C17
"It's almost like he's worried about me."
But that was impossible.
Bianca shook her head, erasing the thought. The Zachary she knew was not "that" kind of man.
However, his honor had been protected from the servants, so it all worked out in the end. Breathing a small sigh of relief, Bianca turned to head for her room.
It was clear that she had no intention of listening to Vincent, who followed her despite her adamant refusal. As Zachary's loyal right-hand woman, she was adamant and repeated the order she had received.
"The master has ordered me to call the doctor, ma'am."
"He also said not to cause a commotion." I'll take care of that myself, so you can go and get on with your duties. Bianca answered dryly without even looking back.
His quick, short steps continued with determination until he was out of sight.
Bianca was like Zachary in that neither of them bothered to listen to anyone else, they just said what they had to say before they left. Vincent let out a sigh as he watched Bianca's proud and stubborn figure walk away from her.
Sensing that the doctor would probably have the door slammed in his face if he visited now, Vincent decided that he would send him later. He came to the conclusion that he would solve what he needed to take care of instead of following Bianca.
Ante was still on the ground, dazed and sobbing.
"Stop crying," Vincent said coldly, giving him a cold look.
Mistakenly thinking that Vincent was comforting her, Ante sniffed and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand.
Because Vincent was running the castle on behalf of Bianca, who had essentially abandoned her duties, the employment and management of the servants also fell under his purview. Like master, like servant: Vincent seemed cold at first, but in reality, he was a superior who treated his employees well. Therefore, Ante believed that Vincent would comfort her and fire her after a light scolding. However, all expectations of him crumbled when he continued.
“Pack your bags and get ready to go home.
-… What?
Ante's eyes widened, as if he couldn't understand what he had just heard. His face exuded a melancholic beauty, as he had been performing a painful act, but because he was stained with blood and tears, he also looked quite grotesque. Like the heart inside of him.
Vincent snorted, dumbfounded by Ante's stupidity. He made the explanation slow and concise for her so that she could properly control the situation.
"Didn't you hear what the lord said earlier?" I was ordered to make sure that such commotions don't happen again, commotions that you are the cause of.
"But sir...
“Being quiet is the virtue of a servant. You're not fit for this castle with those loose lips of yours. Pack your things unless you want to be kicked out without even the clothes on your back.
Vincent spoke firmly, having perfectly understood Zachary's intention.
There was no guarantee that a cat that tried to climb on the stove would not try again. Since Ante had already gone after Bianca once, Vincent felt a headache just thinking about what he might try to do again.
He wouldn't have to worry about Ante's big mouth or his behavior if he kicked her out, and it would serve as a warning to the other servants. She would kill two birds with one stone. Ante had gone so far out of line that she could have been rolled up in a straw mat and flogged, so he'd gotten off relatively easily. Vincent shook his head to himself.
On the contrary, Ante was distraught realizing that she didn't have a lifeline to hold on to after hearing Vincent's ruthless order. She just she had made a lighthearted joke. Also, it wasn't like she had lied...
Vincent sent a glance to the other maids standing around. Having quickly read his nonverbal commands, the maids grabbed and pulled Ante, who was still slumped on the ground and showed no signs of getting up. Ante struggled, but was ultimately unable to overcome the strength of several maidservants combined.
As Ante was dragged away by the other maids, only Robert and Vincent were left alone in the once noisy hallway.
Robert repeatedly opened and closed his lips. His normally exemplary features of him were confused, as if he couldn't understand what had just happened. He shook his head, as if he was trying to shake off complicated thoughts, but his dark green eyes were still full of confusion.
-… What was that?
-What do you mean?
“The relationship between the earl and countess is clearly different from before. Something happened recently, right? Is it related to the fact that the lady went to look for the earl yesterday?
In fact, something was different from usual. It was too dark to pinpoint what exactly, but the air around Zachary and Bianca had clearly changed.
-…I'm not sure.
Vincent slowly shook his head at Robert's indiscreet question. Zachary's room was well soundproofed, so it was hard to hear a conversation unless it was shouting. Since he didn't really know what happened yesterday, Vincent could only vaguely guess that today's incident was related to yesterday's.
However, what was more important than what could have happened yesterday was why Bianca sought out Zachary. Unless Zachary went looking for her first, Bianca wasn't the type to look for him. And yet, that same Bianca had not only suddenly gone looking for Zachary of her own volition, she had even mentioned something that was supposedly for the good of House Arno, despite behaving as if she were still a Blanchefort. all this time. Vincent was curious as to the reason behind his change of heart.
Of course, just because he was curious didn't mean he'd get an answer right away. In that case, what the remaining two men had to do was simple. The tips of Vincent's lips quirked up, giving way to natural wrinkles. Vincent, who was about 15 years older than Robert, finished in a tone that seemed to be lecturing a short-tempered young gentleman who was having trouble keeping his hot blood at bay.
“But something has indeed changed. There is only one thing left for us to do, and that is to follow our master's orders. It is clear what we must do for our lord's sake, is it not, Sir Robert?
* * *
Bianca reflected on the day's events once she returned to her room, looking out the window as she leaned against a chest. The anger of being insulted by a maid melted away like snow, her place being taken by an unknown feeling that pulsed strongly. The more she reflected on each of Zachary's actions, the more it seemed that he didn't just have bad feelings towards her.
So why did you turn me down?
If he didn't find her so obnoxious, then there was no reason for him to turn down her offer to sleep together. Thinking about how eager all the men were to get between a woman's legs made Bianca even more confused by Zachary's behavior, which seemed to keep his distance from her.
Maybe my body just isn't her style.
That's right, there was no reason for him to be impatient to hold her, who wasn't even his type, if he had a mistress. That must also be why he had backed off and delayed their first night together until he could no longer ignore the teasing of his vassal in his past life.
Bianca looked at herself. Her 16-year-old body was as lanky as Ante claimed, and even though her round breasts, they would still be considered somewhat small when grasped by large hands. It was definitely not a body that men would be thrilled with. Although she was still only 16 years old, Bianca knew that even when she was two years older, her body would not be much different than it was now.
Should I be content with at least having more feminine curves by the time I turn 18?
Bianca put a hand to her forehead out of habit, only to frown when she felt a throb in her palm. It seemed that the pain would last longer than she thought.
It was then that a maid entered the room. The figure of the maid, who entered with muffled steps and her head bowed, was familiar. She was the one who had gone to get the cane earlier.
The maid lifted her head cautiously as she surveyed the room.
"Ma'am, the doctor...
“I said it was fine. Why would you call the doctor for an issue like this? Do you want the whole place to know that I spanked a maid?
Bianca replied as soon as she heard the word "doctor", before turning her head towards the window.
—…….
The maid glanced at Bianca from the side, sensing the latter's strong and unwavering will to deny. She fidgeted for a while, as if she didn't have enough confidence to try to bring it up again after witnessing Bianca's cold demeanor. After a long period of silence, the maid bowed her head and left the room, finally unable to suggest the idea again.
It was only then that Bianca was able to let out a slow sigh of relief. Her hand still hurt, but she didn't want to call the doctor. It was obvious what people would start saying.
“How severely did you beat the maid that she is the one receiving the treatment instead of the maid?”
Bianca wasn't one to particularly care for the servants' chatter, but she couldn't leave it at that when she could clearly imagine the nonsensical rumors that would surely start if she saw the doctor.
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