Translator/editor: ruby
It was a light joke, but it had a hidden meaning inside.
Lart led the embarrassed Lucy to her seat and tapped Ruberos on the shoulder.
“Your shoulders are so hard. I assume being an heir to a great knight family isn’t as big of a deal these days?”
Lart laughed at him. Though knowing his habit of spitting out insults without considering others’ feelings, Ruberos wasn’t too concerned.
He’d just realized an important fact. The prince had an astray, twisted personality. The more Ruberos ignored and mistreated Lucy, the more he would cling to her.
Wind only made a fire grow stronger. Before setting Lart on fire, a different direction needed to be taken.
Ruberos slipped out of his thoughts, having settled on a conclusion.
He stroked his lovely sister’s head and reached out.
“Wake up. Let’s go give the lowly maid a scolding.”
“Yes, brother.”
Claire DeHill took her brother’s hand and stood up with a determined look.
This trip was an opportunity.
Without her even realizing it, she had a chance to overtake the maid and reserve the seat next to Prince Lart again.
Belinda was in a horrible mood.
Duke DeHill had appeared out of nowhere during her tea time with Lucy, just after Prince Lart left to see the ice statue with Adelai.
“I greet the great royal family, the princess.”
They gave a polite greeting and sat down at the table next to theirs. Although they didn’t bother to pick a fight, Belinda observed them with sharp eyes, remembering their gazes yesterday.
How come all high-ranking nobles have such dirty eyes?
Their eyes had an indescribable contempt in them, pouring out towards the half-blooded princess and her maid.
One would have to be a fool to not notice. However, she couldn’t just ask the two, who were very well-mannered on the outside, why they were ignoring her.
That would have been ridiculous. Moreover, those looks were nothing new to her – she’d been getting them since she was a child.
However she thought of it, it was better to act openly like Lart did than be so ambivalently polite.
“You’re sleeping well.”
Belinda laughed as she stroked Mazetto’s chubby stomach. He had fallen asleep after filling up on lemon tarts.
Petting small animals always helped with a bad mood. Belinda smiled as she felt the warmth from the bird.
As she sat in peace with Lucy while drinking tea, Duke Ruberos suddenly called her name.
“Come to think of it, princess. Would you please visit the duchy of DeHill after this trip?”
“The duchy? Why?”
“We have decided to hold an exhibition for Rowl with the support of the duchy. We’re also holding a charity party, so we should enjoy it together.”
Belinda rarely appeared outside, unlike Adelai, who went to events here and there. She wasn’t greedy to increase her power, so she resorted to sticking in her separate palace.
Duke DeHill’s family was close to Adelai, always taking her side and ignoring Belinda.
Instead of asking, “Why are you inviting me all of sudden,” Belinda smiled.
“Yes, I’ll go if I can.”
Of course, that was a lie.
“I really hope you come. May I tell you about our artist, Mr. Rowl?”
Laughing, Duke Ruberos moved on without waiting for an answer. He naturally brought along his sister, and they both sat down at the table, demonstrating his skills at getting across to an opponent and the impertinence of a noble.
“Rowl is a gem of a painter that we discovered. He usually draws impressive, colorful things…”
Staring at the duke, who had just begun his explanation, Belinda let herself slip.
She was bored because she had nothing to do, but it was still better than listening to the explanation. However, she didn’t want to take the blame for not listening, so she smiled back. It was still better for them to ridicule her for not liking art rather than for being low-blooded.
After a long rant to himself, Duke Ruberos finally stopped talking.
“–that’s why we’re sponsoring the exhibition. I’m sure it will start a new trend in the art world, princess.”
He put down his teacup and turned to Lucy.
“Come to think of it, does the Herb family have an artist they patronize?’
“Pardon?”
Lucy’s eyes grew.
Among nobles, patronizing artists had nothing to do with a love for art – it was a status symbol.
This luxury played a tremendous role in those social circles – in that sense, Lucy’s family had nothing to provide. Count Herb himself was in a position to be patronized, let alone patronize someone else.
