Chapter 6: Chapter 4.1

Comfort. Was this what it felt like to melt into a bed completely? Even as I lay there asleep, I didn’t want to wake up.

After a dreamless, uninterrupted rest, I felt all the exhaustion leave my body. How long had it been since I last stretched out and slept so well?

Since getting pulled into this game, it definitely hadn’t happened.

"Haaa..."

I hugged the silky-soft blanket, burying my face into it. It smelled crisp and fresh, like sunshine. The sheer comfort made me let out a lazy sigh.

If I could sleep in this bed every day, life would be perfect. But no, that’s impossible. This wasn’t just any bed—it was someone else’s bed. Staying here even for a moment like this was already...

Wait. Whose bed?

That thought jolted me awake, my eyes snapping open.

Whose bed was this?

Even through the lingering fog of sleep, I realized something undeniable: the ornate ceiling above me wasn’t the one I stared at every morning.

Where the hell was I?

"Ugh!"

My heart nearly stopped as I turned my head and saw him.

Sitting in a chair pulled right up to the bed, resting his chin on his hand, was none other than Adrian.

And he was staring directly at me.

I instinctively wiped the drool trailing down my chin and tried to ask calmly, “W-what are you doing there, Master Adrian…?”

My voice wavered. Was this a horror movie?

Adrian’s pale face was dimly lit in the pitch-dark room, the faint light casting an eerie glow over his expression. He looked like a demon—a perfect fit for a horror film protagonist.

“Hilda, the real question is, what are you doing there?”

Though his tone was polite, the icy sharpness of his voice sent chills down my spine.

Oh. Right. This was Adrian’s room.

And I… had fallen asleep in his bed.

I froze as the realization hit.

I had slept in Adrian’s bed.

What kind of suicidal stunt was that?

“I’m so sorry! I have no excuse. It’s just…”

I scrambled to explain, hoping to salvage whatever dignity I had left.

“I couldn’t sleep last night because I didn’t have a pillow. Then, after working in the garden, the exhaustion just caught up with me. I came here to change the bedsheets, but I must have dozed off!”

That’s right. I’d fought an epic battle with weeds and the game system in the garden earlier.

I’d gotten so filthy in the process...

Wait.

I stared in horror.

Even in the dim light, I could see the once-pristine sheets and blankets were now smudged with dirt.

My already grim future turned pitch-black.

This was beyond salvageable. Not even a revival spell from the best healer could bring me back from this.

If Adrian kicked me out of the mansion right now, I’d deserve it.

To my surprise, Adrian didn’t explode with indignation or shout, "How dare you?" like a typical noble.

Instead, he just sat there, staring at me with those piercing, luminous eyes.

Was he trying to hypnotize me with sheer intensity?

No. He must be furious. So furious he couldn’t even speak.

I glanced down at the pillow, still damp with my drool, and averted my eyes. God, how embarrassing.

“I-I accidentally dirtied the bed. Should I take the sheets and pillows to be washed? When do you plan to sleep? I can get everything ready before then…”

“Stay still, Hilda.”

“If you’d rather, I can trade beds with you! Mine doesn’t have a pillow, but it’s cleaner. You can rest there while I tidy this up—”

“...Why doesn’t anything I say get through to you?”

“You don’t like that either? Uh, what should I do then? Should I kneel and beg for forgiveness?”

At this point, I was prepared to grovel if it meant he’d let me live.

Sure, my pride would take a hit, but pride wasn’t exactly edible.

I braced myself, ready to drop to my knees, but Adrian just kept staring at me, his silence more unnerving than any anger.

His gaze felt like it could bore a hole straight through my skull.

It was scarier than any shouting fit. It felt like he was silently deliberating how best to deal with me—as if he were plotting my execution.

“...It really doesn’t get through to you, does it?”

He finally broke the silence, shaking his head with a resigned expression.

“Fine. Just go.”

“W-what about the bed—?”

“I’ll handle it. Just leave.”

His voice was low, exhausted.

The relief was so overwhelming that I could barely believe it.

He wasn’t going to throw me out—or worse.

“Then… I’ll take my leave…”

Tiptoeing as quietly as possible, I made my way to the door, careful not to make a sound.

But just as I reached for the handle, a chilling thought crossed my mind.

This game system calculated every single action.

It tracked expenses, deducted wages, and wouldn’t hesitate to enforce penalties.

How much was Adrian’s bedding worth?

It was probably worth more than my initial 300 gold.

If the system decided to penalize me for this, I’d be utterly ruined. There would be no recovering from that.

