Chapter 27
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: As Expected, Dia Likes Ganeghan (2)
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My mood wasn't great at all.
It was only natural. I'd practically been chased out of Dia's room, and now Abera's room—where I'd followed her—gave off an inexplicably gloomy aura.
Why did Abera's room, which should have felt antique and reassuring, carry such an atmosphere?
I didn't even need to investigate to figure it out.
It was because a maid with a sinister vibe, one I'd never seen before in this mansion, was in Abera's room.
She was a maid who looked utterly exhausted somehow.
Her black hair shimmered with a dark green sheen under the light. And it wasn't even styled at all.
...Yeah, she looked just like a crow. A crow turned human.
Dia's hair was a messy tangle from her yanking at it here and there, but this was different—it was genuinely unkempt, clumping darkly in places. Her long straight hair seemed to reach all the way down to her waist.
But what was most sinister of all were her eyes.
Gloomy eyes ringed with deep dark circles. Impossible to read what she was thinking.
"This is your first time seeing this maid, right?"
I silently nodded at Abera's words.
There were countless servants in the Menesil Family's annex, so it was natural that I hadn't seen everyone. Still, this maid felt especially new for some reason.
"Her name's Sua. Darbi Sua. She's been bedridden due to poor health and only just returned. Don't pay her too much mind."
"Yes. More importantly..."
I wasn't particularly interested in Abera's explanation about the maid named Sua.
There was no reason to beat around the bush. What I wanted to know was why Abera had called me here.
"...What did you call me to your room for?"
"Come to think of it, I realized I haven't been considerate enough of your convenience, Ganeghan. I'm assigning Sua here as your personal maid. You can have her handle all the chores from now on."
"That should be fine. Didn't you yourself say I'd only be staying in this mansion a few more days anyway?"
"Th-that's why!"
Abera suddenly grabbed my hand.
I met her eyes with a puzzled look, but she only stroked my hand more, even interlocking our fingers.
"...That's why?"
"That's why. It also means I want you to stay in the mansion a bit longer. I've changed my mind!"
"How much longer are we talking?"
"I have to leave the annex after this week and head back to the main house. Just until then."
"Understood. Is that all?"
"Ah..."
Then Abera's hand, gripping mine, trembled slightly.
As expected, she still wanted something from me. There'd be no reason to assign me a maid otherwise.
"Well... um... Actually, I want another injection..."
"Injection?"
Come to think of it, I should have noticed from the way her legs were shaking. Abera's condition was seriously off.
'Dependency is one hell of a thing.'
...This was basically narcotics, wasn't it?
To think someone could get this fidgety so quickly—it even stirred a twinge of guilt in me.
The textbook-perfect young lady had vanished somewhere, leaving only a girl acting like a puppy begging for treats.
So I deliberately played dumb.
I needed to firmly establish who held the upper hand.
"Be specific."
"That nutritional supplement from before. The exact same one... Please!"
"It must have agreed with you quite a bit."
Abera nodded vigorously and continued.
"Yes. And not just the drug... Ganeghan..."
"Me?"
"N-no! I meant the drug you gave me. That's all!"
Abera stammered incoherently, her face flushing red every time I spoke.
At this point, it was clear who had the advantage without needing further observation.
"Alright, then. What about the conditions I mentioned before?"
"Which ones?"
Abera tilted her head.
"The ones about Dia's treatment. Frequency, outings, and so on."
"Oh, do whatever you want!"
With that, Abera extended her pale arm toward me. It was time to give the injection to the girl desperately craving it.
Using my ability didn't take much time.
I precisely matched the drug and dosage from last time and injected it into her arm.
"Ah... Hn..."
Like someone stepping suddenly from scorching heat into a cool room, Abera lifted her head with a melting expression.
How intense was the dependency? Her eyes drifted in ecstasy without her even realizing it.
I couldn't help but glance around.
If anyone saw this scene, they'd seriously misunderstand.
Fortunately, this was Abera's room—no one could just barge in.
The only ones present were Abera, me, and the gloomy maid called Sua.
"Ah... Haa... So good..."
Abera had melted into her chair like a discarded piece of clothing, head thrown back as she sank into her private bliss.
With that, the dangerous treatment was over.
"Then I'll be going. There might be side effects, so stay in your room for a while."
No, please just stay in your room. Looking like that.
I thought that inwardly as I rose to leave.
