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Chapter 17
“My Lady, it’s Heinrich.”
“Come in.”
Amber said, adjusting her posture.
The door opened, and Heinrich, Xenia, and two unfamiliar maids entered.
Xenia, upon seeing Amber, smiled brightly and bowed deeply in greeting.
Behind Xenia, the two maids bowed with stiff movements, visibly tense.
Heinrich closed the door, and Amber gestured for the maids to come closer.
“So these are the ones Xenia recommended. Your names?”
“I’m Sonya, and this is Luna.”
The one with black hair was Sonya, and the one with short brown hair was Luna.
Amber searched her memory as she looked at the two maids. Sonya’s face was familiar. She had seen her doing odd jobs a few times when walking around the castle.
But Luna was not in her memory.
*’Why?’*
Xenia had fallen victim to Bella’s schemes because she was particularly close to Amber. But Luna was not particularly close to Amber.
The fact that Luna was not in Amber’s memory meant she had left her position early, which was strange considering most maids never left the castle until they retired.
“Um, my Lady…?”
Sonya’s cautious voice came as Amber remained silent, lost in thought.
“Ah, I’m sorry. I was distracted for a moment with you two in front of me.”
When Amber turned her attention back to Sonya and Luna, the two maids stiffened, frozen with tension.
They seemed not yet to have heard why Amber had called them.
“I called you here to hire you as my personal maids.”
At the words “personal maids,” Sonya and Luna’s eyes grew wide as if they would pop out.
“P-Personal maids…? Us? But we are…”
“I know. Laundry maids.”
Amber said calmly.
“But aren’t you the ones Xenia recommended? I trust Xenia.”
At Amber’s words, the expressions of the three maids changed. Xenia, in particular, seemed unable to contain her emotions, her eyes glistening as she bowed her head.
“You can learn the work. I plan to hire a close lady-in-waiting soon as well, so don’t feel burdened.”
At the mention of hiring a lady-in-waiting, Sonya looked relieved. If she hired a lady-in-waiting, the maids’ work would be limited to attending Amber and cleaning her chambers.
But Luna still had a dark expression.
“Is there a problem?”
At Amber’s question, Luna hesitated for a long moment before finally speaking.
“Actually… I was planning to quit my maid job after this month.”
Hearing Luna’s words, Amber understood why Luna was not in her memory.
Luna was quitting her maid job just as Amber arrived at the castle.
“My younger brother is very sick. The doctor says it’s a rare disease. So the medicine is expensive, and he needs to see the doctor regularly, but a maid’s salary is nowhere near enough…”
Becoming Amber’s personal maid would increase her salary compared to working in the laundry, but it would still be insufficient to cover her younger brother’s medical expenses for his rare disease.
“So I decided to quit and look for a job that pays more… And since maids live and eat at the castle, I also worried about leaving my brother home alone.”
There are few jobs a commoner woman can do that pay more than a maid’s work. Saying she would quit and find a better-paying job meant she would take on work hard enough to shorten her lifespan. Moreover, leaving the castle meant enduring various inconveniences.
“Heinrich.”
Amber, who had been quietly observing Luna, spoke.
“Tell the castle’s physician to treat Luna’s younger brother from now on.”
“Understood.”
Having grasped Amber’s intention, Heinrich immediately bowed his head.
“And from now on, I will pay all medical expenses for your younger brother. Also, I will give you two days off each week to go home. Then will you work as my personal maid?”
Amber said to Luna.
“…Pardon?”
Luna, unable to believe what she had heard, blinked blankly.
“All medical expenses will be paid from my personal allowance, so you don’t need to worry unnecessarily.”
Amber gave a light smile to Luna, who was staring at her with a dazed expression.
“Is this enough for you to work as a maid?”
“I c-can. No, I will!”
Luna said, hurriedly bowing her head.
“Truly, truly thank you, my Lady. I will never forget this kindness.”
Luna’s face was filled with relief at not having to leave the castle and joy at being able to save her younger brother.
“I can’t give you time off, Sonya, but I will grant you something else you wish for.”
Sonya’s face also filled with joy. But at the same time, both maids were also anxious.
“Why are you going this far…”
Sonya cautiously opened her mouth. Even the most generous noble did not go so far as to mobilize the castle’s physician to care for a maid’s family.
“Because I plan to have you do enough work to deserve it.”
Amber said honestly.
“I won’t use empty words. Becoming my personal maid will involve a lot of hard work.”
Bella’s close associates would especially torment them.
