* * *
Realizing he’d been daydreaming about Felix in the middle of their conversation, Lowell’s face flushed red.
“Ah, yes. I’m glad to hear you say that. I heard you spoke with Henry earlier today?”
“Yes. I called him in after hearing that he’d been spreading unsavory rumors about His Grace while colluding with dismissed staff members.”
“What did he say?”
“He denied it before I even asked.”
“Do you have any idea who might have tipped him off about the rumors?”
For Henry to hear about the gossip so quickly, someone who trusted him—or at least didn’t distrust him—must have informed him.
“I can narrow it down to about five people, but I can’t say for sure.”
“Then we’ll need to scatter his group.”
Lowell sifted through Xenia’s earlier statements for useful tidbits.
“I heard Henry has been rather rude to the maids. Could there have been incidents of harassment?”
“Though I’m hesitant to say, I’m not on the best terms with some of the staff, so I don’t hear everything. However, I have heard similar rumors. It wouldn’t surprise me if he had behaved inappropriately toward the maids.”
“Why wasn’t anything done about it?”
“Because he has his followers. Stirring things up unnecessarily would’ve been risky, and gathering evidence was difficult since the staff were reluctant to speak out.”
Considering the Duke’s estate had fallen into disarray during Felix’s long neglect, it was no wonder there were limits to what Hamilton could handle.
Lowell tapped his fingers together, quickly arriving at a solution.
“Let’s summon Xenia.”
When Xenia arrived late at night, they hesitated upon seeing both Lowell and Hamilton.
The thought crossed their mind: ‘So they weren’t really going to let me off the hook after all?’
“I’m sorry for calling you at this hour, Xenia. There’s just something I wanted to ask. Don’t be too nervous.”
“Y-yes!”
Only after Lowell reassured him did Xenia quickly step forward and stand before him.
His overly animated behavior made Hamilton frown slightly, though he said nothing.
“There’s something from our earlier conversation that’s been on my mind.”
“Oh, what is it?”
In his eagerness to respond, Xenia’s voice cracked.
To ease his nerves, Lowell handed him a warm cup of tea.
Xenia hesitated, unsure if he was allowed to drink in front of his superiors, but Lowell gestured for him to go ahead.
The warm liquid helped ease the tension in his body.
“I heard the Steward has been treating the maids poorly. Were there any incidents of harassment?”
Xenia was noticeably quieter compared to when he was alone with Lowell.
“Hamilton said he felt he’d been too indifferent to the maids’ affairs until now and wants to help in whatever way he can. Xenia, you’re the most trustworthy person for this, aren’t you?”
As if rehearsed, Hamilton nodded encouragingly at Xenia, whose eyes widened at the suggestion.
‘It must hurt his pride.’
Admiring Hamilton’s approach, Lowell carefully coaxed Xenia with various words of encouragement.
After some hesitation, Xenia eventually gave in to Lowell’s persuasion and began to speak.
“Most of the maids have experienced things like casual touches—like someone brushing against their arm or pretending to pat them on the back as a form of encouragement. While it might seem insignificant, the gestures felt oddly unpleasant. Moreover, they didn’t target anyone close to the Steward.”
Lowell couldn’t help but scoff at the Steward’s audacity to act so openly, despite being involved with someone.
‘Relying on scraps of power like that—what pathetic trash.’
Masking his disgust with a faint smile, Lowell waited for Xenia to continue.
“There’s a shy girl named Jenny. She made a mistake and got called over, and the Steward touched her arm and said something inappropriate. She came back crying her eyes out.”
“Oh no. That must have been so hard for her.”
“Yes. And that same day, another friend who shares a room with Jenny confided in me that she’d had a similar experience. They wanted to report it to the head maid, but she’s always so busy…”
Though Xenia was being diplomatic, it was clear that many believed the Steward’s influence would prevent anything from changing.
Lowell’s face hardened as he processed the situation, which was even more repulsive than he’d expected.
“Thank you for telling me, Xenia. Do you know if Jenny has a partner? Don’t worry—we’ll ensure no harm comes to her, so please be honest.”
“Yes, I heard she’s seeing one of the other servants.”
“Thank you.”
After dismissing Xenia, Lowell turned to Hamilton and shook his head.
“They’ve spread their filth so evenly it’s made the work easier. Hamilton, gather more testimonies, and check if Henry’s been playing games with the servants’ money.”
“Money?”
“With this level of behavior, there’s a good chance he’s been tampering with their wages. Gather any evidence, no matter how small.”
Lowell knew the best way to dismantle a power group: break their trust.
By instilling a sense of betrayal—that someone had been secretly exploiting them—he could shatter their unity.
Money and love were the strongest tools for this.
‘People fear betrayal more when it comes from someone they once trusted than from someone they disliked from the start.’
Revealing and resolving this matter would also boost Hamilton’s reputation as the head Steward.
‘If we can spin this to suggest that Henry distorted Hamilton’s orders, even better.’
Satisfied, Lowell fell into a peaceful sleep that night.
“I’ve gathered all the evidence and testimonies,” Hamilton reported two days later.
“Once the maids learned their colleagues had been harmed, they united quickly. Even the head maid, unaware of everything, was full of regret.”
“Of course. Those kinds of scumbags are usually very good at gauging people’s reactions.”
Some of the servants were enraged to discover their partners had been mistreated.
Learning about the financial manipulations pushed many over the edge.
While a few still clung to their faith in Henry, it was only a matter of time before they, too, turned away.
“When the duke returns, we’ll handle everything at once.”
“It’ll feel like pulling out a rotten tooth.”
Finally, it was the day Felix was due to return. L
owell tried to suppress the nervous anticipation that had built up over the past few days.
“Yes, he’s expected to arrive soon.”
“Understood.”
Lowell attempted to wait patiently but couldn’t resist his restless energy.
He ended up heading out to the garden, eager to catch even the slightest glimpse of Felix sooner.
“It’s cold out here.”
“I’ll stay warm.”
Despite the knights’ concerns, Lowell, already bubbling with excitement, ignored their warnings.
Dressed warmly, he positioned himself at the best vantage point to see the castle gates.
An hour passed, and then the grand gates began to open, revealing Felix atop a black horse, bathed in sunlight.
Rising to his feet, Lowell gazed at him in a daze.
“Lowell!”
Spotting him, Felix dismounted and ran.
Though he wanted to rush over on horseback, he worried the horse might accidentally harm Lowell.
“Your nose is as red as an apple!”
Standing before Lowell, Felix immediately fussed over him, his voice full of concern.
Lowell responded with a silvery laugh, a sound so enchanting that Felix felt his heart swell as though it might burst.
* * *
