Chapter 50

The housekeeper was shocked to see us return earlier than expected.

"Why are you here at this hour... Goodness, you must have caused trouble again!"

This was a moment to confirm the housekeeper's dismal trust in me.

That night, after Luga returned to the Eshula mansion.

I informed the housekeeper of everything that had happened at the noble assembly.

The meeting with Count Rosebell, the connections with Jager and Volkwin, the upper-class factions, the argument with the Sword Saint, the terrorist attack at the Irigel villa, the appearance of Raphaelo...

The duel with Jin was no different.

If I tried to vaguely hide a few facts and was caught later, it would be impossible to restore broken trust. The trust I had now wasn't particularly useful, but still.

However, there was one thing.

'The fact that the Sword Saint is the client should be kept hidden for now.'

It's not that I wanted to hide it; I just lacked the evidence to show the housekeeper.

I should be satisfied with just hinting at it.

"Miss Daisy, you beat a famous swordsman like Jin Berkeleygretton? How did you manage that?"

"Like this."

I shook my fist, and the housekeeper fell silent, looking somewhat convinced.

"...Right. You, who can send a grown man flying with a single gesture, could certainly handle a young swordsman."

That's different. People who don't practice swordsmanship think it's all about strength. Let it be.

"There were many incidents. I didn't expect a terrorist attack to happen at the Irigel villa. I'm glad you returned safely, Miss Daisy."

Nod.

"Regarding the visit to the Janail duchy by Sir Weatherwode... It's water under the bridge. We need to coordinate our stories in various aspects."

"Being close to Raphaelo, or rather, the Janail duchy, doesn't seem to be beneficial."

"Janail is, without a doubt, the greatest war hero of the Allied Forces. He is even the de facto leader of the noble assembly. His instincts are very sharp. It wouldn't be strange for him to be suspicious of the Weatherwode family."

Unexpectedly, the housekeeper didn't say a word about my background.

After all, with the gravity of the immediate situation, it was too much to nitpick over such details.

After meeting the Sword Saint and Raphaelo, I had a small doubt that I hadn't had before.

'How long can the Weatherwode family hide the absence of its master?'

Officially, the head of the Weatherwode family is Sir Gray Weatherwode.

This figure, whom even the housekeeper firmly believed in, was revealed to be a fictional character through Dian Ket's eye.

Therefore, the Weatherwode family was essentially without a master.

"Housekeeper."

The housekeeper, lost in deep thought, looked at me.

"Speak."

"Who pays our salary?"

"Salary? It's sent by our Weatherwode family, of course."

"But Sir Weatherwode doesn't exist. How can we receive a salary without a master?"

The housekeeper closed her mouth, looking caught off guard.

"That's..."

I showed her the trace of the oath. The housekeeper, looking at it with a complicated expression, sighed softly.

"...Ah. Now that it's come to this, I can't hide it anymore. Well, there is an elder who looks after the welfare of the Weatherwode family."

"Count Rosebell?"

"No. The elder resides in Westwintree, located in the western part of Midwintree. It's time for a visit. I can send you instead."

Westwintree?

I silently rejoiced. Westwintree is one of the reasons I settled in Midwintree, isn't it?

'They say Dian Ket's relics are displayed in a private exhibition there.'

I should steal them while I'm there.

Since the probability of them already being stolen is high. There's nothing more righteous than stealing from a thief.

Thus, the short meeting for the future of the Weatherwode family ended, and we were about to return to our respective bedrooms.

The housekeeper stopped me as I climbed the stairs.

"...Miss Daisy, may I ask one more question?"

Here it comes.

I nodded solemnly.

"Speak."

The housekeeper's brow furrowed immediately.

"Speak? What kind of tone is that? Never mind that. ...What do you think of Mr. Luga?"

"Mr. Luga?"

"From your story, I have doubts about Mr. Luga. I know his magical abilities and wealth are astonishing. But I didn't expect him to own an airship. His boldness at the noble assembly also surprised me."