It was this situation that made Lucy take the position of Belinda’s maid, even though no one else was willing to do so.
“If you don’t patronize an artist, do you have a private collection?”
Duke Ruberos’s questions went on as if he was deliberately trying to embarrass Lucy even further.
Lucy laughed awkwardly and shook her head.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have a patronized artist nor a collection.”
At that moment, Claire DeHill, who had been listening to the conversation in silence, butted in.
“His Highness particularly likes Orphe’s style. Did you know that? He used to go to exhibitions with me.”
Lucy quietly lowered her eyes.
A style the prince liked? How would she know? When she took walks around the flower beds with him, they always made jokes instead of talking about luxury.
Despite Lucy’s silence, Claire continued calmly.
“Despite being in the palace for so long, you don’t seem to be used to this culture.”
“No, unfortunately.”
She gave a modest answer.
Not being as extravagant as a noble was something to be ashamed of. Regardless of one’s own ideas on the matter, that was still the reality.
At a glance, the DeHill siblings’ eyes were filled with scorn.
“I heard rumors that Count Herb has sold the family manor. Is that true?”
“Yes, it’s true.”
“Not even with a stable left over? All of it sold?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, my….”
How pathetic. Claire, laughing at her silently, continued.
“So the count’s only house is the one in the capital?”
Lucy slowly nodded. She bit her lips instead of answering. Although the siblings weren’t courteous, neither of them cared.
She just bit her tongue.
“It’s a shame to even call this a noble family.”
Belinda could do nothing but stare the two down with cold eyes. She could already see that the exhibition they’d invited her to would only be a chance to embarrass Lucy further.
It was a warning.
You’re not suited for the upper class, so don’t cross the line.
However, if she got riled up by their words and clumsily tried to defend Lucy, she would only get Lucy into more trouble.
Ignoring Belinda’s silent glare, the siblings continued the attack.
They were showing their territory and authority indirectly, digging into Lucy’s wounds and roughly making them deeper.
“Do you know this? Being a noble is more than just having a pretty face. You need an innate nobility that can’t be imitated. Without it, you’d only be ridiculed.”
Claire said, poking Lucy painfully under the guise of advice.
“Will you be able to adapt? Won’t you be a shame for His Highness, miss?”
In other words, “You should step down on your own.” It was a contemptuous warning to not cross the line and return to her rightful place – to not be a stumbling block for the prince.
Belinda bit her cheek in displeasure.
Lucy’s only sin was to be her helpless maid. And to let Prince Lart approach her.
Belinda was hiding a lot of anger. If she just had a little more power, Lucy wouldn’t have faced this disgraceful situation.
She decided to intervene. She wanted to protect Lucy somehow, even if that meant revealing her feelings towards the siblings.
Belinda roughly put down her teacup.
“This is unpleasant.”
“Pardon?”
Looking up and scanning the two, Belinda detected a hint of nervousness in their eyes.
“You sat down here without an invitation. You dare insult me, the Emperor’s daughter?”
“….What? In… Sult….?”
Their faces quickly stiffened up after hearing the accusation. All they’d done was poke at the maid. What was she saying?
Even though they could have a go at the maid, they didn’t have the guts to insult the princess. She might have been from a humble bloodline, but she was still from the royal family.
“It’s a misunderstanding. We never insulted….”
Belinda cut into Claire’s excuses.
“I thought you said that one needed an innate nobility. I clearly remember you poking fun at my origins and asking if I could adapt. Are you telling me that I heard you wrong?”
Duke Ruberos urgently shook his head.
The siblings, always with tender smiles, were now embarrassed.
They were talking about Lucy, the maid, not the princess.
Of course, they also thought Princess Belinda was from humble origins but had no intention of saying that aloud.
Again, she was a princess.
“No, of course not. We weren’t talking about you.”
“You nobles aren’t fooling anyone by beating around the bush. You’re pretending to insult my maid, but you mean to say that you despise me because of my humble origins.”
Belinda’s cold eyes shot at them.
Despite the almost far-fetched criticism, the siblings’ faces were ghostly white.
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