novel
| ← Ch.025 | Ch.027 → |
Emily came back soon after she left with a box in her hand.
The pretty velvet colored box looked luxurious.
I took the box and opened it right away.
"Wow! The color's so pretty!"
Emily said in fascination when the circular ultramarine blue gem was revealed from the box.
Lapis Lazuli usually had a hint of gold and white parts to it. It was more valuable when the color got deeper into blue and when lesser of those gold and white colors were included in it.
I checked it out by spinning the box in my hand, but not a single white or gold parts were spotted in a deep blue gem.
"I like it."
I put on a satisfied smile as I set the box down on the table.
It was worth the money after all.
"Are you going to give this as a gift to his grace, lady?"
Emily asked, still looking at the cuff button with a circular lapis lazuli planted in it. 𝐟𝙧𝐞e𝔀e𝐛𝐧o𝚟𝑒l - 🅽🅽novel
'There's no way I'd give it to the duke. '
I answered her question 'no' and requested.
"Can you bring any one of the jewelry boxes I own?"
"A jewelry box? Of course, lady."
Emily seemed curious about what I was going to do but did as requested without further question.
Tak-. A moment later, Emily set down a big and heavy-looking wooden box on the desk.
I stared down at it for a little while, making it look like I was thinking of something, before speaking at the right timing.
"I have something I'd like to ask someone to do something for me."
"Ehh? What is it?"
"Do you by any chance know anything about the informant at the upper portion of the streets?"
"An informant......."
Emily muttered, then spoke.
"I don't know much about it, but my roommate probably does. She worked at the upper portion of the streets before she came to work here."
"Is that so?"
I paused for a moment before continuing.
"What's her name?"
"H, her name's Renna......."
"Where is she right now?"
"...... B, but I can do this better than Renna can, lady!"
Emily added.
"Sure, she knows a lot, but she also has a big mouth."
She said as she studied my face. She seemed scared of being pushed away if I called that other maid over.
"Emily. This job needs to be secretly and sincerely done. The person will also need to act depending on each situation."
The real reason why I chose to keep Emily as my personal maid was so that I could leave these sorts of things to her. There was no one more suitable for the job than Emily was in the first place.
"You despised me so much before."
However, I purposely tried to make her feel more worried to warn her once.
"And how could I possibly trust someone who despised me?"
"L, lady Penelope!"
It was a topic that I haven't brought up for a long time.
Emily's face turned pale in seconds as if she remembered the past.
"I, I never thought badly of you after that time, lady! I, I tried my best and served you the best I could......."
"Anyone at the mansion could say the same thing, Emily."
Emily stopped talking at my cold words.
"I, I......."
She thought a little and said:
"You know that I'm sharp with taking a hint and acting depending on the situation, lady."
I was amazed by how fast she realized that whining wouldn't work on me, and changed her plan to trying to prove what she can pull off.
'Quite amazing. '
I noticed from long before that Emily was smarter and sharper than the other extras here, and seeing it now proved that she certainly is.
That's also probably why she had the idea to abuse Penelope with a needle.
Emily tried to convince me with a desperate face on.
"Think about it. I never once failed to do what you told me to do."
"......."
"So, please leave it to me. I'm your personal maid after all......."
There was a long silence after that.
Tap, tap. The only sound in the room now was my finger tapping on the desk.
Before all the hope escaped from the uneasy maid...
"...... okay."
I accepted.
"I'll try trusting you this time."
"Lady......."
Emily looked at me with a touched face.
I never thought that she saw me in a good light after I threatened her with the needle.
But thinking that one's trust is about to leave for another makes someone vow their loyalty to the one.
"Thank you, lady! I'll never disappoint you!"
I half-heartedly nodded at Emily bowing at me.
"Open the jewelry box."
She moved instantly after I commanded.
"From now on until my timeout is over, you go to the informants after the morning serving. Then you'll request them to find a person for me."
"A person? W, who are you looking for......."
"I'll write down all the things about him that they need to know to be able to find him. All you need to do is just show that paper to them. You can use how many of the jewels in that jewelry box that you need to pay them."
There was the overflowing amount of jewels in the box.
Unfortunately, Penelope didn't have much money so the only thing I could use to pay them was with all these jewels.
It didn't really matter even if I used all of it in that box as there were several more jewelry boxes overflowing with jewels in where they store all of the gong-nyuh's valuables.
