Chapter 76
The atmosphere in the Monson residence’s main hall was so tense, one could cut it with a knife.
As Athena stepped into the hall, the first thing she saw was Matthew kneeling rigidly in the center, his eyes filled with terror. Henry stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his face livid with rage. Veins bulged violently on his forehead as he glared, his eyes so wide and fierce they seemed ready to spew flames at any moment. Eloise sat rigidly to the side, her brows tightly knitted as she fixed Matthew with an icy glare. Her chest heaved violently; it was clear she was barely containing the fury boiling within her.
Kneeling beside Matthew was Aliza, disheveled and weeping. Strands of tangled hair clung to her tear-streaked cheeks, which were grotesquely swollen, making her look utterly pitiful and disgraced. Her collar hung slightly open, revealing a stretch of neck marred with telltale love marks. Though still unmarried, Athena instantly understood what those marks implied.
Athena grasped the situation but walked in without betraying any emotion. The moment she stepped into the hall, a teacup came flying straight at her face. Trina, with lightning reflexes, pulled Athena aside just in time. The teacup smashed to pieces at her feet, scalding tea splashing across the floor. Eloise gasped in shock, her eyes brimming with pity. She opened her mouth to speak, but at the sight of Henry’s thunderous expression, she bit back her words. She cast an apologetic, helpless glance at Athena, her expression making it clear there was nothing she could do.
Pointing at Aliza, Henry roared, “A lowly servant girl daring to climb the social ladder! As her employer, you’ve indulged her so much that she no longer knows her place. Do you admit your fault?”
On her way over, Athena had gotten the full story. Today was supposed to be Willow’s happy engagement day, and Matthew, in high spirits, had one too many. After drinking too much, in his drunken recklessness, Matthew got caught in a compromising position with Aliza behind the estate’s rockery. The estate was bustling with activity. Several noble ladies were strolling through the gardens.
Hearing the commotion, the household immediately assumed some lecherous intruder had sneaked into the Monson family and quickly summoned the guards to corner the pair inside. When they dragged the culprits out, to everyone’s shock, it was Matthew caught in a compromising position with Aliza. They said her underwear was still dangling from Matthew’s waist. The scene was so scandalous, people couldn’t even bear to look. For a moment, everyone froze in shock, rooted to the spot. Henry nearly fainted from rage upon hearing the news, while Eloise broke down in hysterical sobs. Nicolas managed to remain calm. Forcing himself through the humiliation and anger, he brazenly escorted the guests to the door. Before they left, he presented each family with generous gifts, essentially hush money. On what should have been Willow’s joyful engagement day, a scandal erupted instead. The humiliation was so severe that Willow spat blood and fainted on the spot. She still hadn’t regained consciousness.
Now, Henry turned his wrath on Athena, determined to make her the scapegoat for the entire affair.
Trina looked at Athena with concern, but saw her remain composed. Athena replied in a measured tone, “Your Grace, I fear you have the wrong person. Aliza was given to me by Lady Eloise. How could she be considered my employee?”
Hearing this, both Henry and Eloise froze, Henry in thunderstruck rage, Eloise in dawning horror. Eloise was so shocked she forgot her tears. Instinctively, she glanced at Henry, only to find him glaring at her, his face dark with fury. He demanded coldly, “Aliza was working for you?”
“I… I…” Eloise gasped, momentarily stunned into silence. But as she thought about it, she realized it was indeed true. When Athena first returned, Eloise assigned her two maids, Siena and Aliza, to serve her, but kept their contacts. Technically speaking, both Siena and Aliza still worked for Eloise.
“Speak!” Henry bellowed, his glare so ferocious it seemed he might devour Lady Eloise.
Eloise flinched in terror and stammered, “Yes, Your Grace.”
Without warning, Henry delivered a resounding slap across Eloise’s face. The slap landed with brutal force, instantly swelling Lady Eloise’s cheek into an angry red welt for all to see.
Everyone stood frozen in shock at Henry’s actions. For Eloise to be publicly slapped like that was the ultimate humiliation, her dignity ground into the dirt.
