Rewriting the Trash Ending - Chapter 40

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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40.

“No, why would you suddenly say that…….”
“What would you do if I told Your Highness about this?”
Under Hanna’s piercing gaze, Britta laughed awkwardly and fumbled for an excuse.
“No, I mean, that’s not what I think…… it’s just that people have been saying such things lately.”
“From now on, please be more careful. Don’t speak carelessly about Your Highness to anyone.”
Hanna issued the warning quietly, then gathered up the tray and turned to leave.
The moment her figure disappeared, Britta’s face darkened.
Throwing her weight around just because she’d grown close to Your Highness.
She’d have something coming to her soon enough. That would teach her.
Britta clicked her tongue once, then suddenly narrowed her eyes.
‘Wait a moment.’
After all, the Countess had just instructed her to drive a wedge between the Grand Duchess and her personal attendant.
But what if this noble guest from the warm lands woke up shivering in the cold……?
Wouldn’t her personal attendant have to bear the full brunt of her displeasure?
‘Let’s see how she likes a little trouble.’
She hurriedly wiped her hands on her apron.
The memory of Becky being dragged away to the Fortress flashed through her mind, and her hands faltered for a moment—but she shook her head.
The Grand Duke, despite being newly married, was often away from home.
If he loved his wife, he’d stay close, not run about outside. Why would he?
If any trouble arose, the Countess would surely intervene.
“Where are you going, Britta?”
“To fetch some firewood—best to stock up ahead of time.”
She lied smoothly to the young maid who had just entered the kitchen, then slipped away.
In the backyard behind the Main Building, a sturdy servant was arranging firewood.
“Which room is that firewood for?”
“It’s for Her Highness’s bedroom.”
Britta felt a bitter laugh rise in her throat—how perfectly timed.
“Her Highness’s bedroom? But I saw someone else carrying firewood there not long ago.”
“What? I’m the one assigned to it—who was it?”
The servant’s face grew puzzled, and Britta gave a small shrug.
“I’m not sure who it was in the dark, but he was grumbling that he’d suddenly been reassigned to handle Her Highness’s bedroom.”
“That’s strange. That shouldn’t be the case…….”
As the servant scratched his head in confusion, Britta spoke casually.
“It seems Her Highness has changed the duty roster again. Since it’s probably pointless to go now anyway, why don’t you just give that to me? I needed firewood anyway.”
“Uh, well…….”
Britta took the cart filled with firewood from the dim-witted servant.
Later, whether it was Her Highness or anyone else who questioned her, she could simply deny knowing anything.
As Britta waved him away, the confused servant had no choice but to leave.
She grinned, her eyes glinting with anticipation at the spectacle that would unfold when morning came.

