Upon entering the drawing room, Nelia saw Charlotte sipping tea.

Her downcast eyes as she drank made her look like an adorable, innocent cat.

“Charlotte?”

At the sound of Nelia’s voice, Charlotte slowly lifted her head. A spark of life returned to her vacant eyes, and she rose from her seat to embrace Nelia.

“Nelia……!”

Nelia had to momentarily consider whether she was close enough to Charlotte to warrant such an intimate greeting.

Somehow taken aback by Charlotte’s excessive response, Nelia felt awkward as Charlotte’s arms slowly released her.

Charlotte realized someone else was with Nelia and looked up.

“This person is…….”

Nelia also glanced at Duke Hart.

His expression was subtly stiff, somewhat reminiscent of the feeling she got when facing Carlos.

While puzzled by his rigid expression, Nelia first thought she should introduce Duke Hart to Charlotte.

“Charlotte, this is Duke Hart, the owner of this mansion. He is also the one I serve.”

Charlotte looked at Duke Hart.

“I see…….”

Nelia suddenly wondered what Charlotte felt upon seeing the Duke for the first time.

‘…Does she think he’s impressive?’

In the original story, Charlotte felt a strong attraction to the Duke upon their first meeting.

However, she ends up falling for Carlos because she gradually learns about the Duke’s secret, cruel actions.

Had she not discovered those deeds, she might have fallen for the Duke instead.

Therefore, considering the Duke has now abandoned thoughts of revenge, there was nothing to prevent Charlotte from liking him.

The cold realization made Nelia’s heart flutter anxiously.

“Nelia?”

Roused by the Duke’s calling, Nelia hurriedly finished the introduction.

“Ah… Duke, this is the Charlotte I mentioned.”

The Duke’s gaze turned to Charlotte.

Judging by his slightly widened eyes, he appeared a little surprised.

Whether it was because Charlotte lacked noble status, or because he found it surprising that a commoner was friends with him, or because of her beautiful face, it was hard to tell.

However, the Duke soon wore a gentle smile as he usually behaved courteously towards even his inferiors.

“Pleased to meet you.”

Charlotte did not reciprocate the greeting but stared intently at the Duke’s face.

Nelia knew, having read the original story, that Charlotte’s manners were somewhat lacking.

Raised freespirited in a rural monastery, it couldn’t be helped.

That commoner Charlotte acted so naturally around a noble like her perhaps revealed her lack of prejudice.

Charlotte grew up in a very remote valley, after all.

“Hello…….”

It was only after scrutinizing the Duke for a while that Charlotte greeted him in a small voice.

Nelia felt worn out just from them exchanging greetings.

She had hoped that the Duke might say, “I’ve said hello, now you two talk,” and leave, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of doing so when she looked at him.

Finally, Nelia asked the Duke,

“Your Grace, will you be staying with us?”

“I have guests in my house; I would like to entertain them myself,” the Duke responded with a pleasant tone.

However, Nelia felt her mood darken. She couldn’t explain why, but she wasn’t comfortable with the Duke being there.

Suppressing her discomfort, Nelia turned to Charlotte.

“Charlotte, are you okay with the Duke being here?”

Nelia placed her hopes on Charlotte, but she simply nodded.

“…Yes, it’s fine.”

That Charlotte agreed was even more surprising.

Nelia felt her mood sink further but tried not to show it.

She didn’t want to reveal the unpleasant feelings bubbling up inside her.

Struggling to compose herself, Nelia sat on the sofa arranged in the drawing room.

The first to break the silence was Charlotte.

“Nelia.”

Her voice sounded unusually somber.
“I apologize for showing up unannounced….”

Charlotte’s social skills had been low in Nelia’s expectations, so she hadn’t anticipated an apology.

Moreover, Charlotte’s downcast eyes seemed genuinely apologetic. If she had ears, they would have been drooping.

“It was a tough day for me, and I thought of Nelia….”

Upon hearing Charlotte’s words, Nelia was reminded of a forgotten part of the original work.

Charlotte experiences numerous hardships after moving to the capital.

She is bullied at the monastery, and part of the money she brought is stolen. She even knows the backstory of wandering the streets to find the thief who took her money.

Nelia’s eyes met with Charlotte’s gloomy gaze.

‘…Could it be that she was robbed today?’

She was tense for something that wasn’t even her business.

“Did anything happen, Charlotte…?”

Charlotte cautiously lifted her eyes that had been shaking.

“I’m ashamed to say this… but my money was stolen today.”

Ah, as she’d suspected. Nelia touched her forehead.

“I noticed the money I’d placed in my drawer was gone… despite the door being firmly locked.”

Upon hearing Charlotte’s naive words, Nelia couldn’t help but frown deeply.

Because the culprit must be the priest sharing the room with her…!