While Edel was lost in thought, Laslo stared at her, pondering something of his own, before speaking.
“You were being excessively thorough.”
His subordinate, a young man who appeared to be his associate, furrowed his brows at the indifferent response. Laslo, however, ignored him and kept his gaze fixed on Edel, asking, “What are you doing here?”
“I am on my way to fetch the laundry from the Count’s room. If I have inconvenienced you, I shall take a different route from now on.”
Edel answered without a hint of nervousness or hesitation. She briefly thought that her lack of distress might seem suspicious, but having been trained on how to respond in such situations since childhood, it was difficult to feign being startled.
Laslo scrutinized her carefully for a moment before giving a very slight nod.
“Well… that won’t be necessary. You may go.”
“Yes, Count.”
Edel bowed her head slightly once more, then pushed her cart toward Laslo’s bedroom. She felt a wave of relief, thinking she had managed to avoid any undue suspicion.
As Laslo watched Edel’s retreating back, his right-hand man, Nathan, standing beside him, frowned and asked, “Who is that?”
“Didn’t you hear? She said she’s a laundry maid.”
“Don’t play with me, Boss. My eyes are still perfectly fine.”
Laslo gave an unfriendly reply, but Nathan continued to watch Laslo’s profile with a skeptical gaze.
“She’s clearly of noble birth. And not from some humble family, either… Wait.”
The sharp and perceptive Nathan quickly realized who it was.
“Don’t tell me, is that the woman you received from the Emperor?”
“That woman, who?”
“Are you joking with me? I’m talking about Edel Lancaster!”
Laslo didn’t answer and walked back into his office.
However, Nathan remained standing in the doorway, staring in the direction where Edel had disappeared.
“I must be losing my touch. I can’t believe I forgot about that woman.”
“There’s no reason for you to remember her.”
“I don’t know. That depends entirely on how you decide to use her, Boss.”
With a cold expression, Laslo slammed the office door shut.
“A former Duchess, now a laundry maid? Has she even dipped her hands in water before?”
“Are your eyes really working? If you had seen her hands, you wouldn’t be asking such a question.”
Nathan faltered at Laslo’s rebuke. He had been so focused on the fact that a woman exuding such a mysterious aura was lurking outside that he hadn’t noticed her hands.
But beyond her face, Laslo’s eyes had been drawn to her roughened hands.
Unlike before, her hands had turned red, swollen, and peeled—a truly pitiful sight.
“She probably thought she’d be expected to serve in the bedroom if she were dragged here, so she seems grateful even for a position as a laundry maid.”
“Impossible. Noblewomen would rather become bed slaves than do work that requires getting their hands wet.”
“How many times do I have to tell you not to be blinded by such prejudices? If you only want to see what you want to see, go apply for a job at a newspaper.”
Nathan winced and shut his mouth.
In truth, Laslo was mocking himself inwardly as well. At first, he had thought exactly the same as Nathan.
Of course, it hadn’t been long enough to make an accurate judgment yet.
But seeing her hands, which surely had never washed their own undergarments before, in such a state made Laslo feel a glimpse of Edel’s desperation.
*‘So, she doesn’t intend to die anymore, does she? That much is worthy of recognition.’*
He found Edel, who had resolved to continue her difficult fight for survival, somewhat admirable.
While he was lost in these thoughts, Nathan let out a grunt and scratched the back of his head.
“Why did that woman have to be outside just when we were talking about the Canyon Count Family? It’s unsettling. You don’t think she heard anything, do you?”
“Only a handful of people know that the ‘Red Rat’ refers to the Canyon Count Family. If she did know that, well… we’d have to hire her as our guild’s code-breaker.”
Laslo chuckled, soothing the worried Nathan.
However, because of the unexpected encounter with Edel, his thoughts on the Canyon Count Family deepened.
*‘Yes. The Count of Canyon may become more cautious than before, but he is a man who will never abandon his greed.’*
Not only had he sent his promising daughter off to an old man without a second thought, but he had also handed her over to save his own skin.
