The sight of the burned woman laying on the ground caused the Duke's eyes to narrow. His brow furrowed further as he turned quickly to face the assembly of knights and maids. "Who knows this maid?" he questioned in a cut-throat, forceful tone that made the entire room shudder. His question was met with fearful silence rather than a response.
Frustrated by the lack of response, the Duke's voice rose, "I will not ask again. Who. Knows. This. Maid?" Everyone in the room flinched, afraid of the tension that had suddenly grown unbearable as his words broke. Finally, a pair of women advanced, bowing their heads simultaneously.
"W-We know her, Your Grace," one of them stammered, her voice trembling. The other, not making eye contact with anyone, nodded in accord.
"But I swear I had nothing to do with it," the other maid said while shaking.
Selene stood next to Merly and silently observed the conversation. Her mind wandered as she examined the burnt woman's face and that of the two servants. There was something about them… something familiar. Then, like a lightning bolt, the memory hit her.
Without thinking, she shouted, "They were the three maids who plotted to steal from me earlier today!
The space became completely quiet. Everyone looked at Selene, and for a long moment, not a single person moved. The Duke's expression darkened as he looked from Selene to the two maids. The maids shook their heads in fear and dropped to their knees.
"It's not true, Your Grace!" one of them cried. "We didn't plan anything—"
However, before they could say anything more, Maid Merly moved forward, her voice firm but cool. "Your Grace, it is true. Earlier today, I overheard these three talking about stealing from the young lady. I told them that I would personally report them to you if they did anything."
The two maids started pleading, still on their knees, "It's not true! Gratitude, please, we—"
The Duke lost all patience in an instant. "Enough!" he yelled angrily. "Knights, take these women out right now. Throw them out. I don't want thieves living in my home."
However, the Duchess, who had been quiet the whole time, noticed something strange: the burned-looking maid was still holding something in her burned hand.
"Wait," the Duchess said, sharply. "What is she holding?"
The Duke looked uninterested, clearly ready to be done with the situation. "Leave it," he muttered.
But the Duchess persisted. "No. Open her hand."
The Duchess gave the knights a searing look as they moved. The maid let out a spine-tingling cry of agony as they reluctantly cracked open her burned hand. There was a tiny peach-colored pendant in her hand. Compared to the other jewelry in the drawer, I was simple yet adorable. It was cute but plain compared to the other jewelry in the drawer.
Everyone in the room stopped, staring at the jewelry. Selene stood confused behind Maid Merly. She wondered what made that jewelry so unique.
What is so special about that pendant? she thought.
The Duke's angry face turned red. "That necklace. He shouted, "How dare they touch it!" "Take them to the yard, knights. They're going to get whipped a hundred times!
Taking the pendant from the woman's hand, the Duchess said icily, "And severed one of their hands. Pathetic robbers. They had to take this necklace out of all the items in the drawer that they could have taken."
The maids' eyes grew wide with fear. They began weeping and appealing for pardon, fully aware that their efforts would be in vain.
They sobbed, "It was just a joke, Your Grace; we had no idea she would steal from the young woman. Good Lord and Lady, please have mercy!"
However, the Duke and Duchess refused to accept it. The two women's cries resounded through the hallways as the knights dragged them out of the room. The woman who had been burned moaned in agony as she was taken out of the room.
The Duke and Duchess spoke briefly before departing, the Duchess continuing to hold the pendant tightly in her palm, while the room fell silent. To avoid being drawn into it as well, the butler and the other maids kept their heads down and avoided even looking at the Duke and Duchess.
Following the departure of the Duke and Duchess, the butler and maids hurried out of the room, leaving just Selene and Maid Merly.
Still attempting to make sense of what had happened, Selene stood in the center of the damp room. She couldn't figure out what the pendant meant, but it seemed to have immense significance.
Is it a relic? A charm? Why are they acting like this?
The game had relics and charms used to make the Saintess Era and the five male leads stronger.
I've seen every single relic and charms in the game, but I've never seen this one. I wonder if it is a magical item.
Before she could mull on that anymore, Maid Merly gently took her by the arm. "Come, My Lady. Let's get you changed.
Selene nodded absent-mindedly, still lost in thought as Merly led her into the bathroom to clean up and change into dry clothes. After she had changed, Merly helped her out of the room. "We should leave for tonight. The fumes from the fire and burnt fabric are too dangerous for you to stay here."
Merly prepared a plain but tidy room for Selene as she escorted her to the servants' quarters. Before long, Selene was lying on that unfamiliar bed, her thoughts still racing with unresolved questions. However, eventually, fatigue overcame her and she fell into a restless slumber.