Chapter 44

"Did you hear? Our young lady seems to have gotten herself into trouble. Apparently, she did something bad to the Holy Maiden."

"I know! The Holy Maiden was Nella, right?"

"Really!? If that's the case, it's her own fault. She did such terrible things. Nella was so brave. Poor thing."

"Indeed. Besides, to go against the Holy Maiden. Rumor has it that beheading might even be possible."

"Oh no, how scary. ...But maybe I feel a bit relieved. You know, with those big, round eyes. I was always scared whenever I saw her."

"True. If she's gone, it's a relief..."

It was a hushed rumor. Clutching their cleaning tools, the young women whispered to each other. "Hey, you two," the two jumped. Then, seeing who it was, they sighed in relief. "It's just Mari." "Don't scare us like that," they pouted.

"Have you heard about the young lady? It's shocking, isn't it? There are soldiers everywhere, and everyone is on edge. It's unbearable."

"Really, it's unbearable," they said in unison, glancing at the soldiers passing by and falling silent. Those soldiers were there to prevent the eldest daughter of the Heathfen family from escaping. Once they passed, they let out a breath. Mari looked at her colleagues with a dispirited gaze. Sighing, she was about to leave when one of them called out, "By the way, aren't you relieved too, Mari?"

"Relieved?"

"Because! Didn't you become Nella's maid next? It was tough, wasn't it? I heard you spilled tea and got really angry. It was so frustrating."

"True. I was scared and couldn't say anything, but I always wanted her to disappear. Everyone in the Heathfen family is so kind, except for the young lady."

"Speaking of which, now that the young lady is in this situation, the Heathfen family might also face some punishment."

"I don't know. But Lord Fiel is a fine person, and Lady Rabi is just possessed by a demon. I hope they consider these factors... What will happen to us from now on?"

"Oh, if only she had disappeared on her own!"

The gossip continued nonstop. Suddenly, Mari felt a strange sensation. She was so unpleasant and unbearable.

"Stop it!"

It took a moment to realize that the voice was hers. Clenching the broom until her palms turned white, she found herself trembling. Not only Mari was surprised; the two girls in front of her also gaped at her. "S-stop it..." She panicked and glared at them.

"How long are you going to slack off? If you two don't hurry up, it won't be done even after the sun sets! If you keep talking nonsense, I'll report you to the head maid!"

With that, she immediately left the scene. "How scary. She's too serious," they mocked her. Her frustration wasn't just from their words. "What do you mean, 'disappear on her own'?"

Are you relieved? Indeed, the words she heard were true. She was the daughter of a duke, yet her hairstyle was strange, and she never let anyone make her look beautiful. She would spill the tea she brewed and often thought about how to get rid of her. Moreover, she sometimes wandered around at midnight, acting suspiciously, and seemed different. She even thought the name "witch" suited her.

But every morning, they would meet and talk. Despite the rumors that she was crazy, when they talked, she seemed surprisingly normal, and deep down, Mari was puzzled. She had seen the young lady bully Nella and thought, "What a dirty person." But even so...

"But, that doesn't mean she deserves to die."

Her voice was swallowed by a small breeze and disappeared.

***

Rabi was betrayed by Nella. In her locked room, soldiers from the castle surrounded the entrance, and looking out the window, it was the same. It was so close. She scratched the edge of the piece that would have trapped her, but it slipped and disappeared.

She shouldn't have lost. That's what she was told. But she was just a rabbit, a small creature with short legs, hopping around. It was frustrating, painful, and embarrassing—yet she didn't think about it at all. Instead, Rabi was surprisingly peaceful, doing sit-ups and saying "eho eho" in her room. There was also aerobic exercise. The girl who was trembling in fear was nowhere to be found. If she was locked up, she would escape.

There must be a chance somewhere. If so, she couldn't afford to lose the strength she had gained. She moved enough not to be a burden and let her mind race. It was true that she had failed. She had underestimated Nella.

No matter what, she thought of Nella as a high-and-mighty final boss type. When she worked as a maid in the Heathfen family, she could move freely and recognized herself as the Holy Maiden. She thought she could crush Rabi anytime. That's why she focused on interacting with other characters, but Rabi stood out too much. Moreover, the role assigned to her had already gone off track.

Originally, she wanted to enjoy watching Rabi suffer up close, just like in the original story. But in the end, she would quickly discard a toy she was tired of.

"Huff, huff, huff, huff!!!"

She slowly repeated the boat pose, tightening her abs. Look, this is evolution. Putting that aside, she knew Nella's nature from the way she quickly condemned her for refusing to bully Nella. A serious final boss is the worst.

