CH 20

—Richard? 

Is it because he ate the fruit and it went crazy like last time?

My thoughts at this time were, selfishly, not worrying about him, because I was not on duty for his meal.

If this had happened to me while I was on duty for his meal, it might have been difficult to get through. 

“The monster is crazy! I, I can’t do the meal duty! Please— please change it!”

When the maid cried, telling them to leave the mansion, everyone stopped working and approached her.

“Ella, what’s going on?”

A maid approached her who’s crying and asked a question, and Ella began to cling to her.

“I beg you! Please switch with me! Huh? Instead, I’ll do everything for you—!”

“Ella, what are you talking about—! You’re on duty for this meal!”

“—Hic, but, I can’t do this anymore! It’s so scary!”

Confused by the brazen remark, the maid tried to push Ella away, but Ella clinged to her recklessly.

What the hell actually happened?

I conveyed my words of comfort to Ella.

That’s when I turned my attention to Ella and tried to continue what I was doing, when my eyes met her. 

“You—! Rosie!”

Ella, who had been clinging to her even after the maid shook it off, suddenly let go of her skirt and came up to me.

It was so bizarre that I reflexively stepped back.

“Did you do the meal duty before I started?”

Ella grabbed my hand and looked at me desperately.

“Please! Exchange with me! You’ve been good all this time—!” 

“Ella! What are you talking about! Rosie’s already on duty! You know one person can’t do it twice—”

“I heard you got an exclusive maid’s recommendation from the butler!”

Other maids grabbed Ella by her shoulder to stop her, but Ella shook off the maids’ arms roughly.

“Ack!”

Ella’s long nails left a long scratch on the arm of another maid.

The injured maid resentfully saw Ella, but Ella was only looking at me desperately as if she was not interested in such things. 

“Rosie, if it were you, they would let me change it. So please— hmm?”

“….”

“Why aren’t you answering me! You didn’t do the exclusive maid, so I replaced you! You’re not even sorry for me!” 

She tried to persuade me, but Ella was angry at me when I didn’t show any signs of falling for it.

I thought about what to do with this awkward situation.

“It’s because of you! This is because of you! Because of you—!”

“Stop it, Ella.”

“What do you mean stop! This is because of you—!”

“What kind of nonsense is this!”

The butler, who was nearby, came over and shouted as if he had heard Ella’s commotion.

“Butler—! I can’t do the meal duty! Please switch me and Rosie.”

“Ella.”

“I’m scared to death! What’s wrong with him—”

“Ella! Can’t you stop!”

Ella, who had been crying loudly even if other maides stopped her, shut up at the butler’s words. 

“Until now, everyone has worked cleanly to the end. Ella, what would other maids be if you were excluded?” 

“But—”

“Don’t argue with me. If you refuse to do your job even after I’ve said this, I won’t be able to look after you either.”

Ella closed her mouth and bowed her head.

The situation ended like this, but I was not comfortable because her resentment was directed at me.

“Wait, Ella.”

In my words, Ella looked at me with puzzled eyes.

I went to the kitchen and brought potatoes without explaining to her.

“—What is this?”

“Potatoes.”

“So why did you give it to me—”

Ella looked at me like a crazy person.

When Ella, who was acting like a crazy person a while ago, looked at me like that, I felt unfair.

“That person, he seemed to like peeling potatoes.”

“You mean the monster?”

“Yeah, take it.”

Ella looked at me with eyes that she couldn’t believe it.

Then Ella disappeared after taking the potatoes with frustration.

The maids who watched this scene were puzzled.

A few hours later, Ella headed to Richard’s room with the potatoes I gave her.

I really hoped what I gave would work.

I turned my attention from Ella and focused on my work, and after a while, Ella came out of the basement.

Holding the whole potato.

—It didn’t work?

Ella approached me with a dark face. I empty my mind half-heartedly, thinking she would pour out her anger—.

“Thank you, Rosie.”

“Huh?”

“As you said, I think he likes potatoes.”

That really worked?

Even I have a doubt when I give it to her—.

I looked at all the potatoes in Ella’s arms.

The traces of being cut with a knife were clear and she smiled awkwardly. 

Is that what he likes—?

“I should bring potatoes from now on.

“…Uh, yeah.”

“Thank you.”

After greeting me, Ella went somewhere with the potatoes. 

The maids watched the situation with eyes that they still couldn’t understand.

*****

A few days have passed since Richard’s meal duty. 

I’ve been working hard to prepare for the party, and Ella came out with all the potatoes whenever she entered and left Richard’s room.

Seeing that, I tried to hide my bitter expression and concentrate on my work.

As time passed, the moment came when the efforts of the servants in the past shined.

The party has started.

*****

Bloody eyes with pitch-black hair reminiscent of the night sky.

The man looked in the mirror and checked his outfit.

Upon discovering that the collar on the inside did not spread properly, the elegant fingers raised the collar properly. 

“I hope Nunim likes it, too.”

“….”

“What’s wrong with you, Asher?”

“—To be honest, I don’t believe that the maid is the Master’s sister.” 

“It doesn’t matter what you think.”

The man smiled pleasantly at his neatly arranged hair.

The man, Yurtha, continued to hum as if excited.

Asher, a subordinate who follows him, was just disturbed.

Yurtha was at the Academy two years ago.

While he was at the academy, his sister ran away, and after hearing the news, Yurtha searched everywhere for two years. 

He put up a reward despite the fact that it meant he wouldn’t be able to see her at all and could damage his sister’s honor.

Nevertheless, there was no news. Then, there was a word he heard through the gatekeeper. 

A maid with pink hair and pink eyes under the same name from Marquis Evanter.

After hearing that word, he came all the way here.

“What would you do if the maid wasn’t the master’s sister?”

“Let’s kill her.”

“—It’s not good to kill the maids of other houses. They might think we’re ignoring the Marquis Evantes.” 

“But they deceived me.”

They really can’t communicate. 

Why is it deceitful that the maid is not the sister of Yurtha, and what else is the reason to kill her? 

Besides, he was now in a situation where he had to show himself well to the Marquis Argen Evantes.

Argen held a powerful position as a finance officer.

The finance officers had the authority to manage the state land of the imperial family, and that authority was what Yurtha needed. 

Herthas was a family that advanced into commerce, and it was regrettable that there was no “mine” in their territory.

So, Yurtha, who was pushed out of the position of a successor by the wrath of the head family of Herthas, was trying to get the right to use the mine through Argen in order to regain his place. 

It is said that a spy has been planted to find weaknesses to threaten Argen as a countermeasure against the failure of negotiations, but nothing has come out yet.

That’s why it was difficult to get out of Argen’s eyes, but Yurtha always acted like this when talking about his sister.

Asher felt very frustrated about it.

What’s with this punk’s sister—!

But the moment he brings it out of his mouth, his neck will have a hard time staying in place. 

“…Is it certain?”

He gave up the conversation.

Just inside, he expressed his sympathy for the pink-haired maid of the Marquis Evantes.