What was this nonsense? You let me go kindly before. Was I being hounded for becoming a maid? Eh? But I didn't open my mouth without thinking. I still had a brain. A maid responding to a duke... Probably he wouldn't care, but since I had decided to go my own way away from Raphael, I wanted to interact with him as little as possible.
—Hmm. My Daisy? But as always, Rue did not act as I wanted. —What do you want to do? Your mistress will fulfill your wishes. Raphael looked back at me and I couldn't help but stare at him. I was really annoyed with him. What was the point of a ten-year friendship if he couldn't even help me live my life as a domestic worker?
What do I have to do? If I considered my position here, it was right to bow before His Excellency, the Archduke Raphael, and treat his words as the will of Heaven and his orders as a mandate from God. But… At first you let me leave the island without problems and now you're twisting your words and saying you need to do an additional investigation. Isn't this the most suspicious thing there can be?
Presumably Raphael wasn't very interested when he first heard the news of my appearance on Queen Island. He seemed to have changed his mind after today's encounter. So it was a dilemma. What would be the best option to be able to continue my life as a maid of the Weatherwoods?
<1. I accept the investigation and in-terrogate myself. I'm labeled a criminal because I keep my mouth shut so as not to reveal my identity. Then I escape from the authorities. I'm kicked out of Weatherwoods.> It couldn't be worse. And the next? <2. I refuse to be questioned. A national investigation into the Weatherwoods family is launched. Dian Cecht's relics are revealed to the world. They take them from me. I am expelled from the Weatherwoods family.> This was even worse. Both options were ruled out.
In this case, I had to use my last resort. —My lady. I stepped a bit closer to Rue and blinked my bright eyes. —I will obey my master's orders, because I, Daisy, am your obedient servant. Rue, who smiled back at me, patted my back. —Do you mean you don't want to? —If the lady wishes. —Yes, my maid doesn't like that idea, so I must stop it. Duke Zenail? I refuse your request. Ah, by the way, do I get the death penalty if I refuse?
Desherro watched Rue's wild behavior with anxiety. Rue was being blatantly rude. The interesting thing was that due to his beauty, no one called him bold or rude, they just pretended he ignored social norms. After seeing the pitiful expression he gave me, they simply thought of him as a "kind-hearted lady who considers even the feelings of her employees." This world was really big in appearance. Tsk.
But this was a good calculation. This way, if the head maid blamed me for some crime committed here, I could simply pass all the blame to Rue. After all, it's not like the duke is going to blame the maid for the actions of her master. —Raphael. Ay. —Is there a problem? Another uninvited guest had arrived here. —No, Duke Jurian. Did you manage to finish the work you were working on? —Indeed, it's almost all done.
…this was a bit. This is very uncomfortable. At least at that moment, the sword master was much more dangerous than Raphael. My heart beat faster. I hid behind Rue's back with my head slightly bowed. The sword master must have already heard about my victory, so if my presence attracted his attention in a situation where he paid special attention to Viscount Weatherwoods...
If the sword master's amazing sixth sense and insight noticed any similarity between me and Viscount Weatherwoods, all this would become much more boring. The sword master, who exchanged a few more words with Raphael, looked at Rue. He bowed his head slightly with a soft smile in contrast to the way Raphael had greeted him. —A pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Weatherwoods. My name is Jurian Berkley Gratten. I don't see Mr. Gray Weatherwoods here.
While the two warriors stood next to each other, an intangible pressure formed that wasn't there before, along with the suffocating feeling of not wanting to stay in the same space with them for too long. The more ingenious began to distance themselves one by one. Of course, this did not include Rue. He smiled happily and accepted the sword master's greeting. —Nice to meet you, Duke Berkley Gratten. I heard about you from my husband. Unfortunately, he is recovering separately. The magic trap caused him great psychological and physical damage.
Yeager, who was by his side, suddenly asked: —But a moment ago, the lady said he was injured in his duel with Miss Jea… Shut up. I elbowed Yeager in the waist. His complexion paled instantly and his breath became heavy as he held his side. I hit you so gently. Look how you're making a fuss. Raphael's eyes met mine. I turned around pretending not to have noticed.
—My God! Is he in bad condition? What a pity. I wanted to have a long conversation with him about the duel. I'll definitely make sure to compensate the viscount for the damage he suffered today. Raphael looked at the duke with questioning eyes. —Duel? —Ah, right, the archduke must not know. Viscount Weatherwoods' sword skills are very good. I guess it's not so surprising if you think of his father, who was revered as a hero in Midwinterre. —It's not like you to praise someone so generously. Who did he duel with? —He fought against our Jean. —…you must refer to Miss Jean Berkley.
That's where Raphael's words ended. He seemed to have no interest in the result of the duel. Yeager, whose ears were perked up since the subject came up, sighed in disappointment. Judging by how he reacts... don't tell me, people don't know the results of the duel yet? It wasn't bad that my duel with Jean ended in silence. However, if Jean denied the defeat and didn't resign as successor, it was a totally different matter.
—Ah, Mrs. Weatherwoods. Jean told me she wanted to learn swordplay with Viscount Weatherwoods. Have you already heard about this? —…swordplay? My seat, which was already uncomfortable, became ten times more uncomfortable. Why do you suddenly mention that?! Jean, I told you to keep your mouth shut, why did you go around talking about this? —She also said that Viscount Weatherwoods allowed it. I plan to send her soon to her family's house. It will be an honor for Jean to be able to learn with the viscount as his disciple. Please, take good care of her.
When did I give her permission? The incredibly uncomfortable position became a hundred times more uncomfortable. I swallowed slowly to regain my composure. Are they taking me for an idiot? Who was lying here? Jean or the sword master? No, Jean was not the type to lie. But the sword master I knew was also not the type to tell lies that could be easily caught in this way. Certainly he wasn't… Now he goes in search of the Weatherwoods themselves. His goal was Dian Cecht's relics, so there was a high probability that the sword master was the one lying there, not Jean.
Did he change his plans? Instead of annihilating the Weatherwoods, he now plans to send Jean to us and make her into his eyes and ears. What should I do? I had been caught in an unexpected trap. Rue, who blinked in what seemed a slight surprise, soon let out words soaked in pure arsenic. —Ah, disciple. No, don't look at me. Don't look at my face to determine the truth. Those two monsters there are smart. I'm sure they'll start doubting us. —I've never heard anything like that. It's strange. My husband usually tells me everything, no matter how trivial. Luckily Rue didn't look at me. —I'm worried. What am I supposed to do?
What did I have to do? We had to overcome this difficulty as soon as possible. Otherwise, Rue would surely have a fit of anger and provoke a major incident. How could I not accept Jean as a disciple? Wait. If I think about it, there's no problem in taking her in, is there? First, about the dark plans of the sword master. Jean was not a magic tool. She would have to use some kind of communication to deliver her findings to the sword master. For example, letters. Even if we accept Jean in the mansion, wouldn't it be fine as long as I cut her means of communication with the duke?
Second, the request of the assassin butler. What the butler wanted was the chaos that occurred when the guild leader, "Clone," changed. More specifically, he wanted to take that opportunity to disappear from her sight. Couldn't I get them both to meet and reach an agreement? Third, regarding obtaining permission from the head maid. If I give her a maid without charging, she'll surely be happy. This... maybe it wasn't so bad after all? How should I do this? Mmm. I decided to act after deciding my plan. I had to convey my intentions to accept Jean very clearly so as not to raise any suspicion.
—My lady. —¿What? —It so happens that the mansion is lacking cleaning staff. A cold silence pervaded the area. It was as if everyone had been shocked by the statement.