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Chapter 6
Click.
The man who had pulled back the curtain muttered under his breath.
“…Not here, either.”
“It looks like they’ve already escaped.”
After peering outside through the window at his companion’s words, the man left the room.
“Right. Let’s go inform the knights. You head toward the main gate, and I’ll—”
His hurried instructions were drowned out by the sound of footsteps in hard-soled shoes.
I sighed and slowly opened the window before climbing back inside.
Why was I going inside?
Because invisibility alone hadn’t made me feel safe, so I’d climbed out the window and clung to the exterior wall.
My arms hurt.
[Quest 1–1 Complete (1/10)]
“Haah…”
Only when the success notification appeared did I finally relax. I leaned forward with my hands on my knees for a moment before straightening up.
Then I saw the mascot wiping away sweat—even though it probably hadn’t broken a sweat at all.
—Phew~! That was a close one!
I immediately grabbed the mascot and pulled it in front of my face.
—Aaaah! Not again! Let go, you violent human!
What the hell was that? You said there’d only be one guard passing by each day.
—Hey! Do you seriously think it makes sense for exactly one guard to pass by every day right when you arrive?!
What’s with the nerve? And since when do you get to lecture me about common sense?
It was a completely nonsensical creature to begin with.
I released the mascot, which had been twisting and wriggling in every direction to escape my grasp.
It wasn’t as though this little pest had betrayed me only once or twice. What good would getting angry do? I’d be better off spending that time finding somewhere to hide.
Just as I was about to leave, another system window appeared.
[No-Losing Surprise Roulette! 100% Guaranteed Prize]
Hey. What’s this?
—I have no idea! What did we do to deserve this, anyway?!
The system window now displayed a circular roulette wheel.
The individual sections listed three Sneaky Step tickets, five coins, ten coins, outfits, and other prizes.
But one item stood out above all the rest.
[Ainsworth Mansion Floor Plan (Not for Sale)]
This is exactly what I need.
Someone who’d been whispering to the mascot must have given it to me. Maybe it was the system itself.
Whatever the case, I spun the wheel.
There was no penalty for losing and no participation fee, so I had no reason to refuse.
Round and round it went.
The wheel spun so fast that the words on it became impossible to read.
The most useful prize would definitely be the floor plan.
The moment I thought that, the wheel gradually slowed down and stopped precisely on the floor plan.
“……”
Instead of celebrating that I’d gotten what I wanted, I narrowed my eyes suspiciously.
—This thing’s rigged!
I agreed.
But why? Unlike the Sneaky Step tickets, they’d apparently wanted to give me the floor plan for free.
Whatever the reason, thank you, benevolent wheel.
—You’ve never thanked me even once!
“Uh-huh, sure.”
I gave it a halfhearted response and plopped down on the floor. Before leaving, I wanted to examine the floor plan.
As expected, it showed the layout of the mansion, but it didn’t indicate what each room was used for.
—Ding!
Suddenly, a mechanical chime rang out.
Was that you?
—Nope. That was the system. Maybe it got excited because you thanked it. Hmph!
What…? Getting a little full of yourself, aren’t you?
—Hehe!
A system window appeared beside the floor plan, displaying the following message.
[Upgrade Floor Plan — 10 Coins]
Not buying it.
Ten coins? Not even one? What a rip-off.
I’d figure things out on my own.
—She says she doesn’t need you~!
The mascot kicked at the system window, making it disappear.
Judging by its behavior, the mascot and the system seemed to have a poor relationship. Still, I couldn’t forget that they were ultimately on the same side.
—Hey. Hurry up and look at this!
Perhaps it wanted to hear me thank it, because the mascot was suddenly being very proactive.
Is there somewhere with little foot traffic, objects to hide behind, and an easy escape route if I’m discovered?
—A storeroom?
A storeroom could work.
But not the one I’d visited before.
Even though I’d been discovered in a different room, the wooden chest had been in that same area. Since I’d already been caught once, they’d probably be checking that place more carefully for a while.
A storeroom would be fine, but not a food pantry or an armory. Those places get used every day… What else could there be?
I had no idea. Why would I know what kinds of rooms existed in an aristocrat’s mansion?
—Want a hint~? If you thank me…
“Thank you.”
—You could at least sound sincere…!
“You’re the only one I can rely on.”
—Hehe!
The mascot squirmed happily before giving the system window a little tap.
[Main Building]
[Annex 1]
[Annex 2]
Why are you only showing me these three places?
There were several other buildings, too.
—Why do you think~?
Because I’m supposed to hide in one of these?
Judging by its smug grin, I’d guessed correctly.
The main building is out. That’s where the owner lives.
—Then which one will you choose? Annex 1 or Annex 2?
“Hmm…”
Somewhere to hide that wasn’t a storeroom…
There must be servants’ quarters somewhere on the estate, right? They probably all live and work here.
