Enter a bit*hy teacher (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻
FOR A PERFECT YOUNG MISS (3)
Raw provider: Tsalispark
Translator: Rhyme_Bean
Editor: Aurum
As soon as Beth entered, Claire got up right away. Before she saw Claire, Beth was worried whether she couldn’t sleep well at night but saw that Claire woke a little early and she was fine.
Claire was served with a satisfying breakfast. After she finished, she started to prepare to meet the teacher who would be arriving soon. Though she didn’t know who was invited, she felt a thorough preparation was always good.
After a lavender scented bath, Claire changed into a pale, pink fluffy dress from the newly arrived dresses. Though Beth was short on hands, she did everything readily without any hesitation.
Beth braided Claire’s hair and tied a floral patterned ribbon at the end. Beth gently swept away Claire’s bangs and showed a satisfied smile after she completed all of her tasks.
“How do I look?”
“As always, lovely.”
Beth always showed a gentle expression in front of Claire. The softness she showed in front of Claire was not easily expressed before others.
Kedrick, who understood this, just stood at a distance from Claire and Beth and watched them silently. When he saw that both of them had finished their grooming, he straightened up immediately.
Claire, as if she only deciphered the man who stood there, watched him with a bewildered look.
“Beth, who is that person?”
When she heard Claire’s question, Beth straightened up and showed a hand gesture towards him. Kedrick understood her gesture and walked sturdily towards her and stood beside her.
Beth opened her mouth, “Kedrick, the person standing before you is the one you need to protect. The one and only young miss of the Gordon Family, Claire Gordon.”
Even after his introduction by Beth was finished, Kedrick just stood and watched Claire in a daze. Did he forget to greet? Only after being stared at by Beth, did he open his mouth.
“… I am honored to meet you. My name is Kedrick.”
“Young Miss, this person is Kedrick, who from now on will be your guard.”
Claire blinked her eyes – she neither greeted nor said anything to Kedrick. But soon after, she hid her body behind Beth and slightly peeked out from behind.
“Young Miss, you are very bashful ,” Kedrick said and stood silently to watch the little child. He smiled brightly and crouched down to meet her eyes. Even though she was a little thin, he saw a very lovely child.
“.……”
Claire watched the crouching Kedrick for a long time and finally said.
“You are like Beth.”
“Yes?”
She couldn’t say it for sure but when she looked up at him, he was very much like Beth. The more she saw his face, the more thoughts like these appeared in her mind.
As soon as Claire said such, a particular light flashed through Kedrick’s eyes – as if he had found something interesting.
But soon that expression disappeared from his face and his usual tender and friendly smile was restored.
“?”
Beth, who didn’t miss this change, keenly observed his strangeness. Though he didn’t seem as he would become cahoots with the Earl, he also did not seem like a trustworthy person. She was sure that it was something more bigger that he hid though she could not put her finger on it.
He looked brilliant and handsome from outside, but Beth was sure that he would backstab other people some day. Looking back at her experience with the attributes of human relationships she gained in her previous life, she could confirm it.
If an outwardly good looking person approached you all of a sudden and started to act considerately, one must doubt him. It was an undeniable fact and truth.
Claire didn’t seem to see the change in Kedrick. She readily put down her guard against Kedrick who showed a gentle expression in front of her and graced him with a bright smile. Other than Beth, he was the first person to show a wholehearted expression to her.
She wanted to put up her guard against him, but the moment she met his eyes, she felt all her built up guard crumbling down.
“How much am I similar to Beth?”
“Well…. very much so~.”
With Claire’s answer, Kedrick laughed out aloud but a deep frown was cast between Beth’s eyebrows. No matter what words came out of Claire’s mouth – it was not at all pleasant to Beth.
Claire giggled shyly at Kedric and suddenly exclaimed with a short ‘ah’ as if she had remembered about something. Her head turned towards Beth.
As soon Claire’s gaze turned towards her, Beth’s frown disappeared without a trace and she became the gentle Beth.
“Beth.”
“Yes, Young Lady.”
“When will the teacher come?”
“She is appointed to come at 10 am this morning.”
Due to Claire’s anticipation in meeting her first teacher, she fussed about whether to go out and meet her in person or not. Beth made her sit on the sofa of the living room and asked her to wait patiently.
They didn’t know who was invited to teach Claire, but it didn’t seem good for the master himself to wait outside for the person to receive her.
At least Beth thought like that.
Also a person who was invited by the Earl couple could not be on the same side as Claire. So for such a person, should she be received by Claire herself?
After she requested Claire to wait, Beth fell into a deep contemplation whether or not to leave Kedrick behind to guard her. As if she sensed the passage of time, Beth told Kedrick to guard Claire from any situation by any means. Saying this, she left the room.
What sort of person will this teacher be?
