Chapter 5
“Young master, I’m sorry, but may I speak to you from outside the door?”
As I asked carefully, I could immediately sense his displeasure from inside the room.
“How insolent. A mere maid dares to defy her master’s command?”
“I apologize, young master. I truly wish to greet you properly in person. But my appearance is not presentable, and I fear I may offend you.”
I dropped to my knees in front of the door.
“I sincerely apologize for having to greet you like this. I will remain kneeling as I reflect while speaking.”
From my month at the lord’s mansion, I had learned one thing—people in power, no matter how great or small, hated having their authority challenged.
If such a situation was unavoidable, the best solution was to lower yourself completely and apologize.
If you stubbornly held onto pride, you’d be punished for insubordination.
And if the master was a nobleman, sick and confined indoors, his temperament would likely be even more sensitive.
“What if I insist on seeing your face right now?”
What should I do…
“I could at least show my face through the crack of the door. Would that be acceptable?”
“Are you joking?”
“No, I’m serious.”
I meant to sound sincere, but my tone came out too firm.
I hurried to explain.
“Young master, my current appearance is truly too shameful to show you.”
“Hah! How bad could it be? Unless you rolled in filth or are completely naked, I won’t forgive this.”
“…How did you know?”
“What?”
Through the closed door, the young master—who had been mocking me—now sounded slightly startled.
“You rolled in filth?”
“No, the second one.”
“……”
“Young master?”
“Are you… a man?”
“No.”
“And yet you said the second one?”
“Yes.”
“……”
He seemed completely speechless.
I patiently waited for him to speak again.
“Why did you come to wake me in that state?”
Oh no.
Before he misunderstood further, I hurried to explain.
“After arriving at the mansion, I was too dirty, so I washed up before meeting you… but I had nothing to change into except a bathrobe.”
As I muttered the words “bathrobe” in a small voice, I heard a creak from inside the room.
It sounded like a bed frame shifting.
“What about your belongings?”
“I didn’t bring any.”
“I find that hard to believe. Didn’t you hear that once you enter this estate, you cannot leave?”
Even someone completely detached from the world would usually bring at least one personal belonging.
Especially when entering a place where leaving wasn’t allowed.
I understood what he was suspicious of.
Even if he’s angry, he’s still listening to me.
That alone was something to be grateful for.
This was the important part.
I need to explain honestly, without exaggeration.
I took a steady breath.
“Before coming here, I was nearly kidnapped. Right after the culprit was caught, the carriage from the capital arrived.”
I explained everything that had happened in the territory as clearly as possible.
“And so, I arrived here at dawn today… and because of everything, I didn’t have time to pack anything.”
After listening quietly, the young master spoke with interest.
“You’re quite good at telling a story.”
“Thank you for listening.”
“You must have come in a hurry if you couldn’t even watch that butler and his son die.”
“…What?”
“I understand the situation. But why come to me in that state? You could have used the magic paper to order clothes first.”
“I’m an ignorant serf from the countryside. I can’t read or write.”
“Not at all?”
“Well… I can only read and write my name.”
There was a long silence.
Then, suddenly, he burst out in anger—though it didn’t seem directed at me.
“Do they take me for some kind of charity worker? They send me a nineteen-year-old who knows nothing except her own name?”
Crash!
Something broke loudly inside the room.
“Young master, are you alright?”
I hurriedly tried to stand, but my legs gave out, and I collapsed again.
“Ah—!”
The sound must have been obvious, because he sighed.
“You… don’t tell me you came to ask me to teach you how to read?”
“W-will you teach me? If you do, I’ll work really hard.”
“You didn’t come just to ask me to write the delivery list for you, did you?”
“…How did you know?”
“……”
“Young master?”
After a long silence, a cold voice answered.
“Get out.”
“Young master…”
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
He was clearly very angry.
From his perspective, it was understandable. I couldn’t make any more excuses.
I was just grateful it hadn’t escalated into something worse, like punishment.
I’ll greet him properly again once he calms down.
“Understood. I will take my leave, young master.”
After finishing my greeting, I tried to stand—
—and collapsed again.
This isn’t good.
I tried to put strength into my legs again.
Failed.
My legs, numb from kneeling, now tingled painfully.
I started pounding the sole of my foot with my fist to get the feeling back.
Tears welled up, but I couldn’t cry out here.
“Ugh—!”
I swallowed the groan with all my strength.
I clenched my fist and hit my foot faster—
—and suddenly, the door burst open.
Startled, I looked up.
The young master stood there, beyond the half-open door.
A boy with an angelic face.
Bright golden hair. Eyes as blue as the ocean.
Just as his voice suggested, he looked around fourteen or fifteen.
So beautiful. So—
—
Young master. This is my young master. My master. My everything.
—
The moment I saw him, it felt like every cell in my body was telling me to serve him.
…Huh? Why did I just think that?
I quickly shook my head.
“It really is a bathrobe…”
Was he checking if I was telling the truth?
Wearing a light shirt, the young master muttered in a pale, expressionless face.
But there was a trace of embarrassment in his voice.
Imagining how I must look to him, I forced strength into my legs.
It was almost superhuman—enough to forget the pain.
“I-I’m sorry, young master. I’ll quickly—quickly leave—”
I couldn’t finish my sentence.
Like a newborn animal, my unsteady legs gave out instantly.
As the young master came closer, I shut my eyes tightly.
No, snap out of it!
If I collided with him, my body weight alone could hurt him badly.
If he hit his head…
That would be a disaster.
I opened my eyes wide and forced all my strength into my toes, pulling my upper body inward.
My center of gravity shifted suddenly.
My body spun halfway—and headed straight toward the half-open door.
Like a hawk grabbing prey, I reached out.
Thud.
My shoulder slammed into the heavy door, and my flailing hands grabbed the doorknob and the edge of the door.
Using my barely functioning legs as support, I somehow avoided falling over completely.
“Th-thank goodness… Young master, are you hurt anywhere?”
When I turned my head, I saw his arm extended—he must have tried to catch me.
Even though he spoke harshly, he was kind at heart.
Just as I felt a surge of emotion—
Creak—crack—
A very familiar sound echoed.
