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chapter 61
Tok, tok.
Madame Vanessa’s heels echoed down the corridor. The two maids following her hunched their shoulders. Roselina walked behind them, looking at their backs.
Madame Vanessa held herself too upright, while Lexi and Maxi were too bent over.
To Roselina’s eyes, both sides looked unnatural. It seemed like behavior filled with pressure—something done unconsciously because of it. And it wasn’t because they were maids; most people would likely do the same.
Roselina realized that she, too, belonged in that category… yet she still couldn’t behave the same way they did. Her body simply didn’t respond like that yet.
Madame Vanessa brought the three maids into her room and made them stand in a single line. With their backs against the wall, they aligned the tips of their shoes on a line drawn on the floor.
“There has been a report that the maids who met His Majesty today displayed some problems in their conduct.”
“W-What? We—we did our best, Madam,”
Lexi objected immediately. But Madame Vanessa’s expression did not soften.
“Doing your best does not always produce the best results.”
“……”
“You three were cleaning the corridor. When His Majesty appeared, what did you do?”
“As soon as we saw His Majesty in the hallway, we alerted the other maids, lowered ourselves, and offered a greeting.”
“That was incorrect.”
“…Pardon?”
“Unless His Majesty speaks to you first, you must continue the work you were doing. If His Majesty passes near you, then you take one step back from where you are and bow your head. No matter who His Majesty is speaking to or what state he is in, you must not stare, show interest, or get in the way.”
Her tone was sharp.
Roselina, unfamiliar with palace etiquette, had not expected such an instruction.
Was it really that wrong? They only greeted him…
But she didn’t voice the thought. Maxi spoke up first, unable to hold back her grievance.
“B-But His Majesty spoke to us first…”
“What did he ask?”
“H-He asked… why the corridor was so noisy, and then… w-what we were doing.”
Maxi bit down on her lips after that, and Lexi quickly continued.
“He worried that we might be trying to clean an area too high for us.”
“And who answered him?”
“We took turns. Even the apprentice maid, Lina, answered well!”
Lexi added quickly.
But Madame Vanessa’s expression did not change in the slightest.
“That was improper behavior.”
“What…?”
“If—by the rare chance—His Majesty asks a maid a question, the highest-ranking maid present must answer on behalf of everyone. Did you not know that?”
“……”
“But the correct answer is to avoid giving His Majesty any reason to question you in the first place. Even noble officials must go through protocol to gain an audience with His Majesty. Sometimes they are refused. So why would a mere maid steal His Majesty’s precious time? His Majesty was lenient today. In a different situation, you might have been beaten.”
Her firm voice left no room for objection.
“Did you do your best today to ensure His Majesty had no reason to take note of you?”
“……”
“Your so-called ‘best’ was entirely wrong.”
At first, Vanessa’s criticism felt forced, but slowly—Roselina found it convincing. It wasn’t nitpicking. She was telling them what others—Milan, other attendants, or another head maid—might scold them for later. She was telling them early.
“Maids exist like ghosts. And if a ghost is seen… the end is rarely good. Remember that.”
She said it as though it was an unforgivable rule to forget.
To prevent them from getting hurt because they didn’t know.
Roselina had learned something similar from her teacher during her time as a trainee knight: their role was to ensure their students didn’t die out of ignorance.
A maid is no different. They may die even more quietly than knights do—without anyone noticing. Before I become a real ghost, I must live quietly, unseen by anyone…
Roselina felt grateful she learned this before it was too late.
Madame Vanessa took a thin book from her desk and handed one to each of them.
“Starting today, read and copy this book. Thirty pages a day won’t interfere with your work, and you can finish it in a week. Every evening after dinner, I will inspect your progress.”
Roselina carefully opened the book.
It was an old manual for palace maids. Even from a distance, the tightly packed small letters looked difficult.
“Only us?”
Maxi asked, sounding wronged. Vanessa stared at her a moment, then spoke.
“That is a fair point. It’s better if everyone is taught together.”
“N-No, no, Madam, that’s not what I—”
Maxi shook her head frantically, but Vanessa had already decided.
“No. I understand why you asked. These are fundamentals all maids must learn. This manual is copied from older editions written by palace maids of the past. We have enough copies, so we will distribute them today.”
“……”
“Once training in our division is complete, we’ll pass the manual to the next head maid. Soon the entire palace will run more efficiently.”
Vanessa looked quite pleased.
Lexi and Maxi looked horrified at the idea of other maids learning they had triggered all this trouble. Vanessa clearly didn’t care.
“Maxi and Lexi may leave. Lina stays. She needs additional training.”
“Yes, Madam.”
The two answered together and glanced at Roselina, pitying her. On her first day as an apprentice maid, she’d happened to run into the Emperor—and now she was being punished more than they were.
But they had no power to help her.
When they left, Vanessa returned to her seat, took out more manuals, and neatly recorded tasks in her small leather diary. Then she looked at Roselina and said dryly:
“Undress.”
“…Pardon?”
“I need to check for external injuries. I heard you were suffering from poison.”
“……”
She pulled out a square, leather doctor’s bag from her bookshelf. It was filled with medical tools.
Roselina didn’t move. She couldn’t bring herself to undress.
Vanessa frowned slightly at the hesitation.
“Do you not wish to be treated?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Strip everything except your undergarments.”
Roselina had never shown her naked body to anyone since her mother’s death.
She had lived as a man for so long that hiding her body had become second nature. She couldn’t even remember the last time she had looked at herself properly.
The idea of undressing in front of Madame Vanessa—a superior she had hardly met—made her hesitate.
She felt embarrassed.
But… it was treatment. So she slowly removed her clothes.
Her thin body was covered in scars.
Especially the stab wound on her side from the Aventurine family—poorly treated and badly infected—had festered.
She had kept it tightly bound so she could function in daily life, taking painkillers to endure it. But without the bandage, the wound looked terrible.
Vanessa did not grimace. Calmly, she cleaned the oozing area and applied medicine.
“At least the initial stitching was done well. Do you have headaches or fever?”
“Only a little at night.”
“Does it flare up immediately if you don’t take painkillers?”
“I think so. But it’s not too—”
“That is not for you to determine.”
She spoke firmly as she treated the wound.
Her skill surpassed that of most doctors—Roselina could tell.
Her hands moved quickly over every scar on Roselina’s body. She applied unfamiliar ointments, and where the skin had split a little, she pulled the edges together and fixed them as if stitching.
Pain shot through her skin, but Roselina did not make a sound.
Even Vanessa, a master of composure, was quietly impressed.
She sealed the wound and took out a garment made of muslin from an inner drawer.
“This will protect the wounds. Wear it under your sleepwear as well. I’ll give you two more. Wash and rotate them. Three will be enough until you’re fully healed.”
“Thank you, Madam.”
“Put it on now.”
“Yes, Madam.”
“This is the last time I treat you during work hours. From now on, I will check your condition twice a day—one hour early in the morning, and one hour late in the afternoon.”
“Madam, this is already more than enou—”
“That is also not your decision.”
There was a clear line in her tone.
“I am simply following the orders given to me.”
“Yes. I understand, Madam.”
“But I have one question.”
Roselina looked up, meeting Vanessa’s eyes.
“Must I be mindful of your relationship with His Majesty?”
“……”
“As the head maid who will serve the future Empress, I must know.”
Her expression remained emotionless, but she was visibly tense. Asking this had taken courage—it was a sensitive question.
Roselina’s gaze trembled.
My relationship with Dantes…
She thought about it, then opened her mouth with difficulty.
