Chapter 2

The Count’s Damnable Master (2)

Fortunately, it seemed that I had made the right choice, because she began speaking to me.

“My introduction is rather late. I am Isabella, and I manage the female servants of this estate. While you work here, you will probably see me second most often.”

“Then… who will I see the most?”

“Why, the master you will be serving, of course.”

It was the same thing the old gentleman had said earlier.

When I came here, I hadn’t known what kind of work I was being hired for. My money-hungry father hadn’t even bothered to ask, and since I had no choice but to follow, I hadn’t seen any reason to be curious.

Whatever the job was, even if it turned out to be something terrible, I would have had to go anyway.

“What should I call you, ma’am?”

“Just call me Isabella.”

“Yes, Lady Isabella.”

I committed her name to memory.

Then, realizing something, I quickly continued.

“I haven’t introduced myself properly either. I’m Paula.”

“All right, Paula. What can you do?”

“I can do simple household chores such as cleaning and laundry. I can also do basic calculations and read and write a little. You need to know the basics for handling money.”

“I see.”

Isabella’s response was rather indifferent.

Instead of reassuring me, it made me anxious.

What if she thinks I’m useless? What if she tells me to go back home?

I was frightened at the thought of being thrown out.

Isabella walked quite quickly ahead of me.

Worried that I might lose sight of her, I hurried my steps.

After following her around several corners, we eventually arrived in front of a door.

Just then, the door opened, and a young woman hurried out.

When she saw Isabella, she immediately stopped and bowed.

A brown-haired woman following behind her also hurriedly stopped with a startled expression and nodded her head.

“L-Lady Isabella.”

“I believe I told you not to run.”

“I’m sorry. I’m truly sorry.”

“Be careful from now on.”

Their cautious gazes shifted from Isabella to me standing behind her.

Just as I was about to meet their eyes, Isabella moved one step to the side, blocking me from their view.

Then she ordered them to return to their respective areas at once.

I watched them hurry away.

Meanwhile, Isabella opened the door and called for someone.

“Renika.”

“Yes, Lady Isabella.”

A tall woman with a mature air approached us.

Isabella pushed me gently forward by the back.

“Do you have any clothes that would fit this girl?”

Renika’s eyes traveled over me.

She seemed to consider it for a moment before nodding.

“She has a small frame. Nothing may fit her perfectly, but I think we have something close enough.”

“That’s good. There is no need for her to have a perfectly proper uniform.”

“Yes. Which area will she be assigned to?”

“She will be responsible for the master from now on.”

Perhaps the answer was unexpected, because Renika’s eyes widened.

Her surprised gaze swept over me again from head to toe.

Her reaction made me even more nervous, and I swallowed several times.

After a moment, Renika regained her composure, said she understood, and went back inside.

Not long afterward, she returned with a black dress.

She held it against my body.

Then she brought several more black dresses in different sizes, seemingly trying to determine which one would fit me.

Eventually, she handed one to me.

A pristine white apron and a pair of bloomers came with it as well.

“Your hair…”

Renika frowned as she looked at my long bangs covering my face.

I moved my lips, the only part of my face that wasn’t hidden.

Isabella looked at me for a moment before saying it was fine, then began walking again.

I waddled along behind her.

Isabella continued down the corridor.

I kept looking around curiously.

As we walked, I caught glimpses of people working inside rooms with open doors, around corners, and in various places along the hallways.

Whenever people coming from the opposite direction saw Isabella, they bowed deeply.

A somewhat noisy commotion echoed around us.

Then, little by little, the noise faded away, and silence returned.

Tap, tap, tap.

The steady, rhythmic sound of our footsteps was the only thing breaking the silence.

I tightly gripped the handle of my bag so I wouldn’t drop it and glanced at Isabella.

“Paula, how much were you told before coming here?”

“I was only told that you wanted to hire me.”

“Then you weren’t given any detailed explanation.”

“No.”

I answered while even nodding my head.

Isabella’s pace was still faster than what I considered a comfortable walking speed.

“This is the estate of the prestigious Bellunita family. From now on, Paula, you will be solely responsible for attending to the master of this estate, Lord Vincent Bellunita.”

“E-Everything? You mean… I’ll be doing it all by myself?”

“That is correct.”

For a moment, I was speechless.

As I followed her through the corridors, I had already seen quite a number of servants.

The coachman who had brought me here.

The gardener tending the perfectly maintained gardens.

The stable hands.

Men and women all dressed in identical uniforms.

And without even seeing them, I could tell there were probably many more servants besides them.

But I alone was supposed to attend to the master?

If he’s the master, doesn’t that mean he’s someone very important?

I debated whether I should ask or not.

Eventually, my lips parted.

“Um… are you really sure there isn’t anyone else?”

“There isn’t. If you need anything, tell me immediately.”

“Will I really be able to do it alone? He is the master, after all.”

In the end, I couldn’t stop myself from saying something I probably shouldn’t have.

Isabella’s footsteps abruptly stopped.

I walked straight into her back and stopped as well.

When Isabella turned around and looked at me, her expression was still completely blank.

“Paula. Listen carefully. From now on, you will attend to the master alone, and there will be no additional staff assigned to you.

“If you dislike that arrangement, I recommend that you leave this estate now.

“The same applies if you lack confidence in your ability.

“If you later start complaining about how difficult it is, you will not escape punishment.”

Isabella calmly warned me.

If you don’t think you can do it, leave now.

