It Was Me, Not You

‘Is it bullying between maids?’

I stayed in an annex and got close to the servants of the Grand Duke, so I sometimes heard about bullying among the servants.

She said that if you terrify the new maids and servants, those who can’t stand the bullying will go to the castle.

Things like that got worse about a year ago.
At that time, I heard that the butler and the maid severely scolded the workers, and that this kind of thing disappeared…

 ‘Has it started again?’

Diana watched the situation and shook her head.

She said, ‘It’s none of my business.’

I’m sorry to the maid who looks unfair, but Diana’s position in the Grand Duke’s house was also very endangered, so it was not good to meddle in such a chaos.

This was because, if caught in the center of a commotion, she could be kicked out of the Grand Duke family right away.

The moment she thought to go back quietly, she saw the tearful scarlet eyes of the little maid.

The scarlet eyes were full of resentment, but the young maid bit her lip, knowing that no one was on her side in the dreary situation.

It was unfair, but the way she was forced to resign looked similar to herself who couldn’t say anything to Leah and Seia, so she couldn’t turn her body around.

Because Diana knew the maid’s feelings better than anyone.

Diana had also longed for it.  Someone to save you from a deadly situation.

Whether heaven had heard her earnest prayers, she found that she had saved her life with the help of Edwin and managed to escape from Leah.

That little maid may be as desperate as she is for someone’s help.

And wouldn’t it be okay for that someone to be you once in a while?  only once.

‘Anyway, there’s no one here except the maids, so it’ll be fine.’

Diana clasped her little hand to her trembling heart and she took one step closer to them.

 “What’s going on there?”

The maids, who had turned their backs to the sound of Diana’s voice resounding from bush, turned around in amazement.

 “…Miss?”

A maid who found Diana moved her lips slowly.
The maids looked at Diana in embarrassment. 

“Why are you here?”

Diana approached the maids pretending not to know anything.

“I came here because I heard a sound while I was taking a walk… Oh, you!”

Diana, who looked around the maids with innocent eyes that she knew nothing, took a step closer to the little maid who was sitting down.

“You’re the maid I asked you to run an errand earlier, aren’t you?” I asked you to bring me some cookies, but I was wondering why you didn’t come, and you fell and got hurt?”

The scarlet eyes of the young maid, whose eyes met Diana, were shaken with embarrassment.

She had never had such an errand from Diana.

Diana looked around at the maids gathered around her and slightly shrugged her shoulders as if she were scared.

“But why are you all gathered here? What’s going on?”

The maid exchanged eyes with each other when they asked carefully with a small voice, blurring the end of their words.

One of them, who exchanged silent glances, opened her mouth.

“What do you mean, nothing happened.
I was just talking for a while because it was a break.”

“Yes, that’s right, miss.”

They looked at Diana with an awkward smile.
It seemed that Diana had come to the conclusion that there was no need to make any more fuss.

Diana nodded slowly as she looked at their awkward smiles.

“Okay, I thought something bad had happened again.”

“Is it possible, hoho? Ah, now that our break is over, I think we should go back to work.
Lady, let me go away.”

“I’ll go back.”

The maids greeted hurriedly and walked out of the forest.
After they were all gone, Diana said to the little maid staring at me.

“Shouldn’t you go too?”

“Ah… I have to go.”

Only then did the maid get up from where she had fallen.
The maid stood up and limped.

I think she sprained her leg when she fell.

“I think you hurt your leg.
Are you okay?”

The maid flinched when asked, pointing to her right leg.

“Oh… that’s all right, miss.”

“But if you soak your feet in cold water before you go to bed.
It should be okay tomorrow morning.”

When I was hit by Leah and sprained my leg, I lied down and fell asleep because I had no energy to move, but my ankle was swollen the next day and I couldn’t even walk properly.

From a few experiences, I found that my feet did not swell the day after I slept with my ankles in cold water.

I knew the pain, so when I told her, the maid’s scarlet eyes trembled slightly.

‘Did I say something wrong?’

Embarrassed by her response, the maid smiled broadly.

“Thank you, miss.
As you said, I’ll make sure to put it in cold water.
But, miss, you asked me to run an errand earlier.”

At that, Diana clapped her hands as if she had just remembered and cut her off.

“Oh, come to think of it, it wasn’t you.
It was someone else, but I was mistaken.
I’m sorry.”

Rather than saying that I did it on purpose to help, it would be better to say that I was mistaken.

The little maid bowed her head with a brighter face, silent for a moment.

“What do you mean sorry? No, I’m rather grateful.
Thanks to you, I was able to avoid a lot of trouble.”

“I don’t know what you’re saying, but I’m glad.”

Diana pretended not to know and only smiled faintly.
The maid said to Diana with a gentle smile.

