Seeing the maids trembling, Mercedes was momentarily deceived. Even though Patricia’s acting was not at a level that could be fooled.
It was because she neither expected nor thought they would go to such lengths to act for her.
“Hmm. Would it be alright if I told His Majesty that I lived comfortably, of my own free will?”
“We might still be scolded for what the serving maids did…”
Rhonda even spoke in a subdued voice. Mercedes looked at them seriously before exhaling lightly.
She didn’t care if her body was harmed, and she didn’t think the Emperor would really behead someone for her sake.
But these children had done nothing wrong, and if the Emperor really had a whim, their heads could roll.
They must be anxious.
Mercedes was not the type of person who could… turn a blind eye to others.
Besides, what she could do for them was quite simple.
“I see… Alright. Then please prepare a meal. I’m sorry. From today on, I’ll eat properly.”
As Mercedes nodded in understanding, Rhonda smiled brightly. Patricia also looked pleased.
“Yes! First have a meal, then take a bath! I’ve chosen various fragrances to improve your mood.”
The maids’ gaze towards her was so affectionate that Mercedes instinctively leaned back slightly.
How could they be like this already when they hadn’t known each other for long? Moreover, she came here with the name of a murderer…
Were they maids who carried out orders very well, or were they just naturally kind children?
“Then I’ll go to the kitchen. Mercedes. Rhonda will tidy up the room. The sunlight is nice, so please rest while enjoying it.”
“Alright.”
Mercedes, who had spread out all sorts of papers, was thus led to the terrace by Rhonda’s hand.
Rhonda sat her in a comfortable chair with a thick blanket, lowered the awning to adjust for the glare, and placed things like novels on the table.
“Read if you’re bored, or just close your eyes and soak up the sun. Sometimes when I’m tired, I just sit quietly in the sunlight and it makes me feel better.”
“…I see.”
The awning just blocked the glare, and Mercedes’ body was enveloped in warm sunlight.
It felt as if the time she had spent dwelling on revenge and ruminating on pain just moments ago had evaporated.
“I’ll bring you a cup of tea, Mercedes.”
“Thank you.”
“Oh, it’s nothing. And Mercedes needs to eat a lot. You’ve gotten too thin.”
Too thin… That was an insult too. The humiliation she heard from Richard, the insult from her father asking if she could function as a woman, the Countess’s unpleasant gaze saying she looked like a vagrant on the street.
The faces of those who had used the word ‘thin’ as an insult to her appeared one by one.
It was ridiculous.
The reason she had become thin was due to the forcibly tightened corset and poor meals at the Count’s mansion. Those who had made her that way later insulted her, saying she was a wench who couldn’t even bring in a dowry.
Then they tightened the corset even more, saying she was too thin and had no curves.
“…Indeed.”
“Of course, you’re plenty beautiful now! But people should eat a lot and put on some weight to be healthy.”
This maid used those words out of concern.
Was it strange because of that?
Or was it because the maid was talkative?
The faces that had appeared one after another seemed to melt away in the sunlight. Mercedes closed her eyes. It was warm.
* * *
After Rhonda’s request, she had to eat well and lie down in bed on time.
The daytime routine was terribly peaceful. Yes, terribly so.
The maids, who had quickly noticed that it wasn’t good for Mercedes to sit at her desk lost in thought, came to talk to her on various pretexts and took care of her.
So she was forced to be immersed in peace.
The reason she came to think of that peace as terrible was simple.
Because the days were peaceful, she couldn’t sleep at night.
Even when made to lie in bed, the past that had been forcibly suppressed during the day would surface. Because her heart was in hell.
“Mercedes. Leopold has come to visit.”
And on the fifth day of this lifestyle, Leopold came to visit.
Mercedes hurriedly opened the door to let him in and dismissed the maids.
Leopold looked at her quietly.
“…You look comfortable somehow. Different from before.”
“Ah.”
I should have changed clothes before letting him in. Mercedes regretted belatedly.
“These are clothes given by His Majesty. He said he wanted me to be comfortable.”
“I see.”
Leopold nodded as if not particularly interested and sat down across from her.
“Would you like some tea?”
“No, I’ll just tell you the news and go. It’s simple.”
“Yes. Please speak.”
“The 3rd and 4th princes in line for the Sheim succession have been sent to a distant island from the capital. We thought they wouldn’t move during the crown prince’s mourning period, but it seems the king is in a hurry.”
“…I see.”
Well, leaving the crown prince’s position vacant would only increase the number of hyenas. The king had reason to be anxious.
