CHAPTER 9

That gaze which had once despised Penelope was now quivering at the ton, and was to me a gratifying sight.

I changed the smile on my face and said with a serious expression and low voice.

“Need I tell you I have a sore throat.”

This is an expression that is widely used by superior nobles, to whom there are no nobles higher up than them to honor.

As an example, Duke Eckhardt, the sword of the empire, doesn’t have to venerate any nobles other than members of the royal family.

“Non, I’m very sorry, miss.”

The butler immediately understood the meaning of those words.

He immediately knelt down on the floor as if the person who just brushed in front of me and stood in front of me wasn’t the same person as the one kneeling on the floor right now

“That, I made a mistake because I was in too much of a hurry. Please forgive me, I ……”

This scene in front of me lifted my spirits, and the depressing feeling I had from morning until bedtime was now replaced by this refreshing feeling.

It occurred to me after a few moments that perhaps this was too much for someone older than me, but still I did not call him up.

Not only because Penelope had been ignored by this man for the past six years, but also because she had to live her life looking at this man’s face.

“…… For the time being, don’t want to see your face, steward.”

I said as I looked at him with cold and scornful eyes.

“Of course, I don’t think I’m the only one who feels that way.”

It was only when I turned my back to him that I was able to say what I really wanted to say as I pleased.

“So if you want to ask anything about me, just send someone else, you don’t have to come yourself.”

“But my lady, the matter of choosing a new maid is my duty ……”

“Yes, or no.”

“The only answer I want to hear is one of the two.”

“…… Yes, I understand, my lady.”

The butler’s face visibly scrunched up as he answered.

“But for dinner you intend to ……”

“I don’t need it, get out.”

Taking this as my last word to him, I turned away, not even bothering to look at the butler as he rose.

Soon I heard his footsteps leaving the room.

Ahem …… Ming closed, in a different way than when he had just period just.

The room was once again dragonized by darkness. Thinking back on what I had just done, I felt a pang of worry. What if the butler reported everything to the Duke?

“So what?”

Even so, there’s nothing he can do.

There’s nothing I can do at the moment, but I can repeat what I just did over and over again if I can help Penelope get rid of her old grudge.

Besides, it was only a verbal scolding on my part; I was neither fussing nor shouting or throwing things around.

While playing the game, you can improve your reputation by improving your interpersonal relationships with those around you.

These reputations can later help unlock all the endings for the five characters.

Unfortunately, I don’t intend to do that in the same way I play the game in reality.

Because I don’t need to see all the endings. It would just be a waste to inflict feelings on people who had no use for me.

”I don’t need fame or anything! I’m too busy maintaining the goodwill of five characters just to survive!”

These were all extravagant things that only came with playing a game.

I closed my eyes once again and put all my thoughts aside.

It was time to make up for my sleep time, after all, my sleep time was interrupted by Penelope’s dreams and housekeeper.

Compared to her personality, Penelope seems to be a diligent person, even if she doesn’t have a maid to wake up the ground in the morning, her eyes sleep open early.

I got up from the bed and stretched a little.

Just then, someone knocked on the door of my room, as if they had been waiting for me to wake up.

Knock Knock ……

A moment later, I was still sitting on the edge of my bed, watching the door.

Because I was curious if my warning last night had really worked.

What was certain, though, was that it wasn’t the butler knocking. Because even after a period of time when no one responded, the door to the room didn’t suddenly open.

“Who is it?”

Finally, I spoke up and inquired who it was.

“Miss, I’m Reina.”

It’s the head waitress, it seems the method I used yesterday was quite effective, what a satisfying result.

“Come in.”

The door opened and a middle-aged woman entered my room.

“Did you sleep well?”

“What can I do for you?”

“I’ve come to ask Miss about a new valet, and would like to ask if you have someone in mind?”

‘It’s strange that there would be.’

I thought in my mind and didn’t answer the head maid’s question.

Then she spoke again, just as I expected.

The words that came out of her mouth made me even more certain that no one would volunteer to be my personal maid.

“If you don’t have a favorite, then I’ll pick a new one for you ……”

“What was the name of the original girl who served me?”

“Are you referring to Emily?”

“Ah, yes, Emily.”

“Has she been thrown out of the dukedom?”

“No, not thrown out, but ……”

“Then what does she do now?”

The head waitress had a puzzled look in her eyes, as if wondering why I would ask her such a question.

“…… Since she didn’t serve the young lady properly, she was punished by having her salary deducted for three months and negatively cleaning her clothes.”

“Is that so?”

“But why did you ……”

An anxious look began to surface on her face, just as her mask of confidence began to shatter.

‘It looks like she knew exactly what was going on back then.’

Or yes, she could be the real instigator hiding behind that maid.

