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Chapter 9
“Ah… I’m exhausted.”
Today had been a huge success.
After climbing down from the carriage, Bella dragged her weary body into the mansion. If she entered through the front entrance, the foxes would undoubtedly have something to say again, so she headed for the back door instead.
“I’m home.”
As soon as she stepped into the kitchen, where dinner preparations were in full swing, the busy servants greeted her warmly.
“Miss, did you enjoy the festival?”
“It was… all right.”
“So you didn’t have much fun.”
The head chef, stirring a large pot in the corner, laughed cheerfully.
The other maids nearby nodded knowingly and laughed as well.
Bella smiled faintly.
If they found out where I’d been and what I’d done today, they’d probably faint.
She wanted to see their shocked expressions, but this wasn’t something she could casually tell them. Swallowing her excitement, she kept the secret to herself.
“Dinner will be ready soon. Why don’t you go rest? We’ll call you when it’s time.”
“Okay.”
Bella nodded and naturally headed toward the passage leading to the attic.
Normally she would have been helping in the kitchen, but the festival period was an exception.
“During the Founding Festival, don’t even go near the kitchen. If your clothes smell like cooking oil, it’ll disgrace the Eaton family’s name.”
Just remembering the shrill voice of the “big fox” made Bella sigh.
She really was obsessed with appearances.
“Oh, right. This shawl belongs to Cecile. If I don’t put it back where it was…”
Bella stopped halfway up the stairs.
The outer garment she’d worn today belonged to Cecile.
That was also the reason she’d been excused from kitchen duty during the festival.
Apparently the big fox was afraid Bella’s shabby appearance would expose how poorly she was treated, so during the festival she was forced to borrow Cecile’s clothes.
Most of them, however, were outfits that the little fox had already thrown away for being out of fashion.
“But if I leave it in my room, she’ll throw another fit.”
Bella sighed again.
Once, she’d repaired one of the dresses that had been discarded and worn it herself.
For that, she’d been slapped across the face.
Just remembering it made her cheek sting, and she unconsciously rubbed it with the back of her hand.
“You threw it away because you weren’t going to wear it! Why are you so greedy over something you don’t even use?”
After that incident, every decent outfit left in Bella’s wardrobe had been shredded into rags by Cecile’s scissors.
She could speak about it calmly now.
Back then…
She’d cried herself to sleep, clutching the torn pieces of fabric all night.
Feeling her mood sink, Bella hurried down the hallway toward the laundry room.
Normally she would have used the servants’ passage because the foxes hated seeing her wander around the mansion.
But after the exhausting day she’d had, she couldn’t bring herself to take the long route.
“I’ll be quick.”
Cecile was out enjoying the festival today.
With a little luck, Bella might avoid being seen.
Determined, she briskly crossed the carpeted lobby.
Just then—
“Father!”
A shrill scream echoed nearby.
Startled, Bella turned her head.
The drawing room door was slightly open.
What? They’re already back?
Usually the little fox didn’t return until sunrise during the festival.
Did the sun rise in the west today?
She quickened her pace.
Then—
“My friend Cynthia—you know her, that illegitimate daughter of that beggar baron? She went to the Duke’s estate today! And she’s not the only one! Almost every noble young lady in the capital is proposing marriage to His Grace!”
…The Duke?
Bella froze.
That wasn’t something she could simply ignore.
Before she realized it, her feet had carried her toward the half-open door.
If she were caught eavesdropping, she’d certainly be beaten.
But she couldn’t walk away.
Fortunately, no one noticed her.
Through the narrow gap, she saw the fox mother and daughter stamping their feet in agitation.
“Now isn’t the time to sit around!”
“Exactly, dear! What does our Cecile lack compared to some penniless baron’s daughter? She’s the eldest daughter of the prestigious Count Eaton family!”
The big fox’s face was flushed with excitement.
Listening to her claim Bella’s birthright as though it belonged to her was almost nauseating.
It gave Bella chills.
Meanwhile, Cecile instantly transformed from a shrieking child into an adorable young lady.
Smiling sweetly, she wrapped herself around the Count.
“Father~ You want me to become the Duchess too, don’t you? The Duke of Avalan is one of the richest men in the Empire. Our whole family could live in luxury!”
“Exactly! You know how people in high society look down on us. But if our daughter—our Cecile—becomes the Duchess, they’ll never dare look down on us again!”
The Count groaned thoughtfully.
But only for a moment.
The idea of becoming the Duke of Avalan’s father-in-law clearly tempted him.
His eyes lit up.
“Very well. I’ll make the necessary arrangements.”
“Thank you, Father! I knew you’d help me!”
