♡ Chapter 3 ♡
I looked at the head maid wearing glasses.
More precisely, I looked at her profile window.
♡PROFILE♡
Name: Miriam Lynch
View Level: 2
Occupation: Head Maid of the Cromwell Duchy
Affection: Raise your level to view
Notes: Raise your level to view
‘…NPCs didn’t have view levels before.’
Also, the “Notes” section was something that only existed for targets like the princess or nanny, not for NPCs like this.
‘Mary had it too…’
Is Hidden Mode like some kind of expansion pack?
While I stared at the strange profile window, the head maid continued speaking.
Since I had become the princess’s nanny, I would be excluded from regular maid duties.
“Mrs. Lester will feed the baby.”
A wet nurse had been assigned.
“Call me whenever you need.”
The woman standing next to the head maid spoke.
It was a familiar face I had only seen in pixel art before.
Mrs. Lester was also the second reason for meeting the head maid.
“Have you not eaten yet?”
“No, it seems the baby formula doesn’t suit her.”
The princess drank a few sips and then spit it out.
Maybe the reason she kept crying… was because she was hungry.
♡PROFILE♡
Name: Angela Lester
View Level: 1
Occupation: Wet Nurse
Relationship: Coworker
Affection (Lorelei): 3/10
Affection (Princess): 5/10
Notes: Well-connected. Makes good meat pies.
It seemed the “view level” referred to Lorelei Kiss’s level.
Mrs. Lester, who had given birth just a few months ago, skillfully fed the baby.
“The young lady eats very well. Oh, how cute.”
Maybe because she had five children, she handled the baby perfectly.
“Hehe, it’s okay to look.”
I turned my eyes away, thinking it might be inappropriate, but she reassured me.
“Have you decided the princess’s name?”
“No, not yet… I think it would be better if the Duke names her.”
I made up an excuse since I couldn’t tell the truth.
But after saying it, it really did feel like the Duke should name her.
“Oh my… but she still needs a name.”
I agreed.
But even if she had a name, a servant like me would never call the princess by it.
“I’ll ask the Duke when I meet him.”
“Even if he’s crazy… he won’t fall for a newborn baby, right?”
I looked at the baby.
She used to be my “cyber daughter,” whom I carefully named with the prettiest name possible.
‘If she marries her dad again this time…’
It would hurt too much.
If I get attached, it will only make things harder.
After feeding, the full princess finally fell asleep.
“I wish this peace would last forever.”
♡SYSTEM♡ Level Up!
Level 1 → 2
Ding!
After completing about half of the tutorial, I leveled up.
Now that my level increased, I was curious about the head maid’s affection and notes.
But before I could check, I had to leave the room.
Before parting, Mrs. Lester gave me a few baby bottles, which I was grateful for.
“I’ll come in the morning and at night.”
I already knew that.
In the game, the start and end of each day always involved Mrs. Lester.
Feed in the morning, feed before sleep.
My game-trained brain told me to continue the tutorial immediately—
but my heart begged me to rest while the baby was sleeping.
The empty hallway was quiet.
I opened my profile window.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to this.”
I waved my hand, thinking it might be an illusion—but the window stayed.
Failure Penalty: ???
That part bothered me the most.
Not the surname “Kiss.”
Not the 6 billion.
“Why is the penalty a question mark…?”
I never want to find out.
For now, my goal is simple:
“Clear the ending safely, return to the real world, and find out if the 6 billion is real money.”
“The problem is… can I even get the Imperial Princess Ending…?”
The reason it’s considered a true ending is simple.
“Because it’s ridiculously hard to get.”
Rumor says even the illustration quality is on another level.
‘It was already insanely gorgeous when she married the Duke…’
Hard to imagine something even more impressive.
Even though choices change everything, the game still has some logic.
If you follow the right flow, you can get your desired ending about once in five tries.
But players discovered one key rule:
“You fail when you fail to manage the princess.”
The princess and the player must want the same future.
‘To figure that out…’
Stress and Ambition stats are important.
Information I gathered carefully from comments and forums.
‘I should’ve just read everything properly…’
Anyway, these stats appear during the Duke’s seasonal evaluations starting at age four.
Out of habit, I tried to open the princess’s profile.
“…Why?”
It wasn’t there.
The nanny and princess profiles should always be accessible.
But now, nothing.
Then I noticed something at the bottom of my profile:
※ [Hidden Mode] does not provide mid-term evaluations.
“….”
“So… there’s no guide for the future in Hidden Mode…?”
“Ha.”
My fists trembled.
“What confidence did I have to accept this quest?”
I always got the same ending over and over.
Now I had to clear a hidden quest—with no guidance.
“The chance of success is basically zero.”
I let out a deep sigh.
✧ʚ .·:¨༺♡༻¨:·. ɞ✧
At least I didn’t have to do housework.
“Taking care of a baby and cleaning at the same time would be insane.”
Thankfully, the Duke had at least that much common sense.
After laying the baby down, I looked in the mirror.
Lorelei still looked tired, but better than before.
Her dull brown eyes now had a bit of life.
“What kind of life did she live before?”
Her memories were limited—
just enough to function.
No family background, no personal history.
Only knowledge about the mansion and noble etiquette.
But that was enough to survive.
“Since the time limit is only 3 years… she won’t marry her dad, right?”
That was my only comfort.
Three years meant the game ends at her third birthday.
In the original game, that insane proposal only happened because she was an adult.
“So the ‘marry your dad’ ending should be impossible… right?”
Trying to reassure myself, I checked the game window.
While looking through my poor inventory, something caught my eye.
TIP
Normally, I would ignore this.
▶ Stamina can recover from food!
▶ Mental can recover from sleep!
Basic, but useful.
As I kept scrolling—
I saw it.
▶ In Hidden Mode, if you fail to achieve the mission ending within the time limit, the ending will automatically become the one you have seen the most!
I froze.
“…My most-seen ending is the ‘marry your dad’ ending.”
“YOU TRASH GAME!”
I shouted—and instantly regretted it.
The baby must not wake up.
Thankfully, she only frowned and didn’t cry.
I gently patted her back.
Even though I did nothing, I felt exhausted.
“I need to get a side job quickly.”
Resting my chin on my hand, I looked at the princess.
In the game’s main screen, a grown-up version greets the player.
I could almost see that future in her face.
Her eyes were red—just like in the illustration.
Even without blood relation, she clearly resembled the Duke.
“…Still, you’re cuter.”
I muttered, looking at her soft golden hair.
The Duke was terrifying.
It felt like he could kill someone just by looking at them.
But this baby—
She couldn’t harm anyone.
Except for her deadly crying that drained stamina and mental.
And just in case—
Even though it should never happen—
“If that crazy man ever falls for this baby… I’ll kill him myself.”
