The Smiling Face
The Hollybell mansion was in disarray from the very start of the morning. A single rumor had begun circulating among the servants, who were supposed to treat silence as a virtue.
“I heard Kanel hasn’t come back since last night…”
“Maybe she snuck out and is just too scared to face the consequences?”
Andy leaned against the corridor wall, quietly listening to the gossip. Beside him, Cream was completely absorbed in something.
“She deserves a proper scolding when she gets back.”
“She’s been acting all high and mighty just because she served the lady a few times. She’s not even the head maid.”
“Ah, shh, someone’s coming.”
It seemed Kanel hadn’t only been cruel to the young lady. The younger maids, who were loose-lipped by nature, continued their morning cleaning while badmouthing her. They sounded almost excited about their troublesome senior’s downfall.
In contrast, their manager looked far from pleased. The head maid, her face etched with irritation, hurried through the mansion. Unlike the younger maids who could dismiss Kanel’s disappearance as a simple act of rebellion, she had to manage the entire staff. This was a headache she couldn’t ignore.
It had been a full day since Kanel vanished. The head maid was probably debating whether to call the guards. She wouldn’t want to cause a commotion in the mansion, but a missing person couldn’t be ignored either.
When her eyes met Andy’s, she looked as though she had something to say, but quickly turned away.
‘…Is she suspicious of me?’
It would be troublesome if she immediately suspected him just because he’d had a conflict with that maid. Of course, he had planned to do something. Nothing too dramatic—just take her somewhere quiet for a deep, personal conversation. Maybe get some dust on her clothes while he was at it. Knock a few teeth loose, too.
Though Andy was a commoner, he had been personally hired by the head of the household. If he wanted his life in the mansion to remain pleasant, he needed to teach her a lesson about proper conduct. He had already mapped out Kanel’s assigned areas and planned his route in advance. But now…
‘Damn it.’
Doing anything openly with so many eyes around would make even the head of the household’s name useless as cover. If he got fired because of this, everything would be over. If he had known it would turn out like this, he would have at least hit her once.
‘Why did she disappear in the first place?’
There had been no such suspicious incidents in the original novel. The story only turned into a revenge tale in the latter half, after Cream blackened. In the beginning, it was simply the tale of a noble young lady enduring loneliness and sorrow with quiet resilience. Intense education that could break a person, constant belittlement from her family, and the finger-pointing directed at an illegitimate child—there was no room for disappearances in all of that.
‘…It could just be a simple act of rebellion, not an actual disappearance.’
Just as the maids had said, she was an extremely eccentric woman. Maybe she had successfully tormented the young lady, gotten carried away, snuck out, and simply hadn’t returned.
“…”
Andy slowly brought his hand to his chin. His expression had unconsciously hardened as he rubbed it, and he glanced sideways.
“This arm… sixteen? Eighteen? Hmm… this arm sixteen!”
Cream sat on the staircase railing, diligently memorizing the multiplication table Andy had given her. Her small palms covered and uncovered the numbers repeatedly.
That dawn, the change in the girl’s stats kept coming back to him.
Wisdom: 67 → 68
Morality: 3 → 2
Stress: 75% → 20%
Having entered this world, Andy had naturally acquired the language. Thanks to that, Cream’s wisdom—which had never increased no matter how much language education he provided—had risen immediately that day. In contrast, her morality and stress had decreased. Especially the massive drop in stress.
How should he interpret this? Normally, her stress only ever increased by five to ten points each night.
“…”
“Teacher, Teacher!”
While lost in thought, he felt a tug on his clothes.
“I memorized the entire second table! Let’s go check on the field now!”
“The spinach field?”
“Yes! The field!”
The girl’s eyes sparkled as they met his. The light from the chandelier reflected in them like well-crafted glass marbles. Cream was a small child—far smaller than Andy, and even smaller than most twelve-year-olds. Comparing her to an adult man would be rude.
‘……She probably just had a dream about stealing hamburgers all night.’
Shaking off his worries, Andy stood up and took the lead. Before heading to the backyard, he stopped by the kitchen to grab a snack. He had brought her treats other than burgers before, so Cream recognized it immediately.
A round treat with an appealing hole in the center, dusted with sugar that released a sweet aroma.
“Donut…!”
“You memorized the multiplication table perfectly on your first day, so I’ll give you the snack first. Well done.”
“Ehehe… Thank you!”
Cream accepted the donut and opened her mouth wide. With her prominent canines, she took a large bite and chewed diligently, her cheeks bouncing up and down with each movement.
“Mmm… Nom nom… Phew.”
