Lucia knocked on the door.
There was no response, but the door was opened by someone. She looked up and saw it was Katherine.
She lowered her eyes and addressed her.
“Head Maid.”
Katherine looked Lucia over, then glanced at Wendy behind her.
Since they had been called over on short notice, they hadn’t changed clothes.
Lucia looked a bit disheveled, while Wendy was as elegant and composed as ever.
Lucia’s face flushed slightly.
She didn’t like others seeing her in such a state, especially Katherine and Enya, but she hadn’t been given time to freshen up.
Katherine stepped aside.
Understanding the gesture, Lucia quickly walked in.
This was a study in the main building of the estate.
Enya rarely came here, so this was her first time.
The traces of the previous owner had already been erased by the servants on Katherine’s orders.
Enya was sitting on a chair, a table separating her from the three maids.
When she saw them approach, she closed the fan staff she had been gently waving and fixed her gaze on Lucia.
Sensing the gaze, Lucia immediately tensed up.
Enya looked her up and down, then chuckled and commented.
“Not bad.”
She didn’t have high expectations for Lucia; passing was enough.
Lucia seemed to pick up on that implication. She couldn’t help lowering her head and lightly biting her moist lips.
Enya didn’t cater to Lucia’s feelings. Instead, she announced a matter regarding the personnel changes in the estate.
“Dangselin, starting tomorrow you’ll be the estate’s butler. I’ll be counting on you then. Is that alright?”
“I will do my utmost. It’s an honor to serve you.”
Katherine lifted her skirt and curtsied.
Upon hearing this exchange, Lucia was dumbfounded.
The position of butler had always been Parit’s. It had been an established fact since the estate was built. Over time, it had become a fixed impression.
Whenever someone mentioned Lily of the Valley Manor, they would think of Master Gro and Butler Parit. Almost everyone knew that.
But today, that fixed impression was shattered.
After finishing with Katherine, Enya turned her gaze back to Lucia. Lucia quickly collected herself.
“Lucia, you will be the head maid.”
“Huh?”
Lucia looked up at Enya.
Enya’s exquisite face held no trace of jest; what she had just said was clearly genuine.
‘Me, be the head maid? Really? No, no, absolutely not!’
Lucia shook her head and opened her mouth anxiously to speak, but a gaze from beside her fixed upon her, causing the words to catch in her throat.
At some point, Katherine had half-closed her eyes and was staring at Lucia.
Seeing this, Enya let out a light sigh.
“Katherine.”
“…”
Katherine withdrew her gaze, looked down at the ground, and said.
“I apologize, my lady. I have failed in educating this maid.”
“…”
Enya clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘Such a controlling parent.’
And Katherine was a bit too hardcore. In her view, since one was a maid, one must follow the rules of a maid.
Lucia was not an externally hired maid; she was raised in the estate. She was already part of the estate’s property.
As such, the owner of that property was not to be defied.
Lucia’s attempt to refuse the owner’s appointment just now was a great disrespect!
But Enya didn’t care about that.
“Katherine, I think you’ve been in a position of authority for too long. Do you want to experience what it’s like to be a little maid?”
“I will obey the lady’s every command.”
Katherine knelt down, lowering her head, looking like a devout servant, but it gave Enya an inexplicable headache.
“You really are… Forget it, let it be.”
Katherine slowly rose.
Lucia, standing beside her, felt dizzy. Everything she had just witnessed was hard to believe.
‘The mistress took my side? And in front of Katherine?’
But Lucia didn’t let her head get too clouded. She quickly spoke up.
“Mistress, I’m sorry, I am willing to be…”
“Tell me the reason for your refusal.”
Enya interrupted Lucia, asking her to speak her mind. Lucia froze for a moment, panicked.
“I…”
Lucia still couldn’t say it.
It felt like when you’re in the mood to do something, you get interrupted, and then you’re asked to continue. It’s hard to keep going.
Wendy leaned in from beside her and gave her an encouraging look.
“Go on!”
“Ugh…”
Lucia felt a warmth in her heart, and her courage surged again.
She stopped thinking about Katherine and looked up at Enya.
“I… rather than being head maid, I’d rather be my mistress’s personal maid. That way, I can stay by mistress’s side more.”
The word “mistress” was one Lucia had learned from Elvish.
She hadn’t known what it meant until she asked Wendy to teach her Elvish, and then she realized it wasn’t Enya’s name.
