Chapter 87

Due to Harold’s sudden summons, I quickly moved to the 3rd floor of the mansion as soon as I finished preparing Ethan’s bath.

Harold summoned me for a one-on-one meeting with him, which I hadn’t had in a long time.

In a state where I couldn’t shake off the lingering tension no matter when I faced him, I quietly knocked on the door of the 3rd-floor office three times.

Knock, knock, knock.

“…Come in.”

As soon as I opened the door and stepped inside, I felt an overwhelming atmosphere.

I quietly walked into the heavy space that was always difficult to breathe in.

For some reason, instead of dragging it out while doing other things as usual, Harold spoke first and presented his business.

“Sorry for calling you over and causing you trouble.”

“…No. I am Young Master Ethan’s exclusive maid, so of course, I have to respond if the Lord of the Blackwood family calls, don’t I?”

“But it seems that that exclusive maid job only has about ten days left now. Isn’t that right?”

“…That’s right.”

“Even I didn’t predict that the reward from the Imperial Palace would be used to pay off your father’s debt. Isn’t that so, Miss Lilith Rosewood?”

“…I didn’t either.”

…As expected, he’s persistent about it.

Perhaps because my actions at the Imperial Palace were too flashy, it was virtually impossible to completely hide all of those secrets.

Thanks to Seraphine, I somehow received the reward for slaying the King Serpent, but due to my affiliation, it had to go through the Blackwood family first. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

Moreover, there was no way Harold, who manages most of the Blackwood Estate’s operations, wouldn’t have noticed my activities.

In other words, the fact that I used magic to slay the King Serpent had already reached his ears.

‘He hasn’t said anything about it until now, so I’ve been not mentioning it deliberately.’

Why is he suddenly bringing up the subject of me paying off my debt when he called me here?

Wasn’t it because of my recent work attitude that he called me? Was that just an excuse?

“Lilith Rosewood.”

“Y-Yes!”

“I heard that because you used magic to slay the King Serpent, Ethan was able to overcome a moment when he was in danger.”

“Ah, no. It was Princess Seraphine, the Third Princess, who saved Young Master Ethan, and I just followed Her Highness’ orders…”

“Hmm? So are you saying that Princess Seraphine lied to me?”

“Ah, no! Absolutely not!”

“It’s true that Ethan was safe because you used magic, right?”

“…That’s right.”

I barely escaped the moment of almost disrespecting the Imperial Family and driving a wedge between nobles by saying the wrong word, and I mentally calmed my startled heart.

This guy, Harold, won’t even allow me to be humble.

“So, Lilith Rosewood.”

“Y-Yes!”

“Do you have any intention of continuing to work as Ethan’s exclusive maid even after the contract ends?”

“…Pardon?”

…What is he suddenly talking about?

Harold suddenly brought up the topic of a contract extension…

…and it’s about being Ethan’s exclusive maid?

“Although I initially hired you as a debt maid, I feel that your talent is a bit of a waste to end the contract like this.”

“Is-is that so…?”

“Since you became Ethan’s exclusive maid, that child has truly changed a lot. If it weren’t for you, Ethan might still be going astray while longing for his mother.”

“You-you flatter me…”

“But as Ethan’s father, I can’t help but worry, especially when I think about him entering the academy next year.”

“I-I understand your concern.”

“Even though Ethan will turn 23 next year, excluding the time he was asleep due to the curse, he’s still only in his late teens. I’m wondering if that child can get along well with other students at the academy, and I’d like you to assist him a little more, at least during that period.”

“……”

“I’d like to ask what you think about it.”

The eligible age for enrollment in Luminor Academy is from 18 to 23 years old.

Whether noble or commoner, since they have to take and pass a proper entrance exam to enter the academy, it’s not uncommon for even high-ranking nobles to fail in their 1st or 2nd year.

So the actual average age of freshmen entering the academy is a little over 19 years old.

If Ethan enters the academy next year, he will be enrolling at the age of 23, but excluding the time he was asleep due to the curse, he’s actually close to the minimum enrollment age.

As someone who knows the extent of Harold’s love for his family, it’s not that strange for him to worry about Ethan like this.

That’s why he’s trying to keep me as an exclusive maid a little longer, somehow.

After all, it’s an undeniable fact that I’ve been serving Ethan since he was young until now.

…The problem was how far Harold was thinking when he offered me this contract.

If I had hastily asked just after hearing the offer to take on the exclusive maid position for Ethan, my plan might have been disrupted from another angle. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

What I wanted to do was to ‘gain the status of a viscount’s daughter,’ ‘enroll in the Magic Department of the academy,’ and ‘maintain the position of Ethan’s exclusive maid’ in that situation.

If he told me to give up the first two for the sake of focusing on being Ethan’s exclusive maid, of course, I couldn’t readily accept it.

So, before discussing Ethan’s exclusive maid position, I needed to clearly convey the things I’d mentioned earlier.

“You may already know this, master, but I have already received the grace of Young Master Ethan…”

“To temporarily receive the position of a noble in a Blackwood branch family and take the entrance exam for the Magic Department of Luminor Academy.”

“…That’s right.”

“I don’t mind that either. As long as you’re confident that you can fulfill the role of Ethan’s exclusive maid even as a fellow student.”

“…Pardon?”

“Of course, if you act as Ethan’s exclusive maid as a noble lady, it will hinder your marriage prospects with other lords, so that’s something you’ll have to bear if you accept.”

…What? Why is he so cool about it?

I thought he would definitely refuse, saying something like, ‘Will you have time to focus on your studies while serving as my son’s exclusive maid?’

