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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: My Sister, My Enemy, Cares for Me
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"P-punishment, you say...?"
Leroy's large frame trembled violently. His knees buckled as if they would give out any moment.
"As the Butler, I cannot take a life..."
Leroy's face, which had begun to lighten at Theon's words, turned ashen the next moment.
"Confiscate all his assets, break both his arms and one leg, and banish him from the Duchy. He must never cook again."
"That's outrageous!"
Leroy tried to resist, but his arms were already seized by the knights.
"M-Madam! Madam, please help me!"
But Clarissa remained frozen in her chair, unmoving. A trickle of cold sweat ran down her pale face.
With all the evidence laid bare before Theon, there was nothing she could do.
No, considering how she had tried to intimidate me, she herself was not free from suspicion of trying to cover up her relative Leroy's corruption.
"Madam!"
Leroy was dragged out by the knights, helpless. Their movements, following Theon's orders, were so swift that in the blink of an eye, his screams were already echoing down the corridor.
"I will provide a detailed report on this matter once His Grace the Duke returns."
"Theon!"
Clarissa's voice was sharp, almost tearing, as she questioned Theon, who remained emotionless.
"...How dare a mere Butler, how dare you threaten the Duchess of Luperne?"
"I merely follow protocol. His Grace the Duke will make the final disposition."
Clarissa's fury seemed to have no effect on Theon. Watching the situation unfold, I spoke up again.
"Uncle Theon."
"Yes, Young Lady."
"If I ask you to let this matter go, will you do so?"
Theon's eyebrow twitched slightly. He stared intently at me as he adjusted his spectacles.
"...Are you concerned for the Duchess?"
"No, it's just that I don't want to bother Father with something that's already resolved anyway."
It was half true. I wasn't a good daughter who worried about her irresponsible father, who was obsessed with travel and women, but I didn't want this reported to him.
Nothing would change even if it were. By the time he returned, the kitchen would be run by a new chef, and Father would, at most, scold Clarissa for half a day. To him, I was a daughter worth precisely that much.
I wanted a more meaningful trophy.
"If the Young Lady, who is the aggrieved party, wishes it, I will comply, but..."
Theon tilted his head slightly, his eyes gleaming.
"I have a feeling there might be a condition, somehow."
As expected, he's quick on the uptake.
I nodded and looked at Clarissa.
"I want an apology."
"...What?"
She stared at me incredulously. However, the returning color in her pale cheeks suggested she didn't dislike my condition.
How easy it would be to smile kindly at a child and say "I'm sorry."
"Not from me."
I spoke, as if dousing her hopeful face with cold water.
"Apologize to Jena."
Clarissa stared at me with a bewildered expression. Slowly, her face twisted into a harsh grimace.
"H-how dare you tell me what to do!"
"Young Lady! I'm fine!"
Clarissa and Jena shouted at the same time.
"Well, *I'm* not fine. If it weren't for Uncle Theon, Jena would have been kicked out."
I stood my ground, not yielding an inch. Theon's grey eyes darted between me, Jena, and Clarissa with interest.
His gaze lingered on me for a moment before returning to Clarissa.
"The Duchess may do as she wishes. His Grace values the Duchess, so even if he receives a report, no significant trouble will arise, but..."
He leaned back against the wall, arms crossed, and spoke leisurely. It seemed he had decided whose side to take in his mind.
"Even His wise Grace sometimes dismisses and replaces people on a hasty impulse."
My side, exactly!
At Theon's words, Clarissa bit her lip until it bled. This was likely because she had heard rumors of a younger, prettier woman already attached to Father in another region.
There were many women in the Empire who could replace Clarissa, and many who wished to. They would be eagerly awaiting the day Clarissa fell out of Father's favor.
"...Very well."
Clarissa barely managed to force the word out through gritted teeth. In the end, she chose to swallow her pride rather than risk a small threat to her future.
"From now on... this will not happen again. I apologize, Jena."
She apologized without even looking at Jena, but it was enough to surprise Salia and the other servants standing behind them.
That's enough. This is exactly what I wanted.
In all the years Clarissa had been part of the Ducal family, she had never once apologized to a subordinate.
Now, whenever the household staff encountered Jena, they would instinctively think, 'the only maid to receive an apology from the Duchess.'
Since they wouldn't know the exact circumstances of the apology, they'd be wary at first.
As she was a maid Clarissa couldn't treat carelessly, once they realized ignoring her could bring them great trouble, they would have no choice but to treat Jena cautiously.
