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Chapter 8
“Your Highness.”
The unexpected figures standing before me were servants dressed in maid uniforms like Betty’s.
Among them was the maid who had come to the cabin calling for Betty on the very first day I arrived in Celeste.
Was her name Dora?
But except for her, most of the others seemed suspiciously large in build.
The maids looked at me with stern, serious expressions, their hands resting firmly on their waists.
Deep shadows fell across their prominent noses, matching their muscular physiques.
If I were to fight them…
‘…I would lose.’
The odds of defeat were one hundred percent.
Swallowing the rising tension dryly, I was just about to speak when—
“What are you guys?!”
Betty, who was about as tall as I was, stepped forward fiercely to block my way, protecting me.
Somehow, a warm feeling welled up in me.
“Ahh?!”
Betty didn’t flinch at all; instead, she leaned forward provocatively, baring her teeth at them.
“Grrr~! What’s this? Grrr~! What? Did you come to start trouble? Gyaah!”
‘Cerberus…’
How reassuring!
Somehow, courage surged within me too. I tapped Betty on the shoulder and stepped forward solemnly.
‘Hold back, Cerberus. You don’t need to step in.’
Perhaps sensing my intention, Betty, who had been growling constantly, stopped and obediently stepped aside to stand by me.
A maid standing in the middle of the group observed this closely and spoke.
“Betty, since when did you become Your Highness’s loyal dog? Until this morning…”
“Grrr~!”
“Hold it… hold it, Cerber… Ah, no. Betty.”
I took a step forward to stop Betty, who was ready to attack, and spoke firmly.
“Saying Betty is my loyal dog isn’t exactly the right expression. But you all… what brings you here?”
“We also want to become Your Highness’s loyal dogs.”
“?”
…What?
Blinking in disbelief, a maid standing on the right side of the group shouted with a choked voice.
“We were wrong! We’ve misunderstood Your Highness all this time!”
“But now we understand. Your elegant demeanor… and that decisive, magnificent gaze!”
“Please accept us as Your Highness’s humble servants!”
“Even if scouts come from elsewhere, we won’t ever look at them!”
What followed were one heartfelt declaration after another.
Somehow, my head hurt more from their flattery than Betty’s…
I squeezed my eyes shut and glanced at Betty.
I meant for her to intervene a bit. But…
“As expected! I knew you’d do this!”
“…Betty?”
As if the earlier rage and bristling fur had never happened, Betty’s round eyes sparkled as she wriggled her body.
She seemed genuinely happy to have companions.
But strangely… it didn’t feel like maids overwhelmed by serving the same master…
‘It’s more like a group of fans who share the same favorite character.’
And that favorite… is me?
Hmm, honestly, I didn’t really want to think too much about it.
“‘Humble servants’… isn’t really a nice way to put it. First, what are your names?”
“Huh? My name?”
“Yes. All of yours.”
“Kyaa! What should I do!”
Ignoring their over-the-top flattery, I listened calmly to the maids’ excited self-introductions.
“So, in order: Garnet, Nina, Dora, Ria, Mariguna?”
“Yes!”
Including Betty?
The fact that their names seemed to go in alphabetical order… must just be a coincidence.
Let’s move on.
“From now on, we’ll help you with anything, Your Highness!”
Despite not knowing what had brought this about, I couldn’t help but smile genuinely at their warm words.
“Alright. Thank you.”
From that day on, factions strangely formed within the Grand Ducal Palace.
“Miss Hugo is amusing. Even though she’s a count’s daughter, she’s just the Grand Duchess’s maid in the end. Broadly speaking, she’s in a similar position as us—so why act so high-handed? Compared to her, Lady René is an angel.”
Some quietly sided with René Blanche, while others said:
“Still, that woman must be cursed! Red eyes… just thinking about it is ominous. Lady Katarina’s personality may be nasty, but at least there’s no ill-omened rumor about her.”
Those who disliked René Blanche remained on Katarina Hugo’s side.
In reality, factions formed based on which of the two women one disliked more, leading to minor and major conflicts throughout the palace.
“…As a result, the internal division is serious.”
“Sigh…”
A man, whose lips looked painstakingly crafted, let out a deep sigh.
Genos, who had been slowly closing his eyes while holding his throbbing head, opened them.
“Just a few days of my absence, and this?”
“Th-That is…”
The butler reporting the situation looked awkward under his monocle.
Genos shook his head and continued.
“I don’t blame you, Karl.”
“I apologize for failing to maintain discipline.”
“How could that be your fault? It’s all… because of these rolling stones.”
Since one side seemed relatively well-behaved, he thought to separate the noisy faction first.
While he had been away briefly due to urgent bad news, it was as if a fire had broken out in their own courtyard.
“Damn it.”
A few days ago, Genos had ridden quickly to the outskirts of the Celeste domain after hearing of a sudden monster appearance.
The monster was a creature that, according to founding myths and ancient legends, had been sealed by Emperor Albert Rembrandt and an ancient dragon.
Since Rembrandt’s founding, hundreds of years had passed.
Dragons and monsters alike were essentially stories from another world.
Magic existed, but its power was weak.
The temples had long claimed authority.
As divine power grew, magic naturally declined.
“….”
Thoughts kept piling up as Genos slowly lifted his head.
When he arrived at the scene, the reported houses damaged by the monster were completely gone.
Of course, so was the monster.
Could someone have made a false report to drive him out of the Grand Ducal Palace?
If so, it meant a spy was observing the palace’s internal movements.
No one had ever hidden so boldly within the palace.
The most suspicious person was, of course…
Sigh.
He was nearing his limit.
His eyes shimmered with cold fury.
“Yes. Let’s go for now.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The old butler, knowing his master’s intentions, gave a brief reply and withdrew.
Genos, who seemed frozen in thought for a while, finally splashed water on his face.
“…What a tiring mess.”
His vision was cloudy.
It wasn’t unusual for him to be unable to sleep, but traveling non-stop through harsh mountains and cold in the past few days had added to his fatigue.
Yet, the more his body cried for rest, the clearer his mind became.
The gap between body and mind was a sensation he could never get used to.
‘It’s already time…’
When Karl had entered, it was a time most people would be going to bed.
A few hours later, the outside world had become a quiet pre-dawn bathed in moonlight.
Pressing his temples with one hand, Genos rose.
Since sleeping tonight was impossible anyway, he decided to take a walk.
Thud, thud, thud.
The heavy sound of his shoes echoed through the dark mansion corridors.
Walking wherever his feet led him, he eventually reached places he normally didn’t go—purely by chance.
Then…
“…!”
He sensed a sudden presence beyond a corridor turn.
Genos, who had walked on blades his entire life, sharpened his senses.
‘An intruder? No. Not threatening. Rather…’
It didn’t feel like someone sneaking in.
A cautious assassin wouldn’t be this careless.
Besides, the palace wasn’t busy enough at this hour to make servants work.
Moreover, the servants’ quarters were in a separate building, so they were naturally excluded.
‘Then who…?’
Meanwhile, the soft footsteps continued approaching.
Who on earth was walking through the main hall of the palace at this hour…?
“Who’s there?”
“Eek!”
But who he encountered wasn’t an assassin or a servant, but… a truly unexpected person.
