Chapter 61
The Count's Secret Maid - Chapter 61
Translation: godsn
"What happened?"
"I was so shocked! On my way home, this elderly man suddenly approached me and out of nowhere told me to become his concubine! Said he'd had his eye on me for a long time or something. Kept calling me pretty while stroking my shoulder—it gave me goosebumps. Even when I refused, he persistently followed me. I had to struggle just to shake him off!"
Alicia made a disgusted face. If her expression was anything to go by, the man must have been truly bizarre. No wonder she hadn't returned even though it was well past time to finish work at the barn.
As Alicia irritably pushed back her disheveled hair, she suddenly let out a deep sigh.
"How did I end up like this...?"
Her slumped shoulders and gloomy demeanor were pitiful to see. But knowing the full story, I couldn't muster much sympathy.
"If I'd known this would happen, I should've at least secured the lord's son."
"Then why didn't you?"
"Who would've thought he'd get married behind my back!"
Alicia often talked about things that happened when I wasn't around. One such story was about the lord's son. He used to follow her around like a lovesick puppy, declaring she was the only one for him—until one day he suddenly got married. To his beautiful fiancée, no less.
In the end, all her playing hard-to-get had backfired spectacularly.
"After all that 'I only love you,' 'you' re the only one for me' nonsense. That bastard!"
"You never gave him a proper answer—that's why."
"That's how it's supposed to work! You have to play hard to get or you lose your charm!"
"You just weren't interested."
"Well, there was that too. Honestly, that chubby face of his wasn't exactly appealing, was it?"
Alicia shook her head, but I didn't think he was that bad. He was a bit plump, sure, but it gave him a cute charm—especially when he got all flustered over Alicia. Having been pampered since childhood, he was admittedly clueless about the world, but you could also see it as endearing innocence. And considering the inheritance he stood to gain, he was out of Alicia's league.
"I was planning to settle for him if things got desperate. Who'd have thought he'd abandon me and get married...?"
"You brought this on yourself."
"Hmph!"
Alicia snorted, refusing to admit any fault until the very end. Her already upturned nose seemed to rise even higher. Even when people gave her advice, she was like this. Her shamelessness made me mirror her earlier disgusted expression.
"Stop with the nonsense and focus on working hard. That'll get you results faster."
"You go live your pathetic little life. I could never stoop so low."
Not a single concession, as always.
"By the way... have you noticed anything strange lately?"
"Strange? Like what?"
"Just... well, like what just happened—some man approaching you with a job offer or something."
I deliberately kept my question vague, thinking again of the two dark-clad men. Given how they'd offered me work based on appearance alone, they might have approached Alicia too.
But after a moment's thought, Alicia shook her head.
"Not really? I've had my share of creepy guys, but nothing like that. Why? What's going on? Did someone offer you a job?"
"No, never mind then."
"Why? What is it? What's going on?"
"It's nothing. Let's sleep. We have work tomorrow."
"Tell me! What is it?"
Unable to resist her curiosity, Alicia began pestering me. But long accustomed to this behavior, I turned away indifferently. An irritated shout echoed behind me, but I paid it no mind. If nothing had happened, there was no need for Alicia to know.
"Actually, that guy was asking about you."
"Who?"
"You know that place I sometimes go to shovel coal? The guy who works there with me."
"Oh, that short, ugly guy?"
Alicia immediately remembered Johnny. There had been one time when work ran late, and Alicia came looking for me. Johnny, who was working with me that day, took one look at Alicia and fell head over heels, pestering me ever since to introduce them.
When I nodded, Alicia tossed her long hair over her shoulder with an irritated expression. She crossed her legs, tilted her head back, and her posture became haughty.
Still, she seemed pleased that someone had been asking about her.
"What did he want to know?"
"He asked me to find out what you think of him."
"Hmph. At least he's got some taste."
"So? Should I tell him you're interested?"
"Are you insane? What possible reason would I have to be with some filthy lowlife like that?"
It was the answer I'd expected. I wasn't surprised at all—I'd known that's what she'd say. I replied that I got it and turned to wash up, completely ignoring the grumbling behind me.
If only things could stay like this. If only this peace could last.
But when has life ever gone the way I wanted?
The peace didn't last long.
It happened a few days later. I was on my usual way home when I saw Alicia running toward me from a distance. Her face was flushed with excitement as she got closer. Smiling brightly—a rare sight—she grabbed both my arms.
"Sister!"
"What? What is it? Why all of a sudden—"
Alicia calling me "Sister" was an extremely rare occurrence. As I stood there bewildered, she blurted out excitedly:
"I'm going to be a maid in a Count's household!"
