The Perfect Plan for a Fairy-Tale Ending

Chapter 7

Actually, Marcia would have taken things even further. Hearing the maid’s cursing, her ill temper would have gotten the better of her.

Anyway, these poor maids… What choice do they have but to obey? The poor woman struggled with the bags for a bit, then finally picked up one and vanished down the hall. A few minutes later, two more maids entered and hurriedly began getting me dressed. When I was ready and went downstairs, I saw that all of my bags were lined up neatly by the door.

“Lady Marcia, your carriage is ready. Shall we load your bags?”

I cast my eyes at the servant, wordlessly communicating my assent. I was the very picture of a prim lady who did not deign to speak to her lowly subordinates.

As the male servant quickly began loading each of the bags, I saw through the open front doors that the morning sky was beginning to lighten. Things were going just as I had planned.

Not a single member of my so-called family had bothered checking on me, despite the loud fuss I’d made. Igor had no doubt chalked the noise up to one of Marcia’s usual tirades, and Bilain was likely passed out somewhere from excess booze and whatever other substances.

I had been more worried about the nanny, but even she hadn’t poked her head out of her quarters. Marcia had always been capricious and difficult, and it was a headache to try to calm her down. The old nanny was likely aware of everything but had sent the maids to deal with the situation instead. It was a good idea to cause a commotion early in the morning, I thought proudly.

As soon as I checked that the servant was out of sight, I hurriedly went around the back of the staircase and grabbed a large, brown leather bag that I’d placed there in advance. I heaved it up by the handles. It was heavy, but not so much that I couldn’t carry it. I’d be able to slip it in with the rest of the luggage before the servant returned.

Eventually, he came back to load the second round of bags. He didn’t notice a thing and just complained in his head about how bulky everything was.

Meanwhile, not a single maid or attendant came out to the hall to bid farewell to me, the lady of the house. I knew they were deliberately avoiding me. Nobody wanted to be roped in as an attendant and stuck inside the carriage next to an angry Marcia on the way to the dressmaker. Perhaps they all thought it was better to suffer the consequences of letting me go on my own and endure the scolding later.

All the better, really. I had intended to make up an excuse to prevent anyone from coming with me, anyway.

“Everything’s working out so far.” Once I was seated inside the carriage, I let out a sigh of relief. The same manservant who’d loaded my bags was now driving the carriage, and I was alone inside.

Unfortunately, my leg still wasn’t fully healed from my prior accident, and I was walking with a slight limp. I didn’t know how to ride horses, so the only way I could travel was by carriage. Though there’s no other way since I’m sneaking another person out with me.

Igor and Bilain liked to visit the basement late at night, and the nanny usually brought Larissa her breakfast mid-morning, around ten o’clock. Only three people possessed the keys—Igor, Bilain, and myself. Therefore, the nanny had to get the key from Igor in order to go downstairs, as he was the earliest riser among us three. Accordingly, Larissa’s breakfast time was whenever Igor woke up.

I took out the small pocket watch from my handbag. It was only a little past eight, as I’d thankfully managed to get everything done in a hurry. I still have two hours left. And the boutique will surely open its doors early for me… I needed them open by half past nine at the very latest.

I had yet to think of a Plan B in case Plan A failed. I would have had a few more days to figure things out if Bilain hadn’t gone downstairs yesterday… I stared out the window anxiously. It was about a thirty-minute drive from the estate to the dressmakers, and time seemed to tick by at a snail’s pace.

My heart dropped each time the carriage jolted. I wondered why I felt so nervous. Though I’d executed my plan quicker than anticipated, I was feeling even more tense than I’d thought.

Oh, that’s right… I was in a carriage accident. To be specific, I had been in a car crash, while Marcia had been in a carriage crash. My body still remembered the effects of both crashes. I’d nearly… No, I actually died. One self in a car, and another in a carriage.

I inhaled and exhaled, telling myself again and again that I was fine. I had no other choice but to take this mode of transport. Just hang on a little longer.

Finally, the carriage bounced to a stop in front of the boutique, but I stopped myself from leaping outside. I needed to act like the haughty lady I was supposed to be and wait for the manservant to help me out.

“Lady Marcia, I believe there is someone inside the boutique, but it doesn’t seem to be open yet.”

Hmm… Well, I’d already acted enough like a lady. I kicked the carriage door open.

“W-would you like to get out?” The servant stuttered as he hastily came around and set a footstool down in front of the door.

“Go knock on the door,” I ordered. “And keep knocking until someone comes out.”

