206. Mask (4)
206. Mask (4)
- 1 -
"Why was she placed in that position, and not us..."
"Isn't this going too far...?"
"Shh."
The maids' whispers brushed past my ears.
Though the conversation was held at a considerable distance, I could hear everything they exchanged, even the contents of the message magic they secretly shared.
- Even Lady Marianne was available...
- I heard the Head Lady-in-waiting of the Laienbach Family also desired the position.
- Yet a mere Court Countess's adopted daughter... and right after entering?
Contrary to their agitated whispers, their expressions remained serene.
The maids knew well how to hide their true feelings.
'Of course, this isn't simple jealousy.'
I shifted only my eyes to look around.
'Looking at it anew, there really are a lot of them.'
The Queen's Palace housed a great number of maids.
So many, it was curious they were stationed in a palace with so "little foot traffic."
To be clear, this was excluding the batchmates who entered with me this time.
The reason was that, while called maids, they functioned as middle managers overseeing the servants who managed this vast citadel.
If you counted every maid and attendant who resided in or commuted to the entire Demon King's castle, they could easily populate a small city.
'And these appeared to be the representatives.'
At the end of the corridor, deep indigo hair shone under the sunlight.
On the other side stood a woman with violet eyes as well.
And finally, the representative of yet another group.
Women standing at the head of their own clusters of maids.
Unlike the others, they didn't even bother with serene expressions.
'Three major factions. Small factions or groups... quite a few, just from what I've seen. With so many people, it's only natural.'
I ignored their sharp gazes and followed behind the Head Maid.
For a time, only the sound of the maids' skirts brushing the floor echoed through the corridor.
Even the distinctive click of their shoes was hushed, barely audible with their steps.
"This way."
The Head Maid paused for a moment, then pointed to the door at the end of the hall.
The palace corridor, built of black marble, created an atmosphere both eerie and beautiful, with crimson sunlight filtering through the windows and intersecting with the shadows.
The massive door at the end was undoubtedly the Demon Queen's office.
"Her Highness is currently attending to state affairs. Our task is..."
Before the Head Maid could even finish her sentence, someone approached us.
"Head Maid. This is akin to leaving well-bloomed roses in a garden, only to forcibly nurture a new flower in its center."
The maid, who seemed to have spent a very long time in this citadel, wore a well-tailored suit that fit her like a second skin.
Beside her stood a woman with red hair and green eyes.
A collateral descendant of the Jealous Duke, my batchmate.
'Was her name Camilla?'
Her eyes glinted with cunning.
The moment I saw that look, I understood who was behind this scene.
"Do you grasp the meaning of your own words?"
The Head Maid's voice rang out, cold.
"To dare debate a finalized decision in front of Her Highness's office. Have you forgotten your etiquette, Senior Maid?"
The Senior Maid flushed for a moment.
She was clearly embarrassed, but her gaze remained sharp.
"I apologize, but to hand over a position at Her Highness's side to a sprout on which the dew hasn't even dried. Furthermore, not a duke's, nor even a Court Countess's legitimate daughter, but an adopted daughter, as a direct attendant lady-in-waiting...!"
"Are you now assigning ranks to great bloodlines, Senior Maid?"
At the Head Maid's stiff tone, she shut her mouth.
But I could still see jealousy and anger smoldering in her eyes.
I simply watched the scene quietly.
It was natural that those who had vied for the direct attendant position would erupt with complaints.
But revealing emotions like this...
'Was an act that could backfire. In the end, that woman must have spurred her on. ...Or she used another trick.'
The green-eyed fledgling maid met my eyes briefly before hastily looking down.
A glance that flitted around, observing the Head Maid, the Senior Maid, and me.
It was the gaze of a schemer. So clumsy as to be almost cute.
'How clumsy.'
Perhaps my immediate appointment as a direct attendant was the Demon Queen's will to investigate me thoroughly.
But if her goal was simply to look into me, it could have been achieved by assigning me other tasks, watching me, and summoning me secretly.
'The top. The bottom. Both clumsy.'
There was no other way to describe it but as the mistakes of women not yet politically mature.
"And to bring a probationary maid to such a discussion. Did you take me for a fool, Senior Maid? She will work under me. This is final."
"But...!"
"That is enough. Return to your duties."
What was impressive was that the Head Maid, while suspicious of me, was not hostile.
She cast several glances my way, filled with curiosity and expectation.
This was, rather, a facet that showed just how weak Stella's faction was.
'To the point where she needs to win over a maid who has just arrived.'
When you lack people, even selecting the right person for a task becomes laborious.
It was a situation I had painfully experienced myself in the past.
Thus, I knew all too well how difficult it was to find a trustworthy person.
And, accordingly, I knew exactly what I needed to do to catch her eye.
"Hoo. Follow me."
After fending off several more maids who came by, the Head Maid guided me to the waiting room in front of the Demon Queen's office.
"This is the space where you will primarily be from now on."
The room was decorated in purple velvet. Unlike the eerie corridor outside, it was a lived-in and warm space.
"Her Highness conducts state affairs and receives guests in the room beyond this door every day. You will attend to Her Highness here. You'll start with errands, but..."
The Head Maid's gaze swept over me.
"Please, become someone we can trust."
The words carried multiple meanings.
First, naturally, that she did not yet trust me.
But what was more important were the second and third meanings.
'She's saying she wants to use me as someone she can trust.'
At the same time, it meant that even the maids guarding the Demon Queen were difficult to trust.
"Her Highness personally designated you. Please, do not disappoint her expectations."
What was contained in the gaze that surfaced over her expressionless face.
It was suspicion and expectation, anxiety and loyalty.
'She will want to test me.'
