# 24
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There was unmistakable sarcasm on the faces of the two maids who brought the food.
“You pretend to be a high-ranking noble?”
The corner of Jessie's mouth rose slightly, and as she looked behind the two maids, she quietly unclenched her knuckles.
The two maids, who had not noticed Jessie's movement, exchanged meaningful looks with each other.
A short while ago, Flora had summoned them and said:
“You must serve that woman her dinner.”
"we? What about Miss…’s dinner service?”
“Go and investigate this woman. By the way, the woman the Duke brought is not a noblewoman. Slang without a title. And yet nobility is feigned.”
“So the woman who came with her as a servant…?”
“It must be very kind of the Duke. “He is a compassionate man.”
The woman who had taken over the chandelier room without knowing her fate did not even bother to look when they arrived. She seems to think herf a great noblewoman.
The gleam of hostility intensified in the eyes of the two maids.
For someone to become a maid in the ducal palace, it is not enough for her to be a commoner, but rather her origin must be clear. It goes without saying that there should be no criminal in her immediate family, and her family should be fairly well-off.
Serving lower-class nobles is bearable, if not entirely satisfying, but they are nobles after all. As for serving a colloquial person like them, or even a colloquial person of questionable origin, it was an unbearable and humiliating matter.
In the room there was a table designated for dining, but the two maids pushed the cart to the work table.
It was a rule of etiquette not to eat at the work table. Except for light tea, not even small foods are placed there. Servants were trained to prepare food quietly at the dining table and then withdraw if the servant was busy. But the two maids opened the covers of the dishes in front of the work table while smiling.
“You must be hungry? “We will prepare food for you.”
“Nobles usually dine alone. “Unless there is a special order, they eat in their rooms.”
Then they started arranging before any permission was given from Grace.
You did not clean the table, nor did you put a tablecloth. They placed in front of Grace a very large plate, and in the middle of it was a single piece of meat the size of a child's palm. The meat was burnt to black and looked tough.
Then they arranged the cutlery on the table, which had not even been wiped down, as if it were a display. In contrast to the meat, which lacked any care, five knives, five forks, and two spoons were spread around the large plate.
Finally, they placed a champagne glass and poured water into it.
After this absurd arrangement, the two maids smiled and stared at Grace.
No matter how elegant she pretends to be, she must be ignorant of table manners. You'll drink water like it's champagne, use a fork and knife that don't fit the meat, and load up on salt and pepper. If I spit out the mor, the scene would be funny, and if I swallowed it, it would be even funnier.
They intended to watch this carefully, and then tell Flora everything.
But Grace, who was sitting upright looking at the table, raised her eyes and looked at them.
«……»
When the green gaze settled on them, they felt a strange sensation. The smile disappeared from their faces in an instant.
Then Grace finally opened her mouth.
“Who ordered you to do this?”
"…What?"
One of them asked belatedly, surprised.
But Grace didn't return the question. She leaned back on the chair and said quietly:
“I'll give you two another chance.”
“……?”
“Fix the mistake now. "You'd better look at the whole room and fix everything that's wrong."
«……»
The sound of the two maids' breathing gradually began to get louder.
Their instincts were screaming not to challenge this woman, but the image of a confident Flora and the Marchioness of Lenco was strongly present in their minds.
“That woman will definitely be fired. “The Duke’s look at me was not normal.”
With Flora's voice, the vague fear that had gripped them a moment ago dissipated. One of the maids returned a gentle smile and said in a soft tone:
“This is the Chandelier Room, where the Duke's wives have stayed over the generations. What don't you like?
The other was encouraged and added with a smile:
“Right, the room is perfect. Maybe hunger made you nervous. The meat will be cold, so go ahead and eat.”
“Or is the meat small in your opinion?” Normally noble ladies leave even this much. Wanting to eat a lot is... a mean act. I mean, what are the habits of the poor?
Trying to degrade her by any means, the image of the Duke and Duchess of Tyler intermingled in Grace's mind. I felt disgusted and bored to the bone.
She didn't want to argue with them, nor did she need to.
Grace carefully lifted the main knife and fork. While they hesitated, she cut the meat. The way she held the tools, even her fingertips, was perfect. She cut the meat exactly in half, then put down the knife and fork and said frankly:
“Lift it.”
«……»
When they did not move, Grace stared at them silently. In the end, the two maids had no choice but to lift the plate, without succeeding in feeding her the meat dipped in salt and pepper.
Their dissatisfaction was evident, as the dishes were removed with loud movements, and they left without greeting them.
“Those insolents...!”
Jessie muttered, grinding her teeth, but Grace was already quietly organizing her thoughts.
“These two maids... are they not the same ones who accompanied me with the Duke to the Chandelier Room?”
“Yes, they are.”
Two maids, not two maids, dare to insult the duke's mistress who resides in the chandelier room—something that could not have happened without strong support and reliable information.
“Watch them secretly.”
“Just monitoring?”
“Where are you going, and who are you meeting?”
"concept."
＊ ＊ ＊
When the two maids went out into the hallway, they were a little startled to see Joseph leaning against the wall. Just as children are influenced by their parents, servants are also influenced by their masters.
Under the constant contempt of the knights' families, the two maids did not even greet Joseph properly. They just gave a barely perceptible nod, then walked away, looking at the door with distaste.
After a while, Jessie left the room, and Joseph quietly mumbled to her:
“They went that way.”
"Thanks."
Jesse's smile widened at his words.
“You seem upset too, knight?”
“They were rude.”
Joseph stood quietly, then looked out the window.
Darkness had driven out twilight, painting the world black. And in that blackness, there was a man making his way.
Even without seeing him, it was clear how dense and dark Walter's aura was as he approached the main building. On rare occasions, Walter would take off his mask. In those moments, chills ran even down the back of Joseph, who claims to have experienced all the vicissitudes of life. Just being able to hide that violent and feral aura was in itf akin to madness.
But one thing was certain: if it weren't for this amount of madness, Walter would have been slaughtered by monsters long ago. Indeed, he would not have returned with all the knights unharmed.
Richmond's knights were prepared to storm the Imperial Palace immediately if ordered. They obey him without hesitation. In ten years, Walter had not disappointed them once.
However, Joseph sometimes worried about him. That repressed madness...how will he be freed? Can he be liberated at all?
Joseph took a deep breath, then dismissed a servant who was trying to peep near the chandelier room.
“If you stick your ear back here again, I'll make you live with one ear for life. concept?"
“Ah... yes!”
＊ ＊ ＊
The darkness that descended like a watery mist was no obstacle for Walter.
As the old saying goes: What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. He grew stronger as he ate the pain.
Facing the unseen, he learned to read the subtlest movements, and was able to maintain his awareness for days without sleep. Those who cling to their wealth and status within this comfortable palace don't know it. That's why they sent those worthless observers to spy on him.
Walter knew that the number of people watching him was exactly six.
The veins in his hand popped. He had a violent impulse to grab them by the neck and tear them to pieces, as he had done to the monsters at the Wall of Death. He wanted to empty the accumulated madness at once.
He held his breath and said to himf:
Be patient. Now is the time for patience.
He felt like he was being swallowed by a great fire.
He does not know how he got inside the palace, but he found himf climbing the stairs. When he saw his reflection in the large window at the break, he remembered the monster.
Blue veins radiated from his neck, and flames danced in his black eyes. Like someone who tried to hunt a monster and turned into a monster, the monster inside him had awakened, ready to pounce at any moment.
At the door of his bedroom, his gaze slid to the chandelier room next door. He stood there for a moment, then left Joseph to decide, and quietly opened the door to his bedroom.