I Can See a Bit of the Future
"So, so? What happened?"
Clara grilled Enet relentlessly.
The servants of Goethe Manor were busy cleaning the estate after the end of their day off. Without distinction of rank, they wielded mops and wet rags, scrubbing every corner of the manor.
"Nothing happened."
Enet wrung out her rag and replied. The wooden bucket of water had already turned bright red. It was blood. They'd cleaned up the corpses and chunks of flesh from the soldiers the marquis had brought, but the bloodstains had proved impossible to erase completely. The maids didn't dare voice their questions openly, but they whispered among themselves, letting their imaginations run wild. Someone had attempted to assassinate the count. A demon had passed through. The young master had triggered another mana rampage. With even the guards—who might have spoken up—keeping their mouths shut, their curiosity only grew.
No less a topic of their gossip was Isaac's whereabouts. After returning from Binvelt to the manor, he'd come and gone from Bernsi several times. Rumors and speculation swirled around that too, but this time, the scale of the incident was different.
"I heard there was a huge uproar in Bernsi?"
"They say all the heads of the great families were purged outright."
"There was even a war. Piles and piles of bodies, apparently."
"They were plotting rebellion, I bet. Isn't it too much of a coincidence? Right after the young master came back... Ow, why'd you hit me!?"
"You wanna get purged too? Watch your mouth."
"Enet, you know something, right? You went out with the young master that time."
Naturally, the maids' attention turned to Enet.
"Nothing happened. I just looked after the second young master in Black Goose Village. That's all."
"Hmph, as if. Save your lies for someone who'll buy them."
Clara snorted derisively.
"And then you suddenly hit it off with the young master and run off—whoosh. I won't think of you as a friend anymore if you do."
"Nah, she's latching on now that she sees her chance. Since she's buddies with Enet, she could at least make chambermaid or head maid."
The other maids burst into laughter at Hilde's words. She too had been one of the maids nearly sold into human trafficking alongside Enet and Clara.
"Hey!"
Clara's face flushed red as she yelled.
"Clara."
Roza finally stepped in, unable to stand it any longer. She'd been quietly mopping without joining the chatter. With her red hair tied back tightly, she thrust her mop at Clara.
"Go wring this out."
"Why should I do yours...?"
"Now."
Roza glared, and Clara rolled her eyes before snatching the mop. No matter how brash Clara was, she couldn't win against Roza. No maid who picked a fight with her had ever come away with her hair intact.
Knowing Roza's temper, the other maids slunk away.
"Enet. Go inside and rest."
"Why? I'm fine."
"Your face is pale as a ghost. And—"
Roza snatched the rag from Enet's hand.
"You've been scrubbing the carpet instead of the bloodstains this whole time."
"......"
"Look how soaked the carpet is. You'll just make more work. I'll tell the head maid."
"......"
Enet clenched her empty hands, now bereft of the rag. She stared blankly down at the wet hall carpet.
"Later, when you feel like talking..."
"Like I said, nothing happened. Guess I will rest today, like you said. Thanks."
Enet spat out the words quickly and hurried from the corridor. She didn't even remember how she'd made it back to her quarters. She simply collapsed onto the bed as she was. Clara would throw a fit about lying on the bed in her maid uniform, but Enet had no spare energy to care.
—Shall I kill her?
It was faint, but she'd heard it clearly. A voice devoid of emotion, sharp as a blade. What Isaac's guard had said didn't sound like asking permission to kill a person—it was more like seeking approval to squash a rat or bug.
Enet touched her neck. In the end, her head hadn't been separated from her body. Thanks to Isaac.
—Enet is necessary to me.
—There are other maids with talent for magic. We can't trust some lowly maid. Why keep creating weaknesses?
—That's how you survived too. Forgot already?
Struck down by the intruder's staff, Enet had lost consciousness while listening to the argument between Isaac and Carlson. When she awoke, it was in a luxury inn in Bernsi. Barely coherent, she'd heard Isaac explain everything: why the situation in Goethe was being kept secret, the fact that he could use magic. What he planned to do—and her role in it.
None of it was easy for Enet to grasp. They were speaking the common tongue, yet it felt like a foreign language. The boy telling the tale wasn't the young master she knew. And what he described was beyond anything she could handle.
—If you don't want to, you can go back to your old life. Just keep the secret, and no one will touch you. I promise.
Right after, Enet had boarded the carriage Isaac prepared and returned to the manor. She vaguely recalled answering him, but couldn't remember exactly what she'd said. All that lingered was the chilling voice she'd heard as she climbed in.
—The moment you spill it, no matter what the young master says, I'll cut you down.
It was Carlson, the guard. He clearly didn't like her one bit.
"......"
Enet reached toward the ceiling. Her fingertips glowed blue. Now she could even gather that bluish light into a single point at her fingertip. It coalesced into a small orb like a bead.
Tap-tap.
A light knock sounded.
"I'm coming in."
It wasn't a request for permission. Startled by the footsteps barging into the maids' quarters, Enet lost her focus. She shot up reflexively and stared at the intruder.
"The young master wants to see you."
It was Carlson. He frowned at the mana dissipating from her hand.
"I told you not to gather mana anywhere."
"......Sorry."
"Follow me."
Ignoring her apology, Carlson strode off. Enet had to trot to keep up with his pace.
