The Villainess's Exclusive Maid Is Too Good at Her Job - Chapter 27

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

Chapter 27

Maverick Ludwig.
He was renowned for his indifference to his children and family matters alike.
Regardless of his status as a social hero, he was undoubtedly the worst of husbands and fathers within the confines of his home.
So I had assumed he would show little reaction to Julietta’s poisoning incident.

“Miss Janet. The Grand Duke requests your presence along with Miss Julietta.”
“The Grand Duke?”
“Yes.”

When the maid from the Main Residence came to summon me, I was considerably taken aback.
Julietta, too, seemed caught off guard by the unexpected summons, her eyes widening as she asked, “Father?”
The man before us—Maverick—possessed an overwhelming presence.
Despite being middle-aged with six children, his body was sculpted with muscle, and his face bore not a single deep wrinkle.
One might easily mistake him for a young man.
Seated with his legs crossed, he greeted us both, addressing Julietta with casual indifference.
“Are you feeling well?”
“Yes, Father. Fortunately, I suffered no injuries.”
“Hmm. That’s fortunate.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
“Indeed.”
His concern was so perfunctory it seemed questionable whether he truly cared at all.
Yet Julietta, despite his indifference, flushed with joy at even this hollow gesture of worry.
“You there—what is your name?”
“Janet Graham, sir.”
I bowed my head in response to the Grand Duke’s question.
“Graham?”
“A baronial house, one of the Western Region nobility. The previous baron served as a retainer to Count Nerium.”
The Grand Duchess, who had been sitting quietly beside the Grand Duke, explained in a lowered voice.
Like the emotionless Grand Duke, the Grand Duchess’s face was equally devoid of expression. In a sense, they were a remarkably matched couple.
Having finished her pertinent explanation, the cold-featured woman sealed her lips once more.
“Ah, I see.”
The Grand Duke responded dismissively, tapping the armrest.
“Janet Graham. You were the first to notice the poison mixed into Julietta’s tea leaves, were you not?”
“I merely performed my duties as a maid.”
“A maid? Ah yes, we did hire one recently, didn’t we?”
The Grand Duke murmured as if to himself, glancing sideways at his daughter.
He seemed to have forgotten that he himself was the reason Julietta had taken on a maid.
“In any case, your contribution is considerable. I never imagined there would be someone bold enough to lay hands on my bloodline within my own house. Had it not been for you, that audacious wretch would have continued to make a fool of me.”
Only then did Janet understand why the Grand Duke had summoned them both.
It wasn’t concern for his daughter—it was the unbearable affront that someone had dared to lay hands on his own blood within his own household.
Not affection, but possession.
Fury at someone touching what belonged to him.
“I shall grant you a reward for your merit.”
“A reward, you say….”
“Name one thing you desire.”
Name one thing I desire?
Janet’s breath caught at the unexpected turn. Though she recognized this as a precious opportunity, the sudden nature of it left her mind reeling.
What should I say to obtain the most valuable thing?
After a moment’s deliberation, she lifted her gaze to meet the Grand Duke’s directly.
“Your Grace.”
“Yes.”
“I understand this is an extraordinarily precious opportunity. However, I am lacking in many ways, and I lack the confidence to provide a worthy answer at once.”
The Grand Duke’s eyebrows twitched, as if urging her to continue.
“If it pleases you, might I defer my answer? I wish to ensure I do not squander such a precious opportunity.”
As Janet’s words ended, silence fell over the room.
Julietta too stared at her with wide eyes, stealing glances from the corner of her vision.
Is she in her right mind?
The thought was written plainly across her face.
But in the next moment.
“Ahahaha!”
The Grand Duke’s hearty laughter shattered the silence.
Julietta’s eyes widened even further. The Grand Duchess, who had worn a vacant expression throughout, also turned to look at him with evident surprise.
“Audacious! Utterly audacious!”
Yet his face was filled with nothing but laughter.
“Excellent! It would be foolish to squander such a precious opportunity. Come to me whenever you wish and speak your desire. I am eager to see what magnificent wish you will make.”
The Grand Duke laughed once more, then turned to Julietta.
“I have acquired an amusing child at my side. You chose well.”
At the rare praise, Julietta flinched.
Her eyes darted about before she answered hesitantly.
“Th-thank you, Father.”

