Chapter 33
They were certainly her beloved brothers—talented, handsome, and from a prestigious family…
But looking at them now, she couldn’t help but feel like she was watching two troublemaking large dogs. They were the type to constantly hover and wag their tails around someone whose attitude clearly screamed, ‘Agh, everything is such a bother.’ It felt as if she had gained two of them when she couldn’t even handle one.
Still, it would have been too much to argue, ‘Don’t touch Titania unnie; let’s just watch her from a distance,’ because Titania looked far too precarious.
Actually, to put it bluntly, was she even in a position to be worrying about the Castline Duchy? She wasn’t, right?
“Big brother, why are you suddenly so wary of Second Brother? Usually, you just tell him not to cause trouble.”
“That fellow is excessively energetic.”
“I thought you said you were used to cleaning up after him now?”
“We shouldn’t cause trouble for a patient. Who knows if he’ll set the Empress’s Palace on fire this time.”
Bibi wanted to mention that they had already reached an agreement on that… but seeing how Raymon was clearly on guard despite not realizing it himself, she looked away with hazy eyes again.
“Big brother.”
“Yes?”
“Bibi always trusts and loves big brother.”
“I love you too.”
A faint smile appeared on his expressionless face. It had taken a long time to get an answer like that from him.
It was only after more than two weeks of running around like a machine shouting, ‘Papa, I love you! Big brother, I love you! Second brother, I love you! Youngest brother, I love you!’ that she finally started receiving such responses.
“But I don’t like big brother’s narrow-minded jealousy…”
“It’s not jealousy.”
“I don’t like the pettiness of denying it either…”
“I told you it’s not jealousy, Bibi. Lisianthus has been overly excited lately. The possibility of him failing to control his power when meeting Her Imperial Highness was too high.”
“There’s a fire prevention magic stone in unnie’s room, though.”
“…We couldn’t lay them in all the hallways of the Empress’s Palace.”
“Just in case he caused trouble in the hallway, you laid power amplification magic stones there to stop it from spreading into the room.”
“There’s still the possibility of the secret of our power being discovered by the staff of the Empress’s Palace.”
There was no end to dealing with Raymon, who kept rattling off textbook excuses while denying his own heart and feelings. As the carriage slowed down upon arriving at the Duke’s residence, Bibi closed her eyes for a moment.
‘Titania unnie, I’m sorry, but I’ll do my best. Bibi will do a really good job.’
Please don’t abandon Brother 1 + 2, even if they’re annoying sometimes…
Bibi truly loved the Castline Duchy.
However, she never forgot the fact that they occasionally acted in ways that made one’s insides rot.
“What an absolute mess.”
Miriam, the laundry maid, clicked her tongue as she looked at the ghost-like Rose Palace.
The walls were scorched black, and the garden remained a shambles. Though a section of a collapsed wall that exposed the drawing room had been covered with something like curtain fabric, it looked like a temporary measure at best.
The plan had been to carry out a full-scale renovation once Imperial Princess Titania left the palace, but since she had suddenly met with an accident and was hovering between life and death, there was nothing to be done. No one could suggest proceeding with construction on the Rose Palace while the Imperial Princess had yet to wake up.
The atmosphere inside the palace was restless.
Especially after the Rose Palace maids, who had swarmed the main gate of the Empress’s Palace demanding news of Titania’s condition, were met with a harsh reception.
It was even more so because none of them had a clear conscience.
That was why Miriam hardened her resolve. She was going to steal something from the Rose Palace.
“Just a little, I’ll only take a little.”
The Imperial Princess wasn’t even in the Rose Palace, so who would care? Miriam had clearly seen Natalie leaving the Rose Palace in a hurry earlier to head somewhere. Thus, she was certain that no one would be in the Rose Palace right now.
The other maids said the Rose Palace was terrifying. Especially after the Rose Palace maids were forced into a prayer that felt like torture following the incident.
They trembled in fear, claiming they heard strange noises in the empty palace and wondering if it was a ghost.