Cecile squealed with delight and threw her arms around his neck.
The big fox grinned just as broadly.
“But you’ll have to prepare an expensive gift. Understood?”
“A gift?”
The Count frowned.
Money always made him nervous.
The foxes immediately turned serious.
“You’re not suggesting I visit empty-handed, are you? Father! Think of my reputation!”
“I heard Count Milo’s wife gave her daughter a jewel imported from overseas. We have to prepare something comparable! Do you want Cecile to be looked down on?”
“Fine, fine. I’ll figure something out by tomorrow.”
The Count nodded, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
His expression practically screamed that he was wondering where he could scrape together the money.
Bella noticed him glancing toward the expensive paintings hanging on the drawing room walls.
She ignored it.
Those paintings had once filled the room because her father loved fine art.
Now…
More than half of them were already gone.
At this rate, there won’t be anything left.
Bella sighed softly.
Knowing those foxes, they’d eventually sell even the family’s noble title if they could.
And in the end… nothing will remain.
Not even proof that she had ever lived here.
Nor any trace that her parents once called this place home.
After returning Cecile’s shawl to the laundry room, Bella hurried back toward her attic bedroom.
The old wooden stairs creaked beneath her feet.
For some reason, today the sound felt strangely comforting.
“Ah… I’m so tired.”
As soon as she entered her tiny room, she collapsed onto the old bed and pulled the blanket over herself.
She curled into a ball because if she stretched out fully, her feet would stick out from under the blanket.
Closing her eyes, she suddenly became aware of her heartbeat.
Thump… thump…
Huh?
Was it always this loud?
She placed a hand over the left side of her chest.
Usually it was so faint that she’d sometimes wondered if she was already dead.
Yet now…
Ironically, only after deciding to die had she realized just how alive she really was.
“What a ridiculous situation…”
“It’s okay, Bella.”
She whispered softly to herself.
“Don’t worry. Everything will work out.”
Yes.
Everything would be all right.
She decided to believe that.
*
“What do you think?”
At the man’s question, the butler standing beside the desk glanced cautiously at someone before answering.
The Duke’s desk was covered with piles of documents.
Yet almost none of them held his attention.
Except for one.
“What exactly do you mean, Your Grace?”
Though he already knew the answer, the butler asked anyway.
Perhaps…
There was still hope.
“This woman.”
The Duke gave him no room to escape.
Instead, he tapped a single sheet of paper with one finger.
Written there was one woman’s name.
Bella Eaton.
“…Bella Eaton.”
The Duke quietly repeated her name.
Something about saying it aloud felt strangely unfamiliar.
The butler, unaware of what was going through his master’s mind, watched him with concern.
He couldn’t have cared less about the woman in the report.
“She’s a fraud.”
“…”
“She’s definitely a fraud.”
Someone else suddenly interrupted.
The red-haired man lounging crookedly in his chair shot to his feet.
His sword clattered loudly against his armor.
“She has to be lying!”
“Kyle.”
The Duke calmly warned the knight, telling him to settle down.
But the golden-eyed man had no intention of doing so.
“This doesn’t make any sense in the first place! How can she possibly know she doesn’t have long to live? And what if she doesn’t die? Then what?”
“He does have a point.”
The butler nodded reluctantly.
“After losing everything to relatives she’d never even met… who knows how desperate she must have been? When people are desperate, they can tell outrageous lies…”
“So even you think she’s lying, Greg?”
The butler hesitated before answering.
“…Ahem. From a common-sense perspective, yes.”
The Duke fell silent.
Certainly…
A woman asking someone to marry her because she didn’t have long to live sounded completely irrational.
“And yet…”
He smiled faintly.
“The world has a habit of producing things that defy common sense.”
Both the knight and the butler froze.
The room suddenly fell silent.
Watching them, Ray chuckled.
“Oh, I wasn’t trying to make you uncomfortable.”
“N-Not at all, Your Grace.”
The butler hurriedly shook his head.
“…Then… does that mean you believe what the young lady said?”
“Who knows.”
It wasn’t a particularly confident answer.
His vague response only made his attendants even more anxious.
The Duke finally set the paper down.
The two men quietly sighed with relief.
But only for a moment.
“Still…”
He smiled.
“I find myself strangely drawn to her.”
The corners of his lips curved into a beautiful smile as he looked at Bella’s file.
The butler’s face filled with worry.
Somehow…
That didn’t seem like a good sign.
“D-Drawn to her… in what way exactly?”
“In exactly the way I said.”
The Duke answered casually, as though the question itself were unnecessary.
“I don’t know why.”
“My eyes just keep wandering back to her.”
