The time of day was shortly after noon.
Naturally, the Baron sued us for assault and intimidation.
Damn it. I hadn't even finished the laundry yet!
"Miss Daisy, you work as a maid for the Weatherwoods, and the person behind you is the head maid, is that correct?"
"That's right."
"I'm Officer Thomas. You two, follow me for a moment."
The maid and I were called to the investigation room. No, to be exact, the head of cleaning only answered a few questions from the police, and only I had to be called to the investigation room.
In the investigation room where I arrived, another man was sitting, not a policeman.
The man who caught the strange atmosphere flipped through the documents and finally spoke.
"Pleased to meet you, Miss Daisy Fager. Let me be frank. I found a singularity in your status. I know it may be unpleasant for you, but we are definitely going to have to resolve it."
I could feel the man searching my face for a reaction through his piercing gaze. I shrugged to show I didn't care.
"First of all, when were you employed at this mansion?"
"Ten days ago."
"What did you do before coming to this city?"
But it wasn't long before I had to shut up.
This question was problematic. The reason it was problematic was simple. It would take too long to answer.
I am Daisy, a maid. But before becoming a maid, I had a different name.
The King's Sword, Andert.
One of the heroes of turbulent times who was on the front line during the Magic War that lasted a decade and protected humanity's destiny.
That was me.
***
Ten days ago, the city's human resources office.
"Next interviewee."
When I silently raised my hand, a woman with a strict expression and silver-rimmed glasses looked at me.
"Go ahead."
I followed her into the office. As I sat in a simple iron chair in front of the desk, the door closed as if it had been waiting.
In front of me sat a woman with a much stricter expression than the secretary who guided me, quickly rummaging through the papers.
I could feel the exhaustion she must be in due to the countless interviews when looking at her face as she took a sip of her coffee. I looked at the number pinned to my chest.
"Interviewee No. 38."
The number seemed quite exhausting.
"Pleased to meet you. What a beautiful woman."
The interviewer, who examined me carefully from head to toe, spoke.
"What is your name?"
Good question.
"Daisy Fager."
My name is Andert Fager.
To hide my true name, I chose an alias that would sound like a maid's name to anyone.
I bet there were more than a thousand maids in this world named Daisy.
Daisy was a great disguise that could guide me into the world of terrible work. No matter how versed the interview was, if you were used to something, in the end, you would end up leaning on it.
"That's the same surname as the hero of the Magic War. Although I suppose it's a common surname in all the tributaries. What about your family? Do you have any?"
That was also a good question.
"A younger brother."
My brother died in battle while defending our hometown a long time ago.
His name was Andert Fager.
I had lived for many years under my brother's name, turning my originally female body into that of a man through ancient magic. The name I received from my parents long ago I had abandoned. It had been a long time. Enough to not miss it anymore.
"Where are you from?"
This was also a good question.
My younger brother and I were from Queen, a stroke of bad luck island that was no longer inhabited.
Queen, the southernmost island of the Imperial South, suddenly one day became a sea of fire. The Empire sent troops several times, but to no avail.
The main culprit was Mephisto, a wizard who slaughtered tens of thousands of humans to obtain the power of immortality.
Thus, the great wizard Mephisto became an enemy of humanity in an instant.
The Magic Coalition was an organization formed by thirteen countries, led by the empire, to annihilate this cruel murderer.
The winner of the decade-long war was the Magic Union, but the damage was enormous.
Four years had passed since the end of the war. The world was now overcoming the pain of the past and moving toward a future in which life prospers.
Still, my burned hometown will not return.
"How tall are you?"
"170cm."
"That's quite tall for a woman. It will be a clear advantage in the job you applied for."
That was a good compliment.
"We're almost there. Only a few questions left. You've never worked as a maid before, so what have you been doing before this?"
All these questions were really good.
"I was unemployed."
I was one of the commanders of the Magic Union. And I toured the battlefield with Raphael, a hero sung by the people in those turbulent times.
