“I’m truly sorry, Lady Selina. I will definitely find a way to give you a proper explanation.”
Masha’s face was full of apologies, but she knew full well that inspecting these little maids was just for show. She had to make it look convincing, and in the end, she planned to shift the suspicion onto Xiliya.
Looking at Xiliya, who still stood by indifferently, Masha sneered inwardly. Soon, she would let Xiliya know what it felt like to have no way to defend herself.
“You come over for an inspection too. Annaer was looking for you everywhere earlier—did you take the opportunity to do something?”
Masha had only intended to give Ximo a symbolic check, but the little maid nervously clutched the laundry basket in her arms.
“What have you been doing this afternoon?”
“I… I was cleaning Miss’s room.”
“Cleaning all afternoon?”
“Yes, yes…”
Xiliya frowned from a short distance away. She knew very well that there was nothing in her room worth cleaning for an entire afternoon. And why did Ximo’s attitude seem so strange?
Xiliya knew Ximo hadn’t done anything, but Ximo’s demeanor inexplicably made her look like she’d done something wrong and was afraid of being caught.
However, Masha didn’t notice anything. She had no reason to suspect Ximo anyway, so she gave her a quick pat-down—of course, nothing was there.
“And that laundry basket you’re holding—hand it over for me to check.”
“This… do you have to check this too?” Ximo asked cautiously.
Masha reached out to take the basket. “Of course we have to check it. Unless you’ve hidden Lady Selina’s item inside and that’s why you don’t want anyone looking?”
Masha had only meant to put on a full show, but to her surprise, just as she reached for the laundry basket in Ximo’s hands, the little maid suddenly pulled back and hugged it tightly to her chest, looking tense.
“How about… we just skip it?”
Masha: “???”
Masha was a bit stunned. She knew Ximo was innocent, but precisely because of that, she couldn’t understand why Ximo was so nervous.
Damn it, why did Ximo look like she was hiding something? If all the attention got pulled to Ximo like this, how was she supposed to shift the suspicion to Xiliya?
“I mean,” Ximo swallowed and explained as if trying to cover up, “there are some of my… personal clothes inside. It’d be embarrassing to check them in front of everyone.”
Of course Ximo didn’t dare let Masha check! She was joking—the clothes from Xiliya that she’d used earlier were hidden in that basket. If Masha pulled them out in front of everyone, she’d die of embarrassment on the spot!
The thought of Masha fishing Xiliya’s skirt out of the laundry basket in front of all these people… Ximo didn’t even want to imagine it!
“I’ll check it. I can take it aside and do it privately.”
Xiliya stepped forward proactively. The longer Ximo stalled, the more suspicious she’d seem. Xiliya knew Selina’s item wasn’t with Ximo anyway—she was just waiting to see Masha’s next performance.
“Miss, I-I-I… these are all my dirty clothes that I changed out of to wash. I’m afraid they’ll get your hands dirty.”
This was bad. Ximo hadn’t expected to get stuck here, and Xiliya was even worse. She didn’t even want to think about what would happen if Xiliya saw those clothes.
Of course, the most agitated was Masha nearby. She had no idea what had gotten into Xiliya’s little personal maid. As the one who started this, she knew best that Ximo had no suspicion—why was Ximo ruining her plans right now?
“Ximo, you need to understand this isn’t a small matter. Whether we check or not isn’t up to you,” Masha paused. “Or are you saying you really did take Lady Selina’s item?”
Masha was about to get forceful when Annaer stopped her from the side.
“Madam, don’t get angry. I understand Ximo means well—she’s not the type to do something like petty theft. I’ll check it for her—okay, Ximo?”
Annaer looked over, and Ximo knew she was trying to help her out of this. She had no excuse to refuse anymore.
With no hope left, Ximo handed over the laundry basket. Annaer stepped aside to inspect it.
Damn! She was really going to die of embarrassment this time!
Ximo’s toes fidgeted anxiously on the ground, drawing little circles. Annaer gave it a rough check, and her hand suddenly paused while rummaging through the clothes. Then she looked up at Ximo and Xiliya.
“Did you find Lady Selina’s missing item?”
Masha was a bit nervous now. She was actually afraid they’d find Selina’s item on Ximo—that would ruin her chance to frame Xiliya.
“No, the item isn’t with Ximo.”
To Ximo’s surprise, Annaer said nothing more and simply grabbed two more pieces of clothing to cover the top of the basket.
And so the matter was temporarily dropped. Everyone’s attention shifted away from Ximo. While the others weren’t paying attention, Annaer sidled up to Ximo and spoke in a voice only they could hear.
“Be more careful next time, Ximo. At least don’t let the madam find out about you and the young miss.”
“Uh, o-okay…”
Ximo was a bit dazed. She felt like Annaer had misunderstood her relationship with Xiliya as something illicit. She hadn’t expected Annaer to cover for her… Well, there was something to it, like how Ximo had never called Xiliya “Mistress” out in the open.
But now Selina was troubled. The item she’d lost was quite important to her.
What Selina had lost was a gilded pocket watch. She didn’t care much about its monetary value—she was a subordinate of the royal family and didn’t lack the money for one.
But this gilded pocket watch was a gift from the current Empress of the Empire, and Selina had always treasured it, keeping it in her coat pocket. She never imagined that after going out to eat with Masha, it would be gone when she returned.
If possible, she didn’t want to make such a big fuss, but the watch truly held great significance for her.
“Have the City Guard handle it,” Xiliya said indifferently. “They’re definitely more skilled at finding culprits.”
“The item didn’t disappear for no reason—it was taken by someone. The Camberlan Family will absolutely not tolerate this kind of behavior. Whoever it is must be severely punished.”
“Right, Xiliya’s got the right idea.”
Masha chimed in agreement, inwardly blooming with joy. This little girl clearly had no idea she’d already stepped into Masha’s trap.
Call the City Guard? Perfect—Masha couldn’t ask for more. She wanted to blow this up big.
Among the group, each harboring their own schemes, only Ximo let out a genuine sigh of relief.
Good, at least she didn’t have to worry about dying of embarrassment anymore.