Before, she hadn’t felt any shame, but after learning the truth, she felt more and more embarrassed.
Yet, as if she had gotten used to calling it, she couldn’t change.
After saying what was on her mind, Lucia’s face turned bright red, and she lowered her head, not daring to see Enya’s expression.
Enya remained expressionless.
She had seen this many times before; many girls had said similar things in the past. She was used to it, naturally calm and unmoved.
“Ahem…”
Enya coughed lightly, and Lucia’s body trembled.
“Fine, then let Katherine work a bit harder. She likes doing things anyway.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Katherine replied calmly.
Lucia breathed a slight sigh of relief and stole a glance at Wendy beside her.
Enya also looked at Wendy and spoke in Elvish.
“Remember to do your work properly. Don’t always think about slacking off on my payroll.”
“Yes~”
Wendy agreed with a smile, but she would still slack off when she could.
That was just her nature. Enya was only joking; she didn’t really expect a pet elf to be useful.
Being able to uplift the mood and let off some steam was already Wendy’s greatest use as a maid.
“Alright, if there’s nothing else, you’re dismissed.”
Enya waved her hand, sending the three away.
Inside Lily of the Valley Manor there was a warehouse, originally a wine cellar, later cleared out to store documents.
The extra rooms had been converted into a simple dungeon, usually used to confine servants who had done wrong.
In one of the cells at that moment sat an old man.
The light was dim, making it impossible to see the expression on his lowered face.
At the entrance at the end of the corridor, two guards were talking in low voices, chatting about the person inside.
That Parit had been brought in made them find it incredible, yet somehow understandable.
They all said it was because Ms. Enya planned to purge the old retainers and promote her own cronies.
As they were chatting enthusiastically, a figure approached.
She wore a maid outfit, tall and slender.
Although the uniform was tightly wrapped, one could still glimpse a hint of a woman’s graceful figure.
Her chestnut hair was tied up and covered with a white cap similar to a shower cap. Her cold, aloof face was full of authority.
“Lady Katherine.”
The two guards immediately stood at attention and respectfully addressed Katherine.
Though Katherine, as head maid, had little fame outside, she was quite well-known inside Lily of the Valley Manor.
And now, after Butler Parit’s fall, this head maid’s power had reached its peak. They dared not show any disrespect in front of this lady.
“Open the door.”
Katherine wasted no words and ordered directly.
The two guards quickly opened the door and respectfully let Katherine enter. Just as they were about to follow, she drove them out and ordered them to leave immediately.
They exchanged bewildered looks as they left, thinking that she must be here to offer poisoned wine or something.
‘Truly a venomous woman’s heart.’
They’d better start thinking about where to find a new position.
The sound of high heels was especially clear in the silent environment. When the clicking stopped, Parit looked up.
“You’ve come… Has Ms. Enya decided how to deal with me?”
Katherine didn’t speak immediately.
Instead, she lifted her chin slightly, looking down at the humble Parit from above.
After a while, she finally spoke.
“If it were me, I wouldn’t let you leave here alive, nor would I let that woman and her child live.
They are elements of instability. Only complete elimination brings peace. But I am me, and my lady is my lady.”
“…”
Parit knew Katherine; after all, they had worked together for many years.
He knew that Katherine would definitely do that, and would even advise Enya to do so, but obviously Enya had no such intention.
Parit lowered his head and said softly.
“My lady is merciful.”
‘Is she really merciful? Not necessarily…’
The fate of that border town showed that she was not merciful.
She simply disdained to do many things, or perhaps, for her, rooting out the source was completely unnecessary.
There was an irreconcilable gap between her and others. In every way!
Katherine snorted coldly and said.
“My lady is merciful. She lets you retire and go back to your hometown to fend for yourself. And don’t go looking for that woman. She has been given a new identity in the West Wind Empire. Without you, she will live better.”
“Thank you, my lady…”
Parit’s gaze went completely dim.
After Katherine opened the cell door and was about to leave, Parit suddenly rushed to the doorway and asked loudly.
“Who is it that you truly serve?”
“…”
Katherine didn’t answer. She left without looking back.
Parit stared at her retreating figure, and a thought came to his mind.
Perhaps, from the very beginning, Katherine was never a member of the Lily of the Valley Chamber of Commerce.
She was a chess piece planted by the West Wind Empire.
But even if that were true, so what? It had nothing to do with Parit anymore.
He had already been eliminated.