Become Delicious~
"Where the hell are you..."
Leona's voice cracked. In her blood- and dirt-caked hands, the silver orb glowed faintly.
She'd tracked down the thugs tangled up with Valen. Nothing. Ransacked those harboring grudges against her. Nothing. No matter how much blood she spilled or names she wrung out, it all ended empty.
Leona's fingers dug into the orb like claws.
"Ria..."
"Ria."
"Yes!"
Ria snapped her head up reflexively. Water sloshed in the buckets gripped in both hands. Her maid apron was caked with dust, gray streaks mottling her skirt hem. Her face was probably no better—she'd been wiping her forehead with the back of her hand every few minutes.
"All done cleaning?"
The voice was soft. Ria looked up to see a woman with long silver hair cascading over one shoulder gazing down at her.
Her eyes curved gently, a smile playing at her lips. She looked barely into her early twenties, a beauty. But oddly, her face held a languid poise rare in someone so young.
"Yes. All done."
Ria set down the buckets as she answered. The woman chuckled softly.
"Is that so?"
She gestured lightly.
"Then come take a look here."
Ria tilted her head and stepped closer. The woman pointed to the window frame. A quick swipe of her fingertip came away with untouched gray dust.
"...Oh."
She'd thought it was finished. But some lingered. Ria gave an awkward smile, and the woman let out a small laugh.
"Come here."
"Huh?"
"You need to be punished."
Punished.
Ria's shoulders tensed for a split second. But the woman pulled the approaching Ria deep into her embrace.
"...Huh?"
A soft, warm sensation enveloped her face. Her breath caught. They were too close. A faint fragrance brushed her nose, loose silver strands grazing her cheek. Ria's face flushed crimson at the gentle touch.
"What am I going to do with you, walking around covered in dust like this."
The woman's hand carefully stroked Ria's silver hair.
Once. Again.
Ria froze stiffly in her arms. After a long moment cradled there, her face about to burst, she whispered softly.
"Um, ma'am. I need to get back to work..."
"Just a little longer."
Her voice dipped low. Ria blinked.
The woman didn't let go. If anything, she pulled Ria deeper, burying her face into Ria's hair.
"Just a little more."
Unlike her leisurely smile moments ago, her voice was tiny, damp with moisture, trembling faintly.
Ria's awkwardly hovering hands paused, unsure. Should I push away? No, she's the lady of the house. After a brief hesitation, Ria gingerly lowered her hands to pat the woman's back.
Tap. Tap.
The arms around Ria's back loosened ever so slightly, as if in relief. At a loss, Ria stayed still in the embrace.
Then it hit her. How the hell did I end up getting treated like this in someone else's mansion? Even straining her memory, the events of a few days ago fragmented like a nightmare.
The second self-destruct hadn't made the pain any less familiar. When she opened her eyes, agony crashed over her first. The scorching heat of the explosion. The insides flipping. Breath choking, mind burning white—those final moments.
Real talk, this time it's really over. No more self-destructs, ever. She crawled to the nearest inn, handed over her adventurer's tag as collateral, and begged a room on credit. Auntie Marie clicked her tongue like Ria was a con artist, but Ria lacked even the strength to argue. Only after days of feverish delirium could she finally open the door. And there stood Auntie Marie, arms crossed.
"So. When are you paying up?"
Ria gave a sheepish grin and mumbled something about soon, but got only icy interrogation in return. But she wasn't out of options entirely. Find Leona. With the Tears of Serene taken to her family, she'd be there. Meeting her would sort everything. They'd been close, after all. Rough start, but they'd stuck together long enough to complete the mission. Good memories for Ria. That heartfelt farewell at the end—surely not just her imagination.
"Just head to the Belkairn family manor."
"Belkairn family?"
"Yeah. I know someone there."
Auntie Marie's eyes narrowed. "You? Know someone in noble circles?"
A bit hurt by the blatant doubt, but no time to quibble. "Not just know. We're really close."