The three maids nodded with expressions of understanding. Having worked at the Castle of Thales for a long time, they could guess the situation Amber was in.
“What you will do is become the first to side with me in this castle. What I give you are rewards for doing difficult work.”
And it was also a warning to Bella and her close associates.
Bella’s close associates would learn of the preferential treatment given to Luna by tormenting her.
Bella’s greatest flaw was that she was cruel to those who did not meet her standards.
While her close associates lived splendid lives amid showers of gifts and Bella’s favor, the majority below them were filled with dissatisfaction due to the harsh treatment they suffered daily.
In that situation, if word spread that Amber had shown immense generosity by hiring laundry maids as her personal maids… Bella’s faction would begin to crumble from the bottom up.
“And if you become my allies, I will become yours as well.”
Amber said, making eye contact with each of the maids.
The maids vaguely understood Amber’s true intention: to defeat Bella and restore discipline to the castle.
Indescribably complex emotions rose on their faces.
But looking into Amber’s calm orange eyes, somehow they felt that everything would work out.
“We pledge our loyalty to you, my Lady.”
Xenia spoke on behalf of them all.
“Then start working from tomorrow. Who is in charge of the laundry?”
“Grace is in charge of that area.”
“I will settle things with Grace tomorrow.”
Amber, through Heinrich, assigned the maids new quarters.
The maids left the room with much brighter expressions than when they had entered.
Confirming that the maids’ footsteps had faded, Amber let out a soft sigh and stretched.
Outside the window, it was now completely dark, and the fatigue she had forgotten while busily spending the day rushed in all at once.
“Shall I take you to your bedchamber?”
Heinrich asked as he lit a candle.
*’Is today’s work roughly finished?’*
Amber reviewed the events of the day in her mind.
She had obtained a promise from her husband to observe courtesies, had a bout with Bella, rescued Xenia, formed a strategic alliance with Heinrich, and chosen people to become her personal maids. Oh, and she had also decided how to use the dowry.
*’I’ve done more than enough work.’*
As her tension eased, the fatigue pressing down on her shoulders grew heavier.
“Yes, I should go to the bedchamber.”
“Shall I bring you a snack first?”
“No, that’s fine.”
Although she was hungry, her desire to rest outweighed her desire to eat.
Amber draped the robe Heinrich had brought over her shoulders and headed to her bedchamber.
She planned to sleep well and wake up early tomorrow to see off the newly formed expedition force for the subjugation.
Heinrich handed Amber the candlestick at the door of the bedchamber and returned.
Amber suppressed a yawn and turned the doorknob. All that filled her mind now was the desire to lie down as soon as possible.
As she entered the room, she felt the cold night breeze tickling her cheeks.
*’It’s winter. Who left the window open?’*
Amber frowned and turned her head toward the window.
When she discovered Calix standing with his back to the window, she almost dropped the candlestick.
Calix approached and took the candlestick from her. The candle, which had been trembling in Amber’s hand as if about to go out at any moment, became firmly fixed on Calix’s hand without a single flicker.
The flickering flame settled down, illuminating both their faces.
Amber’s face was reflected in Calix’s deep navy eyes.
Amber was flustered for a moment, but only for a moment.
Because the bedchamber, and Calix inside it, was an unbearably familiar combination to Amber.
In her past life, Calix had not spent many days at the castle, but that didn’t mean they had spent few nights together.
After they had a relationship once, following noble customs, they would have their conjugal nights once a month.
As ten years of memories flickered through her mind, Amber’s heart naturally calmed.
But there was one thing Amber had not considered.
That what was unbearably familiar to her was something Calix was experiencing for the very first time in his life.
“…Duke?”
Amber carefully stepped back and called out to him. The more Amber retreated, the stiffer Calix’s expression became.
“Were you waiting for me?”
Amber asked. She thought he was displeased because he couldn’t fall asleep early waiting for her.
Suddenly, Calix spun around. He strode over, placed the candlestick on the nightstand with a rough motion, and closed the window. Then he stood still, looking out the closed window.
*’You should answer…’*
Amber watched his back, bewildered.
She waited like that for a long while, but Calix continued to stare out the window.
Occasionally, he flinched as if about to turn around, suggesting he had something to say.
“Duke.”
Finally, Amber spoke again.
Only after hearing Amber’s voice calling him did Calix finally turn his head.
Calix drew the curtains to block the cold wind seeping through the window frame and approached Amber.
He took each step carefully, like a knight walking through an enemy camp filled with traps.
Finally, he stood before Amber again.
