Episode 15
“Move quickly, quickly!”
With spring, a busy time came for everyone. The Head Maid was fully immersed in renovating the mansion for the new season.
Ashlyn was no exception.
Every day, she dusted off the accumulated dust, changed curtains and decorations, and swept the ashes from the fireplace.
Busy days passed in a blur. After spending the day like that, she could fall asleep at night as if she had fainted. They were days that didn’t allow for her to think constantly due to the business of her body.
Such days repeated.
“I will prepare the meal.”
Ashlyn pushed the trolley and told the Chief Butler. The butler nodded slightly, and she began to put the food on the table with familiarity.
Since that day in the infirmary, she hadn’t encountered the Duke alone.
“The mansion seems lively.”
The Duke murmured while flipping through his papers.
“It’s because of the spring cleaning and renovations.”
The butler replied politely. The Duke seemed to contemplate for a moment before speaking again.
“Don’t you need more employees?”
“We received some recommendations and have already hired some of them.”
“I see.”
With a slight pause, the butler added quietly.
“Even though they may not seem like it, everyone is quite excited.”
The Duke looked at him as if questioning what he meant.
“After the busy work is done, they can take a short vacation, you see.”
“I see.”
The Duke added.
“If there’s room in the budget, allocate some funds for the vacations. After a long winter, we all need some space to catch a breath.”
Ashlyn sensed the maid standing next to her trembling with excitement. The butler flashed a small smile.
“Yes, Your Grace. Everyone will be delighted.”
At that moment, a servant hurriedly entered the dining room. Approaching the butler, the servant whispered something in his ear.
“Really?”
“Yes, it just arrived for his Grace.”
The servant took out a letter from their pocket and handed it to the butler.
Ashlyn discreetly glanced up, observing their interaction. Her eyes widened slightly.
‘That’s the royal seal. And that handwriting…’
The 1st Prince’s handwriting.
Ashlyn furrowed her brow. Her fingertips trembled, so she clenched her fist tightly to steady herself.
“Your Grace.”
The butler handed the letter to the Duke. He leisurely read it, his movements relaxed.
“So the first prince fell ill.”
A voice mixed with a mocking tone escaped. The Duke casually placed the letter on the table.
“Go and burn it.”
“B-But it’s a letter from the royal family…”
“Burn it.”
His expression was resolute. The butler hesitated, looking somewhat perplexed. The letter, intricately adorned with gold accents, eventually disappeared into his grasp.
Ashlyn, who had been observing this, narrowed her eyes.
‘Why would Duke Laperion, a close aide to the first prince, do this?’
It was clear that Duke Laperion was associated with the Prince.
For him to treat a letter from the first prince in such a manner was something incomprehensible to Ashlyn.
‘Have they grown distant?’
Her gaze wandered to the floor.
Without any clues to speculate on, the question remained unsolved.
* * *
The chaotic days of work at the mansion finally came to an end. The maidservants of the Duke’s estate were finally granted a sweet vacation.
“Ha! Finally!”
“It’s finally overrrrr!”
“Vacation, it’s vacation! Finally, a vacation!”
Sophia, Ann, and Lena exclaimed one after another.
Ashlyn smiled as she looked at the three of them gathered in her room. The tired maids were immersed in a sense of liberation. Enjoying the roasted walnuts they received from the chef, the four of them savored the long-awaited honey-like relaxation.
“Plus, we got a bonus this time! I’m so happy!”
Lena tapped her bulging purse pouch and said.
“When is your vacation, Lena?”
“Ann and I will start next week. We’re going back to our hometown. What about you, Sophia?”
“I’ll have mine in four days. I’m going home to see my younger sister too.”
“I see.”
Excited voices shared their plans with each other. The maids were scheduled to have a four-day vacation without overlapping schedules.
“What about you, Ashlyn?”
“I start tomorrow…”
Ashlyn said while eating a walnut, without adding anything more.
Sophia raised her head in response.
“What? You’re not taking a vacation this time either?”
Ashlyn had never taken a vacation once. Part of the reason was her determination to become a chief maid and never take a break…
Honestly, she had nowhere to go.
“Ashlyn, go to the bustling city and have a change of scenery. This winter… has been tough, hasn’t it?”
Sophia cautiously added. Lena and Ann enthusiastically nodded in agreement.
“Yeah. Go to the bustling district of Downtown Merva, buy some delicious food, do some shopping. It will help you feel better.”
“….”
Ashlyn pondered for a moment.
Downtown Merva.
Since coming to the Duke’s estate, she had never been there before.
‘Should I go and see what it’s like, just once?’
As Ashlyn looked at the excited faces around her, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement herself. So, she responded impulsively.
“Alright, then at least tell me about a famous restaurant or something.”
“Now you’re talking right!”
The three of them eagerly jumped in as if they’d been waiting for the opportunity.
How much time had passed?
Ashlyn blinked her eyes. When she regained her senses, she realized that she was holding an incredible amount of things in her arms.
“…This is impressive.”