After taking in Edel, Laslo had inwardly waited for a secret message from the Canyon Count Family, but there hadn’t been a single letter to this day.
*‘Even her godmother, the Marchioness of Celestine, who wasn’t even family, sent a letter asking us to treat her well, but those who call themselves her parents and siblings don’t even care what happened to her.’*
Now that things had turned out this way, he thought Edel’s life was truly unfortunate.
Perhaps she had been deceived by her father into marrying the Duke of Lancaster. And perhaps, even before that marriage, she hadn’t been very happy.
*‘Regardless, Edel… that woman needs to be able to abandon her own family as well.’*
Believing that the Canyon Count Family would one day vanish from the noble registry, Laslo hoped Edel had completely severed ties with her past and turned back to business.
“To finish what we were saying earlier, keep a close watch on the Red Rat. If the Yellow Fox moves, the Red Rat will surely show a different pattern of movement than before.”
“Understood. I’ll trust your gut on this, Boss.”
Nathan nodded. Laslo’s instincts had never failed, so he expected this time would be no different.
Yet, on the other hand, he chewed on a lingering sense of unease.
*‘My instincts are sharp too, Boss. I’m telling you, that woman is strangely bothersome.’*
A beautiful woman, once a Duchess, working as a laundry maid in a place no better than a den of thugs.
Every word of that description felt like a contradiction.
*‘Then again, at most, she’ll probably just end up as the Boss’s mistress. What else can a woman who has been socially ostracized do?’*
Nathan handed Laslo the documents summarizing the minor news of the mercenary troop, trying to refresh his mood.
* * *
The armed groups protecting the Imperial Court were divided into two.
One was the Royal Guard, which escorted the Emperor at his side, and the other was the Imperial Knights, who guarded the Imperial Palace and launched expeditions under the Emperor’s command.
While the Imperial Knights were far larger in scale, the Royal Guard was considered a more prestigious path because they served the Emperor directly. It was common for those in the Imperial Knights to be congratulated on their “promotion” if they caught the Emperor’s eye and were transferred to the Royal Guard.
“So, it really is a shame for the Deputy Commander. If Count Krissus hadn’t appeared so suddenly, you probably would have been the Captain of the Royal Guard by now.”
“Nonsense! Everyone has a place that suits them. For me, being the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Knights is more than enough of an honor.”
“Honestly, Deputy Commander, you are just too kind.”
The two men, who had just finished training at the Imperial Knights’ training grounds, exchanged pleasantries and laughed.
One was the commander of the 1st Regiment, and the one receiving his praise was Edmund Milton, the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Knights.
His brilliant platinum hair and gray eyes were delicate and beautiful, but the body hidden beneath his sweat-soaked shirt was firm enough to be worthy of his title as the youngest Deputy Commander.
“Hey, Sir Milton! Is training finally over?”
“Ah, Commander! We just finished. Is there something I can help you with?”
“Just saying you worked hard, my friend. Anyone would think I’m working you to the bone every day.”
As the Knight Commander laughed heartily, the regiment commander standing next to him teased, “Isn’t that the truth?”
The Knight Commander made a mock-threatening face at him, then patted Edmund on the shoulder.
“You don’t have to match the Royal Guard’s training volume exactly. You have plenty of other things to do, as it is…”
“I didn’t intend to match them exactly. I just thought that since the atmosphere has been restless after the suppression of the Lancaster family’s rebellion, we must be prepared in case any other forces decide to rise up.”
“Wow! That is truly a model answer, Sir!”
The regiment commander showered Edmund with compliments, combining flattery with admiration.
Just like this, Edmund was an elite who had followed the standard path of high nobility, yet he was always humble. He was the type of person who won everyone’s favor with a friendly and personable attitude. Of course, his handsome appearance played a part in that as well.
“Great work, everyone! See you tomorrow!”
Edmund wiped away his sweat, greeted everyone with a hearty voice, and turned away. Those around him waved back enthusiastically, bidding him a warm farewell.
However, the expression on Edmund’s face, now turned away from them, was quite different from the one he had worn just moments before.