Beth was on her way to wait for the teacher. Since the person was Claire’s teacher, it was not wrong to be led by an employee of the Earl Mansion. Another reason was, as she led him to the room, she would be able to assess the person. Though she won’t be able to start a conversation if the other person didn’t take the initiative, if she said some monologue, she would be able to decipher some information from it.
Maybe if nothing worked, she could try to bait the person.
Beth went to the place where the carriages stopped and stood near the door without making a sound with a straight and orderly posture.
She saw a horse carriage coming towards her from afar.
Beth watched the incoming carriage in a daze, but at some point she felt someone standing beside her. Beth turned around to confirm the identity of the person who stood beside her – it was the maid of the Countess. Why was she here?
Anxiety began to creep into her.
Before long, the carriage came to a stop. The horseman came forward to open the door and a noble lady with a graceful action accepted the Gordon family’s butler’s help to come down.
“I greet Viscountess Effie.” The butler said. The maid of the countess and Beth followed the Butler and bowed their heads. As if co-operating with them, the viscountess asked them to raise their head in a soft voice.
“So…”
She began to talk as if she was searching for something.
Was she looking for Claire? Would she nitpick saying that Claire got no manners because she didn’t come out to meet her? Beth looked at Viscountess Effie with tensed eyes.
“Where is the Countess?”
“?”
“I will respectfully lead madame.”
This person searched for the countess, not Claire? Beth stared at the Viscountess with doubtful eyes.
Was it to greet the Countess at first hand who is the said mother of Claire? But it didn’t seem like that.
No, this could also be right.
But her intuition said no. Her experiences remained with her and her bad premonitions had always been right.
What should she say? As a commoner, she was not allowed to speak her words. Beth stood there with an opened mouth, but finally closed it with a stare from the Countess’s maid. She asked her to follow and Beth followed as there was no other option for her.
A person’s social standing was a very sad thing. Since she was to be reincarnated, it would have been better for her to be born as a person who stood at the top of power. If it happened like that, it was likely she would meet Claire but such considerations never crossed Beth’s mind. She was just bitter about her standing.
She needed power. Not some signed paper stating her guardianship on Claire.
It won’t be effective when it is really needed.
The current situation was a great example.
The Viscountess, who pushed aside the class which should have started at 10 in the morning, was currently seated beside the Countess in the garden enjoying a leisurely morning tea time.
“Ah, Viscountess, do you still remember the lace gloves of that time?”
“Ahahh, yes. It was a pity to not find it. It really was a beautiful and intricate piece of work.”
“I was lucky to get hold of those gloves this time – but sadly I don’t have any matching dress with the gloves among the recently bought. I heard that there will be a tea party on your side after a few days. If you are okay I can lend you the gloves.”
“Is it okay?”
Beth didn’t want to hear such information. Whether someone wants to lend their gloves or not, or if the parasol was splendid or how the dress or hat or corset looked, she didn’t have any bit of interest in this information.
Beth silently retreated her recording eyes and started to count the leaves. I am a decoration here. The air around has carbon-dioxide. Just like a deer decoration on the wall.
The more she tried to escape from reality, the more angry she became. Who do they think they are to treat her precious young miss in such a way?
But there was nothing Beth could do at the moment. What she could do was either to stealthily spit on the tea or serve the snacks which fell on the ground.
At this moment her master must be worried over why her teacher had not arrived or did not arrive because something big had happened.
Since Beth was ordered to wait there silently she wouldn’t be able to go back. If Beth wanted to call for someone to enquire about the matter, there are no other maids except for Beth who served Claire, so that method was also impossible.
If Kedrick came to call for someone, that would also become a problem.
“Beth?”
Ah, that freaked the hell out of me…..
“So Beth also can get shocked?”
Beth still had her usual tranquil expression on her face. That Kedrick, even if he didn’t want to, he wouldn’t not be able to become a nobleman.
“What is a guard doing here?”
“Ahah, it is just that the young miss was very anxious. It is already past 10 but nobody came.”
Kedrick had his eyes on the woman who enjoyed a pleasant tea time at a distance. Kedrick smiled sardonically and said as if he was talking to himself, “So she couldn’t come because of such an important business affair and had no other options than to delay.”
It was a perfect sarcastic remark. Beth turned her head towards him and whispered in a small voice – loud enough for him to hear, “It’s really a busy business since the madams who take care of the family really are busy people.”
“Exactly. The Countess is bound to socialize with quite a few people.” Beth liked how Kedrick said it word by word.
“How can I, an employee, assist the madame in her business?”
As they looked at the madams, who sat comfortably and talked leisurely and drinking tea occasionally with a graceful smile, Beth slightly raised her lips.
“Whatever the madame does, I am unable to rebuke.”
That’s right, if the master orders her to do something, she couldn’t even speak out a word. No matter what decision they made.