The Lady You Want to Kill

Beatrice stands up from her seat. Since Felix doesn’t seem to have any intention of getting up, she thinks it’s better for her to leave. Besides, she has an appointment, so it won’t be a problem to leave him occupying her room.

“I have an appointment, so I’ll go out. If you want to stay here, feel free to do so.”

Without waiting for a response, she left the room with Laura by her side. Laura’s expression appeared oddly stiff. In the late morning, Agatha had already gone to attend Marchioness Verandi’s tea time.

Beatrice and Agatha had arranged to meet at a dress shop in the capital city around two o’clock. Since it wouldn’t be a problem to leave now, Beatrice knew it would be more enjoyable than sitting huddled up in that room.

Having completed all preparations before Felix’s arrival, she just needed to board the carriage. She left through the main entrance, where the coachman escorted her to the carriage.

Sitting across from her, Laura kept shifting her gaze. Beatrice tried to ignore it, but Laura’s fidgety lips hinted at her desire to talk. Eventually, Beatrice looked at her.

“Do you have something to say?” 

“Oh, are you alright, miss?”

Whenever Felix visited Beatrice’s room, Laura would secretly worry. At the age of twenty-six this year, Laura had been working in the Duke’s household since she was sixteen, so she knew well what kind of personality the second young master of the family had.

He wasn’t a bad person, but she was concerned about how he never held back his words, and now, such a situation had occurred. Although the young lady was reserved in speech and expression, she still couldn’t stop worrying.

Laura had been working in the ducal household since she was sixteen, and at the age of twenty-six, she knew Felix’s personality well. While he wasn’t a bad person, Laura was apprehensive about his unrestrained words and the current situation.

Taking care of Beatrice, Laura had initially viewed it as just a job. However, over time, she found herself constantly worrying about the young lady’s well-being and potential encounters with problems.

After the difficult times in the annex, Beatrice seemed to behave as if she were on the verge of giving up on life. She rarely initiated conversations, seldom smiled, never cried, got angry, or displayed interest in anything. Observing her throughout the day, Laura naturally sensed that Beatrice lacked enthusiasm for life.

Laura’s deep concern for Beatrice weighed heavily on her heart. Despite hoping for gradual improvement in Beatrice’s well-being as the environment improved, her anxiety continued to cause unease.

“What else could be wrong?”

“Shall I inform the duchess?”

Laura’s deep concern for Beatrice weighed heavily on her heart. Despite hoping for gradual improvement in Beatrice’s well-being as the environment improved, her anxiety continued to cause unease.

In truth, Laura reported Beatrice’s daily activities to the Duchess, ensuring nothing was omitted from her reports. However, she attempted to choose her words carefully when discussing Beatrice, hoping to improve the young lady’s mood even the slightest bit.

“Do as you please.”

Beatrice responded defiantly, aware that even if she didn’t give permission, her activities would still be reported to the Duchess. Laura nodded vigorously, understanding the situation.

As the conversation ended, she turned her gaze out of the carriage window. Listening to the coachman’s voice, which seemed to be trying to control the speeding horses, Laura pondered. Why does she work so hard like that?

When the carriage arrived in front of the luxurious dress shop, Laura was taken aback by its grand exterior. According to the Duchess, it was run by the most famous dress designer in the capital city.

Although most young ladies prepared for their debutante balls six months in advance, it seemed Beatrice’s turn had come swiftly in the Amber Ducal’s household, where almost nothing was impossible with determination.

The dress must have come with an astronomical price, and Laura wondered how much the Duchess had spent to expedite the process.

Entering through the elegant door, Laura was met with a sweet fragrance that demonstrated the attention to detail within the shop. A staff member recognized her from the pattern on the carriage and promptly attended to her needs.

“Welcome, Lady Amber. The Duchess has not arrived yet. Would you like me to bring you some tea in the waiting room?” The staff greeted Beatrice as she entered the dress shop, which strictly operated on a reservation basis. Several clients had already taken their seats, and upon hearing the mention of the Duchess, some of them glanced in her direction.

Beatrice had already had enough tea in the carriage, but she lightly nodded to show her approval and followed Laura towards the waiting room. Though she preferred a quiet time, she noticed a few young ladies already present there.

Feeling their curious gazes on her, Beatrice calmly walked in and took a seat in an empty spot. Three people occupied the middle seats, and one person sat on the left edge of the seating area. Positioned on the right edge, she had a view of the entire waiting room.

The unfamiliar young ladies seemed to conclude that she was someone they didn’t need to worry about, and they soon resumed their conversations.

“Thank you, Lady Fildorf, for letting me come with you.”

“Oh, it’s not a difficult thing at all. I’m glad I could come with Lady Dilhert.”

