“What?”
The hand of the woman who was touching her hair while looking at the mirror suddenly stopped.
“That... If you have something to say, come to me in person...”
The head maid couldn’t finish her words and mumbled.
Caroline turned around and looked at the head maid.
“Who? Could it be Karina?”
“Yes.”
“Ahahahahaha..."
Caroline, who had been laughing in absurdity, suddenly became serious and muttered quietly.
“Insolent bitch.”
A nervous voice echoed in the dark room.
“How dare that woman say something like that without knowing the situation?”
“...Yes.”
Caroline’s brow furrowed at the head maid’s words.
“That woman seems to be completely crazy.”
When Caroline heard about the incident at the restaurant, she thought it was possible.
Serving food that smelled bad.
Even the most foolish Karina would get angry at least once.
Rather, it was Jeremiah who was concerned.
She told them to just stir things up without letting anyone know, but in the end, Jeremiah would find out.
‘You can’t even do such a simple thing properly. That’s why you stupid...’
Caroline clicked her tongue.
“What happened to the task I instructed you to do?”
“That... I did as you instructed, but...”
The sight of the chief maid being hostile was irritating. Caroline, whose patience had run out, threw whatever she could get her hands on.
Clang!
The glass shards that hit the wall scattered everywhere, leaving marks on the chief maid’s face.
However, the chief maid, crushed by fear, did not feel any pain and just trembled.
“Speak clearly.”
Caroline warned the chief maid with a cold expression.
The chief maid, who barely managed to pull herself together, quickly answered.
“I installed a chimney ‘over there’ as you instructed. I just received a reply that he is on his way to the Grand Duke’s residence.”
“Really? He's coming now?”
Caroline laughed coldly.
“What about the dining room?”
“I already told them in advance that the Grand Duchess had been harassing the maids in the dining room.”
The head maid continued, nervously.
“The Grand Duke will find out that it was the Grand Duchess’s intentional and forced actions to replace the members of the Grand Duke’s family. So don’t worry.”
“Ha!”
Caroline burst out laughing.
“Will such a lame excuse work?”
She laughed loudly and calmly stroked her hair reflected in the mirror.
“With this kind of handling of affairs, I don’t know if I can continue to trust the head maid with my work?”
“I’m sorry.”
“If you can’t do it, tell me in advance. Many others can do it besides you.”
“No. I’m really sorry.”
Caroline turned her gaze from the mirror and looked at the head maid with a blank expression.
“You don’t want to become like me, do you?”
“...!”
The maid’s face turned pale at the slow-moving threat.
“Please, forgive me.”
“I’ll give you one more chance.”
Caroline continued in a nonchalant tone, adjusting her eye makeup.
“You’ll have to work hard. So that I can be satisfied. Do you understand?”
“Yes. I won’t let you down again.”
“Go out.”
The maid hurriedly ran out of the room.
“Haa. A generous master like me.”
Caroline muttered, looking satisfied at her reflection in the mirror.
The woman in the mirror was smiling brightly and creepily.
***
“Guest?”
Karina frowned at the maid’s words.
“Yes. I have an appointment to meet the Grand Duchess today.”
“Was there anyone who came to see me?”
She thought about it carefully, but no one in particular came to mind.
At this time, there was no one she was particularly close with.
“Who is it?”
“The head of the Bedollan Merchant Association. I think he came because he was finishing up preparations for the banquet tomorrow.”
“Bedollan’s top...”
It was a familiar name.
However, she couldn’t remember the details. It had already been three years, so it would be impossible to remember even the smallest details.
“Yes. Tell him to wait for me, I’ll be down soon.”
Karina changed her clothes and came down to the reception room.
“Hello, Your Highness.”
A plump man wearing a blue velvet coat greeted Karina.
He was the merchant from Bedollan Merchantship whom she had promised to meet today.
“Ah...”
A small exclamation escaped Karina’s lips when she saw him.
‘The name Bedollan Merchantship sounds familiar.’
Looking at his plump, round face, she remembered what kind of place Bedollan Merchantship was.
To be precise, she remembered who the merchant was in front of her.
“I was worried that you might have forgotten your promise to me since I haven’t heard from you.”
“I’ve been feeling unwell lately. I forgot my promise. Your name is...”
“Abdul, Your Highness.”
“Yes, Abdul.”
Karina smiled, hiding her feelings.
“So what is our business today?”
“Ah. Ahem.”
Abdul coughed uncomfortably and lowered his voice as if he were telling an important secret.
“It’s just that Princess Caroline asked me to wholeheartedly assist Her Highness the Grand Duchess, who is not familiar with the culture of the Northern region.”
“Assistance.”
Karina snorted inwardly.
“It’s not assistance, it’s deception.”
Now that she thinks about it, it was around this time that Caroline had really taken up the confrontational stance.
Until then, Caroline had only interfered, pointing out her shortcomings here and there, but this incident had shown her true colors.