"..."

"Why is such a person working for the Weatherwode family?"

I've asked myself that question a hundred times.

"Doesn't Mr. Luga seem dangerous to you? Could he have infiltrated the mansion to cause harm?"

Is the housekeeper talking about Luga's potential betrayal?

'Even after sharing the oath, she must be quite worried.'

Traitors usually have two faces.

They either have an unhidden, desperate desire.

Or they are preoccupied with hiding their secrets.

But Luga didn't fit either of these profiles. I couldn't sense any grand purpose or desire from him.

He's definitely looking for Dian Ket's relics...

'But it doesn't feel like a crucial goal for him.'

Moreover, Luga never seemed preoccupied with hiding his secrets. This was the part of Luga that I found most puzzling.

'If you're curious about my identity and purpose, make a flower bloom.'

He showed his magical abilities without hesitation and didn't hide the attitudes of those who followed him on the airship.

Isn't it essentially a play on words?

"Mr. Luga said he's over a hundred years old."

Actually, he's over 150, but I lowered it to protect Luga's privacy.

The housekeeper asked, surprised.

"Mr. Luga really said that?"

"Yeah. I don't know much else about him. But Mr. Luga has never lied to me."

...Has he?

"I have a trauma from the past, and Mr. Luga helped me overcome it relatively easily. He also helped me with self-reflection."

...But didn't he cause me more trouble?

"Anyway, Mr. Luga may be suspicious, but I don't think he's dangerous. The Janail duke and the Sword Saint are more dangerous. That's for sure."

Why am I defending that crazy guy? I felt my energy drain.

The housekeeper, puzzled by the sudden mention of the Sword Saint, asked me.

"By Sword Saint, do you mean Duke Berkeleygretton? Why?"

"I think he's after Dian Ket's relics."

"Are you sure?"

"No. It's just a feeling."

So, believe it or not, it's up to the housekeeper. At least for now, there's no evidence.

She seemed ready to press further, so I yawned widely, pretending to be extremely tired, and hurried back to my bedroom.

I lay down on the bed, closing my eyes.

'Home is the best. Outside is dangerous.'

A sweet, comforting feeling enveloped me, something I couldn't feel on the airship.

But as always, it took a long time to fall into a proper sleep.

The next day.

I started my day by taking care of the small, cute 'potted Lugas' as usual.

The first thing I did upon returning home was not investigating Rogui, meeting the butler assassin, or attending the 20-minute daily lesson with the housekeeper.

It was cleaning.

Cleaning and laundry are the duties and purpose of a maid.

And... my job!

"Miss Daisy, there's a lot of work piled up while you were away. Let's try our best again."

"Yes."

I worked like a slave for the first time in a long while.

Dusting the few remaining paintings in the house, cleaning the frames, reinstalling them, dusting the second-floor staircase handrails and steps, cleaning them with a brush, washing the bedding of the unused bedrooms, dusting endlessly, cleaning the window frames, cleaning the windows, dusting the floors, cleaning them with a brush, oiling them...

"Mi."

It's my home.

I realized I was a slave maid in this house after a very long time.

I ate the delicious dinner Luga made, and around midnight, I was going to go to the pub to meet the butler assassin.

But I just fell asleep.

It was a long time since I had a proper sleep at the Weatherwode mansion.

The next day.

After the morning chores ended a bit early, 20 minutes before lunch.

The housekeeper's social and public ethics lesson began.

The social and public ethics lesson was an education created by the housekeeper when I reached a state of mind-body unity.

But today, I had no intention of listening to such a boring human lesson.

Before her lesson began, I quickly raised my hand and asked another question.

"What is Rogui?"

"Yes."

The housekeeper, who had been looking at me seriously, finally nodded after a while.

"Alright, today's lesson will be a common knowledge lesson. I didn't expect Miss Daisy to not know about Rogui. We should have covered this earlier."

Phew. I'm glad the housekeeper didn't question my level of common knowledge.

I guess it's natural for me to seem stupid.