I put those suspects aside and said in a calm tone.

“Tell her I want her to remain my maid.”

“. . what?”

“It’s a great inconvenience for me to have no one to serve me now. Anyway, with a new serving girl selected, it will take time before she learns the rules. If that’s the case, the maid who served me earlier was more experienced and would do a better job than the new one.”

If it was Penelope, she wouldn’t be bothered by these extra details.

But since this was a request I made, I decided to pay more attention to this matter.

“If you understand, then bring her here as I requested, and I’ll leave this matter to you.”

I said with a smile to the head waitress who didn’t say a word and whose jaw was about to drop in shock.

“But, but, miss. Emily offended Miss, and besides, Young Master Leonard punished that child, so ……”

“So, you can’t do it?”

I asked, interrupting her excuses.

The head waitress closed her mouth and once again fell into silence. It seemed like this thing was going pretty well.

Though it was just one of those things where the karma people in this room never listened to what Penelope commanded.

‘Do they always do things like this?’

In the novels or movies I’ve read before, class society is absolutely obedient to the orders of their superiors.

But in the ordinary mode it wasn’t the case like I’m in now. I remembered that no matter what the heroine asked for, everyone in the dukedom obeyed her.

However, after the head maid was silent for a while, I began to feel abhorrence of fire.

“You’d better bring the people while I’m talking properly …….”

I even tsunted her up. Or do I have to act like Penelope did before?

“I thought I felt inconvenienced. I expected you to do so, and you’re going to bring her here, or does the head waitress want to serve me herself?”

“I will bring her here, my lady, after seeking permission from the Lord Duke.”

At the end of the day she still didn’t want to do what I said, and her righteous attitude couldn’t help but make me laugh out loud.

“No, you don’t have to do that. I’m going to Father right now at once.”

I got up from the bed.

“Now that that’s done, I’ll go before Father and tell him in detail what happened yesterday and show him that I’ve forgiven Emily.”

“Where is father now?”

“Little, young lady!”

When the head maid saw me preparing to leave, her eyes widened.

What was originally settled by punishing a maid of honor in a small way, if I intervened in it, then things could have gotten out of hand.

After all, that maid had offended the duke’s daughter, and the duke’s second son had witnessed it.

“Duke, Duke-sama has already left for the palace earlier.”

“Is that so? When father returns later in the evening ……”

“I’ll bring Emily here immediately!”

The head waiter said in a panic, seemingly very worried that I would go to father.

“Old age is always worrying, and I’m very sorry for not immediately understanding my lady’s kindness.”

Looking at the head maid who repeatedly bowed in front of me, it was more like bitter warmth than pain.

Although I don’t intend to rely on the people around me to raise my reputation, I can feel that at this moment my reputation is going negative.

“Shall I bring Emily here now? Miss.”

The head waitress asked, alarmed and cautious.

“I hope this doesn’t happen again, Reina.”

I told her while thinking about how my wonderful day had been ruined by her.

“Get out.”

Not knowing what she heard from the head waitress, Emily immediately came to my room with breakfast.

“Little, miss. I prepared breakfast, breakfast ……”

Emily’s hand that was setting the meal in front of me was shaking her head violently, as if what happened yesterday had caused her to suffer a lot mentally.

The food on my plate looked pretty good today, and it seemed as if yesterday’s frantic act of eating all that rotten food had been worth it.

Fresh salad and juicy steak.

”It looks pretty good.”

But I don’t know if it’s because yesterday’s shock is still fresh in my mind, but I have no interest at all in these delicacies.

I slowly brought the food into my mouth and gazed at Emily who stood stiffly beside me.

Her eyes never dared to look at me.

‘Feeling guilty maybe?’

Emily was probably wondering very much why I’d chosen her as my valet again.

I ended up putting down my fork before I was even halfway through my meal and called out to her.

“Emily.”

“Yes.”

Absorbed in her thoughts she startled and answered me in a very loud voice.

I held out a hand to her.

“Give me that pin.”

“Hmm? What ……”

“The same pin you use to stab me every morning.”

“Scary!”

I said in a calm tone, and Emily’s reaction was a step late, I don’t know if she didn’t understand what I said right away.

She was breathing heavily, turning blue, and scrambling to her knees on the floor.

Thump, thump. She apologized to me while kowtowing on the floor.

‘Honestly, why do something like that when you have to apologize for everything like that?”

On the one hand, I was speechless at Emily’s timid appearance, and on the other hand, learning that the mastermind of the abuse wasn’t her, my mood became very bad.

Any thoughts of treating her well dissipated. Then a sharp and dangerous voice came out of my mouth.

“Haven’t you heard from the head waitress? I don’t like to say the same thing twice”

“Little, miss ……”

“Give me that pin.”