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SPONSORED CHAPTER!!
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Grace then proceeded to meet Sally, flushed with cold, and returned back to her bedroom in the mansion.
She only smiled awkwardly at Sally who asked her where she had been gazing at for a while. Somehow, she thought she shouldn’t be honest about what had happened.
Then Sally, being the wise maid, did not pursue her further.
“Don’t ever do that again! Do you understand?”
Instead, she repeated her instructions.
As Grace was tired so much of Sally’s ear-pounding nagging for reading a book after a walk, taking a bath after dinner and getting ready to sleep, she said.
“All right, all right. Sally, so stop it now. I’m going to get a scab.”
“When I think about the things that get me nervous and antsy, I believe this much nagging is still not enough! I know that of course!”
“……What’s the point of doing that? I know nothing about Felix Castle, so why would I go so far?”
“I don’t know anything about Felix Castle, so let’s know more!”
Grace seemed to end the sermon again, so Sally stopped nagging at her timid counterargument. Then she lowered her voice, staring at Grace on the other side of the dressing table and continued.
“You don’t know much about Sir Felix? He was brought up far away from the capital and far from the Imperial secret struggle.”
“…Is that so?”
“Even if I use all fingers on both of my hands , no, even with both toes, I cannot count them all. Don’t you think so? He is the former emperor’s only sister’s eldest son and cousin of the present Emperor. Moreover, as the greatest knight of the empire he has countless possessions. Furthermore, he is trusted by the Emperor. Can anyone be free from jealousy?”
“….But everyone is afraid of the duke. That…”
“You mean that ridiculous curse?”
Grace carefully brought up the curse, and Sally said with a snort of laughter.
“The curse, seeing the Duke’s ‘unfortunate coincidences’ over and over again, was only a noise made by those who liked to make a fuss about it!”
“….But the coincidence is that all the women who have been married or engaged to the Duke have gone mad or died…”
“No, the lady who was engaged to him before his marriage to Electra is still alive and well. Isn’t she?”
“Haha.”
“She just wasn’t lucky! Of course!”
Grace smiled awkwardly and pretended to sympathize with Sally. It seemed obvious that Sally would be really angry if she honestly said, “It’s wrong to say that four people died by sheer coincidence.”
‘I’m sorry, Sally. I’m trying to get away with that ‘unfortunate coincidence’ or ‘curse’ thing.’
Grace thought so and smiled wryly to herself.
Sally, unaware of Grace’s feelings, alone expressed pity for Duke Felix and his brother Prince Leon Felix.
“I don’t know why noble people are so spiteful from their mouths! The death of the eldest lady was due to a fever, and with it, everything was cursed for Prince Leon.”
“…..Was it because of a puerperal fever?”
[T/N: Puerperal Fever – fever caused by uterine infection following childbirth.]
“Of course! But everyone persecuted and said harsh words to the poor little Confucius, calling it a curse. Even the red diamond necklace that the eldest lady left to Prince Leon was called a ‘cursed jewel’.”
“….Really?”
“Yes! And yet, when it comes to the value of the necklace, their eyes turn red and blood rushes to their face! Among the nobles approaching Prince Leon, nine out of ten are only those who are struggling to get their hands on his one and only necklace.… Although, of course, the Duke will not allow it.”
Grace uttered a short exclamation at Sally’s lamented words. Now she understood why Arthur persuaded her with a necklace.
Grace sighed and recalled Leon and fiddled with the necklace around her neck.
‘It’s such a precious thing to you that even a joke that I’d keep it, made you cry.’
Grace involuntarily smiled at the thought of it.
She spoke sympathetically towards Sally, who had her hair done and combed before she knew it.
“….Well, it’s understandable.”
“I know! They are bad people….sigh, at this time of year, people who don’t send a flower on Confucius’ birthday and make a fuss to take away the gift he received for the first time in his life….”
Then Grace, who smiled awkwardly at Sally’s bleating until the end, frowned at Sally’s words that soon burst out. Then she turned her head and asked Sally back.
“Wait a minute, Sally. What?”
“….What? What’s wrong? Did I, by any chance, swear at the nobles…”
“No! Not about them. Didn’t you just say it was Leon’s birthday around this time?”
“….Oh, yes. In five days, it’s Prince Leon’s birthday.”
Sally answered Grace’s questioning with a puzzled look on her face. Grace jumped up from her chair in front of the dressing table, took a breath hastily, and shouted.
“Sally, why didn’t you tell me that earlier?”
“Huh? Oh, no well…. no one’s ever asked about Prince Leon’s birthday….. so I thought you wouldn’t either. The circle of life is different, and the Duke along with his knights have been celebrating his birthday, so I didn’t think his wife had anything to worry about….”
Grace sighed silently at Sally’s excuse.
‘She was right. If I hadn’t met Leon while I was taking a walk this afternoon, I would have skipped the matter without realising it.’
