Episode 4 – Invitation from the Imperial Capital
Lula, who had been waiting for Celly on the side, grew impatient as the men showed no sign of ending their idle chatter, and she waved her hand to chase them away herself. Once the men finally left, Lula rolled up her sleeves and prepared to teach Celly the laundry duties.
“Alright, I’ll teach you the laundry work.”
At Lula’s words, Celly frowned, her perfectly shaped eyebrows knitting together as she muttered.
“Sigh… do I really have to work in the laundry? My hands will get rough. I’d rather serve in the house than work in the laundry…”
Lula, who had already been annoyed by Celly giggling and wasting time with others from the moment she arrived, frowned and spoke sharply.
“Why didn’t you tell the head maid? I don’t want to teach someone who doesn’t want to work!”
Seeing that the seemingly easygoing Lula was irritated, Celly quickly changed her tone.
“Oh, no, it’s nothing, I was just talking to myself… no need to get so angry, hehe.”
Lula, displeased with Celly’s ridiculous excuse, wanted to yell for her to leave the laundry room immediately, but she reminded herself that Celly had been carefully selected by the head maid, so she held back and explained the work.
“Every morning, you’ll do the laundry in the laundry room, and then hang the clothes on the clothesline in the backyard. The iron is in the small kitchen, so after ironing the duke’s laundry separately, you give it to Ella, the maid responsible for him. Actually, we’re supposed to change the bedding too, but the duke is very strict and difficult, so Ella handles it instead. Understood? Now go and hang the laundry.”
Though Lula hadn’t originally intended to assign work on the first day, Celly’s bad attitude angered her, and she tossed the laundry basket to her as if throwing it.
“Y-yes…”
Celly muttered as she carried the laundry basket to the backyard, where she noticed Ella walking past with a luxurious teacup on a silver tray.
Since the only person in the mansion who would drink tea from such a fancy cup was the duke, Celly hurriedly called out to Ella.
“Um? Excuse me!”
She tossed the laundry basket carelessly onto the ground and ran to Ella. The freshly washed clothes fell and got dirty, but Celly didn’t care as she spoke.
“Hello, I’m the new maid, Celly.”
Recalling that the head maid had just barely selected a new maid a few days ago, Ella greeted her politely.
“Hello. How can I help you?”
“Oh, are you the maid in charge of the duke?”
When Ella nodded, Celly gave her a disdainful once-over from head to toe.
“Hmph… so, you’re the duke’s maid in charge, but you’re just ordinary? I’m much prettier… If I had arrived just a little earlier, I’d be serving the duke… if only she weren’t here…”
Ella frowned at Celly’s rude and unpleasant gaze from their very first meeting.
“Well, you’re more ordinary than I expected. I thought the duke’s maid in charge would be as pretty as me.”
Ella let out a disbelieving chuckle at Celly’s remark.
“I think you’re mistaken… the duke’s maid in charge isn’t chosen based on looks.”
“Hmph, the duke would probably prefer a pretty maid by his side. Until now, he hasn’t had a maid as pretty as me, so he had to settle for her… If he saw me, he might switch maids immediately.”
Having said what she wanted, Celly grabbed the laundry basket again and headed to the backyard. Ella frowned at Celly’s disrespectful attitude.
All the servants in the duke’s mansion knew the duke’s temperament well and tried to stay quiet to avoid attracting his attention. But Celly, with some inexplicable confidence, acted arrogantly and rudely. With that attitude, it was obvious she’d either cause trouble soon or catch the duke’s attention and get dismissed.
Sigh… I hope nothing noisy happens…
Ella sighed softly, wishing that Celly wouldn’t cause any disturbance in the normally quiet mansion.
As Ella walked to the study carrying tea, the butler called out to her.
“Ella, this is just a regular letter, but the envelope with the golden seal is an invitation from the Imperial Capital.”
Handing the invitation addressed to the duke to Ella, the butler spoke. Unlike other noble families, the duke’s family rarely received invitations, but both the butler and Ella found it surprising that invitations occasionally arrived, considering the duke’s personality.
“This is the first invitation from the Imperial Capital I’ve seen.”
Ella examined the invitation stamped with the imperial crest. The butler glanced around to ensure no one was nearby and whispered to her.
