CH 18

“Oh, no! You shouldn’t be refusing to move to a better place!”

“I told you. There’s no need.”

“It’s much wider and more luxurious than here. I’m sure you’ll like it. Plus, since it’s on the third floor, you get a much better view.”

Third floor?

I poked Haron’s leg.

‘If it’s on the third floor, then it’s the fancy place where the lord’s room was located last time, right?’

As far as I can remember, there’s the lord’s room, a private safe, and a VIP room. Those were the important ones, and the security was tight. So, I haven’t had the chance to search through them yet. If Haron’s room is moved there, then it’ll be easier for me to secretly search.

Haron flinched slightly at my touch, but he didn’t turn his head right away. Instead, he slightly glanced.

‘I want to move.’

“…”

I mouthed those words. His eyes rolled as if he understood what I said, and he opened his mouth after a slight cough.

“Since you said that, I’ll think about it.”

“As expected! You’ve finally come to your senses, haven’t you? All right, I’ll let him know to finish cleaning and organizing the room.”

He bowed to Haron, then turned around and walked out. On his way out, he subtly glanced around as if looking for me.

Haron jumped and helped me up as soon as the man had left.

“Are you alright? I hid you in a hurry.”

“I’m fine.”

I brushed off my skirt. Haron was restless even though I wasn’t hiding for long.

“I’m sorry for this inconvenience.”

“You’re sorry again. It was fun in its own way. Hm, a little like… hiding in fear of being caught in a secret relationship from a strict family.”

“…”

“It’s a little thrilling. Let’s do this again next time.”

I said that with a grin.

***

Haron’s room was moved the next day. It was definitely better than the previous one. The new room had wide and luxurious flooring, fine carpets, embroidered curtains, and many other nice decorations. The basic furniture in the old room was incomparable to this.

“This should be the warrior’s room. Isn’t it nice?”

I said while organizing the window curtains in a proud face. The previous room had a window which was covered by a wall from a different building, so it didn’t even get proper sunlight.

“Are you happy?”

“Of course, it’s nice. But you need to enjoy what you receive, especially since you’re the warrior. Aren’t you the hero of the country?”

“Lucia is the only one who has said that.”

Haron smiled and said. He looked at the clock for a moment, dropped his teacup, and got up from his seat.

“Now that I have work to do, I have to be away for a while, so Lucia should take a break.”

“Well, you’re the only one telling the maid to rest.”

We looked at each other briefly and bursted out laughing.

After the warrior had left, I slipped out of the room.

“If it’s not on the third floor, then it’s going to be more difficult.”

I wandered around every corner in the long hallway to find traces of the Mahone Stones. Each room on the third floor was big and spacious, so it took a while for me to get around.

“If it’s not here, then there’s only one more place left…”

I looked around and stared at the door in the middle of the third floor. It was the room where I almost went in on the first day; the lord’s room. I almost turned around to go back in order to think of a plan until something caught my eyes.

“…What the hell is going on.”

In front of Haron’s new room, two unknown people were snooping. Of course, they couldn’t have been a legitimate guest, for they shouldn’t try to peek inside a door like that. Not realizing that I was staring at them from behind, they continued to wander in front of that room.

“Hey, hey, look through there. Can you see it?”

“No one’s here. I can’t see a single thread of silver, let alone silver hair.”

“Excuse me.”

“I’m sure you can… If we don’t get her this time, we’ll be dead!”

“Oh, I know that! Do you see it?”

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, damn it. Where the hell is she hiding?”

“He hasn’t already noticed and taken her somewhere else, did he?”

“You guys, can’t you hear me?”

“Hey, who said that?!”

Oh, you finally reacted. They recognized my presence only after I called them several times.

“Oh, no… that’s uh…wow, crazy, I…”

“I, I don’t know what we’re doing…”

They grinned while stuttering. I couldn’t quite understand what they were trying to say, so I folded my arms and asked.

“Who are you to do that in front of the door? Do you dare to stalk me because this is someone else’s room?”

