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Chapter 13
“Keuk-keuk, it’s nothing big. Assign some maids to Rivanou Forte. Pick girls who won’t cause trouble later.”
“…Rivanou?”
Until that moment, Winia had completely forgotten about Rivanou’s existence.
When Grino added, “The eldest young master,” she finally let out a dumbfounded, “Ah…”
“Why him, of all people…?”
“Want to know?”
There was something chilling about the man.
Winia didn’t want to be too deeply entangled with him. Once she got her title, she thought it best to cut ties cleanly and live her own life.
Seeing his face full of delight as he asked if she wanted to know, Winia shook her head.
“So all I need to do is assign the maids?”
“Of course. But they must quit after exactly one month. That’s why I said pick ones who won’t leave a trace.”
What happened to the maids after they quit didn’t matter to Winia.
Considering he promised her a countess title, it felt like a small matter. So she selected appropriate candidates in advance.
Her list was made up of girls who had cut ties with family, were desperate for money, or were the type no one would look for if they vanished.
Grace’s name wasn’t on that list because she had only joined after the list had been drawn up.
And so, having allied with Grino, Winia paid the girls off after a month to make them leave the duke’s household. The money came from Grino himself.
Then one day, Winia accidentally discovered what really happened to the missing maids.
She never imagined Beril would pass the task to another maid. As usual, she offered a large sum at the one-month mark. But unlike the others, Beril refused the money and wanted to keep working.
When Grino heard, he sent his men.
They stormed Beril’s quarters, subdued her when she resisted, and vanished.
Her resistance left bloodstains in the room, and cleaning that up fell to Winia.
“Keuk-keuk.”
It was then that Winia roughly realized what kind of things Grino, a mage, was doing.
He had the maids quit every month, and when one refused, he abducted her. Clearly, it wasn’t for any noble cause.
Winia was shaken.
But only for a moment. She steadied herself, thinking: Once I become nobility, I’ll at least offer some compensation for those sacrificed.
During this, she learned Beril had passed the work to Grace, meaning Grace was the next target and would be absent for a while.
“Haa…”
She had put on a strong face before Rivanou, but once outside, fear set in.
What if Grino decided to take her instead? Terrified, Winia couldn’t think straight.
When she rushed to her office, she didn’t even notice her desk was slightly disturbed.
All she could think of, nervously chewing her nails, was to send the next maid she had lined up to replace Grace.
A maid named Eshi—a redhead with noticeable freckles.
“…I’ll send this girl.”
She muttered, trying to calm her pounding heart.
Eshi’s reputation was already terrible. If she disappeared, no one would look for her.
“Grace…”
Like with Beril, she couldn’t tell if that maid was lucky or unlucky.
Well, either way, she wouldn’t escape the same fate next time.
Meanwhile, Grace returned to the duke’s residence after gathering information.
He skimmed through the papers he had acquired along the way. They were well worth the price—especially considering how little time had passed.
He had even managed to identify Winia’s next target.
Her name was Eshi.
She seemed to have no friends and was ostracized.
Apparently, it was because of her looks. Though she was bright and diligent, she was shunned for her red hair and freckles.
The Empire held very narrow-minded views about such women.
They believed red-haired, freckled women were harsh and destined for misfortune.
“You can’t eat a person’s looks to live…”
Having lived a long life, Grace found such behavior incomprehensible.
No matter how ugly one’s outward appearance, it wasn’t the essence of a person.
Some with beautiful faces nurtured poison in their hearts, while others bore noble souls.
Grace thought it best to get to know Eshi beforehand, so he decided to approach her.
Thoughts quickly turned into action.
He checked the time—still some left before he had to bring Rivanou’s lunch.
He figured he’d look around, and if he couldn’t find her, he’d give up. But then he spotted a lone maid struggling at the laundry site.
Red hair. Alone. It had to be Eshi.
Lucky.
Since she was working alone, he thought he might as well lend a hand.
“Hey there. Hello.”
As he approached and greeted her, Eshi, busy wringing out a blanket, was startled by his sudden presence. She screamed and fell over.
Her fright made Grace flinch, too.
“Ah—sorry if I scared you.”
“N-no…”
“I didn’t mean to.”
He offered his hand and helped her up. But the laundry basket had tipped, spilling everything into the dirt.
Looking at the mess, Grace said apologetically:
“I’ll help you.”
“Huh?”
Eshi had been about to brush it off and say it was fine, but his offer to help widened her eyes.
“Since I ruined all the work you just did…”
“You want to work with me?”
“Why? Is that a problem?”
“But I…”
Fidgeting nervously, Eshi touched her hair.
“Because of my hair?”
“…”
“I don’t have that kind of prejudice. Actually, I think it’s pretty.”
“What?”
Eshi’s eyes grew wide in surprise. Grace grinned and spoke kind words that easily won her over.
Whether because she was starved for affection, like Rivanou, or simply innocent, Eshi opened her heart quickly.
Having won Eshi’s trust, Grace returned to the annex where Rivanou lived, his steps light.
“Grace.”
There stood Rivanou, awkwardly wearing gloves and a loosely tied scarf, waiting for him.
“Why are you outside in the cold?”
Grace hurried over and carefully retied the scarf for him.
Rivanou flinched slightly at the touch, then quietly let him finish. His eyes darted nervously, lips twitching as if to speak.
“What’s wrong?”
Grace could tell he had something to say. Not wanting him to catch a cold from standing outside, Grace took his hand to lead him in.
“Your hands are freezing. Let’s go inside.”
“…Mm.”
Seeing how he kept glancing at him, Grace guessed something must have happened today.
But instead of pressing, he began recounting his own day.
When he mentioned visiting the information guild, Rivanou looked surprised.
“It’s new, so even a maid like me could get info for a small fee.”
“…What?”
“They’ve all gone missing. Looks like they were kidnapped.”
Though he’d suspected, hearing the word kidnapped made Rivanou’s pupils shake violently.
He squeezed Grace’s hand tighter.
“Don’t worry. I found plenty of evidence. If the duke refuses to cooperate, we can use it as leverage.”
The intel he got from Veronix would be useful.
But Rivanou couldn’t stop thinking negatively.
“Will that be enough?”
He muttered unconsciously.
After all, only a handful of maids had disappeared, and his father wouldn’t care if a few lowborns vanished.
As his son, Rivanou knew him well.
He wanted to be optimistic like Grace, but if things went wrong, Grace might be the one kidnapped. He couldn’t afford happy delusions.
“And… let me do it.”
“Do what?”
“T-tell Father myself…”
If Grace went directly, his father would laugh and dismiss him.
“Will you be okay?”
“Yeah. I was planning to ask to go away for recuperation anyway.”
At least if Rivanou went, his father might pretend to listen. And with “recuperation” as an excuse, he might even grant it.
Grace squeezed his hand and said firmly:
“Even if you go away to rest, I’ll serve you wholeheartedly.”
“…Mm.”
Rivanou blushed faintly and smiled.
After walking a little further, they returned indoors. The warm air from the fireplace loosened their chilled bodies.
Then Grace asked him—
