Chapter 004
“Are you alright?!”
Betty, having tossed aside the breakfast tray without a second thought, ran toward me with eyes wide with shock.
‘How embarrassing…….’
Of all things, I had to be caught in this state…….
“What were you even doing out here?! You should have stayed inside! Did you collapse? Are you dizzy? Has your anemia flared up?”
But Betty, completely unaware of my humiliation, was hopping around in a panic even though she wasn’t the one who had taken a tumble.
I offered a bashful excuse.
“I, I was going to chop some wood……”
“Your Grace? With those tiny, dainty, white, and soft hands? When your arms are slenderer than the handle of a hand axe!”
“……?”
Was that a compliment……?
“This is truly absurd! What do you mean, chopping wood? You look like someone who has never lifted anything heavier than a teaspoon in her life!”
“…….”
No, it definitely wasn’t a compliment…….
I never knew Betty was someone who could pour out words this quickly. She had always been a quiet child who only looked after my meals…….
“Sigh. For now…… please, get up.”
Since I was just blinking blankly, Betty pulled me up as if she were yanking a radish out of the ground. Unlike her chubby cheeks and petite frame, I could feel her fairly well-trained triceps against my skin.
‘They’re…… incredibly firm.’
I took a quick peek down at my own arm. Just as Betty had said, my arm looked as thin as the handle of the hand axe.
“…….”
For some reason, I felt a deep sense of defeat…….
“Yeah, thanks……”
I could only manage a faint smile…….
* * *
Knock, knock.
“Milady. It’s Betty.”
“Ah, yes.”
Before long, the cottage door opened, and Betty reappeared, holding a tray.
“I have prepared breakfast again.”
“Thank you……”
Earlier, when that brief “firewood commotion” (?) occurred, my hair and the clothes I’d changed into just this morning had become a mess from rolling around on the muddy ground.
Betty had poured out a series of roundabout scoldings—with the nuance that she had seen all sorts of strange things in her life—and then quickly heated some water and scrubbed me clean. Since it was my first time being “thoroughly washed” by someone as an adult, I felt a second wave of humiliation today, right after the incident of falling on my butt while trying to use the axe…….
However, Betty had returned to being a silent maid as if nothing had happened.
‘……Fine, just enjoy it.’
How can anyone beat someone who’s just enjoying themselves? Besides, soaking in warm water and having fragrant oils slathered all over my body was a luxury like no other. Once I decided to just go with the flow, my heart felt much more at ease.
And then, breakfast was served again.
‘Food!’
When I opened the silver cover over the tray, a delicious-looking salad greeted me once again. Beside it were small cherry tomatoes, oatmeal, some grilled duck, and even a pretty sunny-side-up fried egg.
It was a perfectly healthy meal, balanced in carbs, protein, and fats. I had been worried that one of the reasons I died after just drinking and sleeping in my past life was my disastrous eating habits, but here, those worries were gone.
‘It looks delicious.’
As I blinked and picked up my fork, I noticed Betty, who was standing beside me, flinch for some reason. Come to think of it, her brown hair and shoulders were dusted with snowflakes. Realizing my mistake, instead of lifting the fork, I stood up and brushed the snow off Betty’s shoulders.
“Thank you for bringing this all the way here again while it’s snowing. Wasn’t it hard for you?”
“Oh, no! Not at all. This is my job.”
“But the road must be slippery on a snowy day like today……”
“I’m really fine.”
Then again…… considering the firm triceps and well-defined forearms I felt earlier, a task like this was likely nothing to her. Still, I couldn’t just brush it off as if it were truly nothing.
“You’re a good person, Betty.”
Thinking that a maid serving nobles was probably in the same boat as a graduate student who had to do whatever their advisor ordered without a word of complaint, I felt a bit of sympathy for her. I vowed to save the small madeleine served as dessert for her.
I sat back down and was about to take a bite with my fork when, for some reason, Betty stood before the table with a flushed face, hesitating.
“……Is something the matter?”
She seemed to have something to say, so I looked up at her with a curious face.
“Mi—Milady!”
“Yes?”
“Well, um……. About the library you asked about the other day.”
“Ah.”
While I liked being alone, I was starting to get bored. So, a few days ago, when I asked Betty if she could bring me something to read, she said there was a library in the main building. However, she mentioned it had been neglected for a very long time, so the interior needed to be cleaned…….
“Yes. Is the cleaning finished?”
“The thing is…… actually, there are no spare hands in the Grand Duke’s castle right now. E—Everyone is really busy, including me……”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. So, it seems like it will be difficult for you to use it immediately.”
“Hmm.”
I poked a tomato with my fork and popped it into my mouth. Refreshing juice burst forth inside my mouth.
“Then I’ll just clean it myself.”
“……Pardon?”
“What’s so difficult about it? Can I go once I’ve finished breakfast?”
“You, Milady, will do the cleaning yourself? With that frail body? My goodness! Your arm would fall off just from holding a duster!”
“…….”
……What on earth does she think of me?
“O—Of course, it was also you, Milady, who polished this place up so nicely with that small body in just a week. I was truly surprised while peeking every now and then……”
“You were peeking?”
“Ah, n—no! Since I’m the maid who should be your hands and feet…… I—I mean…… anyway, you must be careful with the axe……!”
Whether she realized she’d said something wrong, Betty finally shut her mouth after rambling for a while. I tried to hide my embarrassment and argued back.
“Earlier…… it was just because the axe was heavy.”
“I can lift that with one hand, though.”
“…….”
Damn it, I lost to “lifestyle muscles.” If I continue gardening from now on, even if I don’t get as strong as Betty, won’t I eventually be able to escape these “dry twig” forearms of mine? After all, didn’t I make this cottage look decent with my own hands in just a week? So maybe I can do a decent job of cleaning the library too? It’s different from chopping wood.
Just as I, refusing to give up, was about to pester Betty again, she beat me to it.
“In the main building…… could you please not go there?”
“Why?”
“That is, even if you ask…… um, how should I put it……”
Betty seemed to be struggling to talk in circles so that I wouldn’t be hurt.
“You can be honest. Why……”
“Please don’t ask for the reason! Anyway, I’m saying this for your sake, Milady. I think it would be better if you didn’t go to the main building.”
Betty seemed quite troubled to answer. I nodded as if I understood and asked:
“I see……. Then, can I chop some wood?”
“…….”
Betty’s expression, which had been wary of my reaction until just a moment ago, turned fierce in an instant. Her cute face and small stature reminded me of a Maltese, but her aura was no less than that of Cerberus. I asked again, sweating slightly.
“Not even that?”
“Of course not! What kind of Grand Duchess in the world would……!”
“But there really isn’t anything fun to do besides that……”
“……N—No. Even if you look at me with those rabbit-like eyes! I, I……”
“?”
Rabbit-like……? Me……?
I didn’t really want to imagine what I looked like in Betty’s eyes right now, but…… it was clear that if I couldn’t even do that, the day would be tedious since there was nothing else to do. It would be perfect to read books while cleaning the library. Why was she so reluctant for me to go to the main building? Was it because of that man—the one who told me not to catch his eye, the one who was tall, large, and broad-chested?
“It’s because of the Grand Duke after all, isn’t it? In case I accidentally catch his eye. Will you get in trouble then, Betty?”
“…….”
“If that’s the case, I won’t go.”
Right. I shouldn’t trouble Betty for no reason. I could just find some other form of entertainment. Just as I was about to change my plans lightheartedly, thinking, ‘Maybe I should try climbing that back hill this time……’
“T—That’s not it!”
