Chapter 19
19. Deceived2021.11.04.
The carriage jolted as it crossed through the bustling streets. Reina pulled her hood back up over her face, which had slipped down, and tensed up.
“…….”
It’ll be fine…… right? I had no choice. The Marchioness had told her to avoid going out as much as possible, but once she heard the circumstances, she’d understand Reina’s decision. She’d said to ‘refrain’ from outings, and to ‘avoid Lord Rembrandt no matter what excuse you have to make.’ It was better to go out with Sir Arthur than to meet Lord Rembrandt. Anxiously, Reina recalled the conversation from before they’d left. · · ·
“I need to go out.”
Reina looked at him in surprise.
“Pardon? Go out?”
Then what about me? The Marchioness will surely summon me. What if she asks if I’ve found any of his weaknesses in the meantime……? Without thinking, Reina blurted out words to stop him in a fluster.
“You’ve only been back a few days. You’ve barely had a day to rest—why not rest a little more…….”
But Arthur smiled brightly as he draped his outer coat over his shirt.
“It’s about time I got out. I’ve been lounging around too much already. They made such a huge fuss over me as the ‘Triumphal General of the Century,’ so I can’t just hole up in my room. They might overlook a single day, but if word gets out that I’m glued to the bed, it’ll draw criticism. I can’t show a lazy side.”
Reina stood up awkwardly to follow suit. Arthur continued.
“Truth be told, resting even yesterday was a huge concession. Thanks to the Marquis’s consideration—he was so eager to let me rest.”
And that was thanks to Reina, too.
“…….”
Seeing Reina’s lost expression, Arthur smiled and added,
“I have to fulfill my duties as the Triumphal General. There’s a lot to do. Yesterday I only met Lord Rembrandt, but normally, I should’ve been dragged around all day meeting people the Marquis introduced me to.”
I see. Sir Arthur is busy. It’s obvious now that I think about it—why didn’t I realize? Unconsciously, she’d thought he’d stay cooped up in his room like Lady Christina. Since this precious person had been away for so long, surely he’d rest deeply for at least a month—no, a week—without doing anything…… . Awkwardly, Reina tried to help him. With something…… . Like tying his cravat, or fastening his cufflinks, or helping him into his coat—something like that, right? But Arthur, being a soldier, donned his uniform perfectly in the blink of an eye and ended up looking impeccably put-together on his own.
“…….”
She’d stood up but couldn’t find anything to do, so Reina wandered uselessly in front of him.
After pinning a medal decoration to his chest with a light tap to finish, Arthur turned to her.
“Will you come with me?”
Reina’s eyes went wide. Come with him? Reina couldn’t go out. Because she was the fake Christina. She was the stand-in, and she couldn’t show her face outside. Rigidly, Reina stammered out the excuse the Marchioness had given her.
“Ah……. I…… I’m not feeling well…….”
Arthur grinned knowingly.
“Then you’d be meeting Lord Rembrandt right now? It seemed like you needed to make some progress on his business. The portrait, I mean.”
Her response came reflexively.
“No. I don’t want to meet any man other than you.”
Lord Rembrandt is absolutely out of the question.
“…….”
“…….”
An awkward silence flowed between them. Realizing something was off, Reina’s face flushed tomato-red again.
「Just say you’re not feeling well, or that you don’t want to meet any man other than your husband.」
That’s weird? It hadn’t felt like this when the Marchioness said it. What’s wrong?
“…….”
Arthur paused for a moment before chuckling softly.
“Then let’s go together. We’ll meet Lord Rembrandt later. Leaving you alone doesn’t seem like a good idea, for various reasons.”
With that, he picked up a piece of clothing and approached, draping it over her shoulders. As his arm wrapped around her like an embrace, Reina flinched and shrank back in surprise. Without any further contact, he lightly settled it over her huddled shoulders. Tap……. A hooded cape coat draped over her shoulders. While he pulled the hood over her head and straightened the garment, Reina stood stiffly, holding her breath. As he tugged the hood and collar into place, his hands lingered near her cheeks. His scent……. Looking down at Reina, who was averting her eyes in confusion, Arthur gazed at her with a gentle expression.
“……Keep your face covered when we go out. You’re supposed to be chaste.”
Arthur smiled as he adjusted her hood. · · ·
“……Where are we going?”
Arthur answered Reina’s question simply.
“To one of my subordinates’ homes.”
That must have been the address he’d given the coachman. Reina hesitated a bit before asking,
“Is it someone who’s always by your side?”
“Tristan? No. It’s another subordinate’s house.”
Arthur chuckled dryly and added,
“You already know Tristan. I’ll introduce you properly soon.”
“Ah…… no.”
To be introduced to your close aides as your fake wife—what are you planning to say I am? It felt like a total mess, but she couldn’t very well say she didn’t want the introduction.