"Okay! I can do that, lady! You'll be able to find that person real quick."
"But you can't request this thing to an informant whose job is finding someone."
"Th, then who......."
"Only the places where they trade very valuable information and objects. Only the highly advanced agencies where the high-rank nobles would go to. That, you have the ability to find some on your own, right?"
"Yes! Of course!"
It was said that Buinter owned one of those agencies, in the game. The base of the agency that he operated was said to be the most well known and the biggest.
'So she'll be able to find it easily. '
I already knew that he was a marquis, a sorcerer and that he secretly operated an agency.
If I wanted to meet him, then I just have to go to the parties that he might consider going.
But Buinter was one of the main male characters, and he also had the most possibility after Eclise.
I decided to make use of what happened in an episode from the normal mode to have a more dramatic meeting with him.
[After coming back to the mansion, the heroine goes searching for her lifesaver who helped her find her real family.
All she knew about him was that he was a sorcerer with a rabbit mask on.
However, when she encounters Buinter in a party to debut as the 'real gong-nyuh', realizes right away that he was the one who helped her by just his eye color. ]
'How does that make sense? How do you know a person just by looking at their eyes?'
I felt embarrassed at me who once was laughing in joy because the normal mode was so easy.
I didn't intend to attend every party out there to meet Buinter like what the normal mode heroine did.
'I'll just make it so that he comes to find me instead. '
I opened my mouth.
"And one more thing. Don't make it noticeable to them that you're the maid of a high-rank noble lady."
"Huh? How......."
"Just make it so that they think that a noble lady is secretly finding a man who she fell in love at first sight."
"Oh my, lady!"
Emily jumped in the spot at my whispering words.
"If it's something like that, just asking me would be faster."
I creased my eyebrows at her reaction.
"High-ranked people are what all the maids gossip about together. If it's a single, especially handsome, noble man, then I already have them stuck in my......."
"Emily."
I cut through her words.
"Can you do what you're asked to do or not. Answer just that."
"Leave it to me, lady! I'll be sure to find out who the lady fell in lo...... !"
"It's nothing like that."
I made that clear. I could guess what she was thinking right now.
'She doesn't know anything. '
But Emily didn't seem to believe my words as her eyes continued to shine.
"Looks like spring's finally approaching our lady......."
I had no choice but to roll up my sleeves to bring her back to reality.
"Act wisely. The existence of your needle will depend on how you do on this job."
"*Gasp*...... !"
"This is a chance given to you, Emily. You might actually be kicked out from this place by doing what you weren't asked to do."
The back of my hand was now all healed so that the needle marks weren't visible anymore.
However, there was no way that Emily wouldn't know what it meant by me showing the back of my hand as she made a solemn face.
'Did I develop affection towards her?'
I felt a little sorry to see that face.
Just then. Knock knock-.
"Lady, it's Pennel."
(Pennel is the butler if you forgot. )
A knocking sound came from the door.
The butler never once opened the door without permission anymore. But even so, I always waited a few seconds before allowing him to open it.
"...... Come in."
The butler cautiously opened the door and bowed.
"What is it?"
"There's an invitation for lady Penelope from the royal palace."
"For me?"
I tilted my head. The second prince's birthday ceremony happened not too long ago, so there shouldn't be any other parties happening at the royal grounds for a while.
"Yes, lady. It seems like there's a small party on the last day of the festival to celebrate this country's victory."
I frowned.
What was up with the royals to plan parties so often?
"There was already a banquet celebrating the return. Quite a magnificent one at that, no?"
"It's said that this time, his highness crown prince himself hosted it."
I turned my head to face the butler in a robotic motion at his next words.
"The...... Crown...... Prince...... ?"
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-CatLovesTowels -Lizette~
I'm really sorry! I finished this and the previous chapter yesterday but forgot to upload it.. But that makes today the day of 2+ updates~
COMMENTS (On the raw):
- A leopard can't change its spots. Once the trash is forever trash, but at least the crown prince is better than the brothers.
- Penny, they're not it. Just run with Eclise and those jewels.
- Trash, apologize properly first ^^
- If Penny encounters him, she has to tell him the reason why she... Bleghhh
- All the people who commented these about the crown prince will come back and regret it after reading the future chapters...
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