"I can't turn my back on anyone but you, Andert. You're the only one I can trust. I know it may sound funny, but I often think that if I ever had a long-lost brother, it would be you."
Raphael, commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, was the hope of the Magic Union and the salvation of humanity.
We defeated all our enemies and advanced step by step, attracting valuable friends and allies.
Then, I finally returned to my hometown, which had become Mephisto's base, but...
In the end, the fate I was given was death.
"Damn it, don't you dare let go of this hand. Wait! Stop right now, Andert! You can't die! I won't let you die this way! Come back now, Andert Fager!"
I was definitely dead.
I entered the enemy camp alone and thought it was a noble sacrifice to do it for humanity in my own way.
But why did I come back to life?
Four years had passed.
Even the male body I had been using with ancient magic had disappeared. Only the body of a weak woman remained.
"Why did you apply for this position?"
Ah.
That was indeed a good question.
"Money."
The answer was money.
Whether you were a hero, an aristocrat, or a normal citizen, you needed money to survive.
This truth also applied to me, who was lucky enough to come back to life after the decisive clash with the great wizard Mephisto.
I needed money.
I needed money no more or less than to live for at least three more years.
"Last question. In what kind of mansion would you like to work?"
That was an important question.
"A mansion that is so difficult to clean that maybe I would die before I could complete the task."
"What kind of employer do you want?"
"A cruel employer who squeezes their employees."
The interviewer shot me a look that said I was crazy.
But only for a brief moment.
"Thank you for your hard work. This is the end of the interview. We will contact you within a week, so be prepared. And take this book."
Did I pass? Before leaving the office, I received a small book from the interviewer.
The Art of Good Speech.
When I looked at the title and raised my head, the interviewer's eyes seemed to be looking at a golden pig.
Wait, why a golden pig?
The answer to that question was not available until a week later.
When I got my second job in life, as a maid.
***
The human resources office contacted me a day later.
The interviewer who called me gave me a note with an unknown address and added a brief explanation.
"You are very lucky. It's rare to find work in one day. Your workplace is a mansion on the city's main street, and the owner of the mansion is Viscount Weatherwoods. The Weatherwoods family is one of the most historic families in the empire. To be able to work for a family like this is an honor in every sense."
When I nodded and picked up the note, the interviewer, who gripped the paper tightly with his fingertips, told me.
"I have a request for you. Hold out for at least one week and then quit. If you quit too soon, the image of our personnel office will also be harmed."
I nodded again, but the interviewer didn't release the note.
"Did you read the book I gave you yesterday? A maid must be polite. Answer with words, not actions."
I remembered the book I used as a pillow when I slept on a park bench last night.
Of course I didn't read it.
"Yes."
"With honorifics."
"Yes."
"You'd better answer a bit more kindly. It wouldn't be bad to add an 'okay.' At least as a maid. Answer me again," the hard-spectacled interviewer said again.
I was annoyed, but I knew it was pure advice. Still, I kept my lips closed for five more seconds and then, hesitatingly, opened my mouth.
"Yes, sir."
I don't like talking for long. Because this voice was unfamiliar to me.
It wasn't just the voice. I wasn't familiar with the reduced height, the soft appearance, and the immaculate skin either.
For me, as Andert Fager, commander of the Magic Union and a man for ten years, a woman's body seemed to belong to someone else.
The fact that I was a woman fourteen years ago seemed incredible, and I felt as if I were being forced into an uncomfortable frame.
"Good job. Much better."
But I couldn't deny my own body forever.
Since I got a job as a maid, it would be good to get used to it little by little. Very, very slowly.
"Go. May you find that Midwinterre is your new home."
After leaving the human resources office, I asked street vendors to find my new workplace.
"Oh, that one? It's easy to find that mansion."
The place where I got a job was so famous that it was very easy to find.
It was very easy.
In the middle of a bustling street.
The gloomy appearance of the mansion, similar to a haunted house, showed a presence that could not be ignored.