CH 2

Luckily she spoke to Paula to make sure her choice was right.

“My introduction is late. I’m Isabella, managing the female users of this mansion. You will be dealing with me, second-most, while you are working here.”

“Okay, who is the first?”

“That’s the master you will see soon.”

That’s what the old gentleman said earlier. She didn’t know what kind of job she was hired for when she came here. Her father, who was blind to money, did not even think about asking, and she did not have to wonder. Whatever it was, even if it was terrible, she should have to follow it.

“What should I call you, Miss?”

“Just call me Isabella.”

“Yes, Miss Isabella.”

She engraved the chief maid’s name in her mind. Then she realised she had to introduce herself.

“My introduction is late, too. This is Paula.”

“Yes, Paula. What can you do?”

“I know how to do housework, such as simple cleaning and laundry. I know how to calculate a little money, and I can write a little. You need to know the basics to count money.”

“I see.”

Isabella, who said so, was indifferent. On the contrary, Paula was nervous about her reaction. 

‘What if she thinks I’m useless?’

‘What if I’m told to go back home?’

Isabella’s pace as she walked ahead was quite fast. Paula took a quick step towards her, fearing she might miss her.

So she followed Isabella around the corner and came to a certain door. Just in time, the door opened, and a young woman hurried out, saw Isabella, stopped and bowed. The brown-haired woman who followed her also stopped in a hurry with a surprised look and shook her head.

“Hello, Miss Isabella.”

“I would have told you not to run around.”

“I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.”

“Be careful next time.”

Their cautious gaze reached from Isabella to Paula standing behind her. Just as they were about to make eye contact with Paula, Isabella took a step to the side and blocked the view. And she ordered them to hurry up and go to their area.

Paula followed them with her eyes as they quickly walked away. Meanwhile, Isabella opened the door and called someone.

“Renica.”

“Yes, Miss Isabella.”

A tall, mature woman approached them. Isabella pushed Paula’s back forward.

“Are there any clothes that fit this child?”

Renica’s eyes stared at Paula. She seemed to ponder for a moment and nodded her head.

“She has a small physique. Even if it doesn’t fit perfectly, there seems to be something that fits.”

“I’m happy. It doesn’t have to be perfectly formal.”

“Yes, where is she in charge of?”

“From now on, she will be in charge of the master.”

Renica’s eyes widened as if it was an unexpected answer. A startled look stared at Paula again. She became even more nervous at the reaction, swallowing dry saliva several times.

Moments later, Renica nodded her head calmly and went back inside.

Not long after, she pulled out a black dress and put it on Paula’s body. She brought the same black dress in a different size a few more times, as if to measure her size, and handed one of them. It was also accompanied by a white apron and underpants.

“Your hair is…”

Renica made impressions as she looked at Paula’s long bangs covering her face. Paula licked her dry lips. Isabella looked at her for a moment, said it was okay, and took another step. Paula stumbled and followed her.

Isabella walked down the hallway again. Paula looked around constantly. As she walked, she could see people working in the room with the door open, in the corner or in the hall. People walking from the other side, seeing Isabella, bowed their heads deeply.

A slightly loud noise resounded from the surroundings. The noise gradually subsided, and there was stillness again. 

The regular and steady sound of footsteps broke the silence. She glanced at Isabella, clenching her bag so she wouldn’t miss the handle.

“Paula, how far do you know about your job?”

“I just heard you were going to hire me.”

“Then you probably didn’t hear the detailed explanation.”

“Yes.”

Paula nodded her head and answered. Isabella’s steps were still faster than the proper speed.

“This is the residence of the prestigious Bellunita family. And from now on, Paula will be in charge of all the services of Vincent Bellunita, the owner of this mansion.”

“I, …Am I doing this alone?”

“That’s right.”

For a moment, Paula lost her words. As she followed her through the hallway, she saw a relatively large number of servants. The carriage man who brought her here, the gardener in the well-maintained garden, the stable driver, the women and men in the same attire. Perhaps, she could tell without seeing that there were many more users besides them.

‘But do I have to serve the master by myself? If it’s the owner, isn’t he a powerful man?’

Paula was debating whether or not to ask this, but bit her lips instead.

“Well, is there anyone else?”

“None. If you need anything, you can tell me right away.”

“Can I do it alone? He is the master.”

Paula ended up saying something unpleasant that made Isabella stop walking. Paula bowed her head and stopped, too.

There was still no expression on Isabella’s face as she turned her back and looked at the girl.

“Paula, listen carefully. In the future, you will be the only attendant of the master, and there will be no additional people. If you don’t like it, I recommend leaving the mansion immediately. Even if you are not confident. If you make noise later, you will be punished.”

Isabella calmly warned. 

If you think you can’t do it, leave. 

Paula bit her trembling lips at that heavy warning.