“Stalking! We are clean, sound, moral, and honorable men!”

“Where the hell did you get that… if peeking through someone else’s door is not stalking, then what are you doing? Do you happen to be the warrior’s personal fans?”

“The one we’re looking for is not the warrior but silver… uh, silver hair?”

The two men’s faces exchanged subtly at the same time. It was obvious that they were thinking ‘don’t tell me…’ to each other.

“Come think of it, you’re wearing a maid’s uniform. Do you work in the warrior’s room?”

“Yes?”

The two of them screamed silently as they clapped, hugged, and jumped at my answer. They looked crazy. They stopped as soon as they saw my expression.

“Mhm, we finally found her. Hey, maid. The lord has orders, come on and follow us.”

“No.”

I refused flatly.

“No? This is the lord’s command!”

“I have been ordered by the warrior not to go. Which one of them has higher order… you should know that.”

At my words, they both visibility flinched. After a couple of days of observing, I could tell that even though the warrior was higher in terms of status, people here still followed the lord. And now that I see them coming here when the warrior’s not around, I could tell right away that they were trying not to get caught by Haron while taking me to the lord.

“Then I need to go into the room, so can you get out of the way?”

“Oh, come with us just this once. My gosh. We’re really going to die!”

“I don’t want to. It doesn’t matter to me whether you guys die or not.”

“Aren’t you a bit too cold?! It’s about a person’s life, so why is it so hard to just follow me… it’s not far away, for the lord’s room is around here.”

I was pushing them around while trying to enter the room, but I paused.

“Where am I going?”

“To the lord’s room. You seem reluctant, but he’ll never harm you. He just wants to say a few words, that’s all. Please…”

“Hmm.”

I tilted my head slightly. If I follow them now, I could then easily enter the lord’s room without having to sneak in. But, something annoying might happen. Should I follow or not? I continued to worry for a few seconds.

“Please, now is the time. Starting tomorrow, the lord will be moving towards the border of the estate to meet the Marquis.”

“Ah.”

His begging words helped me make a decision.

‘They’re trading Mahone stones.’

The estate there was famous for the Mahone stone trades in the empire. If the move will happen tomorrow, then the stones will arrive probably within three days. If the deal fails, then there might be no real chance of bringing any home.

I spat out my words as if I were commanding them.

“Take the lead.”

“What?”

“Let’s go right now, to the place called the lord’s room.”

I strode forward while letting them stand there in a daze. There isn’t much time left for me to get the stones.

***

As soon as I opened the door to the lord’s room, what I saw was the bearded man that came into Haron’s room yesterday. He gently swept his beard in a high-handed manner while standing in front of me.

“I heard you called.”

“Yes, sit down.”

The lord pointed his chin at the chair that was quite far away and opposite from him. When I sat down quietly, he was looking as if he were wary of me.

“…Well, there seems to be a reason why the warrior tried to hide you so hard.”

He clicked his tongue lightly and said in a pathetic tone. I just glanced at him without saying anything. I can’t afford to listen to his nonsense.

As soon as I entered this room, it felt like I was going to suffocate from the strong and thick energy from the Mahone Stones. He’s collected hundreds of them. I didn’t know that one wall could cover all this energy, so it looks like quite a few magicians were involved.

I opened my mouth and said as peacefully and quietly as I could while holding on to the hem of my skirt.

“Why did you call me?”

“Hmm. Yeah, I’ll be asking you a lot from the situation right now. What’s your current relationship with the warrior?”

“It’s the relationship between the warrior and the dedicated maid.”

“Huh! Don’t you realize I’m being serious and this is not a joke?”

What? I had no idea.

I bit my twitching lips tightly, for if I open my mouth, I feel like a sarcastic comment might flow out somehow. As I sat there without answering, the lord frowned and slammed the table with his hand.

“It looks like you’re very eager to die. Why can’t you just answer me?”

“…”

“Well, I guess since you’re a woman, you might be too shy to talk, especially when it comes to warming up the bed.”

“…What?”

What is this madman talking about.