No matter how I looked at it, whether I starved to death as a beggar or got eaten by the game’s horrors, the outcome would be the same.

Reluctantly, I let go of the doorknob.

Poverty drives people to madness.

“Master Adrian, I can’t leave like this. Please punish me for dirtying your bed.”

“...Punish you?”

Adrian tilted his head, clearly confused.

“Yes. But… I can’t accept any punishment involving money. No fines, no wage deductions. Anything else, I’ll do it.”

“...”

“I know it sounds ridiculous to request conditions for punishment, but I’ve been pushed to the edge. Please, give me a punishment that matches my crime.”

“Who’s pushing you to the edge, Hilda?”

“There’s a thug who’s been stealing from me daily. They take every coin I earn, leaving me with nothing.”

I glared at the invisible "thug"—the system that loomed over me every second.

“And this… thug operates here?”

“Yes. A shameless one. I can’t fight them off on my own. But if you punish me directly, maybe they’ll stop exploiting me. Oh, and please don’t tell Leticia. I think I’ve been giving her migraines lately.”

“...”

“We can’t afford to lose her, after all.”

Adrian sighed heavily, rubbing his temple as though I’d given him a headache too.

His sharp features—his jawline, nose, and melancholy eyes—belonged more to a romance novel hero than to reality.

“No fines.”

“Of course not! Even at knifepoint, I couldn’t pay. If I had money, I’d gladly give it, but I don’t even have a penny.”

“No groveling either. That’s pointless.”

“That’s… a bit harsh.”

I grumbled softly, feeling a bit upset. I had worked up the courage to speak, and this was the outcome?

“Then answer my question,” Adrian said.

“Huh? Are you sure that’s all you want? The bed, the blanket, the pillow—they all look expensive.”

“It’s an answer only you can give me. But answer honestly.”

“What… what do you want to know?” I asked nervously.

“Why don’t you look at me?”

So, he noticed. I suppose it was hard not to, considering how blatantly I avoided him. But why was he curious? After all, isn’t it customary for a servant to avoid meeting the eyes of a noble?

This punishment for dirtying his bed seemed fair, but it didn’t make the question any easier to answer.

I couldn’t exactly tell him the truth—that I knew he was a demon who gained power by killing people. Nor could I admit that every time I was near him, my legs turned to jelly, and terror coursed through me, making me want to flee.

“I want an honest answer, Hilda,” he said, his voice cool and commanding.

A sudden gust of wind made the candlelight flare, casting sharp shadows across his face. His delicate double eyelids, the elegant sweep of his lashes… In that moment, the reason came to me.

It wasn’t the whole truth, but it wasn’t a lie either.

“Well, because you’re handsome.”

Adrian blinked, startled.

“As the protagonist of this game, you were undoubtedly drawn by AComz’s best illustrator. It’s impossible to deny your visual appeal.

“Over the years, as you grew up, you became impossibly good-looking. The frail, sickly prince type? It’s exactly my type. At some point, just looking at you made my heart race and my hands shake. I couldn’t even bear to look at you anymore.”

He didn’t respond, so I kept going.

“Honestly, don’t you think that when you look in the mirror sometimes? ‘Wow, I’m so handsome. How am I this good-looking? My parents really outdid themselves.’ Isn’t that what you think?”

I rattled it off like a rehearsed script, my face deadpan, but Adrian’s eyes widened slightly, as though he hadn’t expected this answer. Then, as if embarrassed, he pushed a strand of hair behind his ear.

“Well… occasionally.”

“There, you see? You deserve to think that. Your face is a national treasure,” I replied.

What was this? I hadn’t expected him to have a prince complex. That wasn’t part of his game character at all.

“And that’s the whole reason?” he asked.

“That’s it,” I confirmed.

“You avoided me because your heart would race too much?”

“Yes. The closer I got, the harder my heart pounded—like it was about to explode. So I tried to keep my distance. I didn’t want to die of a heart attack at a young age.”

It wasn’t even a lie. My detection skill made my heart pound like a drum whenever I was near him.

But… was this enough to satisfy him? Would this answer keep me alive?

As I nervously opened my eyes after a moment of hesitation, a notification flickered before me.

"Adrian's favorability has increased by 1."

"Current Favorability Level: 1 (3/400)"

What?

Stunned, I glanced at Adrian. His face was partially turned away, and the dim lighting made it hard to tell, but it almost looked like he was smiling.

Even such obvious flattery worked on him.

A demon who enjoyed compliments. Should I be relieved or despair at this discovery?

“Alright. You can go now,” he finally said.

