The Substitute Bride is adored by the clumsy Margrave - Chapter 17.1

Chapter 17, Part 1

Meanwhile, Mary was meeting a fellow Farenheit family maid at a cafe in the heart of the royal capital.

This particular maid was one of Matilda’s personal attendants. Since Mary began working for Clarisse, this maid had frequently complained about Matilda’s selfishness and arrogance, and how she envied her serving a master like Clarisse.

After ensuring that no one could overhear, the maid began to whisper

“Lady Matilda has become extremely aggressive and violent since Lady Clarisse left.”

Mary’s thoughts were immediately visible on her face; Lady Matilda was already extremely harsh in her treatment of others, but… even worse?

“How?”

“The resentment and abuse she previously directed at Lady Clarisse are now directed at the maids, and it’s truly unbearable. The Viscount and his wife have no idea, and it’s gotten to a point where we can’t handle it.”

“Oh…”

Indeed, it must be hard to deal with. Mary shrugged her shoulders. She could easily imagine what was happening back at the viscount household.

Matilda would abuse Clarisse regardless of whether maids were present, because she regarded them as mere pieces of furniture. Mary herself has also witnessed Matilda being rough and mean to Clarisse hundreds, if not thousands, of times.

In fact, based on Mary’s character, there were many times when she couldn’t stand it. Still, she knew that if she stood up to Matilda face to face, Matilda would run to tell her employer, the Viscount, and he would remove her from being Clarisse’s maid, so she endured it just for Clarisse’s sake.

She kept telling herself that if she stayed still long enough, she would be able to secretly comfort the young lady once the evil woman had left the room.

“True, Lady Matilda is more beautiful than most, but Lady Clarisse is as well. That’s why Lady Matilda never allowed Lady Clarisse to dress up.”

This was an unspoken fact among the maids.

Although Matilda’s face is more attractive than Clarisse’s, Clarisse is also quite attractive. She would be even more stunning if she dressed up a little, but Matilda prevents her from doing so. It got to the point where she begged her parents not to take Clarisse to as many tea parties and soirées as possible.

“I’m not sure which is it, her obsession? Or hostility towards Lady Clarise is honestly too scary. Our poor Lady Clarisse… she was fortunate to be able to escape from her parents’ home. Lady Matilda, on the other hand, became disoriented as soon as she left. She had always said she had no desire to marry, but now was engaged to the Marquis’ son.”

“Hmm.”

The nickname ‘The Jewel of Farenheit’ had always drawn suitors, and she was certain there must’ve been a slew of marriage proposals from which they could choose. Meanwhile, the Marquis’ son probably only knew Matilda’s appearance.

On the outside, she appeared to be an angel, but on the inside, she was a jealous and sly snake.

Either way, after a short time of marriage, they will probably become a masked couple, pretending to be happy on the outside, like most aristocrats, so as long as they keep up appearances, the inside was irrelevant, Mary thought to herself.

“Do you remember that rumor?Everything would make sense if the rumours were true. As soon as Lady Matilda agreed to the marriage proposal, the Viscount didn’t think twice and swiftly finished all the tasks needed to make this marriage happen. Isn’t it weird, looking at how much he adores Lady Matilda?”

For a long time, a rumour had circulated among the servants, and Mary was certain that Clarisse was unaware of it.

‘Yeah, I should probably tell the Margrave about that rumor…’

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The maid seemed interested in learning more about Lady Clarisse’s fiancé, so Mary simply told her to look forward to seeing the two of them at the Farenheit house tomorrow.

And that was the end of her outing.

❁❁❁

“…… Is that true?”

Clarisse, who had gone completely pale after hearing Sid’s story, dropped down onto the couch.

“Yeah, unfortunately.”

She pressed her right hand against her shaking head, which was most likely caused by the shock. It was unbecoming of a lady, but now was not the time to worry about that.

“Are you okay? Clarisse.”

Jean, who was sitting on the sofa across from her and watching her, called out to her with concern. She looked vaguely at Jean and felt strangely at ease as she looked into his golden eyes.

‘Yes, Jean-sama said that because he wanted to help me.’

“Yes, Jean-sama, I’m sorry if I made you upset.”

“No need to apologize. We were inconsiderate. It would be upsetting to be told such a story without any prior warning.”

“It’s a terrible story, really.”

Sid agreed quietly.

“Does sister Matilda… know… about this?”

Clarisse muttered, but both Jean and Sid remained silent and shrugged their shoulders. The silence dominated the room for a while, but eventually, Jean opened his mouth.

“We need to have the right information when deciding how to fight, and we also need to consider all possible options. It is, after all, a mind game. In the end, whoever has enough of the right information will win.”

“And there he goes again…” Sid chuckled, but Clarisse nodded with a serious look on her face.

“I think you are right, Jean-sama. …Because if I didn’t know anything, I think I’d reach a different conclusion.”

His calm golden pupil met her slightly wet violet eyes.

“What I think is most important, Clarisse, is that big decisions like this should never be made in an emotional state. So, when you’re as upset as you are right now, it’s probably best not to give an answer.”

“Jean-sama…”

“So until tomorrow morning. I’ll ask you about what you want to do with this matter, whatever conclusion you come to, I’ll go with it, Clarisse.”