I Became the Maid of the Lout Prince

Chapter 22

It has been several days since the day Ariana and Alicia were sent to Silverwood.

After the influx of Ethan’s well-wishers at the mansion finally subsided, Isabel and I could slowly return to our original duties.

Instead of pouring our time and stress into entertaining guests and working in the kitchen, we wandered the mansion together as before, handling chores like cleaning and laundry...

...however, there was one slight change to our usual routine...

“Lilith? Um, Lilith! I’ve cleaned all the floors on the second floor! Is there anything else you need me to do?”

“No, if you’ve finished everything, just go ahead and rest.”

“Oh, should I clean the windows instead? Actually, I used to clean most of the windows on the second and third floors almost by myself until last year! Lilith, ummm, I can finish faster than you, so I can help!”

“No, this is my job. If you’re done with cleaning the hallway, just rest. I’ll take a break after finishing tasks with Isabel.”

“Um, well, but... Lilith is still working, so is it okay for me to rest first...?”

“In the first place, you are my superior, Senior Catherine. Stop worrying about me and just go rest.”

“Okay, I understand...”

Since Catherine joined Isabel and me, almost all the tasks have been like this.

Initially, Isabel and I would leisurely finish tasks at our own pace, but Catherine ended up doing about 70% of the work alone, leaving Isabel and me to wander around aimlessly until the work was done.

Since Ariana and Alicia disappeared into the distance, it wasn’t strange for Isabel and me to work with Catherine.

Honestly, thanks to her, the work itself finished faster than before, which in turn gave us more time to rest.

From a purely physical standpoint, it was undeniable that the burden had significantly decreased...

‘This work used to be quite overwhelming at times; this is great.’

However, just leaving everything to Catherine, who seemed eager to take over even the tasks I should be doing, was gradually making me uncomfortable, bar the physical fatigue.

I’ve never been fond of relationships where one person only receives and never gives anything in return. If possible, I prefer dry relationships where we don’t exchange anything at all, and if not, at least a give-and-take relationship to some extent.

Handing over all the tasks I should be doing to Catherine every time made me feel uneasy.

“Just a little more, and my work will be done too. Please, Catherine, take a rest. You’ve already cleaned the second-floor hallway by yourself; how much more of our workload do you intend to take away?”

“Oh, alright... Then, um, I’ll go rest first...”

Seeing Catherine walking away with a gloomy expression because I didn’t assign her any tasks, I couldn’t help but feel guilty deep inside.

Yearning for the days when Isabel and I worked together in peace was an unavoidable reality.

‘She’s just so pure and kind to the core...’

Of course, I couldn’t say I didn’t understand her feelings at all.

With the resolution of the theft case involving Thanasia’s necklace, the suspicions hanging over her were lifted in an instant.

Even the unjust debt burden placed on her was removed.

If I were in a similar situation as Catherine, I, too, would have felt intense gratitude towards Lilith.

However, expressing gratitude to that extent might burden the other person, even though I understand the sentiment.

“Sigh, why can’t I just treat her as an ordinary fellow maid?”

“Indeed, Senior Catherine is a bit burdensome.”

‘Woah!’

Lost in thought, Isabel, who had approached unnoticed, almost startled me by echoing my thoughts, just like last time.

She always manages to come near when I’m lost in thought.

“Have you finished cleaning the windows, Lilith?”

“Just three more to go.”

“Then I’ll help too! Let’s finish quickly and go rest together!”

If only she didn’t lack combat skills, she could have easily been a sub-heroine in the Luminor Academy.

Nodding in agreement with her plausible advice, I responded positively.

“Yeah, Isabel, your idea sounds good.”

“Really?”

“...but I’m not sure what favor to ask for. Just asking for something like help with maid duties might not be taken seriously.”

“Hmm... Senior Catherine started to work at this mansion a year before us, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Then why don’t you ask her to take you on a trip to the Blackwood fiefdom *1 next holiday? I’m sure she knows more about it far better than you and I, after all.”

“Huh?”

“I heard that Senior Catherine was exonerated not long ago, and her debt-maid status was lifted. I’m sure she’d be happy to hear that.”

Isabel kept coming up with plausible suggestions one after another as if she had prepared them in advance; it was almost like she was using ChatGPT.

Thanks to the wisdom of “Clever Isabel,” I almost forgot my status momentarily and was about to agree that it was a good idea.

Sadly, there was one fatal flaw in Isabel’s proposal that couldn’t allow me to implement it.

“Isabel, truth is, I’ve been too embarrassed to say this until now...”

“Huh?”

“I’m actually a maid working off my father’s gambling debts. I might not be able to leave the mansion grounds.”

“Oh, I-I’m sorry... I didn’t know Lilith was in that situation...”

“It’s okay. I didn’t mention it from the start. Still, I appreciate your advice.”

Isabel’s advice itself was pretty useful, indeed. If only I wasn’t in debt as a maid.

If I had free access based on my status alone, I wouldn’t be taking walks in the mansion but hunting slimes in the back mountains.

Already having nearly 20 times the maximum health due to the increased magic capacity, it was essential to learn new skills to make use of this overflowing magic power.

“Still, you know, Lilith...”

“Huh?”

“Not long ago, you played a significant role in recovering Lady Thanasia’s belongings. So, maybe if you ask the head maid nicely, she might allow it?”

“...Do you think it’ll work that easily?”

“There’s no harm in giving it a try. If it doesn’t work out, you can think about it then. I’ll take care of things here, so why don’t you go talk to the head maid now?”

“Oh, okay...”

With Isabel’s suggestion pushing me halfway, I made my way to the head maid’s office.

Without much hope, I asked if it was possible to get permission to go out.

“So, next holiday, you want to go to the Blackwood fiefdom *1?”

“Uh, it’s just something I wanted to try asking about. Since I’m a debt maid, I can’t leave the mansion grounds, so even if it’s not possible, I understand...”

“I understand. Lilith Rosewood is trustworthy, so I’ll grant you special permission to go out.”

“Really...?”

“You’ve been through a lot with this recent incident, so take this opportunity to rest with your colleagues.”

“Oh, okay...”

I was actually a bit taken aback by how easily the head maid granted permission.

...I couldn’t believe it, but it’s actually happening.

T/N

A fiefdom is an area where a specific person or organization exclusively owns or exerts authority on.

That’s all for now, thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one!