Chapter 113

“The personal maid of the mistress naturally has the most influence among the servants.”

“Ugh. Since you got on their bad sides, things are going to be rough from now on.”

“You can’t really say we got on their bad sides over just this much. The real problem is that Bridget girl. It seems like she’s egging the others on and creating an atmosphere to ostracize us.”

“So she’s the main culprit behind this whole mess?”

“Well, isn’t she?”

“Argh! It was never like this when Lord Vincent was around!”

When I kindly advised them that if they hated the temple, the monk should leave,¹ Io immediately pushed back.

“That won’t do! On top of accumulating seniority, servants who’ve worked here since the previous head get their annual salaries calculated with bonus points added! Do you know how much that is? We have to stick it out tenaciously!”

“I’m of the same mind. And how long are those people going to keep acting like this? They’ll just wear themselves out eventually.”

I see. It seems money is more important to those two than the working environment.

“Lita. Don’t you go having any weird thoughts either. People our age need to rake it in while we can so we don’t suffer later, you know? Money equals proper treatment, right?”

Io grabbed both of my shoulders firmly and pressured me as if threatening me.
When I obediently nodded, a satisfied Io and Isabella crossed their arms and cast their gazes somewhere.

“So. Who’s going to clean this up?”

Behind us was a scene where a window had been shattered into pieces, with glass shards scattered all over.

There was a wide window in the hallway that looked almost like it took up the whole wall, and since it had a garden outside, it boasted a magnificent view.

It would have been even more magnificent if the window hadn’t been smashed.

Judging by the tool used, a wooden chair, it was rolling around in the grass.

Looking at the miserable sight, Io grumbled.

“Good grief. Who on earth made such a mess? And right in front of the Duke’s study, of all places.”

“Aren’t those guys doing this on purpose to mess with us?”

“No way.”

After that whole ordeal earlier, Bridget’s clique seemed to have decided to seriously and subtly harass us.

If they had resorted to a group lynching, there would at least be a pretext to report it to the head maid, but things like this were ambiguous.

“Should we just play rock-paper-scissors and dump it on one person?”

“That’s dereliction of duty. Just all do it together. It’s faster that way.”

“Ah, no fun! Then let’s decide by majority rule! Lita, which do you prefer?”

Ding!

Hmm. If one person can suffer while two people get to be happy, wouldn’t that option naturally be better?

“Lita. I honestly didn’t expect you to be like that.”

-> Wait, let me check. Ah, no.

“As expected, the only one on my side is Lita!”

With that, we waved our hands three times and threw our choices.

“Rock, paper, scissors!”

Io threw rock. Isabella threw rock.

And I…

Dammit, I threw scissors!

“Ahaha! Lita, you’ve got this!”

“Clean it up thoroughly. Those girls are going to be dying to find any fault.”

After laughing at me to their heart’s content, the two mercilessly crushed my expectation that the power of affection might make them help out, and left without even looking back.
Their affection levels were still sitting around thirty. Unfortunately, it seemed it wasn’t high enough to make them feel like helping out.

‘…Let’s just get to work.’

I picked up the broom and dustpan sitting there all alone and cleared away the glass fragments first.

Starting from tiny crumb-like pieces to stone-sized chunks. After stacking them neatly in the trash can, the hallway was roughly at a level where people could walk around.

I was just catching my breath and wiping the sweat from my forehead.

I sensed someone’s presence behind me and instinctively turned my head.

“Are you doing all of that by yourself?”

The person standing behind me was none other than Robert!

It had been so hard to even catch a glimpse of him that I wondered if we even lived in the same mansion, yet here he was. I shall dedicate this glory to Bridget, and to Io and Isabella who handed me defeat in rock-paper-scissors.

‘What should I say?’

I somehow had to make the most of this chance encounter I had barely managed to secure. Starting from today, I needed to raise his affection and find an excuse to keep meeting him.

Ding!

What on earth is that last option?!
I deliberately ignored the goosebumps rising on my back and re-read the choices.

Damn, this is way too hard.

Does he like bold people? Or cute ones?

‘Screw it, whatever.’

When you don’t know what to do, playing it safe and telling the truth is usually the best bet.

“Thanks to someone, I’m being ostracized.”

“Ostracized…?”

Robert paused in thought, looking at the broken window as if trying to gauge what that meant.

“Hmm. I don’t know what kind of ostracism you’re facing because of me, but step inside for a moment.”

“Come inside,” he said.

Though his affection didn’t increase, it was a good flow.

“I can at least do this much for my savior.”

Robert opened the door to a room just past the shattered window and gave a slight nod.
I quickly propped the broom I was holding against the wall and scurried after Robert.

“Would you care for something to drink?”

Various beverages like coffee and tea, along with refreshments, were set up in one corner of the study. Judging by the steam rising from the kettle, it seemed to be constantly maintained as if fresh by the attendants.

“I’ll do it.”

“I was planning to treat you, though.”

“Oh, out of the question. I wouldn’t dare let the Duke serve me.”

