Jane was waiting for her meal in her room. Usually, she would have gone down to the dining room to eat. But she was completely drained from her battle of wills with Mrs. Themis.

When Jane continued to tremble but refused to bend her knees, Mrs. Themis was the first to surrender.

That didn’t make the education any easier though. Mrs. Themis’s training was still awful. As a result, Jane gained tremendous muscle pain.

So she had requested a meal to be brought up, but…

Jane burst out laughing when she saw the tray Michelle placed on the table.

She didn’t even have the energy to laugh, but she couldn’t help it when she saw the tray.

Tomato soup had splattered everywhere, making a mess of the dishes and bread.

It was in no state to be eaten. The condition of the bread that was brought was also strange.

Jane pressed down on the bread. Rather than the rock-hard bread giving way, her finger sank into it.

It was bread that couldn’t be eaten unless thoroughly soaked in soup. But the soup had splattered everywhere and was now just thinly coating the bottom of the plate.

The Jane of yesterday would have eaten it gratefully. But the current Jane couldn’t do that. The situation had changed, so she needed to show an appropriate attitude.

“Bring it again.”

Jane gave Michelle one more chance. She thought that since she was a maid sent by Cain, she would understand if educated.

Michelle went down with the tray without a word.

So Jane had hopes that she could properly train Michelle and keep her by her side.

Unfortunately, that hope turned out to be in vain.

The food Michelle brought the second time was even worse.

The tomato soup had no chunks in it at all, the dishes were still a mess, and the vegetables in the newly brought salad were all wilted. This time there was no bread or meat either.

Michelle had come to pick a real fight with Jane.

Were there only troublemakers in the Hastings family? Everyone seemed desperate to fight with Jane.

Jane had no strength left to fight. But she didn’t want to lose.

She knew well that if she took a step back here, something even worse would be waiting for her next time.

Jane narrowed her eyes.

This was Jane, who had overcome even the nastiness of Mrs. Themis, called the witch. At the very least, she was confident she wouldn’t lose.

“Again.”

Michelle went down again.

“Bring warm food.”

Michelle went up and down between the first and fourth floors without rest. Sweat began to soak through her thin dress.

“This is so dirty, I can’t do it!”

Michelle snapped in frustration as she headed to the dining room for the fourth time.

“Why can’t she just eat what she’s given? If she wants something specific, she can come down to the dining room herself! It’s not like we’re training a mutt! Again, again, again!”

Michelle shuddered in disgust. In doing so, she almost dropped the tray.

Tomato soup that had spilled over the dishes flowed down onto the silver tray like blood.

“She must have eaten just anything before. Pretending to be high-class.”

With no one around, Michelle’s complaints grew louder.

Michelle dumped all the food into the trash can in front of the dining room.

“Chef, she says this doesn’t suit her taste either. She must have only eaten the finest things. I think your cooking is the most delicious and best…”

“So you threw it away again?”

Pudica, the Hastings family chef, turned red when he saw the tray.

“She said how could anyone eat this and overturned the soup bowl.”

Michelle trailed off, glancing at Pudica.

If it doesn’t suit her taste she could just say so, why throw away perfectly good food!

It was an insult to him. He couldn’t tolerate it any longer. Pudica untied and threw down his apron.

“I can’t do this anymore!”

Michelle laughed inwardly. It had been worth secretly swapping out the food and bringing it to Jane.

Michelle hummed a tune as she headed to Jane’s room.

“Oh no, miss. The chef has gone home.”

Jane’s face darkened. In contrast, Michelle’s face brightened.

She felt satisfied that Jane, who had made her work so hard, would now go hungry.

Jane may have gone hungry, but this absolved her of any wrongdoing. It was all Jane’s own doing. If questioned, she could just blame Pudica.

Michelle was in a good mood.

* * *

“She didn’t eat?”

Cain rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache upon hearing Nathan’s report.

“Yes. It seems she’s very picky about food. She rejected Pudica’s cooking repeatedly.”

Cain’s expression was enigmatic.

Cain knew that the reason Jane refused to eat wasn’t because of Pudica’s cooking, but because of Michelle’s attitude.

Cain had coincidentally overheard Michelle’s complaints. Arrogant grumbling that she wouldn’t dare voice in front of her master.

But Cain ignored it. Few people in the Hastings family looked kindly upon Jane.

Jane didn’t know, but there were quite a few who had suffered because of their involvement with the Whitney family.

The most notable victims were Cain and the previous Duke and Duchess of Hastings.

If Cain took Jane’s side and said something, the outward hostility would subside, but he felt no need to do so.

There were likely many people who held animosity towards her, so it wouldn’t end with just one or two incidents.

He didn’t want to be bothered, which is why he called Jane to Somnium House.

Whether it was the Joseph issue, internal family matters, or keeping an eye on Jane – he wanted to be comfortable.

