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Chapter 9
Mad Rosetta
Those Who Obey Don’t Get Punished (5)
However, I had no intention of following her wishes. Instead, I gently wiped away the tears gathering at Odette’s eyes.
“Bonita… I can’t help but worry about you.”
Her wide eyes looked like those of a startled small animal. For a brief moment, I felt a pang of irritation—so this was why Chesia had been completely charmed by her—but I held it back.
“I’m not upset. In fact, I was more worried that you might resent me for correcting your mistake.”
“I-I would never resent you, sister.”
“It’s alright, Bonita. Even though we’re only one year apart, you’re still young. There’s much you can learn.”
I smiled gently. Odette, unable to hide her true feelings, muttered a reluctant “Yes…”
She seemed quite confused by my unusually soft behavior since this morning.
“Next, I do want to accept your flowers more than anything… but unfortunately, I must decline for health reasons.”
“….”
“As you know, my health has not been very good lately, has it?”
“…Has it?”
Odette’s expression visibly stiffened.
She must have thought I had discovered the secret of the Panilnia flowers.
“Indeed. That’s why you kept bringing them to cheer me up, wasn’t it?”
“….”
“I couldn’t understand why I kept getting headaches and feeling unwell so often. But it turns out different people have different plant allergies.”
“…Ah.”
Seeing her visibly relax annoyed me a little, but it couldn’t be helped.
I had debated whether to reveal the problem with Panilnia’s scent, but decided to postpone it.
If I exposed it now, she would probably cry and claim she never knew it was a poisonous plant and escape responsibility entirely. I could already imagine it.
For now, it was better to simply prevent her from giving me those flowers and slowly pressure her into fearing exposure.
“How could I not want to accept a gift from my lovely sister? It’s just that whenever those flowers are near me, my head aches and my body feels unwell… no matter how much I try to endure it, I can’t anymore.”
“But maybe it’s not because of the flowers. It could be something else, right?”
“That may be true. What was it called again? Panilnia? Your point is reasonable. I could immediately call for a specialist in botany to investigate—”
“Ah—no! If it makes you uncomfortable, then that must be it. There’s no need to trouble yourself!”
Odette quickly waved her hands in protest.
Her eagerness to stop me was almost laughable.
Truly, she was more transparent than anyone. And I wondered what kind of spell I had been under all this time.
If I had died without ever witnessing Odette and Chesia’s affair, I would never have known Panilnia was the cause of my mental strain at all.
And even this truth had only come from Odette’s own mouth. That was why I had believed it so easily and removed it from my room.
“Still, I worry about you. If you ever feel unwell, you must tell me first, alright?”
“…Yes. I will.”
This… might actually be useful.
If I pretended to still suffer from Panilnia’s effects, I could probably create openings where Odette would let her guard down.
“Then I’ll be going now, sister.”
As she left, Odette still left me with lingering words—telling me to ask her anytime I wanted flowers.
Impressive. Truly impressive acting.
I instructed Penny to escort her out of the Rose Mansion immediately.
Get out. Just leave.
As Odette turned away after bowing, I suddenly remembered something and called her back.
“Ah, Bonita.”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I should tell you.”
She tilted her head.
“I only like one kind of flower.”
“….”
“Roses. You may use that as reference.”
“….”
“Take care on your way back.”
Without waiting for her reply, I closed the door.
Whether Odette answered or not didn’t matter.
The tension drained from my body, and exhaustion washed over me.
I slid down the door and sat on the floor.
Sing, who had been silently watching me the entire time, finally approached.
“You held back quite well.”
“If you hadn’t stopped me, I would’ve created another ghost today. Such a shame.”
【Well… your sister isn’t really my type either. I’ll pass.】
Sing joked as he crouched in front of me. I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
He immediately commented how lovely it was when I smiled, but I quickly stopped.
At least the small crisis had passed.
【Sitting on a cold floor isn’t good for you, darling. Get up.】
“I don’t have the strength. Stop bothering me.”
【You’re indirectly asking me to carry you in my arms… how troublesome. I might actually do it.】
“Ugh!”
He really says disgusting things so naturally.
I got up, brushing off my skirt, and walked toward my desk. Behind me, I could hear him laughing softly.
Without interruptions, the day passed quickly, and evening arrived.
Worried that heavy food might upset my stomach, I ordered lamb stew. A proper, simple meal was brought to the study.
I finished everything and even instructed them to prepare extra portions.
Just as I began to worry whether demanding the room be cleaned in a single day had been too much, Penny arrived to report it was done.
I immediately went to see it.
“Welcome, young lady.”
“….”
I struggled to maintain my composure and surveyed the room with dignity.
For a moment, I wondered if I had entered the wrong mansion.
The interior had changed completely. It was so clean that I could have slipped if I stepped wrong.
The table, once covered in dust, now shone. Even the curtain rod Sing had ripped out in frustration was back in place.
‘So you could do it after all… you bastards.’
I barely suppressed a laugh at the sight of the maids, now exhausted and covered in sweat and dust.
“Did I exaggerate a little when I said I wanted the floor to shine like a mirror? Or are you protesting me?”
“We are simply grateful for being reminded of our duty.”
“So punishing you ended up doing you a favor.”
Even as I said that, I ran my hand over the polished furniture, clearly satisfied.
Sing muttered something about whether this was our “newlywed room,” but I ignored him.
The servants would likely skip dinner. It was already too late.
Marahan might be fine, but the other maids still looked resentful.
Still, punishment alone wasn’t enough. I needed a balance.
“Good work, all of you. I expect this standard to be maintained.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“I’ve already instructed the kitchen to prepare your meals. Go and eat.”
They exchanged surprised glances.
I had no patience for petty power struggles with servants.
“If you heard that a maid named Temari was expelled this morning, then you understand what I expect.”
“Yes, my lady.”
“I will not tolerate disrespect. As long as you perform your duties, you will be fine.”
They bowed deeply in understanding.
I then called Marahan.
“For now, since I don’t have a personal maid, I will take three volunteers from the estate.”
“Yes, my lady. Do you have anyone in mind?”
“No. Choose volunteers first, regardless of status or house background.”
“I will prepare candidates by tomorrow.”
After dismissing them, only Penny remained.
She looked strangely exhausted.
“What’s wrong with her now?”
Sing leaned in and whispered:
【She might be disappointed that you’re hiring new maids.】
“Ridiculous. Isn’t this supposed to lighten her workload?”
【You really are insensitive, darling. That child worked for you all day. She probably wanted your recognition.】
“….”
So she expected to continue serving me personally?
What a sly girl.
Sing kept lecturing me like a tutor, but I ignored most of it.
“I have no intention of replacing Penny.”
【Then why hire three?】
“To find Odette’s informants.”
