Chapter 12
“Conditions? If it’s money, I can pay as much as you—”
“Money? Our family has plenty of that! Just quit smoking for a while.”
At the word quit smoking, Grandfather’s eyebrows twitched in clear irritation. But Grandpa Floren remained completely unfazed and instead snorted firmly.
“I can already imagine it. Yesterday too, after eating, you must have smoked a cigar right in front of the patient while spouting that ridiculous nonsense about it being herbal smoke. Do you have any sense at all?”
“Th-this is merely a matter of personal preference—”
“Oh? Then that’s even better. I thought you kept it in your mouth all day because it was a baby bottle. Aren’t you a bit too old for a baby bottle now?”
“Elvin…!”
“Just in time, I have some candy made from medicinal roots that came from the East.”
With a sly grin, Grandpa Floren rummaged through his pocket and stubbornly placed a piece of candy in each of our grandfathers’ hands.
The color was strange—neither orange nor brown. It strangely reminded me of something in my memory. I didn’t know how it tasted, but I was certain it would be incredibly good for the body.
“Irina, you should leave now.”
Grandfather growled through clenched teeth and sent me out of the room. I shrugged inwardly and stepped back.
“Oh, take this with you on the way.”
“What is this?”
“For now, I brought some emergency medicine.”
What Grandpa Floren handed me was a first-aid box. After thanking him, I returned to my room and opened it. Inside were disinfectant, wound ointment, burn ointment, headache medicine, digestive medicine, and even ointment for eczema.
“Hm…”
There was no need to be sad or depressed about the diagnosis of being terminally ill. I had already grown sick of those feelings during my first life. Besides, it wasn’t like I was going to die immediately, right?
So instead, I decided to focus on what I could do right now.
I comforted myself.
Surely they won’t treat me badly after receiving a gift.
Since the medicine came from Grandfather, it would probably be far more effective than whatever the servants usually used. I should try to befriend them using this.
…Or so I thought. But reality wasn’t that simple.
The conversation between the two grandfathers dragged on, and the scheduled breakfast time passed quickly. Still, they couldn’t let me starve, so the maids brought me freshly baked bread and milk.
Along with what sounded half like a warning, half like advice—since I was supposed to have breakfast with Grandpa Floren later, I shouldn’t eat too much.
“Oh my, I’m sorry.”
Cecil deliberately set the plate down with a loud clank, causing half the milk to spill and soak the bread until it became soggy. She didn’t look sorry in the slightest.
“Do you need anything else? No, right? Then I’ll take my leave.”
Without even giving me a chance to answer, Cecil spoke sharply and hurried away. Emma and Nina had disappeared entirely at some point. It seemed Cecil, being the youngest, had been forced to take all the work.
This was the worst.
How was I supposed to get those people on my side?
Of course, it wouldn’t be difficult to get angry right away and expose their unfair behavior to have them fired. But the servants must already be confused about suddenly having to serve a young lady they’d never known about before. I didn’t want to leave a bad impression.
But I wasn’t going to stay in the mansion for just a day or two, was I?
Before it was too late, I had to establish a friendly relationship with them.
While I’m at it, I should bring a few burn ointments and eczema ointments too.
Left alone, I picked out some wound ointment from the medicine box. Then I left the room to find the maids’ quarters.
But there was one problem.
So… where is the kitchen?
I stretched my neck toward the endless corridor, biting my lip in confusion. If I wandered around and got lost, that would be even worse.
Reluctantly, I returned to my room and pulled the bell cord to call someone to guide me.
But even after waiting a long time, no one came.
Is it broken?
After pulling it a few more times, Muller finally came in. It seemed less like he had heard the bell and more like he had happened to pass by and stopped to see what I was doing.
“Young Miss?”
“Ah, Head Butler Muller. Good timing. I think the bell cord is broken.”
“The bell cord? That can’t be. By the master’s order, it was completely renovated at dawn. The springs and wires were replaced with new ones.”
“What?”
I looked down at the cord in my hand in confusion. If Butler Muller wasn’t lying, then it meant the maids had intentionally ignored my call.
“Are they all very busy…? Then I suppose I should go to them. I received some wound medicine from Grandpa Floren and thought of sharing it. Could you guide me?”
For now, I decided to act as if nothing was wrong. Perhaps I needed to revise my plan a little.
Meanwhile.
“Ah, she’s calling again. I’m busy to death—why can’t she handle things herself?”
