Starting Out with the Head Maid
The morning sun poured down over the annex mansion.
I set down the packed luggage and paused to catch my breath.
Everything that needed doing was already finished last night. That should be enough.
Before falling asleep yesterday, I had handed Father a copy of the documents concerning Mirinda.
With this, Mirinda would no longer be able to run wild inside the family.
Of course, there was no chance she would be executed or thrown into prison under the family head’s name.
Mirinda was, after all, an outsider who had married in—she belonged to the Devilrenov family.
Even if our side had suffered damage, proving anything with only documents and no clear evidence would be tricky.
Besides, the Devilrenov family was connected to us by marriage, though that hardly made them an unbreakable alliance like something out of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
So it’s perfect as a restraint.
Still, I intended to use it a little differently.
Anyway, I ran a hand through my hair and turned around.
Winz stood there, smiling brightly.
She wore an adventurer’s outfit based on her usual maid uniform, quite different from her everyday attire.
Her long orange hair, tied up at the back, caught the sunlight and shimmered with a golden hue.
Those crimson vertical pupils looked like finely cut gemstones—every time I saw them, I couldn’t help but admire them.
She was far more beautiful than I had imagined, and I found myself staring blankly.
Father’s words from when I handed over the documents yesterday came back to me.
“Winz is no ordinary elf.”
I had thought it sounded like complete nonsense.
Not an ordinary elf?
Then it hit me.
Does he mean an elf with strong lesbian tendencies?
If that was the case, it made sense. Yeah, definitely not ordinary.
But that was fine by me. I could just play along. After all, I was a guy!
Winz smiled awkwardly.
“Hehe… Young lady, what is it? Staring so intently all of a sudden.”
“Ah, sorry. You’re just too pretty.”
“Even if it’s just flattery, thank you! Hmph, tch.”
“I’m serious. You really are beautiful. If I were still a man, I’d ask you out right now.”
I meant it. What man could simply walk past an elf lady with such an overwhelming figure and looks?
Anyone who did would have to be impotent.
Winz’s ears perked up, and a playful smile spread across her face.
“Anyway, that honesty of yours is part of your charm, young lady.”
“So… who said you were that pretty?”
“But if I weren’t this beautiful, how would I ever win your favor?”
“I wouldn’t mind even if you weren’t pretty.”
That one was a slight lie.
Winz saw right through it, of course.
“That was a lie just now, wasn’t it?”
“Hmm… maybe about two percent?”
“Idiot.”
She called me an idiot again. She always did.
I almost snapped back that she was the idiot, but instead I just chuckled.
Together, Winz and I left the annex mansion.
Goodbye to that warehouse-like house. I was going to miss the bed.
“Ah, Winz!”
“Yes? Young lady.”
“From now on, stop calling me ‘young lady’ or anything like that. You can just call me by my name, like a companion.”
At my suggestion, Winz tilted her head.
She naturally linked her arm with my right one.
“I don’t want to. Once a young lady, always a young lady!”
“Ugh, that’s so cringey.”
Being called “young lady” even outside felt awkward, to be honest.
Plus, I was a guy. I would have preferred being called by name.
“Still, no. I could never… I’ll serve you for the rest of my life. No matter how many times. Hehe.”
I studied her for a moment.
Her face was full of worry, yet a smile like sunlight shone through.
So this was the kind of woman Winz was.
I had thought she was an elf who expressed her emotions surprisingly honestly, but now she seemed more like a fox who could say embarrassing things without batting an eye.
Thud, thud!
Footsteps approached from behind.
Blaken led the way, followed by Holan and Buzil.
Even Doree was there.
They had all come to see me off.
Buzil, that water buffalo brat, kept stealing glances at Doree while grinning creepily. His speech was supposedly scientific, but he was an idiot.
Come to think of it, isn’t it about time for that event? The Life Tree Struggle!
The Life Tree Struggle, or Life Tree Competition.
In the past, the continent had been called the Obelisk; now it was known as the Life Tree, with only five such trees in existence.
They possessed mysterious powers—purifying polluted water, healing even small wounds—and were called the Trees of Life.
Any group, territory, or family that possessed one gained immense power and influence.
In fact, most families that owned one resided in the imperial palace, didn’t they?
The Family Struggle was an event held under the empire’s tacit approval, where families across the nation waged war to claim the Life Trees.
Even though our family is prestigious, the reason they clung to someone like Holan was because of this. Same with the Devilrenov family.
If there was a genius bloodline with strong heritage, they could become a valuable asset in the Life Tree Struggle.
That was why Blaken had tried to stop my departure.
When every person counted, losing even one was like discarding Guan Yu or Xiahou Yuan in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
So Father must have wanted to stop Winz and me from leaving too. Our generation is already the worst, full of duds except for Holan. Losing a key fighter on top of that…
The fact that he still let us go showed just how broad-minded Blaken was.
I could never do that. I would have made them sign a waiver or something.
“You’re leaving now?”
“Yes, Father.”
Blaken nodded, his face even more shadowed than usual.
This was making me feel guilty, old man. Ahem.
“Very well. I don’t know what the future holds, but I hope you continue to grow and return safely.”
“I hope you stay healthy as well, Father. You remember the note, right?”
Along with the documents yesterday, I had also given him a note.
What was on it?
Information on the ability users who would join the protagonist in the future.
If I just left with Winz like this, I would truly be a bastard.
Even though he had only given me bad memories, that didn’t mean Blaken had to suffer the consequences.
So I had told him about the people who could strengthen the family.
I added one more thing.