He hadn’t so much as raised a hand, and yet he was letting me leave unscathed. The trade had been made; the exchange was fair. All that remained was for me to quietly retreat.

But…@@novelbin@@

“Master Adrian, before I go, there’s one last thing I’d like to say,” I began hesitantly.

“What is it?”

“The pillow… Would you mind throwing it away? If it’s okay with you, could you give it to me?”

“The pillow?” he echoed, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes. I drooled on it, so it might be unpleasant for you to use. But for me…” I trailed off.

“You claim you’re penniless.”

“I am. Search me, and if you find even 1 gold, I’ll take a beating for it.”

“And yet you’re asking to go into debt with me?”

“…”

“What makes you think you can afford the price of that debt, Hilda?”

“What are you going to ask for in return?” I shot back.

Ordinarily, I’d have run away out of sheer fear by now. But my attachment to that pillow kept me rooted to the spot.

Adrian tilted his head slightly, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

“I can’t sleep without six pillows,” he said nonchalantly.

Looking back at the bed, I saw six perfectly plump, white pillows arranged neatly.

My brow furrowed instinctively. Some people had six pillows while others didn’t even have one?

“What kind of… I mean, yes. Of course,” I muttered.

“Could you take the place of the missing pillow, then?” he asked softly, his voice like velvet, and his eyes curved into a smile that looked almost sweet.

The smile was as warm as a sunbeam, but it sent shivers down my spine.

Was he serious? What did he mean by taking the pillow’s place?

Was he going to skin me and stuff the case with my flesh?

“Master Adrian, I’m sure even drool-stained pillows are better for your sleep than… that,” I stammered.

“I don’t know. You seem soft and warm. It might be perfect,” he mused.

“I’m sorry! I’ll leave now!”

Trying to negotiate with a devil had been a foolish mistake.

A beautiful lunatic, that’s what he was. Of course, anyone who’d killed people before couldn’t possibly be in their right mind.

Backing away slowly, I put as much distance between us as I could before turning and bolting for the door.

I thought I heard a faint chuckle behind me, but it had to be my imagination. It had to be.

What was I thinking? How could I have fallen asleep there? I’d drawn more attention to myself than ever.

On my way back to my room, I tugged at my hair in frustration. My goal was to quietly gather clues and escape this game. Yet, looking back at my recent behavior, I hadn’t managed to stay under the radar even once.

Adrian, I suddenly remembered that the way I spoke and acted in front of him probably wasn’t how the real Hilda would have behaved. My stubborn determination not to lose any more money had ultimately overpowered my instinctive fear and dread.

Still, amidst all this, I was incredibly relieved about one thing: when I returned to my room, I didn’t see a notification demanding compensation for dirtying Adrian’s bedding. The six gold coins I received today, even after being reduced by 80%, felt like the most precious thing in the world.

If the system had demanded that I pay for Adrian’s bed, blanket, and pillow, there was no way I could have afforded it with my meager wages, even if I worked my entire life. At that point, I might have started dreaming of escaping the game with the desperation of a debtor fleeing loan sharks.

But thankfully, it worked out after talking to Adrian directly.

Though his question about "why I wasn't looking at him" didn’t exactly feel like an equal exchange for ruining his bedding.

It was unexpected that Adrian had noticed I was deliberately avoiding his gaze. I thought I was nothing more than “Maid Number 58” in his eyes. After all, there were so many maids in the household, and I was just an ordinary-looking one.

“Forget it. I’m tired. I’ll think about it after I get some sleep.”

Even though I’d gotten some rest in Adrian’s room, it wasn’t enough to fully recover from the level of exhaustion that had overridden my fear earlier. I planned to take off my dirtied work clothes, wash up, and finally lie down on my bed in a holy and reverent manner. But as soon as I moved toward the bed, something invisible pushed me in the opposite direction.

“You cannot lie down because you do not have a pillow.”

Oh, right. I forgot about that.

That damned white text was the root cause of all this trouble. If it hadn’t infuriated me in the first place, I wouldn’t have damaged my pillow out of frustration, and my stamina wouldn’t have skyrocketed. I wouldn’t have needed to sleep in Adrian’s room, drawn his attention, or reduced my survival odds in the future.

If my life ends up as "Stepping Stone #1 for Adrian's Return to Demonic Power," at least half the blame lies with this system.

“Did you hear that? If I die here, it’s at least half your fault!”