A list of new and popular restaurants in Merva, a map of the shopping district, the location of hidden dessert cafes, and famous night view spots in Merva, and so on…
It was the result of the maids pooling their collective intelligence for their colleague’s first vacation.
‘A maid’s vacation is quite intense.’
Ashlyn thought absentmindedly.
When she looked more closely, she found that the vacation itinerary was divided by time slots. She barely managed to dissuade them from breaking it down into minutes.
* * *
“Oh my, would you like to see some grapes?”
Startled by the sudden voice, Asblyn turned her head to see a man with a thick brown beard looking in her direction.
It was a fruit store that caught her attention. Unlike regular street vendors, the packaging of the fruits itself was extravagant, as if it was frequented by nobles.
“I’m only fascinated. It’s not the season for grapes yet.”
Ashlyn replied quietly.
“Hmm?”
The shop owner opened his eyes slightly and discreetly glanced at the woman in front of him.
She was dressed plainly, without any accessories, and looked rather small.
‘Is she a commoner? …Why did I think she was a noble?’
He scratched the back of his head in confusion.
“Haha, I guess you don’t know, being a commoner. Nowadays, if you have money, you can taste sweet grapes even in the middle of winter. Even aristocrats like Lord Robert Jenkins enjoy these grapes.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Grapes in winter are already a common sight in the capital markets. Thanks to the cultivation technique developed by the late princess…”
His mouth was quickly shut up by another.
“Why talk about the deceased princess? Why are you trying to get into trouble now that the first prince is in power?”
“Ahem!”
Feeling embarrassed, the shopkeeper coughed a vain cough.
Regardless, Ashlyn quietly gazed at the round grapes.
Hearing her own story from someone else felt a bit awkward.
“Oh, anyway. Are you going to buy any?”
“Yes, please give me a little.”
Enchanted by the memory of the sweet fruit on her tongue, she bought them. The owner packed them neatly in a box and handed them over.
‘But… Did I ever pass on this technique to the Duchy of Laperion?”
Ashlyn frowned as she paid.
She distinctly remembered only spreading it to her own territory and the domains of a select few nobles.
‘I can’t seem to remember.’
She couldn’t recall it clearly.
‘Did my aides spread it after I died?’
Feeling a strange sense of unease, Ashlyn quickly left the fruit shop.
It was a day with clear skies and beautiful weather.
Merva, one of the busiest cities in Duke Laperion’s territory, was bustling with people.
‘Now all I have to do is just run some errands for the head maid.’
Ashlyn thought about her next schedule.
She was going to buy some things the maid asked her to buy.
‘First, I’ll have to buy a new hairbrush and hair oil.’
She looked around the shops around her. Her eyes were rather tense.
It was understandable, because this was the first time she’d walked alone on such a busy street.
‘Your highness..…’
‘Quiet, Deri. Are you going to announce to everyone here that I’m a princess?’
‘Well, what if something happens to you when you go alone? You should consider having someone to accompany you.’
‘I can manage on my own. Everyone else can walk alone just fine, so why not me?’
‘As if, you won’t even be able to properly buy one thing.’
‘You’re making me look like a fool.’
‘I would rather you stay still like a fool. Aren’t you concerned about how this would reflect on Sir Jex?’
Derion’s nagging voice echoed in her ears. The expression of the rushing knight who followed closely behind her also came to mind.
Ashlyn let out a wry smile, lost in the faded memories.
‘But why did I go outside the palace back then?’
She seemed to be holding grapes at that time too.
Ashlyn pondered deeply.
And then, it hit her.
“Oh!”
Her body swerved. She’d collided into a passerby.
“I’m sorry.”
Ashlyn apologized, rubbing her numb shoulder. The person she bumped into was a large man with a rough face.
“What’s this? If you bump into someone, apologize properly…”
The man stopped speaking and stared down at Ashlyn in silence.
“Oh.”
It was an ominous exclamation. Ashlyn quickly bid him farewell and tried to pass by, but the man swiftly turned his body, blocking her way.
“Wait, wait. So there was someone like this in Merva. Why didn’t I know?”
Ashlyn finally looked at the man’s face.
“You’re stunning. Almost enchanting.”
“You’re being rude.”
“Rude? It’s a compliment! Hey, you’re the one who bumped into someone who was just going about his way. Now my shoulder feels like it’s about to fall off. Oh, my shoulder!”
He exaggeratedly held his shoulder.
“What do you want now?”
“That’s the thing. If you want to apologize to me, let’s have a cup of tea together, how about it?”
The man’s intentions were obvious. Ashlyn was extremely flustered but tried not to show it.
“No, thank you. If you come any closer, I’ll scream.”
“Oh, go ahead and scream. Scream as much as you want.”
The man approached Ashlyn menacingly.
He raised his rough hand, intending to grip her shoulder forcefully.
However, that action didn’t reach its conclusion. It wasn’t because Ashlyn hastily took a step back.
“Ah!”
A scream burst out of him like a final note.
Thud. The ominous sound resonated from the man’s arm next.
Tevet’s honest reaction to hearing the letter is from the prince:
