Seven years ago, the day Ariella rescued a child from the slums.
“I will surely repay this kindness, my lady!”
The pitifully thin girl declared with a face smeared with dirt. She vowed to repay the life-saving grace for the rest of her life.
There wasn’t much a scrawny child from the slums could do. In a harsh world, even repaying a kindness required the ability to do so. Especially if the recipient was a lady of noble birth, second only to the empress.
Ariella Bedford. The only princess of the Waveland Empire and the perfect fiancée of the second prince.
What could a girl from the slums possibly do for someone deemed to have everything?
However, Ariella didn’t seem to think that way. Instead, she gazed intently at the child’s round eyes as if she were impressed.
Eyes similar yet different, violet like her own. A small nose and plump lips. Hair that revealed the hardships of life. All of it reminded her of someone.
The only person who had shown her kindness when she lived in a place as desolate as this before returning to the duke’s family.
The girl before her resembled her benefactor.
“…What is your name?”
“No, it’s Lizzy!”
“How old are you?”
“I’m… fifteen.”
“Is that so? Just like me.”
At the same time, the girl resembled her. Though their appearances and attire were quite different, the color of their hair and eyes were similar. The girl was shorter and thinner than her peers due to not eating well, making Ariella feel as if she were looking at her own childhood.
Perhaps that’s why the tightly locked door of her heart creaked open.
“Lizzy, come with me.”
Ignoring the objections of those around her, Ariella took Lizzy to the duke’s residence.
The Duke of Bedford was reluctant to bring in a child of unknown origin, but he eventually relented to his daughter’s first display of stubbornness.
Of course, it wasn’t a free pass.
Ariella had to take on more lessons and do more work in exchange for keeping Lizzy by her side. A schedule so intense that even adults would struggle to manage it continued every day.
Yet, Ariella had no regrets. This mansion was the only place where she could breathe freely, and that was beside Lizzy.
Even as her father’s oppression tightened around her limbs, her younger brother’s taunts pressed against her solar plexus, and the expectations of the servants choked her throat, seeing Lizzy’s innocent face as she chirped about how delicious the dessert was made her heart feel at ease.
The only one who didn’t belong to Bedford. The image of her benefactor reflected on Lizzy’s face kept Ariella alive each day.
As a result, within less than a year, Lizzy secured the seat right next to Ariella.
Lizzy managed Ariella’s jewels, helped her choose dresses, and assisted with her adornments. This was all possible because Ariella didn’t hire any other maids.
The servants were displeased that Lizzy, who came from a lowly background and lacked skill, had risen to such an important position as a close maid, but they didn’t openly show it. Ariella was a more generous lady than any other, and since she particularly cherished Lizzy, the servants extended their tolerance to her.
Fortunately, as time passed, Lizzy gradually improved her shortcomings.
However, there was one flaw that remained unchanged: her excessively blunt mouth.
“My lady, did you really stay at the Marylebone Poorhouse before?”
A question that everyone was curious about but would never dare to ask slipped out of Lizzy’s mouth.
If the head maid had been present, she would have gasped and shouted. Or perhaps she would have rushed to the duke, demanding that this insolent girl be punished.
Fortunately, there were only Ariella and Lizzy in the room. Even the oblivious Lizzy seemed to have the sense that this was not something to say in front of others. It would have been better if she hadn’t brought it up at all.
Ariella silently gazed at Lizzy without changing her expression.
There was no malice to be found in the face that had filled out nicely from eating well. Only innocent curiosity floated in the air.
Ariella didn’t like to bring up that time. However, for some reason, she felt she had to tell Lizzy. This was also because Lizzy resembled her benefactor.
“Yes, it’s true.”
The Marylebone Poorhouse. A facility for the poor located at the northern edge of the capital. It was notorious for its harsh conditions and hunger, reminiscent of a forced labor camp.
The noble and exalted princess of Bedford, Ariella, spent her childhood there.
It was already a well-known story in high society.
Over a decade ago, on the wedding day of the Duke of Bedford’s younger brother, Lord Alchestis, a disaster struck when the Partis Cathedral collapsed, claiming the lives of many high-ranking officials, including the former pope. The duchess, who had attended the ceremony with her five-year-old daughter, also perished that day, leading to the downfall of the Alchestis family.