The system, silent as ever, didn’t respond, but I still berated it with every phrase I could muster. “This is all your fault,” “Do you even have a conscience?” “How could you let things get this bad and still deny me a pillow?” “You exploitative, cruel, swindling employer!” After venting every insult I knew, I felt slightly better. The system even seemed unusually quiet now.

“Okay, can I sleep on the bed now?”

After all that, surely it wouldn’t deny me again.

“You cannot lie down because you do not have a pillow.”

This system truly had no conscience. The frustration I felt now was worse than the time I spent $500 trying to draw a five-star character in a gacha game and got nothing.

“How am I supposed to find a pillow at this hour?!”

If I couldn’t sleep without a pillow tonight, my stamina would deplete, and I’d mess up tomorrow’s work. The system would probably penalize me again, taking my precious six gold coins. Then I’d have no money to buy a new pillow, and the cycle of misery would continue.

I needed to break this vicious cycle now.

Determined, I went to wake Emily, who was sound asleep.

“Hilda… are you serious right now?” she asked groggily.

“Uh, yeah. My memory’s been fuzzy lately, so I forgot. Sorry to wake you up.”

“You’re unbelievable…” Emily sighed, clearly too tired to argue.

“But why do you need Anna?”

“Well, I thought she might sell pillows.”

I remembered the white text suggesting that I could take my damaged pillow to Anna for repair. If she could fix a pillow, surely she could sell one, too.

“Hilda, Anna doesn’t sell pillows. She can sew them up if the seams are torn, though.”

“What? Then where can I buy one?”

“You’ll have to go to the village, of course.”

The village, huh…

“Thanks, Emily. Sorry for waking you.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Emily said with a gentle smile that warmed my heart. Her kindness made me feel guilty for taking advantage of her good nature, even unintentionally.

“Goodnight, Hilda. See you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight.”

After saying goodbye, I headed out of the maid’s quarters. My thoughts were heavy with guilt and determination. I wasn’t happy about using Hilda’s relationships like this, but right now, I had a bigger priority.

“Let’s focus on getting that pillow.”

The vast garden stretched endlessly before me as I walked toward the mansion’s main gate. I didn’t know how far I’d have to go to reach the village, but I didn’t hesitate. Whether I failed to sleep because I lacked a pillow or because I was out searching for one, the outcome would be the same. At least this way, there was a chance.

After walking until sweat beaded on my back, I finally reached the massive iron gate at the mansion’s entrance. The sharp, spear-like spikes at the top seemed to mock my efforts.

“You cannot leave the mansion.”

Peering up at the gate, I sighed as the system’s message confirmed my suspicion. Of course, it wouldn’t let me leave. This game wasn’t going to make anything easy.

“This can’t be happening!” I yelled, stomping back toward the dormitory.

The only upside to being a servant in this mansion was that we each had our own rooms, provided there was space. Privacy was nice, but sometimes it came with unexpected downsides…

Like overhearing strange noises in the middle of the night.

Late one evening, as I struggled to sleep, I heard faint moans through the open window. A mix of soft cries, wet smacks, and heated gasps filled the air.

“Ah, ahh, ohh!”

My face burned as I quickly shut the window. So much for this being a horror game! It was supposed to be brutal and terrifying, but instead, it seemed to be sneaking in some adult content.

Well, I couldn’t judge. After all, it wasn’t the Joseon Dynasty. People living in this isolated mansion were bound to form connections. If they didn’t get caught by Leticia, who was I to stop them?

At the time, I brushed it off and went back to sleep. But now, that memory gave me an idea. At night, at least one room would inevitably be left empty.

Like a predator stalking its prey, I opened my window and waited for the right moment.

When the air grew still and the mansion fell into deep silence, faint sounds of excitement began to trickle through. A door creaked open, and muffled voices echoed down the corridor.

“Ohh, yes… Don’t touch me there…”

The passionate moans continued, but I ignored them, creeping silently toward the hallway. A door near the end of the corridor was slightly ajar.

That was it.

Stifling my excitement, I moved carefully, avoiding any noise. Once I was sure the coast was clear, I slipped inside and found what I was looking for on the bed.

It wasn’t as grand as Adrian’s, but it was plump and soft enough to make my night infinitely better.

Grabbing the pillow, I rushed back to my room, heart pounding with the thrill of my little crime. The sounds of the couple’s fervent affair still echoed faintly outside my window as I hugged the pillow to my chest.

“This… this is heaven.”

Tears of joy filled my eyes as I buried my face into the pillow. No more suffering from lack of sleep or system harassment. Sure, the original owner might be annoyed, but I reasoned that NPCs existed to help players. This was just how the game worked, right?