Chapter 3
‘That guy is obviously 3rd Prince Edwin. Anyone could tell.’
Edwin was dressed in a way that made his royal status unmistakable at a glance.
Only royals were mad enough to wear clothes plastered with such flashy embroidery and jewels.
‘But why would they pull a stunt like that on a prince?’
That was when I began questioning the rude behavior of the boys surrounding and teasing Edwin.
“Damn it, for real!”
A boy with orange hair suddenly shoved the prince to the ground.
I narrowed my eyes.
I might not know much about kids, but I knew exactly what kind of temperament noble brats that age were born with.
‘He’ll probably cry his eyes out and call for a servant or something.’
I watched the situation closely, waiting for the prince to burst into tears.
Ready to step in naturally at any moment.
But his reaction was beyond my expectations.
“That’s mine! Give it back, you swindlers!”
Far from being cowed, the prince charged even more fiercely at boys who looked twice his size.
Even though he’d fallen hard on the dirt ground, which must have hurt quite a bit.
‘He’s got some guts, I’ll give him that.’
But the orange-haired boy seemed no slouch in the guts department either.
He dangled something above the prince’s head, teasing him relentlessly.
“Why don’t you come and take it yourself, Your Highness?”
Only then did I realize the thing the orange-haired boy was holding was jewelry.
‘A bracelet?’
It was a women’s bracelet strung with pearls and rubies.
For something belonging to royalty, it felt rather crudely made.
Maybe that’s why. It looked strangely familiar.
“Your Highness, you have to keep your promises. Even someone as noble as you.”
“I never made any promise with you guys!”
The prince yelled sharply at the boy addressing him, but the boy just shrugged.
“This is something we rightfully won from Your Highness in a bet. And now you’re trying to sneak in like a rat and steal it back.”
At the word “rat,” the prince’s eyes wavered.
“Th-that’s because you tricked me…!”
“Tricked you? That’s a serious accusation.”
The orange-haired boy widened his eyes in mock shock.
“How could lowly things like us dare to swindle Prince Your Highness? Right, Gail?”
At his words, a boy who looked like the leader stepped forward from the middle.
The boy called ‘Gail’ had an especially burly build and a fierce expression among them.
“If you want it back that badly, how about another bet?”
Gail squatted down in front of the fallen prince and gripped his shoulder tightly.
“What’ll you wager this time? That hand of yours?”
He flashed a sly grin with eyes full of ulterior motives.
Honestly. It was ridiculous watching these kids who couldn’t even grow peach fuzz yet play at being gangsters.
I let out a light sigh and stepped forward.
Since I’d decided to stay here for the time being, I had to faithfully play my role.
“Your Highness, what are you doing here?”
As soon as I spoke, all the boys’ gazes turned to me in unison.
“…Rachel?”
The prince, Edwin, stared at me with wide, surprised eyes.
* * *
Gail frowned at the sudden arrival of an uninvited guest.
They said the 3rd Prince was such a headache that even the maids wouldn’t bother looking for him if he vanished, but it seemed the rumors were exaggerated.
Having mistaken the nanny Rachel for a mere maid, he clicked his tongue.
“Tch, we’ve got a meddler. Let’s go.”
That was when Gail tried to leave with his gang.
Edwin grabbed his sleeve and clung on.
“Give it back! Give me my bracelet!”
Gail scowled and shook off the prince’s hand in one swift motion.
He didn’t like the prince.
It irked him to see such a pathetic kid with nothing going for him living it up just because he was royalty.
“Hold it right there.”
Then, Rachel called out to him.
“It seems Your Highness has something you need to get back from you all.”
“What?”
Gail’s eyes widened, not expecting her to intervene.
“Hand it over. While I’m asking nicely.”
Rachel gave the boy the kindest smile she could muster.
In truth, only her face was smiling—her words were more like a veiled threat.
They didn’t come off as threatening at all, thanks to her gentle, good-natured impression that made her seem like she’d grant any request.
Meanwhile, the boys who heard Rachel exchanged uneasy glances.
“Hey, we’re screwed, right? Even if it’s him, if they find out we actually messed with a real prince, we’re all dead meat.”
“Don’t chicken out. They said all the maids in the 3rd Prince’s Palace come from no-account families. If worse comes to worst, we’ll just shut them up…”
Gail ground his teeth as he listened to them.
‘Idiots. Scared over one little word.’
He approached Rachel with an air of utmost nonchalance.
Was it because Gail was bigger than his peers? Or because Rachel was on the smaller side compared to others?
