(4)">Chapter 49 [part 2] - (4) (2/2)

“Milady, a guest requests to see you.”

A maid announced to her. If it was Lady Milton that came, the maid would not say it was a guest.

“A guest? Who?”

“It is the Countess of Wales.”

Lucia knit her brows slightly. She didn’t know why the Countess of Wales would commit an act of rudeness and suddenly come to find her. She considered sending her back but finally settled on listening to what business the Countess had and if it was nonsense, to kick her out.

The maid served tea. Lucia did not call for Jerome. She didn’t want to serve the delicious tea that Jerome prepares to the Countess of Wales. Unlike Lucia who sat with a slightly chilled attitude, the Countess of Wales looked intimidated. In the time they hadn’t seen, her face had grown quite haggard.

Perhaps a cold? Lucia was suspicious of the Countess’ very different complexion from the past garden party.

“What brings you here?” [Lucia]

“It was discourteous of me to suddenly request to meet you like this. Has Duchess been well in the meantime?”

“There’s no reason I wouldn’t be well. Frankly, I am dissatisfied with Countess. It was my first party prepared on a grand scale. Surely madam won’t deny holding a sizeable responsibility for it ending in such a way?”

“What can I say? When one gets old, sometimes, one’s ability to judge falls. I came to find Duchess in hopes you can generously overlook this matter.”

Lucia, who’d purposefully come on strong, weakened her icy expression at the Countess acting humble.

“Is this what today’s visit is in regards to?”

“Yes. I came to apologize.”

Lucia didn’t know the Countess of Wales would docilely lower herself like this. As the Countess was older and a leading figure in the circles, Lucia tried to gradually apply pressure rather than having a head-on confrontation.

‘Something is strange here…’

The rather unusual intimidated attitudes of the other ladies was already weighing on her mind and since even the Countess of Wales was like this, perhaps there was something she was missing.

“If that’s all you really want, I understand. I will accept Countess’ apology. But I do not wish to talk for too long today.” [Lucia]

“Ah…I…”

“Do you have more to say?”

“To Duchess…there is something I would like to sincerely request…”

A request? Really, how shameless. Lucia inwardly chuckled sarcastically. In any case, the Countess of Wales seemed to see her as meek and naïve child. Lucia was not a good girl that wouldn’t take any action. She had a fairly cold side in entering a relationship with people.

“I do not privately take special requests.”

“It’s not a special request, Duchess. Please relieve the anger of his Grace the Duke.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The Countess revealed that the top-levels owned by her family were currently encountering difficulty. The explanation was lengthy and mostly self-justification. However, from the congested story, Lucia grasped the key point.

“The top committed a blunder and was punished. Are you now associating your personal feelings with the official work of his Grace the Duke?”

“No. No. The guilt is not being denied. I know the Duke is indeed a thorough person that separates business and pleasure. But he is a little strict so I ask of you to have some mercy. Please forgive this old one for rushing over in a hurry without principle.”

After the Countess of Wales left, Lucia fell into deep thought. In the first place, from the perspective of the one being punished, a generous punishment did not exist. From what she could tell, it wasn’t that fault was being found with an innocent man.

Punishment of crime was within the scope of authority of the Taran Duke, the overseer of order in the North. The thought that maybe he was punishing them excessively because of her did not cross her mind for a second. She wasn’t that conceited.

‘So he’s quite strict on the people under him.’

She couldn’t imagine it since she’d never seen that side of him. In any case, the reason the ladies have been so careful of her mood lately must also be because of this. Perhaps they happened upon his strict side several times recently. She filed it in her head to ask him in passing. She did not really take it seriously.

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