Chapter 3
Chapter 3
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 3
Chapter Title: First, Let's Win Over the Maids (1)
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I faced my grandmother with a pounding heart.
“You. Sien, was it?”
“Yes!”
“I am the Duchess Lukella, once the ruler of the Apex Magic Tower. I’m not someone to be called out to on a whim just because I’m your grandmother.”
No one is unaware of the title ‘ruler of the Apex Magic Tower.’
In her youth, while training at the Apex Magic Tower, she killed the other mages and seized control of it.
Among the twelve ranks of mages, she had even reached the lofty fourth rank of ‘Anyrac.’
With not a single Grand Archmage of first rank in existence right now, it was an incredibly high position.
…Though for some reason, she didn’t seem to be using magic these days.
The Duchess Lukella had drawn a clear line.
What a shame. I thought she liked cute little kids.
My charms must not have worked on her.
Time to take a step back, then. Just lightening the mood a bit could already be considered a success.
I nodded.
“Yeees….”
A tactical retreat for now, but this isn’t the end, Grandma!
My grandmother stared at me quietly before slowly lifting the corner of her mouth and speaking.
“You put on quite the clumsy act.”
Not content with just drawing the line…
…she even had to tease me.
I tapped my pouting lower lip with my finger and turned my body.
“I’m sowwy….”
My cuteness had always been invincible before.
Maybe it was different because she was the villainous duchess. An iron fortress of a woman.
Still, I had no intention of giving up after one failure.
I lifted my head high and looked at my grandmother again.
Her eyes curved like half-moons for a moment before snapping back to their usual icy glare.
“It’s been a while since I’ve seen a child who looks me properly in the eye.”
“Mind your words, Mother. And Sien.”
It was Dad who broke the tension.
“Hm?”
Dad, who had already risen to his feet, scooped me up effortlessly and spoke firmly to the Duchess Lukella, as if marking his territory with wary vigilance.
“I’ll take Sien to the maids.”
“Do so.”
I mustered my last bit of strength and murmured softly toward my grandmother.
“Daaad. Gwanny, stay hewe.”
The Duchess Lukella tilted her head slightly.
It was odd.
I didn’t know the Duchess Lukella all that well.
But I had assumed that if some sudden accident occurred mid-conversation, she’d snap coldly…
Surprisingly, she said nothing.
In the heavy silence, I was led by Dad’s hand out the door.
‘Operation Win Over Grandma failed, but hey, nothing ever succeeds on the first try. Alright then!’
I’ll protect my dad! I clenched my cotton-candy fist tight and glared at the maids approaching from afar, carrying something.
Good. Come at me, any of you. No matter how strong you are, you won’t be allowed to bully my dad!
Not on my watch!
***
When Sien was led away by the maids, the Duchess Lukella and her firstborn son, Young Lord Mathias, sat facing each other once more across the large table.
A cold, bloodless silence hung between them.
Feigning composure, she opened her mouth.
“Sien, huh. She’s grown quite a bit. I remember her as a newborn.”
Round eyes brimming with light, plump cheeks like they hid honey inside, tiny lips like pale pink petals.
She had definitely grown up cute—and she even resembled ‘that woman.’
Perhaps that was why the usually indifferent Mathias doted on her so much.
“Don’t take an interest in Sien.”
The duchess let out a hollow laugh as she regarded her suddenly hostile son.
All children feared her. So a child calling her ‘grandma’ felt novel.
But that was all.
‘Even an innocent child will lose their purity once they enter this ducal house.’
In the duke’s house, where the weak were devoured by the strong, fragile young things withered away easily.
More importantly, she had something else to say.
“You’ve been awfully impertinent for a while now.”
“You know this is just how I am.”
The Duchess Lukella gave her son Mathias a wry smile.
Of course she did.
He was a man who had hidden quietly for five years, building his strength to protect his child.
Young Lord Mathias, who had been completely ousted from the succession and barely clawed his way back. Everyone predicted his defeat.
A man with no proper faction, no wings to rise upon.
But the Duchess Lukella judged him differently.
Having already lost everything, Mathias was more dangerous—and because he had his most precious treasure, he could be more ruthless than anyone.
“I suppose so.”
Now it was time to discuss the main issue.
“The trial for the Guodo demon incident has been ruled invalid, so resume your successor training, which was halted.”
“Yes.”
“It’s different from five years ago. Back then, you were the sole heir, but now all the adult blood relatives are eyeing the position.”
“I know.”
“Don’t forget there are many forces inside and outside the family opposing you. Think of the demonic escapades you pulled.”
Having finished speaking, the Duchess Lukella quietly observed her son.
Mathias’s face was as cold and menacing as perennial snow. A far cry from how he had tenderly held his daughter Sien just moments ago. Propping her chin, she silently studied him.
At that moment, Mathias muttered expressionlessly.
“If I thought I’d lose to someone, I wouldn’t have come back.”
“Even though the council of elders, the blood council, and the Magic Tower all despise you?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Your daughter could get hurt.”