“I’ve got to go back now, too.Thank you very much.”

“… Yes”

The young maid bowed  and walked to the forest with a quick step.

Although the limp was bothering me, I felt more comfortable seeing her return.

“Huh, I’m glad it ended without a hitch.”

It was a little dangerous to get in the uproar, but I thought it was a good thing.

Diana returned to the room with a proud smile.

***

-Knock knock.

“Lady, this is Haron.”

Diana, who was resting in bed after breakfast, hurried out of bed at the butler’s voice.

‘What’s going on all of a sudden?’

After five days of Diana’s stay in the room, she has been living like a mouse in the room since the disturbance on the promenade.

Seia was also quiet for several days because she did not visit Diana again after the first day.

Perhaps that’s why the butler’s sudden visit was embarrassing.

Diana said, straightening the crumpled dress.

“Come on in.”

Diana opened her eyes wide at what appeared to be between the open doors.

When the door opened, the first people to enter were servants, not the butler.

The servants laid down a large box of their own on the floor.

What’s all this?

When she tilted her head to strange boxes, all the servants left and the butler entered the room.

“Miss, are you comfortable?”

“Oh..Yes.
But what’s all this?”

“It’s the lady’s clothes.”

“My clothes?”

The butler nodded lightly with a blank face when asked back in surprise.

“Yes, your Highness has ordered you to buy the clothes.
I only brought it from the salon in the estate, but if you have any clothes you don’t like, you can return them through the maid.”

The butler’s explination was hard to hear.

Your Highness sent me all these clothes.

Diana, who looked at the boxes with embarrassing eyes, suddenly remembered the words she had shared with the Grand Duke a few days ago.

This is the only clothes I have… 

‘Did he really buy me clothes just because I said I didn’t have clothes?’

That’s a lot, too

Diana was surprised to see dozens of clothes.

It was more of a burden than a thank you.

It was because I was not used to this kind of favor, but I kept thinking that it was an impulsive decision for the Grand Duke to accept her in the mansion.

However, it was not enough to decorate the room like this, so I felt unfamiliar that he might think of it sincerely because he remembered her words and even sent clothes.

What he said to me before going out to the promenade was also soft, unlike the first meeting.

I thought it was an illusion, but wasn’t it an illusion?

Diana soon shook her head softly.

It doesn’t make sense for him to care about me.

He despises Leah enough to kill her. 

And she is Leah’s daughter, whom he despises so much.

It was impossible to care about me without the Grand Duke suddenly going crazy.

Then what’s the point of doing me this favor?

‘Is it just out of pity?’

sympathy… 

My heart throbbed.

I don’t want anything from the duke, but I didn’t feel good about him thinking that the only form of emotion he showed was compassion

However, even with this small favor, I couldn’t deny my troubled and shaken heart.

If you’re told to be quiet like a rat, but this…

I don’t think you’re upset.
When I bit my lips in a strange mood, I heard a voice I didn’t want to hear from the door.

“Diana.”

When I turned my head, I could see Seia just entering the room.

‘I thought it was too quiet for a while.’

Diana hides her discomfort

I bowed to Seia.

Seia approached Diana with a smile around her mouth, perhaps because she saw the butler.

“Diana, how are you?”

“Yes, Grand Princess.”

“I wanted to come to you often, but I couldn’t because my father told me I didn’t have to pay attention to you.”

“Oh, I see.
It’s all right, Grand Princess.”

Seia may have said it offensively, but what Diana now wants from the Grand Duke was rather indifference.

As she answered with a slight smile, Seia’s raised lip slightly flinched.

“Should I have pretended to be hurt?”

When I lowered the corner of my mouth that I raised because I thought I had touched Seia’s nerves for no reason, Seia’s gaze went down.

Towards dozens of boxes lying on the floor, to be exact.

“But what’s all this?”

Seia looked at the boxes that looked like gift boxes with persistent eyes.

It was frustrating to see Seia look at this.

Seia’s personality is that if she finds out that these clothes were sent by the Grand Duke, she’ll never let them go.

Of course, Seia will bother Diana even if nothing happens.

The butler said at a time when she was unable to speak easily because she was sure to ignite Seia’s anger.

“These are the clothes of Lady Diana.”

“Diana’s… clothes?”

Diana saw Seia’s eyes tremble slightly.
However, perhaps the butler had not seen her, so he answered Seia with a soft smile.

“Yes, Grand Princess.”

After hearing the butler, Seia turned to Diana.
Diana almost stepped back at Seia’s glance at the moment she faced.

If she could kill someone with her eyes, Diana would not be dead now.

Seia, who was looking at Diana with such sparkling eyes, suddenly smiled brightly.