Episode 5
“I’m the oldest here, so I’ll take the lead. I don’t know if we really need something like that among us, but…”
Someone had to do it.
‘It’s definitely better to have a leader in the group.’
I looked at Verdi and gave a small nod. Among us, she seemed like the right person for it. Not just because of her age, but because she was the most reliable.
“For now, while the young lady is asleep, should we take a look around the annexe?”
Everyone nodded at Verdi’s suggestion.
On the first day we arrived at the Shainon family, after we introduced ourselves to each other as maids, we finished the day by looking around the annexe and checking the situation.
At first, things were awkward between us maids, but as we saw the condition of the annexe, we gradually started talking. The annexe was in terrible shape. There wasn’t a single place without dust, and all the tools were so broken they couldn’t be used without repair. It meant the place hadn’t been taken care of at all.
‘Even if the maids before us all met a bad end…’
Still, not even cleaning? We divided up the tasks and checked the finances of the annexe. I was in charge of managing Lilith overall.
‘Even if I acted a bit bold, this is like being handed a ticking bomb…’
Still, it felt better for me to take care of Lilith rather than someone else. At least I might be better at it than the others.
‘At least I’m not in charge of meals, so I don’t have to go to the main building every day.’
Right. The distance was far, and honestly, I didn’t want to go there if I could help it. It’s not like the servants or masters of the main building would give me kind looks anyway. I thought I’d just stay by Lilith’s side, where it might be physically easier, but mentally nerve-racking…
“…Why am I doing this?”
I let out a long sigh. It had been a day since I came to the Shainon family as a maid. And yet, despite not being in charge of meals, I was heading to the main building. I had something important to talk about with Ivna, the head maid, on behalf of the annexe maids.
Since even Verdi didn’t seem comfortable dealing with the main building staff yet, I was going instead…
“But where am I right now…”
The problem was—I’d gotten lost a while ago. And on top of that…
“I’m telling you, this is the right way! Let’s try going this way.”
“Okay, sure.”
I’d gained an unnecessary burden.
“This feels like an adventure, doesn’t it? Don’t you think so, Chloe?”
“Sorry, not at all.”
“Geez, you have no sense of romance.”
The girl is holding my hand and walking ahead. We had just met minutes ago, but she treated me like we were old friends.
‘Why is this happening…’
The girl I ran into while lost had shiny silver-red hair that swayed every time she moved. Her blue eyes, which glanced back at me now and then, looked like deep emerald oceans. There was no trace of darkness in her gaze—her name was Noel Heriot.
She was the heroine of this world.
The problem started the day before, when we looked into the annexe’s finances.
“This isn’t nearly enough.”
Verdi frowned after checking the ledger. Even if we somehow managed the general cleaning and organizing, there were things that absolutely needed to be repaired. But we didn’t have enough money left for it.
“What if we wait until next month?”
I glanced at the ledger Verdi was looking at and asked. Verdi shook her head.
“Just covering the food expenses for the young lady and us is already tight…”
The children looked uneasy at Verdi’s words. Christie looked like she might burst into tears at any moment.
“First, we need to think about what to do next…”
“What’s there to think about? They just sent us here to die.”
“Anne!”
Anne, who had been silent the whole time, sneered at Verdi’s words.
“The low funds mean they don’t want to waste money on us since we won’t last long anyway. Don’t you get it? We’re going to die because of that witch!”
“I-I don’t like this…”
“Anne, stop.”
“Why? They should know the truth.”
Anne looked at the gathered girls and smirked.
“If we go ask the master or head maid, maybe they’ll increase the budget…”
“Who’s going to do that? Verdi, you’re our leader—are you going to go?”
“Th-that’s…”
Anne shot back coldly. Even Verdi seemed hesitant about going to the main building.
“I’ll go.”
Looking at Anne with her arms crossed, I raised my hand.
“Chloe?”
“But not right now.”
I pulled back the dusty curtain and showed the kids the window.
“It’s already midnight. Let’s sleep and go tomorrow, okay?”
I was so tired I just wanted to lie down as soon as possible.
In the end, I went to the main building on behalf of the annexe to ask for more money. Everyone seemed too scared to do it, so I figured I had to.
‘No one else was willing anyway.’
Even if I had a small body, my mind was that of an adult.
“Haa, but was it always this far?”
I had been walking for a long time now, but there was still no sign of the main building. I panted as I muttered to myself.
No way, right?
I had a bad feeling but tried to recall yesterday’s memory and kept walking. After about ten more minutes, I finally realized it.
“I’m completely lost.”
It was just a walk from the annexe to the main building. Who knew it’d be this hard…
“If only someone else was around…”
Just as I muttered that, I sensed someone nearby.
A person?
At least I might not be lost for long. I approached the sound with relief.
Plop, plop.
The first thing I saw was a small pond. The water was so clear I could see all the way to the bottom. Next to it was a large rock. A girl was standing by it, kicking small stones.
“…Who are you?”
The girl tilted her head when she saw me. Her hair was silver with a hint of red, and her blue eyes looked like clear oceans. After checking my clothes, she seemed to understand something.
“Are you a maid here?”
Was there another girl besides Lilith at the Shainon house? I thought they only had a son. Seeing that she was about my age, I nodded for now.
“Yes, I am.”
“Hmm, is that so?”
The girl stepped away from the rock and came closer.
“Perfect timing. I’m lost. Can you take me to the main building?”
“Ah…”
I looked away, flustered. She said what I was about to ask. With a bright face, she looked at me as if wondering why I wasn’t leading already.
“Um…”
“It’s Noel.”
“Sorry?”
“My name. Not ‘um’—it’s Noel.”
“Lady Noel, I actually just became a maid of the Shainon family yesterday.”
Noel… That name sounded familiar, I thought as I told her the truth.
“…And?”
“So I don’t know the way either.”
Blink blink.
Noel blinked slowly.
“I was also on my way to the main building, but I got lost…”
I was probably more desperate than she was.
“Sigh. Seriously?”
Noel sighed, putting her hand to her forehead.
“I thought I could finally go back…”
Yeah, me too. I nodded slightly in agreement. Noel sighed deeply again, then looked at me.
“Then we have no choice. Let’s find the way to the main building together.”
“Together?”
Noel nodded.
The more I looked at her silver-red hair and heard her name, the more something tugged at my memory.
“Yeah, you said you’re going too, right?”
Well, that’s true. Even though this was our first meeting, Noel came right up to me like we’d known each other for ages. When I stood there blankly, she turned around and waved for me to follow.
“By the way, what’s your name?”
“I’m Chloe, Lady Noel.”
“Alright, Chloe. That’s a cute name.”
And just like that, Noel and I began wandering together to find the main building.
