Ch#20
“That reminds me—didn’t the Canyon Count’s daughter get bestowed upon that Laslo fellow?”
“It was the most dramatic moment at the victory banquet, wasn’t it? Everyone rushed in like a pack of dogs, begging for that woman, and the Emperor suddenly gave her to Laslo.”
“She became an example. Poor woman.”
Berington Duke clicked his tongue and shook his head, but Isaac smirked.
“The Canyon Count, who handed his own daughter over to the Lancaster Duke to forge connections, ended up looking ridiculous. Still, managing to preserve his house amid all this chaos means he’s not entirely incompetent……”
Everyone caught the nuance at the end of his words.
“You plan to use the Canyon Count’s house?”
“They’ve been keeping a low profile lately.”
*Spoils of war*
Duchess
Isaac shrugged.
“Well, I’m just keeping an eye on them for now. I don’t expect the Canyon Count to accomplish anything remarkable.”
“The Owen Barony or Tessian Count’s house could yield good results if used properly too.”
They continued the discussion, naming houses that could serve as scapegoats in their place.
Truly written by Lemon Frog
The harm those houses would suffer was not a consideration.
“Edel, you go fetch the laundry today. We’ll be washing what we couldn’t finish yesterday.”
Celia, assigning the day’s tasks, asked Edel to collect the laundry.
In truth, collecting laundry was one of the easier jobs in the laundry room. You could take your time and rest while gauging the situation.
So in the early days after Edel started, Celia and Laila had taken turns fetching it, but as they grew closer, they began entrusting the task to Edel as well.
.
“The head maid said she’s going out somewhere with Lady Linia, so don’t worry and take your time.”
That woman was even manipulating Linia at will. She was probably deliberately stoking Linia’s insecurities.
That was tantamount to giving Edel a break.
She’d be able to use Linia easily that way.
Edel tried to decline, but with Celia and Laila already dipping their hands in water, she had no choice but to pick up the large tub and leave the laundry room.
Edel often saw Marsha whispering conspiratorially beside Linia, acting familiar.
She placed the tub on the cart at the mansion entrance connected to the laundry room, then headed straight to the second floor to collect from the upper levels.
It seemed Marsha was summoning a dressmaker or jeweler she knew, but it was obvious how the dresses or accessories chosen by the head maid’s eye would look to other nobles.
Pushing the cart as if it were long-accustomed work brought a strange sense of nostalgia.
It was chilling enough to make her spine tingle, even though it wasn’t her concern.
‘It’s already been nearly two months since I started working here.’
*She’s probably taking kickbacks from those vendors too.*
Today marked exactly the 50th day.
A sigh escaped her at the utter disarray of House Criserus.
Though she hadn’t been here long, Edel had lately grown overly preoccupied with the count’s house’s peculiarities.
‘Why doesn’t Count Criserus fix anything? No matter how busy he is, you have to manage your household properly first for everything else to fall into place.’
‘It’s absurd there’s no butler, and for the head maid to be the mansion’s de facto power holder…’
Edel sighed as she gathered laundry from Linia’s room.
A head maid held an important position, but strictly speaking, she was just a senior maid managing other maids. It was unthinkable for such a person to wield real power in a great noble house on par with a count’s.
Rooms without owners were chaotically adorned with all sorts of decorations. The lack of unified taste suggested they were bought impulsively whenever something trendy came up.
Marsha was even wielding her power in a terribly petty way.
Perhaps dazzled by the head maid’s ‘they say so’ gossip, buying indiscriminately.
‘Creating factions among the few servants and playing queen within them…’
*If she knew even a few peer noble ladies, she wouldn’t let the head maid lead her around like that—though her situation makes that difficult too.*
It wasn’t just a lack of manpower causing work to pile up.
Edel had heard rumors that Laslo struggled to fit into noble society.
A few servants fawning over Marsha were noticeably lax in their duties, forcing others to cover for them.
They were the type of commoners nobles had always scorned, yet one had suddenly monopolized the Emperor’s favor and become a great noble. Everyone was busy with envy and jealousy.
Maids close to Marsha wasted time snacking or gossiping with her, while the others bore heavier loads on her orders.
The newer maids couldn’t refuse Marsha’s commands. Quitting would leave their records ambiguous without recommendations.
Because of that, it seemed to Edel that Laslo focused solely on palace duties to flaunt it all the more to them.
However, excelling at one’s tasks alone wouldn’t integrate him into high society’s mainstream or bolster the Emperor’s power.
The head maid probably had strong sway and could spend within the count’s approved budget. That’s where her power came from.
Frankly, he lacked merits that would make nobles swallow their pride and extend a hand first.
The poor quality of the mansion’s foodstuffs and supplies suggested even that budget wasn’t being used well.
Brains and eloquence, financial gains for allies, connections to the Emperor—or at least a polished appearance...
Either no eye for quality or no effort to find good merchants.
His face, hidden by hair and beard, seemed quite handsome, but he showed no interest in grooming himself, as if repelled by the idea of presenting himself.
.