“……Yes.”
Reina answered reluctantly, trailing off.
“…….”
The carriage turned onto a crowded street near the square. She’d come out as he wanted, but she couldn’t help feeling uneasy. Worried about exposing her face, Reina fiddled with the hood on her head, pulling it tighter. Since she wasn’t revealing herself as the ‘lady,’ this should be fine, right? It had to be……
“…….”
Arthur watched Reina, who kept anxiously tugging at her hood. · · · She’s a maid who’s worked at the Julius Mansion for over ten years. It seems she started at the youngest age one can work as a maid. She mainly does ordinary tasks like cleaning, garden maintenance, laundry, sewing, and occasionally attends to the lady. She’s one of the few maids whom ‘Lady Christina,’ who doesn’t keep a fixed personal maid, occasionally calls as her body servant. She stays at the mansion 24 hours a day and rarely goes home. It appears she has family elsewhere, but no one knows about them, so we’re still investigating. Her reputation among the other maids is nothing special. They call her a ‘wallflower personality.’ She doesn’t have a bad reputation or enemies, but she tends to keep to herself and has no close maid friends. The only person she’s close to is Taylor Lorenson, son of the family physician, Doctor Alvin Lorenson. He’s a doctor just like his father and employed by the marquis’s household. There’s a lot of talk about whether they’re lovers or not, but it seems they’re close regardless. Several people confirmed it. We’ll look into that later—for now, back to ‘Reina’…… . She stands out appearance-wise, so she’s well-known among the maids, but she’s so quiet and has no other standout traits or presence beyond her looks. She has no friends; she’s just a quiet servant who happens to be pretty, and that’s it—no further information could be obtained. The marquis’s household doesn’t take kindly to mansion gossip spreading, so it seems they keep things under tight control. Personally, she strikes me as a maid who’s noticeable yet blends in. It’s unconfirmed, so take caution, but when rumors about an attractive maid are this quiet, there’s a possibility she’s involved in the marquis household’s less savory dealings. That might be why they manage the rumors. I say this again: please be careful. She could be a dangerous woman. · · · While the carriage paused at a busy intersection, murmurs from outside filtered through the window.
“Insufficient supplies is really true?”
“Seems like it. They took away stuff sent via supply wagons for us, but no one says they received it.”
“Oh my goodness.”
“We sent cotton clothes and blessed necklaces along with letters for our fathers, but they said they never got them. They pretended to receive them all this time so we wouldn’t worry…… but confessed this morning that they never arrived. We were all so heartbroken…….”
“Ah…….”
A sympathetic exclamation was followed by more voices.
“They said it’s okay, that our feelings reached them and that’s why I came back safe, but the whole family was sobbing—it was chaos.”
“…….”
The carriage started moving again, and the voices faded. Reina’s face hardened. Insufficient supplies. She’d known it was something hushed up even within the marquis’s household. But hearing it from the families of returned soldiers made it real. The problem wasn’t just that the delivered goods were meager. People’s hearts hadn’t reached their loved ones. It had deceived the desperate longings of so many. Now that the conscripts had returned to their territories, it was only a matter of time before everyone knew about the insufficient supplies. ……What do I do? As Reina, who had no conscripted relatives, she’d only thought the marquis’s household had done wrong by the soldiers and Sir Arthur. But as ‘Christina,’ Reina was at a loss.
“…….”
Arthur must have heard the voices from outside the carriage too. Yet he said nothing. Once she started paying attention, snippets of street talk kept drifting in through the carriage window.
“Don’t talk about it where Hanna can hear. Her husband died in battle two years ago. If she finds out he left without properly receiving her letters and packages, she’ll be devastated.”
“How can we hide it……. She’ll find out eventually…….”
“Even if she does, we don’t have to tell her now…….”
“…….”
Her eyes met Arthur’s. He just smiled with an inscrutable expression. * * *
“We’ve arrived, my lord.”
The carriage stopped. Arthur alighted first, then took Reina’s hand to help her down. Clutching her dress skirts, Reina carefully stepped out of the carriage. Tristan stood waiting a short distance from the house. Unthinkingly, Reina stiffened. Spotting them, Tristan bowed in greeting before jogging lightly over.
“You’ve arrived.”
“This is my wife.”
Arthur suddenly introduced Reina.
“?!”
This abruptly? Flustered, Reina curtsied hastily while clutching her dress.
“Ch-Christina.”
Tristan looked at her. Meeting his gaze, Reina shrank back, unsure what to do. It was like his eyes were saying, Ah, so you’re ‘Christina’?
“…….”
But Tristan bowed politely and pressed a kiss to the back of Reina’s hand.
“I’m Tristan, my lady.”
