“…Well, I… I’ve been applying this every time I went out…”
Marsha had said so. It was a cosmetic product currently trending in noble society, so popular that one had to queue up early in the morning in front of the store every time a new product was released just to buy it.
‘Marsha, you fraud!’
No wonder she had felt strange gazes directed at her wherever she went. At the time, she hadn’t even dreamt it was because of the makeup and had been racking her brain trying to guess other reasons…
Lynnia, who had been aghast, only came to her senses when Edele gently took hold of her arm.
“You simply need not do so from now on. You have guests to attend to right now.”
“Ah, right! The guests have arrived!”
Lynnia quickly checked her reflection in the mirror and headed down to the parlor on the first floor.
Standing in front of the door, she took a few deep breaths before asking Edele.
“W-what should I say?”
“First, start with a greeting. You must not introduce yourself before they introduce themselves. Once you have exchanged names and taken your seats, I will bring out the refreshments. In the meantime, you should explain the reason for the Count’s delay.”
“And after serving the refreshments? What then?”
“The guests will initiate the conversation, so you just need to provide simple answers. The important thing is that you do not need to force the conversation forward, My Lady.”
Her plan to extract answers from Edele without being noticed had been abandoned long ago.
If she could, Lynnia would have preferred to put Edele out in front instead of herself.
“Ugh, what do I do? I’ve never done anything like this before.”
“Stay calm. Always remember that you hold a higher status than the guests. You just need to… to put it bluntly, look down on them.”
Those words gave Lynnia a little courage.
‘That’s right. I am a daughter of a Count. A daughter of a Count…’
She took one last deep breath and reached to open the parlor door. However, before her hand could touch it, Edele caught her hand and lowered it.
Edele then took the doorknob herself and opened the door from in front of Lynnia.
“Lady Lynnia Krissus is entering.”
As the parlor door swung wide open following Edele’s announcement, Lynnia felt as though she had truly become a noble lady.
Somehow, she automatically braced her waist and straightened her shoulders.
She had unconsciously copied Edele’s posture, but she wasn’t in the right state of mind to even notice that.
Lynnia entered the parlor with a beaming smile.
“Have you been waiting long? Thank you for going through the trouble of coming here.”
The three men from the Knights Templar, who had stood up at her appearance, were secretly surprised to see Lynnia looking quite like a noble daughter of a Count, contrary to the rumors.
Of course, they were more surprised to see Edele Lancaster in person.
“Haha! It was no trouble at all. Let us introduce ourselves first. I am Terry Bogarden of the Imperial Knights. This is Angelo Valen, and this is Joseph Oz.”
At Terry’s introduction, Angelo and Joseph, who had come with him, bowed their heads as well.
With their dapper knight uniforms and disciplined demeanor, Lynnia felt a flutter of excitement.
“I am Lynnia Krissus. Please, have a seat. The weather has warmed up quite a bit today, hasn’t it?”
As the words flowed out naturally, Lynnia thought she really did seem like a true noble.
The three men laughed heartily and kept the conversation going, making the atmosphere so pleasant that her previous worries seemed trivial.
“My brother said he had to stop by because His Majesty the Emperor called for him suddenly. He should be here soon.”
“My, as expected of Sir Krissus. To have a private audience with His Majesty the Emperor.”
“What are you saying, Joseph? Sir Krissus is the Emperor’s closest aide.”
As the knights lavished praise on Laslo, Lynnia couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride.
Just then, the servant’s entrance opened quietly, and Edele pushed in a tray.
Lynnia hadn’t even realized Edele had disappeared.
“Oh, I-I’ve prepared some light tea and refreshments. I hope they suit your tastes.”
Lynnia was surprised to see a plate with only two types of cookies and some chocolate, but she forced a smile.
However, the knights didn’t seem to be listening to Lynnia.
‘What is this? Are they all… looking at Edele…?’
Edele had placed the teacups and dessert plates on the table almost without making a sound, yet the knights’ gazes were fixed entirely on her. All three of them even had their mouths agape.