“Interesting.”
“Huh?”
“Nothing.”
Karina shook her head and sat down on the sofa.
Abdul approached her quietly and took a seat across from her.
“I heard you were feeling unwell, but were you very uncomfortable?”
“I’m fine now.”
“That’s really fortunate. Many people will be disappointed if Your Highness the Grand Duchess misses the banquet tomorrow.”
“I wonder if that’s really the case?”
The banquet tomorrow was to celebrate the birthday of a noble lady who was close to Caroline.
However, there was no one whose birthday it was.
It was just a pretext for holding a banquet.
Caroline said that she had prepared the banquet for Karina.
She explained that she would use it as an opportunity to introduce the Grand Duchess to the Northern nobles.
However, her real intention was different.
It was a trick to publicly tease and humiliate Karina, who was unfamiliar with Northern culture.
Caroline’s acquaintances would not have been kind to Karina anyway, so they would regret her absence?
‘Oh, I guess I would really regret not coming since I would have to humiliate her.’
Abdul narrowed his eyes and smiled wickedly, not knowing what Karina was thinking.
“I heard that this is the first official event since the wedding. This is the first time that most nobles will meet the Grand Duchess up close. Isn’t first impressions the most important thing in relationships with people?”
“Isn’t it?”
“Of course! So for an event like this, you should wear the finest dress and the finest jewelry that befits the dignity of a Grand Duchess.”
Abdul was a natural speaker. He flattered his like a tongue in someone else's mouth.
"If Your Highness the Beautiful Grand Duchess dresses up properly tomorrow, everyone at the banquet will look up to Your Highness."
"Oh, indeed."
Karina exaggerated her reaction.
"But what should I do? I'm still not used to the etiquette here in the north."
Karina touched her mouth with her hand, looking really troubled.
"I don't know how to dress up for the banquet tomorrow."
"Hahaha."
Seeing Karina like that, Abdul patted his stomach with his palm and laughed heartily.
"Don't worry. Didn't you know that when you sent me? Your Highness the Grand Duchess just trust me."
Abdul boasted loudly.
"..."
Karina's mouth was still smiling, but her eyes had long since cooled down.
'Yes, I said that before.'
At that time, Karina naively believed the words of this pot-bellied merchant. In return, she had to undergo a severe initiation ceremony.
The incident came back to her vividly as if it were yesterday.
Of course, she had no intention of being treated like that time.
But she had no intention of doing nothing and just letting him go. She was planning to take advantage of the situation that Caroline had prepared for her.
'This time, it's my turn to pay back.'
"...Is that so? Then I'll only trust you."
With a faint smile, Karina answered the same way as before.
***
It was already evening, and the darkness of the room had set in.
A person came to Caroline’s room through the quiet hallway.
“Princess Caroline.”
“Welcome, Abdul.”
Caroline greeted Abdul, who bowed deeply.
“So, how did it go?”
Abdul smiled broadly.
“It went well as you instructed, Princess.”
“Really?”
“Yes. The Grand Duchess really enjoyed the dresses and accessories I recommended. She seemed completely absorbed in the way she clapped and exclaimed every time she took out a dress or jewel.”
“Did she really enjoy it?”
“What can I say? She enjoyed it so much that her mouth was wide open! When she looked at the sparkling jewels, I was worried that her eyes would pop out.”
Abdul giggled and made a funny face by widening his eyes with his thumbs and index fingers.
Caroline’s eyes narrowed.
She thought Karina had some swagger in front of the maid, and it was as expected.
'Of course. How could you be so swayed by a few low-level jewels?'
"Having lived in her family all her life, how could she have seen such strange things?"
"Of course. These are rare and precious items that you can't easily find even in the imperial capital, so of course she was surprised. She drooled and couldn't come to her senses."
"So? What did she choose? Of course, you recommended the most luxurious and fancy one?"
Abdul touched his chin with a smug expression.
"Oh, that's it."
He spread his arms wide and said proudly.
"She wanted to buy everything I showed her!"
"What?"
Caroline was surprised by Abdul's words.
"I didn't know that the Grand Duchess had such poor taste. Why did she even look at all the trinkets that I thought she wouldn't choose?"
Abdul sighed and shook his head.
“How greedy she is, yet she doesn’t even have the eyes to see. I had a hard time holding back my laughter.”
“How greedy she is, yet she doesn’t even have the eyes to see. I had a hard time holding back my laughter.”
Abdul snickered.
“She still looks like she's having second thoughts, but I think she’ll buy them all.”
Then he slyly bragged about how his flashy speaking skills had played a big role.
“Even one would be a sight to behold, but you're saying she'll buy all of them? ”
“Yes. Anyway, the Grand Duchess’s appearance tomorrow will be truly worth seeing. I’m sure it’ll be something you can’t see even with money.”
“That’s all?”
Caroline snickered and smiled arrogantly.
“I’m really looking forward to tomorrow.”
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