QHIM chapter 10- Fake Miracle

As the other maids exchanged nervous glances, the young maid, still oblivious, chattered on excitedly.

“Did you see the clothes she wore yesterday? It made me realize something. Until now, we didn’t notice because she was always overshadowed by Miss Marie’s brilliance. But coming from a backwater place like Sacre, her taste is just… well…”

The maid who had been eagerly badmouthing me fell silent. I looked at her with a dull expression as our eyes met. The maid, trembling, quickly lowered herself to the floor.

“L-Lady Jeanne! I didn’t mean anything bad…”

Are you all doing this on purpose just so I can hear you? If you’re going to talk behind your employer’s back, at least do it in a more private place.

The other maids, sensing danger, quickly scattered.

My experience as a novel writer told me that readers would expect some kind of retaliation here. But there was one problem.

I didn’t feel anything at all.

This isn’t even really my face. And what’s the use of a guy being prettier than noble ladies?

So I hesitated for a moment. What would the original Jeanne do in this situation?

He’d probably grab that maid and hang her from the mansion’s roof, torturing her mercilessly.

I sighed, arms crossed, as I pondered.

‘What’s the point of playing the villainess role when I’m likely headed for the asylum anyway?’

I approached the maid, who was frantically trying to explain herself, and reached out my hand. The maid, who had tightly shut her eyes, flinched.

“Get up.”

“…What?”

“The floor is soaked.”

The floor was indeed wet, probably because she had been cleaning the hallway. I grabbed her hand and pulled her up, despite her bewildered expression. The maid, fidgeting nervously, cautiously began to speak.

“Um, Lady Jeanne… About the things I just said about you…”

“Huh? Oh… that. It’s fine. But where is the Duke?”

“…You’re fine with it?”

I changed my mind. I decided to meet the Duke first, no matter what, and beg for mercy, whatever the outcome might be.

I had experience begging loan sharks to wait just one more month, so I was confident I could plead pathetically well.

‘But why is this maid so annoying? Why won’t she just answer my question and let me go?’

I was starting to get irritated by the maid who kept holding me up when I needed to meet the Duke before I was sent to the psychiatric ward.

My expression grew stiffer, and the maid grabbed my leg in desperation.

“Lady Jeanne! I was wrong! Please don’t cast me out!”

“Look, I said it’s fine. Why are you acting like this? Just answer me—where is the Duke?”

“I-I’ll do anything you ask! Just don’t leave me to be devoured by monsters in the Northern Territory! Please don’t send me to the frigid Northern lands!”

Jeanne, you really didn’t have a shred of innocence, did you?

Watching the maid beg for her life so desperately made my head throb.

Jeanne, already framed as a villainess, was terrifying whether she was cruel or kind. I wondered how to handle this, and suddenly, an idea came to me.

“What’s your name?”

“T-Twitty.”

“Twitty, huh? That’s a fitting name. So, how about this—would you help me out from now on?”

“H-help you?”

The maid looked baffled. It was unheard of for the proud original Jeanne to ask a maid for help. But there was some truth in what the maid had said.

“Like you said, I’m from tSacre, so… I’m not really familiar with the rumors or trends among noble ladies. Since you like gossiping, you could just tell me when you hear something.”

The social world of noble ladies might seem peaceful on the surface, but it was actually a battlefield. For ladies who didn’t wield swords, information warfare was the closest thing to combat.

Since I had to live as Jeanne now, I figured I’d inevitably get entangled with other noble ladies, whether I liked it or not.

‘Twitty is like a kind of social media. If I can learn about the latest trends or who’s influential in the social scene, I can avoid a lot of trouble.’

Twitty’s face was a mix of confusion and suspicion at my sudden proposal. She couldn’t tell if I was complimenting her or insulting her.

I crouched down to her level, smiling cheerfully as I continued.

“But let’s be clear—if you ever betray me, like you almost did today… well, unless you’ve lost your mind, that won’t happen, but if it does…”

“…”

“Ah, hand me that broom.”

Twitty handed over the broom without hesitation. I gripped the broom tightly, and with a simple snap, it broke.

Even though Jeanne had a beautiful face, he was still a man, so his grip strength was different from other ladies.

I tossed the broken broom aside. As Twitty, who was on the verge of a panic attack, stared at me, I spoke softly.

“I’ll be holding you accountable for everything, including today’s gossip.”

“Hiic.”

“Your answer should always be ‘yes.’”

“Y-yes!”

I lightly pinched Twitty’s cheek as she whimpered.

Though I may appear this way, my true self is a 20-something adult man, Ji Eunsoo, so the young maids looked like cute little cousins to me.

‘Not that I’d actually get close to them, though.’

After a while of training Twitty in a military-like manner, I turned my head at the sound of footsteps approaching from behind. Duke Carlotte was looking down at me with his characteristic chilly expression.

A maid crying pitifully.

Jeanne smiling wickedly.

This is… the perfect setup for a villainess!

“What are you doing?”

“Ah, well…”

Just as I was racking my brain for a good excuse, Twitty, who had been on the verge of tears, suddenly stepped forward.

Her tears had dried up without my noticing, and she spoke in a trembling voice.

“Lady Jeanne was helping me up after I fell.”

“The lady was?”

“Yes, she was worried that my clothes would get wet since the floor was covered in water… She’s truly a kind person.”

The Duke’s expression turned subtle at Twitty’s words. Meanwhile, I quietly marveled to myself.

‘Oh, look at this. She’s sharper than she looks and has guts too. It seems I’ve found a more useful informant than I expected.’

Of course, I doubted she had genuinely opened her heart to Jeanne. She probably just wanted to get ahead of me before I could snitch about her talking behind my back.

Well, it didn’t matter either way. Using each other was the name of the game, after all. In fact, dealing with someone as cunning as Twitty was much easier. You don’t feel guilty using nice people.

As I was indulging in thoughts befitting a villain, I met the Duke’s gaze and immediately put on a harmless smile.

“Duke, could I have a moment of your time? There’s something I’d like to discuss.”

Instead of answering, Duke Carlotte turned his body, signaling me to follow. I obediently trailed behind him.

“Treating your servants with humanity is a good attitude. The more prestigious the family, the more upright their conduct should be. Abusing power behind the family’s name is the kind of thing people who bought their titles do.”

For some reason, the Duke looked oddly pleased.

If he knew what I had just said to Twitty, he wouldn’t be saying that. But since I needed to behave, I responded politely.

“Yes, I’ll keep that in mind.”

The atmosphere was so peaceful it was almost unsettling. Even the Duke’s tone seemed to have changed.

I couldn’t help but wonder if this was like playing classical music to a cow before slaughtering it.

“By the way… what are your plans for this afternoon?”

I froze at the Duke’s unexpected question.