The Evil Empress Adores Me

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The only person who calls me a kid would be the Duke of Rochester, right?

I looked back startled. 

The duke had made an abrupt appearance, entering the living room. 

No, what’s the duke doing here too?

“Duke of Rochester?”

I hurriedly walked over to the duke. 

“Why did you come all the way here?”

“Hmm, this.”

However, the duke turned away from me, clearing his throat as he did. 

What’s up with him?

I was tilting my head when the duke turned around with a determined expression as he handed me an envelope. 

“I picked it up on my way here.”

He picked this up? What’s inside it?

I stared at the Duke with a dazed look. 

Then the duke’s temper shot up for no reason. 

“Are you going to open it or not?”

“Oh? Ah, yes…”

Charlize quickly opened the letter and was lost for words. 

T-This…

‘It’s a blank check!!’ 

It was a blank check signed by the Duke of Rochester, the richest man in the empire!

My hands began to tremble. 

The duke, who was watching my expressions closely, struck while the iron was hot and spoke in an unwavering voice. 

“Don’t get any wrong thoughts. I didn’t give that to you because you’re cute.”

“…..um?”

“I just…”

The duke, who glanced at the empress during her argument with the crown prince, smirked at their quarrel and continued. 

“My only concern if you went out in shabby clothes, is the worry the empress, who has taken care of you until now, would go through.” 

“Yes, that’s it.” said the duke. 

“That’s exactly it.” said the duke again, perhaps persuading himself more than anyone else. 

The duke nodded with a solemn look. 

Then. 

“Hello, brother.”

The empress, who agreed on a temporary truce with Damian, opened her mouth albeit her voice slightly muffled. 

“Even if my brother hadn’t done so, I was prepared with all the dresses she would need, right Charlize?”

However, upon hearing those words, the duke’s eyes lit up in open protest against the Empress. 

“I can’t possibly let Her Majesty, the mother of the empire, be troubled with such a trivial matter, I’ll take care of this little one…”

“Brother, if you’re always busy with national matters, could you even afford to spend time paying attention to Charlize’s dress, let alone deal with the intricacies of picking out the right dress?”  

The two looked at each other, eyes squinted with unyielding expressions. 

Damian also interjected himself into this. 

“Charlize is my fiancee! Isn’t it expected of me to take care of her?!”

“Don’t say that. I’ve had such an amicable relationship with her as a little girl that I considered adopting her!”

“All right, Charlize is my maid. I had her for thirteen years!”

….the issue became tripartite. 

Before I knew it, the three of them began shouting. 

 It seemed like lively and infectious energy flowed through the three of them, bouncing from one to the other. 

Even if they somehow fought all day, I have a feeling that their argument wouldn’t come to an end. 

I finally took a deep breath and joined in on their ‘conversation.’

“I’m sorry, I have no intention of accepting gifts from any one of you.”

“What?!”

“What are you saying?!”

“Lize, why are you doing this all of a sudden?!”

It was the empress, the duke, and Damian in that order. 

The three looked at me, their gazes piercing the air as I smiled awkwardly. 

“Well, um, I’ll just use my own money.”

“Your own money?”

“Yes. I have some savings that I’ve kept so far.”

It’s thirteen years of worth!

I straightened my chest as I looked back proudly. 

The empress asked me with an inquisitive tone in her voice. 

“You mean, you’ve collected the wages you’ve earned while as a maid?” 

“Yes! It’s enough for a dress and some accessories…I hope…wouldn’t it….aa?”

I was confident at first, but my speech flopped due to my stammering. 

I found the empress, the duke, and Damian all staring at me with wonder and pity all at once. 

….how would I describe their expressions?

It was like they were watching a small child scrape every single coin she had… 

At the same time, a regretful voice spoke. 

“Hello, Charlize. It’s too bad you’re not accepting gifts.”

Oh, my. 

That voice?!

I gulped my saliva. 

No, when did the empress dowager get here!

She looks slightly downcast!

“Isn’t this banquet the event for you to debut in front of the public?”

“Wow, your Majesty, the empress dowager…:”

“I even had picked out a few pieces of jewelry you could use.”

Goodness. 

Seeing the sadness in her eyes, I felt so terrible. 

“Then, let’s do this instead.”

In the nick of time, the empress opened her mouth, she likely had a good idea.