Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Manners Make the Man (2)
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Ever since Ethan stopped summoning me every hour like the asshole he was, another month had passed.
With some free time opening up in my busy schedule, I was making the most efficient use of it.
Of course, Lilith's ban on leaving the estate was still in effect, and as a debt maid, I couldn't just wander out anyway.
The efficient ways to spend that time were naturally limited to things I could do inside the estate.
Last time, I'd subtly floated the idea of getting outing privileges again with the head maid, but her reaction was anything but ordinary.
'Head Maid. If it's all right with you, on this holiday, could I perhaps go out beyond the estate...'
'...Lilith Rosewood? Are you seriously asking for outing privileges so brazenly, after forgetting the uproar you caused last time? Report to the etiquette classroom immediately...'
'N-no! I was just asking in case you had business in the commercial district! I-I mean...'
Judging by her reaction when I saw it firsthand not long ago, it seemed like it would take even more time before Lilith got free outing privileges.
I hurriedly made up another excuse to calm Melissa's anger.
No way was I going one-on-one with that dragon voice in the etiquette classroom, not even me.
So, the ways I spent my remaining time inside the estate were limited to just a few options at best.
And the most productive one was knitting.
"...Lilith, you slipped that one in wrong."
"Oh, you're right. Dodged a bullet there if I'd caught it later."
These days, whenever I had time, I gathered in Isabel's room to learn knitting, building up the most productive resources I could during my free hours.
I used to not get why characters in comics or anime always passed time knitting, but now I could kind of understand why they existed.
Setting aside whether you could make money from it, in this damn medieval fantasy world, knitting was pretty much the only pastime maids could afford.
No smartphones or gadgets, not even books or paper were easy to come by.
And I sure as hell couldn't do gym workouts in this cumbersome maid uniform.
Knitting was popular among maids because the materials were easy to get and the finished products sold well.
We bought yarn regularly from the coachman who delivered goods between the commercial district and the estate.
And sometimes, we'd sell him whatever we finished.
Knitted goods made by Blackwood maids were one of the decently profitable items.
I had to scrape together money like this bit by bit to prepare for life after leaving the Blackwood estate.
If I planned to start a second life as an adventurer somewhere, I'd need at least some startup capital.
Adventuring without initial funds was a brutally tough profession.
Not only guild registration fees, but basic gear and lodging costs too.
And it didn't pay well until you ranked up higher.
Not just adventuring—any other job was the same.
Opening a shop anywhere took a ton of money, past life or here.
Places with enough foot traffic to make a living naturally had sky-high land prices.
At least this world didn't have key money, so that was a small mercy.
Either way, no matter what future I envisioned, scraping together these pennies was important for me right now.
These days, I was learning bit by bit from Isabel and making knitted goods.
'If I really wanted to save money efficiently, registering as an adventurer and hunting monsters with magic would be best...'
I really hated this damn debt maid status. I'd even leveled up for once, but here I was, stuck in the estate without using it.
...Well, still. Compared to before, things weren't all bad these days.
Gathering in Isabel's room like this, chatting cozily, was happiness in itself.
"Hey, Lilith. How's work been lately?"
"Nothing much. Waking the young... master in the morning, making the bed, cleaning, moving laundry—that's it."
"When you became his exclusive maid, you got called out so much I thought it was a super busy job."
"I-I thought so too..."
"...It was just the first few months with all sorts of tasks piling up. Now that everything's settled, it's manageable."
Work hours were adjusted through smooth agreements with the person involved. ...Though our lives hung in the balance during those talks.
Of course, if Ethan really needed a maid for something (like accidentally breaking something in his room), he'd call me, but even on those days, I hadn't faced any pranks from that loathsome guy since then.
Thinking about it, exploding with emotion and charging at him back then had turned out for the best in the end.
And since I chewed him out over his eating habits last time, he seemed to at least awkwardly use a fork and knife these days.
Guess mad dogs only learn when you curse them out.
"Anyway, impressive, Lilith."
"Huh?"
"Young Master Ethan, you know. He was famous for skipping Head Maid's etiquette lessons. But lately, she says he's attending diligently and studying hard."
"Oh, I-I heard that too... As expected of Lilith..."
"How'd you do it, Lilith? How'd you convince the young master to take etiquette lessons?"
"...It has nothing to do with me."
And it better stay that way.
If word spread that I'd fixed his habits by choking him, my life would be in danger.
Same with whispering how repulsive he was in the dining hall.
Especially if it reached Harold's ears—punishments way worse than what Aeria or Alicia got would come down.
"Come on, there you go again. There must've been something between you and the young master, right?"
"There was nothing."
"Y-yeah! If Lilith says nothing happened, then nothing did!"
"......"
Isabel shot me a slightly suspicious glance at Katarina's blatant cover-up.
If there hadn't been anything between Katarina and me, 'sharp Isabel's' instincts might've sniffed out our secret.
That I could use magic, and Katarina thought I was a noble lady, so she was keeping it hidden.
Luckily, our bond wasn't just that one thing.
Isabel already knew about the incident where I'd cleared Katarina's false accusation, so her open favoritism toward me didn't raise flags.
'Just keep it like this, just like this.'
For the record, Katarina also chalked up Ethan's attitude change to me, in her own way.
Not because of education from his exclusive maid, but because I—a supposed noble lady—had straightened him out.
It was a ridiculous misunderstanding, but we'd come too far to correct it now.
Katarina wasn't the type to spill my secrets anyway, so I let it slide.
I turned back to Isabel, giving her a subtle warning about her earlier suspicion.
"Isabel."
"Yeah?"
"I get why you're curious, but it's best not to talk too much about the young master."
"Huh?"
"Remember when Senior Aeria misspoke to him in the etiquette classroom? You saw how the master reacted."
"Oh, yeah..."
"I-I did too... The master was scary then..."
Harold was the type to radiate chilling aura at just one phrase like 'Ethan lied'—his love for his son was that intense.
Saying half-baked things like 'the young master's changed' or 'he's different now' could backfire if it reached his ears.
He'd definitely get serious and ask, 'So, what was Ethan like before?'
He was kindly for a noble, so maybe no severe punishment for a word or two, but no need to poke a 'sword master who can use body enhancement magic.'
"Oh, Isabel. Show me how to do this part. To connect the seam naturally here..."
"Here? Best to fill the gap with a crochet hook to finish. Like this..."
And so, spending ordinary maid days with Isabel and Katarina—another half year passed.
From the moment I regained my memories, a full year had now slipped by.