Swan Grave - Chapter 34

‘Rothbart might have another woman… I might not be the only substitute for the Marchioness…’

It was all nothing but her own imagination, yet just thinking of it made her heart pound violently and her blood run dry. Anna forced herself to act calm and tried to focus on pitting cherries, but the hand holding the cherry pitter trembled and missed several times.

Another maid working in the kitchen quickly asked Betty, “Did you see her up close?”

“No. From afar. But even at a glance, she was a beauty.”

Betty smirked, opening her fingers one by one as she added, “Noble, unmarried, beautiful… She has the perfect trio. So our Miss Schwartz, with her feet to the fire, must have rushed over to flatter her, don’t you think?”

“Miss Schwartz?”

“Yes. She even trailed after the master to the meeting with the guest. She doesn’t even know her place.”

Betty shook her head as if in disgust.

“Truly a shameless woman. She’s only a governess, so what right does she have to step into the place where guests are received? Does she think she’s the lady of Lohengrin?”

“I heard they met once in the capital.”

Jo, who had arrived at the kitchen a step late, added. With her hands on her hips, Jo shook her head as if it were ridiculous.

“Anyway, I knew it would come to this. Betty, the others were asking when you’d be back.”

“It’s not like I was gone long. Anyway, what’s this about them meeting in the capital?”

Betty pressed Jo. She looked as though she wouldn’t budge unless Jo told the story. The other kitchen maids’ eyes gleamed as they stared at Jo. Pushed by their silent urging, Jo let out a sigh and opened her mouth.

“Miss Schwartz attended the academic society gatherings in the capital a few times before. I think they met there. The nuance was like that.”

“Then did the master also meet her at one of those academic gatherings?”

“Who knows. It might have been the academic society, or a ball… We don’t know anything about what the master does in the capital. If you’re so curious, why don’t you ask Miss Schwartz yourself?”

Betty shuddered and shouted, “Are you crazy?”

Unable to stand the chatter any longer, the kitchen head Cathy smacked the edge of a pot with the wooden spoon in her hand.

“So this kitchen is your hideout now? Chattering about such nonsense.”

“But Cathy, aren’t you honestly curious too?”

Betty shamelessly retorted, unfazed by Cathy’s glaring glare. Cathy’s mouth twitched as if she didn’t completely dislike Betty’s brazenness. But Cathy quickly waved her solid, thick forearm firmly in dismissal.

“Enough, enough. In this mansion, curiosity is forbidden. Nothing good comes from knowing too much. Especially about the master’s business. Things might feel relaxed lately with no big incidents, but remember this again. That’s the only way you’ll last long in this mansion.”

At Cathy’s warning, Betty and Jo fell silent. The atmosphere in the kitchen made it awkward to keep chatting, so Betty and Jo quickly left, leaving only the kitchen maids behind. But when Cathy glared, even they scurried back to their tasks.

Susan, watching nervously, slowly crept over to Anna and whispered anxiously, “Honestly, you shouldn’t be here, should you? Shouldn’t you be by the master’s side?”

“…I’m just a maid. I only go when the master calls me.”

Anna replied as if nothing was wrong, but inside, her heart was burning black.

What if he gave his heart to that Lady Brabant or whatever she was, and never called for me again? If he flipped his attitude toward me like turning over a hand, how could I ever persuade him?

The words he whispered about celebrating her brief freedom now felt distant. At this rate, just to keep him, she might have to swallow her pride and head to his room that evening…

Click!

The cherry pit popped out and juice splattered with a sharp snap. It jolted her awake as if she had heard a gunshot.

Anna scolded herself for drifting into such thoughts. It was a chilling imagination.

I will return to my original world anyway, so what does it matter whom he lives with here? If he doesn’t call me, then I just have to bear someone else’s child and return to my world.

Anna pretended as if nothing was wrong, but the thought of being embraced by a man other than Rothbart was something she couldn’t even imagine. Was she imprinted by her first man? At the thought, a corner of her chest throbbed as if pierced by a needle.

How long had it been since she steeled herself that the Marchioness’s place was not hers, yet lately she kept being seized by these absurd emotions. For now, reason remained, barely holding her together, but once she was completely conquered by him, she would no longer have the strength to resist.

Anna focused on her task. She didn’t want to think about anything.

***

But things always flow contrary to one’s wishes. Suddenly, a footman appeared in the kitchen looking for Anna.

“The Marquess calls for you. Go quickly to the first drawing room.”

“Now?”

“Yes. There’s no time to dawdle. Hurry.”

The footman urged Anna. What was happening? Startled, Anna rose from her seat. The other maids in the kitchen were also dumbfounded, not knowing what was going on.

Meeting Susan’s worried gaze, Anna gave a small reassuring smile before following the footman. He was someone she occasionally exchanged greetings with in passing. Striding quickly down the corridor, Anna asked him quietly.

“What’s going on?”

“I don’t know either.”

The footman shook his head. Then, before they reached the drawing room, he added in a cautionary tone.

“The guest and the master don’t seem to be on easy terms, so steel yourself. Don’t show any weakness they can seize upon.”

“…Thank you.”

Though it wasn’t much detail, it was enough. Taking a deep breath, Anna stared resolutely at the drawing room door.

The footman opened it, revealing the scene inside. The first drawing room, used to receive important guests, was not a place Anna usually entered. An unfamiliar space, and an even stranger scene—two women chatting with Rothbart between them.

Anna tried her best to hide her dismay and carefully stepped into the room, one step at a time. It felt like walking into a tiger’s den on her own feet.

“Is this the maid?”

The young woman she had never seen before looked at Anna and asked with a laugh in her voice. She must be the guest of the mansion, the third daughter of the Count of Brabant.

Around Anna’s own age perhaps. Red eyes and chestnut hair drew attention. Yet despite the vivid, striking colors, she seemed somewhat frail, a delicate beauty.

“The Marquess Lohengrin has taken on a personal maid for the first time, and I was curious, so I asked to see you. I’ve known the Marquess for quite some time, but I’ve never heard of him having a valet, let alone a personal maid. Truly, you seem meticulous and clever, as if you’d be good at your duties.”

“…You flatter me.”

Anna bit the inside of her cheek and bowed her head. The young lady’s voice was gentle, her manner warm, yet her words stung sharply. Each word pierced Anna’s chest like a needle.

While Anna was bowing so humbly, Rose—herself no more than another employee—sat on the drawing room sofa as if of equal rank with Rothbart and the Count of Brabant’s daughter, looking at Anna with disdain. Rose quickly chimed in to echo the young lady’s words.

“That’s right. Miss Anna is very diligent and sincere. Look at her even now. She probably had no particular tasks today, yet she still found work to do before coming here.”

Her red lips curved with hostility. At Rose’s mocking words, Anna suddenly recalled her own appearance. Her white apron was stained with splotches of cherry juice that had turned brown, making her look shabby. Sitting in the same room as Rose, dressed up to the nines, and the Count of Brabant’s daughter, Anna’s appearance stood out as all the more pitiful.

While the two women appraised Anna between them, Rothbart looked at her with an unreadable expression, his thoughts unknown.