# Chapter 45: 45
Although she was exhausted, the maids asked Radis to change out of her sweat-soaked clothes and put on dry clothes. Then they gave him water with lemon and, later, warm milk with honey.
Then, the maid with a pretty ribbon in her hair placed a wet towel on Radis's forehead. The maid had a happy expression.
When Allen returned, he was frightened to find about ten maids gathered around Radis' bed while holding her.
—What are they doing to the patient? Everyone come out!
—We are simply curing the patient!
—Is it necessary for twelve people to do that?
Allen chased the maids out of the room like an angry buffalo.
And the maidens cried like a flock of sparrows.
Allen turned to Radis and apologized.
—I'm very sorry for putting you through something as strange as this.
What do you mean by strange? It's fine with me. I guess everyone likes to nurse someone back to health.
His face red with fever, Radis thought.
I guess they don't hate me. What a relief.
When he thought that, he smiled.
Watching Radis like this, Allen sighed inwardly.
“Instead of calling a woman pretty, they just couldn't understand it!”
From Allen's perspective, Radis had very short hair, but she was still a pretty girl.
Although he might look like a child due to his strong features, the other women couldn't see the truth.
The maids of the mansion strangely thought that this lady was beautiful. They were making a big fuss, saying that Radis was like a beautiful, prince-like young lady who looked like the main character in the novel 〈Dame Angela〉. It was the most popular novel in those days.
Allen didn't know what was happening anymore.
He looked at Radis with some compassion and then spoke.
—I will get an exclusive and calm maid who will take care of you.
—An exclusive maid? I'm very well. It's just a cold.
"You don't have to feel conscious when you're in this state, Miss Radis." You just need to focus on your recovery.
When Allen said that, Radis could no longer refuse.
She smiled and tried to play down the awkwardness between them.
—Mr. Allen.
—Yes, Miss Radis.
—Thank you very much for your concern.
Allen closed the door behind him and wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.
—Poor thing…
Under Yves Russell, Allen investigated Radis' background.
On the surface, Allen was the butler of House Russell, but behind the scenes, he was actually a member of the Marquis' secret information organization called 'Acroates'.
—It's great to have been able to contact the old gardener of Tilrod House.
Once contact was established with a servant at the Tilrod mansion, it was not difficult to investigate Radis's background.
In particular, the elderly Roto, a gardener who worked for the Tilrod family, seemed to have a lot to say.
—I couldn't stand it. The salary is as valuable as shit on a rat's tail, but there are so many things to do. And there is one thing: there is an abandoned cabin that has been a hundred years away from the mansion, but did they want me to pay for the broken door of the cabin? It's been years since I told my wife about that broken door, but what reason is there to hold me accountable for it? It is no place for an old man like me, and while I was crying, my wife told me to leave that place. The "generosity" of that family is simply too much.
With a glass of strong rum in one hand, old Roto began to lament and ramble.
—I have seen the young ladies and the young master grow up since they were children. But the lady and the master treated Lady Radis strangely.
The old gardener raised his thick hand.
—If you bite ten fingers, only those fingers will hurt, right? That's a lie. If you bite just your ring finger, your jaw will hurt and that pain will go straight to your brain. Then, you will have to squeeze the other fingers tightly to make the pain go away. Poor Lady Radis was like that.
With his fist in his hand holding the silver, the old man Roto told the whole story of the cancellation of David Tilrod's acceptance into the academy.
The young woman, who had been obedient all this time to the terrible Lady, seemed to have finally begun to rebel. Roto added that he thought Radis was a pitiful person, but on the other hand, he felt relieved.
Upon hearing that, Allen thought that Radis would be a more rebellious or vengeful girl.
However, seeing Radis there and now, all he could see was a poor girl who had been abused by her parents.
No matter how insignificant her place in that house was, she was still a young lady of a noble house, but just by looking at the items she brought from home, anyone could guess what kind of treatment she received from the Tilrod family.
How was it possible that a girl her age only wore used men's clothes?
Furthermore, she seemed to have been treated so badly that it was difficult for her to trust anyone with her only purse.
—Thank you very much for your concern.
Allen could feel Radis' sincerity in those words.
It was natural to worry about a sick person, but that girl seemed to be really grateful for it.
After blowing his nose with his handkerchief, Allen headed somewhere else.
Valiz