Ria shrugged with feigned nonchalance. "Super special, even."
BAM! The Belkairn family gates slammed shut.
"Scram."
"...Huh?"
Auntie Marie silently scanned the surroundings, her gaze flicking to the guards in the distance.
"W-wait! Bounty! I've got guild payout coming!"
She rushed to the guild, but things didn't improve. The bounty was real, sure. But claiming it? Different story.
"Submitter's listed as Leona. Can't pay out without the lead."
Ria blinked blankly. "But we're party members."
"True, but..."
"We're registered together, even."
"Still can't let one person claim it. Too many fights over splits."
"Even for party members?"
"Yup."
This is my money. Ria had lost an arm, taken sword blows, even snagged the Black Magician's proof. Indignation surged at the receptionist's firm tone, but no recourse.
"So if Leona comes with me?"
"I'll go find her right—"
"Hold up."
As Ria turned, the receptionist grabbed her arm urgently.
"Don't wander alone right now."
"Huh?"
The receptionist's face hardened slightly. "Adventurer disappearances are spiking. Weirdly so."
"Disappearances?"
"Nearly five times the usual. Talk of someone targeting adventurers specifically."
Just adventurers? Leona's one too, but... no way she'd go down easy. If anything, she'd handle those creeps. Who was worrying whom? Ria could barely sort her own mess.
With bounty and search stalled, she grasped at straws: any jobs? The receptionist rummaged papers, then paused.
"Not official, but there's one."
"There is?"
Ria's ears perked.
"Estella Countess Manor urgently needs a maid."
Estella Countess Manor. The name made the back of her hand throb briefly. Ria glanced down unthinkingly. The red scar still staining her skin—from that shard in the Black Magician's Tower. She'd almost forgotten. But hearing "Estella Countess Manor" brought the ache surging back.
"After the young miss fell ill, the manor's short-staffed."
"Not guild-posted, but mention you're from the Black Magician bounty party—they'll consider it favorably."
"I'll do it."
Debts to pay, bounty to claim, Leona waiting. Plus, Estella Countess Manor wasn't bad. Pay, room and board. Luckier still, maybe check on Elisiya. If they crossed paths, letting her know Ria lived might help.
Ria glanced at her hand again, clenching it. Actually, perfect. Probably.
Thus, maid at Estella Countess Manor confirmed, with part of first pay to inn tab. Before leaving guild, Ria left a short note for Leona: alive, meet later. She'd check guild, read it, come find her.
Light-hearted, Ria headed to Estella Countess Manor.
Led into a room bustling with maids, Ria felt the air shift.
"...This kid?"
Murmurs rippled through the room, drawing every eye to her. Fair enough. They had been told to expect a member of the Black Magician bounty party—they’d envisioned an armed mercenary or a robed mage, some battle-hardened adult who pulled their weight. Not a tiny, pale child with silver hair.
"Oh my." A young maid’s eyes widened. "She looks so young."
"Is she the new girl?"
"Can she even work?"
The room buzzed. Some eyed her hair with curious fascination, while others giggled behind their hands, casting glances at her face. One maid leaned in to pinch Ria’s cheek, only to be elbowed by a neighbor.
Ria stood with her hands clasped neatly, ignoring the stares. Money. Food. A bed. Just endure it.
"Enough gawking."
A low voice instantly quelled the room. The maids hushed, turning their attention to the door, where an older woman stood. Her hair was pinned impeccably, her attire flawless, and her expression set in stern lines. The head maid clicked her tongue, scanning Ria’s appearance.
"They said you were part of the bounty party—I assumed you’d at least be capable of managing your share."
Her gaze raked over Ria, from her pallid complexion to her loose apron and tiny, trembling hands. The head maid’s brow furrowed deeper.
"You’ll collapse before you even finish training, looking like th—"
The cold words died in her throat. The head maid’s eyes had fixed on something above Ria’s face. On the cascading, silver hair.