“A ghost? Where would there be a ghost? Cowards.”
Miriam snorted, checked her surroundings, and slipped into the ghost-like Rose Palace. There wasn’t a sign of anyone.
There were many rumors—that the Emperor didn’t know how to deal with the Rose Palace staff, that he was furious, and that no one knew how those involved in this incident would be punished. Even though the Imperial Princess herself was in the Empress’s Palace, no one knew whether she was dead or alive.
Therefore, Miriam was certain that this was her chance to make a fortune.
No matter if she was an Imperial Princess in name only, she was still an Imperial Princess. She could make a lot of money by just salvaging a few proper silver pieces or accessories.
If the underlings who originally guarded this palace were still here, it might be different, but their fate was uncertain. Even if the Imperial Princess noticed a couple of accessories were missing after returning from her coma, who would she blame? It would be fine as long as they disappeared without anyone knowing.
Even as she looked at a section of the hallway scorched black by the fire, Miriam was not afraid.
Rather, she thought it was lucky that others were too frightened by the gruesome exterior to come near.
She knew the basic layout of the building. Miriam decided to stop by the Imperial Princess’s room first.
Surprisingly, the door was not locked. Then again, the Rose Palace maids had been so paralyzed by the fear of being punished after Titania’s accident that they weren’t in any state of mind to worry about such basic things.
Idiots—if something truly valuable disappeared, they would be the ones taking the fall.
Of course, Miriam liked it. Her crime wouldn’t even be noticed.
Screeeech.
Opening the door, Miriam cautiously poked her head into the room. It smelled of dust. Even though it was midday, curtains were drawn over every window, making it dark as no sunlight could enter. Was this the bedroom? At the far end, she saw a large bed with a canopy and a small table beside it. Ignoring the vase filled with rotting, withered flowers, she opened the drawer beneath it.
She saw a small locket necklace.
It was a crude item encased in brass, so it didn’t look valuable, but Miriam opened it just in case there was a gem inside.
It was a small portrait.
The jet-black hair and the uniquely vivid gold eyes made it clear who it was at a single glance.
It was a crude drawing of the Young Duke Raymon at a much younger age, the kind of thing sold to commoners in the city.
“…How unpleasant.”
Miriam suddenly felt a wave of irritation. Thinking of Titania, who had been so crazy about Young Duke Raymon that she followed him around, made her feel strangely guilty.
Did she order a maid to buy this for her? She should have put in those jewels she likes so much instead!
Miriam grumbled as she closed the locket and put it back in the drawer.
It might be better to skim through the room and then search the toilette room or the wardrobe. No matter how the Rose Palace was, valuable accessories were generally kept in boxes, locked, and stored separately by a maid.
She hoped there was some gold or silver that didn’t need to be in a jewelry box. Miriam looked around. It was then.
—…You.
A strange sound was heard. Goosebumps erupted on the back of Miriam’s neck.
It felt as if someone was standing right behind her, whispering.
—…Intru…der…
Zzzzt, zzzzt. A noise, as if something was being forcibly cut off. Miriam turned around, her hands trembling.
There was nothing there.
However, she noticed a luxurious box lying on the floor next to the bed—one she wondered how she had missed earlier. Its long, slender shape made it look like it housed a staff, a sword, or a scepter. Should she leave it alone? Even as she thought that, Miriam reached out to the box.
When she opened the lid, she saw a sword with its scabbard and hilt tightly wrapped in red cloth. Even to the ignorant Miriam, it looked like a masterpiece that would be worth a fortune.
Normally, Miriam wouldn’t have dared to touch such a sword.
Even as a thief, she wasn’t completely brainless. There was no way a mere maid could dispose of a masterpiece sword, which wasn’t even a piece of jewelry, without repercussions.
Yet strangely, as if possessed, Miriam unwrapped the red cloth. And the moment she naturally gripped the hilt to draw the sword from its scabbard…
—Thief! (⍜⍙⍜ )!
“Kyaaaaaaaaah!”
Someone screamed inside her head.