23: They are the Light and They are the Darkness (1)

"At the same time, and far away from the place where the two girls were arguing, inside the Stonehart family palace, there was an ordinary maid doing her boring routine work. Unlike Cena, this maid was doing her work in the laziest way possible, and occasional sighs could be heard from her.

"How boring this is, why do I have to do this work?" She would say, letting out another sigh.

"I mean, what harm would a little dust gathering in this big palace cause? Why are these nobles so obsessed with cleanliness to this extent?" Following this remark, the maid stopped cleaning and started looking around.

"Alright, no one is here, let me rest for a bit. I deserve a break after so much work... Of course, the time given to us for lunch cannot be considered rest time." The maid nodded in agreement with her own words.

"Because we need to recharge ourselves so we can continue working, that's why lunchtime is also considered work time." Taking advantage of this time to indulge in her laziness, she began to observe the entrance of the palace where she was working.

"Although I've been working here for some time, I'm still amazed by the grandeur of this place. This family must be filthy rich. Yet, what's the story behind these meager wages given to us as servants? This is clear stinginess, clear exploitation of us." The lazy maid quickly found another reason not to do her work properly.

"Just look at these two vases... They must be worth a fortune. Is it logical to spend a large amount on things meant only for decoration while not spending such an amount on humans who help keep your place clean?" As she said this, she approached one of the vases and picked it up.

"Wow, it's beautiful! I wonder how much it would fetch if sold. Surely, I wouldn't need to work for several months, or maybe years... That would be wonderful, years of relaxation and leisure, how beautiful would that be... Ohh!"

While the maid indulged in her happy dreams, the vase slipped from her hands and fell to the ground, causing a visible crack due to the impact, which terrified the lazy maid and made her heart beat faster than usual.

"Darn it! What have I done? I've broken a vase worth years' worth of my salary!" The panic of the maid increased as she imagined what would happen to her if she was found out to be the culprit for breaking the vase.

"There's only a crack on one side, I must hide it quickly before anyone sees." The maid quickly returned the vase to its original place with a slight adjustment to the side that was visible to passersby.

"No need to panic, if no one examines the vase closely, they won't find any fault in it." The relieved maid breathed a sigh of relief and turned to flee from the scene of the crime, but...

"Miss Baya, what's... I-I, I...". The maid felt like her heart was about to stop beating from the intensity of her palpitations, and no wonder, as those cold eyes, frightening even to the innocent who had done nothing, caught her in the act.

"Why are you so tense? Enough of your laziness, get back to work quickly," Baya said in her usual cold tone.

"!!!Yes, ma'am," the maid hurried to escape, thanking her lucky stars for the fortunate turn of events that saved her from being caught by the head of the servants and becoming a debt slave to this palace. With her good knowledge of the diligent head servant, she would surely not forgive her at all for this heinous mistake.

Baya lingered there, contemplating the entrance for some time before her gaze shifted to the vase dropped by the lazy maid.

"A vase bearing the Stonehart family crest, mostly blue and gold... Should I wait a little?... No, it doesn't matter anyway."

As soon as Baya turned back to her work, the palace door was forcefully opened, expressing the anger of the new arrival, and due to that force, the door collided with the wall, causing it to shake. This caused the sword held by the metal deterrent to fall onto the same vase, smashing it into pieces.

"Where is she, the one called Stella?" Durdrian yelled in anger as soon as he entered the Stonehart Palace, as if he were entering his own family's palace.

.

..

...

Regardless of sina always ignoring Stella's attempts to approach her, she observed her closely and saw the difficulties she faced in this palace. Despite that, Stella never complained even once about the mistreatment she endured.

"When I was kicked out of the palace, didn't things settle down? Is there no need to fear this incoming person?"

"Yes... if the incoming person demanding you were an ordinary person."

"And... who is this person?"

Stella felt nervous again upon hearing this introduction from Cena about the person who wanted her as his slave. Cena didn't make her wait long before informing her in a serious tone devoid of any trace of jest.