"Me too."
A neutral voice. Was there anyone in this room who could make a sound like that? I instinctively looked around.
"Over here. I said it."
"Hm...?"
I reflexively asked back in surprise.
The voice belonged to Sua. If you assumed it was a woman, it sounded feminine enough, but the dissonance made it hard to get used to.
And for good reason—Sua's figure was strikingly curvaceous. Full where it should be, narrow where it should be: a perfectly aesthetic feminine form, beautiful in a way only a woman's body could be.
Even her maid uniform clung tightly, so I'd assumed she had a more feminine voice.
Sua extended her index finger, pointing at the dark circles under her eye.
"I'm just a maid, but... I'm so frail and always tired. Please. Hehe. Hee."
Her lips curled in a sinister smile, and even her laugh was eerie, putting me on guard without thinking.
Since I'd already given injections to the other maids, discriminating against Sua alone would stir up talk.
With the thought of injecting her quickly and getting out, I picked up another syringe.
Soon after, my custom drug flowed into Sua's body as well. A nutritional supplement with high vitality stats.
"Hee, hehehe. Hehehehe. Wow. This is insane... Hehehe!"
Whatever was so amusing, Sua kept bursting into creepy chuckles.
Had I messed up the dosage? I checked the stats—no errors. Purely high vitality.
With the young lady followed by a maid reduced to this state, cold sweat trickled down my back.
This time, I hurriedly stood up for real.
""Wait.""
But both of them called out to stop me at once.
"Yes?"
"Ganeghan. Stay with me. Yeah? You don't hate me, right, Ganeghan?"
"Suddenly what...?"
I was already struggling to handle Abera, and now Sua was chiming in.
"Yeah. Stay here. Hehehe. This is fun. So fun. Talk to me. Let's communicate."
"I can't. I need to check on Dia's condition. There's things to discuss too."
For me in this bind, Dia was the perfect excuse and escape route.
But at that, Sua stared fixedly at Abera.
The moment I read Sua's gaze, Abera flinched and shuddered.
It was a phenomenon I couldn't quite understand. A maid and a young lady locking eyes, with the young lady averting hers.
'The drug's effect, maybe.'
That's what I figured. There weren't many other options to consider right now.
After exchanging a few glances with Sua, Abera spoke to me in a slightly urgent tone.
"Come to think of it, Dia told you to leave, didn't she, Ganeghan? She really seems to hate you."
"Even so, I'm worried about Dia. At least let me know when I can visit again later..."
"No. Wait."
Abera rubbed her chin, looking thoughtful, when Sua suddenly spoke up.
"Come to think of it, Lady Abera. Didn't you say you were busy? Hee."
"Huh?"
"Something came up in the garden, and you had to check on things."
"Oh...? Ah, right! That's right! I'll relay when you can visit again roughly, Ganeghan!"
With those words, Abera hurriedly vacated the room.
Now only two of us remained.
"Lord Ganeghan..."
She called to me.
The gloomy green-tinted maid.
Her green eyes, belonging to the maid who cracked her neck with eerie crack, crack sounds, fixed piercingly on me.
"...Truth is, I have a lot of aches and pains. Bring out all the injections you have. Hurry."
Hmm~ Hmm~ Hmm~
Abera hummed cheerfully. Her condition had visibly improved after getting Ganeghan's drug.
Or maybe it was because she'd seen Ganeghan. Or because she'd talked to him.
'What do I do? I think I really like Ganeghan...'
She kept searching for something, her legs trembling—yet it all calmed whenever she saw Ganeghan.
It just felt like love. The love always described in novels.
Then, in front of Dia's door, she spotted Hildia and Iaseom fidgeting anxiously, unable to decide what to do.
"What's going on?"
"Lady Abera..."
Hildia and Iaseom's faces were pale. Abera could guess the one possibility.
Abera's expression soured slightly.
"Don't tell me... Dia touched you all again?"
"No. It'd be better if she had..."
Hildia shook her head even harder.
"Then she did something even worse?"
Abera startled, but the maids just shook their heads again.
""It's not that...""
What the hell? Unable to hold back any longer, Abera flung open Dia's door with a loud bang.
The now spotless room, without a speck of dust, filled her vision.
And in the center of that room,
"Sniff, hnng... Haaah... Uuuh, uu... Waaah..."
was Dia, sobbing pitifully.