Yet Henry’s fury was far from spent. Jabbing a finger right at her nose, Henry roared, “Like mother, like son! I warned you time and again not to spoil the children, but look at them now, unruly and shameless, doing such disgraceful things. They’ve brought nothing but shame upon the Monson family! How could you let things get this out of hand?”
Eloise’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears. She didn’t dare utter a word, clenching her teeth to stifle any sob that might escape. Normally, Nicolas was always the first to defend Eloise. But now, with a darkened expression, he stayed silent. Frustrated and helpless, he finally said, “Matthew was up for a crucial promotion, but after such a disgraceful scandal, I’m afraid that’s completely off the table now.”
With that, Nicolas slammed his fist down on the table, seething with anger. It was unclear whether Nicolas was more furious with Eloise or with Matthew’s ruined career prospects.
With bloodshot eyes, Eloise glared at Aliza, the culprit behind it all. The usual gentleness in her gaze was replaced by murderous intent. “Guards!” she spat. “Drag this vile wretch out and beat her to death!”
Great noble houses valued their reputation above all else. They typically treated their servants with remarkable leniency, rarely resorting to punishment. All this was precisely to avoid gaining a reputation for mistreating servants. This served two purposes: first, to cultivate an image of kindness and magnanimity; second, to deliberately keep a low profile so as not to incur the Emperor’s displeasure. Thus, they had to act with utmost caution in all matters, daring not to make the slightest misstep.
Today, however, Eloise was driven to the point of murderous rage, a clear testament to just how deeply this scandal had enraged her.
Aliza’s head jerked up in terror, her eyes wide with fear as she stared at Eloise. Aliza frantically shook her head, dropping to her knees and pleading, “Mercy, my lady! Spare me just this once, I beg you!”
“Drag her out!” Eloise snapped, her face ashen with rage, her tone leaving no room for dissent.
Aliza turned desperately to Matthew, her eyes pleading for help. However, once Matthew sobered up, he could have kicked himself with regret. 'What the hell was I thinking?' he cursed inwardly. Matthew was barely keeping his own head above water; there was no way he’d stick his neck out for a maid like Aliza.
With a dismissive wave, Matthew delivered a stinging slap across Aliza’s face. Feigning righteousness, he snarled, “If you hadn’t deliberately seduced me, how could a gentleman like myself have done something so disgraceful? Killing you would be too merciful; you deserve to be cut into a thousand pieces!”
Knocked to the ground by the blow, Aliza spat out a mouthful of bloody teeth. Aliza stared blankly at the ground, utterly crushed as a wave of bitter despair welled up from her heart.
Aliza thought bitterly, 'I guess I really brought this on myself. I deserve everything that’s happened to me!'
Suddenly, as if struck by a desperate thought, Aliza turned to Athena. With tears streaming down her face, she pleaded, “Miss Monson, please, I beg you, save me! Though our bond was never deep, I did serve you faithfully for a time.”
Athena regarded her with a cool, indifferent gaze, a faint smirk playing on her lips as she remained silent.
Trina stepped in front of Aliza, blocking her view, and said sharply, “Miss Monson has always gone easy on you because you were Lady Eloise’s maid. She’s treated you with nothing but kindness and never once embarrassed you in public. But look at you! See what you’ve done. You and Siena are constantly sneaking around; who knows what shady business you’re up to out there! To even mention the bond is ridiculous. I’m ashamed for you! You’re never satisfied, always eyeing what’s not yours! Just because your father’s the butler here, you strut around with your nose in the air, looking down on everyone else. There’s no room in your heart for anyone but yourself! You’re so obsessed with becoming a concubine to one of the masters, always dreaming of climbing the social ladder. You already act like you’re some high-ranking concubine, so when have you ever truly served my lady with any real devotion? Don’t think we don’t know about all those disrespectful looks you’ve given my lady behind her back!”
Athena couldn’t help but glance at Trina. She thought, 'Not bad.'