IDSFTV 10

Chapter 10:

A few days later.

“What on earth happened in the head maid’s room?”

Alicia, who had suddenly become much friendlier with me, asked.

“How did that maid end up being thrown out of the castle? The other maids were screaming and carrying on with joy.”

Just as she said, ever since that day, the maid who lorded over the others had to pack her things and leave the castle.

When people asked her why, she gave no excuse and no answer—just left. Everyone who saw her go looked baffled, wondering what could have happened.

Neither the dorm matron nor I had revealed anything about that day, so the maids were left to let their imaginations run wild.

Peace had returned to the maids after that, but I could feel that they were subtly wary of me.

Of course, they didn’t suddenly treat me better, nor did they force themselves to smile or pretend to be friendly.

It seemed they were afraid that if they got involved with me, they might end up like that maid.

Thanks to that, things became much more comfortable for me—now I only had to focus on doing my work properly in this pleasant new working environment.

Just like before, I got up at the sound of the morning bell, yawned, pushed an empty cart, and went to bed at the same time every night like I was livestock on a set schedule.

Ah, there was one change in my daily routine after that day.

Alicia started following me around whenever she could.

After work ended, she began coming to my bed like a sparrow visiting a mill.

Today, she came to me before work had even begun and started chattering.

“Hey… can I speak informally with you?”

“What exactly does ‘not speaking informally’ even look like?”

“…You’re right.”

She covered her mouth and laughed, maybe thinking it was a strange question.

“But were you really a lord’s wife? I’ve never spoken to someone so high-ranking before.”

I continued making the bed without much of a response.

She hesitated for a moment, then asked again.

“If the Grand Duke really… um, killed the lord—your husband—does that mean you have no other family?”

Alicia asked carefully, looking at me as though she’d committed a terrible crime.

“No.”

“Oh, I see. Sorry.”

“It’s fine.”

When I answered indifferently, she quickly changed the subject.

“So… you really saw the Grand Duke in person?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve never seen him before. Doesn’t he have horns on his head and look like a monster?”

Seeing her widen her eyes and ask so seriously made me chuckle.

In this huge castle, it wasn’t easy for a maid to encounter the Grand Duke.

There were probably people who could live their entire lives here without ever seeing him. No wonder she was curious.

I stared off into the air as if recalling a memory before answering.

“He looked better than I expected. I didn’t get a good look though—I was too out of it at the time.”

“No way. You’re so brave. I would’ve fainted from a heart attack on the spot.”

When a small smile escaped my lips, Alicia smiled even more brightly.

The sunlight filtering in through the wooden window splintered and sparkled on her smiling face.

Looking at her, I felt a strange warmth in my chest, like I was being comforted.

Could it be… that I had a friend in this world too?

Ever since my grandfather died, I had felt the emptiness of being completely alone… but maybe, unexpectedly, that emptiness was slowly healing in this world.

Alicia stretched and looked out the window.

“The weather’s so nice today. It’d be perfect to pack something tasty and go up the hill behind the castle! Ugh, I really don’t want to work.”

Her words made me think of my college friends who used to skip lectures to hang out.

I wondered if I’d ever be able to return to reality.

And even then… I wasn’t sure if I actually wanted to.

After all, if I went back, my grandfather wouldn’t be there anymore, and there would be no one waiting for me at home.

I finished making the bed, hiding the sudden heaviness in my mood.

The heavy scent of mahogany filled the large office, accompanied only by the soft scratch of a quill moving across paper.

Tap—

Shiraz set his quill down with a sharp sound, as though something had just occurred to him, and looked at Huey.

“Come to think of it, what happened to that woman? That traitor’s wife.”

“You mean the Lord of Willinger’s wife?”

“Yeah, her.”

Huey recalled the maid he had seen inside the castle not long ago.

Even in a maid’s uniform, the fact that the Grand Duke had truly failed to recognize her… was surprising.

‘Well… I guess, looking the way she did, it’s no wonder he didn’t notice.’