And she realised. 

The sound of pain should never be repeated.

She bowed deeply.

“I’m sorry. I will be more careful next time.”

Fortunately, Isabella didn’t say anything more and turned back. Paula straightened her bent back and ran after her.

“If you’re careful what you do, nothing will be difficult.”

“Yes.”

There were no further words to follow after her answer.

After a while, a door appeared. It was smaller than the door used to enter this mansion. 

‘Was there a door in the back too?’

Paula followed Isabella through the door and out of the house. Then, on the other hand, a spacious green garden unfolded before her that she didn’t even know where the end was.

Wow, her admiration leaked out without her knowing. She looked at it from a carriage, but when she looked at it properly, the well-maintained garden was beautiful.

When Paula found Isabella walking alone after being caught in a daze, she came to her senses late and hurriedly followed her.

She wondered where they were going, but didn’t say anything, so she had no choice but to follow the chief maid silently. If she asked for nothing, she thought she would only hear worse things.

Isabella headed to the back of the mansion. A small mansion in the distance caught her eye, and the destination seemed to be there…

It was a street that seemed a little tiring just to walk. So, she led Paula to the other side, not the road. It was the forest next to the mansion.

She followed Isabella through the bushes and came out of the woods only when her legs began to tingle. Suddenly, she arrived in front of the mansion.

‘No, how?’

She was startled and looked back at the bush that had just come out. 

‘Was it a shortcut?’

She looked at the mansion in front of her again, and whether this was an annexe, it was smaller than the previous mansion. But to her eyes, both houses looked equally large and splendid.

As soon as they entered, the atmosphere got quieter than before. The large mansion was also on the low side compared to the people in sight, but it was so gloomy that she didn’t even know there were people living here.

“There are only a few people staying here.”

‘Oh, I’m not mistaken.’ 

Paula nodded and responded.

Isabella walked to the end of the hallway and started climbing the stairs.

“Breakfast will be ready at 6 A.M., lunch at noon, and dinner at 6 P.M. You can get a meal in the kitchen on time and bring it to the owner, and the dessert will be served at lunch so that you can get it then. And pay special attention to maintaining cleanliness. The sheets must be changed every morning, and so must the clothes. Collect the laundry that came out the day before and bring it to the back door of the annexe every morning.”

“Yes.”

“The basic items are here, but let me know if you need anything else. I’ll do my best to prepare, and it’s the same with difficult things.”

“Yes.”

“For your information, everything has to be done at once. Don’t go back and try to finish it just because you didn’t do it at once. The owner is sensitive to such things, so you must be as careful as possible. You have to act like you’re not around.”

“Okay.”

As she engraved the words in her head, she ruffled her hair. 

Like no one around, it was the easiest thing for her.

After climbing the stairs again, they passed the hallway and stopped in front of the very last room.

“Finally, I would like to ask you one more thing.”

Before opening the door, Isabella looked back at Paula. She glanced at the door over her shoulder and took a step back.

“From now on, everything you see and hear will have to be enforced. Be careful not to say even the slightest thing, and do not react to anything you see or hear. Don’t even listen. If you shiver for nothing, it will not end with simply being punished. Do you understand?”

It was an unexpected thing to say. But it was also as easy as breathing for her.

“Yes, I will keep that in mind.”

As Paula answered firmly, Isabella turned her body and knocked on the door slowly. 

Knock, Knock, Knock. 

She then waited for the master’s call, but no sound came from within the room. Isabella knocked on the door again, as if she was accustomed to this reaction.

Knock, Knock, Knock.

“I will go in, Master.”

She still hadn’t heard his permission to come in, but Isabella skillfully turned the doorknob. 

Darkness leaked out through the crack in the open door.

The room was completely drenched in darkness, so dark that she couldn’t see an inch ahead. Besides, the air was cool, and there was a strange smell.

Paula grabbed her nose and frowned. Then she quickly fixed her expression. Isabella told her not to react. She glanced at Isabella, and luckily she didn’t look at her. Paula lowered her hands and held her breath as much as she could.

But the moment Isabella took a step into the room.

Bang!

“Ugh!”

Something flew in an instant and crashed into the wall.

Instinctively, Paula crouched down, wrapping her arms around her head. Then, to see if there were no more flying objects, the surroundings became quiet again, she opened her eyes that had been closed. Unlike her, Isabella was still in her standing position, without moving. Next to her shoes were shards of broken glass. 

Paula looked at the pieces of glass with her wide-eyed eyes and then looked up at Isabella again. As she took another step, and this time, something came out of the darkness and crashed into the wall. 

Pak! 

The pillow fell with a dull sound.

‘What is this?!’ 

Paula got up and looked around the room. 

It was still dark in the room, but in the meantime, the eyes that had become accustomed to the darkness captured the blurry form.