There was no benefit in provoking someone who could be dangerous.
Jena's life would become incomparably easier than before.
Then there would no longer be a shortage of food in my room. And I wouldn't have to sneak into the kitchen to steal food like a wretch.
The status of master and maid ultimately went hand in hand.
I smiled triumphantly at Clarissa.
"Then, let's conclude this matter here. The existing Sous Chef will temporarily be in charge of the kitchen."
Before Theon had even finished speaking, Clarissa and Salia pushed their chairs back and stormed out the door. Their crumpled faces were filled with rage.
"...Well then, I shall take my leave as well, Young Lady Harper."
After the people in the room receded like a tide, Theon spoke softly. I gazed intently at his face.
"If there's anything else you require..."
"The pull cord."
"Pardon?"
As if he hadn't expected my answer, Theon's gaze shifted to the cord hanging from the ceiling. He pondered for a second or two before nodding as if understanding.
"Ah, from now on, no one will fail to come when the cord is pulled. I will ensure they are properly trained..."
"I can't reach it."
"Can't... reach it, you say?"
"Exactly. It's too short."
I stood on my tiptoes and stretched my arm out. The tip of my middle finger barely brushed the end of the cord, but that was all. At my height, I could never pull the cord.
I knew this because I had tried to pull the cord to request milk before lunch earlier, and failed.
In my previous life, I had given up calling for anyone long ago, so the cord's length was meaningless.
"...I see."
Theon tilted his head, as if this was a problem he'd never encountered.
"Indeed, your legs are still short."
"No, the *cord* is short!"
"The cord is a normal length. It's the same as the one in my room. It is your legs that are short, Young Lady."
The cold-blooded stickler for rules assessed the situation with ruthless objectivity.
"Of course, we cannot lengthen your legs, so I will have a ribbon attached to the cord. Is that satisfactory?"
I glared at him with a look full of dissatisfaction.
I had just secured a small victory against Clarissa, so why did I feel so trivialized?
"One more thing."
I quickly stated the request I had prepared, to shake off this feeling.
This was my only chance. I had to ask him while he still held even a sliver of interest in me.
There was a reason I had specifically referenced his thesis.
"Please allow me to use the Central Library too."
"Are you short on fairy tales?"
"I am, but that's not what I'm talking about."
I took a step closer to Theon and continued.
"I want to use the west wing on the third floor."
The place where various books on sorcery and ancient magic, as well as extremely rare maps, were gathered.
It was a place rumored throughout the Empire to house all of its accumulated knowledge, with books so precious that no one could enter freely. I wanted to access that section.
Because there was something I wanted to see before Callista returned.
Theon, who had been turning to leave, paused for a moment. He pushed up his spectacles with a fair, slender hand, then stared intently at me.
"Would you be able to... read them?"
The curiosity in his eyes, which I had seen earlier, seemed to deepen. I nodded eagerly, my eyes shining.
***
"Jena, I'm going to the library. He said I could go starting today."
I hummed a tune as I changed my clothes. My body felt a little heavy after the hearty breakfast, but I was in a great mood.
"Take your water bottle. You shouldn't get thirsty halfway there."
I took the pretty sky-blue bottle Jena handed me. It would have been even better if I could bring chocolate cookies, but that was forbidden. I'd brought it up once and gotten nowhere.
The day before, after getting permission from Theon to use the library, I had asked if I could eat anything inside, and he had raised the corners of his eyes as far as they could go and glared at me.
His face had become cold, as if the sliver of interest he had accumulated in me had vanished in an instant. I looked up at him, tense.
"Absolutely not. There are books in the library worth as much as an entire baronry."
"But!"
"Getting sticky sugar lumps on such books is a crime against humanity."
"I won't get anything on them when I eat."
"What confidence do you have, when your hands are covered in chocolate right now?"
Only then did I look down at my hands, which were indeed smeared with a sweet brown liquid. The fact that the muffin I'd stolen from Clarissa was so rich and delicious had been my undoing.
Only then did I understand Theon's displeased expression.
It was a favor I had gained with difficulty.
I belatedly blamed this body, which, being young, couldn't properly control its appetite, but it was too late. At least the library access hadn't been revoked.
"I'm going now."
"Young Lady, wait a moment."
"Hm?"
Jena turned me around, though one foot was already in the hallway. She was on both knees, meeting my gaze.