***

Lumière had fallen asleep only late the night before.
She’d had to bathe again to rid herself of the sour smell of perfume.
Heating the water and carrying it to the bathhouse had been considerable labor.
Even just rinsing her hair, it had taken nearly an hour just to prepare hot water in the bathhouse.
With the time spent drying her hair afterward, she’d fallen asleep nearly two hours later than usual—her condition couldn’t help but suffer for it.
And yet.
‘I’m freezing to death this morning.’
A late, sluggish dawn.
What pulled her from sleep was not the comfort of warmth, but a biting, piercing cold.
She didn’t know exactly when this had begun, but the room was far too cold.
Since arriving at the Grand Duke’s Estate, she had never woken to such a frigid morning.
She curled into herself, pulling the blanket up over her head.
She really didn’t want to get up.
Absolutely did not want to get up…….
Whether she’d caught a cold or not, her throat felt raw, her head throbbed with a dull ache, and every muscle in her body ached.
“Mm…….”
She let out a groan as she pulled the bell cord.
Part of her wanted nothing more than to lie still, but she knew that wouldn’t make this situation any better.
“Your Highness, good morning…….”
Hanna paused in the doorway as she stepped into the bedroom, struck by the chill that hung in the air.
“…Hanna, the room is freezing.”
“Yes, just a moment!”
Hanna set the washbasin on the table, then rushed toward the adjoining room where the fireplace was.
“The fireplace has gone out. Here, put this around yourself for now.”
Hanna hurried back with a soft blanket, draped it over her shoulders, and hastily left the bedroom.
‘That’s strange.’
The fireplace had gone out?
Could it be connected to the perfume incident last night?
The sudden turn of events left her with an unsettling feeling.
How long had she been shivering like this?
Hurried footsteps echoed from somewhere down the corridor.
“Your Highness, let me bring you some tea first.”
Hanna handed her a steaming tea cup.
The hot liquid soothed her throat slightly as she swallowed.
But.
‘What am I going to do?’
Her body wouldn’t stop shaking with chills.
Every time she spoke, her throat felt as though she were swallowing thorns.
By the state of her body, she’d caught a proper cold.
No matter how diligently she’d cared for herself since the Regression, her health hadn’t improved enough to recover in just a few months.
‘This cold feels like it’s going to linger…….’
Before she could even deal with the Countess, it seemed she might collapse first—a frustrating thought.
But the storage room was one thing; now that someone had laid hands on her bedroom, she needed to remove the culprit from the estate without delay.
If the perfume had contained something like lye, her skin would have dissolved.
…The very thought made her skin crawl.
“First things first—let me wash my face.”
After washing, Lumière wrapped herself in the blanket and moved to a warmer spot.
It would take considerable time for warmth to return to the bedroom.
“Bring Peter here.”
“…Yes.”
Peter was a young servant who maintained the fireplaces in the Main Building, and he wasn’t the sort to do this deliberately.
A short while later, Hanna returned with Peter in tow.
“Y-Your Highness.”
Lumière observed the ash-covered man trembling as he hurried to light the fireplace in the adjoining room.
From his expression, he seemed entirely bewildered…….
‘I should ask what happened first.’
She cleared her tight throat with a soft cough before addressing him.
“The fireplace was out this morning.”
“That’s because I was trying to refill it with firewood, but they told me the person in charge had changed. I was told someone else had already taken care of it, so I thought……I’m truly sorry.”
“Who told you that?”
Peter hesitated, seeming torn between speaking and staying silent, before answering carefully.
“It was someone who works in the kitchen…….”
At the name that followed, Lumière let out a short, knowing laugh, while Hanna’s face turned ice-cold.

***

The busiest place in the Grand Duke’s Estate in the early morning was the kitchen.
The staff had to assess the day’s fresh ingredients, select the menu for the master and mistress’s table, and manage meals for servants numbering in the hundreds.
“Ma’am, has something good happened?”
A young servant girl trimming potatoes at the next table asked.
It was unusual to see her smiling all day long when she typically complained about her aching joints and how grueling the work was.
“Hmm, good? Nothing like that. Just nice weather, I suppose.”
“Nice? It’s freezing cold.”
The girl laughed as if bewildered, but Britta offered no further reply.
‘By now it must be absolute chaos—I wonder what she’s doing about it?’
The thought of Her Highness clinging to Hanna like she was catching mice since dawn made her smile despite herself.
Then, quite suddenly, she recalled what Hanna had fired at her that dawn.

“Madam, you haven’t forgotten what happened to Becky, have you?”

She’d worked at the Grand Duke’s Estate for over a dozen years, but this was the first time she’d seen someone driven out in such a manner.
The uninformed whispered that the Grand Duke had entered a terrible rage, but she was certain—absolutely certain—that Her Highness had provoked it.
There was no other way the Grand Duke would have drawn his blade like that.
She was humming contentedly at the thought that Hanna might well meet the same fate as Becky when—
“I’d appreciate it if everyone would stop what they’re doing and pay attention for a moment.”
The Grand Duchess, a thick shawl draped across her shoulders, stepped inside accompanied by the Deputy Chief and Hanna.

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