Episode 15
***
A late afternoon.
The Wintervalt staff’s exclusive break room.
It was now a short break time for the maids of the mansion.
“How did she seem?”
Gemma, the head maid, sipped her chamomile tea as she asked.
“Well, let’s see…”
The one who answered was Kate, one of the maids.
“She was just like my first impression of her: a worthless pebble, rolling around by the stream.”
Upon hearing this, the head maid twisted her lips into a subtle smile.
“So you’re saying she’s round, cute, and shiny enough that you can’t help but want to pick her up and stroke her.”
Kate nodded vigorously. She often found herself misunderstood due to her lack of eloquence, but luckily, the head maid always understood her perfectly.
“Could it really be true that the master raised Lirin, a maid, as his foster daughter? Seriously?”
“Well, who knows.”
“But didn’t you watch the projection together?”
Even though they pretended not to care, Lirin and Theo were hot topics among the mansion’s staff.
Recalling that moment, the head maid narrowed her eyes slightly.
“Yes. It was surprising… The idea of the master raising a child was more shocking than if the sun had risen in the west—no, if it had disappeared entirely. More than anything, it was strange seeing the master’s appearance in the projection, looking different, which made it feel a bit off.”
The head maid stirred some chocolate cubes into warm milk. Kate, helping out beside her, remarked,
“So it was possible to change one’s appearance like that. That explains the pink hue left in the master’s hair…”
“Shh. Kate, you must never speak of the magical artifact used for appearance alteration. If word reaches the Mage Tower, even our master won’t escape interrogation. It’s an extremely rare magical item.”
“I’m sorry. I broke the rules—should I cut off a finger as punishment?”
“This isn’t some gang.”
Both of them sipped their tea again.
At that moment, another maid, who had been quietly opening a bag of marshmallows, chimed in.
“But if you look closely, Lirin does resemble the master a little.”
“Oh, dear God. Aisha, have you thought about getting your eyes checked? That’s covered under our benefits, you know.”
“No, I mean in her mannerisms and speech patterns. She kind of gives off the same vibe as the master.”
Aisa recalled a scene she witnessed in the dining room earlier that day.
“I swear, Theo Valt, if you keep being picky about tomatoes, your sister’s going to roar at you! Look at this! Leaving them all behind! Do you want a spanking?”
“Boo!”
And then she remembered Kalek, who had been working a little further away.
“I swear, Ruska Higgins, if you keep bringing me paperwork like this, I’ll (cut your neck) right off. Look at this. Do you think filling in numbers is a joke? (Neck) cut off?”
“Boo!”
“Is he out of mind?”
“No, more like he seems to mute the most important word in the sentence.”
“Hmm. Their speech patterns are strangely similar.”
“Especially the way neither of them backs down in an argument.”
“Now that you mention it, even during tea time earlier…”
Kate, who had been listening quietly, recalled the recent snack time.
Kalek had the habit of gazing out the window while sipping brandy or strong tea after meals, just like five years ago. The only difference today was that there was a head of pink hair peeking into his space.
“Phew.”
“Haaa.”
With legs crossed, father and daughter—or rather, the adult and the child—each sipped their brandy and fruit tea. At the far end of the table, Theo sat with his short legs barely crossed, sipping milk.
Aisha spoke up again.
“Hmm. As a maid, I have a feeling that the master truly did raise Lirin with great care.”
In fact, it was something everyone silently acknowledged—except for Calek.
“So, if the master regains his memory… will Lirin be recognized as a lady of the house?”
At those words, the head maid, who had been carefully floating marshmallows on top of her hot chocolate, narrowed her eyes.
“That might be possible… Ahem! But even if that were the case, we can’t neglect training the new recruits. A maid’s duty is to be diligent with the tasks right in front of her, isn’t it?”
“That’s true.”
“So, let’s worry about the future when the time comes. For now, focus on training the next generation, as always! Understood?”
“Of course, head maid.”
Kate smiled, revealing her crooked teeth.
“You know we’re not that easy to deal with.”
The Wintervalt staff took great pride in their name. Pleasing the master could be tough work, but labor was always somewhat challenging. Besides, they were compensated for all that effort with an unimaginable salary and a variety of benefits.
So, when they wore their uniforms embroidered with the snowflake emblem and walked outside, they were met with looks of envy. It was a prestigious and enviable job, filled with both honor and a dash of pride. Loyalty, loyalty.
“We’ll show them all the bitter, spicy, sweet, and sour sides of life.”
The maids rolled up their sleeves and smiled mischievously.
Snap. Finally, they finished making a rich batch of hot chocolate, perfectly in sync.
“Um…”
The owner of the hot chocolate, who had been nervously rolling her eyes, spoke up softly.
“What is it, Lirin?”
“Wouldn’t it be better if you discussed such matters without me present…?”
Lirin, who had been sitting on the head maid’s lap the whole time, asked innocently.