She finished the snack in an instant and headed straight for the spinach field. There, she crouched down, staring intently at something before picking up a twig and poking at it. It was a caterpillar. She lifted the twig with the caterpillar on it and wandered around excitedly.
“……”
Andy had been leisurely following behind Cream when he suddenly quickened his pace. Watching her play with the bug had sparked something in his mind.
“My lady! I have a quick question.”
“Yes? What is it?”
“What did you do with the ingredients you took yesterday?”
The hamburger ingredients topped with sand, twigs, and bugs. Yesterday, Cream had taken the results of Kanel’s childish harassment and left. Since she had greeted him normally this morning with a smile, he had forgotten to ask.
“Don’t tell me they’re still in your room? No, you buried them, right?”
“…Ah, those?”
“Just out of curiosity… You didn’t eat them, did you?”
“Those? Why would I? Hehe…”
Having lived in the back alleys, the child knew the value of food. When Andy asked just to be sure, Cream simply smiled innocently and caught the caterpillar again. She placed it at the end of the twig as it struggled to crawl up, then caught it again when it reached the top and returned it to the end.
He was blankly watching this when—
“—Excuse me, Teacher.”
A voice called out to Andy, someone other than Cream. Turning around, he saw a maid he had never met before standing there, looking both troubled and frightened.
“…What is it?”
“Do you have a moment right now?”
“I’m afraid the young lady’s lesson is in full swing.”
“Ah… I see…”
When she visibly deflated, Cream peeked out from behind Andy.
“Mm, it’s fine with me. What’s the matter?”
“Ah, my lady… Well, there’s something I’d like Teacher to take a look at…”
“Hmm… Alright! Teacher and I will go together.”
“Ah! Thank you, my lady…!”
Fortunately, the maid knew her manners and bowed politely. Cream smiled contentedly at the sight, while Andy pressed his lips together beside her. He decided to postpone questioning Cream and followed the maid back into the mansion.
“—Why are you trying to make this a bigger issue?”
“If someone has gone missing, shouldn’t we call the guards…!”
“It’s only been a day. There’s also the possibility this isn’t an incident but an unauthorized absence.”
Why were they arguing? Following the maid to the entrance, Andy found the old butler and head maid—faces he had seen around the mansion—locked in a heated argument.
“So you’re suggesting we just wait indefinitely?”
“If the guards come, the mansion will become chaotic. The head of the household isn’t even here right now, so escalating this would do no good. Let’s conduct a search within the mansion using the servants first.”
“What if something really happens while we’re doing that!”
The butler wanted to call the guards regarding the maid’s disappearance, while the head maid insisted they shouldn’t yet. Andy, who had been listening, discreetly covered Cream’s ears. This wasn’t good for her emotional state. The maid beside them fidgeted anxiously, glancing at him as if wondering why he was just standing there. It would be inappropriate for a mere maid to intervene in the argument between the butler and head maid, so she had brought the tutor, whose position seemed acceptable. However, managing the mansion was their job. As a tutor, it was awkward for him to get involved. He would step in without hesitation if it concerned Cream, but right now it had nothing to do with her—
“Ah, Teacher! You’re here at just the right time.”
“Yes?”
At the head maid’s call, the dozen or so servants present all turned to look at Andy.
“What do you think, Teacher?”
“About what…?”
“One of the maids has been missing since last night, and we’re discussing whether to call the guards. The missing person is the maid named Kanel, whom you also know. I’d like to hear the opinion of the person chosen by the head of the household.”
The butler interjected at that moment.
“Head Maid! I’ve heard this man has had conflicts with Kanel on two separate occasions!”
“And what does that matter? Are you implying Teacher can’t make an objective judgment?”
“I didn’t say that much!”
They had called him over only to start arguing among themselves again. Swallowing a sigh, Andy cleared his throat.
“Just a moment, both of you. Please calm down first.”
“Yes, Teacher.”
“What is it?”
The two looked at Andy with different expressions. The head maid showed trust, while the old butler looked doubtful. The butler managed the male servants like footmen and coachmen, while the head maid, as her title suggested, managed the female servants. The head maid had probably put Andy forward because she didn’t want to escalate the situation regarding Kanel’s disappearance. Since he had conflicts with Kanel, he would surely say not to call the guards. However, the answer that came from Andy’s mouth was different from what she expected.
“If I may offer my cautious opinion, I believe we should call the guards as soon as possible, even if it’s just a day earlier.”
“What?”
“Oh!”