Edele must have felt their stares, yet she finished her work without a single change in expression and quietly withdrew again.
The three men, having watched until she closed the door and disappeared, exchanged mysterious looks with one another.
‘What is with these people? I’m sitting right here, it’s quite unpleasant.’
It felt as if cold water had been poured over her excitement. Lynnia cleared her throat with ice-cold eyes.
“Ahem!”
Only then did the knights break into embarrassed smiles and look at Lynnia. Terry, who had been reading the room, suddenly said with an awkward look.
“It is terribly rude of us while refreshments are laid out before us, but could we be directed to a place to wash our hands?”
Lynnia felt even worse at his request for a restroom, but she couldn’t say anything when they said it was urgent.
“W-wait just a moment. I will call a servant…”
“Is there a need to call someone from far away? Please call that maid from earlier.”
“Pardon?”
Lynnia was flustered at the request to call Edele. But Terry stood up, looking at Lynnia with an expression that asked what the problem was.
Feeling it would be odd to call a different servant under the circumstances, Lynnia had no choice but to call Edele.
“Did you call, My Lady?”
“Oh, um… guide this gentleman to where he can wash his hands.”
“…Understood. Please follow me this way.”
Lynnia felt uneasy about Edele’s momentary silence before answering, but she couldn’t ask what it meant in front of the guests.
But then, the man named Angelo also jumped up.
“W-wait! I’ll come too. My apologies, My Lady. I will also go wash my hands for a moment.”
With that, he scurried off after Terry.
Joseph, left alone, had a look on his face that clearly said, ‘I’ve been had.’
‘What is with these people? Are they mocking me to my face?’
Lynnia was annoyed, but she couldn’t bring herself to throw a tantrum as she usually did, so she sipped tea with Joseph.
* * *
The two men who followed Edele revealed their true colors as soon as they were out of sight.
“My, you’re as beautiful as the rumors say, Duchess?”
“We never thought we’d get to see you this close.”
Speaking in honorifics filled with mockery, the two men blocked her path from front and behind, clearly wearing the badge of the Imperial Knights.
Yet, their attitude was not the least bit knightly.
‘I knew it. I had a feeling it wouldn’t be good.’
Edele sighed internally.
She had felt anxious ever since Lynnia called for her. But she never imagined she would experience something like this inside the Krissus estate.
‘Are they ignorant, or just bold?’
Either way, they were foolish.
Hoping they would stop at mere harassment, Edele pointed to the end of the hallway with an expressionless face.
“The men’s restroom is that way. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
“We don’t really know where it is, so guide us to the front of the restroom door.”
“Surely a maid wouldn’t dare ignore the orders of knights, would she?”
Perhaps offended by Edele’s complete lack of interest in them, they dropped the honorifics and added a thinly veiled threat.
One of them even poked her cheek with his fingertip.
Edele clenched her teeth.
‘As they said, I am a common maid now. But that doesn’t mean a common maid deserves to be treated like this.’
Moreover, she was a maid of the Krissus Count family, and this was the Krissus estate; they were, for all intents and purposes, Laslo’s subordinates. This was an act of insubordination that should be punished.
Edele straightened her posture and glared at them.
“Are the two of you members of the Imperial Knights?”
“Of course we are. You were a Duchess, so you should know what this is, right?”
They boasted, pointing to the Imperial Knight insignia embroidered on their chests. Did they have any idea how vulgar they looked?
“I understand that the most respected knight order in the Piphera Empire is the Imperial Knights, and that all of its knights are gentlemen who understand chivalry.”
“You know your stuff. Then, why don’t you try being nice to us? Who knows? Maybe I…”
She hadn’t expected much, but as expected, they were shameless to the core.
Edele stopped bothering to show them any courtesy.
“Are those who visit the estate of a superior and harass the housemaids supposed to be gentlemen who know the code of chivalry? What kind of behavior is this from those who should be acting as protectors?”
The two men’s faces stiffened, but she did not stop her rebuke.
“I didn’t catch your names earlier, but if I may ask, which families are you from? I would at least like to know the names of the families who have educated their children so well.”