It’s rather suspicious that such good conditions are continuously being offered to me for no reason.

There was no reason for Harold to show such favor to me without any benefit to himself.

He’s a character who is endlessly soft only to his ‘family,’ like his wife and children, but he normally shows little interest and a cold reaction to other people.

…Even if it’s Lilith, who has spent a long time as Ethan’s exclusive maid.

“…And, your salary will be this much per month.”

Clink.

I momentarily thought that he would dismiss the monthly salary with a few silver  coins because it’s an exclusive maid job combined with studies.

…But as soon as I saw the three  gold coins placed on the  desk, my mind started spinning quickly.

“Three gold coins per month. And if you take on the role of Ethan’s exclusive maid for all four years, I’ll add four more gold coins per year.”

…What?

Wait, three gold coins a month?

How much is three gold coins a month in this world?

One gold  coin is roughly the monthly living expenses for a family of four, so let’s say it’s worth about 3 million won (T/N: approximately $2,200).

If there are 3 such  gold coins coins per month, it amounts to nearly 10 million won (T/N: approximately $7,200) based on the standards of my previous world.@@novelbin@@

In other words, the annual salary is effectively 40 gold coins, and since this is for a total of 4 years, that’s 160 gold coins in total.

Even excluding the tuition, living expenses, and other miscellaneous costs of “Luminor Academy,” I could calculate that almost 100 gold coins would be accumulated in my hands.

Just by attending the academy and taking care of Ethan, upon graduation, I’ll have 100  gold coins coins.

It would be an absolute loss not to accept such an offer. What kind of fool would refuse 100 gold coins that come into their hands?

It’s the basic startup capital that you can start anything with as soon as you graduate from the academy!

‘…Still. Let’s calm down for now.’

Think rationally, Lilith. There’s no way that Harold would make such a favorable offer to me without any benefit to himself.

It must be an offer with a trap somewhere.

Perhaps if I readily accept it, I might be bound by a contract that’s neither this nor that and continue a forced contract life no different from a debt maid, or he might try to employ me at a much lower amount by mentioning breach of contract. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

Was there anything in what Harold just said that could be interpreted in a different way?

Enrolling in the academy with Ethan, working as Ethan’s exclusive maid, with an annual salary of 36  gold coins coins…

If I do well as Ethan’s exclusive maid, an additional 16  gold coins coins will be given, and according to his words about enrolling together, Harold will probably guarantee the viscount status as well.

…No matter how I think about it, isn’t this offer too good to be true just for me?

Moreover, being Ethan’s exclusive maid was something I wanted from the beginning, and in this situation, I’m getting an unexpected bonus, so there’s no reason for me to refuse…

‘…Ah.’

Ah, right.

I almost forgot about it.

The fact that whether I can become Ethan’s exclusive maid or not is not enough with just Harold’s permission.

No matter how much I want to be Ethan’s exclusive maid, if Ethan himself refuses, this contract and everything else will become meaningless.

Since Harold readily agrees to whatever Ethan says anyway, I had to convince Ethan rather than him. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

For that, I didn’t have the luxury of spending time here discussing this with Harold.

I have to go back to Ethan as soon as possible and somehow convince him to make me his exclusive maid again.

It wasn’t impossible for the contract to be terminated overnight by Ethan if I finished the contract here with Harold and felt relieved.

For now, I bowed my head in front of Harold and indirectly expressed my answer that I would persuade Ethan.

“I am truly grateful for your words, master…”

“You… are you perhaps rejecting my offer now?”

“…I think it should be up to Young Master Ethan, and not you, master, to decide on his exclusive maid.”

“…Hmm?”

“I also want to continue my duties as Young Master Ethan’s exclusive maid, but since it seems that the young master hasn’t made up his mind yet, would you please wait for him to choose his exclusive maid himself?”

“…Yes, come to think of it, you’re right.”

‘…Phew.’

Now, it’s completely certain that I just need to convince Ethan.

From now on, all that remains is to clearly appeal my excellence as an exclusive maid to Ethan more than ever.

“Ethan is also growing up now, so as you said, I can’t decide on his exclusive maid without getting his opinion.”

“That’s right, master.”

“Alright. Then I’ll ask Ethan separately next time. Wait until a conclusion is reached for now.”

“Thank you for your words, master.”

“Then go ahead.”

“I will take my leave, master.”

After bowing to convey my gratitude for Harold’s words, I hurriedly left his private office.

As soon as I left his office, the first thing I did was search for Ethan, who would have finished his bath by now. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

I needed to firmly make up his mind as soon as possible before Harold called Ethan separately and asked about his exclusive maid.

‘Ah.’

Fortunately, I found Ethan talking to someone in the servants’ room on the same floor as Harold’s office on the third, and I walked briskly to where Ethan was to get a definite answer from him about his exclusive maid.

…Until the unidentified silhouette talking to Ethan turned into the face of the person I knew best.

“…Young Master Ethan.”

“…Right. So to you…”

‘Isabel…? Why is Isabel talking with Ethan…?’

It didn’t seem like Isabel usually talked to Ethan that often. What’s going on?

Feeling uneasy for some reason, I quietly hid near Ethan and Isabel and began eavesdropping on their conversation. [GalaxyTL/Axiomatic]

Soon, I was engulfed in a shocking feeling at my heart sinking momentarily at the unbelievable words that came out of Isabel’s mouth.

“…Me, as your exclusive maid?”

‘…What?’

…Isabel?

Why are you being offered that position?