A few days after Leon transferred, Sai was removed from Rabi's surveillance. She found it suspicious that Sai disappeared without a reason, especially regarding his surroundings. She thought they had built a certain level of trust, so even if he disappeared, he would at least say something.

That's why Rabi immediately pretended to be sick and secluded herself in the house. This was a desperate plan to prevent false accusations, but the soldiers stormed the Heathfen house soon after.

With wide eyes, she was locked in her room for a crime she had never heard of. But in the original story, Rabi was locked in the castle's underground dungeon. Now, it was her room in the house. What a good treatment. The possibility of escape was much higher than in the castle. Nella must have struggled to fabricate a non-existent crime and couldn't arrange to send her to the dungeon.

Nella became the Holy Maiden without waiting for the magic measurement in the original story. She thought she could have claimed the title of Holy Maiden without waiting until now, but doing so would limit her movements. More guards would be added around her, and she wouldn't have the time to slowly torture Rabi... But the premise of this thought was that Rabi was deeply hated by Nella. Honestly, she had no idea why, and if there was a reason, she wished someone would tell her.

(Sai is worrying me)

Originally, Rabi's innocence was supposed to be proven by Sai. But she couldn't even meet him. He was a boy with a sword and magic, much more cautious than Rabi. It might be rude to worry about him, but her chest still felt uneasy. "Or something like that, but I'm not in a position to say that!" she shouted in a cat pose. She stretched her spine. Recently, she had added yoga to her training.

Thinking about what to do, she heard a commotion outside her room. The voice was familiar, a man. "I'm just trying to bring food! Can't you understand!?" "But, no one is allowed in the room." "You're too strict! I'm the young lady's personal meal attendant! Not giving her food is ridiculous! Even a criminal has the right to eat!"

"I'm not bringing anything else!" With a shout, the door was rudely opened. A man with orange hair tied like a tail pushed a cart into the room.

"Ah, you..."

It wasn't a face she particularly wanted to see, but the tray was steaming. "You're considerate...!!!" "I was born from a lump of consideration!" It was definitely a lie, but she was so grateful that tears welled up.

"There's porridge. The rice is a bit too much, but there are rice balls and pickles too..."

"I personally can't stand the sight of them, but I brought them with a death-defying resolve!"

"Your words are still too many, but I'm grateful...!!!"

She bowed her head in gratitude and received it. She puffed her cheeks and chewed. She warmed her stomach. Resigned to the fact that she couldn't escape, the door was closed, leaving them alone. "This time, it's a big problem..." He spoke formally, and she felt a strange sensation. "It's indeed a big problem," she summarized, but it was too cliché to care.

"...The current treatment of the young lady is due to Lord Fiel's appeal to Lord Baldor. At first, it was supposed to be the dungeon, but Rabi is too weak to endure it."

Her hand holding the spoon stopped. "So, Fiel..." She smiled bitterly, thinking he said he couldn't openly help her. Considering Nella, she doubted he would show any kindness. It was probably a reluctant decision by Baldor. Rabi quietly stared at the steam from the porridge for a while, then suddenly started eating. Now was the time to eat.

The servant watched her, his lips slightly curved. "I don't understand you, but you always try your best." "You should change your tone. If it's not me, you might get fired," she pointed out, just in case something happened after Rabi left. "You're right," the servant smiled.

"Anyway, young lady..."

The servant peered at Rabi, who was puffing her cheeks. "After you eat, let's escape quickly." The spoon slipped from her hand.

"E... Huh!?"

With that weak body!? Rabi wanted to shout, but upon closer inspection, she remembered thinking he had a surprisingly muscular build.

"Don't shout. You see, I have something to apologize for to the young lady."

"Just one thing...!?"

"Well, just listen. I was ordered by someone to monitor the young lady."

"Monitor..."

Another familiar word.

"You see, the young lady is technically the prince's fiancée. The fact that the engagement is about to be broken is a secret. I only found out recently, and my master didn't know either. With all the rumors, the prince wanted to investigate if the young lady was really suitable. I reported everything about the young lady."

He was a new servant, always rude and hard to grasp. Rabi blinked several times. "At least, I and my master think this situation is strange. At least, you're weird, but you're not a bad person. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry about my family."

When he handed over the money for the servant's robe he had bought, Rabi told him to send it to his family. He sent his meager salary to his family, as he had lamented long ago.

"I personally want to be on your side. Of course, my master does too."

Unbeknownst to her, someone had been watching over her. It was a strange feeling. "Your master...?" she