I didn't like the situation itself, but I still found one thing to like.
I greatly appreciated the Head Maid's heart, so full of concern for her mistress's safety.
"I am merely..."
"I know. This is undoubtedly Her Highness's grace. But..."
Cutting me off, the Head Maid gave a bitter smile.
"...The flowers that grow in this palace are beautiful, but their thorns are sharp. Please, be careful."
"Thank you for your concern."
In the end, it was no different from saying to be wary of all the maids.
I answered with a smile. Soon after.
- Head Maid.
"Yes, Your Highness. I am here."
As soon as the Demon Queen's voice was heard, she led me into the office.
- 2 -
The door crafted from black marble swung open.
The moment the door opened, a certain fragrance brushed my nose.
The warm scent of wood and the soft aroma of vanilla. It created the atmosphere of stepping into an old library.
Indeed, books neatly lined the shelves covering the walls, and various succulents grew beneath them.
Sarak-sarak...
Between the two large windows, seated before her desk, the Demon Queen was attending to official duties.
Under the sunlight streaming through the windows and the lamps illuminating the room, her black hair cast a shadow.
The direct attendant maids were engrossed in their respective tasks.
One was taking organized documents outside, another was sorting out tasks to distribute to other maids, and yet another was placing tea at the Demon Queen's side.
'They were in the middle of work.'
I quietly entered with the Head Maid.
As if noticing our presence, the Demon Queen raised her head.
"You've come."
Her voice echoed through the room filled with books and flowers.
"Come this way, both of you."
Hearing that voice, I felt a slight surprise.
Her voice was still slow and quiet. But within it lay a solid coldness.
Not complacency, but will.
'She's changed. Significantly.'
In just a few days, she had become a different person.
'Was the incident in the garden that shocking?'
But it was questionable to conclude just that.
Hadn't both the nobles on Semira's side and the maids on Stella's side accepted what happened between Semira and Stella without great surprise?
That meant there was a background that made such situations seem natural.
And she herself would not have been an exception.
'What on earth changed her?'
I wondered if the other maids had already noticed this change in her, and if they had reported this transformation to their masters.
It was a curiosity to set aside for now.
"Your Highness. This is Miss Joanna Isteria, who will attend you from today. Miss Joanna. Offer your greetings."
Following the Head Maid's introduction, I stepped forward and bowed.
"It is a great honor to serve you, Your Highness. Probationary maid, Joanna Isteria."
I felt the sharp eyes of the surrounding direct attendant maids piercing me.
From their perspective, the sudden arrival of a probationary maid would be unreliable, naturally, and even suspicious.
At the same time, there would also be calculations about whether they could draw this new maid into their faction to increase their power.
Of course, I paid no mind to such gazes whatsoever.
"I look forward to working with you, Miss Joanna."
The owner of the most intense gaze I had been mindful of, however, spoke calmly, contrary to the strength of will in her eyes, and then lowered her head back toward the desk.
The halted quill began to move again.
"I will begin my duties immediately, Your Highness."
"Do so."
"This way, Miss Joanna."
The Head Maid led me.
Her footsteps guided me back out the door. At the end of those steps, there were women looking this way with curious eyes.
"These are the servants who assist us with our duties, Miss Joanna."
If the women had a commonality, it was that they wore black-and-white maid uniforms and that there was a relatively high proportion of them who were married.
And they were all, without exception, beautiful.
Those who attended the Demon Queen at her side would not have had their beauty selected carelessly.
"Everyone, say hello. This is Probationary Maid Joanna Isteria, the newly appointed direct attendant lady-in-waiting."
"I look forward to working with you."
"Hello."
The servant women offered greetings in their own voices, but quietly.
The first task I began with these women was preparing the breakfast to be served to the Demon Queen in her office.
'As expected, they wouldn't let me handle the documents already.'
I would have been rather disappointed if they had.
It would have meant they weren't even properly assessing credibility before a test.
"Since it is somewhat late now, we will prepare a snack. Usually, we rise much earlier than this and prepare sweet or sour foods to help one wake up. Please remember this."
"Yes, Head Maid."
Memorizing the Head Maid's instructions, I prepared the food with the servants.
To be precise, the servants did the preparation while the maids supervised the process and conducted the food and drink tasting, but...
"...Head Maid."
I sensed a familiar energy among the food.
An energy I had felt when watching Echidna's experiments in the dungeon.
She, who had been busy with the food preparation, turned to look at me with a question in her eyes.
It was because she felt the sign of me erecting a mana barrier around us.
"What is the matter?"
"Would you try tasting this food?"
"...?"
The Head Maid put the cheesecake I offered into her mouth and quietly rolled her eyes, silently posing her question to me.
She showed no sign of sensing anything abnormal.
It was only natural. It was an anomaly so subtle it would normally be difficult to detect.
"I sense a sourness that shouldn't be coming from the food."
"Now that you mention it, it does seem so... Don't tell me the ingredients have gone bad?"
I shook my head.
Of course, the food being served to the Demon Queen going bad was a tremendously serious matter, so her expression was already grave, but...
This was far graver than that.
"It is poison."
"...!"
The Head Maid flinched in surprise and spat the food out of her mouth.
"What in the world do you mean...!"
The moment the Head Maid reacted, my gaze immediately turned to the servants.
Most of them maintained serene expressions, but I felt the mana presence of some become disturbed.
The change in them visible the moment the two maids suddenly began a secret conversation.
I meticulously memorized every detail.
'Got a good opportunity on the very first day.'
It was likely an incident that had been occurring for a long time. But an incident that had gone unnoticed by everyone's eyes.
I easily suppressed the smile that tried to creep onto my lips.
It was not yet time to laugh.