"What?"
What on earth was she talking about? I blinked in shock as Alicia happily laughed and hugged me. She rubbed her face against mine, even bouncing on her feet, expressing her joy with her whole body. My mind went blank—I couldn't comprehend a single word she was saying.
I quickly pushed her away.
"What are you even saying? A maid?"
"Some people were looking for maids to serve in a noble household. At first I was suspicious, but after hearing them out, it's nothing shady, and the conditions are really good, so I decided to go!"
"......"
"Come with me, Sister!"
Alicia grabbed both my hands.
"This is an opportunity, a real opportunity! A chance to leave behind this dirty, impoverished life and start fresh! We can even properly seduce some noble's son and turn our lives around!"
Looking at her radiant face, my mind went blank again. Then I snapped out of it. I mentally sorted through everything Alicia had said so far. But the more I pieced it together, the more dread rose in my chest.
I swallowed dryly and held down Alicia, who kept bouncing around.
"Wait, hold on. What do you mean'some people'? Were they two men dressed in black?"
"Huh? You know them too?"
Her response made my expression instantly harden.
"No."
"What?"
"No. Absolutely not."
I shook my head. I emphasized "absolutely not" several times. The smile faded from Alicia's face, her eyes turning fierce. Even with that change, my stance remained firm.
"Why the hell not?!"
"It's dangerous. How can you trust those people? Are you out of your mind?"
"Don't worry. I checked—their status is legitimate. It's not dangerous work. They really are hiring maids. Remember that woman who used to shovel manure with us at the stables? The one who suddenly quit? She went there too. I made sure it was safe before saying anything."
"I don't care. It's still a no. Don't even dream about it."
I shook my head again. Even if it really was as safe as Alicia claimed, I couldn't dismiss my suspicions. No—since when did upper-class households recruit maids from random places like this? What kind of trouble could this bring? That alone made no sense to me. And even if their status was verified, it could still be dangerous. Who knew what might happen if she went with them?
"No. I'm going."
Yet Alicia refused to back down.
"Absolutely not."
"Who are you to tell me what to do?"
"I already told you why I came back."
"You said you fled after offending the noble you served, didn't you? That you barely escaped with your life and ended up being hunted? That you couldn't settle anywhere afterward, terrified their family might track you down."
"Yeah. That was a Count's household too."
Alicia pressed her lips tightly together. She understood the implication. I sighed, then spoke calmly—coldly.
"Turn them down and come back. No, don't even go. Just ignore—"
"I don't want to live like this anymore!"
The sudden, explosive shout made me flinch. Alicia's face flushed crimson as she screamed.
"My nails are all broken, my hair's a mess! My whole body's covered in wounds! My feet are so swollen I can barely walk! I can't take it anymore! I'd rather risk danger going there than keep groveling and scraping by like this!"
"Alicia!"
"Why should I adjust to your circumstances? Just because you went through something doesn't mean I have to! There's no reason I can't go!"
"......"
She was right. So painfully right that I had no retort. Her blazing red eyes bore into me, venom swirling in their depths.
"I refuse to live like you. Even if it kills me, I won't. It's pathetic. Disgusting. Makes me sick."
The words, spat from her twisted lips, stabbed like sharpened daggers. Harsh words always pour out without courtesy. What does someone like me matter? The only reason they don't wound me deeply is because I'm used to seeing Alicia like this.
"I don't care about your situation. Stay here and keep rotting in your misery. I'm going. And I'll live a proper life there."
Having said her piece, she clamped her mouth shut stubbornly. Her stance made it clear she wouldn't yield this time. I knew better than anyone—once she dug her heels in, no one could stop her.
After locking eyes with her sharp glare, I let out a deep sigh.
Alicia and I weren't ordinary siblings. Among my younger siblings, she was the most insufferable, the least affectionate. And Alicia was ashamed of me. Too ugly to acknowledge in public. I, too, had learned it was easier to pretend not to know her after endless comparisons.
We grew up in the sharpest of relationships, bound only by each other. Truthfully, we could've parted ways long ago to live our own lives.
In a way, this moment might be my chance to cut loose the shackles weighing me down and finally reclaim my life.
"I..."
I could abandon it all now.
"I..."
But another part of me couldn't bring myself to send Alicia off alone. She was my sister. My only blood relative. The sole proof I ever existed. Without Alicia, I might as well vanish too. There'd be no one left to spit on my grave after I died.
It wasn't familial love. Maybe this was just my own selfish struggle. And that—was an unspeakable wretchedness.