“Holan may lack education, but he’s still a pillar that can support the family. I wanted to say that clearly.”
“Even speaking well of the siblings who opposed you… How strange.”
“Whose daughter do you think I am?”
Blaken finally smiled with satisfaction.
Yeah, smile like that. Come to think of it, what did family even mean to me?
Hmm, I didn’t know. Not really.
I looked at the others’ reactions.
Holan clicked his tongue, and Mirinda was nowhere to be seen.
Doree, on the other hand, sneered.
“Hehe, I heard you were running away from the family and rushed over. But that doesn’t mean our relationship is over, does it? Queen, you will become mine. I’ll chase you to the very end.”
“What are you, some kind of hunter? Do your best, then.”
I answered half-heartedly. I wasn’t about to say I’d chase her too.
After all, a crazy bitch was still a crazy bitch.
Winz and I walked past them. Blaken’s voice followed.
“Grow up healthy… Winz, take care of Queen.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Just as we were about to leave, a low, mocking voice rang out. It was Buzil.
“I’d have no regrets if I could’ve touched that ass at least once. A worthless reject acting all high and mighty just because she got a title—how pathetic.”
I stopped and turned to look at Buzil.
When our eyes met, he grinned. How did someone like this even get born?
Huff, smack!
“Gah!”
I punched him square in the face.
He let out a short scream and collapsed. What a disgusting bastard.
“Hey, fix that nasty way of talking. Only brain-dead idiots on the internet talk like that.”
“Fuck, what did I do wrong?”
This time I didn’t say anything. I just silently drove a soccer kick between his legs. A satisfying impact!
Smack! Squish.
“Eek!”
Buzil trembled violently. I shrugged and leaned down.
“Why? Later you’ll be saying gay literature is our culture too and enjoy it? Self-proclaimed patriotic conservative bastard.”
People like him were the most repulsive. They acted in ways no one could understand and then called it culture or patriotism—like basement traitors.
Carrying our luggage, we passed through the mansion’s iron gates. I might miss this place after all.
I called out to Winz.
“Winz.”
“Yes, young lady.”
“From now on, can I call you Winz-mom? Like, maaa~m.”
Winz pouted.
“Ugh, I’m not that old! Our age difference isn’t even that big! Hmph.”
“So just let me call you casually…”
“No, that’s not allowed!”
“You’re so picky.”
What was I supposed to do? Instead, Winz started showing off.
“Hmph, only call me mom when you feel like it. Even if you feel like it, we have to feel it together. We’re a fated pair, after all!”
“Are we a married couple or something?”
“Oh my, weren’t we?”
I scratched my head. She really was shameless.
Still, I said what I needed to say.
“Then please take care of me from now on, Winz.”
The road ahead would be long. Winz would become a great help to me.
At my words, Winz smiled meaningfully. Something about her felt different.
“Yes, young lady. This time as well… please take care of me!”
“Huh? This time as well?”
What was she talking about? Had we ever gone on an adventure together before?
Winz laughed awkwardly.
“Hehe, never mind! I’ll support you properly! Ufufu.”
“Yeah, Winz-mom!”
“I told you not to call me mom, hmph.”
Ah, the atmosphere was so warm.
Leaning against the sulking girl, I walked forward.
Then I took out Alonzo’s letter.
I need to find out who this young master is that Alonzo swore loyalty to. Someone—or something—will tell me.
I gazed down the endless road ahead. I had no idea where the path we had to walk would lead.
Still, I wanted to do my best. Because that place was where I was meant to go.
It was also the path to prove what kind of person I truly was!
Meanwhile, Mirinda was holed up in a small room inside the mansion.
She sniffled as she looked down at Jerome, who had become a vegetable.
Knock, knock.
With a knock, someone entered. The figure wore a red hood that didn’t suit the mansion at all.
“So… you came?”
“You called for me, my lady?”
“You know Queen Wednesday has left, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Go kill her. Poison her, stab her—whatever it takes, kill her.”
Mirinda could not let Queen go just like that.
She had to take her revenge.
Even though she never once thought about the things she herself had done.
I already contacted the Devilrenov family, but they might not take action. I have to do it myself. I must protect my son!
Grinding her teeth, Mirinda continued.
“In return, I’ll support you enough so that your mother and child can live comfortably for the rest of their lives.”
The figure nodded and left.
With bloodshot eyes streaming tears, Mirinda gritted her teeth.
“Queen, let’s see how long you can keep acting so righteous. I’ll kill you, you bitch… I’ll chew you up and swallow you!”
At the outskirts of the Wednesday territory.
A group of men in shabby clothes were talking.
“Without Sinbadu hyung-nim, everything fell apart. Fuck.”
“We’re beggars now too. Like stray dogs, man. Haah.”
“Still, we got lucky and found something. This… someone gave it to us.”
One of the men pulled out a document. The man across from him asked,
“Is this… information?”
“Someone handed it over. Said it was about the bitch who killed our Sinbadu hyung-nim.”
“Wait, isn’t that the bitch who came with that dancer girl?”
“Even if we die… we should at least do something meaningful before we go, right?”
The men began to laugh among themselves. They missed the days when they committed crimes while dreaming of a bright future.
Those days would never come again.
“Let’s fuck that dancer bitch first and then kill her. Sounds good, right?”
“Yeah, Queen bitch comes after. That fucking whore—I’ll cut off her limbs.”
“Sinbadu hyung-nim, we’ll get your revenge, for sure! You bastard!”
Shouting for Sinbadu’s revenge, they hurriedly left their seats.