“No, you don’t understand how challenging it is to make a reservation at this dress shop.”

“That’s right. If you hadn’t brought me along, I would have just tried dresses at some ordinary dress shop.”

Among the three women, it was evident that Lady Fildorf was taking the lead, while the other two, Lady Dilhert and Lady Elamos, appeared to be attempting to curry favor with her.

Beatrice wasn’t particularly adept at memorizing trivial matters she had no interest in, but living a long life of repetition had led her to vaguely remember the faces frequently seen in high society.

She identified the woman in the middle as Lady Fildorf, the one on the left as Lady Dilhert, and the one on the right as Lady Elamos and…

“But I thought this place was a highly prestigious dress shop, so I’m a bit disappointed”

“What disappointed you? I personally liked the elegant interior. Maybe it wasn’t up to the discerning taste of Lady Fildorf.”

“The store is not the issue.”

“Then?”

Their gazes shifted naturally to the person sitting at the far left edge. Although not explicitly mentioned, the synchronized movement of their heads felt as dramatic as a scene from a play.

Beatrice didn’t look in that direction, but she knew well who they were referring to. It was someone she hadn’t expected to encounter here.

“Is it alright to have someone who is not in their right mind inside the dress shop?”

“That’s right. It’s scary. Why would they let them be in the same space as us?”

“Oh, ladies, can we be a bit quieter? I’m afraid we might be overheard.”

The scene of these women making a fuss caught Beatrice’s attention, and she lifted her gaze slightly to observe the woman sitting across from her.

The woman had red hair and bright gray eyes that almost resembled silver. At first glance, her irises were not very visible, which had intrigued Beatrice for some time. Memories from the past naturally resurfaced as she observed her.

As the three women continued their loud chatter, the red-haired woman, who had been engrossed in dress brochures, finally shifted her gaze. Viscountess Fildrof noticed this and responded by lifting the corners of her mouth before speaking.

“Oh my, did we make a little noise? Lady Richard?”

Priscilla Richard, a young lady from the Marquess family known for her infamous bad reputation. In her past life, Priscilla was renowned for being the next in line after Beatrice as a crazy woman, and if she didn’t achieve that status, she would likely become the craziest woman in the empire. Even now, she was treated as a madwoman.

However, it was important to note that she wasn’t genuinely insane.

“Why are you staring at me like that? Surely you don’t plan to grab me by the hair like you did at the last party?” Priscilla retorted. She had a fiery temper, and despite her appearance with red hair tied to one side and a modest long-sleeved dress, she was infamous for her violent tendencies, which proved to be a fatal flaw among noble young ladies.

Rumors from some noble young ladies describing her as rude and uncouth within her family had weakened her reputation and spread widely. Consequently, she was now labeled as the Marquess family’s spoiled young lady with no hope for redemption.

Without responding to Lady Fildorf’s words, Priscilla simply stared at her with cold eyes before nonchalantly returning her gaze to the brochure. The display of disregard might have seemed like she had backed down, leading the other three women to raise their voices even louder.

“I guess it’s still embarrassing, huh?”

“It’s a relief that you finally realize. How could we forget the mess that happened at the last party?”

“Who on earth dared to grab the hair of the dancer that Priscilla requested?”

Laughter follows among the three of them. Beatrice, generally disinterested in their conversations, felt slightly annoyed by their laughter, so she glanced at them.

Although she found it bothersome to intervene, she considered it a good opportunity to make her presence known to Priscilla Richard, the Marquess’ young lady, since she had something to ask of her. As the staff brought the tea, Beatrice cleared her throat.

“It’s too noisy,” She declared.

Her dry voice cut through their laughter, and the three young ladies abruptly stopped their theatrical voices. The staff member promptly caught on and hurriedly left the waiting room.

A woman, whose family is unknown, who was seemingly oblivious to everything, intervenes, and Lady Elamos raised her voice in disbelief.

“How rude! To just suddenly complain about the noise.”

“You call it noisy when it’s noisy. Then what should I call it?”

“You should show some manners.”

“Well, it doesn’t seem like you all have the temperament to show manners to others either.”

“What do you mean?”

“When you share a space with others, you should lower your voices. Even the knights of my family, who are waiting outside, can hear your conversation.”

As Beatrice speaks, Lady Fildrof, who had remained silent until then, interjects.

“I’m sorry. We were just trying to get along and might have been a bit loud.”

“Your Ladyship!”

“Calm down. It’s only natural to apologize when another young lady feels uncomfortable.”

The lady, as if unable to argue, falls silent.

“But regardless, stories about someone like you will spread even if we don’t gossip about it. You’re already quite famous.”