Rita had entered the House of Bilton as a maid when she was around the same age as Mary.
Her family had never been wealthy, but their situation worsened drastically when her father, the sole breadwinner, fell ill.
Soon, starvation became a routine part of Rita’s daily life.
Her mother, a diligent woman, worked tirelessly, taking on labor wherever she could.
But after covering the cost of her husband’s medicine, there was barely anything left—certainly not enough to feed a family of six.
Her younger siblings cried every day from hunger.
“This can’t go on!”
One day, after the family had gone three days without a single meal, Rita, as the eldest, made a resolute decision.
She would find a way to earn money, no matter what.
But as determined as she was, finding work as a child proved far more difficult than she had anticipated.
She was turned away at every door.
“You want a job? There’s nothing here for a kid like you.”
“Ha! What kind of work do you think you can do with those tiny hands? Get back home!”
“Move aside! Can’t you see I’m busy? Don’t get in the way!”
The harsh rejections stung more than she had expected.
Was she supposed to go home and wait for death, holding her starving siblings in her arms?
Just as despair began to take hold, a door finally opened for her.
The House of Bilton.
Strictly speaking, even they were about to turn her away, as the mansion did not accept servants without a letter of recommendation.
But then—
Yvonne had overheard her circumstances by chance.
Moved by Rita’s plight, Yvonne took her in and promised her work.
Not only that—upon learning that Rita’s siblings were starving, she had even instructed the butler to arrange an advance on her wages.
And then, she had placed a gentle hand on Rita’s head.
“You must have been through so much.”
Her words weren’t extravagant, but to a girl who had been struggling alone, they were the greatest comfort imaginable.
“Thank you! Thank you so much!”
Rita had bowed countless times in gratitude.
Determined to repay Yvonne’s kindness, she worked diligently in the Bilton estate.
Because she was young, she feared that if she didn’t perform well, she would become a burden to the very person who had saved her.
So she pushed herself to work harder than any of the other maids.
She woke up earlier, went to bed later.
She took on even the most menial, undesirable chores without complaint.
And so, each day passed in a blur of labor.
Then, about a week after Rita had joined the household, she had her first encounter with the young mistress of the Bilton estate—Angela.
She had been scrubbing the floors of the corridor when a swish of luxurious fabric appeared before her.
A bright yellow dress.
Peeking out beneath its hem were lilac-colored shoes, so pristine that they looked as though they had never once touched dirt.
Rita had to tilt her head all the way back, as if gazing up at the sky.
“…….”
A girl around her age was looking down at her.
She was breathtakingly beautiful.
The act of looking down on others suited her as naturally as the elegant dress she wore.
“You’re new here. Who are you?”
Rita had been so mesmerized that she didn’t react until she heard the girl’s clear, bell-like voice.
Snapping out of her daze, she leaped to her feet.
In her haste, she nearly stepped on her own skirt and tumbled over, barely managing to steady herself.
“My name is Rita! I’ve been working here since last week!”
She bowed deeply before clasping her hands together politely.
The girl didn’t respond immediately.
But she didn’t ignore Rita, either.
She simply stood still, maintaining eye contact.
Even that, somehow, felt dazzling.
Rita had the absurd urge to shield her eyes with her hands.
Then—click!
The girl took a step closer.
With that one movement, a pleasant fragrance wafted toward Rita, cooling the tip of her nose.
“Do you know who I am?”
The unexpected question startled Rita.
“E-Engela… I mean, Lady Angela?”
Uncertain, she answered hesitantly, fearing she might be mistaken.
Then, the girl smiled.
“So you do know.”
Her voice, soft and musing, felt like an affirmation of a correct answer.
Strictly speaking, Rita hadn’t known for sure.
But in a grand estate like this, there was only one girl her age who would wear such fine clothes.
So she had simply guessed.
Still, since she had guessed correctly, there was no need to correct the misunderstanding.
“Yes, Lady Angela,” she replied.
At that, Angela’s smile deepened slightly.
“Aren’t you a bit young to be working as a maid?”
“Ah, well, um… My father is ill. My mother works, but… I have many younger siblings, so… I…”
Rita trailed off, unsure if a noble lady who had known nothing but luxury would even want to hear about her hardships.
“Ah.”
Angela’s response was indifferent.
Rita assumed that was the end of the conversation.
But then—
Angela abruptly reached for her own necklace and unclasped it.
It was a stunning piece of jewelry, featuring a large green gemstone identical to the color of Angela’s eyes.
She held it out toward Rita.
What…?
Was she showing it off?
Did she want her to admire it?
How was she supposed to react?
Rita, clueless about Angela’s intent, simply stood there, staring blankly.
When she made no move, Angela sighed in exasperation and took Rita’s hand, pressing the necklace into her palm.
“It’s worth quite a bit.”
And with that, she turned and walked away, her steps light and unhurried.
“Ah…!”
It wasn’t until Angela had disappeared completely that Rita realized—
This necklace was not something she was meant to admire.
It was a gift.
A gesture of kindness.
“…I didn’t even get to say thank you.”
Rita murmured, staring down at the weighty piece of jewelry.
Would it be alright to go find her and express her gratitude?
She was still debating when—
“Hey.”
A voice called out to her.
