CH 19

“Rosie! Rosie!”

I woke up from a deep sleep at the touch of my shoulder shaking roughly.

“Haa—”

I had a nightmare. A very terrible one. 

I opened my mouth in search of oxygen, covering my confused vision with my palm. 

“Rosie! Are you okay?”

Emily asked me in a worried voice, but I blinked slowly, unable to answer.

What kind of dream is this?

The answer to the question came out quickly.

This is Rose’s— No, Rosie’s memory. I mean this body possessed by me. 

I’ve never had a dream like this since possessing it, so why am I suddenly having such a nightmare—?

I slowly looked back on my dream by rubbing my painful head.

So—.

Rosie was the sister of a sub-male lead in this novel?

—Really?

I can’t believe I’m the main character with the huge prize money Emily mentioned before.

They say to be careful for what you wish, it can’t be, did what I said as a joke to Emily come true?

Looking back on Rosie’s memories based on the dream, it seems that not a drop of blood was mixed between Rosie and the sub-male lead. 

So that’s why she had a pretty bad childhood— and is that why she ran away?

And got a job at the Marquis of Evantes to earn a living?

I was curious about Rosie’s life, but I thought it might have been better not to know.

I think it will be very dangerous for me if I get caught.

In common sense, it is not a simple runaway, but how long can a noble woman who lived a good life survive outside?

‘Isn’t it because she didn’t want to go back that much?’

I made up my mind while wiping away the cold sweat. After this happened, I had to run away as soon as possible. 

I’ll have to dye my hair in the next place. 

“Emily, you know the reward you mentioned before—”

“Reward? Oh, you mean Count Herthas’ missing daughter?”

“That’s right. That thing. By any chance, they won’t have her portrait right?”

“Well, I don’t know about that either. Rumors have it that a portrait was hung, but secondly, the noble son said he couldn’t put up his sister’s face recklessly.”

I don’t know if it’s a relief or a misfortune.

“But Rosie, why do you ask that?”

“Because I want the reward—?”

Emily smiled widely at the remark and said that she wanted the reward too.

Hearing that she was seriously thinking about taking a vacation and looking for Herthas’ daughter, I hid my pale face with the palm of my hand pretending to have a headache. 

I’m doomed. I should run away from here as soon as possible.

*****

“You’re not coming back anymore?”

The last day of the meal duty. The chef gave me a faint look as he handed Richard’s meal. 

Just because I decide to run away quickly doesn’t mean I can go out right away.

So it would be better to get along well until then.

“Please call me often for dessert.”

“That’s great.”

The chef handed Richard’s meal, and I put it on the tray I was familiar with and went to Richard’s room.

“You’re here, Maid.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t you have any potatoes today?”

It was a clear voice to tease me for not peeling potatoes.

I smiled quietly and took out the potatoes I had hidden behind me. Richard’s expression hardened.

He didn’t express it, but he seemed to hate peeling the potatoes.

“Are you going to peel it today too?”

“You’re the only one who can treat me like this, Maid.”

“It’s an honor.”

Free labor, it sounds great.

So I sat next to Richard and started my day by peeling the potatoes. 

*****

It bothers him. 

Richard peeled potatoes and stared at the maid who was peeling potatoes together. 

The maid was immersed with peeling the potatoes, not knowing he was staring at her. 

The maid was rude. There were times when she actually made him laugh, who had been pretending to laugh.

He tried to distract himself from the maid. Then at that moment.

“Ouch!”

As if she had made a mistake while slicing the potatoes, the knife ran past the maid’s fingertips. 

Round drops of blood flowed from her white hands, and a strong scent spread in an instant.

With a poisonously fascinating scent, the hand holding the potato lost strength, and the potato fell on the floor and rolled around. 

The maid looked at Richard as if to ask why.

He swept his face and laughed, saying it was nothing.

The maid put her bloody fingers in her mouth because she was not very interested in him.

Seeing that, Richard thought he wanted to suck that hand.