‘But I’ve already met Leon, and now that I know when his birthday is, I cannot overlook it.’
Grace now recalled her fortune, pointing her hand at the temple as if it were a fiasco.
‘Oh no, I don’t have much to bring with me.’
Ever since she was a child, she was only given enough allowance to survive. In addition, she would only be given enough money to let her wear a dress that was already depreciated and out of style.
So there was no way that the Alberton family would have given enough dowry to get married again, nor did they wish for it.
If she knew this would happen, she would have hired a lawyer in the capital in order to bring in enough money. Thinking so, Grace somehow thought of a gift for Leon, but a flash of things came to her mind.
‘Yes, there was.’
“Sally, I’m sorry, but can you get me that old leather bag in that bag?”
Grace said to Sally, looking at her with a puzzled look on her face.
“Oh, yes!”
At Grace’s command, Sally quickly pulled an old leather bag out of her bag and brought it. Grace quickly picked it up and spilled the contents inside it on the dresser.
Then all kinds of old and clutter-like accessories poured out of it. Grace found a light blue topaz necklace, after poking through all of them.
“….Oh, thank God. It was left!”
The light blue topaz necklace was Grace’s coming-of-age ceremony gift to herself, which she bought after saving a year’s allowance.
Two years ago, she envied her sister who received a necklace with a fist-sized amethyst from her family at the coming-of-age ceremony.
So, she also expected a small necklace, if not fist-sized amethyst, but they didn’t give it to her, a disgrace to the family.
So even if it felt bitter, it was a gift to herself that she bought as soon as she came of age.
‘….I thought it would be a luxury that didn’t suit me at that time.’
She didn’t expect it to be used like this. Grace told Sally, clasping her topaz necklace, which was shining more beautifully today.
“Sally, I’m so sorry, but can I get a velvet box? I hope it’s big enough to hold this necklace.”
“There is nothing to be sorry about, it’s not a difficult request. When should I bring it to you?”
“I’d like to have it tomorrow morning, then.”
“Yes, I understand. I’ll make sure to get it by morning. I hope you have a good rest.”
“Yes, see you tomorrow, Sally.”
Sally bowed her head to Grace as she finished getting ready to go to bed by clearing all the tangled hair in the comb and taking out the portable brazier she had put on the bed.
Grace greeted Sally as she walked out of the door and went up to the bed which was covered in sheets while lying down. Grace closed her eyes, warming up her slightly frozen hands and feet in a warm bed thanks to Sally’s warm heating.
“I hope Leon will be happy to receive this necklace.”
Thinking of that, Grace quickly fell asleep.
***
The next morning Grace woke up early in the morning, washed her face in the bathroom next to her bedroom and changed her inner dress.
Sally, who came to the bedroom imagining Grace falling asleep without realizing it, approached her in surprise when she saw Grace sitting on the dressing table and said.
“Oh, my God. You are awake already?”
“Yes, I woke up a little early.”
“A little early? It’s too early.”
“Haha, is that so?”
“Yes, I was really surprised.”
Sally put down the washing water she had prepared for Grace, hurried to the closet, and chose a coat and outer dress that matched Grace’s clothes.
Grace put on her dress and sat down on the dressing table to look at Sally, who helped her with her hair done quickly. Sally then made gentle eye contact and said to Grace.
“By any chance, is there something you want to say to me?”
“…Ah, no nothing. The velvet box…..”
“Here it is.”
At Grace’s words, Sally pulled a small velvet box out of her apron pocket.
Grace smiled with great satisfaction at the size of the pretty box, which was just the size of Grace’s necklace, and had a nice silver ribbon on the outside.
“Thank you, Sally. I’ll use it well.”
“But why do you need the box?”
“I need to do something.”
“….Is that so?”
Sally looked somewhat suspicious at Grace’s reply, but did not ask any more.
Grace smiled slightly at her witty appearance, and before she knew it, she said to Sally, who was focused on decorating her hair.
“Sally, I don’t have any fixed schedule today, do I?
“What? Oh, yes, you don’t have any. Do you have any plans?”
“Then I’d like to go for a walk to the place I went to yesterday, can I ask you for directions?”
Grace sneaked out the necklace that Sally had hidden in the wide width of the dress while her eyes were on her head and asked, placing it in the box.
Then Sally replied in a worried voice.
“It’s colder today than yesterday, are you okay?”
“Yes, it’s alright.”
“If so, then yes. Okay. I’ll have to dress you in a thicker coat instead.”
“Thank you, Sally.”
“Like yesterday, you’re going out after a quick meal, aren’t you? Then I’ll prepare tea for you while you eat.”
After skillfully curling up Grace’s long hair, Sally brought a thicker coat out instead of the coat she had hung by the dressing table.
Grace picked it up and smiled happily, looking at the clock leaning against the wall.
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Edited by: Arya
Proofread by: Ether_ria
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Stay safe and healthy along with your loved ones. And have a good day!
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Stay tuned for more.