Lizzy regarded the newly acquired gray lark with some disdain.
Its appearance looked foolish at first glance, its ability to read the room was not particularly impressive, and its slow gait was bothersome. There was nothing she liked about it.
“I don’t know what it is, but whenever I enter the room, it always hides something in the drawer. It didn’t seem like important documents, and it looked like something of this size. Maybe it’s something it cherishes?”
Most of the information Courtney brought was like this. Too vague to be of immediate use.
Nevertheless, Lizzy did not hesitate to reward Courtney generously. That way, next time, she might bring back slightly better news.
Whether that effort was not in vain, Courtney finally came running with some real information.
“I finally confirmed it! The item it was hiding from me! It was a necklace. A splendid necklace with a large ruby!”
“A necklace… Recently, there hasn’t been a merchant visiting the Duke’s residence. Where do you think it came from?”
Not long ago, Ariella did not have such a necklace. She had checked when she sent a maid to steal earrings, so it must have appeared afterward.
“Oh! It must have been given to her by that man!”
“A man?”
“Yes. It seems that Miss Arrie has a man she exchanges letters with. I overheard a conversation between the lady and Amira through the door, and it seemed they were talking about that man.”
If she had found out such information, shouldn’t she have mentioned it first? Lizzy chuckled in disbelief. Silly Courtney seemed to have no idea what was important.
Though annoyed, it was still a decent harvest. It was now certain that Ariella had a man she was hiding.
‘It must be that bastard who interfered during the last attack. They’ve already exchanged gifts and seem to have grown quite close.’
Ariella, who used to return any gifts from men, was now accepting a necklace. It seemed her financial situation was quite urgent.
‘Once, he treated me like a hAaront, and now I’m in that very position.’
Lizzy snickered.
Seeing this, Courtney, thinking her words had pleased Miss Lizzy, excitedly continued.
“I heard that the dress was also tailored by that man.”
“What? What dress? No way…”
“Yes, the dress she’ll wear to your debutante ball, Miss Lizzy.”
Lizzy’s face twisted in anger. No wonder she hadn’t mentioned anything about the dress shop reservation; she must have been plotting something behind the scenes!
‘That cunning girl…!’
It was clear she was trying to outshine Lizzy by getting the most extravagant dress tailored. It was a ridiculous act. To think that just because she wore a well-fitted dress, she would stand out; her dullness wouldn’t just disappear.
‘It’s easy to guess the kind of dress that a worthless man would have tailored for her.’
With the debutante season just around the corner, most of the famous dress shops were fully booked.
There was no way a dress shop hastily found now would be any good. If Ariella had visited a renowned dress shop, Lizzy would have heard about it long ago.
“Courtney.”
“Yes?”
Courtney hurriedly replied, her face clearly flustered. The atmosphere of Miss Lizzy, whom she had always thought of as cute and lovely, felt strangely menacing.
The kitchen manager’s words about how one should be wary of those who always smile beautifully suddenly echoed in her ears like a warning.
“How far can you go?”
“W-What do you mean?”
“I dislike irresponsible people. Like Gianna, who just made a big mess and then ran away.”
After the theft incident, Gianna had been chased away without even receiving her wages for the work she had done, let alone a recommendation letter.
Now that she thought about it, Gianna’s last expression as she fled had looked particularly frightened. The skin hidden beneath her long dress had been torn and red.
“You won’t do that, will you?”
Lizzy tilted her innocent white face and smiled sweetly. Realizing the chill hidden behind that bright smile, Courtney finally understood.
‘I’ve messed up!’
But it was already too late to backtrack. Having heard such words, there was no way to escape now.
What Courtney could do now was to extract as much benefit as possible from the given situation.
“I will do everything you ask.”
“Aha.”
Lizzy laughed out loud. She had thought of her as a very unpleasant girl, but she wasn’t as bad as she had expected. Just the fact that she didn’t run away in fear was already much better than Gianna.
“If you want to pull me down, then next time, try to steal something I truly cherish.”
Ariella’s voice, whispering as she patted her shoulder, suddenly came to mind.
Something I truly cherish… Lizzy murmured silently.
‘The only one who stands by me, my lover. That should satisfy your heart, right?’
Imagining Ariella in despair sent a thrill of anticipation through her chest.
Lizzy gently wrapped her arms around Courtney’s broad shoulders and lowered her voice.
“Did you hear when he’s coming? The dress that Arrie had tailored for the man.”
