SMR | Chapter 121

~Chapter 121~

“What are you afraid of? As long as you don’t get caught, it’ll be fine. It’s not like you’re sneaking into the Countess’s bedroom, just rummaging through your aunt’s room. Even if you do get caught, it’s not the end of the world.”

At those words, Esther, the maid of the Pellon family, burst into tears again. The man threatening her wasn’t the type to show sympathy.

“Just act like you’re cleaning and steal any documents or letters with her name on them. If you bring those, I’ll forgive your sister’s debt of 40,000 dirhams. Where else are you going to find such an easy deal?”

“What are you going to do with them, Miss Harriet? Aren’t you planning something bad?”

“If something bad happens to your sister, will you regret it? If you don’t want that, do as I say.”

Esther couldn’t bring herself to agree right there. No matter how much trouble her sister caused, she couldn’t hand her over to the street thugs.

In the end, Esther secretly entered Harriet’s room, the one who had always been kind to her since she came to the mansion. Her heart raced and sweat poured down her face as she searched through Harriet’s desk, determined to save her sister’s life.

Stealing the letters was easy. There were invitation cards and letters already tied with twine, which weren’t needed anymore.

But that wasn’t enough.

‘What should I do? They’re looking for legal papers or secret letters…’

The desk was neatly arranged, and the unlocked drawers only held stationery and pens, not anything useful.

With trembling hands, Esther opened Harriet’s vanity and the drawers beside the bed.

‘Nothing! There’s nothing here.’

Esther couldn’t just say she didn’t find anything, knowing they wouldn’t believe her.

Her eyes filled with tears as she desperately prayed to God to save her sister.

Then, as if in answer to her prayer, a bag on the shelf behind the desk caught her eye.

It was the bag Harriet had taken with her when she visited St. Clarissa Convent recently.

‘She probably didn’t put anything important in there…’

But desperate, Esther opened the bag, and to her surprise, she found a few documents tied together.

“Ah… This might be it…”

Though she couldn’t read legal documents, the official seal at the bottom of the papers was important to her.

She stuffed the documents and letters into the laundry basket, covering them with Harriet’s clothes, and quickly scanned the room again. No other lucky finds appeared.

There were likely more valuable things locked in the desk, but she couldn’t take the risk.

‘Now, I just need to leave quickly.’

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Esther pushed the laundry basket out the door. But just then, the door opened with a click.

“Eh? Esther?”

“M-Milady!”

Esther almost fainted. Harriet would surely suspect her, thinking she had stolen something and would search the basket.

But Harriet only looked at Esther with an apologetic expression.

“I must’ve opened the door too hard. Did I scare you?”

“N-no, it’s fine!”

“You’ve been so kind to me. Thanks to you, I always have clean clothes and a tidy room.”

“It’s… my job.”

“Still, I know you’re taking extra care of me. Here, it’s not much, but take this and treat yourself to something nice on your day off.”

Harriet slipped something into Esther’s apron pocket.

“No! Please, don’t do this, Miss!”

“I don’t care! It’s already given, and I won’t take it back. Now, go on, leave my room. Go on!”

Harriet gently pushed Esther out of the room.

Though she managed to leave without getting caught, Esther felt like there was a heavy stone in her chest. In her pocket, there was a 100-dirham bill.

“I’m going to be punished by heaven.”

With tears falling, Esther slowly pushed the laundry basket out of the room.

***

Later, when Bella examined the stolen documents and letters, she was struck with shock.

‘She’s receiving so many invitations? The scandal-maker Harriet Listerwell?’

The pile of thick invitations included names from minor nobles to well-known aristocratic families.

Considering that Harriet had never received even a single invitation back when she lived with the Listerwell family, this was an unimaginable change.

‘Sure, invitations for social gatherings are fine, but even Countess Vanderbilt and Countess Lilburne invited her? This is… dangerous. Very dangerous.’

Until now, Bella thought that Harriet must have been able to attend these events thanks to Trisha’s influence. But now, after hearing about her tea with the Empress, it seemed like Harriet Listerwell herself was being invited, not just as Trisha’s ward.

But Bella didn’t just find this uncomfortable. The documents she had stolen from Harriet’s bag revealed something even more startling.

The documents were all about Clarissa and its old mission, St. Clarissa Soap & Herb, but what caught Bella’s attention the most was the fact that Harriet was the owner of the company.

“Harriet… was the owner of that damn soap shop?”

This was the same shop that had ruined the atmosphere at the party she hosted with James. Now, Bella realized it wasn’t just a coincidence.

Her frustration grew, but there was no time to dwell on it. She had finally found a way to bring Harriet down.

“You did well to hide this, Harriet. If you hadn’t, I would have caught you earlier. Right?”

Bella smirked as she laughed.

Everyone thought Clarissa was just a convent business, but in reality, it was a personal business for a low-ranked noble! Harriet had been using the convent to help herself while fooling the royal family and the aristocrats.

What would the Empress or the Duke of Kailas think when they found out about this?

***

In Genoa, the three biggest newspapers were The Genoa Daily, Astoga Tribune, and Lawrence Journal.

If all three of them printed the same story, it meant that it was an important news item—or someone was trying to make it important.

“What… is this…?”

While eating a simple breakfast and reading the newspaper as usual, Harriet dropped her bread when she saw her name on the front page.

The article wasn’t very long, but the fact that it was on the bottom of the front page of all three newspapers meant it was a big issue. The headline was definitely not favorable toward Harriet.

[Who is the real owner of Clarissa?]

[Using the name of God to profit! The hidden truth about Clarissa?]

[Abusing the monastery’s and orphans’ goodwill: In-depth investigation of Clarissa]

Harriet’s hands shook as she picked up The Genoa Daily.

[…According to the informant, the rumors that most of the profits go to St. Clarissa Monastery are false. The real owner of Clarissa is just a minor noble.

After persistent questioning, the informant revealed the name of the scoundrel who sold the monastery’s and God’s name for personal gain, and we will now reveal this name for the public good.]

Harriet gasped as she saw her own name clearly printed.

At that moment, Roxana rushed into the room.

“Miss Harriet! Did you see the newspaper…?”

Harriet, stunned with her face pale, could only nod. Roxana quickly understood the situation and said,

“Stay calm. Let’s finish reading the other papers and then go to see Lady Pellon.”

“Does my aunt know about this?”

“She’s an early riser. She must have already read it.”

Harriet closed her eyes tightly, then clenched her teeth, and reopened her eyes.

As Roxana had said, panicking wouldn’t help. No matter who had given the tip-off, she couldn’t let herself fall into their trap.

Harriet took a deep breath and opened the other newspapers.