Chapter 33

“How did this fire happen?” Roseline asked, looking around at the charred kitchen.

“A servant tried to secretly make a snack in here, but accidentally overturned the oil container and caused a fire,” the butler explained, avoiding her gaze.

“I heard this building is being demolished in the winter, so you won’t be using it anymore,” Roseline replied, frowning. “By the way, do you usually cook in this kitchen?”

The butler and the other servants looked guilty and avoided her gaze. “No, Miss Roseline,” the butler admitted. “This was an isolated incident, and we assure you that we will take steps to prevent anything like this from happening again in the future.”

“Who started the fire?” Roseline asked, her sharp eyes scanning the room.

“I saw this kid coming out of the kitchen,” one of the servants accused, pointing at the young maid.

The maid, Deborah, dropped the bag she was holding in surprise, causing flour to spill onto the floor. “I’m not!” she protested, shaking her head with bewildered eyes.

But the other servants were not convinced. “Deborah, weren’t you away at lunchtime?” one of them asked.

“Yeah, and didn’t you usually wander around here?” another chimed in.

“If there had been a fire, I would have notified the butler right away,” Deborah insisted. “But I didn’t want to get scolded, so I stayed away. That’s why the fire got so big.”

“It’s not me! I didn’t even come near this kitchen today!” she insisted.

“I can’t believe you’re lying in front of an adult!” one of the other servants exclaimed as they grabbed Deborah’s shaking arm and forced her to sit down.

“Wait a minute,” Roseline interrupted, her sharp eyes narrowing. “Are you saying that this kid, Deborah, started the fire?”

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Deborah couldn’t defend herself, instead bursting into tears.

“Deborah is the child who was hired by this mansion just four days ago,” the butler explained.

Four days ago, Deborah was one of the three new servants hired to replace the three that Roseline had fired.

“It’s her,” one of the other servants confirmed. “She’s the one who caused this mess.”

The butler hung his head, pretending to be pitiful. “I was only trying to do my wife a favor by hiring her, but I never would have thought this would happen…”

Roseline glared at the butler, angry that he had hired a troublemaker even though he didn’t have any sense. “I don’t like this,” she said sternly.

It wasn’t just the fact that Deborah had caused the fire and attempted to shift the blame onto Roseline that made her angry. It was also the fact that Deborah was a weak, helpless child.

When something went wrong in the house, it was common for the lowest-ranking servants, who were often newcomers and had no power or influence, to get the blame. They would be accused of doing it on purpose and either punished or fired.

This was always the case. A subordinate would be falsely accused and punished if a superior committed a crime. The subordinates were usually the underdogs of society—the poor, the parentless, and the vulnerable, such as women, old men, and children.

“What should we do, ma’am?” the butler asked Roseline, turning to Deborah. “Should I cut your salary, or should we just fire you?”

Without a proper investigation, Deborah could not defend herself against the accusations and was reduced to sobbing and shaking as the butler judged her guilt and discussed her punishment.

“Crying, crying…” Deborah sobbed, her thin frame shaking with each tear. She looked younger than 14 years old, with freckled skin and split ends on her braided hair.

It was clear that Deborah’s family was not in a good financial situation, forcing her to work as a maid in the mansion at such a young age. The thought of punishing her with a pay cut or dismissal would have been devastating for the young maid.

Roseline knew that Deborah wasn’t the one who did it, and she didn’t want to punish an innocent person. “I won’t hold Deborah accountable,” she declared firmly.

“Madam,” the butler protested.

“It hasn’t been long since Deborah joined this mansion, and if she were to be kicked out for something she didn’t do, it would be difficult for her to find work in other households,” Roseline reasoned, showing mercy and sympathy for Deborah’s situation. “I’m not trying to show mercy, I’m just trying to do what’s right.”

Hugo’s voice softened as Roseline spoke, and he seemed to understand her perspective. It wasn’t uncommon for masters to generously cover for the mistakes of their servants, and it seemed that Roseline was one of those types. The butler guessed that, at 18 years old, Roseline might have been able to relate to Deborah, who was close in age to her. Roseline probably had a soft spot for children, given that she had a younger brother.