The door to Isaac's bedroom opened, and the scent of alcohol wafted out. Sweet wine.
"You got here quick."
Isaac, seated at his desk scribbling something, turned his head. Enet offered the courtesy due a servant.
Sometime earlier, the broad desk had been piled high with thick stacks of cotton fiber paper and a wine bottle. Isaac dipped his quill feather pen into the inkwell and stood.
"Want a glass?"
He poured wine into a wooden cup and handed it to her. Normally, she'd refuse. She'd lived as a maid, and she didn't care much for the taste of wine anyway.
"Yes."
But this time, Enet downed the half-filled cup in one gulp without even breathing.
"Whoa, that's not how you drink it."
Isaac looked mildly flustered.
"You summoned me."
Enet said, feeling the alcohol rush up. It was her first time drinking such fine wine like this. She'd guzzled diluted stuff like water before, but a full-bodied vintage like this was rare.
She had no room left to savor it, though. Her mind was still a whirlwind of chaotic thoughts she couldn't control.
"Sit."
At Isaac's urging, Enet plopped down at the table. To some eyes, it might seem careless and rude, but no one in the room minded.
"Made your decision?"
"......"
Enet gripped the table against the dizziness. Only now did she dimly recall what she'd told Isaac. She'd think about it. She needed time. Something vague like that.
Isaac watched her with an innocent gaze utterly unlike the one he'd worn when laying bare the truth. His eyes were sharp, but purely those of a child. Not like the cunning, regret-tinged stranger's eyes from her memory—the ones that would sacrifice anything for the family.
"Why me? There must be plenty of people with this kind of talent besides me."
"There weren't any besides you."
Isaac answered without hesitation. But it was an odd reply. Past tense.
"I don't... really like magic."
"You'll come to like it."
Isaac replied again.
"How do you know?"
"I can see a bit of the future."
"That too... your ancestors or...?"
"Right. Thanks to my unique constitution."
Isaac nodded.
"If you doubt it, ask him. He doesn't lie, at least."
Enet followed Isaac's nod to Carlson. He just stood there silently watching.
"I saw your future. You become a great mage and protect this family. There'll be tough, painful things, but you'll gain something priceless. Something worth trading your whole life for."
"What is it?"
"I don't know what it is. But you looked happier than ever."
Isaac was lying. Staring straight into her eyes. But it was a lie that held the faintest possibility of becoming truth.
In the midst of war, Goethe Manor had burned once. Isaac, deep underground, hadn't known—but he'd learned from Yonas in his previous life. Most of the servants had met their end then. When the second prince, become king, subjugated half of Goethe territory. It had been horrific, Yonas said. Burned alive, or killed in unspeakable ways.
Isaac didn't know how Enet had died. But since the old Yonas never mentioned her, she surely hadn't survived the chaos. Nor bloomed her talent.
He could infer as much. So Isaac had prophesied in place of the future he'd already lived.
He avoided promising happiness or satisfaction. Instead, he spoke of a life of value. It was prophecy, but also his resolve to make it so.
What use were all his deeds if, having returned to the past, he couldn't even save those within reach? And hadn't things already changed?
By rights, Enet should have been a dour, expressionless maid. Ever since abandoning her friend Clara to survive the Niars gang kidnapping.
But the Enet before Isaac now was different. She blushed sometimes, got flustered. She could wear more expressions. Above all, she yearned for a better life.
How could he abandon her? There were those with greater magical talent than Enet. But how could he not choose her?
"If you want that future, come with me."
"......And if I don't?"
"I haven't seen that future."
"......"
Enet looked down at her hands. Hands meant to wring wet rags. Fingers fated to blister and callus.
But Isaac had shown her otherwise. These hands could grasp something else. The light of condensed mana. A mere magical phenomenon. But to Enet, it was light—more than light.
"Can I really do it? Live the life you describe...?"
"If you can't trust yourself, trust me."
Isaac said calmly. Even tone, no emphasis or inflection.
Enet worked her lips repeatedly. She knew this chance wouldn't come twice. But she couldn't deny the fear overwhelming her.
How many maids in the world became mages? Did it even happen? What awaited her wasn't a great mage, but mockery for her foolish dreams?
Burdened with doubt, anxiety, fear, Enet couldn't answer easily.
So she didn't.
Isaac simply watched her without urging. Gazing with utterly guileless eyes.
"......"
Enet gave no reply. Instead, she nodded. Again and again in silence, until finally she spoke.
"I'll do it. If you'll have someone like me, young master, I'll follow you."
Enet gripped her maid skirt until it crumpled. Until now, she'd never once decided her own fate.
"Knew you would."
As if he'd expected it, Isaac's lips curved up. With that smile, Enet felt the tangle in her mind unravel. If only for a moment.
"Then. Here's your first task."
"Task?"
"You need tasks to grow, right?"
"......?"
"Your first one: represent me in the Goethe magic tournament this fall."
"What!?"
Enet's freshly cleared mind plunged back into chaos.
"Proper lessons start tomorrow. Rest up today."
Isaac left those words and exited his room.
"See? Told you she'd do it."
"What do you even see in that maid? You really think she's sincere?"
"Shh. Enet might hear."
Enet stared blankly across the table at the empty chair.
"......"
She felt like she'd been tricked somehow.