"He is the friend of the young master and heir to the Delaviga family, Durdrian Delaviga."

"!!... A-Are you joking, aren't you!!?"

How could this young lady not be terrified when she had heard that the one who wanted her was notorious, known for his cruel reputation, especially among women, making him a nightmare for some weak-hearted girls.

Of course, that fear stemmed from the tales told about him and his harsh and sadistic nature towards all the slaves who belonged to him.

Although the noblewomen were not directly affected by such sadistic practices due to their elevated status, it didn't prevent them from feeling disgusted by the stories they heard about him and nurturing their hatred towards him. Therefore, they wanted to teach him a lesson in their own way.

Men enjoyed confrontations that required muscles and bravery, like heated battles and fights. But women adopted a completely different approach. They had turned the tongue into a weapon of war, and their battlefield was their tea parties.

Their battlefield lacked the heat and violence of men's actual battlefields, but it was a cold arena where one could not hear shouting or screaming, only whispers. And as for its coldness, it wasn't the refreshing kind, but the kind that seeped into one's body, spreading slowly and killing them.

Their war didn't involve material or human losses, at least not directly, but it was never silent about the corruption it brought. How many wars had arisen, families fallen, and projects failed because of a woman's tongue weaving plots and intrigues?

So, men had to weigh the consequences carefully if they had to be at odds with any woman, let alone with all women. It was impossible for any ordinary man to bear the enmity of all women. No matter how strong and brave a man was, he didn't want to earn the enmity of all women.

This was not just because of reputation, but also because men naturally and necessarily needed women as partners, to help them in life and provide them with comfort.

Similarly, women were well aware of this fact and wanted to teach Doodrian of it or remind him if he forgot. Their aim was to tarnish his reputation, and in that regard, they succeeded. However, it cannot be said that the same level of success was achieved in terms of causing Doodrian pain and regret, as was initially expected.

Instead of feeling deterred upon hearing that his reputation had been tarnished among women, the opposite happened. It was like an honor badge for him. He heard those whispers that tarnished his reputation as if they were cheers and encouragements urging him to move forward and do more. As for the looks of contempt directed at him, they did increase his anger towards poor girls who were involved with him.

As for the implied threat of not accepting any woman... Was it even a threat to him? He never considered women as partners.

And the women didn't realize the futility of their usual approach with this deviant. They were unaware of such a result and thought he could bear the pain of having his reputation tarnished silently, like any stubborn man. They waited for him to surrender and apologize to all the women he had hurt, as in the end, their approach needed time to yield results, and since their plan was almost certain to succeed, they didn't consider the possibility that their plan had failed.

It is clear that Duderian was not the first person subjected to this method; there was another nobleman in whom the effectiveness of this method and its submissive power were demonstrated. He was the same nobleman who treated his wife poorly in terms of treatment and speech.

To the point that when she complained about him at one of the tea parties and asked her friends to help her suppress him, she said that in addition to the mistreatment, he had a hobby of treating her like a pet. Even when it came time for meals, he wouldn't let her eat from the dining table like any ordinary woman; instead, he would place her dishes on the ground for her to eat like a dog.

And not only that, but in bed, his intimacy towards her would manifest in a perverted and sadistic manner, causing her a lot of pain during their relationship. Unfortunately for her, this wasn't just once or twice a week but almost every day. It was daily torture for her pride and her body.

The woman found no rejection from her friends, and they unanimously decided to teach her husband a lesson he wouldn't forget. That gathering, which was supposed to hear the gentle laughter of women, turned into hearing the hiss of venomous snakes. Instead of seeing warm cakes and tea, she felt the cold breeze of whispered plots and the isolation of thorny schemes.

They quickly devised a plan. The first step was for the wife not to return to her home, her marital home. And the second step, of course, was to spread false rumors that her husband was a person who lacked the ability to satisfy his wife, and this was a clear blow to the man's pride, and not just any blow, but the most severe. After all, a man might tolerate many negative qualities for himself, but no man would be satisfied with himself if he were unable to perform marital duties in bed.