“Honestly, I didn’t get along with Miss Kanel, but personal feelings and a disappearance are separate matters. We can’t just stand by and watch when someone has gone missing.”
The expressions of the two managers flipped. The butler looked as though he was seeing Andy in a new light, while the head maid looked betrayed. Andy didn’t care about either of their reactions or Kanel’s whereabouts. He was simply concerned that an incident had occurred in the mansion where the young lady resided. Even if it wasn’t confirmed that Kanel had been harmed by someone, it was still a possibility. After finishing his words, Andy glanced at Cream.
“…”
At that moment, their eyes met. She had apparently been watching him for a while, and she smiled with her eyes.
‘…What is that?’
Relief? Praise? Or mockery? What exactly was her intention?
“That’s right, Teacher! You’re absolutely correct. Well then, Head Maid, do you have anything else to say?”
“…”
On the other side, the old butler, who had instantly changed his stance, was now pressuring the head maid, who looked as though she had eaten dirt. And then—
“—Kanel has returned!”
Something completely unexpected happened. At a servant’s shout, everyone’s gazes instantly gathered in one direction, followed by gasps of surprise. A single maid was limping from the back door toward the main entrance. Her clothes were dirty, as if she had rolled around somewhere, her hair was disheveled, and her gait was unsteady. Yet she wore a bright, cheerful smile.
“Kanel!”
Those who had some acquaintance with her, along with the old butler and head maid, rushed forward.
“What on earth happened? Where have you been all this time?”
“Oh my. You all came out because of me. I’m sorry for causing trouble—urk.”
Kanel suddenly covered her mouth, holding back nausea. A strange smell seemed to emanate from her.
“I’m sorry! My stomach doesn’t feel well.”
“Goodness, are you alright? Kanel, tell us quickly. What were you doing for the entire day?”
“I’m fine. Thank you for worrying so much, and I’m sorry again. Hohoho…”
“…Kanel?”
She was smiling. Despite her terrible state, she smiled. Her eyes were pleasantly curved, the corners of her mouth lifted to her cheeks, and the muscles in her face twitched. Even as everyone stared at her in bewilderment, her smile didn’t waver. It was completely different from her usual personality.
“Contrary to what you’re all worried about, nothing happened. I simply tripped while taking a nighttime walk alone in the forest and injured my leg. So… yes, I received divine punishment for my wrongdoing.”
“Wrongdoing? Divine punishment?”
“It’s sudden, but I’d like to confess here and now.”
“What are you suddenly saying?”
“I am the culprit behind the recent incident in the kitchen.”
The surroundings fell silent at the unexpected confession.
“I dirtied the ingredients the young lady was supposed to eat. I sprinkled sand on them, added bugs and twigs, and crushed them so they couldn’t be eaten. Urp. And when I was questioned, I pretended not to know and tried to shift the blame onto the young lady.”
It had been an incident that was glossed over due to lack of concrete evidence and its connection to Cream. Yet here she was, boldly confessing, leaving everyone speechless with their mouths agape.
“That’s why I received divine punishment. I’m sorry for causing trouble, everyone. As penance, I will return to my hometown, urk, I will return to my hometown.”
“Wait…! You disappear for a whole day and then come back saying this…! This is troublesome, Kanel! Explain in more detail!”
“No. It’s not troublesome. What I experienced is exactly what I just told you. Eup. Nothing strange happened. This is the right thing, the correct action.”
Even when the head maid pressed her in the butler’s place, she only smiled. Her disheveled hair, ruined clothes, and the way she spoke in detail despite her injured leg were strange, but there was nothing to point out. Aside from the occasional dry heaves, she appeared as calm as if she were reciting a menu.
“Head Maid, please fire me immediately.”
“That’s not something that can be done so suddenly—”
“I committed a wrongdoing, so I must be punished. I committed the sin of disregarding the young lady’s precious food. Therefore, I must leave. Urk. I will leave. Hehe, a bright face. Hohoho, the sound of air escaping. Twitching arms. A limping leg.
“…Kanel?”
“Please let me leave. Quickly. I need to be fired. Please fire me. Punish me. I was wrong. I’m sorry. Please let me leave. I beg you.”
Her eye smile deepened. She opened her mouth wide enough to show her teeth. The corners of her lips trembled as she endlessly pleaded to be fired in front of everyone. Even as the muscles in her face twitched, she didn’t stop speaking. That alien appearance made Andy suddenly recall a conversation he had once had with someone.
“I just… wish everyone could get along without fighting and smile happily. Without conflict… as if we’re all one.”
“I like smiling faces.”
Beside him, Cream was smiling faintly.