***

On the way back to Kendrick’s Separate Residence.
“I’ve never seen Father smile like that before.”
“Really?”
“Yes. He’s someone you rarely see, and whenever you do, he wears the same expression—one that says he has no interest in anyone.”
Julietta, who had been speaking with a hint of sarcasm, opened her eyes wide and murmured.
“No, wait. There was one time he smiled similarly.”
“When was that?”
“When Kendrick received a blessing longer than Father’s.”
Just then, the two of them were passing in front of Kendrick’s Separate Residence.
Julietta stopped in her tracks and looked up at Kendrick’s Separate Residence, fidgeting with her wrist.
“One of his other children couldn’t receive a blessing and was crying, but he showed no interest in that whatsoever. He only praised the child who surpassed him, saying he did well.”
Kendrick and Julietta were twins.
Same birthday, same age—twins.
In other words, the two of them had received the blessing prayer on the same day.
So the ‘child who couldn’t receive a blessing and cried’ that she mentioned was referring to Julietta herself.
In fact, all of Ludwig’s children had been granted a blessing.
Only one person—Julietta alone—had not received an answer to the prayer.
The sorrow she must have felt at that moment was beyond words.
“Young Lady…”
“Oh my. Father did something he’s never done before, and now I’ve done something I’ve never done either.”
Hmph.
She shrugged her shoulders with self-deprecation, then tossed her hair defiantly and glared at Kendrick’s Separate Residence, which had fallen into disrepair from lack of maintenance.
“No matter how talented he is, what good is it? In the end, he’s just become a coward locked away inside the house.”
“Young Lady, do you wish for Kendrick to come outside?”
“Well—”
Julietta, who was about to answer without thinking, stopped short.
“You!”
Her face flushed red as she spun around to face Janet.
“You really have no fear, do you?”
“I’m sorry? I’m not sure what you mean.”
Seeing Janet tilt her head as if she didn’t understand, Julietta clicked her tongue.
“I’m going ahead. Don’t follow me. No, follow me slowly!”
“Come on, Young Lady. Let’s go together.”
Janet hurried after Julietta, who walked ahead with a petulant gait.

After the two of them slowly drifted apart.
Whoosh.
The pitch-black curtain drew back slightly, revealing golden eyes peering through the gap.
“I told you before. Peeping is a contemptible act.”
“I didn’t peep. I just happened to witness it.”
“Good heavens. That’s a truly cowardly excuse.”
“Weren’t you saying you were busy with experiments? If you have free time, I’ll give you other work to do.”
Owen, who oversaw magical artifact creation for Illinia, maintained his laboratory in the underground level beneath Kendrick’s Separate Residence.
He practically lived down there, and without fail, whenever he came up to the upper floors, he would tease Kendrick mercilessly.
“Yes, sir. Then I’ll take my leave and go create a new protective magical artifact for Janet.”
Owen, who had deliberately blocked any avenue for further ridicule by mentioning Janet, sipped the cocoa in his hand and headed toward the underground laboratory.
Left alone on the surface, Kendrick clicked his tongue and stared toward Julietta’s Separate Residence.
He possessed exceptionally keen hearing.
Not only his ears, but all five senses were more developed than those of ordinary people.
Perhaps it was connected to the blessing he had been granted.

「Guardian of justice, victory shall follow your steps. Advance with faith upon your back, and ‘the radiance of hope’ shall walk beside you on that path.」

The inscription, carved long enough to cover one entire arm, had coiled deep within Kendrick’s body and taken root.
After that, he had been blessed with a body somewhat sturdier than others and senses more acute than most.
Thanks to this, he could even overhear the conversation that Julietta and Janet had shared in front of the Separate Residence.

“What good is excellence if you end up a coward locked away inside the house?”
“So the Grand Duchess wishes for Kendrick to venture outside?”
“Well—”

What words might have followed that unfinished sentence?

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