Resetting Lady - Chapter 15

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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03. An Uncomfortable Dinner

Nagging that repeats for 100 years is nothing if not tedious.

The housekeeper Helen stood beside Donna from morning, scolding her with a stern voice.

This was the time to gather all the maids and announce the day’s tasks. She must have been quite angry. Looking at Donna’s pale face and dark, swollen under-eyes, the previous night’s situation was obvious.

“You must never disappear like that on your own again.”

“Yes.”

“It’s clear that Donna is inadequate to serve the young lady, so I’ll have to think about who to bring in.”

“Huh…”

When it was Nancy, she only scolded Karen. I suppose it’s the difference in experience, Karen thought as she rubbed her side. How unpleasant to be awakened not by a young girl’s voice but by that of a middle-aged woman.

Karen looked at her throbbing side and was grateful for the clean treatment this time. It would be good to maintain a good relationship with Dulan until the next injury incident.

When she lifted her negligee to check the wound, just as Raymond had said, it wasn’t deep, but there were marks from about two stitches. Already her forehead was cut and her side stitched—she wondered what state she’d be in after a year.

“A corset should definitely be whalebone. I’m glad I bought one.”

“Miss.”

“Don’t scold me too much. I’m not badly hurt.”

“There were casualties at that circus. If it hadn’t been for Sir Raymond, you could have died. No, you definitely would have died.”

Making excuses became awkward. Helen, the housekeeper with the highest position among the female servants, was responsible for all household matters large and small in place of the still-young Karen. Since the male Bowen wasn’t under her jurisdiction, she couldn’t hear what punishment he might receive, but Helen told her that due to Karen’s reckless behavior, Donna’s salary would be cut in half for a month and she’d be demoted back to laundry maid.

“I don’t like that.”

Above all, maids like Donna who were loose-lipped, spirited, and prone to causing trouble were rare. That quality was infinitely attractive to Karen, so she had no intention of compromising when it came to Donna.

“It’s my fault, so let Donna work again.”

“Miss.”

Helen spoke firmly. Donna’s eyes lit up.

“I understand you’re fond of her since there aren’t many your age, but this kind of behavior isn’t good.”

Acting like the lady of the house.

Karen didn’t feel like drinking her morning tea accompanied by nagging.

Karen no longer cared about the good and evil of characters, but she didn’t particularly like Helen. Like most housekeepers in houses where the mistress had no power, Helen acted as if she were the lady of the house and tried to control Karen like a child.

What was unpleasant to Karen was that she mistook this for moral duty or responsibility. Good people are lovable and evil people are interesting, but humans who act smugly and annoyingly while thinking they’re right are utterly boring and only provoke displeasure. This was why she wanted to avoid meeting Helen whenever possible.

“Helen.”

She wanted to snap “Know your place,” but held back. Housekeepers like Helen had that much authority. How many servants would listen to a 17-year-old young lady speaking carelessly? Karen remembered the distant past.

There was a time when she had driven Helen out through fasting because she was displeased with her acting like the mistress. And she immediately regretted it. There were too many servants and tasks to manage, and having everything run perfectly just because she was a lord’s daughter was only possible in fairy tales.

To manage a household, you had to gather all the servants every dawn to review tasks and check on everything until late at night. She had to handle all the work of accounting, personnel, and general affairs. Nancy, whom she had put in Helen’s place, was weak with numbers and barely literate, so she couldn’t handle such tasks.

“No.”

“Please.”

Useful people must be coaxed, flattered, and cajoled.

“Still, it’s uncomfortable when people suddenly change completely… Then will Helen play with me?”

“I have a lot of work.”

“Exactly. It’s not like Helen serves me personally.”

I’m lonely. She expressed intimacy and praised her. When Karen acted upset, Helen’s heart softened. As expected, a woman who thinks she’s like a mother.

“You must never do that again.”

“Yes, yes, I won’t.”

“Even without this, you don’t know how tangled up work has been because of Nancy…”

“When is Nancy coming back?”

“…Didn’t you know? Nancy quit, saying she absolutely couldn’t handle the work. As expected, being a wanderer by birth, it can’t be helped.”

So that’s how it’s being handled. Nancy went on leave and then quit saying the work was too hard. Karen put down her teacup. Helen brought a comb. Since combing hair wasn’t really work for a housekeeper, Karen asked Helen.

“You’re going to do it?”

“I was a lady’s maid in charge of young ladies’ clothes when I was young. On a day like today, I absolutely can’t entrust it to Donna. It would have been good if Nancy were here.”

“What’s special about today?”

“It’s the first day Sir Raymond is attending. You must behave properly. The lord and Mr. Evans will be attending too.”

“Ah.”

“You need to look pretty, don’t you?”