As Mercedes listened to Leopold’s words, she thought of a method, a possibility.
“So to put the 5th in line above the crown prince, the 3rd and 4th need to be gone, right?”
“Yes. Moreover, since the young duke isn’t even a prince, he’ll probably gain public support by achieving great merit in some event fabricated by the king and ascend above the crown prince.”
“Do the Sheim nobles know about this?”
“Surprisingly, they don’t. The nobles of that small country are preserved in the peace of their own small squabbles. Even if they want power, they don’t know how. They’ve never fought a war of conquest like us.”
The other Sheim nobles don’t know this information, he says.
It sounded very sweet to her ears.
“…The 3rd was a wanderer and the 4th a stutterer, right?”
“Yes.”
She needed a way to stir things up internally. Mercedes’ mind began to race quickly.
‘Why didn’t I think of this before?’
The king intervenes and manipulates the succession battle to determine the crown prince.
This meant they were in a precarious state where even a slight touch could make them shed each other’s blood.
Someone would surely support the 3rd and 4th in line. Not because of their character or ability. But because they wanted power for themselves.
Even in such a small country, there were so many people going mad with desire for power.
Yes. There was something Mercedes could do too.
“Why is the king in such a hurry? Is it because the legitimacy of the 5th in line is ambiguous?”
“For now, we’re just considering various possibilities, and more time is needed for investigation.”
“I see. What is Count Cromwell up to?”
“It seems he’s received instructions from the king, but for now he’s staying secluded in his mansion.”
“I see.”
If the young duke, 5th in line, ascends above the crown prince without issue, and the king abdicates, Cromwell’s position will be solidified again.
This was a race against time.
After extracting more information from Leopold about the king’s schemes and the location of the island where the princes were sent, Mercedes carefully opened her mouth.
“Could I borrow some messengers and informants?”
“…His Majesty said to give you whatever you need. And the informants used in Sheim are for Mercedes anyway.”
Leopold nodded with a displeased look.
“Then I’ll have a letter ready soon.”
Mercedes recalled the times she sat like a doll at various royal banquets, observing people.
She didn’t think herself particularly clever. But her eyes had witnessed many things.
She knew.
Who wanted power, who didn’t. Who kept others in check, who disliked doing so.
“Understood. Ah, please have your maid send the letter with a servant. Coming yourself would only be tiresome for you.”
At his calm yet strangely cold voice, Mercedes nodded.
She didn’t want to set foot again in that office full of piercing gazes. She could endure it, and it didn’t matter who hated her, but.
The truth was, she didn’t want to tire herself out needlessly.
* * *
“Mercedes, today the chef baked sweets with a new recipe. Would you like to go out and have some refreshments?”
“I’m sorry, Rhonda. Patricia. I’m a bit busy today.”
The maids’ faces filled with worry, but Mercedes had no room to mind them.
She had something she could do now.
“Then! Just let us know when it’s mealtime. You must eat properly.”
“…Alright. I’ll ring the bell. Don’t come to the room before then.”
“Yes, Mercedes.”
The two maids retreated politely. Mercedes locked the door and once again propped a chair against it.
The Emperor wouldn’t return for quite a while anyway.
Surely she could focus on writing secret letters for today, and then listen to the maids’ requests afterward.
Blinded by the immediate task at hand, she lit a large candle and closed the curtains herself.
It was better to have only a small light in the darkness. So as not to know the passage of time.
So she could concentrate solely on the task of throwing Sheim into chaos.
Her hand listed information about Sheim’s nobles on paper.
There was a faction that kept Cromwell in check.
It was a faction gathered around the Rohas ducal family. Whenever they gathered at banquets, they would look at Mercedes with cold eyes.
They thought they had lost the power struggle just because Cromwell’s daughter became the crown princess.
She sends a secret letter to the Rohas ducal family informing them of the location of the 3rd and 4th princes in line and the king’s intentions.
That alone will make them move diligently.
Writing the secret letter to the Rohas ducal family was extremely difficult.
Having never done this before, it took time to choose even a single word. What political terms were there? How could she properly incite them?
How much should she limit the information?
She had to think.
Thus her pen moved diligently, and moved, and moved again.
In the room where only the scratching sound echoed. As the large candle was almost burnt out.
“Mercedes.”
She was startled by the low voice reaching her ear and the hot sensation touching her hand.
Looking to the side, a man who seemed to blend with the darkness was standing very close, bending down and holding her hand that gripped the quill.
She felt as if her breath had stopped.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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