‘I’m going crazy.’

Richard scolded himself for thinking inappropriately and swept his burning skin.

While the maid stopped by here, he was able to get away from the magic barrel that was tormenting him for a while.

Before, he couldn’t think of anything as if his whole body was paralyzed by the magic suppressant, but now it’s not. 

Thanks to that, he was able to make a plan to run away safely. 

“Ah, I should get going.”

The maid, who had finished peeling potatoes, woke up from her seat without regret.

Richard looked at her with disappointing eyes.

On the day he ran away, he decided once again to take that maid with him.

“See you again, Maid.”

Even after the maid left, Richard waited for the maid to come.

She came to feed him at the scheduled time, and as she finished delivering the last meal of the day, she looked back at him with a blank expression. 

“See you tomorrow, Maid.”

The maid did not answer.

But Richard didn’t care because it always happens.

When the sun comes up tomorrow, the maid will visit him again.

But the next day, the maid didn’t come.

******

As soon as he woke up in the morning, Richard thought of the maid serving his meal.

Without that maid, the magic suppressant came to visit Richard again.

Pain persistently bothered him, and the maid was the only person to put the pain away from him. 

So. This morning, Richard opened his eyes feeling a mild pain that was burning his whole body. 

And he waited for the maid to come and relieve his pain.

But. 

“…Ah.”

The new maid sighed and stared blankly at him.

When their eyes met, her face blushed and she held out the dog bowl. 

“N, nice to meet you! It’s my turn to do meal duty this time.”

Seeing a woman smiling awkwardly, Richard realized. 

Today was the day when the duty of the meal changed.

Normally, he would have smiled at the newly changed maid. But this time, he couldn’t.

He doesn’t know why, but he didn’t feel very good.

*****

Finally, the meal duty is over. I opened my eyes in the morning, touched my neck, and let out joy. 

I’m so happy.

“Rosie! It’s not time to laugh! Please check this out!”

But apart from my joy, the mansion was busy now.

Argen, who hates boredom, often threw parties at the mansion. It is said that the party will be held in a few days.

Because of that, I and other servants were preparing for the party together.

I checked the quantity of items needed for the party with Emily and worked with other maids to carry them.

“Rosie.”

The butler, who had been working hard for a long time, approached me with graceful steps, and called me.

“I have something to say. Follow me.”

When the butler called me, the other maid looked at me with puzzled eyes.

I told them I would go and follow the butler. The place where he stopped was an empty hallway.

“Rosie.”

“Yes, Butler.”

“I heard you were quitting. Is that true?”

Did Argen tell him?

“…That’s true.”

The butler sighed as if he didn’t like my answer.

“Rosie, it’s rare to find a job as good as this one.”

It’s also rare to find a job where my head is cut off.

The words reached the end of my throat, but I couldn’t speak, so I just bowed my head and answered.

“Can I ask why you want to quit?”

Uhm, I guess he didn’t hear that from Argen. 

I put awkwardly shy words in my mouth again.

“…It’s because I want to get married.”

“…Well, your age is the age of marriage. You’re 23 years old, right?” 

I didn’t even know Rosie’s age. First of all, I nodded roughly because I didn’t know.

“That’s too bad. I thought no one was as suitable as you for the maid in charge of it.”

“There will be many better maids than me.”

“I really hope so. Okay. Then work hard in the meantime, Rosie.”

“Thank you, Butler.”

I was going to leave after a few days after this party.

Fortunately, Rosie saved up all the money she had earned.

I think I’ll be able to afford enough until I go out and find a place. 

So I headed to the place where the maids were. I had to help them in a hurry because they were busy preparing for the party. 

“Kyaak!”

With a sharp scream, I stopped heading toward the maid and turned my head in the direction of the sound.

There, a maid with a frightened face was running up from the basement like crazy.

—It was the place where Richard’s room was located.

“—The monster.”

In a panting voice, the maid shouted.

“The monster is crazy!”