“Is that so? Then I’ll have coffee.”

Opening as many as five kettles, I found that coffee and tea had already been brewed in their respective varieties.

Usually, attendants would wait on standby at all times to fetch drinks, but having them prepared this way was unusual.

It seemed Robert had a tendency to dislike having other people wandering in and out while he was in his study.

I picked up the kettle containing black coffee and poured it into two coffee cups respectively.

“Thinking about it, I forgot that I told you I’d grant you a reward last time. To forget something that important… My apologies. I was a bit sensitive back then.”

I placed the coffee cup down on the table and listened quietly to his story.

“Ah, judging by the look of it, it seems you haven’t said a word to anyone about that day. Thank you.”

“It was the Duke’s direct order, after all.”

“Mm, right.”

Robert curved the corners of his lips in satisfaction, took a sip of his coffee, and continued.

“So, have you thought about what kind of reward you’d like? Money? A higher rank? Or shall I punish the child who’s been bullying you?”

“I merely did what should naturally be done—”

“I don’t care to hear such trite words.”

…Playing hard to get out of courtesy for just a second, only to have my affection slashed by 5.

I hurriedly cleared my throat.

“Then, would an overreaching request be alright?”

“Let’s hear it, then.”

“I wish to become the Duke’s personal maid.”

If I’m a personal maid, I’ll be able to stick by his side almost all day long.

To raise someone’s affection, you first have to stay around them.

Robert’s eyes, which had looked slightly smaller through the curve of his glasses, widened significantly. His mouth was even parted slightly in utter astonishment, but he quickly pressed it shut and sank into thought.

“It’s not difficult. It’s not difficult, but…”

So it wasn’t an easy request either.

Among the three things Robert had mentioned—money, rank, or revenge—this was a request that fell under rank. I wondered why an okay sign wasn’t coming right away.
After a fairly long moment, Robert shook his head and spoke.

“I wouldn’t want to recommend it. I don’t know if you’re aware, but Rachel is a bit eccentric. If you’re brought in as a dedicated attendant to a young woman for no good reason, you might end up suffering hardships.”

…Rachel meant the Duchess.

Could the marital discord mentioned by the protagonist be due to Robert’s womanizing ways?

If the person who attacked Robert really was the Duchess, it seemed I had found one motive for the murder.

Besides, to think the dating sim protagonist’s father had a wandering eye severe enough to cause friction with his wife.

Was it a case of like father, like son?

“Would the Duchess really care about a mere maid like me?”

“I don’t know what you mean by a maid like you. If you need money, I’ll raise your annual salary to the level of a dedicated attendant. If you want a rank, I’ll hand you the position of head maid. How does that sound?”

It would have been a tempting offer for an ordinary maid, but not for me.

Fearing that trying to change my appearance had backfired, I pulled the hair I had swept to the side back to the front and tousled it.

I was reverting to the appearance of the old Belita.

“Is this still no good?”

Robert looked bewildered before letting out a soft laugh.

“Appearance isn’t the only issue.”

Appearance didn’t matter?

I couldn’t tell if it wasn’t jealousy, or if the jealousy was just excessive.

Ding!

Oh dear. While I did inwardly mean to probe into the relationship between Robert and the Duchess, I had no intention of being this explicit and rude.

No matter how much Robert seemed to like boldness, this wasn’t being bold—it was being insolent.

‘Well, the third one at least…’

This wasn’t a topic where speaking gently would get you a good response, but a direct slip-up like option two was an absolute no-go. Adopting an innocent expression, I asked in a sweet, melting voice.

“Might I ask why the Duchess reacts so sensitively?”

Robert’s eyebrows twitched for a fraction of a second.

I hurriedly added words to cover myself.

“Ah, I was just wondering if it might be something I could fix.”

Only then did Robert relax his face and mutter in an exhausted voice.

“Well, it seems you’re rather in the dark about rumors. That’s not it. Rachel is just…”

…Just?

I held my breath as much as possible and waited for Robert to finish.

“Once you spend time in this mansion, you’ll come to know whether you want to or not.”

He had no intention of telling me, it seemed.

How unfortunate.

Seeming to want to change the subject, Robert turned the question back to me.

“Why are you so insistent on becoming my personal maid? Seeing as neither money nor rank is the issue here, that is.”

Because I’m trying to seduce you.

No, wait, that’s not it.

“I want to work with peace of mind. I needed a position that minimizes contact with other maids and ensures no one can treat me arbitrarily.”

Linking it to my current situation produced a fairly plausible excuse.

“You must have been bullied to a degree that makes you utterly sick of it. That is unfortunate, but let’s just settle for head maid—”

“Hah. Never mind. Let’s hope the Duchess understands well. You saved me, so that’s reason enough.”

And it actually triggered. I bent my waist until my head practically touched the floor.

“Thank you.”

“What are ‘thank yous’ for? We’ll see each other later.”

With this, I had achieved my initial goal of gaining access to Robert.

From here on, I’d gradually build up his affection and guide it to morph into love.