Her heavy warning made me press my trembling lips tightly together.

And then I realized something.

I must never complain about the difficulty of the job again.

I bowed deeply at the waist.

“I’m sorry. I’ll be more careful from now on.”

Fortunately, Isabella didn’t say anything else and turned around again.

I straightened my back and hurried after her.

“As long as you are careful in everything you do, there shouldn’t be anything particularly difficult.”

“Yes.”

That was the end of our conversation.

No more words followed.

A little while later, I saw a door.

It was smaller than the entrance we had used when I first entered the estate.

Is there another entrance at the back?

I followed Isabella through the door and stepped outside the mansion.

A vast garden stretched out to one side, so wide that I couldn’t even see where it ended.

The greenery was lush and vibrant.

“Wow…”

A gasp of admiration escaped me before I could stop it.

I’d caught only brief glimpses of it from the carriage, but now that I could see it properly, the beautifully maintained garden was breathtaking.

I became so absorbed in the view that I lost track of Isabella.

When I finally noticed her walking ahead alone, I hurriedly came to my senses and rushed after her.

I was curious where we were going, but since she said nothing, I had no choice but to silently follow.

If I asked unnecessarily, I felt like I would only hear another unpleasant reprimand.

Isabella headed toward the back of the estate.

A small mansion came into view in the distance.

I suppose that’s where we’re going.

The distance looked so far that walking there seemed exhausting already.

But instead of taking the obvious path, Isabella led me in another direction.

Toward the forest beside the mansion.

I followed Isabella through the bushes.

By the time my legs began to tingle from exhaustion, we finally emerged from the forest.

We were already standing in front of the mansion.

Wait… how?

Surprised, I turned around and looked back at the bushes we’d just come through.

Was that some kind of shortcut?

Then I turned my attention back to the mansion in front of me.

It seemed to be a separate annex, as it was smaller than the main mansion we’d just left.

However, to my eyes, both mansions looked equally enormous and luxurious.

Once we entered, I sensed an even quieter atmosphere than before.

The main mansion had already seemed unusually quiet compared to the number of people I’d seen, but here, it was so gloomy and still that I couldn’t even tell whether anyone lived here.

“Only the minimum number of servants stay here.”

Ah. So I wasn’t imagining it.

I nodded in response.

Isabella walked to the end of the corridor and climbed the stairs.

“Breakfast will be prepared at six in the morning, lunch at noon, and dinner at six in the evening.

“At the proper times, collect the meals from the kitchen and bring them to the master.

“Dessert is served with lunch, so make sure to bring that to him as well.

“And pay particular attention to cleanliness.

“The bed sheets must be changed every morning, and the same applies to his clothes.

“Gather the laundry from the previous day all at once and bring it to the back door of the annex every morning.”

“Yes.”

“Basic supplies are prepared here, but if you need anything else, tell me. I will do my best to prepare it.

“The same goes for anything difficult you encounter.”

“Yes.”

“One more thing. Everything must be dealt with in a single attempt.

“Do not leave something unfinished and then return later to complete it.

“The master is particularly sensitive about such things, so you must be as careful as possible.

“Act as though there is no one beside you.”

“Understood.”

I repeatedly nodded as I committed her words to memory.

Act as though there is no one beside you.

That was the easiest thing in the world for me.

After climbing another flight of stairs, we passed through the corridor and stopped in front of the very last room.

“Lastly, I have one more thing to tell you.”

Before opening the door, Isabella turned back toward me.

I glanced at the door over her shoulder and took one step backward.

“From this moment on, you must keep everything you see and hear to yourself.

“Be careful even with the smallest remark you make, and no matter what you see or hear, do not show any reaction.

“Do not pay close attention to anything, either.

“If you carelessly let your tongue run, it will not end with a simple punishment.

“Do you understand?”

It was an unexpected warning.

But even that was as easy for me as breathing.

“Yes. I’ll keep that in mind.”

When I answered firmly, Isabella turned around and slowly knocked on the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

She waited for the master’s response.

But no sound came from inside.

Perhaps accustomed to such a reaction, Isabella knocked once again.

Knock, knock, knock.

“I’m coming in, Master.”

There was still no permission to enter, but Isabella skillfully turned the doorknob.

Creeeak—

Darkness spilled through the opening door.

The room was completely shrouded in darkness, so dark that I couldn’t see even a step ahead.

The air was also cold, and there was a strange smell.

I covered my nose and frowned.

Then I quickly relaxed my expression.

She told me not to react to anything.

I cautiously glanced at Isabella.

Fortunately, she wasn’t looking at me.

I lowered my hand and held my breath as much as possible.

But the moment Isabella took one step into the room—

Crash!

“Gasp!”

Something suddenly flew toward us and smashed against the wall.

I instinctively covered my head with both arms and crouched down.

When nothing else came flying, the surroundings became quiet again.

Only then did I cautiously open my eyes.

Unlike me, Isabella hadn’t moved an inch. She was still standing exactly as she had been before.

Broken pieces of glass were scattered beside her shoes.

It had been a glass cup.

I stared wide-eyed at the shards before looking back up at Isabella.

She took another step.

Once again, something shot out of the darkness and struck the wall.

Thwack!

Something fell to the floor with a dull sound.

It was a pillow.

What the hell is this?

I straightened my crouched body and looked around the room.

It was still pitch-black, but by then my eyes had grown accustomed to the darkness.

And they finally caught sight of a vague figure.