So she needed to resolve these minor issues on her own.

Cain had learned from a young age that properly managing subordinates was a master’s ability.

That all problems arising from failing to properly manage one’s subordinates were one’s own responsibility.

Therefore, the Michelle issue was something Jane needed to handle herself.

“Should I have a meal prepared and sent up? Pudica has completely given up.”

“Leave it be.”

“Really?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“Understood.”

Nathan felt a bit uneasy but refrained from saying more about Jane.

Something seemed to be going seriously wrong, but he didn’t know what it was.

Bringing up something he didn’t understand would likely only get him scolded. In times like these, it was best to keep quiet.

“Oh, Vincent was asking if you won’t be coming to the club?”

Vincent was the owner of the gentlemen’s club Cain frequented. He was also the person who managed Cain’s black hawks.

“It’s been… how long since I went to the club?”

“About a week, sir. You haven’t gone since you decided to marry Jane.”

“Why connect those two things?”

“Because it’s the truth.”

“Your cause and effect is wrong. I should go today.”

Cain gathered his outer garments. Nathan immediately followed suit.

“Will you be returning at dawn?”

“Why do you ask?”

“Usually when you go out, you come back at dawn. I was thinking of getting a good rest at home.”

“Even if I come back earlier, I won’t be calling for you, so sleep well.”

“Then there’s no problem,” Nathan replied good-naturedly and followed to see Cain off.

Though it was late at night, a carriage for Cain was quickly prepared.

As he went down to the entrance, Norbert was waiting for Cain with a face full of things to say.

“Your Grace, I have something to say about Miss Jane.”

“I’m on my way out, Norbert. If it’s not an important matter, I’d like to hear it tomorrow.”

Norbert hesitated, then closed his mouth. Saying he’d listen tomorrow was the same as saying he didn’t want to hear it.

Though Norbert cared for Jane, his actual master was Cain. The one he had to obey was also Cain.

Cain looked satisfied as Norbert stepped back, then got into the carriage. When he knocked on the carriage door, the coachman briskly urged the horses on.

Even the horses seemed excited about the night outing after so long.

Once the carriage carrying Cain had completely disappeared, Norbert said in a dejected tone:

“He’s going to be late, Nathan?”

“Seems he’ll be back tomorrow.”

A look of concern settled on Norbert’s face.

* * *

Contrary to Nathan and Norbert’s conversation, Cain returned to Somnium House just past midnight.

The gentlemen’s club was a mess today. Ruffians high on opium had brought in loads of courtesans and ruined the atmosphere.

‘I suppose that’s how gentlemen are supposed to play.’

Cain clicked his tongue and shook his head.

It was a gentlemen’s club in name only; looking at how it operated, it was no different from a club for debauchery.

Especially at night, it was embarrassing that they didn’t change the sign.

During the day, there were indulgences at the level of card games, but at night it was completely different.

In the basement of the gentlemen’s club, which only opened at night, debaucheries that commoners couldn’t even imagine took place.

Nobles were nothing more than corrupted demons wrapped in respectable shells.

Cain turned a blind eye to such behavior. It was because the Queen had instructed him to condone it. Helena didn’t want the nobles to become too clever, except for the few she used as her hands and feet.

So Cain watched the nobles’ indulgences as long as it didn’t cause a stir.

But today he was disgusted by the nobles’ pathetic behavior.

The whiskey he usually enjoyed tasted off, the music was unsatisfactory, and he lost several hands of cards in a row.

He felt no excitement even from the woman who kept rubbing her chest against his arm.

So he came home earlier than planned. He intended to soak in the bathtub and wash off all the smells from the gentlemen’s club.

Cain quietly silenced the servant who was about to announce his return, then strode up the stairs.

Soon reaching his room, Cain grasped the doorknob.

Thinking about lying in the bathtub, his taut nerves began to loosen a bit.

That’s when it happened.

Thump!

An out-of-place sound for the late hour came from the end of the hallway. Cain’s nerves tensed up again.

A thief?

If so, he intended to handle it before the knights moved.

He pulled out the revolver tucked in his pocket and headed towards the source of the sound with muffled steps.

On a night when clouds covered the moon, the surroundings were dark. But there was no difficulty in finding the source of the sound.

Cain’s eyes narrowed. A round shape was fidgeting in the darkness.

A thief, or an intruder.

Which could it be?

Cain was a man with many enemies. The Rose Faction had designated Cain as their number one target for purging, and the Kingdom of Instan was the same.

No one had ever snuck into his home before, but he couldn’t be careless.

Cain moved quietly and aimed his gun at the back of the unidentifiable person’s head.

The figure, too small to be a thief or assassin, shook violently and raised both hands.

“It’s me, it’s me. Cain, it’s me.”

Jane’s scent brushed Cain’s nose.

“Jane?”