“Just ignore it, Nina.”
“I would if I could, but the bell keeps ringing!”
Nina pointed at the row of bells hanging on the wall with her fingertip. Among them, the newest bell rang sharply.
“Hold on. If I do this… There.”
Emma, the tallest, brought over a ball of cotton and tightly wrapped the noisy bell. Instantly, the ringing stopped.
“As expected of you, Emma. Honestly, I hate how she acts like she was born a noble!”
Leaning back lazily in her chair, Nina wrinkled her nose. Cecil nodded vigorously in agreement.
“Exactly! She’s already acting like she can boss people around!”
“It’s obvious she’ll only bring shame to her parents someday.”
Muller, who had stopped in front of the wooden door to the maids’ room, glanced sideways to check Irina’s expression.
Irina stood there silently, her lips pressed into a straight line like a tightly closed chest, staring at the doorknob with unreadable eyes.
She sighed inwardly.
Do I really have to endure this too?
The answer was already decided.
No. Why should I?
Taking a deep breath, Irina violently flung the door open as if she intended to smash the locked knob.
Fortunately, the door wasn’t locked.
“Are you done talking?”
The sudden loud noise, followed by her sharp voice and the cold gaze of the head butler behind her, froze the three maids in place.
Realizing the situation too late, Cecil jumped to her feet, her face pale. Nina and Emma lowered their heads deeply and clasped their hands in front of them.
“H-Hea—Head Butler Muller! Young Miss Irina!”
“Th-this is… well…!”
Before Muller could step forward, I took a step ahead.
“Could you say what you just said in front of others too?”
“Young Miss?”
Of course, none of them could answer.
They stood there trembling, their necks and shoulders hunched. It was both ridiculous and pathetic.
“I asked if you could say it in front of Grandfather!”
“We’re—We’re sorry! Head Butler, please forgive us just this once!”
These idiots still don’t understand the situation?
“Shouldn’t the one you apologize to be me, not Head Butler Muller? How lightly do you think of me?”
In my anger, my speech slipped between formal and informal.
But should I really treat people who showed me no basic courtesy as adults deserving respect?
No.
So I stopped trying.
The heat rising to the top of my head made my vision spin. I repeatedly opened and closed my eyes to calm myself.
Then suddenly, my gaze fell on the row of bells.
“You…”
Following my gaze, Muller sharply inhaled.
The bell wrapped tightly in white cotton had three clear words written on it:
“Young Miss.”
…Ah.
So they had planned to ignore me from the beginning.
“Why… What exactly do you dislike about me so much? What did I do? Did I cry like a child saying I missed my parents? Did I throw unreasonable tantrums? Or did I speak rudely to you the first time we met?”
Since they hadn’t treated me with respect first, I no longer had any reason to use polite speech either.
Even putting age aside, I had been a well-behaved and sensible child.
At least, I had tried to act like one.
When I shouted, the three maids bent even deeper.
They probably never imagined that the quiet, obedient child would get this angry.
“As you all know, until just two days ago I was a commoner just like you. That’s why the moment I met you, I made a decision. I would become someone worthy of the Einhardt family.”
I took out the medicine I had brought.
Ointments for wounds, burns, and eczema.
All things the maids desperately needed but rarely had.
“I wanted to get along with you too. That’s why I brought this medicine.”
Only then did regret appear on their faces as they realized what they had done.
“But it seems you don’t deserve to receive this medicine.”
In the frozen air, I threw the medicine without hesitation into the fireplace where the flames were barely alive.
As if waiting for it, the fire flicked its red tongue toward the new fuel.
Perhaps the medicine contained herbs—because a sharp, herbal scent quickly filled the maids’ room.
Looking at the three women who looked so pale they might faint at any moment, I demanded one last time,
“Why did you do it? Huh? What did I ever do to you?!”
“Young Miss, getting too worked up is bad for your health…!”
Seeing this, Muller finally stepped in to stop me.
My head had already begun spinning again, so I allowed myself to be guided into a chair and began taking deep breaths.
Muller was still observing the situation. It wasn’t that he intended to let them off—he seemed to be waiting until after I had expressed my rightful anger before scolding them himself.
“…Because.”
“What?”
Cecil suddenly lifted her head.
Whether she feared Muller’s coming reprimand or felt something else entirely, her red eyes were soaked with hot tears.
“B… Because… I can’t acknowledge you… as Einhardt’s… the master’s granddaughter!”
