Chapter 13

Anxiety always reveals itself in reality. Camellia bit her fingertips. That woman had finally come to Andres. And with the backing of Countess Presto, her greatest patron.

Even that great emperor listens to Countess Presto’s words. Originally, Countess Presto was the first in line to inherit the throne. But it was her choice to give up that position and go down to the countryside. Because she was so exceptionally capable, the emperor relies on Hazel when he has difficult matters.

If Hazel takes a liking to that woman, it’s only a matter of time before she enters the imperial palace.

“Not knowing her place…”

Camellia trembled with rage. Camellia looked at herself in the mirror. Gorgeously dressed, she was undeniably beautiful. She seemed to embody the phrase “young lady of a ducal house.”

Her appearance lacked nothing. To become the mistress of the Adeloff ducal house, shouldn’t one be at least this much? Not some riffraff like that. The one who suits Maxim is not that woman, but me, Camellia.

“If she doesn’t know her place, I’ll have to teach it to her.”

Since she came to Andres, she would inevitably enter central high society. Especially since the Countess came with her too.

High society would take Camellia’s side. She was willing to teach that woman her place.

---

Still, since I’ve come all the way to Andres, I can’t not visit the imperial palace. Hazel entered the imperial palace with a brightly shining face. It was a clear face without any worry or concern.

“…I’m envious.”

“Hmm?”

“Of Hazel’s leisure and happiness.”

Empress Riana said with a slight laugh.

“Why, is this place still the same?”

“How could the imperial palace change? It’s crawling with greedy people.”

Since that incident, Riana’s face had always been clouded over. It was because her heart was full of concern for someone. Hazel clicked her tongue briefly.

‘That boy Maxim.’

Of course, the one with the biggest bruise in his heart would be none other than Maxim. Hazel knew better than anyone that while he might seem prickly and irritable on the outside, he was soft inside.

Thanks to two princes born in consecutive years, the second prince had spent more days at Hazel’s private residence. It was because people’s attention was focused on the first prince, who would become the empire’s successor.

Moreover, because this first prince was born with a weak constitution, he lived with constant minor ailments. Fearing that the second prince Maxim might catch his illness, he spent even longer days with Hazel.

She knew Maxim as well as Empress Riana, who had given birth to him with labor pains.

“…Is he eating meals on time? His face seems to be getting worse. Did he take the nutritional supplements I sent recently?”

“Thanks to Hazel, he’s at least this much.”

Riana smiled coolly.

“By the way, was there any gain? Madame Cali said back then that there would definitely be a connection in Levonto this time, right? The best connection for Maxim. A woman who could completely heal that bruise in his heart.”

Riana asked in a lowered voice. She wasn’t originally one to believe in such superstitions, but if it concerned Maxim, that was a different story. Whenever she saw that child, her heart ached and she didn’t know what to do.

Riana let out a deep sigh. In fact, she didn’t really have faith in those words.

Hazel grinned.

“There was gain, indeed. Thanks to Your Majesty using your influence to send Maxim down there? There, that boy Maxim danced with a woman.”

Clatter.

“My goodness!”

Empress Riana put down the teacup she was holding. The shadow that had been lingering on her face seemed to disappear in an instant. Riana jumped up from her seat.

“Is that really true? Is it really Maxim? Not some other man who resembles Maxim?”

“How could that be? Would this Hazel not recognize Maxim? Besides, Maxim asked me to take care of that child before he left.”

“Asked you to? For what reason? Don’t tell me Maxim declared he would marry that child?”

Empress Riana trembled with excitement. A warm glow circulated on her pale cheeks. Seeing the empress’s face with color for the first time in a while, Hazel also smiled kindly.

How good it was to see.

Maxim should understand this heart too.

“Whatever request he made, it means he made contact with a woman, Hazel! I really can’t believe it…”

Since that day, Maxim had been reluctant even to touch women. In the early days when his condition was poor, there were times he would even vomit. For Empress Riana, who had witnessed all of this, it was hard to believe.

“That child’s family circumstances aren’t very good actually. She’s kind and proper with a good heart, but…”

“What does that matter! If our Maxim likes her, then I, and Luciano too, won’t mind at all!”

“Riana, calm down. You know Maxim’s personality. If we just push, he’ll definitely bounce away.”

“Ah…”

Empress Riana took a deep breath and sat back down. But the gentle glow on her face couldn’t be erased. It was a face where the indigestion that had been sitting in her chest had gone down.

When Empress Riana seemed to have regained her composure, Hazel opened her mouth again.

“That child asked me to find her a governess position. It seems like she has a sick younger sibling and is trying to find a way to make a living with her sibling.”

“…How admirable.”

“I’m thinking of giving that child my full support. She’s a child from the Joseph family, so she has basic refinement, but she might be a bit lacking for governess work. So.”

Hazel smiled mischievously.

“I’m thinking of providing her with a governess. Piano teacher, dance teacher, basic liberal arts teacher. While studying such things, she’ll spend a long time staying at Maxim’s mansion, right?”

“My goodness, Hazel. I knew you were smart, but…”

“I think so too. Besides, she needs to develop her eye. Because that child has lived poorly in Levonto for a long time. She needs new clothes and shoes, jewelry too. But…”

“But?”

It seemed like a perfect plan, but was there a problem? Empress Riana’s voice also became smaller. Hazel said with a sad expression.

“That boy Maxim declared he wouldn’t provide support. That boy with so much money.”

“Oh my.”

Empress Riana smiled slightly. She seemed to understand why Hazel had urgently entered the palace to confess the inside story. Getting the empress’s support would be faster than procuring funds from Levonto.

In fact, if this worked out well, Empress Riana felt she wouldn’t regret it even if she gave all her assets to Hazel.

“That boy is being spiteful.”

“That’s right. I brought Elena up without saying anything to him. That child’s name is Elena.”

“Elena… It’s a pretty name.”

“You don’t know how pretty her face is too. That’s why her mother is desperate to sell Elena as a second wife to a rich family.”

Empress Riana clicked her tongue after grasping the situation.

It seemed Hazel had found a lovely pearl in the mud. And fortunately, Maxim also seemed to be showing interest in that pearl. Empress Riana made her decision.

“I’ll provide support, Hazel. I’ll also select and send teachers to educate Lady Elena.”

“Oh my, can you do that?”

She had gained not only funding but also a reliable ally. Empress Riana nodded.

“Let’s call this an investment in the future. Anyway, that child will need education to properly act as the mistress of a ducal house.”

“That’s exactly what I mean.”

Hazel winked. A sweet conspiracy began to bloom in the empress’s salon. The parties involved had no idea – that kind of story.

---

“Miss, this is my job!”

Elena shook her head with a pale face. The problem had started the moment the maid tried to take Elena’s nightgown away. Elena had become an expert at washing not only her own clothes but also her family’s clothes for the past five years.

This lifestyle habit wouldn’t change just because she came here, and it would continue unless Elena struck it rich in the future. Besides, she had come here to find work, not just to be a burden.

She planned to repay all of this once she found a job. Definitely!

“This is definitely my job!”

“Stop talking! And this is definitely my job!”

Thanks to that, this situation was playing out over the laundry. One trying to protect the laundry and one trying to take it away. The laundry pile, unable to withstand the struggle of the two people tugging at it, flew up into the air.