That meant soaking in perfumed oils all day, having her hair curled the entire time, an hour for makeup, and three hours for hair styling. Usually Nancy did all this, or when Nancy wasn’t available, Sera would do it. Being touched by different beauticians’ hands was also a pleasure. Karen was too old to throw a tantrum saying ‘I don’t want to do such bothersome things!’

“Still, it’s rather excessive.”

“What is?”

“Rose oil, or clothes like this?”

“Even so, compared to Miss Evans, it’s hardly luxury goods. You should match the standard so the lord won’t be embarrassed, right?”

What’s more embarrassing—forcing yourself to wear expensive items, or wearing cheap clothes among people dressed in luxury? Most would say the latter is more embarrassing, but that’s only among people who value appearances.

There are things considered minimum courtesy, and among people whose standards are higher than others, the boundaries between courtesy, frugality, and luxury become confusing. And Karen focused on something other than judging between them. What mattered was the novel’s ending and the male protagonist’s preferences. Raymond’s standards were important; Karen’s value judgments weren’t that significant.

“Did Father order this?”

“No.”

Helen winked and brought in a masseuse. With skillful hands, she had Karen undress and lie on the wooden bed, wiping her entire body with cloth soaked in rose water.

“Ugh.”

The wound was painful, so Karen groaned. Eventually Helen stopped wiping her body and said.

“A bath would be too much, I suppose.”

“Right?”

“Then we’ll have to be satisfied with just applying perfumed oil.”

It felt like the wound might tear open.

She leaned her head back as Donna washed her scalp and hair with water, then applied oil and pinned it up.

“You’re good at handling laundry, and you wash hair well too.”

“Hehe.”

“Do I really need to look that good for Sir Raymond?”

“Of course you do! First, to look more beautiful than Isella… Miss Evans would be satisfying. Second… well, that’s…”

“Why?”

“Well…”

She blushed. Karen could hear Helen and the masseuse chuckling. Though she didn’t answer, Karen knew the answer from the laughter in that silence.

Dulan was an unwelcome lord. Someone unsuitable for the beautiful ‘young lady.’ Helen openly wanted Karen to make a good impression on Raymond. That meant she didn’t think of Dulan as Karen’s husband, but saw him as somewhat inadequate for Karen, a kind of backup.

Karen wasn’t displeased by her arrogance. She felt neither protective nor dislike toward Dulan. She just felt an impulse to disrupt things.

Karen wondered what would happen if she said to people who looked down on Dulan, ‘He’s still pretty decent at night activities though. Size and stamina are… average, but those monk’s robes are quite stimulating, you know?’ She had to restrain herself. She wanted to turn the situation upside down but had to hold back. Like wanting to poke a wasp’s nest knowing it was dangerous, Karen felt the urge to speak.

“Dulan is…”

“Maybe you should put something on top.”

“Kyaah! Lord Dulan?”

Clatter.

A small commotion broke out. Not very gentlemanly. Donna, startled by Dulan’s sudden visit, almost fell over, and Helen hid her confusion with an expressionless face. The masseuse quickly handed over a cloth and stepped back. And Karen felt slightly relieved. Before curiosity could make her speak, an unwelcome guest entered and cut off her idle thoughts. Would she have spoken if he hadn’t come in? What would have happened then?

“What is it?”

“The, the wound…”

“It’s already been treated.”

“Water or oil shouldn’t get in.”

“…You came just to say that?”

“…”

No, here “their emotions becoming more opposed” would be the standard. But this time she wanted Dulan to become more obsessed with her, so she should properly coax and entangle him.

“I’m not blaming you, I’m just really asking.”

“To check the degree of inflammation.”

At least he stammers less when it’s work-related. When she lifted her negligee, he disinfected with cotton. As the alcohol scent mixed with the rose fragrance, Karen intensely wanted to drink alcohol.

“Can I drink whiskey tonight?”

“Are you crazy.”

Surely the finest alcohol would be served today. Karen became depressed. That 60-year-old whiskey made in Hyer Estate had only about 70 bottles in existence. Couldn’t she enjoy its taste this time? Damn Hans, she’d cut off his head and pickle it in alcohol.

“A glass of rosé wine would be okay, right?”

“Not even beer mixed with water.”

“Damn.”

Trying to be unnecessarily meticulous. Clicking her tongue, she resolved to secretly take some out in the middle of the night.

“Then will you leave now?”

“What, what?”

“Hm? I still need to finish getting my massage.”

“Th… this is quite expensive fragrant oil… You don’t take care of your inner self at all… you only care about other things.”

“There are many important guests. It’s a matter of courtesy.”

“Un… until now… when I was around, you never did things like this. In your head…”

Dulan seemed displeased that Karen was taking care of her appearance. Well, the purpose wasn’t particularly different from what he was thinking, but Karen found it somewhat absurd how Dulan was acting. In this life, he was being unusually clingy and bothersome toward her. Perhaps sharing a bed with him had been a mistake.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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