The Villainous Noblewoman Is About to Be Forced into Love, Isn’t This Wrong?

"Nabet," Liana greeted as the head maid entered, holding a tray in one hand and elegantly lifting the hem of her skirt with the other. "Your Highness," Nabet replied, bowing slightly with perfect grace.

Liana nodded, and the lavish breakfast was set before her.

Curious, Liana picked up a fork and twirled a bite of noodles. In the original story, Nabet’s cooking was described as extraordinarily delicious, practically irresistible. She wanted to see just how accurate that description was.

She took a bite.

"…"

Maybe it was her imagination. She rinsed her mouth with tea and tried another bite. The result was the same—it was mediocre.

“Is something wrong, Your Highness? Does it not suit your tastes?” Nabet asked.

Though Liana knew Nabet was capable of cruelty, she wouldn’t stoop so low as to sabotage a meal. This left only one possibility: the culinary world of this world lacked the kinds of spices and seasonings that could elevate a dish. This might very well be the pinnacle of what this world could offer.

It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t impressive either. It definitely didn’t live up to the novel’s description.

"No, it’s fine. I quite like it," Liana said, finishing her meal. But a troubling thought lingered—if this was the best food Nabet, the so-called culinary genius, could produce, what kind of horrors awaited her from the other maids? She shook her head. That wasn’t the issue at hand right now.

After wiping her mouth and placing her napkin down, Liana got straight to the point. "Nabet, I’m changing maids."

“Is there a reason for your dissatisfaction with the current one?” Nabet inquired.

"As you can see, she hasn’t even bothered to wake up yet. And Nabet, you should know better than anyone that obedience is the most basic requirement for a maid. She often acts on her own, doing things in my name that are detrimental to me."

"Is that so?" Nabet looked at Liana thoughtfully, though she didn’t believe a word of it. Liana’s history was too damning, and this sounded like nothing more than another excuse to pass the blame. Nabet had seen her feign remorse far too many times before reverting to her old ways. Liana’s credibility with Nabet was long gone.

"Yes," Liana nodded firmly, then turned her gaze to Loraville. "Loraville, take off your clothes."

"?!"

Loraville bit her lip, trembling. Was this going to be another humiliation?

"I... I understand," she said quietly, her fists clenched tightly. Slowly, she began to remove her outer garments, her face flushed with shame as she reached for the clasps of her undergarments.

"Stop," Liana interrupted, halting her. She glanced at Nabet, whose face betrayed no emotion, though Liana could sense that her impression of her had worsened even further.

"I didn’t mean for you to undress completely. Just your outer layer. Nabet needs to take your measurements for a proper maid uniform," Liana explained. Then, as though realizing she had forgotten something, she added, "And you are not allowed to undress in front of anyone else. After all, you belong to me."@@novelbin@@

"I understand, Your Highness," Loraville murmured, trembling.

Nabet stepped forward to measure Loraville’s body, noting how she shivered the entire time. She sighed internally, vowing to save this poor girl if she could.

Once the measurements were done, Nabet handed Loraville the clothes. But Loraville hesitated, holding the garments without putting them on. She was too afraid to act without permission.

"Put them on," Liana ordered.

Only after hearing Liana’s command did Loraville begin to dress, her movements stiff and hesitant.

"I’d like you to help Loraville learn the etiquette of Venus Territory and the duties of a maid," Liana instructed.

"Understood," Nabet replied.

"Let her have breakfast first, though. There’s no rush; take a week—no, a month. Let her adjust at her own pace," Liana added, brushing off her skirt as she rose. "I have other matters to attend to. Stay here with her for now."

"Of course," Nabet said. She clapped her hands, summoning another maid. The moment the maid recognized Liana, her face twisted with open disdain before she quickly masked it.

Liana noticed but wasn’t surprised. Winning over Nabet and the other loyal staff of the Venus household would take time, but that was precisely her goal. Changing too quickly would raise suspicion and make people question her motives. Slow, deliberate progress was the way forward.

After all, her ultimate goal wasn’t to earn their respect but to transform her own reputation enough to function like a human being in their eyes.

"Your Highness, my name is Loco," the maid said, curtsying with practiced elegance. She was dressed in the standard black-and-white maid uniform. "I look forward to serving you."

Liana recognized her immediately. Loco was one of Nabet’s handpicked and personally trained maids, undoubtedly placed to monitor her. Still, this was an improvement over Countess Ruth’s maids, who would go behind her back and blame her for their schemes.

"Very well," Liana said with a nod before leaving the room.

As soon as Liana was gone, Nabet turned to Loraville. "Were you coerced into this?"

Loraville hesitated. After the betrayal involving the invitation, she didn’t trust anyone anymore, least of all Nabet, who was clearly aligned with the Venus family. If she said anything against Liana now, she was sure it would only lead to more severe punishments later.

Forcing a smile, she replied, "I volunteered to become Her Highness Liana’s maid. I wasn’t coerced."

Nabet saw through the strained smile and the fear in Loraville’s eyes. She sighed again, her heart aching for the girl. She vowed silently to rescue Loraville from this mess.

As for Liana?

Between Loraville’s forced smile and her trembling voice, it was clear that she had been subjected to Liana’s torment.

Meanwhile, Liana, walking to her next destination, remained blissfully unaware that her reputation in Nabet’s mind had taken yet another hit.

Her thoughts were occupied with her upcoming meeting with Countess Ruth, the current head of the Venus family.

When Loco realized that Liana was heading to see Countess Ruth, her expression briefly darkened. Loco served Eirina Venus, who was in direct opposition to the countess. And every time Liana visited Ruth, something bad was guaranteed to follow.