He looked down at her condescendingly from far above.
“Miss Maid, this is something we won fair and square from His Highness in a bet.”
Gail shoved his hands in his pockets and shot back accusingly.
“But His Highness barged into our quarters on his own and tried to take it. That’s theft, plain and simple. Isn’t it?”
Rachel glanced at the prince after hearing him out.
The prince, Edwin, was just trembling with indignation.
Gail sneered at the sight.
‘Hah, that’s royalty for you.’
It was laughable how he’d met Gail’s eyes for a split second before immediately looking away.
That was when Rachel spoke in the gentlest voice imaginable.
“Then how about a bet with me?”
“…Pardon?”
“I mean, let’s bet on that bracelet.”
Gail stared at her in stunned disbelief at the unexpected proposal.
“Since you won it in a bet, you shouldn’t mind losing it the same way, right?”
She bared her teeth in a bright smile.
Gail couldn’t help bursting into incredulous laughter at the sight.
They said the maids in the 3rd Prince’s Palace were all from insignificant noble families, even if they were nobles.
But Gail was different.
He was the youngest son of a count, a page to the 2nd Prince, and an apprentice to the craftsman who made carriages for His Imperial Majesty the Emperor.
Sure, he was still just an apprentice, but his status was far above some no-name maid who wiped the behind of a worthless prince.
Gail laughed for a good while before exchanging glances with the boys standing on either side.
“Fine. If that’s what the lady wants.”
His gleaming eyes raked Rachel up and down.
“But what are you going to wager, Miss Maid?”
“Well…”
Rachel shrugged lightly.
“My hand, then. Whatever you want.”
“What?”
My hand, then.
Gail faltered at Rachel’s utterly nonchalant expression.
‘Hah, even a no-account maid thinks she’s noble-born.’
Gail found Rachel’s confident attitude deeply irritating. So he made up his mind.
Just like that annoying 3rd Prince, he’d make the woman in front of him kneel before him too.
* * *
Gail and Rachel.
The two sat facing each other across a wooden box.
Gail slammed a cup down roughly on top of the box.
“Let’s make the game ‘monte.’ Oh, you wouldn’t know it since you’re a noble lady, would you?”
Rachel’s eyes narrowed at his words.
‘Monte.’
A simple street gambling game you could play with just three cups and one ball.
It was one of the most common pastimes across the empire and the entire continent.
“I know it.”
Gail furrowed his brow at her still utterly relaxed demeanor.
That was when Edwin tugged at Rachel’s sleeve from behind.
“What are you doing? Get up right now!”
The prince urged her on in a hushed, tense voice.
But she looked straight at Gail instead of Edwin as she replied.
“Don’t you need that bracelet?”
At Rachel’s question, the prince’s voice grew even quieter.
“N-no, it’s not that…”
“Then stay quiet.”
“But those guys are definitely using some weird trick! I saw it with my own eyes and still fell for it!”
“It’s fine.”
“What? What do you mean, fine?”
Edwin gave her an incredulous look at her calm tone.
Gail, her opponent, was just as baffled by her.
What on earth made her so complacent?
Meanwhile, the boys watching the scene quickly grew cocky and started jeering at Rachel.
“Picked the wrong opponent, Miss Maid? Gail’s a monte master.”
“Too bad, Miss Maid. Don’t expect any mercy when you’re crying and begging later.”
But Rachel murmured quietly with the same relaxed expression as before.
“…My, that’s too bad.”
As if she genuinely meant it.
* * *
Gail placed the ball under the rightmost cup and turned it over.
“You get three chances. If you guess right at least twice, it’s your win, Miss Maid.”
“Very well.”
No sooner had Rachel answered than he began shuffling the cups.
The three cups moved so fast they blurred into afterimages.
Everyone’s eyes followed the three cups flying across the box.
Thud.
Finally, Gail’s hands came to a stop.
He grinned wickedly at Rachel.
“Which one?”
“The right one.”
Silence fell at her answer, delivered without a hint of hesitation.
Rachel’s face was expressionless but brimming with certainty.
Edwin, watching her, swallowed hard on his own.
“Not bad, Miss Maid.”
Meanwhile, Gail shrugged as if he’d gone easy on her for the first one and flipped the cup.
Sure enough, the ball was under the rightmost cup, just as the maid had said.
“One more right guess and you win.”
And Rachel stared at Gail with a cool, steely gaze.
Gail flinched involuntarily and looked back at her.
