
“Insolent?”
“It’s not mealtime right now. Still, in consideration of your condition, these girls have brought you food. The menu was personally chosen by Madam to suit your situation. Yet you’re being picky about your food—doesn’t that go against proper etiquette?”
Ann snorted. Whatever the matter, it seemed this delicate young lady was hungry.
However, it was Lady Hildt who had decided Eleanor could manage with such a small portion of salad.
There was no way this girl, who struggled to please Lady Hildt to the point of tears, could throw a fit now.
“You know full well it’s because there’s no dressing. You’re already seventeen, Miss. Stop this childish behavior.”
“Ah.”
Eleanor stared intently at the bowl of greens in front of her.
Until just three months ago, Eleanor’s salad bowl would have had at least some sweet dressing.
Lady Hildt seemed to think Eleanor was complaining about that. But Eleanor had never intended to eat the dressing in the first place.
If the Saben essence in the sweet dressing combined with the Silvena essence in the salad, it would become a deadly poison—one that would prevent Eleanor’s healing powers from manifesting.
Still, that didn’t mean she intended to eat a salad without dressing either.
“Childish… insolent, huh.”
Eleanor slowly stood up from the table. The scrape of her chair echoed across the room.
Ann crossed her arms and smirked.
So, she thought, the girl would ultimately back down. Today, Eleanor would have to confess her misbehavior to Lady Hildt.
But before Ann could even wonder, Eleanor grabbed the salad bowl and poured it over Ann’s head.
“Kyaaah!”
Laura screamed. Everyone in the dining room rushed over in shock.
Green vegetables tumbled down from Ann’s head. Her face had turned bright red.
“Ah, Miss!”
“I am the eldest daughter of the Hildt family, yet I am not insolent in doing this to you.”
Eleanor’s black eyes met Ann’s directly. Ann, her face red, tried to say something, but Eleanor remained calm.
“The insolence lies with you and the kitchen, who served this as a ‘salad’—nothing but dry greens, without even a drop of juice.”
True to her words, only dried vegetables fell from Ann’s head—no dressing, no flavorful liquids.
Ann was momentarily speechless, then ground her teeth and shouted.
“Do you think Madam would agree with that?”
“What does it matter how Lady Hildt feels in this?”
“Miss… what did you just say…?”
“Go tell her. You may confess in full that Eleanor Hildt dared to behave insolently.”
Eleanor always referred to Lady Hildt as “Mother,” yet now she used the formal “Lady Hildt.”
How could someone change so completely overnight?
While Ann trembled in shock, Eleanor calmly looked back at Laura.
“So, you couldn’t serve the food prepared. Go and bring me some meat.”
“Yes, yes!”
This time, Laura ran to the kitchen without hesitation. Soon, a perfectly cooked lamb steak was placed on Eleanor’s table.
‘I need to eat to replenish my strength.’
Though her past life’s power hadn’t fully returned, all her memories and experiences remained intact. To convert those into her abilities, she needed sufficient physical strength.
Of course, she also needed to silence the mouths of the noisy residents of this mansion… but that could wait.
Eleanor cut into the steak and brought it to her mouth.
The moment it touched her tongue, the deep, savory aroma of lamb filled her senses. The well-seasoned meat was chewy yet tender, melting in her mouth. Eleanor’s lips lifted slightly, too subtle for anyone to notice.
‘Delicious.’
She could hardly have had proper meals in the demon realm. Though she had been a picky eater before, now, the most important thing was simply to eat.
“What did you say? Eleanor did what?”
“Yes, Madam! She poured the salad onto my head!”
“Until yesterday, she was so obedient… what suddenly came over her?”
Jennifer Hildt, the current Lady of the Hildt family, watched Ann passionately explain.
Ann was Jennifer’s closest aide. She had helped Jennifer achieve love with Jules Hildt and had erased memories left by the previous Lady of the Hildt household. Jennifer trusted only Ann in this place.
Even so, what Ann said was hard to believe.
“So she even accepted the lamb steak from the kitchen and ate it!”
“Is that child…?”
