The Maid and The Usurper - Chapter 12
“Count? Do you have something for me to do?”
As if sensing something, Layla, who was sitting on the floor, looked up at him and asked. Caught off guard, Leopold’s eyes darted around. He noticed the run in her stockings through her slightly lifted skirt.
“Doesn’t Lady Wegener give you money to buy stockings?”
“Excuse me?”
Layla blinked in confusion. Leopold gestured toward her skirt. Realizing what he meant, a startled Layla hastily pulled down the hem of her skirt.
“The Count’s household isn’t impoverished, why wear such torn stockings?”
“I don’t need new ones.”
Despite her embarrassment over the run in her stockings, she pretended it didn’t matter. Leopold couldn’t understand why. Layla added with a sour look,
“These are my favorite stockings, the first ones I ever bought for myself.”
“Bought for yourself? What do you mean?”
“When I was in La Ellosa, I helped Benedict with the bookkeeping.”
Benedict, a pimp and bookkeeper in La Ellosa, had used Layla as his assistant. Of course, it was not just an innocent assistance.
“While managing the books, I helped Benedict siphon off some money.”
“Siphon off money?”
“I helped him embezzle money through accounting manipulation, Count.”
Layla spoke in terms that the naive bastard prince would understand. Benedict secretly pocketed some of the tribute money he was supposed to hand over. Layla was the one who saved him from getting caught, given his lack of cunning.
“Stupid Benedict was lucky to not get caught. Without me, he would have been beaten to a pulp by Günther. Anyway, he paid me hush money. I saved it.”
She hadn’t mentioned that she had also tricked Benedict out of some money herself. The naive prince didn’t need to know that. She suppressed a smirk at his bewildered expression. Those who lived in a world of beauty, righteousness, and intolerance for injustice couldn’t understand the world where survival required cunning and ruthlessness.
“Sometimes, you have to do whatever it takes to survive.”
Her face was weary and worn from the hardships she had endured. Just as Leopold was about to offer some words of comfort, Layla suddenly snapped her fingers and turned to him.
“Do you want me to show you how to cook the books?”
“Manipulate the books? Why would I do that?”
“Because you can’t freely use the money from your estate. Baden is watching.”
Anyone with a keen eye could see that Baden’s paranoia extended to the illegitimate Leopold. They tracked every penny relentlessly. According to Layla, freedom and power came from money.
“If you had money that had escaped Baden’s scrutiny, you could strike back at the queen.”
“How? The records here aren’t as sloppy as those in La Ellosa.”
If there was a way, even if it were by grasping the hem of her skirt, he would bite. .
“Whether La Ellosa’s ledgers or Rhineland’s is easier to manipulate, we won’t know until we try. Will you show me the ledgers?”
Having finished organizing the last book, Layla dusted off her skirt confidently.
“It can’t hurt to give it a try.”
“Do nobles always prefer such roundabout ways of speaking, or is your pride too strong to ask for help directly?”
Her playful voice teased Leopold’s ear. Either way, she wasn’t entirely wrong, and Leopold stammered, awkwardly covering up.
“It’s just that speaking bluntly isn’t very noble-like.”
“Nobles live such complicated lives.”
“So, what will it be? Will you help me or not?”
“Of course, I’ll help. If I don’t, I’ll end up being suspected.”
Layla’s voice was so refreshingly bright that it made Leopold feel uneasy, as if he had been played by her again. Leopold leaned his body against the desk.
“Before you bring the records, let me ask. How old are you? I’ve never heard such an audacious tone in my life.”
“Of course, you’ve never heard it before. There’s no one else like me in this world.”Layla shot back without missing a beat. Leopold pressed his fingers against his throbbing temples. For some reason, he felt like he’d just taken on a troublesome burden.
“So how old are you, really?”
“I turned fourteen this year, so I’m two years younger than you, my lord.”
Layla smiled subtly, as if there was nothing embarrassing about stating her age. Leopold found himself captivated by her smile, feeling his ears and neck warm up again. He averted his gaze, trying to act nonchalant.
* * *
Layla stood on her tiptoes and reached out her hand as high as she could. Even with all her effort, she couldn’t reach the top shelf. Leopold, who had been sneaking glances at her for a while, finally approached the bookshelf.
“Step aside.Layla”
Startled, Layla took a step to the side. Leopold easily reached over and handed her the book.
“Really? Was that strange request just for this?”
“What does it matter to you? You paid a low price and you’re still complaining.”
Layla wrapped her arms around the book and hugged it tightly. If one could attach the term ‘competent’ to embezzlement, Layla was indeed competent at it. Leopold’s coffers had accumulated a fortune unknown even to Baden.
