12.Beatrice Adenrozia Kale Episode 3. Ill-fated relationship

My daily routine was generally the same unless there was a special schedule. When I opened my eyes at dawn, I would clean my bedroom with my new partner and would then arrange for Richton’s office around noon. It must have been a plot to torment me when I saw that I had to clean up things separately in the morning.

The time I spent alone with Richton in an isolated space was a struggle for her. When I came back from a long, hard work, the employee’s meal time would always be over.

Still, today was a day when I could at least breathe. I had roughly finished practicing to lift the tableware and dance for the ball as I learned the noble social etiquette. I would have been able to spend a day a little more comfortably if Richton hadn’t ordered me to act as an unknown princess.

“Susan sunbae, you know what?”

As usual, I was about to clean up the tableware after a late lunch. Mary, the new maid, leaned close to me and lowered her voice.

“There was a social gathering of nobles in the mansion the other day. Do you remember the particularly young and handsome Viscount Campbell?”

He was a nobleman whom I had no choice but to remember even if I did not want to. She’d never seen a nobleman flirting with the maids as much as he did in my life.

“The Viscount sent a letter to sunbae early this morning.”

“Letter?”

“Yes, Mrs. Colento was thinking about it and told His Excellency first. But as soon as he heard the story, he didn’t even open the letter and put it in the fireplace. It’s not his first time doing this.”

Did that really happen? I poured tea into a roughly-wiped teacup. It was obvious how Richton’s face must have looked like. It must have been a look of contempt.

“It was clearly addressed to ‘Dear Miss Susan.’ Do you happen to be….”

As I wondered how long I would continue, Mary let out a short cough as I appeared irritated. However, when I closed my mouth, there were many mouths that remained nearby.

“How many times has he asked the servants? What’s the name of that enchanting maid? Hmm. What did he say…Oh, he composed a long poem by himself, saying he fell in love with her vivid green orbs that contrast with his eyes that were telling a story. What a gross description.”

Eyes that can tell the story? It was simply pigmentation caused by long periods of tossing and turning during my sleep. It was because after the poison had completely spread, I could not sleep deeply and would wake up from time to time.

Not only had my impression become somber, but also my personality seemed to have become more sensitive, so I had been deliberately speaking less recently.

I also didn’t want the employees to get on my nerves. As I quietly drank tea without reacting, another maid next to me looked at me with squinting eyes.

“Certainly, whenever Susan and I make eye contact, it’s a little….”

As soon as one or two people started to talk, they would gather and start to talk in groups.

“Should I say I can’t take my eyes off you?”

“Right. It does feel like that, but don’t you also feel your body freezing and you’re like being sucked in? Is it because her eyes are lifeless? They were completely different when she first came here.”

“At least she was healthy back then. It makes me feel uneasy right now that I can’t take my eyes off it.”

“I heard you’ve been having a lot of nightmares lately. Susan, are you taking the medicine I gave you?”

Before I knew it, the atmosphere in the kitchen darkened with the maids who sympathized with her. To be honest, their view of me as pathetic was not as bad. I couldn’t help but crave affection because she’s a human being too. Pure goodwill, not the perverse interest of a crazy man.

Kean called me a cunning fox who only showed weakness in front of the employees. Who cares? This would not have happened in the first place if Richton had not destroyed Trivia. By the time the gossip about my health was heightening, Berkne came down to the kitchen.

“Susan.”

I naturally rose and left the kitchen. It was now a natural sight in Ingord for him to come to me and for me to turn my head once and follow Berkne without a word. None of them would know. What I do when she’s called by Berkne.

“I know there are no more classes.”

“It’s something else. The duke called.”

Richton had been calling me every three or four days recently, in fact even for the past few months, and would ask me useless questions.

After my body adjusted to the poison, I was asked to list everything like my relationships with other employees, as well as what I did and where I went when I came out of the mansion.

I felt like he was trying to take control of every world I looked at and put it on the palm of his hand.

“Stop quarreling with Kean. Do I have to say something to stop you?”

“No. It will stop if that filthy bastard becomes a little more like a human.”

“Neither side is backing down.”

Berkne, who shook his head, did not go to the office with her, but instead disappeared straight to the third floor.

From some point onward, whenever Richton would find her, he quietly disappeared, allowing them a private meeting. I didn’t know whether it was simply bothersome or if Richton mentioned it separately.

Knock, knock.