Assuming the annexes were used as servants’ quarters, if I were a noble, I wouldn’t assign Annex 1 to the servants when there was a second annex available.
The moment I thought that, a basement suddenly appeared on the floor plan of Annex 2.
—Oh? A basement in Annex 2? And look, it’s divided into lots of little rooms~!
I chuckled.
The mascot kept pretending it wasn’t helping while practically shoving hints in my face.
Right. If I drew up a floor plan of the building I live in, it would look exactly like that. Why don’t we take a look?
When I descended into the basement of Annex 2, I found a long corridor lined with closely spaced doors on both sides.
Sounds of snoring and teeth grinding seeped through the thin, shabby doors.
I deactivated my invisibility and closed the basement entrance behind me.
These must be the servants’ quarters.
I held out my palm, and the mascot enthusiastically bumped its body against it.
Why had I been so determined to find this place?
Because I figured there had to be at least one empty room.
And checking whether a room was vacant was simple.
All I had to do was try opening the doors one by one.
Creak. Click.
I turned the handle of the nearest door, but it was locked.
The other doors nearby wouldn’t open, either.
Actually, that was a good sign. I could tell someone was inside without having to enter the room.
I picked up the pace in my search for an empty room.
I moved quickly but quietly, making as little noise as possible.
“Who’s there?”
“……!”
—Aaaah!
I immediately activated my invisibility and moved away from the room where the voice had come from.
Only after I heard the person mutter, “Did I imagine that?” could I finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Hey. Is Quiet as a Mouse actually working?
—I’m scared! I’m scared!
Good grief.
There were only a few rooms left, and I’d already had one close call, so I hurried along while remaining invisible.
Finally, I managed to open the door at the very end of the corridor.
I should’ve started here.
I entered the room, locked the door behind me, and lit the miniature lantern I’d brought with me.
Apparently, each servant had a room of their own, because there was only one bed, one wardrobe, one chest of drawers, and one desk.
The furniture looked old, but the room showed few signs of anyone actually living in it.
—Compared to that wooden chest, this place is practically a hotel~!
If I had to point out any drawbacks, it was that the room had no windows because it was underground, and being at the very end of the corridor would make escaping difficult.
A new maid might suddenly be assigned to the room, too. There was no bathroom, and it was quite far from the main building.
Still, it was more than acceptable.
Most importantly, it was somewhere I could finally relax.
That didn’t mean I could let my guard down completely, though. Rather than sleeping in the bed, I planned to stay inside the wardrobe.
—Good idea! The wardrobe is great! I’m scared, you know!
Having chosen my hiding place, I rummaged through the bag slung over my shoulder.
Unlike my previous infiltration, I’d brought a bag this time. I’d packed a few basic supplies: a lantern, matches, some convenient food, and a weapon for self-defense.
If I’d packed much more, I might not have been able to squeeze through the gap in the main gate earlier.
I wish I could store items that weren’t purchased from the shop in my inventory, too.
I spread a blanket inside the wardrobe so I wouldn’t be uncomfortable.
Then I checked several times to make sure the wardrobe doors opened properly before finally climbing inside.
I’ve developed a trauma from that wooden chest…
I settled into a comfortable position and summoned the system window.
I used about forty minutes of invisibility.
I needed to calculate the cost of the tickets against the quest rewards and use them efficiently. I’d wasted too much time earlier because I’d been so flustered.
—Then how many hours should you use it each day?
How should I know? I’m not thinking about that right now. I just want to rest.
Unfortunately, my thoughts had other plans. Perhaps it was because I was in a maid’s room, but related ideas kept invading my mind.
Should I just get a job as a maid here? I could work during the day and do the quests at night.
—Oh! Undercover employment!
No, that wouldn’t work. A household as prestigious as this one would probably hire experienced servants or people with verifiable backgrounds, even if they were commoners.
As an orphan, I doubted they’d hire me.
Then, besides being a maid, what else could I do…?
Had I fallen asleep without realizing it?
I woke up to the faint sound of several voices.
—You’re so noisy! It’s five in the morning, you humans!
They’re going to work already? I was right not to become a maid.
I tried to go back to sleep, but the voices kept drilling into my ears.
“Someone tried to open my door yesterday, so I barely slept after that.”
Ah…
I felt genuinely sorry. They must have been frightened. I hadn’t thought that far ahead.
And then I heard another conversation that only made me feel guiltier.
“Again?”
“Who on earth was it this time?”
From what I gathered, someone had tried to break in here a little while ago and had been caught and fired. Now the same thing had happened again…
Because of me.
No matter how much I was sneaking into someone else’s house, I didn’t want to cause any harm beyond what was necessary to complete the quest.
However, half a day later…
Oh, this is bad…
I ended up causing a major disaster.