“Um… Yes, my lady.”

As ordered, the servant rapped loudly on the door. Soon, it opened just a crack and a woman’s voice drifted outside. “We are not open yet. Please come back in one—”

“Move!” I thrust the man aside and forced the door open, striding into the boutique.

“What are you doing?!” The face of the protesting woman was familiar to me. This was the boutique owner, Nora, someone Marcia had met many times before. She also recognized me right away, because her expression instantly changed.

I looked around and noted with satisfaction that she was the only one in the shop. Phew… Perfect. “Go and bring all my bags in,” I ordered the servant.

I was trespassing in Nora’s establishment, of course, but I was also a nobleman’s daughter. Even though the family didn’t have a title, just being aristocrats held weight. Nora was just a commoner, so all she could do was bow her head and do as I asked.

“What is she here so early in the morning for? I wonder what trouble she’ll cause this time…” I could plainly hear her troubled thoughts. She had suffered at Marcia’s hand several times by now.

I spoke loudly, making sure the servant could hear. “Good morning, Nora. My dumb maid tore the lace on my new dress and ruined it. I need it for a party tonight. You can fix it for me, right?”

“Um… O-of course,” said Nora. “May I see the dress first, Lady Blick?” “How bad could the damage be, if she’s come all this way herself rather than sending a maid?”

While Nora anxiously waited, the servant continued to carry my luggage into the shop. She paled as the number of bags grew. “Y-you’ve brought quite a few bags,” she said timidly.

“Why do you think I came all this way myself?” I said with a grand air. “Isn’t it obvious? They all need to be fitted properly.” I brazenly lifted my chin and gestured to the bags. “I only brought the gowns I don’t like. They must all be altered in the current fashion.”

The servant continued unloading the carriage until all seven bags were securely inside. When he was done, I intentionally made my voice sound irritable. “Go home. I wish to do some shopping while I’m out. And there’s no need to come get me. I’ll find my own way back.”

The servant seemed relieved that he wouldn’t have to wait for me. He quickly bowed his head and disappeared, driving the carriage away.

I made sure that it was out of sight before I whipped around to face Nora, who was staring at the pile of bags with a pained expression.

“I’m sorry, Nora, for causing such a commotion in the morning.” I apologized sincerely, and her eyes grew round in surprise. Whatever she was thinking wasn’t negative enough for me to hear, but I could tell from her reaction how she felt. “Apologize? Did Marcia Blick apologize to me…?” I imagined.

“Ah… Um… Uh…”

“This was the only way,” I said earnestly. “I… I ran away from home.”

“Pardon?” Nora’s mouth dropped open in shock. “What is she talking about? She ran away? Is she mad? It’s over for me if I get involved in this situation.”

Sometimes, it was advantageous to be able to read others’ minds. I knew just what to do next—I had to beg. I immediately got on my knees and clung to her. “Please, help me! Please, I’m begging you.”

“D-don’t do this, my lady,” she said nervously, her eyes darting to and fro. “What if someone sees…?”

I’d calculated correctly. Nora was scared to death because a noblewoman was on her knees in front of her. It would be easy to take advantage of her in this situation.

I quickly sold her an imaginary story about how I had fallen in love with a young gentleman and was running away with him because my family opposed our union. I said I wouldn’t have been able to leave my house if I hadn’t used my gowns as an excuse, and that the servant, though he’d pretended to go home, was probably circling the area and keeping watch over me.

“Will you call another carriage for me? Quietly?” I bowed my head and bit my tongue, making my eyes water. I dabbed them, appearing to brush away my tears.

Nora stood still for a moment, staring at me in disbelief. Once again, I couldn’t hear any of her thoughts. That was a relief. It meant that she did not harbor any negative feelings toward me, at least at the moment.

“If someone comes looking for me, please tell them that I left my clothes here and went shopping. And… here.” I pulled out a small pouch from my handbag, filled with gold coins. It was equivalent to the cost of three brand-new gowns, and I forced Nora to take it. “A token of my appreciation,” I told her.

She flinched but didn’t refuse. Her expression wavered.

The pouch is pretty heavy. She must have guessed how much I’m giving her. Maybe it’s not enough? I took the gold ring studded with twinkling rubies from my finger. I rotated it in my fingers, making sure the morning light danced on the glistening gems. “You have quite beautiful hands, Nora. They would look very nice wearing a ruby ring.”

Exactly thirty minutes later, an old carriage rolled up to the back entrance of the boutique.