Chapter 10
“Th-this room… for me?”
Valley turned to Piru, who had guided her here, with a bewildered expression.
“Is it too small?”
“Ah, no, not at all. It’s just too large… too grand for me to use alone.”
The room was easily two or three times the size of the bedroom she had used at the Priatin mansion. Even the furniture was spotless, without a single speck of dust.
“His Lordship said that since you are a guest, not an employee of the mansion, you are to be treated as such.”
“I would be fine with a much smaller room…”
“If you refuse this room, which has been offered to you as a special guest, shall I take it to mean that you disagree with His Lordship’s decision?”
Piru was clearly smiling as he spoke, but to Valley, it felt like a kind but firm boundary being drawn.
“That’s not what I meant… Please convey my sincere gratitude to the Duke for giving me such a large room. And for the ice pack as well.”
“I will. From now on, if you need anything, just tell the maid assigned to attend to you.”
“You’re assigning me a maid as well?”
“Yes. His Lordship instructed us to take good care of our guest. The maid of this mansion will be looking after Miss Valley, who is also a maid herself.”
Piru had seen her arrive in a maid’s uniform, so he fully believed she was a maid.
“Thank you for your concern.”
“Don’t mention it. We all merely act on His Lordship’s orders.”
His tone and expression suggested that when Wayne’s orders were withdrawn, everything would disappear.
“Since the explanations are over, allow me to introduce myself. I am Piru Patro, aide to Duke Wayne Viterad.”
“Ah, I’m… Pri… no, I’m Valley.”
For the first time, she introduced herself without her family name. She didn’t dislike this awkwardness.
“Hmm, Miss Valley?”
Piru, who had been gentle all along, completely wiped the smile off his face as he addressed her. When he smiled, he looked harmless and gentle, but without it, his face was quite sharp, like a fox.
“As His Lordship’s aide, I hold considerable power in this mansion.”
“As an aide, that’s only natural.”
“Even if you are His Lordship’s guest, I can still throw you out at any time.”
Piru walked over, step by step, and stood before Valley.
“So you must ensure that nothing tarnishes our Lord’s honor.”
His eyes were filled solely with loyalty to Wayne. Valley met his gaze, smiled, and admired him sincerely.
“That’s admirable.”
“…Pardon?”
Caught off guard by the unexpected compliment, Piru’s wariness wavered slightly.
“An aide is a position of complete trust and devotion to one’s master.”
“…That’s right.”
“And it’s also a position where it’s very hard to build the trust that you won’t betray them. The fact that you’ve achieved that is truly impressive.”
Piru’s guard dropped even further, and he grinned, only to quickly compose himself.
“Ahem. Was I that transparent?”
“Yes. Even if a problem arises, you think of the Duke first. You were like the epitome of an aide.”
It was a sincere compliment. At the Priatin mansion, employees changed frequently. Not just maids, but aides and butlers also often quit. Most couldn’t endure the difficulty of accommodating the temperaments of her parents and Lina.
Seeing an attitude completely different from her own mansion’s employees made Valley feel even more strongly that she had truly arrived at Viterad.
“The Duke must truly trust you as well, Aide Piru.”
“Ahem, well, I do enjoy His Lordship’s trust. Having been together since he was young, the depth of that trust is different, after all.”
Receiving praise from Valley that he’d never even heard from Wayne, Piru unconsciously let his guard go soft.
“You are truly indispensable to this mansion.”
“Haha, exactly. So, if you need anything in the future, tell the maid or me, your reliable aide.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
“Oh, it’s nothing. Well then, rest well and comfortably.”
Piru smiled brightly, left the room, and even closed the door behind him. Then he stopped.
“What was that? I naturally acted like a superior, didn’t I?”
Realizing his behavior a moment too late, Piru turned and looked at the now-closed door. Valley was definitely wearing a maid’s uniform. Yet, somehow, the way she handled him, an aide, had felt perfectly natural. Startled, Piru covered his mouth with his hand.
“Could this be how she won our Lord’s heart?”
Wayne had never shown any interest in women. Then suddenly, a maid he supposedly had an appointment with shows up, and now he’s saying to treat her as a guest for a whole month.
‘Give her the largest and best of the empty rooms.’
‘Is that really necessary?’
‘She might leave after a month, so until then, she’s a guest. Tell the others to treat her with the utmost courtesy.’
No one had ever received such treatment from Wayne. Piru was glad Wayne was finally interested in women, but the fact that the woman was a maid was extremely problematic.
“Still, aside from being incurable, our Lord lacks nothing… Of course, I was surprised earlier—that maid was incredibly beautiful. But still, the status difference is too great…”
Piru wandered away from Valley’s room, indulging in all sorts of wild imaginings.
Now alone, Valley properly looked around the bedroom.
“The room is too big compared to the luggage I brought.”
She had only brought one small bag, so she’d already finished unpacking. She couldn’t bring much since she’d run away secretly, but she hadn’t had much to begin with.
Thinking that she would be staying here from now on, she felt freedom for the first time. She flopped down onto the bed.
Looking up at the unfamiliar red ceiling instead of the blue one that had felt like a prison, a bright smile slowly spread across her face.
Now she no longer had to listen to her parents’ nagging or Lina’s jeers.
“…This is truly wonderful.”
Valley, who had never even felt comfortable in her own bedroom, found it strange that she felt at ease in the Viterad mansion, a place she was visiting for the first time.
As she lay there leisurely, Ethel’s face suddenly came to mind.
Thinking of her, her heart grew heavy with worry. She also worried about her connection with Bartery, which should have ended but might continue.
As the heavy anxiety gradually filled her mind, she quickly shook her head to dispel it.
“No, we promised to meet at the inn in a week. I can only bring Ethel here if I do well in my job here. I must succeed.”
What mattered now was to move beyond being a “pending” employee and become a full-fledged one. She had finally, with difficulty, obtained the chance to do the work she truly wanted to do. She had no intention of letting it slip away meaninglessly.
Just as she was renewing her resolve and raising herself from the bed—
Knock, knock.
A sudden knock came at the door.
“Who is it?”
“The maid. My name is Kanna.”
It seemed to be the maid they said would be assigned to her.
“Come in.”
“……”
“It’s okay, come in.”
“……”
Even with permission, the door didn’t open. Wondering if the maid’s hands were full and she couldn’t open it, Valley went and opened the door herself.
“Hello.”
Kanna, her yellow hair tied in two braids, stood there with both hands empty.
“I couldn’t hear your permission to enter, so I kept waiting.”
“Ah, my voice must have been quiet. I did tell you to come in.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Kanna smiled and entered the room. But Valley somehow felt that her smile didn’t reach her eyes.
“I heard that although you’ve come as His Lordship’s guest, starting tomorrow you’ll be tending to the garden.”
“That’s right.”
“If you need anything, please tell me. I’ll try my best to prepare it.”
“Then, first, could I get some paper and a pencil for sketching?”
She already knew the size of the mansion’s garden from having visited countless times in her previous life. She wanted to sketch the landscape design immediately, so she needed paper and a pencil.
“I’ll pass the request along to the maid who goes out to buy supplies tomorrow.”
“Thank you. Ah, and also…”
“Then, rest well.”
Before Valley could finish her sentence, Kanna spun around and left.
Thinking her voice must have been too quiet again, Valley blinked awkwardly and spoke to the closed door, alone.
“…Please take care of me.”
Outside the door, Kanna, who hadn’t heard that voice at all, rolled her eyes and glared fiercely at Valley’s door.
“A mere maid, daring to call herself His Lordship’s guest… Don’t make me laugh
