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Chapter 16
“Did you steal it?”
Belaxina asked calmly.
Natasha turned pale and shook her head quickly.
“N-No, my lady! I swear I didn’t! I would never do such a thing!”
“Good. No one wants to keep a thief around.”
“Please, my lady! What can I do to make you believe me?”
Ironically, the more nervous Natasha acted, the more she seemed guilty. But she was too panicked to notice.
“Let me ask you this—what I know is that something was stolen. I don’t have proof you did it, but I also don’t have proof you didn’t. So I don’t know if I should trust you or not.”
Natasha looked a little hopeful—until Belaxina continued:
“But I don’t see why I should take the risk. You’re dismissed for now.”
“W-What do you mean?”
“Take a break. Alicia will help me instead. Until the real thief is found, you don’t need to attend to me.”
If the real thief was never found, that meant Natasha would be fired.
“P-Please! I beg you! I’m truly innocent!”
“Stop crying and leave. If you keep annoying me, I’ll show you what real punishment looks like.”
Natasha wanted to beg harder, but Alicia gently grabbed her hand and shook her head.
So Natasha, crying, had no choice but to pack her things.
****
“Do you like your new room?”
Avalkin asked casually while cutting his duck roast.
Belaxina sat across from him in more comfortable clothes, finally enjoying a proper meal.
“It’s fine.”
“Good.”
And that was it.
The mood felt a bit heavy, but Belaxina figured it was just the dark, cold design of northern homes.
“Anything unusual happened today?”
“Not really.”
She stared at the candlelight and ate another bite of meat.
‘Not bad. Northern animals have fatty meat—it’s soft and rich.’
“…I see.”
Suddenly, Avalkin put down his knife loudly.
“Are you pretending not to know?”
“Know what?”
“Maybe you’re quiet because you think I don’t know.”
“Seems like you don’t know much.”
“Enough. I gave you time to explain.”
He stared at her coldly.
‘Why is he like this every mealtime?’
Belaxina was starting to wonder if he was trying to stop her from eating too much.
“Explain what?”
“I heard you fired Natasha. I never gave you that authority.”
True.
Belaxina was acting like the lady of the house, but officially, she was only a guest.
Unofficially… a slave.
“Then there’s no problem. I have no power, right? So whatever I say shouldn’t matter.”
But everyone treated her like she did have power—after all, she was the supposed fiancée of Lord Avalkin.
“If it really bothers you, why not announce it? Tell everyone: ‘She’s just a slave I bought, so she can’t fire anyone.’ I’m sure they’d all feel better.”
“Belaxina Outbayan!”
“Who do you think you are, yelling at me?!”
Avalkin looked at the dining room door—worried others might have heard.
‘Did she forget she’s a slave?’
He could punish her right now—but he chose not to.
Because if he pushed her, she’d push back harder.
“…I just want to know why you fired her. I’m not here to argue.”
He sighed.
Belaxina, seeing he wasn’t trying to fight, answered.
“My gold coins went missing.”
“Your money?”
“Yes. 24 gold coins. It’s not a huge amount, but I can’t have a thief helping me bathe.”
Avalkin knew that money came from the woodcutter’s wallet, so he wanted to ask how it was “hers”… but he didn’t.
“Natasha wouldn’t steal.”
“Maybe. But there’s no proof she didn’t either.”
“So in your country, people get punished without proof?”
Belaxina frowned.
Even if she didn’t know how trials worked back home, insulting her homeland still hurt.
“You seem to care a lot about that maid.”
What she really meant was, “Is she your mistress or something?”
But Avalkin didn’t notice.
“She’s not just a maid. Her family has served this house for generations.”
So that’s why he was so sensitive about it.
“Even if she were just a maid, we don’t fire people easily here. Do you know why?”
“Not enough workers?”
“No. Because being fired here is like a death sentence.”
Belaxina looked surprised.
“People here don’t have many job options. No farming, no big businesses. Most can only earn money by serving nobles—men as soldiers, women as servants. If someone gets fired—especially with a bad reputation—their whole family can suffer.”
Belaxina clenched her hands under the table.
Now she understood.
Natasha might be innocent, yet lose everything. Her family might go hungry.
“Things are different here than where you’re from.”
“…Okay. I understand.”
Avalkin was relieved she was being reasonable. He returned to his meal.
Still tasty, even though it had cooled.
“But someone did steal my money.”
And just like that, the tension returned.
“Just say it burned in the fire you caused.”
“That’s not the point.”
“Then what? Want me to give you 24 gold?”
“It’s not about the money—it’s about the thief!”
“There is no thief.”
Avalkin threw his napkin onto the plate.
The duck would now become dog food.
“There are no thieves in this house. Never have been. Don’t bring it up again. Got it?”
Belaxina crossed her arms and scoffed.
“So just ignore it? If no one gets punished, everyone will just start stealing.”
“We never had this problem before you came.”
Wait.
Did he just blame me?
Belaxina glared.
“Are you saying this is my fault?”
“…Ah.”
Avalkin realized too late that he messed up.
“So you’re saying I deserved it? That it’s okay if the staff treats me badly because they don’t like me?”
“I was just stating facts. That’s not what I meant.”
“Sure. I’ve lost my appetite!”
She stood up, threw down her napkin, and left.
Avalkin sighed and held his head.
“Nothing’s easy with that woman.”
This wasn’t what he had planned.
He only wanted to fix the misunderstanding and help her get along with the staff.
He thought it would make her life easier.
But the result?
“Hopeless.”
That word perfectly described the situation.