The butler assessed Roseline as a kind, compassionate woman who couldn’t be cruel to a young servant, even if they made a mistake.

But his assessment of Roseline was quickly proven wrong.

“But Hugo, I can’t help but hold you responsible,” Roseline said sternly.

“What…?” Hugo asked, his eyebrows rising in surprise.

“I am the hostess, but I can’t lead all the servants of the Grand Duke on my own. So, I gave you, the butler, the job of teaching and taking care of the new recruits. Isn’t that right, Hugo?” Roseline reminded him.

“Yes, it is. Only…” Hugo began to protest.

“It is your duty as a butler to ensure that Deborah doesn’t get into an accident. And today, you have neglected that duty,” Roseline pointed out, looking directly at the butler.

She couldn’t just let the matter drop, even if there was no concrete evidence or if speaking out would mean losing face. Roseline had learned a more effective way to deal with such situations from her time with Empress Annestrote.

Hugo was a butler who was proud of his skills and reputation. She knew exactly what words would hurt him the most.

“I can forgive Deborah’s mistake as a foolish new maid, but I cannot tolerate your mistake as a manager who has been taking care of servants in this mansion for decades. I can’t help but doubt the quality of Grand Duke Postenmeyer as a butler,” Roseline said, her words cutting like a knife.

Hugo gasped in shock at the remark.

Roseline said, “Your pay will go down because you didn’t do your job of teaching and managing the new recruits.” “The responsibilities of a caretaker and a maid are different.”

The butler’s eyes widened in surprise, though he tried to keep his expression neutral.

“If you have a good reason for why you didn’t stop Deborah’s accident before it happened, I’ll think about changing my mind,” Roseline said.

The other servants exchanged embarrassed glances, unsure of how to respond. They were uneasy at the thought of the butler being punished while they were spared. They feared that Hugo might try to drag them all down in an attempt to save himself. The trust and camaraderie among the servants broke down as they glared at Hugo with anxious eyes.

Roseline waited patiently for Hugo’s answer, wondering if he would try to bring everyone down with him or if he would take responsibility for his actions. She was curious to see the true character of the butler for the Postenmeyer family.

“I have nothing to say. It’s my fault, so I’ll accept your decision,” Hugo, the butler, said slowly, lowering his eyes and bowing to Roseline.

In contrast to what the worried servants thought would happen, Hugo was honest about his mistake and decided to take responsibility for it. He didn’t seem humiliated or unhappy at the prospect of a pay cut. In fact, he seemed almost happy.

Roseline looked at him curiously, wondering why he was reacting this way.

“I am glad to know that you are such a wise woman,” Hugo said, his eyes softening.

“What?” Roseline asked, confused.

“The deceased Grand Duke of Seonjo said the same thing,” Hugo explained. “Your decision to punish me, the butler, for failing to manage Deborah instead of punishing the clumsy new maid for her first mistake is a very wise one. It shows that you have the ability to calmly assess the situation and make the right judgment in a crisis.”

Hugo, as the butler, should have been blamed more than Deborah for Deborah’s mistakes because he could have stopped them. He had simply overlooked his duty.

Roseline’s punishment of Hugo in front of all the servants sent a clear message: she would not stand for an older worker harassing a new employee and putting the blame on them.

“The higher the status, the greater the responsibility. True rank is not achieved by subordinates taking on the sins of superiors, but by subordinates taking on the sins of their subordinates,” Roseline declared.

The other servants nodded in agreement, understanding the gravity of her words.

“Meeting a respectable employer is the greatest joy of an employee,” Hugo added, bowing his head.

There was one thing Roseline had overlooked, however. The reason the servants initially resisted her and even plotted to put her through a series of tests – they were so proud of the Grand Duke Postenmeyer family that they couldn’t stand the thought of their owners being anything less than perfect.

But Roseline had passed Hugo’s “test” with flying colors, showing that she could deal with problems, take steps to prevent them, and find and fix deeper problems.

Hugo was happy to accept his punishment with a smile. It was a small price to pay to gain such a capable and admirable employer.

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