There was a time when I was so scared of facing Richton. But now…I wasn’t afraid anymore, but I still felt uncomfortable. I felt stuffy as if my heart was blocked because of the untamed beast right in front of my eyes.

As usual, I opened the door right after knocking, but Richton was nowhere to be seen. I closed the door very slowly and examined the inside of the office. Sure enough, I could see the platinum blonde hair scattered on the leather sofa.

“Master.”

I had to wake him up, but my steps toward him became more cautious. Like this, Richton often called for me while he was asleep. It didn’t take that long for him to wake up. Although he used to wake up immediately when called, he didn’t move at all today.

“Master.”

At my second call, there was still no answer. I was not a fool enough to think such stupid thoughts even if I wanted to die. I swept my fallen hair and looked at Richton, who lay down on the sofa.

I didn’t think there would be such a harmless and peaceful appearance. Seeing the platinum blond hair pouring over his pale face made me feel like my stomach was being twisted. Yes, I was disgusted with a calm face as if everything was forgotten.

“Richton.”

(P/R: okay, idk why but my best fluttered at this HAHA)

As if it were a magic spell, his eyelids slowly opened. The shade of Richton’s eyes carried a much darker and heavier light than their original color. It must have been an illusion, but for a very short time, I felt like the time between them had stopped.

When asked what possessed me to call his name, there was no excuse to answer. I just wanted to. Following the blink of an eye, a harsh voice came out through Richton’s mouth like an iron scraping against a rock.

“Don’t call me out recklessly if you don’t want to provoke me.”

I stood still and didn’t answer. I thought that it was not her, but him who provoked himself.

As he swept his tired face roughly, Richton lifted himself up. It was also not long before his long legs, which had been sticking out next to the sofa, found their place.

He moistened his throat with leftover coffee and called me with a flick of his finger. It was a gesture like calling a dog. I didn’t know what other tiring situation would come if I expressed my dissatisfaction, so I calmly went to the opposite chair and took a seat.

Richton handed me a letter made of luxurious parchment. Ah, the time has come. I then received the envelope stamped with a red crest.

“The banquet will be held in three days. From the moment you leave Ingord, your name is Beatrice Adenrozia Kale, the 22nd Princess of the Kingdom of Kale in the South Continent. She’s a 19-year-old woman who had been pushed out from the fight for the throne when her biological mother was dethroned.”

It was the banquet that Richton had spoken about four months ago. I had to master aristocratic knowledge for nearly a hundred days to attend the banquet. I had never heard of, nor did I intend to hear, any details about the banquet.. After all, dogs will only do what they are told.

“The personal information is pretty detailed for someone who isn’t real.”

“She was a real person, until she went missing last year. The Kingdom of Kale is so far south that there is no trade with the Empire at all and information is minimal. Traditionally, women in the royal family wear veils before marriage. You don’t have to show your face, so you can act comfortably. “

Even if he said so, it was obvious that he wouldn’t let me leave his side throughout the banquet. Richton was extremely wary of me going out of his domain.

She’s already wearing a leash as Ingord’s Dog. His morbid obsession was not something I could solve. Immediately after waking up, he, who had been frowning all the time, leaned against the sofa and spoke sharply.

“The problem is that the Prince, who expressed his intention not to attend, changed his words to attend again.”

Prince Wilhelm. As I read the letter, I glanced up at Richton. Especially in matters concerning the prince, he did not know how to restrain himself from inhumane acts. I already felt a chill on my spine thinking of the future that had yet to approach.

Richton said, blinking his eyes slowly.

“Let me tell you, Susan. When I’m not around, make sure to stay away from the Crown Prince. By all means.”

“What if it’s hard? Can I pour champagne on his face and run away?”

“Yes, on the premise that you listen to me.”

I still couldn’t figure out what the point was. Does that mean Prince Wilhelm is a dangerous man? However, it was not a very threatening warning to her, who had seen the novel 『The River Where the Sun Manoeuvres』 starring Wilhelm. From the reader’s point of view, the worst villain in the story was the Richton Ingord in front of her.

“We’ll leave Ingord tomorrow. Get ready.”

“Yes.”

***

It was a sudden schedule, but it wasn’t surprising. Maybe it’s because I had been doing everything half-heartedly. I didn’t even wonder whether I should just stick next to Richton like a magnet or play another role.

I do what I was told to do, and doesn’t when told not to. Everything seemed to be worth doing except for playing the role of Richton’s lover.

I just had a question. Did Reina arrive safely to the Crown Prince? If she had arrived, would she have told him my story?