Chapter 4: The Footsteps of the Master
The echoing chaos of Eleanor’s shrieks and the frantic, clattering sound of the bouncing pearls finally breached the heavy oak doors of the manor’s private study. Maximilian, the undisputed master of the Bellevue Estate and the head of the powerful family lineage, rushed out into the corridor.
Maximilian was a man heavily burdened by history. Ever since his father had passed and his younger sister had tragically vanished in the chaos of a house fire two decades ago, his mother had succumbed to grief, leaving him to manage a vast empire and an increasingly arrogant wife. He had married Eleanor to secure an aristocratic alliance, but her worsening cruelty toward the staff had become a source of silent, festering tension between them.
As Maximilian stepped into the grand hallway, the scene before him made his blood run cold. Clara was on the floor, weeping hysterically, her red dress stained with dust as she desperately crawled on her knees. Eleanor stood above her, looking down with a smug, self-satisfied expression of absolute triumph, her emerald gown catching the light.
"What is going on here?" Maximilian demanded, his deep, authoritative baritone voice instantly cutting through the sound of Clara’s sobs.
May you like
Eleanor immediately smoothed down her dress, her expression shifting seamlessly into an air of irritated innocence. "Oh, Maximilian, thank goodness you're here. This useless girl was violating protocol, wearing filthy, cheap jewelry while handling the silver. I simply corrected her behavior, and she threw a dramatic tantrum."
Maximilian didn't look at his wife. His eyes were fixed entirely on the young woman sobbing on the floor.