Shaking off the thought, he replied politely.

“She’s working as a maid in the castle.”

Shiraz stopped what he was doing and looked at him.

“She’s working as a maid?”

“Yes.”

“Where?”

Huey faltered.

‘The Grand Duke himself ordered me to take her as a maid—did he forget?’

Huey’s reply grew slower and more hesitant.

“She… was assigned to the kitchens, managing food supplies.”

Shiraz’s eyes widened even more.

“That woman?”

“Uh… yes.”

Shiraz let out a baffled sigh.

She wasn’t even a regular castle maid—managing food supplies was one of the hardest, most grueling jobs in the entire castle. She would be treated almost like a slave.

Shiraz laughed aloud in disbelief.

Even then, she had seemed entirely unlike any noblewoman he had ever known.

“So, she’s really working as a maid here in my castle?”

He repeated the words to himself.

Bringing her here to do menial labor was, for a woman who had once lived as a noble, tantamount to telling her to die.

No—actually, it was even more humiliating than simply killing her.

He’d assumed she would have cursed him—“You should’ve just killed me with my husband!”—and either committed suicide or been caught and killed trying to flee.

“What a strange woman.”

Sensing the Grand Duke’s interest in her, Huey subtly added,

“Do you remember the woman who dropped an apple the other day?”

At those words, Shiraz looked at him in shock, as if to say, No way.

A woman in rags, covered in dust, wearing a shabby maid’s uniform—the one too afraid to even meet his gaze properly—came to mind.

“You don’t mean to say that maid was the lord’s wife.”

“She was.”

“…Ha!”

Shiraz tried to recall her face from that day.

He rarely bothered to look directly at the faces of his subordinates, so all he remembered was her startled look when he tossed her the apple and she caught it in her apron.

“I had no idea.”

“Actually, I looked into her a little. It bothered me to bring her into the castle without knowing anything.”

“Tell me.”

Shiraz shoved the papers he’d been reading aside and crossed his arms, intrigued.

“Her father was a low-ranking noble from the Duchy of Mahat. He studied medicine and drifted into Willinger territory, raising his daughter alone. Her mother died early, and there was nothing else remarkable about her.”

“I see. An only daughter raised by a widower.”

“That’s what made it strange.”

Shiraz looked up, puzzled.

“The Willinger lord I know was obsessed with appearances. There’s no way he’d take a wife without knowing her background.”

“Now that you mention it…”

“It turns out there was another woman acting as the real wife. This one was just the wife in name only.”

Hearing the inside story, Shiraz let out a low, knowing laugh.

“So that’s why she ran off without a backward glance when her husband died. He was her enemy, not her husband.”

Huey nodded cautiously and continued,

“Situations vary, of course, but it’s not uncommon among royals and nobles. Having two or three mistresses while still married is hardly rare…”

He realized he had misspoken before he even finished the sentence.

Panicked, he held his breath and glanced at the Grand Duke’s face.

Idiot! How could I say something so careless?

Sure enough, the Grand Duke’s expression instantly hardened, as if Huey had uttered a forbidden word.

When he spoke, his voice was devoid of emotion.

“So the Lord’s wife is still living among the maids?”

Relieved that the question wasn’t about his slip-up, Huey answered quickly.

“Yes. Apparently, no one suspects she’s a noblewoman. But…”

Shiraz shot him a sharp look.

“There was a small incident recently. She apparently mentioned Your Grace and drove another maid out of the castle. Of course, you can’t fully trust the servants’ gossip…”

Shiraz let out a dry, mocking laugh.

“So she had an agenda all along. Cunning woman.”

He had been mildly intrigued by how spiritedly she was living as a maid.

But that interest was quickly replaced by a bitter wave of disappointment.

Thinking that even dropping the apple in front of him had been part of some shallow ploy only deepened his contempt.

He despised women who used a man’s power and position for their own gain.

His mother had been exactly that kind of woman.

The quill in his hand suddenly snapped in two.