Who was Eleanor Hildt? A helpless girl who had endured seven years of bullying while obediently calling her mother “Mother,” too weak to awaken her powers, not clever enough to gain anyone to her side, yet still wanting to be kind and loved.
Eleanor had even eaten separately in her room to avoid showing any mistakes in the dining hall.
If this were the Eleanor Jennifer knew, even if she accidentally came down, she would surely bow and apologize immediately.
But now… what had Eleanor done?
“Madam, you need to be alert. That girl has gone mad!”
But seeing Ann’s bright-red face, Jennifer realized she wasn’t joking.
Seventeen. The age when a suppressed child might rebel just once.
Yet even if it were just a tantrum, Jennifer knew it would fade once hierarchy was enforced.
“Thank you, Ann.”
“Do you intend to leave her be, Madam?”
“Of course not. Bring her to me.”
Jennifer rose gracefully.
After all, Eleanor Hildt was still Eleanor Hildt. With just a little scolding, the weak girl would surely shrink back.
“Madam wishes to see you for a moment, Miss.”
Eleanor quietly watched Ann enter her room without knocking.
Ann’s confident expression, as if Eleanor would be frightened, seemed almost amusing. This had been anticipated.
Today alone, Eleanor had dealt with a guard, Head Maid Ann, and two of Lady Hildt’s aides.
It was no surprise that Lady Hildt wanted to see her.
‘So…’
The important question was how to behave before Lady Hildt.
Eleanor Hildt still needed the Hildt household. For guaranteed food and shelter, she could focus on growing her strength—and for vengeance, she needed that strength.
But her current position was untenable.
Within the Hildt household, Eleanor had no standing. Even a maid or guard wouldn’t listen to her. And Lady Hildt occasionally interfered, making training impossible.
‘It was inevitable that I’d clash at least once.’
She had purposely provoked Lady Hildt.
Eleanor stared emptily at the Hildt mansion.
Once, as a child, her mother had smiled warmly and held her here.
Now, nothing remained; Eleanor alone stood in emptiness.
“Go.”
She held her dress and slowly made her way to Jennifer’s room.
Jennifer’s red hair was twisted elegantly, and she wore a revealing red gown adorned with jewels so expensive even one could dazzle the eye. Reclining on a green sofa, she spoke.
“You’ve come, Eleanor.”
“My apologies.”
Eleanor spoke coldly as she entered the room.
Jennifer twisted her lips into a crooked smile.
Perhaps she was in a mood swing. Otherwise, she wouldn’t sulk like this.
Still, children should be raised strictly. Any breach of etiquette could be corrected immediately.
Eleanor would be stopped from sitting without permission.
Yet Eleanor remained a few steps behind the chair, motionless.
“….”
“….”
“Eleanor?”
“I am listening. Speak.”
What?
Until yesterday, she had approached her mother, desperate for her affection.
Suddenly, she maintained precise distance?
Ann, too, shook her head in confusion.
Jennifer let out a soft laugh at her own thoughts.
“Why aren’t you sitting?”
“Thank you for allowing me.”
Finally, Eleanor walked and sat down.
Good. Jennifer wasn’t concerned with trivialities.
Jennifer spoke as Eleanor seated herself gracefully.
“Your face looks healthier. You seem in good health.”
Eleanor faintly smiled.
Every day, she had picked at a few pieces of greens, unable to leave her room. Seeing her in good health was remarkable.
Jennifer’s words were essentially: she had gained weight. And it implied the kitchen incident with the steak was a breach of conduct.
Normally, Eleanor would have bowed and apologized. But now… she was different.
She was busy managing a different kind of health.
“That’s a relief. I worry because you always seemed so frail. I apologize for causing concern.”
“Hmm.”
Jennifer looked at Eleanor, realizing the girl finally understood her words. She had been timid before, now confidently composed.
Perhaps she was pretending to be oblivious.
Jennifer smiled elegantly.
“Yes. Your health always comes first.”
“Indeed, Madam.”
“The reason I called you today was to ask if the menu I prepared displeased you.”