“Yes?”
She turned to see one of the maids who had been at the estate for about half a year longer than her.
“Your name’s Rita, right?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“The thing Lady Angela just gave you.”
The maid nodded toward the necklace in her hand.
Rita instinctively tightened her grip on it.
In her poverty-stricken neighborhood, petty theft was common.
Her reaction was purely reflexive.
The maid gestured toward the necklace with a nod.
Rita instinctively tightened her grip on it.
Growing up in poverty, she had seen plenty of petty theft in her neighborhood—her reaction was purely instinctive.
But the maid didn’t seem interested in the necklace at all.
Instead, she spoke indifferently.
“You should return it.”
Rita blinked, utterly confused.
Seeing her clueless expression, the maid frowned slightly, glanced around to check their surroundings, and then leaned in to whisper.
“You’re new here, so you probably don’t know, but Lady Angela is called a demon in this mansion. If she’s in a bad mood, she’ll grab a whip before asking questions. She’s terrifying. What if she suddenly claims she never gave you that necklace? She’d make an issue out of it, no doubt. If you don’t want to lose your hand, you’d better return it. And when you’re near her, don’t even breathe too loudly. Pretending to be dead is your safest bet.”
Having finished her lengthy warning, the maid left Rita with a final “Don’t take this lightly” before going back to her work.
For the first time, Rita was too distracted to focus on her chores.
Angela was certainly unpredictable, and she had the arrogance of a noble who did as they pleased—but a demon?
That seemed far-fetched.
Rita couldn’t bring herself to believe it.
But the very next day, she was forced to accept that every word had been true.
She had witnessed Angela slapping Yvonne across the face—in the middle of the mansion’s grand lobby.
She couldn’t even remember the reason.
It had probably been something trivial.
Angela was simply the type of person who got angry when she felt like it.
The reason could always come later.
As Rita stared at the bright red imprint on Yvonne’s cheek, she suddenly felt terrified of the necklace hidden in her uniform pocket.
She spent the entire day feeling suffocated, unable to focus.
In the end, she made up her mind—she had to return the necklace.
“I’ve come to return this, my lady. I’m very sorry.”
Rita had been tense from the moment she entered Angela’s room, fearing she might accidentally offend her.
So she did exactly as the other maid had advised—she bowed as deeply as possible and held her breath.
She was pretending to be dead.
“What exactly are you sorry for?”
Despite her efforts, Angela’s voice was sharp.
It was nothing like the gentle voice she had used yesterday when asking who Rita was.
In fact, it wasn’t even like the voice that had calmly permitted Rita to enter her room just moments ago.
“I-I… um… I’m… sorry.”
Rita stammered, growing more anxious.
Angela’s gaze turned even colder.
“That’s not an answer to my question. I asked what you’re sorry for.”
“Ah… well, um… that is…”
Rita’s eyes darted nervously.
What could she say to avoid provoking this razor-sharp young lady?
Her mind was a mess.
Before she could come up with an answer—
Thwack!
Angela snatched the necklace from Rita’s hands with a rough motion.
Then—
She threw it straight out the window.
It all happened in an instant.
“You’re not returning it to me after having your filthy hands all over it, are you? This is the best way to get rid of it, then.”
Her words struck like a whip, making Rita flinch and shrink into herself.
Pretend to be dead. Pretend to be dead. Pretend to be dead.
Rita chanted the words in her head, praying this ordeal would end soon.
But Angela was not about to let her off so easily.
Instead, she called another maid and issued an order.
“Go tell the head maid—this girl is not to be given food for two days.”
“Pardon? My lady, that’s—!”
“You too.”
The maid, who had spoken up out of pity for young Rita, quickly shut her mouth.
Rita, panicking, began pleading.
“I’m sorry! It’s fine, I’ll starve! Just punish me, not her!”
Angela simply turned two days into three.
That was when Rita realized—if she said another word, this merciless lady would make it four.
“I’m sorry… It’s my fault…”
With teary eyes, Rita apologized to the maid who had been caught in the crossfire.
But the maid simply patted her shoulder.
“It’s fine. Honestly, we should just be grateful to still have all our limbs after getting on Lady Angela’s bad side.”
Then, she gave her a piece of advice—one learned from experience.
“If you know what’s good for you, stay as far away from Lady Angela as possible. The best way to survive in this mansion is to never catch her attention.”
Rita, now thoroughly shaken, gritted her teeth and nodded.
From that day on, she never participated in gossip about Angela.
Even now, over ten years later, that had not changed.
But now that she thought about it—something didn’t quite add up.
As a child, Angela’s cruelty had been so overwhelming that she had never questioned it.
But looking back—
Angela had been kind to her at their first meeting.
That shy smile on her beautiful face still lingered in Rita’s memory.
Angela had smirked at her plenty of times after that, but a genuine smile?
That had been the first and last.
So where had things gone wrong?
Why had she felt so guilty about returning a necklace that Angela had never even asked for?
And what would have happened if she had simply kept it?
The day after Angela had tossed a pouch of money at her, Mary’s entire wardrobe, bed, and vanity were replaced with brand-new furniture—per Angela’s orders.
Watching it all unfold, Rita felt something strange creeping in.
Something felt… terribly, terribly wrong.
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