“I’ll never allow that.”
He stated it matter-of-factly, but a chill laced his voice.
“Whether that’s bravado or recklessness, time will tell.”
“Neither.”
He stared straight at the duchess.
“It’s conviction that I can protect Sien.”
“…….”
Meeting his icy gaze, the Duchess Lukella realized it.
Her son had grown even tougher than five years ago.
“Very well. Proceed with the successor training.”
“Permission granted. You and your daughter will reside in the spire of the northern keep. It was the request of the council of elders and blood council. Is that acceptable?”
“The spire… It doesn’t matter.”
The duke’s direct blood relatives lived in the central mansion.
The spire of the northern keep was a remote place. It was close to the central mansion where the blood relatives stayed, but its status was worlds apart.
Yet he nodded with an indifferent expression.
“Then go.”
Recalling Sien’s innocent face and voice, the Duchess Lukella’s heart softened just a touch as she quietly spoke.
“Make sure to wash that pure little honey jar thoroughly before educating her.”
With nothing particularly personal to say to her son after so long, she tilted her head.
***
I, who had lost my innocence long ago, stared at the maids who had come to attend me in horrified terror.
‘M-Maids? Not knights?’
In typical medieval romance fantasy novels, maids wore flowing maid outfits like delicate dragonfly wings.
But this was the villainous ducal house!
As if to shatter my pathetic prejudices, the two maids towered over 180 cm, their bodies bulging with muscle all over. They looked strong enough to erase a little baby like me in an instant.
Their forearms were even thicker than that actor ‘Ma Dong-seok’ I knew from my past life, covered in bizarre tattoos and henna-like markings.
I didn’t even want to know about the rest of their physique.
‘Scary!’
These people were definitely no ordinary maids.
But I couldn’t show fear here. I held my head high and brazenly addressed them.
“Hello, my maids.”
“Yes, we greet Lady Sien.”
They replied curtly.
If I backed down here, it’d make Dad look weak too! As the sole knight protecting Dad, I spoke with dignity.
“I am Sien. Pleased to meet you, my esteemed maids.”
I absolutely won’t flinch.
For my pure dad, I could even do bad things to intimidate the maids.
With my chin thrust up sternly and rigidly to exude dignity, I heard their curt response.
“Understood. We’ll escort you to the spire.”
“The spire?”
“Yes. You’ll be residing in the northern spire.”
I tapped my round forehead, plunging into the biggest dilemma of my five-year-old life so far.
‘The situation is the worst.’
The northern spire.
It was a barren tower inside the ducal estate, rife with grim rumors of criminals being hanged there in the past. It was infamous as a lodging for collateral blood relatives lowest in the succession line when they visited the mansion.
And yet, my dad— the duke’s legitimate firstborn son—was being sent to the northern spire.
‘The northern spire? They really mean to kill me and Dad. Is that why they brought us?’
Oh no.
I had to turn this situation around no matter what.
My pure dad surely knew nothing about it. So I had to coax these maids and pry every bit of information out of them!
‘How do I win over the spire maids to get the info I want?’
I let out a long sigh and decided to follow them for now.
Of course, it wasn’t just blindly following. My head was buzzing with various pieces of info.
‘The northern spire maids are characterized as simple-minded and brutish. Lives solely dedicated to muscle. That’s why they’re ostracized even within the ducal house!’
So I had to exploit their tendencies and sweet-talk them. I pondered how to charm these simple, brutish, muscle-bound maids.
“Shall we go, Lady Sien?”
For now, I replied with dignity.
“Yes. Wet’s go.”
“Understood.”
As I hurried after the maids, I racked my brains.
But in the novel, [Melodia’s Life]…
There was no mention anywhere of how to deal with the villainous ducal house’s muscle maids.
‘How do I win them over? What do I do?’
While I was deep in thought, we had already arrived at the pointed northern spire.
Seeing the spire wrapped in thorns made my heart prickle with fear. The cold wind blowing made my whole body shiver.
“This is the place. Beautiful, isn’t it?”
…Beautiful how?
One of the maids opened the door at the base of the spire with her muscle-packed arm and curtly began guiding me.
“Please change clothes and bathe, then we’ll briefly explain tomorrow’s training with the young lords.”
I replied, stretching out my words all plump like my cheeks.
“Okaaaay.”
Naturally, my mind was furiously churning inside.
‘Young lords? Who? In the villainous ducal house, Crawford? Or Killian?’
As I seriously pondered which young lords I’d encounter, I dazedly stared at their arms guiding me into a large room.
I wanted to ask about the northern spire and get info on the villainous young lords I’d meet tomorrow. It was awkward since we weren’t close, though.
‘Ah, wait.’
In that moment, lifting my gaze, I noticed a faint white powder on the edges of their wrists. Sniffing, a familiar scent reached my nose.
‘Resin powder…!’
I giggled.
Until my front cheeks puffed up like round balls.
Somehow, I felt like I’d found a way to make them my allies.