Chapter 33: Saving the Teacher (1)
Catherine said as she sat across from me wryly:
“Nanny, can you hear me?”
But I did not pay much attention to her, but continued to calmly pat the stomach of the little Princess Emilia, who was deep asleep during her nap.
Catherine furrowed her eyebrows and said in a low voice, fearing she would wake the child:
“I didn’t know that the position of head maid was so comfortable.”
I answered her without raising my eyes:
"Convenient? I'm too busy! I took this moment out of a busy schedule just to sit with you, Nanny!"
I raised my gaze at her slightly and said coldly:
“Why?”
Catherine was confused and said after hesitation:
“What do you mean ‘why’? I wanted to get closer to you...”
Then she suddenly fell silent and her eyes narrowed as she stared at me:
“Apparently... you really don't know how to make friends.”
She smiled lightly sarcastically:
“Me?”
She said, nodding her head:
“Do you know that the other maids are afraid of you? They say that you are like a snowstorm walking on two legs!”
'Of course...that's not the only reason,' I thought.
After the incident where the previous head maid was fired, rumors about me spread quickly. It was said that I threw her to the ground and shouted at her, when in fact she was the one who stumbled, and I did not say a word.
I said coldly:
“I don't have to be nice to the other maids.”
Catherine shook her head and lowered her voice as if she was discovering a dangerous secret:
“Just admit it… you don't have any friends, right?”
I was silent for a moment, then she smiled victoriously:
“Ha! As I expected! You don’t have anyone.”
She muttered coldly:
“It's not that I can't, it's that I choose not to have friends.”
“What is the harm in having a friend?! Wouldn’t it be nice to find someone to talk to and open your heart to? Isn’t living behind walls of isolation a lonely feeling?”
“Loneliness?” I smiled bitterly.
The truth is that I have lived among people all my life, and I have never been able to see their true faces. So what's the difference? Whether we are together or apart...man is ultimately alone.
I said seriously:
“The closer someone is to you, the more dangerous they are. In a world where even those closest to you get stabbed, what's to stop friends from doing that?”
She looked at me in amazement and said:
“What kind of talk is this? It’s as if you were cheated on by a friend before!”
I did not answer...but the truth is that the one who betrayed me was not a friend, but rather the lover whom I loved more than anyone. The stab he stabbed in my back is still etched in my memory.
Catherine came a little closer and whispered:
“However... I want to be close to you, Nanny. Rather... I want us to be friends.”
"You and I? Friends?"
She smiled and said with childish enthusiasm:
“Did you know we are the same age?”
I looked at her in amazement. She looked like she was no more than early twenty, so did she mean...?
She laughed and said:
“Yes, we're both twenty-one. Let's act like friends from now on.”
I hesitated a little. Yes... I remembered then that I was no longer Kayla Angel, the leader of the killers, but rather Rachel Brown, a girl of only twenty-one.
‘Twelve years younger… Maybe I should consider myself lucky.’
…
Her voice interrupted my thoughts:
“Nanny, did something happen?”
I answered her after a moment:
“I just... I realized how young I still am.”
She smiled sadly as she said:
“At our age, many girls have already married and given birth. As for me, I am still here.”
Then she added bitterly:
“Nobles who have no money...are not much different from common people.”
She sighed as she hit the table lightly.
“Oh, I want to get married! I want a husband like a bear, and children as cute as rabbits!”
She laughed sarcastically:
“Why don’t you hire a matchmaker?”
She shook her head quickly:
“Impossible! I will not accept an arranged marriage! I want to marry for love.”
I asked her quietly:
“Isn’t your father a Viscount? Isn’t that enough for your family to arrange a suitable marriage?”
She replied, frowning:
"He was...but he lost everything gambling. We're left with nothing but the name."
I knocked a little. How many lives have been ruined by greed and gambling...
…
Before I could comment further, Catherine suddenly gasped and said:
"Ah! I forgot to bring a snack for Prince Idun!"
Today was his study day with the teacher in the annex, so he must be waiting for him.
I opened my mouth to reply, but a small voice interrupted our conversation:
“There's no need for that.”
She raised her head, and Catherine gasped in horror:
“Your Highness Edun?!”
The little prince stood at the door, holding a letter in his hand. There were signs of frustration on his face.
“The teacher did not come. I waited a long time...then a maid came and handed this to me.”
I opened the letter, and it contained long, stilted phrases, but it only said one thing: The teacher resigned.
She smiled sarcastically:
“What a dramatic way to announce withdrawal.”
Catherine exclaimed in astonishment:
"Withdrawal?! But... he already received next month's wages!"
I sighed inwardly. Indeed, he was more suitable as a merchant than a teacher.
The prince was holding a history book, his face sad, as if he held himself responsible for the teacher’s withdrawal.
I looked at him for a long time and said sternly:
“Your Highness…do you still need a teacher?”
He raised his head hesitantly, his small eyes shining with faint hope.
“If you need...I will find one for you.”
I, Kayla Angel, the former leader of the Assassins Guild... was unable to find a suitable man for this task.
It was almost dawn, and the sun had not yet risen.
I left silently from the Third Prince's Palace, heading towards the servants' gate, which is the only one open day and night for the entry and exit of workers.
Despite the early hour, the place was bustling with activity: servants who had finished their shift were leaving, and others were entering to take up their duties.
“Are we really going out?”
A faint voice came from beside me. I turned around and saw Prince Idun hidden under a cloak and hood, unable to contain his childish enthusiasm.
I pointed to him with my finger to be silent:
“Lower your voice, Your Highness.”
He couldn't hide the sparkle of excitement in his eyes, then pointed to the carriage prepared at the gate, on top of which piles of luggage were placed.
“And what are all these things?”
I replied with a slight smile:
“Gifts... for who your next teacher will be.”
But the truth? They were not gifts, but rather tools and “means” that I had prepared in advance.
He didn't have to know that.