“Actually, at an imperial party some time ago, a noble accidentally spilled wine on the duke. He said he didn’t need hands that couldn’t hold a cup properly and stabbed him with a dessert fork… Luckily, it was an imperial party and no swords were drawn; if he had brought a sword…”
The butler shivered, clearly shuddering at the thought.
“Since that incident, the Imperial Court rarely sends invitations unless the duke must attend.”
Nodding at the butler’s words, Ella placed the invitation and a paper knife on the tray and headed toward the study.
“May I come in, Duke?”
“Come in.”
Entering the study, Ella handed the invitation to the duke, who was gazing out the window while smoking a pipe.
“It’s an invitation from the Imperial Court.”
The invitation politely requested the duke’s attendance at a hunting competition hosted by the imperial family.
“The hunting competition is already upon us, huh.”
Reading the invitation, the duke handed it back to Ella. Though it was bothersome, it was the second most important annual event after the Founding Festival, so he had no choice but to attend.
“Tell the butler; he’ll prepare everything as usual.”
“Yes, understood.”
Having finished her morning tasks, Ella was about to leave the study when the duke called her back.
“Ella, you’re coming with me. Prepare yourself.”
Usually, maids weren’t taken to the hunting competition, so Ella hesitated briefly but then nodded and left the study.
After leaving the study, Ella relayed the duke’s words to the butler, who was shocked.
“What? He’s taking you?”
“Yes, he said I should prepare to come along.”
“Well, if Ella is coming, everyone will be happy. They won’t have to serve the duke personally; even the knights find him difficult.”
Not only the servants but also the knights feared the duke. While his exceptional swordsmanship contributed, his reputation as a “mad duke” was mainly due to his strict and rough personality.
“But I’ve never been to a hunting competition, so I don’t know what to prepare.”
Ella confessed her worry to the butler.
“Don’t worry, I’ll handle most of it. You just need to show up. Oh, do you only have maid uniforms?”
“Yes.”
“Then I’ll get a few pairs of trousers for the staff. A skirt isn’t practical for the hunting grounds…”
“Thank you.”
Ella thanked the butler, who, looking tired, patted her shoulder.
“I’ll go get things ready; time’s tight.”
After the butler hurried off to prepare, Ella went to the kitchen for a late lunch.
Having had no summons from the duke, Ella enjoyed a rare break in her room, but by evening she prepared the duke’s dinner and took it to his bedroom.
“Duke, dinner is ready.”
“Ah… not in the mood today.”
Seeing the duke pressing his brows with a frown, Ella asked,
“Another headache?”
“Yeah…”
His face darker than usual from a severe headache, Ella fidgeted with the bottle of herbal oil she kept in her apron pocket.
The special herbal oil, taught by her late mother, was a blend of crushed mint, lavender, lemongrass, hibiscus, and other herbs mixed into oil. Rubbing it on the head or muscles relieved pain completely.
Though she had prepared the oil in small amounts for the duke, he was extremely averse to anyone touching him, so she only fiddled with the bottle in her pocket.
“D-Duke… if your headache is severe, shall I give you a massage?”
“….”
Hesitating, Ella carefully spoke to him.
The duke looked at her silently. Seeing him stare without speaking, Ella withdrew her hand from the oil bottle and apologized.
“I’m sorry… I’ll step out now.”
“Wait… come here.”
Ella paused at the duke’s call. Knowing the duke’s sensitivity to touch, she assumed he would reject her offer. Hesitant, she approached him.
The duke, leaning back on the sofa, closed his eyes quietly as she came closer. Though he couldn’t understand why he wanted her to stay, he felt it might be alright for her to touch him.
Ella took out the herbal oil she had made herself, filling the room with a soothing, refreshing scent.
“The scent is nice… did you make this yourself?”
“Yes, Duke. Since you often suffer from headaches, I thought it might help.”
Hearing that she had made it for him, the duke’s lips curved into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
Ella gently gazed at the duke with closed eyes, rubbed the oil on her hands, and slowly began massaging his head. His ebony hair intertwined softly with her long fingers.
Trusting his body to her hands, the duke gradually forgot his pain and drifted into a deep, peaceful sleep.