"..."
Ria straightened, offering a brisk, polite greeting to avoid trouble. "I'm Ria. I'll work hard."
No reply. The sharp eyes flickered briefly. Instead of a response, the head maid slowly raised a hand. Her fingers hovered near Ria’s hair, then withdrew as if burned.
"...Very well."
The prior sharpness was gone, replaced by a voice that was oddly kind, almost elevated. "Learn the basics first. Don't overdo it."
"Huh?" Ria blurted out reflexively. The head maid’s brow arched.
"Answer once."
"Yes!"
The head maid turned away. "No more staring. Show her the ropes."
Following that, Ria threw herself into the work. Hauling water. Sweeping halls. Wiping frames. More water. Was it cleaning, or was she self-destructing? Cleaning won out. But she realized then: cleaning could be just as lethal as a fight.
"Ria, I'll take that."
"No, it's fine."
"It doesn't look fine."
" Really, it is..."
Whenever she wobbled under the weight of her buckets, someone was always there to help. The younger maids mostly doted on her, viewing her as a cute kid struggling in a maid’s uniform.
But Ria wasn't here to be cute. She was here for the money—the debts, the bounty, and the hope of finding Leona. And perhaps, a flicker of curiosity regarding Elisiya Estella.
But the young mistress’s hall? Off-limits. "She's very ill," was all anyone would say.
Ria had no time to pry—mops and buckets came first. There were no illusions of an easy meeting.
"And stay out of the lady's room. Absolutely." A senior maid whispered low. "She’s been extra sensitive lately."
"The lady?"
"Yeah. Better not catch her eye."
Elisiya’s area was forbidden. The lady’s room was forbidden. The manor was smaller than she’d imagined.
Fine. Avoid them. Clean. Earn. Wait for Leona at the guild. It was simple.
The problem, of course, was that plans rarely survived reality.
Days later, the morning was unusually hectic. Maids rushed about, and the head maid was sterner than ever. What happened? No one would answer. Then, a senior called out.
"Ria."
"Yes!"
"Take this to the east-wing end room." She pressed a basket of white cloths into Ria’s hands.
"East end?"
"Yeah. Just put it on the inner table and get out quick. I’m swamped."
She vanished. A simple errand. Or so it seemed. Except the manor’s layout was still a fuzzy blur to Ria.
She set off. It was fine at first—people passed, voices echoed. But as she went deeper, the traces of life faded, and her footsteps began to echo hollowly.
"...Huh."
Was this the right way? East, yeah. But it was eerily empty. Should she backtrack? Then, she saw a door slightly ajar.
"Excuse me."
No answer. The room was unnaturally quiet. Ria stepped inside.
Neat stacks of papers. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. A plush chair by the window. A silver crest ornament glinting on the desk.
Realization hit her like a blow. Wrong room.
Then, a low voice spoke from behind her. "Who let you in?"
It was cold, quiet. The warnings she’d been given flashed in her mind, too late. Never go near the lady's room.
Ria froze, the basket held tight in her hands. Oh. I'm screwed.
"I said no one was allowed in my room."
The voice drew nearer. The approaching footsteps made a hitch catch in Ria’s throat.
"S-sorry! I was just told to drop this at the east end..."
Her words failed her. Her gaze caught the silver hair swaying at the edge of her vision as the lady strode toward her. She had the face of a woman in her early twenties, yet her eyes were sunken and heavy, worn down by endless, weary years.
The lady’s hand seized Ria’s shoulder. "Head up."
Terror made Ria’s head rise slowly—
The lady’s hand froze. Her grip tightened, then began to quiver. Her gaze bored into Ria’s face, then drifted to the silver hair.
A suffocating silence descended. No reprimand crashed down upon her.
Instead, the lady’s blood-drained eyes shook like an earthquake.
That was Ria’s first meeting with her—the head of the Estella Countess Manor.