“That’s not possible.”
The head maid donned a solemn expression.
“You already belong to us. Excluding you from tea time would be wrong, wouldn’t it?”
“Heh.”
A late afternoon in the maids’ break room.
“Shall I add more milk? Marshmallows? It’s lacking in sourness. Bring the dried orange slices!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
The rookie maid, Lirin, though a bit rough around the edges, was spending a peaceful afternoon surrounded by her kind senior maids.
As the leisurely time passed, a servant from the annex approached, informing them that the break was over.
“Head maid, it seems like we need to tidy up the western annex this afternoon.”
“Huh? What’s the sudden reason for that?”
“Duke Eliza and her husband are expected to return a little earlier than planned.”
The head maid calmly stroked Lirin’s head, who was trying to quietly slip away, and replied.
“Oh, I thought they wouldn’t return until the day before the parade, enjoying their trip outside the capital?”
“Because of last night’s rain, it seems they’ve changed their plans. Besides, Sir Blaine…”
The servant glanced at Lirin’s pink crown and continued.
“He’s apparently in quite a hurry. They’ll likely arrive within two days.”
“I see.”
The head maid quickly set her teacup down and tapped the table.
“Break’s over. Everyone, let’s move.”
“Yes, yes.”
The maids swiftly got up. Even Lirin, who had been sitting quietly like a doll, hopped down and scurried along, answering.
“Yes, yes.”
Of course, she didn’t get far before the head maid caught her by the scruff of her neck.
“Yes, yes?”
“Maid Lirin, move only after finishing your hot chocolate.”
“Yes, yes… But what should I do after I finish?”
Sparkle, sparkle.
“Just go up to your bedroom and rest…”
Sparkle, sparkle, sparkle.
Please. Give me a task.
I don’t want to rest. I want to join in. Include me.
“Ahem.”
The head maid seemed to hear the child’s thoughts, as though they echoed out loud, even though they couldn’t be true.
Looking at her eager expression, like she was about to play a fun game, the head maid sighed.
It couldn’t be helped.
“Well then, go check on the cleaning status around the house!”
It was essentially a way of telling her to explore the mansion while playing around.
“Oh, but I still don’t know my way around very well yet?”
“Come to think of it, we haven’t given you the mansion guidebook yet. Here it is.”
“Oh! A map!”
“If you’re unsure, just ask anyone.”
Even though she handed it over, she honestly didn’t expect Lirin to figure everything out on her own.
When she inevitably came running over with questions, the head maid would explain in great detail, maybe even too much detail.
“A rookie should work lazily! Slowly, haphazardly! Just check things with your eyes!”
“Yes, yes!”
Excited at the thought of running around the mansion, the child happily responded.
***
“Hm, the backyard cleaning score: -300 points.”
With a stern face, I marked my notepad.
“Lobby, +100 points.”
If anyone thought I would just play around innocently, they were mistaken.
“Overall assessment: effort only put into visible areas. Three stars.”
I was a child who understood responsibility.
After thoroughly inspecting various areas of the mansion with a hawk’s eye, I walked down the hallway, step by step.
Maybe because of what the head maid said, everyone seemed to act like it was normal no matter where I appeared in the mansion. When I greeted them with a nod, they just smiled back at me.
“They’re all so kind, pretending not to notice.”
They even gave me hot chocolate. And let me join them during break time.
They even tucked Theo in for a nap in the lounge.
“And then…”
I recalled the conversation the maids had.
I couldn’t help but grin.
“Am I really that much like my dad?”
In truth, because the magic device for appearance transformation was missing, my dad and I looked completely different now.
But still, they said we looked alike.
Their observation skills were quite good, and it made me very happy.
‘More importantly, I really need to keep the appearance transformation device stored away safely.’
I thought of the earring cuff that was securely locked away in my personal safe, alongside my ring.
‘As the maids said, if the Magic Tower finds out, Dad could get into trouble. I’ve heard that, especially since the death of the Tower Lord, they’ve been more sensitive about the leakage of magical items and magic…’
The Empire’s Tower Lord had died a few years ago.
They had sacrificed themselves during a large-scale labyrinth subjugation, blocking a massive magic explosion with their body. Without their sacrifice, the Empire would have suffered catastrophic damage.
‘I heard their magical skills were outstanding, and they were called a hero because of their great character, too.’
Oh dear, why do good people always die young? I hope they’re happy in heaven.
Climbing the stairs, I offered a small prayer.
For a brief moment, I paused as I reached my destination.
I peeked my head out from behind the corner.
“Hm. No one’s here. Good.”
It was the direction of my dad’s office.
A little while ago, I pretended to check the mansion’s exterior and approached the tree planted in front of the building. I had learned the schedule for when the office would be empty.
Now was the perfect time.
Dad wasn’t there, and the guards who usually stood in front of his office weren’t around either.
After making sure no one was watching, I slipped into the office.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
