Episode 6
The head maid of House Belmont, Mrs. ■■■, suddenly opened her eyes.
Ding—dong—ding—dong—
The old grandfather clock, tangled in cobwebs like rags, struck exactly four o’clock.
A new day had begun.
She slowly rose from bed, creaking like someone waking from a long slumber.
She was tired, but rest was not an option. Mrs. ■■■ was more devoted than anyone else to serving the Duke of Belmont.
The honor of serving in the prestigious Belmont household was the very reason she kept moving.
If only it weren’t for “that incident”…
“Hm?”
That incident?
Mrs. ■■■ stopped in her tracks and turned her gaze toward the wall.
Her face was reflected in a broken mirror, the fragmented shards showing her face split like a crowd inside the mirror.
Her appearance was, as always, unchanged.
A neatly tied navy dress with a ribbon fastened under the chin, a spotless white apron, and a headscarf so precisely tied not a single hair peeked through.
…And instead of facial features, there were hollow voids.
“Nothing’s wrong.”
She naturally turned away from the mirror and walked toward the mansion’s main hall.
The halls, scorched in places, were dark and devoid of light. But Mrs. ■■■ moved forward without the slightest hesitation.
Thick ropes hanging from the ceiling, curtains torn at the ends, and the eerie wailing of wind echoing through the empty corridors gave off a chilling atmosphere.
Yet Mrs. ■■■ didn’t notice a thing and greeted the staff as usual.
“Good morning, everyone.”
“Good morning, Mrs. ■■■.”
The mansion’s neatly dressed staff had gathered in the main hall.
Every morning, they would gather to greet each other and then begin their duties.
Clap!
Drawing attention with a clap, Mrs. ■■■ stood at the top of the stairs and raised her voice.
“Today is ▲▲’s birthday. Let us all offer our heartfelt congratulations.”
“Happy birthday, Miss ▲▲.”
Clap clap clap.
Dry applause echoed through the hall with flat, emotionless voices.
Perhaps embarrassed by the sudden attention, Miss ▲▲ lowered her head shyly.
“Thank you. I’m truly happy to receive such sincere congratulations from my colleagues.”
At that moment, Mrs. ■■■ felt a strange sense of déjà vu.
It felt like they had celebrated someone’s birthday just a few days ago—no, maybe even yesterday.
She looked over the gathered staff once more.
Dozens of black holes stared back at her, but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was wrong.
“Must be my imagination,” she thought, brushing away the doubt.
“…Now, off to your duties. Have a wonderful day.”
“Have a wonderful day, ma’am.”
As the staff dispersed, so did Mrs. ■■■.
“I must make sure Miss Windsor is comfortable today.”
As she slowly ascended the spiral staircase, she recalled the face of the newest “fiancée,” who had arrived three days ago.
Perhaps it was the white hair, but Miss Windsor had an otherworldly aura.
She was different from all the previous fiancées who had visited House Belmont—no, wait. When did the fiancée change?
Mrs. ■■■ felt a strange doubt creep in, then quickly shook her head to erase the thought.
“Miss Windsor is to be our lady of the house. I must serve her to the best of my ability.”
In any case, Mrs. ■■■ rather liked Nadia Windsor.
To her, the Duke’s fiancées had always been troublesome—loud, brash women trying to assert their presence with bold declarations.
But Nadia Windsor? Calm and serene. Surely the Duke himself would be pleased.
She suddenly recalled ▵▵▵, the last fiancée to visit.
Apparently wanting to prove her devotion to the mansion, she had been found hanging in the very room where Miss Windsor now stayed.
Regretfully, Mrs. ■■■ remembered how that excessive loyalty cost her the chance to become the lady of the house.
Since then, she had removed every rope or string from the room that could be used to hang oneself.
Yet regardless of time, each fiancée would end up screaming, trying to assert herself, only to eventually sacrifice her life for the mansion.
It wasn’t necessary—but maybe they believed that was the only way to truly belong to the mansion.
“Please, let Miss Windsor be the one who doesn’t die.”
With that thought, she timed her arrival perfectly with the hour and went to check on her.
But the door was slightly ajar, and a strange noise came from inside.
“Huff… huff…”
What was that sound?
She stepped closer.
“Mmm, nothing beats ramen with a triangle kimbap.”
Ramen? Triangle kimbap?
Words she had never heard before.
Sensing something odd, the head maid knocked briefly, then entered Nadia’s room.
“……!”
There, she saw the fiancée frantically eating some unidentified, yellow, squiggly spaghetti-like thing—stuffing it into her mouth.
“I’m… so hungry…”
That’s where it all began.
To think hunger could feel this real… At first, I figured I could tough it out since it’s just VR—but I immediately regretted that thought.
After going all day yesterday without food, my energy was depleted.
It had only been two days, but I was seriously on the verge of starving.
But it wasn’t like I could just eat whatever was lying around.
The safety rules clearly said: “It’s not recommended to eat food that’s been served.”
Well, what was I supposed to eat, then?!
Muttering to myself didn’t bring any answers.
It’s not like they expect me to starve forever… So what the hell was I supposed to—
“Ah.”
Suddenly, it hit me.
The cash shop.
“Am I stupid?”
Why hadn’t I thought of that before?
I quickly opened the catalog and browsed the list.
But it was endless. And nothing was organized.
Eventually, I just typed “food” into the search bar—and refined results started popping up:
[Ramen – 200 Diamonds]
· Cooked to your preferred doneness. Delivered fully prepared and ready to eat.
[Rice – 100 Diamonds]
· Freshly steamed rice. Cooking time is auto-adjusted, and the container self-disposes after eating.
※ Refills: +50 Diamonds
“This is it!”
Turns out humanity hasn’t given up on me yet.
I checked drinks, just in case—and found exactly what I needed:
[Premium Hand-Drip Coffee – 350 Diamonds]
· Selected, roasted, and brewed by an internationally awarded master barista.
※ ICE option: +50 Diamonds
The essential item for any adult: iced Americano.
Even in the middle of winter, I only drank cold drinks—so this was perfect.
But seriously, charging more for cold drinks? Way too realistic.
Anyway, there were tons of food options:
-
[Cola with a Slice of Lemon – 50 Diamonds] (Zero version available)
-
[Handmade Premium Chocolate – 500 Diamonds]
-
[Kimchi (small dish) – 50 Diamonds]
-
[Triangle Kimbap – 50 Diamonds]
※ Choose from Tuna Mayo, Chicken Mayo, Jeonju Bibimbap, Spicy Pork
Since the food disappeared after eating, it was reasonably priced compared to utility items.
Though if I wasn’t careful, I could easily blow through all my diamonds.
“Now that I think about it, time in the game moves faster than in real life.”
One day in-game equals about one hour in reality.
Since I had about a week off IRL, that gave me about six months in-game.
In other words…
“I need to budget!”
If I wasted diamonds now, I’d be starving for months.
Choking back tears, I made the responsible decision: ramen and triangle kimbap.
[Purchase complete!
Remaining Diamonds: 9,250]
Right after the cheerful message popped up—POOF!—the aroma hit me.
Piping hot ramen and warm triangle kimbap.
A perfect Korean convenience store meal.
“Whoever designed this had some culture.”
Even had a poached egg in the ramen.
I even added a side of kimchi for full effect—one hearty meal, handled.
But then—
“M-Miss Windsor?”
A panicked voice suddenly called out behind me.
“Wh-what?”
